Forge of Eternity: Alpha Testing, page 51
“A compromise then,” I suggested, an idea taking root. “What if you don’t test them with the forest, but just kill any of them that fail your judgment? That’s your end goal anyway, right?”
The sounds of battle could be heard far in the distance as Zeek furrowed his brow in silent contemplation. We stared at each other for several tense minutes before his gaze softened and he gave a brief nod. A message popped into my logs that eased the tension in my jaw.
Persuasion increased.
“This is an acceptable agreement. However,” he stalked to a branch above me, “I need to extract the same agreement from those who will be affected by it before I test them and pass judgment. Take me to them.”
Within a heartbeat, a forty-pound stone housecat with a smug human face dropped onto my shoulder. I turned and narrowed my eyes at the creature, who simply draped himself over my shoulders. Not wanting to push my luck, I decided against shrugging him to the ground and just started jogging down the path. The sphinx clung to my armor, staying firmly in place despite my best efforts to “accidentally” dislodge him.
The halflings had made good progress, getting about a third of the way toward the path. I only saw a few moments of the fighting, Zeek’s presence calming the attacking creatures immediately, but what I did see was a testament to the group’s fighting abilities. Lorekeeper Coal, Foreman Quickhand, and Bordermaster Edralin may have been blazing the path, setting off traps and taking on the front line of enemies, but it was clear there was intense fighting all the way down the line.
A minor quake ran through the mountain, flashing a blinding tactile scream through my tremorsense as I was tracking the closest of the hidden forest monsters in the bushes. Quickhand pulled Coal to his feet, the dwarf favoring one stubby leg as a wave of healing energy visible washed over the group from behind. Zeek bounded to the path, stalking up and sitting a couple of paces in front of the invading battalion’s leading edge.
“Well aren’t you just the ugliest thing I’ve seen today?” Quickhand said, stepping to the front of the group. “Decided to just get to the real fight before we kill all your minions?”
I cringed and pressed a knuckle into my forehead in frustration. Uri stifled a laugh behind me, and a glance over my shoulder showed about an even split between horror and amusement on the party’s faces. To be fair, I should have expected this.
“I’m not here to fight,” Zeek shook his head and scratched behind one ear, “one of the Forge-marked has interceded on your behalf. Deacon here believes the intentions of your little war band are pure. I would like to ask your group to state their intentions regarding the dungeon beyond.”
I stepped forward. “He may be forgetting to mention that accepting the terms means you agree to be killed outright if he judges you’re a risk.”
The halfling leader pressed her lips together in a thin line as she regarded the sphinx. “I feel you’re using some sort of compulsion spell to seek the truth. That makes things easier I think. I can confirm that our intentions are purely based on self-preservation at the moment and for the immediate future. Is that sufficient?”
“I can tell you mean what you say, but I must hear it from everyone directly,” the sphinx said, looking beyond Quickhand. “Even though you are their leader, you do not truly know what lies in their hearts.”
“Before I give you blanket permission to kill my people, can I ask what you consider dangerous intentions?”
“Certainly, since you asked politely,” Zeek let out a rather mannish yawn, “If any of your people intend to destroy the dungeon, disable the protections on the Forge, or seek to attain godhood through the power here they will be killed immediately.”
The halfling leader barked out a shrill laugh. “You have my permission to kill anyone that dumb, the lot would be better for it.”
She extended her hand, bending down to put it within Zeek’s reach. He batted at her palm with his paw, then bounded up a tree and perched on a low-hanging branch over the path. He began asking the passing halflings to state their intentions as they marched underneath, compelling truthful answers by the dozen. We walked along the path ahead of the mercenary group to talk with Quickhand and the Meritum emissaries.
“I owe you all for speeding this along,” Quickhand said, swapping her weapon for her cigarette holder. “Before we talk compensation though, what’s our survival plan?”
