Lost Lands: The Game - Atlantis (22 page)

They didn’t know why but the Outlanders had taken
full advantage of that fact and repelled them.

The second attack the
hunters had tried to flank them with a small group attacking the opening while two larger groups had tried to climb over the walls. It was obvious when Pixi appeared out of thin air and burned them, that they hadn’t been expecting the faerie. Two of the surviving hunters had lost their clubs in the conflagration but pulled out swords and attacked. They both died but not before wounding the half-elf and the dwarf.

Gamble looked out at the remaining hunters and recognized what they were planning.
Turning back to his friends, he steeled himself for the upcoming argument but knew they didn’t have a choice. “We won’t be able to stop the next charge.”

Mathias finished tying off the makeshift bandage on his thigh and nodded. The dressing was already blood-soaked but he ignored th
at fact. “You figure they’ll do a mass charge?”

“I would. We’ve stopped the last two and that
’s the only thing they haven’t tried.”

Pixi was currently visible and near normal size
. “So? We’ll stop them.” She pointed at the surrounding corpses. “Look what we’ve already accomplished.”

Mathias shook his head. “No. We won’t be able to stop them this time.
It’s simple numbers. When they rush forward en mass, they will completely swarm over the defenses and us. And there’s nothing we can do to stop it.”

Gamble nodded. “Except one thing.”

Pixi raised one eyebrow. “What’s that?”

“
Mathias and I can keep their attention on us during the fight, which should allow you to slip away and find Tao. You have to tell him what’s happened.”

“No! I won’t leave you!”

Mathias frowned but nodded. He had realized the truth of their situation just as the dwarf had. “It’s the only way. What we cannot change we must endure.”

Pixi stopped protesting and thought about what he’d said. “That’s a good philosophy.”

Mathias snickered. “I wished I had come up with it. My fiancé is an avid reader. It’s a line in some romance novel she was reading. I can’t remember the author or even if it’s an exact quote but it stuck with me.”

Gamble couldn’t pass up the opportunity to jab on his friend. “A romance novel that SHE was reading…right.”
The dwarf nodded and grinned. “I believe that.”

The half-elf’s eyes went wide and the slight flush of embarrassment rolled over his fair skin. “Seriously.”

“Hog wash!”

Whatever either of the friends w
ere going to say next was forgotten as they spied movement in the hunter camp. Their attackers had fanned out and were moving towards them. They knew that they only had seconds until they charged. Gamble turned back to the faerie.

“It
really is our only hope. If you don’t tell Tao about the hunters he’ll never know what happened and he might even send more of our friends into Antioch. However, if we do survive their attack and are captured, it’ll be up to you to make sure we’re rescued.”

“But…but…”

Mathias pulled his twin matching daggers and moved to one side of the open door. “Good-bye Pixi…Whitney. I hope to see you again real soon.”

Gamble moved to the opposite side. “Take care of yourself ya little Limey.”

Pixi hated the thought of leaving her friends behind but she knew that they were correct. Someone had to escape and warn the others. She was the logical choice but that didn’t mean she had to like it. Calling on the innate abilities of her faerie avatar, she shrank back down to her smallest size, about six inches or so, and turned invisible. Flying straight up to a height of about fifty feet, she hovered and watched. She might not be able to help them but she wasn’t going to abandon them, at least not without knowing the whole story.

Mathias and Gamble looked out at the rushing mob of hunters. There was no give in their eyes, only rage. They had been humiliated with their futile assaults and meant to redeem themselves this time and their payment would be blood. As the first two hunters rushed through the open doorway, the Outlanders struck.

Even as the hunters fell, two more took their place. Gamble and Mathias tried their best to remain near each other for a better defense but as more bodies poured through the doorway or over the walls, they were forced apart. They blocked and parried, stabbed and slashed, dodged and jumped to the best of their abilities but they both knew the end was near.

Suddenly the very ground beneath their feet began rumbling, violently. So much
so that everyone, attackers and defenders alike, were knocked down.

