Bitter: Book Two: Bitter, #2

Chapter One

Britta left the post office and stood outside on the steps. As she watched people (and things that weren’t people) go about their business, her vantage point at the top of the stairs allowed her to see the players among the crowd, their names tags marking them out. They weren’t just headed in the same direction, they were clearly all going to the same place and trying to get there ahead of each other.

Were they going to the mines, too? According to her map, it did look like it. But then why not ride there on a mount? They must have been higher level than her, and far richer. Yet they all ran on foot.

Britta walked down the steps and called for Donald. Nothing happened. She had definitely seen people riding around, but they may have been NPCs. It seemed players weren’t allowed to summon their mounts in town.

Since she only wanted to check out the local dungeon, Britta strolled through the crowd, taking her time. When she reached the edge of town, she saw players jump onto their horses and large cats, which were the two most popular mounts, and ride off down the road heading north.

Donald appeared behind her when she called him this time. She got on his back and they trotted off to see what all the fuss was about.

The Mines of Korlath were a ten minute ride away. And they were a very popular destination. Britta could tell by the huge queue leading up to them; hundreds of people shuffling forwards bit by bit like they were waiting in line at Disney World. Only better armed.

Britta urged Donald on and received some dirty looks as she passed by the bored and impatient people waiting. There was a lot of fancy armour and weapons on display. They probably thought she was trying to cut the line, but she just wanted to have a look at the mine itself. Was it a big spooky opening in a mountain or a hole in the ground?

The line ended at the base of a mountain. It wasn’t a very tall mountain, but then it was probably only there to add to the mood. It was dark and menacing, which was a good trick for a wall of rock — although the foreboding atmosphere was somewhat ruined by the giant sign with ‘Mines of Korlath’ branded into it in a font Britta didn’t like. It was a fun font. There was nothing less fun than a fun font.

The sign hung over two entrances with two arrows pointing down, one saying ‘Standard’ and the other ‘Epic’. They had gone for a real amusement park vibe. She fully expected to see a stripey measuring stick with ‘You have to be this tall to enter the dungeon’ written next to it.

The long queue was all on one side for the epic entrance. It looked like a cave mouth, but with a shimmering red barrier across it. When the barrier turned blue, the people at the front of the line walked through in large groups, most taking the maximum allowed party of twelve. No one came out, so the exit was probably elsewhere.

The interval between red and blue was quite short and the line was in constant motion, although it didn’t seem to be getting any shorter. She got off Donald and walked over to the standard entrance. It, too, had a shimmering barrier which was blue and stayed blue.

There was a wooden sign on a post next to the entrance. It confirmed this was the standard version of the mines. Groups of between one and six players could enter, which was half the number allowed in the epic version, but also meant she could go in solo. She looked around. No one showed any interest in joining her.

There was also a short history lesson on the sign, with stick drawings to illustrate.

Apparently, the mines had once been operated by dwarves (of course) and produced gold and gemstones. Then, kobolds had moved in. Britta wasn’t sure what kobolds were but their stick drawings suggested round tummies and big teeth. At least they weren’t goblins.

The kobolds had kicked out the dwarves and made the place their own. They had a king with a crown who sat on a big chair. It wasn’t much of a story, but there was some good news. At the bottom of the sign was a helpful tip. Kobolds had excellent eyesight in the dark, but were extremely sensitive to light.

Britta was buoyed by this information. Making a bright light was one of the few things her character was good at. If the kobolds were really affected by bright lights, no one would be better suited to dealing with them than her. She could blind them all!

She might even be able to solo it. Hell, if the epic dungeon had the same kinds of monsters, then she might even be able to solo that one, too. This could be her time to shine, literally.

She was getting a bit ahead of herself. Even with her ability to make light, it would be better to go in with a couple more people. She looked around; still no one lining up behind her.

The cave entrance remained blue and ready to accept noobs. There was a good chance she would die, and then it was back to the real world for twenty-four hours. What a dumb rule. She should have a word with Dr Reedy about that.

Ahem. The cough came from behind her. She turned around to find a handsome man, tall and strong-looking, stood there. He had an impressive bow and a quiver full of arrows hanging from his belt. A multitude of knives poked out all over his body. Are you waiting for the regular dungeon?

Yes, said Brita. I’m new.

We could go in together. I’m Stan, by the way.

