PA-01. Den Of Thieves, page 7
part #1 of Pantheon Online Series
Gunnar shook his head, but couldn’t help but envy the man’s confidence.
“All right,” Kohli said. “Now, it’s your turn. Pick your mark and make it count.”
Gunnar glanced around the buzzing market, using Scan selectively so he wasn’t bombarded with information at once. The majority of people were beyond his affinities for Perception, which helped him narrow down his target. While it might work for Kohli to flirt and snatch, Gunnar knew he would have to rely on his best-rated attribute—Dexterity.
“You got him?” Kohli asked.
Gunnar nodded and stepped into the bustle of the market.
His first mark was a Baker - Level 3, who spoke amiably with several different vendors as he ambled around the market. Gunnar kept close, browsing an assortment of elixirs that were far beyond his price range, which was zero. Gunnar quickly gathered that the baker was looking for a partner to help sell his goods. The man bought a loaf of bread and commented about the subtleties that might make for a firmer bake, and Gunnar noted his small satchel of coins.
The baker was rejected by a couple vendors, but Gunnar kept close and waited until the man had closed a deal with the third. The baker walked away, grinning and bragging about how many more loaves his new partner would sell. The baker glanced back to say one more thing to the food vendor, and Gunnar seized his moment, bumping into him as he turned back.
“Gods!” Gunnar said. “Sorry, friend.”
The baker grinned. “No harm done. It’s a beautiful day.”
“That it is,” Gunnar said.
The baker ambled off.
Unlocked Skill: Pickpocket
Skill Type: Physical
Linked Attribute: Dexterity (+95% Development)
Affinity Level: 8
Requirements: Level 5 Dexterity
Cost: N/A
Effect: Acquire money and items at no personal expense
Description: Very handy hands you’ve got! Use Pickpocket to pilfer things from naive dumbasses like yourself.
[Congratulations! You have successfully pickpocketed Baker - Level 3, acquiring 14 coins. You have earned 20 XP for ruining his beautiful day.]
Gunnar’s heart pounded as he walked on with the baker’s satchel heavy in his pocket. With every step, he anticipated the man would find it missing, but Gunnar had chosen his timing well. He glanced back and spotted the baker leaving the market, smiling and greeting people as he went.
In truth, he felt a small pang of guilt about it. It’s just a game. Get over it.
11
UNDERCOVER
Gunnar successfully pickpocketed three more people, all Levels 2 or 3. While none of his victims bore a large sum, he quickly gained a total of fifty-three coins, and with the last achievement, he finally regained the XP that Sheira had stolen from him.
Triumphant orchestral music blared in his ears.
[Congratulations! You can basically steal candy from a baby. You have reached Level 9 in the skill Pickpocket. You have reached Level 6 in the skill Perception. Oh, what nimble fingers and peering eyes you have!]
[Congratulations! You have reached Level 2! You have earned Glory for your goddess Nymoria.]
For a moment, the buzzing market square blurred, and Gunnar realized he was having some sort of vision. Something just for him.
A stunning woman stood before him. She wore a shimmering white gown and a crown that looked like woven branches of gold. Her beautiful brown skin and thick curly hair radiated, as though her body itself emitted light.
The sight of her filled Gunnar with warmth and awe. If this was a lesser goddess, he shuddered to imagine encountering a greater one. She smiled at him, and he resisted the urge to drop to one knee, settling instead for a slight bow at the waist.
“Well done, faithful servant.” Nymoria’s voice was melodious as a song. “You have taken the first step on a path to greatness. As a reward, you have earned one attribute point, which can be distributed at any time. But remember that every choice you make will echo into eternity. Choose wisely.”
With that, the goddess vanished, and the market continued to buzz around him. No one seemed to have noticed the world pausing like that, nor the breathtaking goddess shining in their midst. They went on as normal, but Gunnar felt a surge of excitement.
He pulled up his HUD. He had initially planned to raise his Wisdom, but his quick successes in the market had him thinking differently. Wisdom was great, but Dexterity had already gotten him to Level 2 in a matter of a couple hours.
Play to your strengths, right? he thought as he quickly applied the attribute point to Dexterity, raising it to Level 9.
[Dexterity! A fine choice. You will now receive four skill points to distribute how you wish.]
Gunnar didn’t have to think hard. He’d already reached Level 9 in Pickpocketing from his achievements and affinities alone; with Level 13, he could pay Sykes off quickly and move on to some real quests.
After his catastrophic entry quest and his consequences back in prison, things were finally looking up. Gunnar couldn’t hold back a grin as he met Kohli at the edge of the market.
“Nice work, mate,” the thief said. “How about one more, and we’ll get going?”
Gunnar took his time Scanning the crowd before settling on a small Level 4 Milkmaid looking to sell some cheese to a grocer. He drifted amongst the crowd as she visited several stalls and waited until she had made the sale. She slipped the coins into the pocket of her apron. Rather than the bumping maneuver, which had admittedly felt a bit amateurish, Gunnar decided to practice a more subtle tactic. He followed behind as she crossed the market, honing in on that pocket.