Someone yelled, “Earthquake!”

When the stone doorway came apart and reformed into a vaguely humanoid shape, Gamble seriously doubted that was what it was. The stone creature surveyed the area but didn’t move. That was until two stupid hunters attacked it. Anyone with any sense would have realized that attacking a thirty foot tall creature made of stone with a two foot piece of sharpened steel as a futile gesture. Maybe that was their last thought as the stone creature shifted its form and slammed twin pillars of spinning rock down on top of them…squishing them like a bug.

That was enough for the rest of the bounty hunters as they broke formation and fled into the wilderness. The rock creature seemed to watch them flee for several minutes before it shuddered once and broke apart.

Gamble looked over at Mathias. The half-elf simply shook his head and shrugged his shoulders. He had no idea what had happened. Of course, the old saying about ‘not looking a gift horse in the mouth’ came to mind. No matter why it had happened, they were alive and that meant they had something to be positive about.

*   *   *   *   *

Sanguine Bolt shook his head as he listened to the reports from his hunters.

It was obvious that earlier reports about the Outlanders had left out
one important fact. That they had a spellcaster with them, a wizard by all accounts and one that was very skilled in elemental magic. This was both good and bad. Good in the fact that the wizard might be strong enough to help him but bad because Sanguine Bolt had missed an important opportunity due to bad intel, or should he say incomplete intelligence.

He
had tried his best to organize and train his own brand of intelligence network. They were nowhere near as sophisticated as MI-6 or the CIA but they were getting better. They were the ones who had discovered the Outlanders in his city in the first place. He made a mental note to chastise them about not realizing that they had a spellcaster with them but then it was his own fault for not taking that possibility into consideration himself. The only glimmer of good information had been from the old tracker that had been leading the chase.

When everyone else had fled, the old tracker had hunkered down and watched.
Sometime around midday, a flight of wyverns had arrived and picked up the Outlanders. The old tracker had watched them fly off to the west before returning to Antioch.

The involvement of the wyvern riders was
peculiar. By all reports the bandits preyed on anyone weaker than themselves and particularly focusing on anyone aligned with Atlantis. However the really odd part was that he’d never heard of them returning to pick up stranded warriors. Just one more thing that was strange about the whole situation. Plus, he had to take in consideration the latest reports about a large force of Peacekeepers camped near the small hamlet of Crooked Creek. He knew that the religious order was becoming more and more militant and sooner or later would take a stab at Antioch. It was the only logical reason for them to be operating in this region.

Wayne, or Sanguine Bolt as he was known in these lands, leaned back and contemplated the
strange circumstances he found himself in. One day he was Alpha testing a new game and the next he was trapped inside that same game. However, it was in this realm where he really seemed to flourish and he found that the organizational skills he gained from his years of working in the Human Resources department of an up and coming software company began to pay off. He’d been able to pair his management skills with his new found magical abilities and work his way through the Wizard’s Guild. Originally in Atlantis but after Sartael stole one half of the Dragon Orb and the calamity that followed, Sanguine relocated to Antioch and proceeded to take over the Wands.

It would really help if he could figure out what
Al Shaytan’s endgame was or at least what his next move would be. After all, he was the true enemy. The Outlanders and even the Peacekeepers were just pawns in his little game, just like the Goblin King and the High Mage of Atlantis had been a century before. Sanguine Bolt’s real challenge would be figuring out how the new Outlanders fit into Al Shaytan’s grand plan or if Sartael was directly involved somehow.

Not one to shy away from dangers, Sanguine Bolt rang
the gong next to his desk and in rushed his servants. He didn’t even look up as he began giving orders. “Prepare my gryphon. I will also need supplies for a full week, although I don’t expect to be gone for more than a few days. Alert Vladimir over at the Guild of Blades that he’s covering for me for the foreseeable future. When he asks, be vague about my whereabouts.”