Hmm. Stan. He had a familiar way about him. And an archer; Dad’s favourite class. Was this his new character trying to play with her without letting on it was him? It sounded nothing like him. She could be totally wrong. And she could use a hand with the dungeon. He looked well-equipped and ready to fight.

Okay, Stan, let’s go.

Britta walked confidently towards the barrier, and then stopped. The air in front of her shimmered. She looked at Stan standing next to her.

We need to group up first, said Stan.

You’ve done this before? she asked him.

Oh, yes. Many times. He tapped the air in front of him.

Britt’s hand began to flash. She pressed the light in her palm and a screen opened.

Party invitation from Stanley’s Cameo. Do you wish to accept?

Stanley... Stan Lee? She was sure it wasn’t Dad — 99% sure — but it was an odd coincidence. She pressed the ‘Yes’ button.

Okay, said Stan, Ready when you are.

She put out a hand and touched the barrier. It tingled. Do you want to go first?

He smiled. Sure. He stepped through and disappeared.

Britta followed. There was a moment of darkness, and then she was in a tunnel. Stan was waiting for her, holding a torch. The flames danced about in the slight breeze coming from somewhere ahead. She looked over her shoulder. There was a wall, but no way out.

She tried to peer into the darkness. It was pitch dark beyond the light from the torch.

Nothing much happens until you get to the first chamber, said Stan.

Oh. Right. She felt incredibly nervous, but did her best to stay calm. It was just an introduction to dungeons for beginners. It wasn’t going to be hardcore hack and slash. Probably. Sorry. I’m not sure what to expect.

Don’t worry, said Stan. You’ll be fine. This is the easiest dungeon in the game. Hardly anyone bothers with it after the first time.

Then why are you here? she asked him.

Do you know about the epic dungeon?

Britta nodded. Seems very popular.

Yeah. That’s because no one’s been able to beat it yet. Not even close. The layout is the same as this one, but the monsters... ooh, boy. I thought I’d run through this one again just to check if there’s anything that might help with the epic version.

That made sense. Have a look around without the distraction of being relentlessly attacked and beaten to death. You might find a nook or cranny that could help avoid the monsters in the hard version. Smart.

What level are you? she asked.

Two.

Britta was surprised and her face must have shown it.

This is an alt, he explained. My main is a lot higher, but you can’t enter this dungeon if you’re over Level 10. So I made a new one. Of course, it helps having a high level character with money. I couldn’t afford a bow like this if I was just starting out. He twanged the string on his bow. It made a musical sound that echoed down the tunnel. What class are you, by the way?

Britta suddenly felt uncomfortable. There was nothing really wrong with being an illusionist, not at this level where everyone was pretty useless, but she still found it hard to tell people, and then explain why she chose it.

She took out her dagger to make herself look like she could handle trouble when she told him her profession.

Oh, you’re a rogue? said Stan.

Britta looked at the dagger. It was the one she got off Big Freddy, who was technically a thief, if not a very successful one.

That might come in useful, continued Stan. A couple of traps, if I remember right — it’s been a while. Not many locks to pick though. It’s more of a maze you need to keep from getting lost in, and a couple of kobolds.

The kobolds, they’re afraid of bright lights? She was happy to take the conversation away from her class. He would only want to know what spells she could do, and then be disappointed. If she raised the idea of blinding kobolds and then revealed her ability to make light-flashes, it would be far more impressive. If he wanted to think she was a rogue in the meantime, it wasn’t like she’d said she was. He’d just assumed it because of the dagger.

I wouldn’t say they’re afraid, more like they find it harder to see in the daylight. Something like this torch will keep them at bay for a bit, but they won’t run away or anything. You just need enough light to see where they are so you can punch them. They don’t take much damage. He waved the torch about ahead of him. Come on. He started walking down the tunnel, which was only wide enough for them to go in single file.

Britta followed. He seemed like he knew what he was doing and could probably solo the dungeon, even with a Level 2 character. She still wanted to see if she could use her ability on kobolds, although by the sounds of it they were so easy to kill you didn’t need a special strategy. Not in this dungeon, at least.

How many times have you tried the epic dungeon? asked Britta. I mean, on your other character.

Only four, so far, said Stan. Some people have done it over a dozen.

And no one can finish it?

Nope. It’s because—

A howl, long and high-pitched sounded in the distance.

