Astoria took in the scenery as they passed through the foreboding gate and into the expansive grounds of Lord Garland's estate. He isn’t going to be just as corrupt as Dane is he? I just hope that he isn’t in bed with the Red Lotus.

The place reminded her of the Japanese Tea Gardens in San Francisco. Everywhere she looked there were carefully trimmed and cultivated plants that were literal eye candy. She particularly liked the shrubs that had enormous purple and white flowers on them.

Off the main pathway a short distance there was what looked like a zen garden. Raked gravel and large boulders covered the small area and she wondered if the designer of this part of the game world liked the old Karate Kid movies.

Gardeners were busily working to keep the place looking pristine. She saw several of them trimming the various shrubs and deadheading flowers in the beds scattered around the grounds.

The lord's manor was literally a humongous mansion that any celebrity would envy. There were large wooden columns with carvings on them by the front entrance. There were double doors that led into the house that also featured intricate carvings.

Two more guards stood at either side of the double doors and slapped hands to their breasts as they saw their escourt approaching. He must be the head guard or something around here just like I thought.

Once they were inside she was impressed by the vastness of what was likely a ballroom for hosting parties. There were stairs that led up to the second story at the far side of the room.

Lavish tapestries hung from the walls and she had to remember to keep moving rather than gawk. The man led them into a room near the back of the large room by the staircase.

It reminded her of a boardroom that you would see on tv shows and movies. Comfortable looking chairs surrounded a heavy wooden table complete with a fancier chair at the head of the table with the house crest embroidered into the back.

Okay, so where is Lord Garland? I thought he'd be taking us to him. I guess we're supposed to sit in this room and wait for him to show?

The older man walked to the end of the table and sat in the ornate chair. He leaned forward with his elbows on the table and laced his hands together in front of him.

Isn’t this guy going to go get him? Wait a se—

"As you may have guessed, I am Lord Silvis Garland III, and I am tasked with taking care of the city of Oliend. You have my gratitude for relieving the city of the goblin threat. I would have gone with a few of my guards, but my personal guard has been slowly losing strength between these relentless goblin raids and the bandits who have been harassing my townsfolk. We were waiting for a garrison to arrive from Elivaster to re-enforce our numbers as the other two lords that live near Oliend have refused to provide any assistance." Lord Garland's face twisted with a bit of disdain as he said that last part.

Astoria was dumbstruck. How had she not figured out his identity sooner? She wondered why he was hanging out in the guard house by the gate and not being lazy and doing extravagant things that lords typically did in stories.

"I'm Astoria and these are my companions, Ladriel, and Tilly. We found a letter locked away in the goblin leader's room." She pulled out the parchment and handed it over.

Garland read the document and his became red with anger. "That pompous blowhard, Dane, will not get away with this! I will see him hanged for this treason!" he slammed the parchment onto the table.

Astoria couldn't help but jump a little and winced as the man's hands hit the table. She looked to the others for a second and they all shared a look. Garland still looked furious but it looked to be more of a calm fury than an explosive one.

She continued, "Also... we've been able to uncover that he has some part in an organization called the Red Lotus. They kidnap girls and sell them in some sort of black market. We know about this because we were actually prisoners until we managed to escape."

Garland's face softened and a look of concern appeared on his face. Astoria felt that she could see compassion man’s eyes. "I'm so sorry for what has happened to you. There is much evil in the world, though I didn’t realize it was so close to home..." he stood up and walked over to her. "I haven't heard about this organization myself, but I will do everything in my power to extract information from Dane before he meets his fate."

He is genuinely a good person. How could I have had such a bad image of him built in my head before just because he's a noble? Maybe there really is justice in this world.

Astoria felt her eyes begin to well up with unbidden tears. I won't let myself cry. I need to be stronger than this.

Despite the thought she had to wipe away a tear that had begun to form at the corner of one of her eyes. "Thank you. We would like to help. We aren't the type to just sit on the side and let bad things happen if there’s anything we can do about it," Astoria said.

"Very well. The truth is, I don't currently have the manpower to storm his compound and arrest him at this time anyway. The garrison from Elivaster will arrive tomorrow morning and we can all march in there in force. Until then, you are my honored guests.”

