Project Dawnfall

— CHAPTER THREE —

The Siege

-Fritz-

"The King's Men have encircled the city! Our options are to break through their lines to open a new escape route, or hold out until the Prince's main column arrives to relieve us!" The Loyalist leader, Lieutenant Anderson, planted his hands on the command table, looking at us, then at Livitha. "Lucky for you Resistance, the Prince, in his mercy, has ordered that you shall be allowed to leave unharmed, provided you assist in the defence of the city."

"Stuff it, hound!" Livitha spat. "You're just as screwed as we are!"

We had retreated to the town square - a plaza where the Loyalists had set up canopies and hung lamps to turn the place into an operation room to coordinate their forces in the city. Loyalist soldiers and Resistance fighters alike hurried in all directions. In the center stood a large, open-sided tent with a six-foot-wide map of the city laid out across a table. Glowing dots moved across it, showing the state of the battle in real time.

Ignoring the fight, Anderson focused on Livitha. "The Prince has restored order to a significant swathe of the countryside while your little band has done nothing but cause trouble for the people you claim to protect. The most that can be said for you is that you make excellent bait - the King's men would never expose themselves like this without your help. For that, you have my thanks."

Livitha snarled, her hand twitching toward the blades on her belt as she leaned toward Anderson. "When we get out of here, you're next on my list, tin man!"

Us players were standing in a line watching them argue. I said, "So these two are bangin', right?"

"Absolutely." Rose nodded.

The girl in the white robe hastily covered the child's ears, her brow furrowed in disapproval.

Turning to the rest of the other group, I asked, "So where were you guys? They start you in a different part of the city?"

The other group's Lancer was a guy named Siegfried. He was a well-built guy, a little over six feet - looked like a high-school senior or college football player. "We were all directed to a tavern where these soldiers came by and recruited us to help them get the civilians out of the way of the fighting."

"Same for us, but it was the Resistance." Rose said.

Erik was the name of the other group's Barbarian. He was another young man scantily clad in fur-trimmed armor with leather straps - which had to be horrible in the freezing rain. He handled it well, though, warmed by his excitement as he eagerly bounced on the balls of his feet. "So, what, are we on opposite teams here?" he asked.

Percival said, "I doubt there's a mechanical difference; just flavor."

Flora, the girl in the white robe, was another late-teen looking kid. Which, now that I noticed, other than me and Rose, they were all college or under. Man, when did I get old? Whatever; you're never too old to game. Anyway, she asked, "Have any of you seen a girl named Lily? She's the Captain's sister; they logged in together."

The boy clutching her skirt had scruffy black hair and green eyes. He was wearing the same light chain/leather combo as Rose, making him a Swordfighter, but it looked absolutely adorable on him - like a little toy soldier. His name was Captain Galactic.

Rose said, "My husband wound up in a different instance, too. Do you know her full username? You could try messaging her."

The Captain shook his head. "No." he squeaked.

The other group's fifth member - their Archer - was a blonde girl that carried herself with the poise of nobility - Lady Lucia. "The fastest way to solve this will be to complete the scenario. So, how do we break out of the siege?"

The ten of us gathered around the map of Rosenburg. A sea of pink, blue, blood red, and green lights moved about in packs. The dark crimson swarm of the King's forces pushed in from the outskirts while the pink and blue of our allies fought them off and guided the greens toward the heart of the entente's territory. Above it all, an empty progress bar floated in the air with a timer ticking down from 30 minutes.

Percival said, "My read is that we have to kill King's men and protect civilians to fill the bar."

Siegfried said, "It could also be we have to clear a path out of the city and funnel the neutrals through it."

"I think we should kill that knight!" Erik punched at the air. "That's gotta end it, right?"

"I don't think that thing's supposed to die here." Rose shook her head.

"It was a raid boss in one of the commercials." Percival added.

"Well, I'm gonna try anyway!" Erik's eyes lit up with determination.

Siegfried stepped in and said, "If we want to get through this as fast as possible, we should work together."

"It's going to take a little time no matter what." Percival said. "We should split up, try different things, see what's most efficient, then come back and trade notes."

Rose nodded. "It's presented as a very open-ended goal, and exploration is a part of the game."

"Alright," Siegfried agreed, "let's meet back here in ten minutes, then determine an efficient course of action."

"Yes!" Erik cheered. "Flora - back me up! I'm gonna need a medic!"

She shook her head. "I'm not leaving the Captain; take the other team's..." She trailed off, looking around with a frown. "Do you not have a healer?"

Excalibur raised her fists and cried, "Healing is for those who haven't won yet!"

