The Shadow Labyrinth: A LitRPG Adventure Read online

  "Why would you be playing track and find all the way out here? Do you play games in Ara's tree? Or in the middle of Lhoris' training grounds?" he asked.

  "No! I mean, no. I would never do that," said Corabell.

  "Then why would you come here to play a game like that?" he asked.

  She lowered her head. "They said he shouldn't be here. This is our cave now, so it's not like Ara's or Lhoris' place. He shouldn't have hit me with that rock."

  "Did you decide to play here? Or did someone suggest it?" When she wouldn't meet his gaze, or answer, he knew it was the latter. "Who was it?"

  Corabell squeezed her lips tight, but she snuck a glance towards those assembled. Terran followed where she'd been looking, finding Enoki standing alone.

  "Fine. You don't have to answer. But you do need to tell me if you think I should punish Granite. If you think it was purposeful, then I'll do my duty as the leader of Gneiss Glen," said Terran.

  The weight of the decision falling on Corabell's shoulders collapsed them. She looked like she was ready to sprint away, but feared to move, caught between fight or flight.

  "I need an answer," he said.

  She gave him a tight shake of the head and squeaked out, "No."

  "Thank you for your honesty," said Terran, standing up and turning to the other elves. "There will be no punishment. This was an accident without intent or malice." He paused as the elves scowled. "This area is now off-limits for the unauthorized. Granite Mountaineater has permission to use it, but no one else, and everyone should respect those boundaries."

  You have lost reputation with Gneiss Glen!

  The notification made his stomach tighten but he wasn't about to change his mind. As they dispersed, Terran called out, "Enoki."

  The loamer approached, crossing her arms. "Granite is good for the settlement. We need his smithy, especially if we want to outfit our centaur friends at Wunderlust Keep."

  "Then send him there," said Enoki. "He shouldn't be here. He's our enemy. He'll betray us the first chance he gets."

  "You have my word that he won't," said Terran.

  She squeezed her lips together. "First you drive my sister away and now you bring Crag Trolls into the settlement. The others might worship you like a god, but I see you for what you are. You're just like the others."

  Before he could say anything, she stormed away, leaving Terran to stew in his thoughts.

  The quest "Deal with the Crag Troll situation" has escalated. It is now an elite quest.

  The reward has increased but so has the penalty for failure.

  "You might have made mistake by accepting me," said Granite as he sat on a pile of stones, tossing pebbles into the grass. "I will understand if you change mind."

  "No," said Terran, "but I appreciate the offer. I mean it when I say that you're important to the defense of the settlement. Zara was right for inviting you, but I just wasn't ready for how opposed they would be to your arrival."

  "I mean them no harm," said Granite.

  "That's what we need to prove." He eyed the equipment. "How long until your smithy is ready?"

  The enormous Crag Troll cupped his chin thoughtfully. "One, maybe two weeks."

  That time frame was never going to work. Enoki had engineered this conflict, and while he was able to deflect it, next time it would be worse.

  "That's too long. I'm going to send a few warriors to help build your furnace and keep an eye on the mischief-makers," said Terran.

  "I am sorry I am so much trouble," said Granite.

  "No, it's me that's sorry." Terran ran his fingers over the anvil. "But once it's up and running, I need you to make something for the Glen that will impress them. Show them why you're important for our defense against the Howling Wind."

  Granite squinted into the distance. "I shall ponder upon your request at length."

  "Not too long, my friend," said Terran, laughing. "We need the smithy."

  The Crag Troll patted him "gently" on the shoulder, nearly knocking him down.

  "Do not worry, Lord Terran the Tenacious." The Crag Troll paused, sniffed once, leaned forward, and sniffed again, this time a long inhale. "Do you know you are infected?"

  "Shadow-touched? Yes. Do you know what will happen or how to get rid of it?" asked Terran.

  Granite grunted softly. "Once there was a young Crag Troll who wandered too far in his quest for battle and glory. He came upon a strange hollow where the shadows came alive. He managed to escape but when he returned, he was changed. He smelled like you do." He snarled at the memory. "When the shadows took him, we had to kill him."

