NOVEL NEXT 31 - Game Plan
Their destination was revealed to be closer than David thought it would be, though Kai flew as if the devil himself was chasing them the entire way. He struggled to keep up with the huge bird, who was appreciably heavier than he was and could Glide much faster as they made a beeline toward the heart of the downtown area. Decrepit, overgrown skyscrapers consumed by creeping vines loomed ahead of them as they rapidly approached, unhindered by the rough terrain and ruins that passed below them. Without warning Kai suddenly rolled into a dive, streaking towards the ground with only a shrill cry to alert David to the maneuver. He fell for a long time as David watched curiously, finally unfurling his huge wings and angling himself towards what David barely recognized as a parking lot.
–Health: 90/90–
–Stamina: 183/215–
–N/A–
David tore his eyes away from his readout before he pulled in his wings and allowed himself to drop, heart hammering in his chest with exhilaration. He built up speed for several seconds and the rush of wind drowned out all other sounds while the earth below began to rise uncomfortably close. David unfurled his wings with a snap, the thick leather membrane instantly filling like a sail, and he felt the familiar burn as his shoulders and back did most of the work holding them steady. He couldn’t help grinning a little, flying was always fun, and things seemed to be taking a turn for the better in the last two days. Part of their plan in coming here had been to find Quests, and even though Claire couldn’t participate, he was glad to be making progress again.
Man he’s in a rush, is the timer that short? Is he just that excited? I know I am, I wonder what type of Quest this will be. Event Quest for Flyers, huh…I didn’t even know that the System was exclusive, but I should have expected it. Every choice, blah blah. Oh, hey Dallas is down there too!
David folded his wings up again and dropped the last ten feet, bouncing lightly, though his talons stung mightily from their impact on the broken concrete. He resolved never to land like that again on asphalt as he loped closer to where Kai and Dallas stood near a pile of scuffed plastic that might have been a bus stop at some point. The wasplike creature didn’t even turn to look at him, though David was completely sure that they saw him just fine with their large compound eyes because they began to speak immediately.
“Hey David, really appreciate you helping with this. Sorry to involve you in something as dangerous as a Quest.” Dallas buzzed while tapping his long bladelike stinger thoughtfully against the weathered concrete.
“Dallas…I told you…they do quests too…Whoooo, give me a second.” Kai said between heavy breaths, stamina clearly depleted and recharging slowly.
“Oh, good point. Sorry to baby you, man.” Dallas shrugged, “We’ve got probably an hour left on the Quest I think. Do you know the stadium downtown?”
David sat on his haunches and nodded, checking his readouts briefly before throwing a few Echolocations into the rows of rusted-out cars behind them just in case. When nothing but more intimate knowledge of exactly how derelict the cars were presented itself, David answered.
“Yeah, Baseball stadium right? The one we spent like a bajillion dollars on instead of fixing the roads and building another bridge?” David chittered grumpily, “With the big fancy ceiling or whatever?”
“Bingo, yeah. Although the ceiling is more of a floor now. It’s all overgrown in there and open to the sky. I figured I’d poke around and see if I could scare anything up to eat a little closer to town, but ended up finding the Quest instead.” Dallas replied in his oddly harmonic voice.
“What the hell is an Event Quest anyway?”
Dallas buzzed his wings several times and repeated the stinger tapping motion as he thought, before somehow performing a shrug with his antennae.
“It’d be faster to show you than to explain it, Kai you wanna keep panting like that don’t stand right behind me while you do it. Weirdo, I oughta make you buy me dinner now.” Dallas clicked his scissor like mandibles for emphasis as he turned to face the huge avian.
“Oh shut up, Regeneration is not my best stat.” Kai sighed, “We have time still, David. Real quick, there’s something we do before Hunts or Quests. Dallas, you wanna lead?”
“Yeah, sure. My defenses and regen are high, and speed is okay but my offense is terrible. Almost all my damage is from my Special and Mutagens. I sting things, and they either melt or wish they melted. Do not bite anything you see me sting or smell the venom from. This is gonna be kinda gross but you need to smell it so you know what to avoid.” Dallas said with a bit of embarrassment as he pressed his stinger into the concrete and it oozed a bit of venom onto the ground.
