The sunlight, streaking down in early morning rays through a thick layer of fog, does little to warm me or the air. With only thirty yards of visibility, we follow the heavily traveled dirt road blindly. When the road forks to the left and the right, Rin swears up and down that left is the way we need to go and she dares Rubble to check his map, then smiles when he admits she is right.

Heading Southwest, we left Birch Castle about two hours ago, and in only an hour more the fog is swept away by a warm ocean breeze. Not only is the sun back, but occasionally a seagull calls to us from above. On the right, the mountain range that runs along the Eastern portion of the nation comes back into view, and the path between the seaside cliffs and those giant monuments of rock grows more and more narrow.

We’re on our way to Gormsay to run the dungeon called The Dead Bay, and Felix is already there waiting for us to get to town. The thought of what we’re about to do reminds me to open up my character attribute page and make sure I’ve spent all of my available points.

Aiden Rockwell

LV. 15 Warrior

HP: 504/504

STRENGTH: 18 (22)

FORTITUDE: 35

DEXTERITY: 18 (19)

WISDOM: 16

INTELLIGENCE:13

SWAY: 22

(LV. 12) Leather Skullcap: +6 ARM

(LV. 12) Leather Harness: +12 ARM +1 STR +1 DEX

(LV. 12) Leather Kecks: +10 ARM

(LV. 12) Leather Thighboots: +5 ARM

(LV. 10) Bastard Sword: +10 DMG

(LV. 12) Leather Targe: +6 ARM

(LV. 3) Warrior’s Pendant: +3 STR

I put my few extra points in the my strength, sway, and dexterity because when I compare myself to Rin and Rubble my HP is staggeringly huge and I think I have a little room to play around.

Rin Akari II

LV. 15 Summoner

HP: 144/144

Rubble Miller II

LV. 15 Ranger

HP: 192/192

Admittedly, I spend a lot of our travel time brewing on last night. We all got pretty intoxicated, but what I remember most clearly is Rin’s comfortability in leaning against me, the electricity of her touch, and the feeling of disappointment after Rubble told me afterwords. I wonder if it’s true that Rin and Felix really do have a thing for each other, or if that was just Rubble’s drunkenness and him looking into things that weren’t really there.

I’ve never seen any firsthand evidence that suggested they were together, but I could be blind to that sort of thing. I had missed out on a few cues from other girls at school back in the day, only to find out later from friends that they were interested in me. It’s not my place to pry in their relationship, if there is one, and I can only hope that last night wasn’t the closest I’ll ever get to Rin.

The answer will have to wait, because as the mountains come together to meet with the seaside cliffs, narrowing into a pass no wider than 100 yards, a small village nestled below us comes into view. Wooden buildings are spread out across the only walkable terrain, but I take solace that at least there are at least no walls to block our passage.

Rin stops dead in her tracks and looks surprisingly disgruntled about the village in front of us. “You see what I see?”

A big moan comes out of Rubble. I realize I must not understand the severity of the situation, as apparently this village is not a good sign.

“Yeah… A new village,” Rubble says. “Did Felix say anything about this?”

Rin shakes her head. “No. And it looks decently far along. There are no trees around here. It must have taken an army to get enough lumber here to build.”

Interesting. I hadn’t ever thought that the logistics of materials would be important and am surprised the thought hadn’t occurred to me sooner. Swiping the thought aside, I ask, “Who do you think owns it?”

Rin glares at me like it was a dumb question, and convinces me it was when she says, “probably the River Raiders.”

A knot forms in my gut. The village is positioned perfectly between the mountains and the staggering drop into the sea below. There’s no way we’ll be able to get past that village without being seen, and an even smaller chance that the River Raiders will let us pass through town unhindered, if it is their settlement.

I try pulling up my map to confirm it really is the nefarious gang. The 2d map appears before my eyes, taking up most of my vision. My position and orientation is designated by an arrow pointing south-west, and just down the road is a settlement marker that lies between us and Gormsay further down. I tap a finger on the village symbol, and behold the bad news.

Settlement: Bandit’s Pinch

Size: Thorpe

Created 2 days ago by the River Raiders

When I tell the others, Rin clenches her fists and stomps her feet in a rage. “Why do the developers let these guys continue like this?” She motions to the collection of wooden huts beneath us. “Blocking off a main thoroughfare with no quick alternative route, it’s clear that they bully, steal, and generally funk up people’s days! Just the names River Raiders and Bandit’s Pinch should be a big sign that these guys are just asshats abusing their power! And in the starting nation, for crying out loud.”