He stood up and made his way towards the door. “I will have one of my attendants provide you with the reward for ridding us of those goblins and show you to your rooms for the night. Wait here." With a nod he headed back out of the room.

I want to trust this guy, but I was fooled by Elena also. Astoria sat in one of the chairs and the others did the same. "So, what do you guys want to do? He seems nice enough, but I've been fooled before. I don't want to let my guard down. Maybe we should stay somewhere in the town for the night. There are other inns."

"It's probably as safe here as anywhere outside with the Red Lotus being able to recognize us so easily and all. Plus, I bet the beds in a place like this are amazing!" Tilly seemed to be excited at the prospect of getting to stay in a place like this.

Ladriel on the other hand looked a little wary. She eyed the door before answering, "He might be a good person, but I agree with Astoria, we can't just trust someone because of how they appear. We should take turns keeping watch during the night and should barricade the door as well."

"Okay. If we do that, then I think we can be safe enough here. We'll take him up on his offer." Astoria folded her arms on the table and put her head down to rest.

It's exhausting being so suspicious of everyone all the time. I want this curse gone already. she yawned. I wonder how long we're going to have to wait for that attendant guy to show up.

A few minutes later a stuffy looking man walked into the room. He was dressed in the livery showcasing the house crest on the front and carried a small pouch that clinked as he stepped.

"I am Niles, the head attendant of this manor. Lord Garland has instructed me to have rooms prepared for you and to provide you with this reward," he placed the bag of coin on the table.

"Thanks," Astoria took it and handed it over to Tilly since she had been holding onto most of their money. Tilly took the bag and upended it on the table to count it.

Maybe it would be an insult to do something like that, but Tilly didn’t seem to care. “It’s all here.”

Niles frowned at the comment. "Of course it is. Would you like to be shown to your rooms now? You are also free to explore the manor. Keep in mind we will know if anything… accidentally goes missing."

"Show us to our room. Thank you, Niles," Ladriel replied, pointedly ignoring his last comment.

The three of them followed Niles back into the main room and then up the stairs. The second floor was just as decked out as the first one had been with expensive decorations everywhere.

There were vases decorated with gold leaf and exotic looking plants as well as huge portraits hanging on the walls. Astoria supposed those people must be the previous lords of this house. They were each provided with a lavish room with huge comfy looking beds.

Looks like rich people here like nice things just as much as those in the real world.

Niles informed them that dinner would be served in the dining hall in the first door to the right off of the main entryway downstairs before he excused himself.

After the attendant left them they waited a few long moments before speaking. "We should all sleep in one room," Ladriel said.

Tilly looked a little disappointed but nodded her assent.

They looked over each of the three rooms to see which one had the easiest escape route. One of the rooms had a large tree growing next to the window that would do the trick.

Astoria went over and sat on the bed. It was so soft, even softer than her modern bed back home. She flopped backwards and closed her eyes for a moment.

These nobles almost live in their own little world it seems like. Must be nice to live in such comfort all the time.

A second later Tilly flopped onto the bed beside her. "It's so comfortable! It's like laying on a cloud!" she swooned then rolled around a little.

Meanwhile, Ladriel kept a close eye on the door. It was clear that she took the possibility of being betrayed by Garland very seriously. Once Astoria had finished enjoying the soft bed, she sat up and was surprised to see a large grandfather clock in the corner of the room that she hadn’t noticed before. It was the first time she had seen an actual clock in this world and the first time she had ever seen a grandfather clock in real life.

She stood up and went over to it inspect the fancy clock. The pendulum swung quietly left and right with only a barely audible tick-tock when it switched directions. The clock face was ornate and looked to be made of gold.

"Are clocks common in bigger cities here?" she asked, genuinely curious.

"Only nobles and successful businesses tend to have clocks. Normal people could never afford such an extravagance. I thought everyone knew that."

Ladriel came over to inspect the clock up close as well. Astoria wondered if either of her companions had ever seen a clock like this one before.

While she was on the subject of asking dumb questions, she had been wondering for some time about classes and how they worked. “This might be a dumb question… but how do you gain classes?”

