The Heart is a Void: Ashes to Ashes

Chapter 28: Alien vs. Predator

The draugr started to barge heavily against the gates for one minute, eventually breaking through the centre and slowly making their way through this gap. They set upon the audience who had earlier gathered to watch would-be heroes fend off the draugr invasion. Several low-level players were brutally flayed by the draugr, who tore their skin off and left them to bleed to death.

However, the audience put up a surprisingly stern resistance. Led by a newly-arrived Mage named [AlienSpace], a string of Mages used spells in tandem to reduce the draugr's HP, and a group of fast archers and low-level players scrambled around to relay the draugr weapons on to the Mages. Even the invulnerable draugr were temporarily held in place by a group of warriors supported by a Mage of the [Cleric] sub-class healing them. The warriors were flailing to get the draugr weapons away from them, in panic, and the Mages were able to anchor the formation and form its centrepoint, giving the ragtag group a sense of cohesion.

Cael saw a Mage using [Mana Push] to dislodge a nearby level 40 draugr Mage's staff, as an archer rushed in using the speed-buffing skill [Speed Demon] to pick up the weapon when it fell. As the weapon began to slip from the draugr's grasp, Cael wanted to grab it, but knew it was slightly out of reach and he didn't wish to risk leaning out of cover. Frustrated, he activated the mysterious [Hierophant Card], his interest piqued slightly by the sound of the description.

He suddenly felt as if the world was shaking in front of him, like someone on a particularly unsteady ship during a storm. The draugr Mage's staff seemed to be oscillating towards him and away from him, as with the draugr Mage itself who sometimes seemed to be right in front of him, and he was also not sure what his exact position was. Despite being slightly queasy and confused, he single-mindedly grabbed hold of the staff and pulled it back to him.

The card's hallucinatory effect faded, the world stopped seeming to shake, and Cael found himself once more within the safety of the stone column. However, his palm was open towards the staff, and he felt his pull on it despite the distance, as it floated from the draugr Mage's hand and into his effortless grip. Checking on his MP, he saw that just this simple act had drained almost all of his MP. The staff hadn't been that far away, either, suggesting that using this card's power at longer distances would be difficult and probably cost too much MP to be practical.

However, he now held a [Splintered Cursed Draugr Staff], taken from a draugr Mage who was at maximum strength. He was anticipating that in a few minutes, he would reach maximum rewards for time spent in the area of the draugr battle, and would be free to attack other players during this brief window where Kruxol was not a safe zone. He had already reached 2 hours of fighting draugr, but there was also a reward for 3 hours within a zone where draugr-player battles were occurring. This was nearly done.

He turned to Vladislav and said, "Are you guys getting your final chests for fighting draugr and staying in warzone soon? I imagine you'd enjoy killing this ragtag bunch."

"No, sadly. We were quite busy with the Arena issue, so we still have 15 minutes. Don't kill everyone before that."

"But what if they find it entertaining?"

Vladislav laughed, "Then you shouldn't let your audience down."

Cael decided to ask carefully about the Kruxol Arena matter, as it might be sensitive. "What is happening with Kruxol Arena, if I may ask?"

"Ah, nothing too much," replied Vladislav, "one of the usual top players in the Arena events has been trying to mess with us. The Arena wins went to his head. He needs some sorting out."

"So you stole the weapons from his Guild?"

"From the group that he practices with, which is mostly his Guild. Arena has strict regulations, so they'll need to buy new practice swords to simulate it. By the way, how did you nab that staff? I haven't seen a Mage do that before. It isn't paywall, that is, for big spenders only?"

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Cael laughed, "Long story short, it was for a big spender only, until I killed him and took it from him."

"Isn't there a rubberband thing, like if he recalls it then you won't have it any more? I had that happen once."

"He might not currently be alive, I doubt he needs it that much," said Cael nonchalantly.

"Ah. His name was exposed."

"Yes. Is that what they meant with the announcement recently?"