The milkmaid glanced up and waved at someone across the way, and Gunnar went for it, slipping his hand swiftly in and closing his fingers gently around the tiny money purse. He turned as he withdrew it and moved slowly away, so as not to appear suspicious.
“Hey!”
A woman’s voice.
Gunnar kept walking, heart racing.
A hand seized his own from behind and spun him around.
The milkmaid glared fire at him. To his horror, he realized she was not a milkmaid at all. Just like the previous night when he’d encountered enemies, a notification hovered over her head without requiring Scan.
Red Cloak Guard (Undercover)
Level: 4
HP: 45/45
MP: 20/20
Description: You know they don’t all have to wear bright red uniforms, right?
The guard’s grip on Gunnar’s wrist was like a vice as she dragged him over to the edge of the market.
“I am so sick of you Maldan good-for-nothings tainting this city. You think you can come here, not even bother with honest work. Just rip off good, hardworking folks.”
Gunnar realized quickly that the milkmaid had been waving at another guard a moment before, this one actually dressed in his red cloak. The man pressed his way toward them through the crowd.
The milkmaid took Gunnar’s dagger from his belt, then reached into his pocket and pulled out her satchel, as well as the one with all the coins he’d gained from his morning of pickpocketing.
Damn it! Not again!
Her Red Cloak partner was only twenty yards away.
“Like I thought,” the woman said. “No papers. Looks like you had a nice haul today, though. Reckon my comrades won’t mind a few extra coins to go around.”
Gunnar glared. “You don’t care about any of these hardworking folks. You make this city this way.”
The fierce woman leveled her eyes at him, her hand hovering at the hilt of her saber. “You’re done, swine. We got a ship full of undesirables leaving soon, and you’re about to join them.”
The second guard was only a few yards away. He had to be quick.
“B-but where am I supposed to go?” Gunnar asked.
“I don’t give a damn. But you can’t stay in—”
Gunnar threw himself at the woman, tackling her to the ground. He seized her sword hand so she couldn’t draw her blade, but she landed a good punch to his stomach with her free hand.
The second guard rushed over, but a few feet away, he too went to the ground.
Appearing from nowhere, Kohli tackled him, and the crowd parted as all four of them rolled around on the hard cobblestone street.
Cries rang out across the market. More Red Cloaks, Gunnar was sure.
The woman landed another punch to Gunnar’s gut. She was strong. Her punches didn’t do great amounts of damage, but he knew once more guards got there, he and Kohli were screwed.
So, Gunnar did the only reasonable thing he could think of.
He head-butted the woman.
Hard.
Unlocked Skill: Head-Butt
Skill Type: Physical, Combat
Linked Attribute: Strength (+65% Development)
Affinity Level: 6
Requirements: At least 20% Health
Cost: 5 Damage
Effect: Deal damage by literally cracking your skull against someone else’s skull
Description: More destructive than your fists, but you might have to sacrifice a few brain cells in the process.
The impact sent a jarring ache shooting through his body, but it was even worse for the woman.
[You have dealt +20 Damage to Red Cloak Guard (Undercover)!]
The woman’s grip slackened in an instant. She groaned and slumped on the ground, clutching her bleeding nose. Gunnar pulled away, snatching his satchel and dagger back, and scrambled to his feet.
Kohli freed himself from his own assailant.
And together, they ran.
Gunnar’s vision was blurry, but he focused on Kohli, who led the way through the crowd, and as they ran, his clarity slowly returned. His Health had dipped to 80%, but not bad, all things considered.
Glancing back, Gunnar spotted the two guards helping the undercover milkmaid to her feet, and they came racing after them.
Gunnar and Kohli made for the nearest exit, and thankfully, the crowd did not seem to be terribly concerned with who the Red Cloaks were chasing. In fact, judging by the angry cries of the guards, he was pretty sure a few of the people were slowing the Red Cloaks down.
“Come on!” Kohli shouted.
A short distance from the market, they turned into a small alley, but Gunnar could hear the guards in the distance behind them.
And his Stamina was already down to 50%.
They weaved through a pair of narrow side streets and emerged onto a lane filled with craftsmen.
And two more Red Cloaks near the end of the lane.
As soon as Gunnar and Kohli appeared, panting for breath, the guards went on high alert, eyes locking on them.
Kohli didn’t even bother to slow down. He led the way as they sprinted through the street, shoving past carpenters and blacksmiths, and the Red Cloaks hollered as they gave chase.
Gunnar’s Stamina kept steadily dropping.
Ugh, I need to get into shape! Or else get ahold of some damn potions.
“We gotta get off these streets,” Kohli said. He wasn’t breathing as hard as Gunnar, but the two of them were better matched than he and Sheira had been. “It’s the middle of the day. We’ll never lose them out here.”
“Better be quick,” Gunnar said. “I can’t run like this much longer.”
Kohli grimaced and nodded.
They couldn’t go back to the Mermaid. The waterfront was even more open than these streets. Over the rooftops, Gunnar spotted the towering spires of Luka’s temple.
“I’ve got an idea,” he said.
They weaved back toward the market square. But the guards were slowly gaining on them.
