City of the Dead Page 17

  The healer worked on Dort the longest. The boy was unconscious, he’d lost so much blood, and Tailyn was seriously afraid for his life. But it looked like everything went well—Dort began breathing. The color returned to his face. A few times, Valanil had to drink retorts full of a blue liquid, restoring her mana. They didn’t do much, of course, though they were enough for another one or two touches.

  Finally, the weary and haggard woman wobbled over to Tailyn. She placed her hands on the boy’s face, he felt a pleasant chill, and the heat left. Only the blisters themselves remained.

  “Okay, I’m dry… I need time to recover—I didn’t think Dort was that bad. It didn’t look like he was going to survive at all, but it turned out all right. How’s the lix? Can it heal itself?”

  The question struck Tailyn as a good one, and he asked his partner. The latter assured him that he’d be fine in another twelve hours.

  “You speak the lix tongue… You’re wearing decent armor… The cards you use are at level five or six even though you’re still at level one. I have lots of questions for you, Tailyn Vlashich, only I’m too tired to ask them right now.”

  The woman leaned against a wall and closed her eyes. Her hands shook from the strain.

  “Where’s everyone else?” Unlike the healer, Tailyn wanted answers right away.

  “Some are in that pile, others were killed earlier, some more were taken to another room. This isn’t the only place they sacrifice people,” the healer replied without opening her eyes. “We’re the only ones left from our city. Give me an hour, and I’ll tell you the whole story…”

  “Yes, kid, leave her alone,” one of the girls said. “She saved my life… I’m Eighty-Five from Salin. Level three.”

  Tailyn had never even heard of her city. Or village? The other girls introduced themselves, all with numerical names, all just everyday harvesters who’d had the misfortune to find themselves in the path of the lixes. They stayed as far away from Ka-Do-Gir as they could, which was fine with him. He was nursing his wounded arm.

  “And I’m Tailyn Vlashich from Culmart. Level five,” the boy replied before heading over to the pile of bodies. “Do you know what the white monsters were doing?”

  “Sacrificing us. First, they cut you up to bleed you dry, and then…then, they toss whatever’s left of you over there into that pile,” the girls replied, interrupting each other. Even though they were all around sixteen, Tailyn felt much older. It was a good feeling.

  The bodies of the poor souls really had been bled dry. Even old Bardun would have looked like a healthy, hearty bull next to them. The lix went over to Tailyn and snorted.

  “I won’t be eating those. You wasted all our food, little mage, and now we just have one more problem. We won’t be holding out long with nothing to eat. Remember, I don’t have a deal with anyone else, and if it comes down to me or them—”

  “Got it,” Tailyn jumped in, afraid the others would hear. It stung to admit that his partner was right. They weren’t going to last long without food, and especially not without the lix’s help. He had to be fed, no matter how horrifying that prospect was.

  “If it comes to that, start with him,” Tailyn replied with a nod toward Dort. The city elder’s son still hadn’t regained consciousness. Small as it was before he’d been kidnapped, the blood loss had him looking absurdly sickly. He was going to be a burden for all of them.

  But the god turned out to have a sense of humor. In fact, it was so hilarious that Tailyn found himself frozen, mouth hanging wide open.

  New mission: Save a Life. Description: deliver Dort Barka, level 2 human, to the city of Culmart alive and await Forian Tarn, second-class investigator. He has been informed that Dort Barka was found and is in your care.

  “I’m not supposed to eat him?” Ka-Do-Gir knew what the light bathing the boy meant.

  “Nope,” a disappointed Tailyn replied, having no idea how he was going to get Dort to the city. And the boy knew that if he didn’t, Master Forian’s face would just take on that familiar look of contempt for his negligent pupil. Or rather, former pupil. After something like that, he certainly would want to have anything else to do with such a lowborn piece of mediocrity.

  “You have six hours to find food. If you don’t, I’m eating her.” The lix pointed at the plumpest girl and went back to his spot to close his eyes. He needed rest and recovery, too.

  Just like that, Tailyn found himself alone. The numericals shook as they huddled together, their eyes fixed on the terrifying lix. Mistress Valanil was asleep. The lix was, too. Dort was lying unconscious, and nobody was paying the least bit of attention to the kid standing in the middle of the room. Going over to the black stone, Tailyn found that it had soaked up all the blood and was vibrating ever so slightly, almost as if overwhelmed with impatience and thirst. His experience collecting herbs told him not to touch things he wasn’t familiar with, but the surprising vibrations and bright, vivid black light drew him in. Looking around furtively to make sure nobody was watching, the boy reached out a hand.

  “Don’t touch that!” he heard Mistress Valanil shriek, though it was too late. Just as the boy’s palm grazed the black stone, the world around him disappeared. Tailyn found himself in complete darkness with nothing but white lettering telling him he was still alive.

  You opened RP-443-7 remote workstation.