  "I see."

  "You are made of strong stuff, Lord Terran. I do not think this will happen to you, but I would get rid of it if you can," said Granite.

  "Thanks," said Terran. "I need to go now, but look for my warriors to arrive. Let me know if anyone causes trouble."

  He teleported back to the Glen, finding Lhoris right away for the assignment. The tall captain was unhappy about the request, reminding Terran about the extra loaming requirements. Only the addition of the centaurs eased Lhoris away from too much disagreement, but Terran sensed the elven captain was stretched.

  After the discussion, Terran grabbed a quick bite to eat and traveled the hidden pathways to the town of Salt Luck, where Lhoris' half-brother was the marshal. He arrived to find ships burning in the harbor.

  Chapter Nine

  The rapid travel had drained his mana, so Terran sprinted along the sandy paths towards the docks. The sounds of battle rang over the town. The harbor had to be reached by winding wooden stairs that meandered down from the main street. Other residents ran towards the battle with pitchforks and spears.

  Two ships burned, fire crackling up the sails as battle raged on their decks. Three other ships were covered in assailants. It wasn't until Terran reached the docks that he saw the way the battle lines were drawn.

  "Fire another round!" cried Arabast Salthammer, the dwarven mayor of the town as he triggered his weighty crossbow at a pirate on the nearest ship, taking the man in the throat and sending him tumbling over the rail into the frothy sea. The townsfolk launched their arrows and bolts into the melee, but Terran wasn't sure they weren't hitting more friends than foes.

  "What happened?" asked Terran, coming up beside the mayor.

  "You have excellent timing, Lord Terran. A group of pirates snuck into the harbor to steal our ships. Aminata is on the Chrysanthemum trying to fight them off but there's too many," said Mayor Arabast.

  "Hold your fire until I can rescue him," said Terran.

  He sprinted to the ramp, bounding up the slope and onto the unsteady deck, which was slick with blood and battle. The chaos prevented him from using an area of effect song. Enough damage had been done by the mayor's archers—he didn't want to finish off the warriors who had made the brave assault to rescue the ship.

  Terran spotted Aminata with his back against the captain's quarters, using a hooked blade in one hand and a black truncheon in the other. It was three on one, but the pirates hesitated to attack at once. Terran couldn't understand until he saw one pirate get too close and the lightning-quick Aminata catch the man's short sword with his hooked weapon, tug him in close, then break his jaw with the truncheon. A spray of teeth and blood splattered across the other pirates, giving them pause.

  Before Terran could press forward, a dwarven pirate with a blunderbuss unloaded his weapon. The blast took Terran in the side. It didn't deal a lot of damage, but hurt like hell. Terran lifted his staff to his lips, sending out a focused sonic wave that knocked the pirate onto his back, blood leaking from his eyes and ears. Terran turned to assess the flow of battle, and a voice rang out over the deck.

  "It's the tree elf king! Get him!"

  His entrance into the fray had gone largely unnoticed before, but the callout brought the weight of the attention towards him. He didn't have time to think about the fact that there was a bounty on his head before he was swinging his humming crystal staf
f at the hungry blades searching for his throat. A group of four pirates backed him against the rail, and Terran might have considered leaping over, except for the fins circling the ship, clearly drawn by the blood in the water. He was caught in the thigh by a long rapier and barely got his staff in the way of an axe chop. As more pirates rushed his location, Terran ignored caution and blasted them with a Vocal Slam. The velocity tumbled them backwards, cracking the railing on the opposite side of the deck. He killed two pirates outright, and the others were slow to get up, but that didn't stop them from converging on him. He was lifting his weapon to his lips for a blast when a blunderbuss slammed him in the chest. Boom! A second shot knocked him to his knees as more pirates rushed in, grabbing his arms and legs. His staff was ripped away and hands covered his mouth, making it impossible to sing.

  As the pirates carried him to the far side of the ship, he could hear them calling for a sloop. He had the sudden image of being transported across the ocean to be sold to the Howling Wind, ending the war even before it could begin. But as they crossed the deck, he heard cries of pain and shouts, then he was dropped onto the wood.