Quest Updated: Save Your Place, Save Us All
Objective:
(Hidden) Go out of your way to help save the Stathmore Miners 1/1
(Hidden) Ensure Foreman Quickhand survives this quest to claim an additional reward.
I opened my mouth to reply, only for a deafening roar of grinding stone to make communication impossible. The ground began to tremble, gently at first, then increasing to an uncomfortable teeth-rattling quake. We made a stumbling sprint toward the dungeon, hoping to reach it before the shaking made movement impossible. The fountain was as far as we got before trees started to fall.
Deacon - Shield
“Are you kidding me?” Phelyya asked, her legs pinned under a thick stone branch as the ground continued shaking. The constant movement made it hard to make out detail in the low light, like bad horror movie shaky-cam work, but I could see a few bloodied faces on the path behind us as halflings pulled themselves out from under rocks. A few were sheltered under larger tree trunks while smaller stone chunks rained from the forest. The tremor began to subside, the earth refusing to still completely as it continued vibrating with a low rumble.
The lull in the quake’s intensity was followed by a flurry of movement from everyone. Lorekeeper Coal ran to the side of the branch pinning our rogue in place and rolled it off with a solid kick. I took stock of the party’s status, glad to see Phelyya was the only one missing health. A boulder smashed into the tree just beside me, rolling into the forest after creating a shower of rocks. I couldn’t see the ceiling of the cavern above, which made me nervous. A stalactite coming loose could one-shot any of us.
“Drink from the fountain and form up in front of the dungeon,” Amalie called out, barely audible. Foreman Quickhand echoed her a moment later, voice piercing the cacophony of shattered rock and halfling voices coordinating recovery efforts. Quickhand grabbed a handful of the water and followed Amalie to a spot over near me in the brush, the rest of the party in tow with our recent NPC companions.
“Where are we sending everyone once they get inside?” Amalie asked. “Do we just fill the entrance and first hall?”
Lenny glowed in Lex’s hand as he started speaking. “With this many people, the Tempering Fires will assume it’s being invaded almost immediately. Dungeons do not react well to invasion unless they’re specifically designed for large groups.”
“True,” Coal agreed, nodding. “Even weak dungeons can summon the power to defend themselves against large forces.”
“Does it matter that we’re not trying to delve deeply?” Quickhand asked, tapping her cigarette holder as she thought. “Every attempted invasion has been a run to the end as quickly as was physically possible. This is less a smash-and-grab and more like securing a position and holding. We have around a hundred combat-capable fighters, assuming nobody died in that quake. I’m sure we can hold a position for a little while.”
“Just getting inside isn’t enough,” I corrected. “We need to get to the Hall of Challenge, which is pretty much running the dungeon and waiting outside the boss room.”
“If the dungeon defenses are anything like the forest, that’s going to take hours,” Amalie said. “Any ideas?”
“Send the NPC leaders down to the hall with a small party?” Phelyya asked, her avatar shrugging noncommittally. “We’ll respawn, they won’t.”
“If you’re talking about me, then you should know I’m not leaving my people to die out here while I hide,” Quickhand replied, heat in her voice at the implication of cowardice.
“I don’t think pragmatism is such a bad idea,” Goodwin added, his tone more sympathetic than Phelyya’s. “What if you took a party to the secure spot, then had the rest of your people follow half an hour later?”
The intensity of the quakes increased suddenly, cutting off further discussion. The shaking shifted from a chaotic rattling to an even rhythmic vibration. The sound of grinding stone was accompanied by a rushing noise like the sound of a large waterfall.
Quest Updated: Save Your Place, Save Us All
Summary: Lendralgin Oik has informed you of the dungeon’s impending destruction. Forge ignition is in progress. Were your efforts to stabilize the dungeon sufficient? The survival of many is at stake.
Objective:
Restore dungeon stability ?/1
Will of the Forge - The Forge of Creation is attempting to use you as a conduit for its will. Activating your Forge Seal gift while this effect is active results in a battle of wills against the forge. On success, you can direct the channeled effect to a limited degree and cut the duration short. On failure, you have no control over the actions the forge takes using your body for one minute.