Jareal
had been his manservant for the past ten years and knew the drill. “I’ll give him the usual spiel that you’re off communing with the spirits. He won’t ask any more questions after that.”

“Good…
there are a few things I need to take care of and I think it’s past time that I visited my wife again.”

Jareal kept his
gaze averted. He didn’t want to see the pain in his master’s eyes at that confession but at least he knew what to expect when his master eventually returned. He’d been through this before and would be prepared.

Chapter 2
6

The twin suns of this strange land had already set when Tariq al’Nasir al’Rafiq set his plan in motion.

When Yeltzer and he, as Benedict the injured Peacekeeper initiate, had been assigned the task of watching over the prisoner, they had divided the detail into two equal shifts, day and night. Tariq had let Yeltzer think he was getting his way when the Peacekeeper had chosen the day shift. Tariq had wanted the night shift. As an assassin, or a Hashashin as he was properly called, he felt more at home in the darkness than in the bright sunlight.

Arriving late to relieve Yeltzer had been part of his plan. The Peacekeeper would be hungry and race off to the mess tent instead of hanging around to chat. At least that was the plan. As Tariq limped up, he made sure the new bandages were visible to his counterpart.

“Sorry about being late, the Sawbones took his time in changing these out.”

“Dam
mit Benedict, I’m hungry.”

Tariq shook his head and hunched his shoulders in what he hoped would be a sympathetic gesture. “I know, I know. Tell you what, sleep in an extra hour.” He lifted up his bag of rations. “I packed plenty of food since I knew I would miss chow with my visit to that quack of a doctor.”

Yeltzer brightened up at his suggestion. “Seriously? Thanks. I’m sorry about all the mean things I said about you over the last quarter hour.”

Tariq laughed. “No worries. I’m sure I deserved it.”

Yeltzer smiled and disappeared into camp.

Tariq opened the food slot and pushed in another pig’s bladder
full of blood. He waited for at least a half hour before opening the door for two reasons. First off, he really didn’t want to see her feed and it took him that long to pick the lock. Back in the game, as an assassin he had the skills of a typical thief but he didn’t really waste his limited skill points in pickpocketing or lockpicking. Those weren’t typically useful skills for an assassin, at least not back in the real world when he sat in front of his computer screen playing the game.

Opening the door, he got his first good look at Calli. She was pale, more so than normal, but seemed no worse for the wear. “M ‘lady, your carriage awaits.”

Calli rushed forward, surprising the assassin with a hug. “You’re a sight for sore eyes.”

Tariq returned the hug and moved aside
so she could exit the cell. “We need to get moving just in case someone swings by.” He handed her his bag. “There’s an extra robe inside with another chadris to hide you from prying eyes as we make our escape.”

Callistra
simply nodded and slipped on the baggy clothes but paused when she went to put on the hood due to the horrendous smell. “Ugh…where did you get these?”

“The medical tent. Its original owner
won’t have any more need of it.” He made the cutting of the throat gesture with one hand and turned back to the cell. He pulled free all four glow stones, wrapped them in a blanket before stuffing them in his bag. Tariq relocked the door and turned back to her. “These might come in handy and if someone just glances in, they won’t be able to see if you are inside or not. It might buy us a few more minutes.”

Calli just nodded and fell in behind the assassin as he moved through the camp. He walked quickly, like someone on an important er
rand and no one stopped to question them. He wound his way through the camp and even seemed to backtrack on himself before ducking behind a wagon that was parked near the picket lines.

Hidden in the lee of the wagon, he pulled off his Peacekeeper robe and hood. Throwing them into the back of the wagon he grinned at her. “Although they were useful, I’m happy to be rid
of those garments.” Reaching into the wagon he produced two backpacks and an assortment of weapons; daggers, swords and bows. “I couldn’t find you a wand but hopefully you can use some of these.”

Calli
pulled off her disguise and grinned. “I’m from the hills of Kentucky. I know my way around a bow. Personally, I prefer a compound but this recurve will do nicely.”