Both Tilly and Ladriel looked at her as though she asking a silly question. Ladriel was the one to answer, “Classes are gained by training with a master. You can also learn them by doing extraordinary things, but I haven’t personally ever heard of it happening. Training with a master is the most common way.”

Astoria was satisfied with the answer for now. She still didn’t know what class she wanted anyway, or even what was available, so she would be fine as she was for now.

"So what do you guys want to do for the rest of the day? According to this clock we still have a few hours to kill before dinner. Should we go exploring the manor?" Astoria kind of wanted to go look outside some more, but a nap was also sounding pretty good.

"Let's go look around!" Tilly answered excitedly.

"I wouldn't mind having a look around, myself. Besides, if we check the perimeter, maybe we can find an extra escape route just in case we need one," Ladriel added.

Astoria noticed that there was a large chest in the room and that a key had been left atop it. She guessed that leaving some of their valuables stored inside that wouldn't be a bad idea. She didn't have anything to put in it really other than her bag, but Tilly left their coin pouch inside it and their pack that contained their provisions. They locked the chest and Tilly kept the key. Astoria and Ladriel decided to leave their bows behind in the room and with their burdens lessened they were ready to go.

"Okay. Let's go explore!"

"Where to first?" Tilly asked.

"How about we go outside? It's a nice day and the grounds here are beautiful. It might be nice to take a walk out there. Ladriel’s idea of looking for an alternative exit is also a good idea I think." Astoria said.

It was another warm day and it felt good to be outside. Astoria idly wondered if it was summer here. In the real world it had been in the middle of winter.

Gardeners were still at work around the grounds, though there weren't as many as before. Astoria went over to the rock garden and walked along the pathway that lead through it. Most of the large boulders were taller than she was and she was impressed by the delicate patterns that had been raked into the dirt alongside the path.

On the other side of the rock garden there appeared to be a waist high hedge maze with a large tree standing in the middle. The hedges had orange flowers blooming all over them resembling roses and they smelled oddly like peppermint.

“Let’s go through the maze!” Astoria ran inside.

Once they made it to the center where the tree was, they noticed a grave with flowers on it. The tombstone read:

Gloria Garland

1357-1384

Loving wife, you will be missed for all eternity.

Garland stepped out from the other side of the tree while they were staring at the tombstone. She felt like she had possibly invaded on this man's private moment. He had a sorrowful look on his face.

"This was my wife's favorite place. She would sit here, beneath this tree, and read books for hours and hours..." he paused for a long moment before continuing. "I had been called to war, you see, and even though our child was due to be born soon, I couldn’t disobey the call to arms from our king. The border war with Geddon was bloody, but short... even so I didn't make it back in time. My wife and child both died during childbirth. That was five years ago."

"That sounds awful, I'm sorry," Astoria didn't really know what else to say. At home she was no stranger to loss. She had lost her father when she was little, but at least she had gotten to know him before he was gone. She also still had her mother and sister to comfort her during her time of loss. Did Garland have anyone like that here for him?

Despite being surrounded by attendants and guards, he probably didn’t. She felt empathy and kinship with this man. They both had experienced terrible losses in their lives. "We didn't mean to intrude. We can go if you would like to be alone."

Garland took a moment to respond. "No... it's alright. How do you like the grounds? They were a project of Gloria's. She loved the outdoors."

"They're beautiful!" Tilly exclaimed. "I can tell that there is a lot of thought put into everything out here. Everything is so perfect."

"Thank you. I'm sure she'd have loved to hear that people like it. We used to let the villagers come inside to relax and have picnics on the grounds. I have been busy with other things, so we stopped the practice a couple years ago."

I really do think this man is nice. Maybe… maybe everything will be okay from here on out. I can sleep easy tonight.

Astoria felt the tension leave her shoulders with this realization. She had been more wound up over the possibility that this man was a member of the Red Lotus than she had admitted to herself.

"If you'll excuse me, I have to go check on the guards and make sure that they will be prepared for tomorrow's raid." Garland gave a slight nod to them again and made his way out of the hedge maze.