  You were identified as Tailyn Vlashich, level 1 player. Partial initiation…

  Verifying access…

  You’re not on the white list of creatures with access to this terminal. Applying security protocols…

  Applying security protocols for uninitiated players… Error.

  Applying security protocols for initiated players… Error.

  Note! Security system error. Analyzing potential solutions and making corrections.

  Addition algorithm applied. Player Tailyn Vlashich added to white list for workstation RP-443-7.

  Verifying credentials…

  You have access to Store functionality.

  Would you like to make a purchase?

  With each new message, Tailyn was hit with another wave of cold sweat. It got to the point that the liquid was dripping off him onto the floor. Never again, never again was he going to do that. It had been incredibly dangerous, and it had just been his stubborn tutor forcing him to avoid finishing the initiation that had kept the idiot boy alive. Tailyn declined to enter the store and pulled his hand away from the stone. That was enough adventures for him.

  As if by magic, the light appeared again, and Mistress Valanil’s second screech hit him.

  “Stay away from him, you stupid animal! It’s dangerous!”

  Tailyn turned and saw the healer standing between him and the lix, her arms held wide as she kept Ka-Do-Gir away from the boy. Fangs bared, Tailyn’s partner was about to pounce when Tailyn decided to interrupt.

  “He doesn’t understand you, Mistress Valanil. Don’t yell at him.”

  The healer wheeled around so quickly she almost knocked the boy off his feet. And no sooner had she seen him, than she threw her arms around him and began touching him all over like some kind of animal at the market.

  “You’re alive!” Valanil’s exclamation couldn’t have been more surprised.

  “Partner, don’t eat her!” Tailyn said to the lix just in case—he’d been hanging right over the healer. After that, the boy was just barely able to pull himself free from the healer’s grasp.

  “Don’t you do that again. It was so dangerous!” The woman’s surprise turned to anger, and she was suddenly the “terrifying shrew” the neighbors were so afraid of. Although, not so afraid that they didn’t pick her house apart.

  “I won’t do it anymore, I promise,” Tailyn assured her. “I… I didn’t know, and I happened to touch it. It was an accident!”

  “Don’t you lie to me!” Valanil wasn’t having any of it. “I was watching you, and you put your hand on it on purpose. You should have burned up—how are you still alive?”


  “The terminal didn’t know what to do with me, so it added me to the white list,” Tailyn replied with a fervor that surprised even him. “And stop yelling at me! That thing scared me enough as it is.”

  “What do you mean, it added you to the white list?” the herbalist replied. She’d suddenly switched back from angry shrew to kind lady. “You got access to the terminal?!”

  “No, just the store.”

  “Tailyn, sweetie, do you have coins? Come on, baby!” Something in the herbalist’s voice didn’t sit right with the boy, so he decided to lie. It certainly wasn’t the first time in his life.

  “Yes, a few, not many. Fifteen.”

  Valanil frowned, though she quickly regained control of herself.

  “Whatever, that’s fine. Okay, listen, Tailyn Vlashich, you need to put your hand back on that rock and open the store. You need to buy…”

  Chapter 12

  Would you like to begin making purchases?

  THAT TIME he was a go. Tailyn hit the button firmly, the world around him disappeared, and the black nothingness turned into colorful display cases loaded with goods for sale. It was just like a bazaar he’d once seen. The only difference was that the selection was even wider there, and everything seemed kind of flat.

  You have 264 coins in your account.

  Filter applied: only for alchemists.

  Mistress Valanil hadn’t said anything about filters, and Tailyn panicked. Somehow, however, his brain knew what the word meant despite the fact that he’d never heard it before. He concentrated with an effort, gave the mental command, and watched the nearest display case sweep over. It was packed with a variety of clothing: ordinary, which wasn’t giving off any sparks; rare, which glowed blue; purple epic; and just two items with the gold color that marked them as legendary. Tailyn swallowed hard as he stared at the outfits. While the descriptions were unavailable, he could still appreciate their beauty and elegance. But the store somehow knew he was wasting time and decided to give him a little nudge.

  Would you like to filter for goods available at your level?

  “That’s probably a good idea,” Tailyn replied. It was his first time visiting the store, and he’d already figured out that he was going to have a hard time navigating it without help. And as soon as he agreed, most of the display cases disappeared. The rest modified slightly. No longer was there any order—armor was next to weaponry, weaponry was next to something Tailyn didn’t recognize.

  “I’d like to see the OHM-II,” Tailyn said, suddenly remembering what he was missing. Sure, he was there for a different reason, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t at least get a quick glimpse of what he needed.

  A strange item, something like a hood that completely covered the wearer’s face, appeared.

  OHM-II. Description: rare item. Outdoor headgear for mages that lets them survive the hardships of life outside their tower. Integrates with the owner’s card (no need to blow directly on the cards). Combines with OGM-II to for a hermetically sealed outfit with an oxygen reserve that lasts for Magic Attack minutes. Can regenerate when less than 30% of the surface area is damaged. Shield level: +30 * (level + Enhancement); mana level: +70 * (level + Enhancement); Magic Attack: +10 * (level + Enhancement); Mysticism +1. Cost: 12000 coins.