"Yeah, people with name exposed will probably die IRL. The idiots were trying to make names paywall - they were trying to fix donor names by using only the ID number attached to their donation. This bypassed the game, where due to errors they couldn't get names processed. But donations aren't processed through in-game ID, but personal ID. Just because game transactions and account info are recorded on personal ID, it doesn't mean that you just open a wormhole from immersion game to personal ID and hope that nothing goes wrong. Which they seem to have done. At least, something like that, can't say because I haven't directly seen this game's spaghetti code. But yes, if they die they don't come back, they are absolutely dead."

"So basically, they tried to base the accounts on personal ID, and the game isn't programmed to deal with that, so it basically just corrupted the game's interaction with them and blurred the boundaries between personal information and game ID?"

"As I said, something like this. This is speculative. Also, since pain reduction no longer works, I think it was a bad time to force the game to try and process things through their personal ID and donor information."

"Could there be other consequences if the game is now sending out code and interaction directly to the world outside? Since it was forced to include personal ID and the outside world in its processing, is it still mostly intact or could it spiral out of control and start sending out corrupt code involving the world outside?"

"Well, there are two layers, the universal virtual ID is one and personal ID, the world outside, etc., is the second. The first will make things much easier for the game, because it also works in a similar code, so the game might seem to be sending out valid inputs. But obviously the problem might be like a whirlpool, the game has to pull in foreign things like personal ID, and soon it is pulling in all related things. Obviously, if players are trapped here, then they might be goners. But for now, if the game interacts with the rest of the world then it will mostly be through the world's reliance on virtual reality for study, meetings, diplomacy, etc., because that is the path of least resistance."

"Interesting, thank you for your explanation."

Cael was about to ask about if this may explain NPCs acting more lifelike, then stopped himself after realising that this was an awkward time to be asking that question. The draugr were acting mostly like they usually would, if anything more ferocious. Perhaps it was because they were an undead race, unlike the human guards that he had observed earlier, but he still felt like the question would seem strange in this context.

He saw a new system message:

[Congratulations! Unlocked the 3hr Warzone reward for the Draugr Invasion event, the final Warzone chest for this event. Rewards will be mailed to you.]

"Anyway, got the 3 hour chest, might as well beat these guys up a bit until you're ready," he said, as Vladislav smirked.

The arrival of some of the strongest draugr through the gate had shifted the tide of the fight, and the draugr were now easily dominant. The invulnerable draugr were now striding through their frail enemies like Godzilla. Several draugr had also made their way here through the winding alleys of Kruxol, and attacked the resisting players from the flank and rear. However, some pockets of resistance remained, especially among the more skilled warriors who were parrying blows while being healed. Due to not having as much cover from tanks, the Mages were mostly overrun easily once the draugr got in range, but a few Mages including [AlienSpace] had taken refuge against a wall near the gates, protected by a half-ring of warriors who were being healed, and this was frustrating a small force of draugr.

Cael scanned the wall behind this group of players, and noticed that after Kruxol's downgrade this wall had become cracked and highly uneven, with bits of rock and glass jutting out. The draugr were steadily forcing the warriors back, and this caused congestion among the Mages behind them, who were left with very little space.

[AlienSpace] looked highly uncomfortable and claustrophobic standing pinned to the jagged wall, but doggedly fought on. A few of the draugr had weapons given by the Hashin, and Cael noticed that these weapons moved swiftly and were forcing the warriors to use their shields heavily to try and repel or soften blows. This turtling approach was forcing the warriors ever deeper, and by now the warriors were leaning against the Mages as they fought. The draugr were much more powerful, and hence even though these deft warriors were able to deflect attacks with swordplay or use shields, the force of the draugr's blows was crushing the whole formation of players against the wall and each other.

Cael saw that a small group of the strongest warriors had been selected to guard AlienSpace earlier, but now were almost crushing him as they were pressed back near the wall. While they tried to avoid directly crashing into him, he still had very little space between the warriors and the fellow Mages trapped beside him. Cael could see that AlienSpace was almost suffocating from the lack of space and from being squeezed between the players around him, and was squirming around trying to find breathing space.