That’s strange, said Stan. I don’t remember that happening before. Here, can you hold this? He offered the torch to Britta. I need both hands for my bow.

Britta took the torch. It was quite a disadvantage to need both hands when you were in a dark place. How were archers supposed to get around somewhere like this if they were on their own?

They set off down the tunnel, Stan slightly ahead of her, bow drawn with an arrow ready to fire.

Could be they’ve added some new monsters with the latest patch, he whispered. The whispering made it feel even more tense. Nice. New content.

It’s still a beginner dungeon, though, said Britta. So they won’t be anything really nasty, right?

No, of course not, probably just a... Stan stopped and thought about it. Actually, I can’t think of a low-level mob that howls like that. He shrugged and kept moving. Britta didn’t feel reassured, but she was glad he was here to take care of whatever it was.

They entered a square chamber with a tunnel opening in each wall. Britta held the torch higher and moved it around. The tunnels looked more or less the same. Which way?

Doesn’t really matter, said Stan. It’s all connected. Your map will fill it in for you as we go.

Britta tapped her map icon at the top of her screen and it opened to show the tunnel they’d come through and the room they were in. The rest was blank — the north, east and west tunnels only extending a tiny bit into the dark. At least she didn’t have to draw a map by hand; that would have been extremely tedious.

Stan nudged her and then indicated the east tunnel with the arrow nocked to his bow. It took a second for her to see what he was pointing at.

There was a string across the bottom of the entrance. It wasn’t an invisible wire cunningly hidden in the near darkness, it was quite a thick vine with some leaves still attached. There was one across each tunnel entrance. She nodded at Stan to let him know she’d seen it, but his slightly confused look reminded her that he thought she was a rogue. He expected her to disarm the trap.

Time to reveal she wasn’t a fairly useful rogue but instead a rather useless illusionist.

There was another howl. It sounded like it was coming from the north tunnel. Running footsteps were headed towards them. Stan readied his bow, Britta held out her dagger.

Kobold! shouted Stan.

A kobold charged down the tunnel. It was smaller than a goblin, very hairy with straps of leather wound round its limbs like intermittent armour. It was quite ugly with a snub nose a bit like a bat’s, and very large jug handle ears on each side of its head.

Stan’s bow twanged as he loosed an arrow. The kobold raised its weapon, which turned out to be a large iron skillet. The arrow ricocheted off it.

The kobold didn’t seem fazed by the attack. It rushed into the room and broke the trip wire. Behind it, a stone slab fell, screaming as the sides scraped rock against rock, hitting the ground with a thump and blocking off the opening.

The kobold wildly looked from side to side. Run! Then it sprinted into the east tunnel, tripping that wire, too. Another slab fell to block that exit.

Stan had another arrow ready to fire, but it was too late. Did he tell us to run?

Yes, said Britta. Was he using a frying pan as a weapon?

Kobolds make do with whatever they can find. Never encountered one that gave players advice, though.

I think he was scared, said Britta.

Scared of what?

There was another howl, this one right behind the slab covering the north tunnel. There was a scratching and clawing sound and then the slab began to slowly rise, accompanied by grunting and groaning. Something was lifting the solid rock. Something very strong.

I’m guessing, he was running from whatever that is, said Britta.

Maybe we should leave, said Stan.

Good idea, said Britta.

Stan turned and hurried through the west tunnel. A sheet of rock slammed down behind him.

Shit! Sorry! said Stan’s muffled voice.

Britta turned to face north. The seal across the tunnel in front of her was slowly rising and whatever was behind it would probably try to kill her. And most likely succeed.

The grunts and growls were intimidating. The rock slab was obviously very heavy so maybe the monster would be too tired to do anything once it managed to lift it up. Maybe it would fall on the monster’s head and crush it. A desperate hope.

What is it? called out Stan from behind the slab covering the west tunnel. Can you see?

He had run through and tripped the wire accidentally. Probably. She couldn’t think of a reason why he would intentionally trap her in here by herself, it wasn’t like it gained him anything, but he could have done it just to troll her. There were people like that in every game, people who liked ruining it for others. She wasn’t sure if Stan was one of them or not, but it didn’t really matter. She would be dead in a minute.

Britta still had the torch Stan had given her so she had light and he didn’t. Unless he had more torches, which he probably did. She bent down to look under the gap but it was too dark to see anything.