  "Get up before they rally," said Aminata, keeping the pirates at bay with his twin weapons. The marshal moved like a snake, striking if the pirates even thought about attacking.

  Terran climbed to his feet, searching for his staff, without which he felt naked. A toothless pirate ran towards him with a wicked knife, and Terran grabbed an old pine cone from his pouch and exploded stone shards in his attacker's face. The barrage gave him an opening towards the ramp. He and Aminata fought their way off the deck, hitting the dock as the mayor loosed another round of arrows.

  "My staff," said Terran, turning to run back up the ramp.

  Aminata grabbed his arm. "There's too many of them," said the marshal.

  Terran pulled the rose crystal from beneath his whisperweave tunic and focused on a pirate that stood at the railing to fire his blunderbuss.

  "Bring me my staff!"

  The pirate's eyes glazed over and he turned, but as he did, a round of arrows pin-cushioned his back. The pirate spun, tripped over the railing, and went into the bay, where the sharks turned the water crimson.

  As the sails rose, the ship lurched away from the dock. Without his staff, he couldn't use many of his bardic songs, making him much less effective. Rage consumed Terran. ' He filled his lungs with air and unleashed a Sonic Disruption that exited his lips with the force of a hurricane. The spell was meant to damage earth-based creatures and objects, but he'd never unleashed it against a structure as large as a galley. At first he didn't think he could affect it, but then the curved hull boards cracked, splitting by twos and threes, until the side of the ship facing him began to disintegrate. He gave a final push at the end, which punched a cannon-sized hole in the hull, and water rushed in as the pirates stumbled to the break, clearly concussed from his auditory assault.

  The effort left Terran on his knees as the ship sunk deeper into the water and the sharks circled. The pirates fled the sinking ship on a pair of sloops, heading towards the single galley that had escaped unscathed from the raid. From across the bay, the shimmering blue crystal at the tip of his staff made its way onto the pirate ship.

  Mayor Arabast and Marshal Aminata joined him at the end of the dock as the lone pirate ship escaped the bay, heading to parts unknown.

  "I'm sorry I couldn't stop more of them," said Terran.

  "That they only got one ship is blessing enough. We managed to set fire to two of them, you sunk one, and they escaped with another, leaving the one we managed to defend," said Mayor Arabast, gesturing towards the galley at the next dock.

  "They had a lot of casualties for one ship," said Terran.

  "The Howling Wind is paying pirates to steal ships. They need enough of them to cross the sea," said the mayor, crossing his arms and grunting. "The other villages along the coast have been having the same problems. We had a watch set, but they managed to kill them before we realized it. They nearly made it out of the bay except for Aminata's heroics."

  "That's troublesome," said Terran.

  The marshal turned, regarding him with his steely gray eyes. "They seemed keen to capture you."

  "It would make their job of conquering the continent much easier," said Terran.

  The marshal said nothing, but the way the corners of his eyes creased, as if he thought his comment stemmed from hubris, told Terran a lot about his chances of convincing him to join the Glen.

  "Thank you for saving me back there," said Terran. "I've never seen anyone move so fast."

  "If only the speed of weapons was enough to solve our problems," said Aminata stoically as he stared at the white sails disappearing around the edge of the bay.

  Mayor Arabast stroked his beard, eyeing Terran. "I assume this visit wasn't for pleasure. You look like a man with important business." The dwarf squinted. "And you've changed since last we met."

  "There have been, uhm, developments, and yes, I came here to talk to you both," said Terran.

  "Come then, we can talk at my place," said the mayor, shifting the crossbow onto his shoulder. "I need a drink."

  "But the docks," said Aminata, nostrils flaring.

  Mayor Arabast kept walking. "The pirates ain't coming back and nobody needs us breathin' over their shoulders. They know what to do, but they need us to figure out what's next. We're safe, for now. Let's make sure the future's that way too."

  On the way through the town, Aminata walked by his side. "Your weapon," he asked as they entered the main street, "do you have a spare?"