David’s nose wrinkled in distaste as an acrid, biting smell filled the air almost instantly, the concrete discoloring violently under the small blob of gel-like venom. Every single one of his new instincts screamed at him that it was a dangerous smell, and he fought the urge to edge away from Dallas before he nodded his head in acknowledgment. Dallas performed the shrug with his antennae again apologetically before Kai cut in.
The enormous bird clacked his beak for attention as he spoke, “You fought with me already…but, my offense, defense, and speed are high. I ran out of points after that, and my regen took a bit of a hit. I’ll have to fight on the ground after we engage unless I can fall back to rest at some point. All my damage is direct, and I work as a pretty good wall in emergencies, but I can’t keep it up very long.”
They both stared at him expectantly for several seconds before David finally put 2 and 2 together.
“Oh, duh! My offense, defense, and regeneration are high. I can drain a bit of health and stamina every hit if I’m using my physical Ability. Other than that it’s all Control, you saw the silver cloud last night? Don’t get near it, it’s a hallucinogen.” David barked quickly, “I do have one other ability but it’s dangerous to use at full power around other people because it hits everything around me…and I’ve got a stealth Mutagen but haven’t had the opportunity to test it.”
“Leo’s got an attack like that too…Okay, I’ll trust you not to kill me with it then. Here’s the plan…” Dallas muttered sadly before launching into his explanation.
David forced himself to pay close attention to the plan now that they all knew each other's basic capabilities. According to Dallas’ information, the Quest would activate the moment that they crossed over above the stadium itself and they’d likely have a few moments to position themselves before the Event started. There would be a 3-minute countdown before the Quest began and they would be told exactly what their objective was, though David didn’t like that they had no idea what could happen. To his surprise, his few interjections were carefully considered, and Dallas proved to be quick to ask questions and adjust his plans based on any input from either of them.
“Alright, I think that’s it. We don’t have a lot to go on, so for now, we’ll spread out a bit but stay close enough to help. David finds somewhere with some altitude to set up, and Kai goes down first. I’ll come in on his heels, David finds a good angle to flank and does his thing.” Dallas began to fan his wings rapidly in preparation, “Any objections?”
When none were voiced his wings blurred and a deep droning hum filled the air as he lifted off vertically without any visible effort, his movements reminding David vaguely of helicopters with the way sand and debris were blown away from him. Kai waited for a few seconds as Dallas continued to rise before shifting gears and rifling out towards their destination, and only then did Kai spread his massive wings and launch into the air after him. David coughed and shook himself, frowning as much as his face allowed as he cleared himself of all the debris kicked up by their flight. Shaking his head he leaped into the sky, scooping the warm afternoon air rising from the broken pavement and allowing the updraft to save him some energy as he sped after the pair.
Dallas flew with such precision David was a little jealous, easily able to fly sideways and diagonally in a way that his own wings just didn't allow for. Despite that his increase in weight over David made it possible for him to maintain pace, matching speed with Kai as they wove single-file through the crumbling skyline with purpose. In a matter of minutes, the trio had cleared the high-rises and flew out over a heavily overgrown section of Riverport and the stadium suddenly rose from the ruins below them. Dallas descended towards it in a wide arc and they swung around to follow his path without asking any questions. They followed close behind and landed precariously next to him along the uppermost rim of the structure, staring down into the field through a large square hole in the roof.
–Quest Requirement: Flight–
–Requirement met!–
–Event Quest Available: Rising Peril–
–Reward: Performance Based–
–3:00–
–2:59–
–2:58–
“Everyone ready?” Kai asked as he flared his wings with care not to jab his companions with his feathers.
“Yep.”
“Uh…I guess. I’m gonna go find somewhere to hide. Good luck, be careful.” David replied as he leaned forward off their perch and began to glide down slowly as his eyes darted about below him. He heard Kai’s wings beat the air with dull thumps above him as they climbed high above the stadium and began to circle.
Okay, David. This is gonna be the first Quest where you don’t almost die. Keep your readouts up, pay attention to the new one. Watch your Control Effects and don’t fuck this up. We got this, I’ve improved a lot in the last few days, don’t embarrass yourself in front of the birds and the bees…heheheh. Dammit, focus!