She threw the torch under the slab and there was a cry of surprise. It sounded almost human. The slab of rock slid down and crashed to the ground. Just before it had slammed shut, she’d seen a pair of feet. In boots.

Unlike the kobold who had been dressed in ragged clothing, the boots had looked very well-made. Heavy and solid, and about the size you’d expect of a normal person. Could it be a player? Or an NPC?  She might even be able to talk to it.

She listened for any sounds.

Hello? Are you still there?

She wished Stan would shut up. She tried to focus on the north tunnel. Had the monster run away. There was a long, chilling howl. Nope, still there.

She was in the dark, but at least she could fix that.

Glamor, passive on. She pointed her finger and a tennis ball of light shot out and bounced off the wall. It rolled along the floor and stopped at her feet. She picked it up.

The room filled with a blue light. It would be even more useful if she could stick the ball to her hat, or if it could be made it float overhead. Possibly it could at higher levels. Until then, she had to carry it.

She checked the walls for a lever or button that might unblock the tunnels. She was safe for the time being, but she was also stuck in a tiny room. Not exactly a fun game experience. There had to be a way out.

The trap wasn’t designed to cause damage, it just split up the party. One person goes through releasing the sliding wall, now they have to find a way to get back to the others. A nice, simple problem for low-level characters. They wouldn’t put any really deadly monsters in here if they planned on separating people. That would be mean.

The slab over the north tunnel began rising again. This time the grunting sounded even more determined. She calmed herself. Whatever it was, it was obviously meant to be appropriate for a low-level beginner like her. She could handle it.

It was dark under the slab. What had happened to the torch? If the monster had put it out, perhaps it was sensitive to light.

She gripped the ball of light in her hand and gently rolled it through the gap.

There was no exclamation this time. The slab kept moving up. The boots were finely crafted with intricate laces. Was that a sign of intelligence? Did beasts have the ability to tie their own shoelaces? Was she being prejudiced against other lifeforms?

The slab was about halfway up when she realised it was, for the lifter, all the way up. He was about the same height as her, but much wider and stockier. He had a very big beard and was surprisingly smartly dressed in leather trousers and jerkin, and a fancy belt with a shiny buckle.

He looked exactly how she imagined a dwarf to look, apart from the foaming mouth, gnashing teeth and red eyes. There was definitely something wrong with him. She thought about opening a dialogue, but she really didn’t want to attract his attention.

He had the slab over his head now, his thick muscular arms locked like a weightlifter. Slowly, he began walking forward, walking his hands across the bottom of the slab at the same time. The effort showed in his taut, corded muscles along his arms and neck and shoulders. The muscles flexed and bulged. He looked like he could smash her to pieces quite easily, if he didn’t have his hands full at the moment.

She’d been looking for a way out, and here it was. She ran straight at the dwarf, turning sideways at the last moment to shuffle past him as he stretched his neck to try and bite her, spittle flying, and then she was in the tunnel.

The dwarf began to slowly turn around while still supporting the huge weight above him. If she could figure a way to tickle him from a distance, he’d be in big trouble. But this wasn’t the time to be a smart alec. She picked up her ball of light and ran.

A long, plaintive howl chased after Britta, which was better than the sound of running footsteps. Judging by how much strain the dwarf had been under just to keep the slab of rock raised, it would take at least a couple of minutes for him to free himself. Enough time for Britta to get away, she hoped.

The tunnel was very dark and her ball of light only illuminated a short distance ahead of her. She threw the ball to show the way but she’d never had much of a throwing arm (inherited from Dad) and the ball went more up than along.

It bounced off the roof of the tunnel and landed on the floor. She kicked it and sliced it off her toe, careening off the wall, bouncing from side to side.

The light jumped around the tunnel, showing no exits.

She kicked the ball again and this time it shot forward and disappeared, a soft glow coming from the left.

She ran into a square chamber similar to the one she’d left, with exits in each wall. She picked up the ball and held it in front of her, moving it around to see better. The tunnels all looked the same.

Stan had gone west, so if she did the same she might meet up with him. Was that a good idea? There was safety in numbers, and he had the bow, but could she trust him?

If she took the east tunnel, she might run into the kobold, but he had been small and scared, which was an attractive combination. She might even be able to talk to him and avoid fighting altogether. They could help each other escape from the dwarf.