Rubble puts a hand on her shoulder and makes her turn around and face him in an attempt to calm her down.“It’s just how the game is, Rin. The developers probably just see it as another kind of strife, which is what this game capitalizes on. Why are you so surprised?”

She lets out a harrumph and spins back around, crossing her arms across her stomach in a display of denial and unable to refute his point.

“Should we go back?” I ask. “Take the pass through the mountains, and go the long way maybe?”

Rubble scratches at the back of his head. “We could, but then we’ll have to deal with the trolls up there. We could just go back to Birch Castle and buy a ride on a boat straight to Gormsay.”

Just the idea of walking all the way back sounds exhausting and defeating. I don’t want to allow the River Raiders to have so much power over us, but I don’t know what all I can do to change that right now beyond denying their ability to turn us around and sprinting through their tiny village in a mad dash.

The thought gestates in my brain for a few moments, and the more I think about it the more I think maybe that’s the way to go. Squinting as I peer in between the wooden houses and buildings, I only see a few players out. Maybe we would have a chance to make it through. “Well, how about we just see if we can pass through without talking to anyone? We don’t know until we try, and worse case scenario we can just run.”

Rubble shrugs and dismisses his own map with a wave of his hand. “Yeah, it’s a risk, but that settlement is still only a Thorpe in size. There is probably only a handful of people there, noobs sent out to start a new village to supplement the guild’s coffers. I doubt they are anything particularly dangerous.”

Rin glares at the both of us, initially resistant to the idea, but eventually lets out a sigh. “All right, we’ll try, but if we end up dying I’m gonna kill you again in the next life.”

Both Rubble and I look at each other, and I think neither of us doubt she would try.

Walking at a brisk pace, faster than we were before, we cautiously approach enemy territory with our heads down. As the details of the thorpe become clearer and clearer, I find myself growing less and less nervous. The houses are built with rough-cut wood, like cabins and shacks, with old western-style buildings with wooden signs hanging out front serving as shops. Everything about Bandit’s Pinch suggests it’s a small, poor town. There’s no outer wall and no sentries standing guard on the main road that passes through. With every step, it seems like sneaking by is becoming more and more likely.

That is, someone spots us as we step into the edge of town. A figure dips behind a house faster than I can get a good look at him, shouting as he runs through the alleyway. I can’t make out the words over the hard wind, but we pick up the pace anyways, breaking into a run. We pass a cobblestone well, an item shop called Loot ’n More, and a tavern where a group of players pour out yelling and pointing. Mages, warriors, and others stumble down the wooden steps on top of each other, and I swallow. There has to be at least a dozen there alone.

The shouting group was just enough of a distraction for us to not notice a second group forming to block our exit ahead of us. Before we know what to do, eight more players with weapons drawn, make a solid line across the road. I swallow, and start scanning their statistics as the probability of a scuffle opens wide up. Even though the most of these people range from level four to eight, two people on the far right edge of the formation catch my eyes.

Lenard II of the River Raiders

LV. 10 Druid

HP: 190/190

Finn II of the River Raiders

LV. 12 Wizard

HP: 126/126

I immediately feel sick to my stomach at the sight of them. They notice me too, sneering and whispering to one another as a different member of the goon squad approaches us. A level 14 Monk by the name of Evan. By the way he struts and barks orders at the others makes it seems as though he’s in charge of this settlement. At his command, the other players form a complete circle around us. Evan puts his hands together like a monk would, and bows before us. “Greetings, travelers. It’s a glorious day in Anticore, is it not?”

The friendliness in his tone of voice is off-putting, even somewhat creepy or malevolent. I glance to Rubble and Rin, who meet my gaze with the same confusion, but Rin takes the role of leader for now. She steps forward and says, “It sure is, but what’s the reason for all this? We’re in a hurry to reach Gormsay. Will you let us pass?”

Evan smiles and laughs. His bald head shimmers in the sunlight. “Assuredly, without a single moment of hesitation, should you provide us with the proper fee.”

