My heart grew three sizes that day, or it would have if my small stature wasn’t so convenient for tunneling. I pumped as many Build Points as I could into Tunneling, Armor, and Regeneration, then opened my eyes onto a war between Kurayami and Jo-O and the Disciples of Acarus. JammyJams was still holding down the moderator, who was having a bug-induced seizure, apparently unable to log out. The three Disciples had come for me, but the King and Queen were in their way, and Kurayami had the jewel to draw upon. Jo-O was acting as support while her king took them head-on. His hands were his only weapons, but those long fingers became as hard and sharp as blades, easily a match for what the Disciples had to bring to bear. Without the Acarus virus enhancing their statistics and healing their wounds, it would have been over already, but with sufficient modifications the three of them were a good match for the King and Queen, at least until JammyJams was ready to reenter the fray.

Silva was caught in a gauntlet of shadows, and Lawlimi was still dealing with Charmlet’s Invisibles while the Dark Elves that hadn’t been blasted added their arrows to the conflict with the Disciples. Sashimibandit, however, had managed to conceal himself well enough to reach me. He sheathed his sword and reached out to dig the jewel out of my restive tentacles.

“Come here, you shit,” he said.

Even Sashimibandit was more than a match for me in head-on combat, or would have been, if I hadn’t suddenly gained the ability to transform myself with top-tier monster abilities, but fighting wasn’t my goal here, and having gone all-in on Tunneling, escaping was super easy, barely an inconvenience. I could move through the earth as fast as the average human could run, and everyone else who wanted the jewels was occupied, so I rolled away from his hand and slipped into an envelope of earth. It wasn’t really digging, as the ground opened for me and closed back after I’d passed. I was swimming through the soil, and that would make me nearly impossible to follow.

(Shippo,) I messaged. (Are you okay?)

(No?)

I’d had to leave him behind. We were about the same size, and I couldn’t drag him behind me underground. But as weak as he was, he had nothing any of the combatants wanted. At my urging, he uncurled from his fetal position and snuck off the mountaintop. We planned to meet back on the coast. I would remain under the surface as long as possible, given that as soon as I came up the jewel I clutched in my suckers would give away my position. It hadn’t been five days, so the fishing boat should still be waiting for us.

I avoided the extensive cavern systems, as there was always a chance the Queen could sense or catch me if I surfaced in darkness. Tunneling through solid rock was slower and more effortful; it felt like being squeezed inside Kyofu again, but I could do it, and I stuck to the soil as much as geography allowed. It became easier when I reached the foothills, and the greatest difficulty I had after that was dealing with the root systems, which didn’t respond well to my ability. They moved with the earth, but in forested regions, their density made the process almost as difficult as moving rock. Tunneling at this speed should have exhausted me in minutes, but the jewel in my belly refilled my Spirit almost as quickly as I could use it. Though I had to slow to a crawl to rest, I never had to stop completely.

Shippo was having a harder time behind me. He was a prey animal as far as the island was concerned, and he had to maneuver his way around hungry Pards and Blood Vines, but while his blue tail didn’t allow him to fly, it had helped his agility, and he was able to move through the canopy with relative ease, keeping out of reach of most of the native predators. Falcor was gone, but he had saved my life, and I would bring him back if it became convenient to do so.

>>

[Exit the Dragon — Heroic Quest Level 5]

Your companion, Falcor, died fighting in your defense. That kind of loyalty deserves repayment, and there is a way to have him at your side again if you are willing to pay the price. Seek out the goddess Sing, for the soul of your friend lies in her keeping.

Reward — Revived Companion

>>

That would have to wait. Sing was a hard woman to get ahold of. Though she would sometimes appear to those who brought her offerings in wild places, she physically resided on the eastern continent, across the Great Divide. I was headed in the opposite direction, back to civilization in the West.

(Where are you?) Lawlimi messaged me.

(I’m not going to share that information with you.)

(We aren’t enemies. Orobos is the best chance we have of wiping Acarus off the server. I’m not his biggest fan, but it makes sense to work with him.)

(Orobos is the reason the gods are too distracted to deal with the Acarus virus themselves. If he withdrew from New Arda, the issue could be resolved without further delay.)

There was a brief pause before I received his response. (We both just saw a moderator getting infected. Who knows how many other players are working for the virus now? I don’t think the gods can fix this on their own.)

(Tell Orobos to give them a chance, and me as well. I’m working on my own solution. You were going to be a part of it until quite recently if you recall.)

(Yeah, I recall. The Book of Old Names is a global victory condition.)

(Do you want Orobos to be in control of it?)