In an alley on the back side of the temple, Gunnar found what he was hoping for: a stone doorway across the street from what appeared to be a back servant’s entrance to the elaborate temple.
A quick Scan confirmed it.
[Crypt - Level 8]
The street behind them was empty. For the moment.
“We’ll hide here, until things die down.”
“I don’t love this,” Kohli said, eyeing the door suspiciously.
Gunnar didn’t answer. He shoved the stone door open, just enough so they could slip inside.
There was a small entryway with two corridors branching out into darkness. He just hoped nothing came for them from behind.
Together, they shoved the door back, leaving it open just a crack. Gunnar could hear the guards approaching. The three from the market had joined forces with the two from the craftsman’s lane. A couple Red Cloaks shot past the crypt entrance without a second glance.
The other three slowed down. Gunnar guessed that at their levels, they couldn’t run much more than he could. Maybe they would give up.
“You’re still bleeding pretty bad,” said one.
“Give me one of your elixirs,” the milkmaid said.
Gunnar wondered if they had some sort of Stamina potions too.
He could hear the undercover milkmaid uncork a bottle and drink.
“Reckon we lost them on the last street.”
By the sound of their voices, they were nearly upon them.
Gunnar held his breath.
“Should we double back? Maybe they ducked into a shop or something.”
“I’m not so sure,” said the milkmaid. Her voice was very, very near. “You don’t think…”
“Maybe,” said one of the guards with a chuckle. “Thieves are never very bright.”
The stone door creaked.
Gunnar gripped his dagger tight and braced himself for a showdown. His Stamina had climbed back to 60%. They couldn’t run away. But maybe, just maybe, they could handle these three.
But the door didn’t open.
It closed.
Completely.
With a resounding thud, the door fell into place.
Quest Alert - Luka’s Crypt
Quest Type: Uncommon
Description: Welp, looks like you got yourself locked in a basic burial chamber. The only way out is in.
Objective: Escape alive. Yeah… good luck with that.
Reward: Your life, and some XP. But we know how this is gonna go, don’t we? I guess we’ll see you back at your respawn point. I’m sure you set one this time, right? Riiight?
Do you wish to accept? Yes/No
12
CRYPT
The quest alert hovered in front of him, a taunting, flashing reminder of his latest failure.
Kohli tried the door, but it was firmly locked.
Gunnar kicked himself for not remembering to set a respawn before he set out with Sykes and Kohli. He checked his HUD, but it seemed the feature was locked now that they were in the crypt.
Looks like I better not die down here then…
He was getting sick and tired of the game waiting to inform him of things until after he’d made an irreversible mistake. And that wasn’t all he was tired of.
The quest notification flashed at him.
[Do you wish to accept? Yes/No]
“What’s with this game?” Gunnar asked. “Asking yes/no for things we obviously don’t have a choice about.”
“The developers seem to have an extremely dry sense of humor,” Kohli said. “Just accept, will you? So we can get going.”
Gunnar grimaced at the thief’s shortness. He begrudgingly accepted the quest, and the alert vanished.
The crypt was an engulfing void of darkness. Gunnar felt a tinge of guilt for getting them into this situation. But then again, how was he supposed to know that Scan could be tampered with to show a milkmaid instead of a damn Red Cloak?
Gunnar’s eyes slowly began to adjust to the absence of light. They’d done this IRL, of course, but that had always been with some light, whether from the stars or the lights of the city or whatever. This was different. There was no light in this crypt at all, and though he could not see clearly, he could quickly make out the outline of the entrance hall they stood in. The longer he stood there, the clearer it became.
For once, a helpful notification appeared.
Unlocked Spell: Dark Sight
Spell Type: Race-based, Corporeal
Alignment: Light
Linked Attribute: Constitution (+60% Development)
Affinity Level: 6 (Basic Clarity)
Requirements: Glory Level 2
Cost: 2 Mana per second
Effect: Enhances vision in the dark at a distance up to 20 feet with marginal clarity
Description: Use Dark Sight to navigate the night or delve into the deepest, darkest depths of your soul. Not much to see there, though.
Well, at least one good thing came from this, Gunnar thought.
A racial ability. Maybe Azmar had actually given him good advice about choosing elf over human. This would be a handy skill if he did end up as a Rogue. But not handy for long.
His Mana bar was being steadily depleted.
Gunnar glanced around the small hall, trying to take stock of his surroundings while he could. The stones were crumbling and ancient, with moss and vines poking through from the outside near the entrance.
He could also clearly make out Kohli’s scowl as the thief ran his hands along one of the walls as though looking for something. The way he pawed at the stone suggested the human did not possess the same sight Gunnar did.
“What are you looking for?” Gunnar asked.
“Thought I saw some torches when we first came in.”
Gunnar spotted a small table near the entrance with several short pieces of wood on top.
“Move a few feet to the right,” Gunnar directed. “Then take a couple steps forward.”
Kohli did and reached the table. “Right, thanks,” he said. “You’re an elf, so you’ve got Dark Sight, I suppose, huh?” He did not sound especially thrilled about it.
“Yeah,” Gunnar said. “Maybe it will help us get out of this place.”