Cael activated the [Hierophant Card], with his MP full since he had been staying out of the fight. As it activated, the area around him swung wildly from side to side, and briefly he felt as though he was in the middle of the resisting force as the tired warriors and Mages around him were pounded back by the force of the draugr like a ship by the sea. He could feel the determination and motivation of the fighters, and noticed how the warriors and Mages were keeping carefully in synch to push back this undefeatable foes. Drawing on his memory of the Assassin class, he delivered a sharp blow to the suffocating AlienSpace's throat, aiming carefully just above the ribcage. He saw the Mage collapse to the ground, caught in a twisted position due to the congestion, and delivered a sharp kick to AlienSpace besides the bottom of the Mage's spine before Cael's MP ran out and he found himself back in the stone column. While Cael's strikes were slightly weakened due to his low STR and DEX, the combination of AlienSpace's congested situation with the placement of the strikes was enough to have the Mage rolling in agony on the ground.

The players around AlienSpace had begun to trample on him, as the draugr advance caused space to grow ever tighter. They barely realised what they had done until they heard their leader screaming from beneath the feet of the four warriors and Mages around him, and they slowly tried to back off and give him room. Most of them seemed to not suspect Cael's involvement, assuming that AlienSpace had succumbed to the claustrophobic, suffocating conditions. As the Mages tried desperately to create space and avoid trampling their leader to death, Cael used [Spark] on the injured AlienSpace, causing the pained leader to collapse to the ground vomiting blood.

Using his [Black Cursed Draugr Staff], Cael used [Mana Strike] to shove AlienSpace firmly against the jagged wall, sending the Mage's back and neck colliding straight with the hard, uneven, rocky wall. He followed this immediately with a [Mana Push] to keep AlienSpace pinned to the wall, a pattern remembered from the cave near Sanra, and AlienSpace's shoulder got hooked against a sharp piece of protruding glass. This caused a large gash to open behind AlienSpace's arm, causing him to scream loudly. The screams of their leader were highly demotivating for the fighters around him, who begun to fold against the heavy draugr onslaught, as Cael had guessed they would from his experience while using the [Hierophant Card]. While the group of players could unite in camaraderie in a fight against the horde of attackers, this sort of attack where they crumbled and suffocated under pressure was more difficult to find stirring.

The lack of leadership had weakened the ring of warriors and Mages around AlienSpace's corpse, and the draugr were making inroads. Most other pockets of resistance were also being emptied.

Cael heard a laugh from the side. "That self-styled 'leader' was shuffling between healing and offensive staves, he came with all sorts of items to show off. Even a few expensive paywalled ones. I'm sure you got some good loot from that," commented ImpalerVladislav.

"Loot? How materialistic. I just did it because it was funny," replied Cael wryly.

"Yes, exactly. You should entertain these brave troops, to help alleviate their tired legs, no?"

"Yes, yes. By the way, have you guys picked up any cards from players? Like, modelled after tarot cards."

"Oh, those. Our Guild came across those, yes, but players always recall them. They're a pain. However, I can tell you a bit about them, I have run into a couple. There's others in our Guild who might know more. But what I saw was a card named [Hermit Card], I think it doubled your Agility when HP was under 10%, basically a fleeing card."

"So basically it lets an Assassin grind mobs or gank quickly by keeping their HP low?"

"Clever. Yes, that could also be possible. What does the 'reversed' effect mean?"

"You take out the card and reverse it, then activate it."

"Ah, OK. That causes your opponent to slow down by 20% when your HP is under 10%. Typically wouldn't be as useful, could be if you were in a party or large-scale fight. Another card was named [Star Card], our Guild Leader showed me that, it allows you to automatically recover to full HP two minutes after your HP lowers to 20%. I think that was only for very high-placing lottery players. Reverse was that you can halve your HP to form a shield that blocks all physical attacks for 10 seconds."

"I heard a story about one Guild where there were no Mages, but their strongest warrior would duck behind a wall of protective tanks and soon come out fully healed to attack again. Any idea if that was this card?"

"Ah, yes, [Njury] does probably use this card. His [Jury] Guild did used to have Mages, but they left because Njury was Guild leader and would force Mages to take up crafting and do chores because he thought they were 'boring.' Now they have no strong Mages, so they just enter serious fights without any. They're a weak Guild in some ways, not many strong players, but Njury spent a ton so they're still considered powerful. Due to that, it's quite likely that he has the card. Would be nice if there was a database of people who won prizes in this lottery, so that we could check on who else has these cards."