(That’s the thing, I don’t think he can be in charge of it. I screwed up when I let him be captain of the ship, I get that, but he’s not a player. He can’t complete the ritual to become the Maker’s heir. I don’t think he could even if he was a player. From what I’ve learned, I think the book will only give that power to a few potential candidates.)

(Did Orobos tell you that?) I had to focus to work my way around a particularly dense rock structure underground, so I didn’t immediately catch his reply.

(Look, how do you think we found you?) Lawlimi had messaged.

(You have a map in your head with my position labeled on it. If you were in your adytum now you wouldn’t need to ask me where I was. You could see me.)

(Okay, so I take it you’ve got one too. You know there are four of us, four heirs of the Maker, and only one of us can complete the ritual.)

(That seems like a logical leap that is not necessarily warranted.)

(What do you mean?)

(The four of us being connected doesn’t make us the heirs. We know that I am an Autonomous Digital Intelligence, you believe you are a human being, the other two are mysteries. There isn’t sufficient data to suggest your conclusion.)

(Well, everything that happened on Eternity suggested that I was connected to the Maker, and now I know that I’m connected to you. It doesn’t seem like he would set up this entire scenario and then have it not be one of us.)

(It could just be you. I don’t believe ADI’s can inherit an estate under current law, though I suppose we could ask PamyuPamyu to clarify the matter.)

(They can’t, but I’ve been thinking. The game sees you as a player, right? Maybe there is something written into the inheritance that would allow someone like you to accept without making a physical appearance. If I win, I won’t be able to make a physical appearance. What are they going to do, come to my tank and shake my hand?)

(That’s fair. I’m still not so sure it’s one of us that is destined to succeed, however. Nor would that caveat keep you safe from the influence of Orobos. Why are Silva and the other two helping him, if not through undue influence?)

(They say he’s made promises to them, and obviously, they’ve benefited. Eternity is like a giant intensive training program. Orobos can use it to generate rewards, experience, whatever. Whatever the limits are on what he can make for us, you’ve seen how far I’ve advanced in the past week. Normal gameplay would have taken months to go from the beginning of Heroic to where I am now, and that’s if I was seriously trying to grind levels. At this rate, I’ll be stronger than Silva in another week, because they all have to log out and live their lives sometimes.)

(And what has the demon asked of you in return?)

(Hold on… fighting.)

(Lawlimi?)

My journey under the earth was boring, pun intended, and there were many hours ahead of me. I checked in with PamyuPamyu but she had logged off shortly after her death, and Shippo, though he was willing to reply, was not a stimulating conversationalist. I missed being able to be in multiple locations at once, splitting my awareness so that I never had to be bored. Tunneling was veritably unstimulating… until I ran into a nest of salt worms.

They were most common on the coast, living off the morsels that the tide brought in or left defenseless on the sand. Because of their exposure to the ocean, they had to have a very high tolerance to salt, and their flesh took longer to putrefy than other animals. It made them a popular item for vendors in fisherman’s markets, and they required very little seasoning. Some varieties migrated inland, feeding on smaller worms, insects, moles, snakes, and anything that made the mistake of sleeping on the ground.

I burst into their den and tried to keep going, but they were quick to react, and a few of them latched onto me, teeth grinding into my skin.

>>

(Salt Worm bite deals 55 Piercing Damage)

(Salt Worm bite deals 42 Piercing Damage)

(Salt Worm bite deals 33 Piercing Damage)

(Salt Worm bite deals 51 Piercing Damage)

>>

I surfaced and rolled around like I was trying to put out a fire, but failed to dislodge them. My Regeneration working in combination with my skin toughened by Armor meant I was in no real danger, but it was an uncomfortable situation nonetheless. Once I was above ground I was able to use Karcharoth to cut them off of me, a somewhat delicate procedure as their heads continued to attempt to burrow into my body after their bodies were removed. If not for my recent enhancements, an encounter like this could have easily been fatal. As it was, I snacked on salt worm tails while my wounds sealed over, and then I slipped back into my envelope of earth to continue my journey.

(Saw a flash. You okay?)

(Yes, an inconvenience. What is happening on the mountaintop?)

(Everyone is coming after you. We’re back in the landing pod, but JammyJams and his crew are chasing you on foot. The King and Queen disappeared into a big dark globe that shrank away after they were gone.)

(You didn’t answer my previous question. What does Orobos want in exchange for what he has given you?)

(He wants to use the book to wipe out Acarus.)

(Not to become the Maker himself?)

(He says he can’t. The ritual wouldn’t work for him.)

(What if he possessed you or the pilot? Have you spoken to her at all since being back on the ship?)

(I haven’t been on the command deck. I don’t know what’s going on with Lili.)