As soon as I finished reading the notifications, gravity increased significantly as the tone of the rushing sound changed pitch. All our desperate planning just went out the window. There was no making it to a safe area, no quick escape for the NPCs, and no guarantee we weren’t going to be starting over with nothing in the next few minutes. We had been so close.
Light flooded the cavern as a far wall was sheared away. From my angle under the canopy of stone trees, I couldn’t tell how far up we were. What I could tell, was that we were about to be crushed. While the dungeon and Marble Forest were being lifted into the air, the ceiling above didn’t seem to be following the same path.
I pulled my shield from underneath me and used it to cover Lex. I wasn’t sure what anyone’s chances of survival were here, but I’d chosen to be a tank in this world. The tank’s role was to protect others, and this was a small gesture that might give the weakest NPC in my reach a slim chance at survival. It made me feel a little less useless. Too bad I couldn’t put a shield over the whole forest.
“But you can,” a faint voice whispered in my head. Time slowed to a crawl as it spoke. “Let me help. Channel me.”
I could see the solid sheet of rock a dozen feet overhead, no longer rushing, but rather inching toward me now. I felt an urge to activate an ability I’d never had available before, bolstered by absolute clarity of purpose. I was the tank, and I protected people. It was up to me to protect everyone now. With an effort of sheer determination, I activated Will of the Forge.
My perspective shifted, time slowing to an absolute freeze now as my point of view floated over the forest. I was all but touching the descending rock wall when instincts told me to raise my shield overhead, despite being incorporeal. A curved shield of force flickered into being over the entire area and my muscles buckled under the pressure. After sinking down an inch, I felt the power of the earth itself reinforcing the shield. I fought gravity, pushing the immeasurable mass of rock back with a roar of challenge.
A surge of power ran through me, from the soles of my feet through to the raised shield arm like an electric shock flowing in reverse. The shield gained a layer of solidity, a framework of physical force behind it with the pulse of power. I struggled to maintain my position, but each second the weight lessened and the shield grew more substantial. This repeated every second, though I couldn’t tell if my stamina would falter before the shield could hold on its own since my heads-up display was missing.
I began to black out from the effort. My consciousness crashed back into my body just long enough for me to confirm I was still protecting the small halfling artificer from harm. Maybe what I did would hold, maybe it wouldn’t. I’d find out soon enough.
Amalie - Survival
I read through the quest update and cursed as the floor rose up to meet me. The pressure from the mountain’s acceleration made it hard to breathe as I stared up at the stone leaves above me. Self-preservation told me to curl up in a ball and protect my head, but movement was virtually impossible. Light flooded the forest and I saw the ceiling begin to cave in.
Squeezing my eyes shut, I braced for impact. The seconds dragged by and I felt a tingling in my Forge Seal brand. It was odd that I didn’t get any notifications about the seal, considering it was causing enough discomfort to be felt even with the distractions from the mountain lifting into the sky. A colossal thud of impact slowed our ascent for a moment, and I knew we were doomed when I was thrown into the air.
Then, as suddenly as my body was lifted from the ground, I was slammed back down with even more force. I opened my eyes to see a clear blue sky through the distortion of some magical barrier. The pressure from our rise faded away after a few more seconds. I got to my feet once it felt like gravity was back to normal.
The fading late-afternoon sunlight glittered off the polished marble of the forest, showcasing a beauty that was hidden in the darkness of the cavern. The light also let me see the destruction wrought by the quakes and the dungeon’s violent ascent through a mountain. Maybe half the trees in the immediate area had some visible damage and a quarter leaned drunkenly against each other for support, some toppling as I watched. A few halflings were stirring and trying to orient themselves. I saw Gavin casting a healing spell on a badly-bloodied Tack, while two others tried to lift the branch off his legs.