She tested the pull. It was stiffer than what she was used to but she felt that she could
still fire it. Slinging it over her shoulder, she strapped on both quivers of arrows and four daggers. She knew that she wasn’t really familiar with a sword but she grabbed one anyway. Without her wand, her magic was severely limited so she would have to rely on weapons and her martial arts skills.

“Okay, what’s next?”

“Here’s the situation, whoever Grand Marshal Jericho answers to is sending some sort of messenger to take you back to his base of operations. It’s supposed to arrive at dawn. So we need to be as far away from here as possible. On top of that, the Peacekeepers are about to attack Crooked Creek.”

“We have to warn them.”

“That’s the plan. I wasn’t able to get my hands on a map but I did get a glimpse of one. Crooked Creek is due west of us but I’m unsure of the exact distance. Logically, Jericho would’ve tried to place this staging area close enough to get to the village with an easy ride but not too close to be stumbled on.” Tariq shrugged his shoulders. “I would guess that it’s at least ten, if not fifteen miles away but that’s only a guess.”

Callistra nodded. “That’s a lot of distance to cover on foot. So, we best get moving.”

Without another word, Tariq turned toward the west and headed off into the darkness with the vampyress right beside him.

*   *   *   *   *

It was in early morning hours by the time Gamble, Mathias and Pixi arrived back in Akrôtiri.

The wyvern riders had been forced to fly
along the coast due to reports of increased Peacekeeper patrols in the Forestlands. Jerrick explained that he was under strict orders to avoid the Peacekeepers at all cost. This meant that they took frequent breaks and changed their flight path often. It was during one of these breaks when he also related to the rescued trio as much of the story that he knew. It was obvious that Jerrick was in complete awe of the crimson samurai as he talked.

Gamble just sh
ook his head in disbelief as the raider told the tale and muttered, “Patrick always did have the gift of gab.”

“Excuse me sir, what was that?”

“Nothing…nothing.”

Jerrick didn’t push the subject as they remounted their flying serpents and resumed their journey.
Landing in Akrôtiri the raider led the Outlanders to the tavern which Tao had converted to a war room. Charts, maps and books were laid all about the room, covering nearly every table.

The deadly samurai looked up when they entered the tavern. “Heya mate! About time you showed up.”

Gamble laughed. “You know, it’s so hard to get a taxi in these regions.”

Tao crossed the
short distance between them and gave his oldest friend a hug, patted the half-elf on the shoulder and winked at the faerie. “Damn, it’s good to see you.”

Mathias laughed. “It’s good to be seen. It was touch and go there for
a while.”

“I have so much to tell you guys.”

Gamble gestured to their surroundings. “It sounds like a hell of a story.”

Tao waved his hand in a dismal manner.
“Not all this. This is nothing…Cassie is alive.”

Gamble’s jaw literally dropped. It was the furthest thing from his mind. Even though they were in a world full of magic, he would’ve never guessed that. “What? How?”

Tao launched into his tale concerning the Peacekeepers, the other Outlanders and even how he managed to become the leader of the wyvern raiders. The trio listened quietly until it was their turn to tell their story. By this time, all of the Outlanders had joined them in the war room and Tao made introductions all the way around.

After a moment, he
stepped back and gestured at the map of the region that he had spread out on the table. “Now that we are all back together our next order of business is finding Cassie. The only thing we know for certain is that she has been taken hostage by the Peacekeepers. From what I can see, the order has at least four base camps spread out around this region.”

Aaliyah
stood up and pointed at a dot on the map. “As of an hour ago, Callistra was just outside of Crooked Creek and heading that way.” Tao raised an eyebrow in an unspoken question and the Sha’ir explained. “One of my servants located her. She and one other are on foot running toward the hamlet.”

“Running? From what?”

“Peacekeepers,” she responded. “Evidently she escaped and is on the run.”

Tao looked at the map and tried to judge the distance between their
current location and the town but couldn’t. There was no proper scale to the map nor did he know how long it would take the wyverns to traverse that distance. But he knew someone who would.