  Tailyn’s mouth practically began watering when he saw what the hood would have done for him. The shield boost didn’t do as much as his outfit, though the mana and magic boosts were fantastic. The price was the only sticking point. In fact, it was such a disappointment that he threw the hood back on the shelf. Knowing exactly what was going on, the store offered to filter everything by what he could afford, and the boy realized he was better off agreeing. There was no point ruining his mood or spending coins he couldn’t afford.

  All that left was one display case in front of him. It also contained clothing, though there were a few cards that grabbed the boy’s attention, as well. He hadn’t thought about them for whatever reason. But after fighting the urge to check them out, Tailyn went over to what he was there for.

  Food. Supply of nutritional products and water calculated to last 1 creature 1 full day. Cost: 1 coin.

  Mistress Valanil had asked him to spend everything he had on food, also giving him an additional ten coins. And while Tailyn couldn’t help but wonder what a run-of-the-mill herbalist in a border town was doing with coins, he kept his mouth shut. Mistress Valanil was going to be looking to talk with him soon, and he could get the answers to his questions then.

  Tailyn counted out 25 blocks and placed them in the basket. Sticking around any longer was dangerous and could have led to awkward questions, though he still decided to go over and check out the retorts full of blue liquid.

  Mana Restoration Elixir. Instantly restores 50 mana. Single use. Cost: 50 coins.

  There were different retort sizes. Some restored 10 mana, others 50, still more 100. But the cost always followed the same ratio—one coin per mana. There, in the store, Tailyn couldn’t pull up his status to see how much he had left, so he just made a mental note to buy a couple elixirs when he had the chance. He just had to make sure nobody saw them.

  Would you like to complete your purchase? Your account will be debited 25 coins.

  The boy confirmed the purchase, and the colorful fair turned back into the gloomy room. There was a mountain of packets materialized next to him. Immediately, Mistress Valanil got to work divvying them up, handing everyone four and keeping five for herself. The only problem was that she ended up with six piles instead of seven. There was nothing for Ka-Do-Gir.

  “What about the lix?” Tailyn asked in surprise. The herbalist looked over at the boy as if seeing him for the first time.

  “Does it really need food? I just assumed it had eaten enough humans to last it quite a few months.”

  “He does, and a lot. If we don’t feed him, he’s going to eat Forty-Three,” the boy replied.

  “I’d like to see it try,” Valanil muttered angrily as she tore open a packet and began devouring the contents. The girls joined her, and the room was instantly filled with the sound of chewing. Only Tailyn remained motionless.

  “If it hadn’t been for the lix, you’d still be in your cage!”

  “If it weren’t for the lixes, we’d be sitting at home drinking tea,” Valanil shot back. “I’m not going to repeat myself, Tailyn Vlashich. If you want to feed the lix, you can share your food with it. Just remember, my boy—the lix is only with you as long as it’s better off that way. As soon as it thinks it can make it by itself, it’s going to betray you. You can’t trust those things. Okay, come here, let me get rid of those burns.”

  Tailyn went over to the woman and practically toppled over in bliss as the herbalist’s hands worked wonders. The pain was gone instantly. Brushing his hands over his face, the boy found that the blisters were gone—everything had healed. Valanil went back to her food, after which she stepped toward Dort.

  “Give me a hand,” she said as she held open the kid’s mouth and gestured for Tailyn to poor some of the life-giving fluids down his throat. Tailyn followed her instructions even as he thought through what he was going to say in Ka-Do-Gir’s defense. Unfortunately, all he could come up with was, but he’s not like that. And even Tailyn could tell how ridiculous that was.

  Out of the blue, Valanil started praising the boy.

  “You fought well. I would never have guessed that my student could be so brave. And when you came up with the idea to lure them into the other room, that’s when I knew you were a real hero. How were you not scared?”

  “Of course, I was scared!” Tailyn appreciated that someone was finally recognizing his role in the victory. “I just knew that if I didn’t help the lix, they’d kill him and then come after me. There wasn’t time to be scared.”

  “You’re amazing! There’s never been a reason, so I haven’t asked, but I should now. Have you already set your shield and mana to show up in front of you? You can see where they’re at in your table, but now t
hat you’re a real warrior, you need to keep close tabs on them.”

  “Oh, no,” Tailyn replied. His face flushed as the feeling of ignorance washed over. “I… I don’t know how to do that…”

  “That’s easy enough. Pull up your status table, tap the corner, select display current value and display on main screen.”

  The boy followed her instructions and felt his jaw drop in surprise. Everything turned out to be so simple and easy that he cursed—how had he not figured that out himself? His status table and the mana and shield lines changed. The current values showed up first followed by the maximum value in parentheses, and identical numbers appeared in his status line next to the audio button. His shield was red; his mana was blue. That made things easy, especially during battle.

  “Well, did you get it?” Mistress Valanil asked.