Al’Vash’s main inn was a very different affair to the inns in Corinth. Instead of the smell of mead and crammed tables, the place was very quiet and pristine. It had stained glass windows that illuminated the space quite nicely. Sonya had left them to their own devices, waiting for them to finish whatever they needed to do in Al’Vash before hitting the road. The party had just met up again after sleeping in the inn, enjoying the new beverages Hammerfell offered.
“This stuff’s nice,” Grey said, examining the drink. “Kinda fruity.”
“Doesn’t remind me of any fruit I’ve eaten,” Patrick replied.
“I think it tastes of…mango? Or something similar?”
“I’m getting hints of raspberry, I think. What is this?”
“It’s delicious,” Amelia added, “that’s all that matters.”
“Would love to learn how to make it,” James added. “Maybe if we meet another Sable native who’s not an NPC, I’ll ask about it.”
“Gonna make the Sable Cookbook?” Amelia teased.
“Kable can’t trademark the name of a real planet, right? Should be able to make one no problem.”
“Well, if the drinks are this different, I wonder what the other shops are like,” Patrick said. “Wanna take a trip down the blacksmith? We haven’t updated our gear in a while. I think some of us still have stuff from Heartily.”
They left the tavern quickly, all moving with a new sense of purpose now they knew what was on the line. Al’Vash had returned to normalcy incredibly fast after the sudden bandit attack, several market stalls selling fresh fruit and various trinkets for any travelers passing through on their way deeper into the desert. The smithy felt even hotter now that it was in a desert. The blacksmith was a tall, muscle bound woman who smiled at them as they entered.
“You must be the heroes who were causing an uproar,” she said. “What would you like?”
Blacksmith
---
Shortsword:
Defender: +10 DEF, 1000 Gold
Runic Scimitar: ‘Inflict Break’ Gear Trait, 1500 Gold
---
Shield:
Elf Shield: +5 DEX, +10 DEF, 1500 Gold
Warded Guard: ‘Druidic Ward’ Gear Skill, 1500 Gold
---
Armour:
Desert Shroud: ‘Resist Desert Heat’ Gear Trait, 1000 Gold
Elf Plate: +10 DEX, -10 DEF, 800 Gold
“What are these gear skill things?” Amelia asked me.
Gear Skills/Traits are additional skills attached to certain pieces of gear.
“No shit,” Patrick muttered.
You can have one skill for each piece of Gear. Gear abilities are usually weaker than Class abilities, and some are restricted to roles instead of classes, or not restricted at all.
“So we take the skills or the stat ups,” Patrick deduced. “I think I’ll keep the stats. I’m pretty happy with my skill line up.”
“Same here,” Amelia said. “What’s this ‘Resist Desert Heat’ thing, though?”
“I’ve got that too,” James added.
“Same here,” Grey said. “Is this meant to be a passive?”
James tapped on the item and the skill description came up.
Resist Desert Heat
Unrestricted Trait
Grants immunity to the Heat Exhaustion status effect.
Passive
“Heat Exhaustion?”
Status Effect
Heat Exhaustion
STR and DEX halved
“That’s pretty rough,” Amelia said, “Those are my main stats. If I get hit by that, I’m out of the fight entirely. Might get the shroud to stop that.”
She chose the armour, and her copper armour was quickly replaced by a thick, somewhat tattered cloak that was nonetheless pretty light and moveable.
GlassAngel
Desert Shroud
‘Resist Desert Heat’ Trait.
1000 Gold
“Look at you, planning ahead,” Patrick teased.
She smiled back. “It happens from time to time. Are you planning on getting one?”
“Nah, I’ll be fine. I don’t use my Dexterity stat at all, and you could probably halve my Attack and I’ll still hit harder than you.”
“I’d like to see you try.”
“Besides, we don’t know how common this Heat Exhaustion thing will actually be.”
This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author's consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.
“I don’t use those stats either,” Grey said, before looking over at James. “You want it? Status effect or not, it must be hot in that armour.”
“I’ll just deal with it,” James replied. “I’m gonna spend my money on a new sword. I’ve had this thing since Haelshire, and if my Spellcasting stat only influences my aggro draw, it’s kinda useless to me. Aggro is bad in this game.”
The old sword was soon replaced with a pristine looking scimitar, glowing yellow ruins appearing on the blade.
James Marlow
Scimitar
‘Inflict Break’ Gear Trait
1500 Gold.
----
Inflict Break
Unrestricted Trait
10% chance of inflicting Break on the opponent with every auto attack.
Passive
“Maybe aggro is really good and you’re just a bad tank,” Amelia said.
“You know that’s not true.” James turned to Grey. “What about you? Want an upgrade?”
Grey shrugged. “I’m happy with my current gear. Although there is a gear skill here I quite like…”
“Go on, splash out for once,” Patrick said.