"Nothing in the library?"

"Checked, didn't find anything."

"Pity. Anyway, I'll try to spread some bleeding among these players, since you guys are nearly ready."

AlienSpace's death had depleted the morale of the 37 players still left to fight the draugr, and the draugr had quickly swarmed across the area, eliminating the few players left. Only 15 players remained, holding strong behind a group of powerful, level 51+ warriors. Cael decided that revealing his location would make little difference with so few players nearby. He cast [Magic Missile] on the warriors, disrupting their ranks with an unexpected flank attack, and then used [Spark] to lock down a level 54 warrior who seemed to be the strongest still left. As the draugr rushed forwards to attack the Mages, Assassins and archers who had been sheltering behind the warrior line, an archer cast [Speed Demon] and broke ranks to run from the draugr. Cael used [Mana Strike] to shove him back towards the draugr, and a strong draugr crushed the archer in his hand. Cael used [Meditate], in order to replenish his MP, sensing that the Hashin would be going in soon.

Once the resistance here died down, the draugr mostly moved on to search the rest of Kruxol for prey. Soon, the Assassins next to Cael had readied themselves, and once he buffed them with [Young Deer's Speed] they sprung out towards the remaining players like a Maelstrom of violence. Since most draugr had left, there was little risk for the Hashin. Cael switched his focus to spells like [Magic Missile] and [Dark's Tendrils], hoping to cause bleeding across the remaining players. Vladislav saw what he was doing, and leapt for a bleeding archer named [Dvew], using [Panoramic Strike] to cut a deeper gash across the archer's chest and then [Dagger Twist] to worsen it. By attacking with the [Bleeding] status, Cael was providing the Assassins with more easily vulnerable targets.

Cael heard one of the dying players crying out, "Hashin are here!"

"I'm not one to turn down a good time. Now tell your friends to keep aggroing the zombies, so we can focus on killing your friends," said Vladislav in a dry tone, before stepping on the player and leaving them to die.

Vladislav had no expectation that the few players left, who had been cornered by the draugr, could reasonably stop attacking or resisting the draugr without dying immediately. However, he hinted that it was a tactical blunder, to taunt the players over being picked off by the much-hated Hashin while being kept busy by the draugr.

The combination of Cael's attacks and the powerful Assassins quickly turned the scene into a mass of blood and tears. Since Cael inflicted bleeding, the Assassins were able to make quick work of players who were already vulnerable, by piercing deep into the bleeding wounds. After the last player had died, the Assassin split up and ran through the alleys near Kruxol as if highly familiar with them, causing a few draugr to try and pursue them. Cael guessed that these players would use the small maze of tunnels around Kruxol to get the draugr off their tail and then find a safe spot.

He was surprised when Vladislav soon reappeared from the alley right of the gates, catching the attention of one or two draugr

"We'll be meeting by the Weaponry Store in twenty minutes, when the draugr abate. Join us if you want. The draugr have knocked down some of the barriers and small buildings, it's much easier to navigate now," said Vladislav, before racing towards the edge of Kruxol to ceremoniously climb a statue of a horse rode by the town,'s founder, Krujl.

After about five minutes, the following announcement appeared:

[The draugr have won. Kruxol is now a level 2 town, and players will no longer spawn here. It will be replaced as a starting town by the nearby Kaxil.

Kruxol is now a safe zone again, you may tend to your injured comrades.

Escorts to Kaxil will begin in half an hour, led by the Janissary Guild.]

Cael was slightly amused by this news: new players trapped in this game surely had more issues than where they started. Regardless, he would have to move on to Kaxil or Sanra eventually, but for now a few players would be staying to participate in already-scheduled events like Kruxol Arena, or complete low-level questlines begun by the NPCs here. After the Arena event was done, mostly only low-level quests and basic training would remain in Kruxol, meaning that the remaining players would mostly be low-level and could easily be attacked until they gave up and left the area. The draugr had torn Kruxol apart, and Cael decided that it had a promising legacy as a ghost town.