Astoria was tempted to ask him if they could come to the briefing, but decided that she probably didn't need to bother with something like that. They would probably just march in with a ton of soldiers and arrest the other lord anyway.

She and the others continued to wander the yard for the next couple hours. There was a small pond that had koi fish in it on the other side of the grounds and they spent some time sitting next to it relaxing. Before they knew it, the hour seemed to be getting late.

"We'd better get back if we want to eat dinner," Astoria suggested as her stomach growled audibly.

"Sounds like you're starving!" Tilly let out a giggle and her stomach growled as well. The two of them laughed a little and then the companions all made their way back to the manor and went into the dining hall.

The dining hall looked like it could seat fifty people or more if the occasion warranted it. The only piece of furniture in the room was a ridiculously long dining table. Candelabras lined the table and the food was all at the far end where Garland sat. There was a lavish looking meal prepared which featured a huge roasted turkey or some similar animal. There were rolls, roasted potatoes, and a couple different salads on the table. She noted that there were also several carafes filled with deep burgundy wine as well. It reminded her of Thanksgiving.

Astoria and the others went to the end of the table where Garland sat and took their own seats. "Thanks for dinner. It looks and smells wonderful!"

Astoria could hardly wait to sink her teeth into that roasted turkey. Thanksgiving was always one of her favorite holidays, as it was typically the only time of year where they would have a homemade turkey at her house. Some people got to have it on Christmas as well, but her family was firmly in the camp that made a honey glazed ham for Christmas.

Garland gave them all a kind smile. "I'm glad to have some company for once. Believe it or not, this place can be pretty quiet at times."

Two waiters appeared and began doling out portions of food onto plates that they then placed in front of each of them before going to stand at the back of the room in silence.

"Really? It seems like it's so busy here all the time," Tilly said after stuffing her mouth full with the roasted potatoes. "Your cook seems to be very talented! Everything tastes so great. Before all this started, I was a cook at the Gilded Sparrow inn over in Elivaster."

"Oh? A cook who has become a swordsman, huh? An interesting turn of events for you, I'm sure. I'll make sure to pass your compliments to the chef."

"Do you eat like this every day, Lord Garland?" Astoria asked.

"Yes. It's a big difference from being on the road with the military over the years. Rations have nothing on a well prepared meal. Being back at home has its privileges. This doesn't all go to waste, of course if that’s what you were wondering. After the meal, the servants come in and eat and the guards filter in over the next couple hours. My personal guard force is understaffed right now, but I always keep a few guards out on rotation."

Astoria was grateful to be in what she perceived to be a safe place. There was something reassuring about knowing there were guards who would be watching the place throughout the night.

"Did you spend a lot of time in the military, Lord Garland?" Ladriel asked.

"All young lords are conscripted into the military unless special circumstances forbid it. Although, we are only forced to do so for a couple years. I found that military life suited me and served for fifteen years before settling down with Gloria. I had thought that life was behind me, but I was called back into service for the war. How about you? Egris is a long way from where you elves call home. You must have an interesting story as well," he took another bite of food and washed it down with a large gulp of wine.

Now that I think of it, I don't really know much about Ladriel's backstory, Astoria listened intently for her friend's answer.

"I was travelling outside of The Whispering Woods in order to get to Tenriel. I wanted to prove my worth to my teacher. As part of my ranger training I was tasked with leaving the safety of our people's land to explore the world at large. I thought that if I made it to Tenriel and was able to delve into the dungeon beneath the Emerald Lake, it would prove to myself and my master that I had what it takes to continue his harsh training," Ladriel looked down into her cup of wine at the end of her explanation as if she was embarrassed or something.

"The Emerald Dungeon, you say? Quite the foreboding place for a lone adventurer. I admire your courage," he took another swig of wine.

Astoria wondered what the dungeons in this world were like. In most games it would be foolish to try and enter one alone. Maybe there's more to her story than she's letting on. I wonder if she really was alone when she got taken.

The rest of the meal was spent doing idle chit-chat and before long Astoria felt like she would explode from all the delicious food she had stuffed down.

"I'm going to turn in for the evening. We have much to take care of in the morning, I suggest you all do the same," Garland got up from the table excusing himself and left the dining hall.