"Yeah!" Erik cheered. "Wait - no! I need the healer's help!"

"I can protect the Captain." I offered. "I'm a tank class, right? That's my job!"

"Do you want to go with him?" Flora asked the kid.

"Come on," I said, "we can see if any of these shops are open and get some umbrellas."

"Ok!" The Captain nodded.

We started out of the plaza, turning back for a quick wave. "Good luck, all! See you in ten minutes!"

\Davi/

Everyone began to disperse into the city, but I was left standing there. I'm not much of a... you know, go-getter, and I don't play a lot of games; I didn't know what to do with myself. Siegfried was the only one that stuck around, carefully looking over the map and writing notes on his in-menu map.

"The King's men are pushed back to the wall here." he said, pointing to the thickest knot of units on the map - a salient where the entente was nearing the edge. "That's where we'll find the densest concentration of mobs for a kill objective and closest exit point for escape. Probably a risk-reward scenario; a tougher, more concentrated fight, but faster victory if you can pull it off." He turned to me. "You want to check it out?"

"O-oh, sure. That sounds good. I'll go wherever you think is best."

"Stay behind me and focus my target; I'll keep them in check for you."

"You got it!" I replied, trying to inject some enthusiasm into my voice, despite the butterflies in my stomach.

The rain pelted down as we started through narrow streets. Makeshift barricades of overturned carts and rubble fallen from damaged buildings blocked our path at every turn. As we passed over a bridge spanning another street, a trickle of civilians fled into the underpass to cower in the knee-deep water.

The tutorial alone was far more intense that I was expecting; hopefully the rest of the game wouldn't be quite as overwhelming. I didn't want to fight a war - I just wanted to spend time with my brother.

Lost in thought, I barely registered Siegfried's battle cry as he charged ahead, spear drawn. Snapping back to reality, I hurriedly drew my bow, pulling back the string. That spawned an arrow, already nocked. Siegfried closed in on a pack of three King's men bearing down on a woman in a near-fetal huddle. His spear was a blur as he twirled it around, poking and bashing the men away from her and into a corner. I took a deep breath, steadying my aim as I shot over his shoulder, doing my best not to hit him.

And that was the easiest fight we had! As we got farther from the city center, the fighting grew thicker. The packs of enemies swelled to five, sometimes even seven at a time! And occasionally those red knights followed them. Those ones we avoided as best we could - those things were nothing but trouble. There were Resistance and Loyalist NPCs around to help even the odds, but if Siegfried weren't there, I knew I would been cowering back with those civilians in the underpass.

The action came to a boil as the city wall came into view, a story-high stone barrier with a once-formidable gate now lying in ruins. The massive wooden structure had been knocked inward, its broken and burning pieces strewn about, the flames raging despite the downpour. The fire had spread to the nearby houses, casting an orange glow across the area. As we arrived on the scene, a boulder covered in flaming pitch sailed over the wall, landing just a street over with a plume of flames and wave of screams.

Amid the chaos, a squad of Loyalist NPCs poured out of a nearby house, one of them shouting, "We've got another bomb ready! Escort it to those trebuchets!" They wheeled a wagon filled with barrels out onto the street, pushing it toward the open gate. Almost immediately, the King's men swooped in, their advance barely held back by the efforts of the NPCs.

If we didn't act, they were going to detonate it inside the town! Instinctively, I drew back the string of my bow and readied an arrow.

But Siegfried put a hand on my shoulder, gently interrupting my aim. "It's going to take more than the two of us to escort that thing out of here; save it for when we tell the others. It looks like they need help extinguishing those fires. Let's try that first."

I lowered my bow, a wave of... relief washing over me. If we could contribute without fighting, I was more than happy to take part.

-Fritz-

The Captain and I rummaged through the goods of a dark and empty store. The door was open when we got there - looked like the owner fled, leaving all those perfectly stocked shelves unattended. And everything on display was an actual item! I could feel my sticky fingers getting restless. I was salivating at the potential of shoplifting in the proper game world - I hoped to all hope that this wasn't just the intro scenario that was like this.

As we started rifling through the aisles, the Captain asked, "Where do we pay for this stuff?"

I was already busy pouring a whole basket of apples into one of my belt pouches. Gotta love that incorporeal inventory - I could carry an entire fruit stand in a single slot! "Uh... I'll leave a check on the counter; don't worry about cost."

"Oh! Found them!" the Captain called from the other side of the store. He beamed with pride as he held up a pair of umbrellas. He'd found a whole rack in the back corner beside a collection of winter gloves and scarves.

"Nice, nice." I grabbed a couple pairs of gloves - winter was only a few months away. Oh, and a beanie - it was a cold night. "Grab enough for everyone - and, hell, one for your sister, too. Eat while the eatin's good, I say!"