Then again, the mine was supposed to be full of kobolds. That one might have been separated from his chums and hurrying to meet up with them. It would be a different story if she ran into a large group of kobolds on the warpath.

Or she could plough ahead, deeper into the dungeon. That was probably the least safe route to take. Kobolds might not be the only creatures down here, and there were bound to be more traps ahead. Running blindly down tunnels was not going to end well.

There was a loud crash behind her — most likely the dwarf gaining its freedom. Would the dwarf come after her? She had to assume so. It would definitely try to kill her if it caught up.

The dwarf was her most immediate problem,and one that seemed out of place in a beginner dungeon. She couldn’t shake the feeling it wasn’t supposed to be here. It just didn’t feel right. She also wondered how the kobolds had managed to chase the dwarves out of the mines if they were all like that.

The dwarf had seemed completely out of control. The red eyes, the foaming mouth, the howling... those weren’t dwarven traits. Dwarves were supposed to talk with Scottish accents (for some reason) and be obsessed with mining and singing.

Was it some kind of werewolf dwarf? It could be part of this dungeon’s quest, to cure the dwarf, but Stan would have known if that was the case. Unless he deliberately didn’t tell her.

There was another howl. Closer.

Britta made up her mind. If she was going to get killed by a weredwarf, she might as well check out as much of the dungeon as she could first. She ran into the north tunnel.

Stan had said he’d done this dungeon before, but he’d been surprised by the scared kobold and the ‘monster’ chasing it. She knew her character made the game do weird things, so Stan’s reaction could have been genuine. Which also meant his knowledge of this dungeon wasn’t going to be of much use.

But that still didn’t explain why he panicked and ran into the west tunnel without thinking, setting off the trap. It was the kind of thing a noob would do. It was the kind of thing Britta would do.

Shouldn’t he have been more willing to fight? She was leaning more towards him being a troll, which meant he certainly wasn’t Dad in disguise. For all his annoying gamer tendencies, Dad would never abandon her like that.

Britta stopped. Stupid. She wasn’t thinking clearly. She cast Shadow Guardian and her shade appeared.

Go down this tunnel and check for traps. Also, see what’s in the next chamber. Double speed.

The shade turned around and floated away. And then stopped.

What is it? said Britta, checking her mana levels. The shade ate up a lot of magic, but she had plenty.

Trap found, whispered the shade.

Where? asked Britta.

I’m standing on it, said the shade.

Chapter Two

Britta pointed her light at the ground beneath the shade. There was a very clearly defined rectangular depression under it, but the odd thing was that its lower body tapered off so it just floated over the ground, so how had it triggered the pad?

What did the trap do? As far as she could tell, nothing had happened.

Trap will activate when I step off this panel.

Are you standing on the trap?

Yes.

But you don’t have any feet. How are you putting weight on it?

Air pressure.

That’s what happened when you let geeks design fantasy games — magic that obeyed the laws of physics.

If I go past you will it set anything off?

No.

She ran to the other side of the shade. It shimmered slightly as she rushed past. She stopped once she was a couple of metres away.

Do you know what kind of trap it is? she asked, nervously looking down the tunnel. The dwarf would be coming, but she didn’t see or hear anything.

Pit trap, said the shade in its whispering voice that made everything sound more sinister than it was. Or in this case, the appropriate level of sinister.

A pit. Full of spikes, probably. Not a nice way to go, but perhaps she could use it to stop the dwarf. She checked her mana levels. Still plenty of time before the shade would be forced to deactivate.

Can you stay here until the dwarf comes, and then release the trap.

Activate trap when dwarf arrives. Understood.

Will you be okay? It was a dumb question. Of course the shade would be alright. It wasn’t a person, it was just a shadow.

Yes. Thank you.

Was that a normal response or another example of the game reacting differently to her character? She didn’t have time to find out as a howl announced the arrival of Dwarfenstein’s monster.

It came stumbling out of the dark, its red eyes glowing like they were on fire.

Britta took a couple of involuntary steps backwards. All he had to do was get to the shade and he’d fall into the pit and problem solved. It was a perfect plan. Or it would have been if the dwarf didn’t stop.

Did it know about the trap? The mines used to belong to the dwarves, so it may have been the one who built it. Or maybe it was the shade. The dark, wavering form hovering in the middle of the