Rin lets out a sigh. To Evan she says, “A moment, if you please,” then glares back at Rubble and I. We form up shoulder to shoulder, our little circle dismally smaller than the one surrounding us.

“I knew this wasn’t going to be simple,” Rin whispers. “But I let you guys talk me into this. Just watch, once we give them the gold they’ll just kill us anyway for the easy xp. It will be a miracle if we get out of this still at level 15.”

Rubble shrugs. “We had to try right?”

A raging fire billows in Rin’s eyes. The sight of it scares me as a devilish smile stretches across her face. “Screw it,” she says. “Let’s go out in style.”

I almost break out in tears of pure hilarity. “Uhh… Are you suggesting what I think you’re suggesting? Why would we do that? There’s more than 15 of them.”

“I’d have to agree with Aiden,” Rubble says. “I think you’re out of your mind, Rin.”

Rin rolls her eyes at us. “No, listen. Those level fours have 80 HP max, right? Well I’ve got a little spell at level twelve that can take out a handful of them in three seconds.

Rubble scratches at the scruff on his chin, head tilting up as he hums and considers her cautiously. “Sulfuric Gasses?” he asks. Rin nods eagerly. “But what about the three bigger dudes?”

“With my AOE spell, they’re the only real challenge we have here. You two will focus on Evan, Leonard and Finn while I wipe all the others with one stroke of my backhand.” She swings her arm and pops her lips as she says it. “We only need to take out enough to slip through.”

Rubble shakes his head. “I don’t know. It would be easier just to pay them whatever they want than it would be to start back at level one.”

Rin holds her palms up, upset that Rubble is changing his mind. “All right, all right. It’s clear we're pretty divided on this.” She turns to me. “So you decide, Aiden.”

I’m dumbfounded. “Eh, I don’t know. I’ve got the least experience, and probably the worst kill-to-death ratio here.”

“Hey,” Rin says, slapping me on the shoulder. “Dying happens, and even if we do today we can find another way to get to level twenty. It’s just a set back.”

“I don’t think you’re taking the severity of my timeline as seriously as I am.”

Rin shrugs. “Maybe, but still. Come on. Pick. But keep in mind they’ll probably just kill us once we give them the gold. We could have the jump on them now. A surprise attack could give us the edge we need.”

I groan in complaint. A part of me knows Rin’s plan has merit. With Lenard and Finn being here, I really don’t expect them to treat us fairly even if we do give them whatever gold they demand. Her violet eyes tug on my heartstrings, begging me to pick her side and commit us to battle these guys and, begrudgingly, I can’t resist. I murmur, “old gods damn it,” in classic Felix style as I turn around to face Evan.

The monk smiles as he adjusts his orange robes and asks, “time to pay up, huh?”

I don’t say anything as I approach him, trying to get within striking distance. I’m about to Krillen this guy. All he needs is six dots on his forehead and a quick trip to the Other World, but as my fingers twitch in anticipation of grabbing my sword from its sheath, a familiar voice I never hoped to hear again reaches my ears.

“I thought that was you out here.” Stepping down the flight of stairs to the tavern is a pale, slender face topped off with curly blonde hair that looks like instant noodles. I recognize him easily enough to fill my heart with dread.

Alloy II of the River Raiders

Level 12 Necromancer

HP: 168/168

STRENGTH: 16

FORTITUDE: 25

DEXTERITY: 19

INTELLIGENCE: 46 (51)

WISDOM: 16 (19)

SWAY: 25 (28)

(LV. 10) Dark Pupil’s Robes: +8 ARM, +2 MR

(LV. 10) Necrotic Gloves: +3 MR, +3 MR, +1 SWAY

(LV. 10) Dark Pupil’s Slops: +6 ARM, +3 MR

(LV. 10) Amulet of Wellspring: +3 Wis, +3 INT

(LV. 10) Black-Bone Wand: +10 DAM, +2 INT, +2 SWAY

Jeez! He’s already back up to level 12, fully decked with up-to-par equipment, and that 51 intelligence scares me! I stop dead in my tracks and immediately begin to re-think our strategy.

“Who is this?” Rin asks as she steps up to my side. “How does he know you?”

I swallow. “This is the guy who took me captive and forced me to run the Five Roses Keep. The guy I killed.”

Rin looks at me, astonished. “You never told me he was a Necromancer!”