"Ok!" The Captain shoved his inventory full of umbrellas, keeping two out and handing one to me.

We walked back outside, into an unlit side street, and put our umbrellas up. The difference was immense - I didn't have to wipe the water out of my eyes every handful of seconds, and I could finally see the city clearly! It'd be a nice place, if it wasn't lightly on fire.

'Item added to inventory: Trainee Infantry Spear.'

Huh? I pulled up my menu to check my equipment. It appeared that holding the umbrella had equipped it into my hand, kicking the spear into my inventory. The umbrella was listed as a sidearm, so I could have put it into my left hand to keep the spear, but if we got into trouble, I wanted those empowered abilities, so instead I moved my spear to a belt pouch slot so I could draw it easily.

"Let's see if there are any other shops around - maybe we can get some adventuring supplies or cool clothes."

I started to walk toward the main street when heavy stomping echoed between the buildings. A group of King's men ran past the alley we were in, continuing farther down the street. Captain Galactic shriveled behind me.

"They're gone; we're fine." I reassured him.

But he continued to stare out at the street where they had passed. "I'm scared." he whispered. "It's just a game, right? So why am I scared?"

I sighed. "This may be too much of a game. I've played some hardcore stuff over the years, and this is more than anything I've seen. Hell, I'm having a hard time with the combat myself. No matter what our brains think, it's the body that's in control. It's going to overwrite your mind when it thinks there's a threat around. - And that's perfectly ok! Better afraid of nothing than complacent around danger!"

I peeked around the corner, scanning the main street for further enemies. The cobblestone gleamed in the lamplight, but not a soul was in sight. No NPCs, no players, no mobs. Just stillness broken by the patter of rain.

"The coast is clear. Let's cross to that narrow street on the far side."

"Ok!" the Captain nodded nervously.

"And... run!" I said, breaking into a sprint. My boots slipped on the cobbles, and I nearly face-planted, but I caught myself at the last second. The Captain darted ahead, stopping at the edge of the alley's shadows to make sure I was going to make it, then disappearing as he hid in the darkness.

It was similar to the little capillary street we'd come from - no lighting and a few doors on one side. I tried the first one, but it was locked. The Captain walked ahead, glancing between the buildings. I looked away for one second to try the next door - also locked - and he let out a scream of pure terror.

His umbrella flew through the air as he fell onto his butt and scooted backward. From the intersection in front of him, one of those red knights lumbered around the corner, its yellow eyes fixed on the kid and armor clanking with each step.

I raced over to him, grabbing the Captain by the back of his collar and hauling him to his feet. Shoving him behind me, I began to back toward the main street, keeping myself between the boy and the knight. Then another clatter of metal came from behind us. King's men - three of them appearing in the mouth of the alley. They fanned out in a V formation and raised their swords.

"Dammit." I shoved my umbrella into a belt pouch and pulled my spear out of another. Despite all the soldiers, I did a feel little like a stage magician - pulling a full six-foot spear out of a fist-sized bag - but there wasn't enough time to fully revel in it. "I'll shove the group back into the street." I told the Captain. "When I do, you run out behind them and break for the center of town, got it?"

Not waiting for a reply, I moved forward, holding my spear level in a sweeping position. The tip began to glow as the ability queued, but as I released it, a sting pierced my shoulder. The force twisted my aim high, and the shockwave went clear over the enemies' heads.

It wasn't three soldiers - it was four. The last one was an archer standing back in the shadows of the trees lining the main street.

My knockback was on cooldown for a moment, but I couldn't wait for it - I could still zone them. Gritting my teeth, I rushed the soldier directly in front of me. Holding my spear crosswise like a bar, I shoved him aside, slamming him into the wall. Not pausing, I pivoted and jabbed at the soldier on the V's left arm. He dodged nimbly, stepping to my right and avoiding the attack while backing a step off. In doing so, he opened up a lane on the left side of the street.

"Hug the wall and run!" I yelled to the Captain.

"Look out!" the boy cried.

Before I could turn around, a pinching sensation ran down my shoulder, followed a moment later by light stinging where my arm... used to be. The knight's longsword flashed in the rain beside me, and my arm, still gripping my spear, fell to the ground and dissolved into blue particles. It was standing just behind me, glaring at me with those yellow eyes.

Never take your eyes off the guy that walks everywhere.

Without a weapon or an arm, I wasn't sure what to do - I couldn't fight. Keep them busy while the Captain ran off, I guess. And was that arm going to grow back?

I hope the respawn penalty isn't too bad.