I quickly checked on my party icons, confirming everyone had survived, even if Deacon was dangerously low on health. Coal, Edralin, and Quickhand dusted rock fragments and dust off their clothes as they stood. Most of the party had already moved to follow Gavin with the exception of Deacon. He was still unconscious on the ground as Lex squirmed out from under his shield. She favored one leg as she got free, pulling Lenny’s orb out of the rubble a moment later. I approached to give her some support and take the haunted mana battery off her hands.
As I approached, she suddenly stared past me, eyes comically wide behind cracked glasses. Assuming there was an enemy, I spun around and reached for my wand, only to find it missing. Right, it exploded. Instead, I moved my hands in the beginning gesture for a Firebolt. Taking in the sight, I let my arms drop limply to my sides.
I assumed that the sky being visible meant we were on top of whatever piece of the mountain was flying. Apparently, we were just on a shelf below a massive castle. From this angle, it was hard to get a feel for the scale of it. High walls of polished stone hid most of the castle, with only the rare tower peeking out hundreds of feet overhead in the distance. The distortion from the magic barrier faded, providing a sharper image of the walls while letting in a refreshing cool breeze.
“Oh, look, we survived,” I heard Deacon croak from the ground, rolling onto his side. Dark red blood filled in the deep rocky cracks on the skin around his eyes and chin. “Any chance there’s a spare healer around? I am riddled with debuffs preventing me from healing.”
“People who don’t respawn have priority,” I replied, seeing Gavin busy moving among the injured. “Just sit tight a bit. What happened to you?”
“I decided I wanted to protect everyone and got a little help,” Deacon tapped at the Forge Seal on his neck, then winced.
Lorekeeper Coal handed Deacon a small red vial from a pouch on his belt without looking, eyes glued to the castle above. The tank downed the potion with a shaky hand and I watched his health recover over the next few seconds, slowing once it hit the halfway point.
“Would you say we’ve survived, or do we need to get out of the forest first?” Deacon asked, snapping the NPCs from their collective trance. “Because I’m pretty sure the quest should be complete, but I’m not seeing an update.”
I confirmed the quest objectives were completed, except for the final one to talk to Foreman Quickhand, but none of the rewards were listed and it was still showing active. Looks like the game won’t do partial completion here.
“We should get out of here and assess our casualties,” Quickhand said, weariness in her voice. “I don’t think there’s that much danger here, but I’d feel safer somewhere the trees aren’t going to fall over and crush me.”
We helped free trapped halflings, tend to the wounded, and in a few unfortunate cases recover the dead from under the heavy stone. I never thought I’d feel sad seeing nameless NPCs die, yet there was something about the characters in this game that made them feel like real people. By the time everyone was mobile again, the glow dust on our clothes provided most of the light. Ten small bodies were carried up the stairs ahead of the main group, the mercenaries refusing assistance with the task from the party.
“Why aren’t they fading away?’ Uri asked quietly as we followed some distance behind the mercenaries.
I shrugged “Maybe it’s based on how they died? Natural causes, like being crushed by a tree, might get a different result than being killed by a player.”
“I imagine it would be a little strange watching a relative die of old age and leave behind a loot sack,” Goodwin added, see-sawing his hand as he spoke. “The game has to balance game logic and realism, right?”
We continued in silence as we caught up to the halflings on the stairs, not wanting to disturb whatever death customs they practiced with insensitive speculation about the way this game operated. Reaching the top of the stairs gave me a better idea of the changes to the dungeon or, more accurately, the city attached to it. A chest-high finished-stone wall now stood where the cavern wall was previously, a gentle, honey-colored glow flickering over top and through the decorative columns.
The area was about the size of a large city park, maybe a little bigger than a couple of football fields in length but circular. Along one edge, a spiral staircase about the width of a street led to a huge arched doorway a dozen feet tall set into the side of the castle walls. The walls stood maybe fifty feet high, curving away in both directions into the distance with crenelated ramparts running along the top. I couldn’t see the end of the wall, but I could see rounded stone towers in the distance at least half a mile away.