“Jerrick!” Tao’s loud voice echoed slightly in the converted tavern.

Seconds later his newly promoted sergeant-at-arms came running in and slapped a fist to his chest in an odd salute. “Captain?”

“How long would it take for our entire force to reach Crooked Creek?”

Jerrick cocked his head to the side and chewed on the inside of his cheek as he quickly did the calculations. “We could have the entire flight of wyverns ready in less than an hour and once we’re airborne, we could be onsite in another hour. Ground forces would take most of the day to reach the town.”

“How many
wyverns do we have?”

“Fifty-seven. The rest are too old or too young to carry anyone.”

“Do we have enough riders?”

Jerrick nodded. “More than enough, Captain.”

Tao nodded. “Alright, spread the word. We fly in one hour. Every man that wants to go, goes. If we have to fly two per serpent, we do. We are going to need all the swords we can get for this.”

Jerrick was obviously confused. “Captain? We
’re raiding the village?”

Tao shook his head. “No
. We are planning on rescuing them. The Peacekeepers are about to lay siege to that town and we’re going to stop them.”

Jerrick’s grin was nearly as large as his face. “Aye Captain, that’ll help morale. Many of us have been itching to strike back at the Peacekeepers.”

“Pass the word.”

Jerrick sprinted off to get the former bandits organized. He was barely out the door when the Outlanders heard him yelling orders.

Cozad stepped forward. “Do you think they’re ready for something like this?”

“No
but they’ve been parasites on society for too long, preying on the weak and the unprepared. This will either galvanize them or break them. Either way, we will need them if we have any hope of fighting the Peacekeepers.” Tao pulled out a blank sheet of parchment. “Without proper intel, I really don’t have any way of planning our assault.”

Kastle cleared his throat. “I can give you a general layout of the town.”

Tao brightened at that suggestion and it wasn’t long before the Outlanders had a plan of action.

 
*   *   *   *   *

When dawn broke over the Peacekeeper camp, Grand Marshal Jericho was already mobilizing his troops.
Only an hour earlier, he had discovered that the witch was missing and had ordered a systematic search of the camp. That is when they had discovered the bodies of several other Peacekeepers.

Yeltzer had been brought to him in chains and questioned about the location of Benedict. He hadn’t been very helpful. Not because he didn’t want to help but because he didn’t know anything. That hadn’t helped
Jericho’s mood but then, Yeltzer’s beheading hadn’t either.

Jericho
ordered an immediate attack on Crooked Creek. It was the closest and only location the missing initiate and the witch could reach. The Grand Marshal searched the skies for any signs of his master’s messenger. Not seeing any, he spurred his horse forward. His only chance to forestall his master’s displeasure was to recapture the witch before it arrived. 

 
*   *   *   *   *

Calli
stra and Tariq stumbled into Crooked Creek just as the first rays of the first sun broke over the horizon. In their heart of hearts, they knew that the Peacekeepers weren’t far behind them. Much to their surprise, the whole town seemed to be asleep, totally unaware and completely unprepared for the coming raid.

Tariq didn’t owe this town or their leader Ragnar anything but the thought of the Peacekeepers riding in unmolested upset him. “We have to warn them, somehow.”

Calli nodded toward the stables. “The stable-boy sleeps in the loft. He would know how to rouse the town in case of a raid.”

Even as they crossed the threshold of the stable, they heard shrill cries of multiple war horns in the nearby forests. The Peacekeepers had arrived.

Lights flared on all over town as the villagers responded to the imminent danger. Some stumbled into the streets in their bed clothes, these were the shopkeepers and regular townsfolk, but the majority poured out armed and armored. These were the ex-bandits and Ragnar was among them. Spying the two fugitives, he pointed at them and shouted. “You! Where’s my son?”

Calli pointed to the distant forest. “Peacekeepers. They set a trap and your son died. Now they are coming for you.”