“I never get to because I’m always broke from buying potions and revives for you lot.”
“Our supply is pretty good right now,” James admitted. “We don’t need to stock up this time.”
“Alright, I’ll get something new then.”
Grey’s previous clerical cross was replaced with a wicker cross.
Skibabylon
Symbol of Life
‘Druidic Ward’ Gear Skill
1500 Gold
---
Druidic Ward
Support and Tank Skill
Creates a wall of vines and plants that blocks attacks. The wall has 30 HP, and disintegrates when a new one is created or when it runs out of HP. Fire attacks burn through it immediately.
20 Second Cooldown
“Oh, hey, I had that skill too,” James said. “Seems pretty neat.”
“Well, I think that’s enough blacksmithing,” Patrick said.
“Says the guy who didn’t buy anything,” Amelia replied.
“You all looked done, and we’re trying to go faster, right? Don’t have much time for window shopping anymore. Let’s meet up with Sonya and get the hell out of here.”
>>>
The further the group walked inland, the more Al’Vash’s greenery started to fade. By the time they’d reached the edge of town, the only tree were palm trees that were arranged in such a precise way that they’d obviously been planted by the town’s inhabitants. Sonya was leaning against one of those trees on the edge of town as the party approached. They could see a sand covered stone path stretching out towards the horizon, but otherwise, all they could see for miles was dunes.
“You took your time,” Sonya said. “Feeling a little unprepared?”
“Don’t worry about us,” Grey replied. “The town got back to normal quickly.”
“They’re used to bandit raids. Life goes on.”
“Or is it because it’s a digital reality?”
“…They’re used to bandit raids. Life goes on.”
“Nice try, Grey,” Patrick interjected. “Anyway, where are we going?”
“So, you have two objectives,” Sonya continued. She pulled a map out of her bag, unfurling it. It showed the entire nation of Hammerfell, stretching out across the vast desert. “The first is the dig site. The Holy Lance Highwind has been unearthed there recently, and Hammerfell authorities are keeping a hold of it so it can be passed to a Hero of Sable. The other is that we need to visit the Sultan so Corinth and Hammerfell can form an alliance against Valzekt. He’s currently in the capital city of Veltan.”
“Can’t Lilian do that herself?” Grey asked.
“Let’s just say they’re not on the best terms. There’s a strong possibility Hammerfell wouldn’t be willing to fight even if they’re willing to hand over the Lance.”
“Isn’t Valzekt a threat to the world, though?” Amelia asked.
“Yes, but he’s a threat to Corinth first. Hammerfell is unlikely to come to their aid when its closest political rival can deal with the problem first. Lilian thought maybe sending a group of heroes who are unaffiliated with any country on Sable would help with negotiations.”
“I doubt it, they are not our strong suit,” Patrick said.
“Yeah, last time we showed up to negotiations, the king died,” James admitted.
Sonya ignored them and kept talking. “Wherever you wish to travel, I will take you there. I trust in your judgement fully.”
Quest Completed
The Other Side of the Sea
---
New Quest
Highwind
Objective: Travel to the Dig Site.
---
New Quest
Negotiations
Objective: Travel to Veltan.
“Huh, so we get branching objectives,” Patrick said. “Which one do we hit first?”
“If the lance is a game mechanic, it might be handy to get it first,” James said. “Even if it’s not, we might be able to find a way to actually obtain it outside of the game’s control.”
“I’m sure Kable’s already thought of that,” Grey replied.
“Oh, obviously, but it’d make things a whole lot easier if he did something stupid.”
“I agree with James,” Patrick said. “We’re going after the lance.”
“I’m down for whatever,” Amelia said bluntly. “Let's just get this done quick. I don’t know how much time we have left, but it can’t be much.”
“There is no carved road to the dig site,” Sonya explained. “I can guide you there, but it will be rough. It will be a tough hike across dunes, and will take quite some time.”
“We’ll do whatever it takes to save Sable,” Grey replied.
Sonya smiled and nodded. “Then I’ll trust you. Ready, Heroes of Sable?”
All of them looked at each other, smiling.
“Alright,” James said. “Let’s save a world.”
James Stats: Level: 9 VIT: 350/350 STR: 20 DEF: 30 DEX: 10 SPL: 15 INT: 1
Amelia Stats: Level: 9 VIT: 200/200 STR: 30 DEF: 5 DEX: 25 SPL: 5 INT: 1
Grey stats: Level: 9 VIT: 200/200 STR: 20 DEF: 15 DEX: 15 SPL: 30 INT: 1 Healing Pool: 600/600
Patrick stats: Level: 9 VIT: 150/150 STR: 35 DEF: 15 DEX: 20 SPL: 25 INT: 1 Mana: 250/250