The three companions got up soon after and went back to the bedroom they had decided on. Astoria wasn't tired just yet and neither was Tilly, so they sat down at a small table in one of the corners of the room which turned out to have a marble chess board inlaid within it.

"I'll get some sleep first if you two aren't tired," Ladriel took off her armor and boots and plopped into the soft bed.

"Do you know how to play this?" Astoria asked.

"I used to play it sometimes with my dad in Egris," Tilly ran her fingers over the board which had tiny grooves between the black and white tiles.

Astoria found the pieces within an ornamented wooden box that was on the back end of the table. The pieces were individually set into what looked to be velvet. They were slightly different shapes than the ones back home, but it was easy to figure out what was what. They set the game up and began playing. Neither of them were very good, but it was a nice way to pass the time.

They played several games over the next couple hours before Tilly decided to go lay down next to Ladriel. The bed in the room was so huge that Ladriel only took up a small portion of it. Tilly undressed and hopped into the other side of the bed.

Well, I guess I'll keep watch all by myself.

She stood up and went over to the window looking outside. The moonlight was dimmer than it had been over the past few days and when she looked into the sky she only saw the largest moon, which itself was down to nearly a sliver.

Shadows danced outside the window as the wind picked up and the tree branches outside the window began to rustle. She could see a guard walking down the pathway toward the gate holding onto a torch. Must be a shift change, she yawned.

Astoria wondered what time it was and went over to look at the clock. It was almost midnight.

I wonder when I should wake Ladriel. She's been down for a few hours, but I think I'll give her a little longer.

Astoria stretched her arms up over her head and then walked over to the door, sitting down with her back up against it. She felt her mind drift towards thoughts of home.

I wonder if anyone I know at school ended up in the game like me. I'm sure there must've been other people who were going to try it out. I wonder what happened to the company that created this game. We're still here so the server must be live still. I hope my mom and sister are okay.

She imagined that Sarah probably would've left school to come home when she found out what had happened to her. Astoria wondered if the creators of Phoenix Online left a letter or note explaining that while everyone had died, they would be living on in the game or not.

I hope they did, maybe then it'd bring my family some small comfort knowing that I'm probably not completely gone...

She spent the next couple hours caught up in her own thoughts and before she knew it the grandfather clock was chiming for a second time indicating that it was now 1 AM. She thought she heard something coming from outside, so she got up to stretch and have a look out the window.

What she saw below made her heart sink. There were so many men outside, and they were fighting a one sided battle. In the middle of the group of enemy soldiers, sat a fat, balding man with curly hair and a sneer on his face.

This doesn’t look good! We need to get out of here.

The bodies of a few guards lay on the ground in the distance and more were fighting and falling against the overwhelming odds. All of this was just barely lit in the dim torchlight. Garland and three guards held the door and she watched as they cut down several enemies. There was no way they were going to survive against such an overwhelming number.

Astoria quickly turned to the others. "Wake up. There's trouble we need to get up right now!"

Ladriel and Tilly both jumped at her yell and scrambled out of bed. Tilly ran over to the window to see what Astoria was talking about and Ladriel had immediately started putting her gear on as quickly as she could.

"Get your equipment! Don't just stand there gaping, you fools," Ladriel said as she rushed over to where her bow and quiver lie on the floor.

Tilly jumped into motion and started putting her armor back on. Astoria was already equipped, other than her bow so she ignored Ladriel's shout. Instead, she cracked open the window to hear what was going on.

"How dare you come into my estate in the middle of the night!" she heard Garland shout at the sneering man who still sat atop a horse.

"Your time is done, old man," the mysterious man said with contempt in his voice. "You are harboring my belongings and I will have them back."

"Belongings? They are human beings, you will not have them." Garland raised his blade and pointed it towards the mounted man who let out a chuckle.

"You don’t have the numbers to stop me. You’re delusional old man. That garrison you were waiting on to take care of the goblins, is actually coming here to arrest you. I’m doing the high lord a service by bringing you in early,” Dane said smugly. “You should have paid better attention to the great game, and by not doing so you’ve been outplayed. I’ve been gaining allies in the capital for years while you’ve sat here and mourned your wife like a pathetic fool. After tonight, you’ll be remembered as the lord who betrayed his own village.”