Before either of us could move, a blur of motion tackled the knight. Hands grabbed it by the helmet, jerking it backward on its head as the attacker threw themself around the armored figure. Using the momentum, they then pivoted forward, dragging the knight to the ground and slamming its head against the cobblestones with a metallic clang.

The attacker rolled, jumping to his feet in a whirl of black fabric and fiery red hair. It was Percival, glaring at the soldiers and snarling like a rabid dog.

"Igni!" he barked. A mote of flame flickered to life behind his shoulder as he threw himself at the trio of foot soldiers. He reached toward the ember and threw it at the wrist of one brandishing his sword. It struck forward, exploding and engulfing the man's hand.

Percy seized the soldier's burning fist, wrenching the sword from his weakening grip before shoving him back against the wall. A second soldier stepped it to stab Percival - and he let it happen. The blade sunk into the kid's side. Barely flinching, he rounded on the mob, stabbing the stolen sword into the attacking soldier's throat and ripping it out through the side of his neck. The man disintegrated in a shower of particles.

The kid quickly stepped backward, and an arrow whizzed past my head. "Igni!" he returned fire on the archer as he lunged back to the knight - now struggling to get back to its feet. Percy impaled the stolen sword in the knight's wrist, loosening its grip on its longsword so he could wrench it free and pick that up instead.

One hand on the hilt, the other grabbing the naked blade, Percival flitted back to the soldiers, finishing off the one against the wall and cutting across the chest of the last sword-wielder. Sidestepping again, he directed the archer's next arrow into the back of the last soldier, killing him. One more fireball was enough to take out the archer, then he turned on the knight. With a flourish, he impaled the blade in the back of its neck and swept the blade to sever it. As the knight's body shone and disintegrated, the stolen longsword despawned with it.

The alley fell silent. Percival stood there, palms glowing with wireframe where the skin had been rubbed away, panting and shaking and staring at the pile of dust that was left of the knight. I glanced around and spotted Captain Galactic pressed against the wall, cowering next to a stack of crates. We all got through... alive, if not unscathed.

"Nice save, man!" I tried to clap Percival on the shoulder, but...

He took a deep breath and stumbled a step, steadying himself against the bricks of the wall. "No problem." he mumbled, the fire draining from his eyes.

Pulling my umbrella from my belt, I held it out to him. "Here."

The Captain retrieved his own umbrella from where it'd fallen and got me a replacement out of his inventory. "Are you gonna be ok?"

I looked at the sheared-off stump of my shoulder. What would have been my innards was that same blue mesh that seemed to be under the textures of everything. My health wasn't dropping any further, at least. "I'm not bleeding out and I feel fine, so I think so? Hey, Percy, does this come back?"

"Yes, but nothing I read gave a timeframe." He extended his umbrella, then stared up at the canopy. With no emotion, he asked, "I wonder if this would be classified as blunt or piercing damage?"

"Let's, uh, test it somewhere else."

We made our way back to the main street, which was once again devoid of NPCs, and started to walk back toward the city center.

"The shops are unattended, by the way." I said. "A dishonorable ne'er-do-well could loot them and no one would be the wiser."

Percival raised an eyebrow. "The items are real? Not just set dressing?"

"Yeah." I nodded.

His blank line of a mouth turned into a smirk. "That changes everything."

"Yeah it does. What about you; you find anything yet?"

"Killing mobs contributes to the siege meter, but so does non-combat actions. They've got people using fruit stalls to make barricades around intersections. Once they're built, they function as new spawn points for friendly NPCs. Also, if you can get up to the roofs, there are traps you can dump on the King's men."

"Wow. They really packed a lot into this 30-minute scenario."

"I believe it's a mechanical proof of concept. This was the showcase they used at conventions."

"Alright." I nodded, turning us toward an unattended shop, its door invitingly ajar. "So what's that trick you used to take those soldier's weapons?"

"The weapons are technically parts of their bodies - they only stick around as long at the mob is alive, but you can disarm them. They deal as much damage as the mob's basic attack, which is good for the knights, but even the trash mobs' swords are good enough to dismember, and that's enough most of the time."

"Sounds like the fighting's going to be scrappier than I thought. And why are you only using your fire spell? You get one of each element, right?"

Percival stopped and thought for several moments. "... I like fire."

I couldn't help it - I laughed. "That's it? Man, I was expecting some, 'the DoT on the fire spell deals 25% more damage to armored foes.'"

He just stared at me, expression unchanged.

"Sorry." I smiled.

As we entered the shop, Percival said, "Fire does seem to damage textures and enable dismemberment better, but I don't know if it's any more effective on armor than the others."