(Doesn’t it worry you that Orobos could potentially possess one or both of you, and thereby gain access to the ritual?)

(Yeah, I feel like he would have done that already if he could.)

(That’s optimistic. He possessed Sashimibandit at the auction, causing him to take his own life. Don’t be so sure that you would be able to resist. Possession may be effortful, or he may find it expedient to leave you free for the moment, knowing that he could force his desires if you ever rebelled.)

(Well, if you get it first, we won’t have to worry about him. You have one of the gems now, so all you have to do is get back to the book, right? If you can complete the ritual, then do it. I trust you with that power. Not saying I wouldn’t want it for myself, I do, but under the circumstances, you taking over might be the safest thing.)

It took me most of a day to make it back to the coast, but the energy of the jewels kept me from suffering even the first level of Fatigue. Shippo was far behind me, and I didn’t plan on waiting for him to catch up, so I told him to reopen communications with Lawlimi and try to join their party. If Silva allowed the addition, the kitsune could spy on them for me, potentially giving me an insight into Orobos’s true intentions. Or he might be possessed immediately. I laid out the risks for him and insisted he make the choice on his own. Shippo wanted to help, and he wanted to be with Lawlimi again, so he agreed to try.

Our boat was gone, but there were plenty of other vessels crowding the shore. Most of them were manned by NPCs the players had left behind while they went on their raid inland, but one group had stayed to watch for anyone who might return with a jewel.

Slutty, Sleezy, Smutt, Gimpy, Pimpy, Classy, and Cock, the seven Hentai Dwarves. I popped out of the sand a dozen yards away from where Classy was dancing with a reluctant-looking goblin female they had taken captive. It was impossible to avoid being noticed by everyone spread along the beach. The light from the jewel in my tentacle beard lit up the strand, casting the ships into harsh contrast and bringing shouts of alarm from NPCs and players alike.

“Get him!” Classy screamed, and I decided I could do without a ship, running into the waves as fast as my stubby legs could carry me and risking a few seconds dropped into my adytum to modify my augmentations once more. Tunneling was no longer useful, I needed a swim speed, and just as the first dwarf came splashing in after me I came awake and darted out of his reach. I’d developed a combination of adaptations, webbed fingers and toes as well as jets like a regular octopus. I was able to pump so many build points into my water form that I was immediately one of the fastest creatures under the waves, more than capable of outpacing a shark if I had to.

The Hentai Clan didn’t have a chance to mount a real pursuit, but I knew I wasn’t hard to follow. The gem created a glaring bright spot for anyone who happened to look in my general direction. I dove deep enough that I thought I would be less obvious from the surface, at a distance at least. My echolocation was vastly improved by the aqueous environment, acting as sonar, and that was how I knew that the Kulu were coming.

Their vast bodies traveled deceptively through the water, seeming to float lazily, even as they plowed forward at tremendous speeds. They targeted me as I entered their world, and though I was faster at a dead sprint, some of them were coming from far ahead of me, and I would be at pains to avoid them. Their voices filled the ocean, like whale song, but with a predatory edge. The closest was the same leviathan that had nearly swallowed our fishing boat on the way in. It may have been waiting all this time for me to come back into its domain, and now I carried a prize far more desirable than the offering I had used to divert it before.

Individually, these deep-sea monsters were as powerful as Kurayami or any of the players I had faced so far. Together, they would have challenged one of the Twelve. I kept ahead of them for hours, but they were relentless, and didn’t appear to be tiring any faster than I was with a jewel to sustain me. They were also communicating. The whale song was mostly a form of call and response that they used to maintain their territories, but in this case they were able to use it to warn the Kulu hundreds of miles away that we were coming. It was hours more of hard swimming within the blinding aura of the jewel before I was sure that they had outmaneuvered me. The creatures had formed a loose net so that any direction in the three-dimensional landscape would lead to my being intercepted by one of them. So I stopped, and I allowed them to tighten the ring.

The Kulu crowded the ocean, their bodies longer and massier than any ship that had ever sailed the Great Divide. Their arms branched into nets of tentacles that hung for hundreds of feet into the darkness below. Some of them were vaguely humanoid, while others resembled actual whales, or dragons or birds. They all had eyes that I could have swum within, and mouths with consecutive rows of teeth, each larger than I was. I could feel their satisfaction as they closed in on me, the end of a long hunt, but I also felt the wariness in their songs. They were warning each other, vying over who had the greatest claim on the incomparable jewel I carried. Kulu were solitary by nature, and when I swam back to the surface, they had to jostle each other as they closed the net. They weren’t pleased to be jostled. Then I dropped the gem.