Astoria’s heart sank even further to hear that Dane had the garrison that they had hoped would be their salvation in his pocket. They would need to get out of here and take matters into their own hands at a later date. Astoria knew she needed to move, but she couldn’t peel herself away from the window.

This isn't right. He's a good man! I wish there was something we could do. But there are so many of them. The older man fought expertly and she watched as he lay waste to several men, but even as he did so, his remaining companions fell. He now stood alone against what she guessed was still over 30 soldiers.

"Astoria! We need to go. Now!" Tilly grabbed her by the arm and yanked her toward the door.

"He's all alone! He's going to die tonight. He’s out there fighting to protect us from that monster!" Tilly grabbed her arm and dragged her away from the window. Astoria listened to reason, and reluctantly, but quickly, grabbed her belongings. What else could she do? She was a low level weakling. Tears of frustration streaked their way down her cheeks.

They made haste into the main hallway and then cut through the dining hall, heading towards the kitchen. "Hopefully there is a rear exit that isn't blocked," Ladriel said as they made their frantic dash through the door into the kitchen.

"Damn! There’s no way out from here!" Ladriel kicked a counter and a pan fell off its hook on the wall, clanging to the countertop loudly.

They ran back to the main hallway and to their surprise Garland squeezed his way through the front doors and jammed a spear through the handles. He ran over to them. "Quick! Follow me. There is one way out that may yet see us all survive this night. No one alive knows of the hidden passage."

He ran to the audience room where they had first learned of his identity. The doors were being pounded on behind them as they ran and Astoria could hear the spear starting to splinter.

"Close the door behind you," he shouted and he shoved the table ever so slightly forward before bending down and sliding his fingers along a tile that was slightly raised. He whipped out his belt knife and jammed it into a particular spot on the large tile and it easily popped up. He set it to the side, revealing a dark hole with a ladder. "Inside, quickly!"

There wasn’t any time to spare, so Astoria just followed orders and slid herself down into the hole, climbing down into pure darkness.

She couldn't see anything but quickly moved to the side once she reached the bottom to make room for the others. In seconds her companions had reached the ground. Garland came last and pulled the tile securely down using handles it had attached to its underside. The small amount of light that filtered down from above disappeared completely.

I will die before I let them take me again. God... I hope they can't find us down here. It's so dark. Astoria heard Garland's boots hit the stone floor a moment later.

"This is a little trick I picked up back in my military days."

A small globe of light bloomed to life illuminating the small room where they now hid. It floated above Garland's outstretched palm and emitted a steady light. "Dane played me for a fool... I will be stripped of my status and I'm sure I'll be wanted all over the kingdom for whatever story he has concocted about me. I will serve him a taste of justice though. First thing's first, however, we need to escape the manor and regroup. Will you allow an old soldier to join your group?"

Astoria hadn't really thought that this man would want to join her party officially, but she would gladly accept more help. This man clearly knew his way around battles and she had no doubt that he had probably cut down some of the men outside before retreating. A prompt appeared.

Notifications

Silvis Garland III has asked to join your party. His reputation has been ruined and he is now a wanted criminal in the country of Egris. He seeks justice against Lord Ryland Dane.

Will you allow him to accompany you and will you aid him in his quest for justice against Lord Dane?

Yes / No

Astoria readily accepted yes on the prompt. "Of course. We'd be honored to have you with us. We, too, wish to see that man brought down."

"We will have to make our way through these ancient catacombs. They run beneath the manor and an exit is somewhere far from here. Be warned, this escape route is not what I would call safe, but we have no other options it seems. These ancient ruins that my home was built upon now house re-animated corpses and other kinds of foul beasts. The escape route hasn't been used in generations, so I don't really know what to expect, although I do know we can make our way back to the surface eventually. Are you ready to begin?" he asked before pushing on a stone in the wall before them which opened another secret passageway with stairs leading deeper into the darkness.

Tilly and Ladriel both nodded their assent and readied their weapons for what was to come.

"Let's do this." Astoria said as the four of them set off into the dank catacombs.