  "No," said Terran, frowning, "but this will give me a chance to make a new one. I'm sure I can do better for the next one."

  In the mayor's study, Arabast poured them each a glass of brandy then stood near the wide window that overlooked the bay. The two ships had burned down to the water, leaking black smoke into the sky.

  "You didn't come all this way for small talk," said Mayor Arabast as he stared at the sea. "Out with it."

  "You already know about the Howling Wind. They're coming here. Sooner than later. If they're gathering ships, I worry it's not long," said Terran.

  "You sound like you have a plan," said the mayor, sipping his brandy.

  "I'm expanding Gneiss Glen, building a force to defend this continent from the Howling Wind when they get here," said Terran.

  "There's no way a few dozen Rock Leaf Elves can stop that murderous horde when they get here," said Aminata, an unchecked fury in his voice.

  "Which is why we need allies. We're recruiting from Dagrath, other villages in the area. We can't beat them if we're spread out," said Terran.

  "Conveniently under your rule," said Mayor Arabast, meeting him with a level gaze. "I'm not saying that you're wrong, but just pointing out the obvious. You're an Offworlder after all." He squinted. "You're here for the marshal, aren't you?"

  "Amongst other things, but yes," said Terran, looking the tough elf in the face. "We need you. Lhoris can't train all of our new recruits and guard the borders at the same time."

  Aminata looked away at his half-brother's name. "They chose him, not me."

  "You didn't have to leave. Why did you?" asked Terran.

  The marshal rubbed his palm with a thumb while looking down. "I couldn't...be there to watch."

  The comment confused him until he remembered Lhoris' courtship of Ara.

  "I understand," said Terran as he set his glass onto the table. When he'd come to Salt Luck, he'd only intended to recruit the marshal, but seeing the pirate attack changed everything. "I'd like you all to come. Salt Luck would be the likeliest place the Howling Wind would land. You'd be the first to be overrun. Come back to the Glen with me."

  "You're right about this being the most likely landing spot. Our bay is the only one deep enough for ocean-sailing ships for a hundred miles or more. It's the reason this town is even here, so if they're gonna land, it'll be through that narrow pass," said the mayor, gesturing towards the finge
rs of land that separated the bay from the deeper blue ocean, which frothed with waves. He grunted and took a sip from his amber drink. "But abandon the home I built with my own two hands? Not a chance," said Mayor Arabast gruffly. "But I won't begrudge anyone from Salt Luck who wants to join the Glen. The attack will have them shook up. You'll probably get some takers."

  "You're going to stay, knowing that they'll hit you here?" asked Terran, genuinely confused.

  The stocky dwarf sagged slightly. "I owe the people a debt for bringing Gloricia here. Good townsfolk lost their lives because of my wife. Friends." He gestured towards the bay. "I'll keep watch for the Wind, sink the last galley in the neck of the bay so they can't sail into the port. There will be others who won't leave, because this is the only place they know. I'll stay long enough to keep them safe."

  "Marshal?" asked Terran.

  Aminata looked like he was still processing the mayor's decision. He faced Terran, resting his hand on the hilt of his holstered weapon.

  "I'll join if I'm in charge of the war effort," said Aminata, squinting. "My half-brother can train the new recruits. It's what he's suited for. That's my offer. If you decline, then I'll stay here and help Arabast defend the bay."

  This would be a huge blow to Lhoris, who'd been a part of the settlement since the beginning, but Terran knew he needed Aminata.

  "Thank you, Captain Aminata. I accept your offer," he said, offering the elvish salute.

  Aminata returned the gesture then headed stiffly towards the exit. "I'll gather those that want to join Gneiss Glen. Expect us in a week. I expect my quarters and provisions will be ready when I arrive."

  After the former marshal left, Mayor Arabast grunted. "Despite his prickliness, he's a good elf to have at your side in a fight. You did well by choosing him."

  "There will be consequences," said Terran, receiving a quest notification as confirmation.

  The quest "Repair the rift between Lhoris and Aminata" has been updated