The thieves’ pamphlet was a quick read.


    It contained a rundown of the underworld’s structures, its officers, and the guild’s code of conduct, which unsurprisingly, was not very stringent, and by the end, I could not claim to have learned much of value.


    Importantly, though, my perusal triggered a response from the game.


    You have completed the task: The Seedy Side of Life!


    You have finished your induction into the thieves’ guild and have been designated a journeyman rogue by den chief Dinara. By completing this task, you have aligned yourself with the underworld, an organization notorious for being fiercely independent and for its disregard of the rule of law.


    As such, your new House has gained an affinity for renegades, outcasts, and criminals. Accepting these sorts of individuals as followers will deepen your Wolf Mark in future.


    Note, the converse applies as well. Turning those in good standing with the established order into followers will weaken your Wolf Mark.


    I couldn’t help but chuckle after reading the task completion message.


    Renegades, outcasts, and criminals, huh?


    These were terms that could be readily applied to the Forerunners. Over half of our player-members could be labeled as such, the only exceptions being Terence, Teresa, and Shael—although Shael’s designation was questionable. The descriptors fit many of the non-players in the faction too. Algar and the other Bane Wolves were exiles from New Haven, while Regus and the wolfmen—former possessed and scions all—were at best renegades, and at worst, criminals.


    Hells, both my current followers—Nyra and Ceruvax—were convicted criminals. I shook my head ruefully.


    We truly are a bunch of rebels, aren’t we?


    And somehow, I doubted I was going to have much trouble finding new followers who fit the bill. Still smiling, I returned the pamphlet to my backpack and rose to my feet. My chores were done, and now it was time to return to the others.


    We had a Power to kill.


    ? ? ?


    I found my companions sitting and eating around a campfire fueled by hot stones and small pieces of logs.


    “Where’d you get the wood from?” I asked curiously.


    “Brought it with us,” Anriq replied laconically.


    “We were expecting to be here the whole day,” Safyre added.  “Want some?” she asked, holding out a ration.


    Accepting the morsel, I sat down beside her. From across the fire, Adriel tossed me something else.


    You have acquired a Forerunner faction token. This item is soulbound, and cannot be stolen, traded, or lost, even upon death. Hidden properties: this item’s faction ID is 0001.


    Note, only a faction’s members are able to discern its token’s hidden properties.


    I looked at the lich in surprise. “That was fast.”


    She shrugged. “The work was simple enough to perform.” She gestured to the others. “Everyone already has theirs.” A pause. “Well, everyone except Safyre.”


    I nodded in response. As a forsworn, the aetherist couldn’t use any soulbound items. Lowering my gaze, I studied the granite coin in my hand. A wolf’s head been etched onto its surface in sharp glittering black lines that looked remarkably like—


    I turned back to Adriel with a frown. “A stygian wolf? That’s the symbol you chose?”


    She smiled. “It seemed appropriate given—” her gaze darted meaningfully from Ghost to our surroundings—“everything.”


    I sighed. First the bane wolves, now the Forerunners. It seemed there was no escaping my association with Wolf.


    Ghost chuckled in my mind. “But you knew that already, didn’t you?”


    Deciding to let the matter be, I changed the topic. “Everyone ready?” I asked, scanning their faces.


    “As ready as we can be considering we don’t know how you intend on bringing down the overlord,” Safyre responded dryly.


    “I have a strategy in mind,” I replied. “But before I get into it, let’s review what we know about the creatures.” I glanced to my left. “Shael, let’s start with you.”


    His response was not slow in coming. “Sorry. Never heard of them before today.”


    “I’ve nothing to contribute either,” Anriq added. “Everything I learned about the stygians, I learned from Safyre.”


    I turned to my right. “Saf?”


    The aetherist sighed. “What I know is little enough. The overlords are slow, easy to outrun, and are usually employed against defensive structures. Their main attack is the blob of nether spell.” Her eyes darted to mine. “But you already know more about it than I do.”


    I grimaced. “Unfortunately, that’s true. My knowledge was hard come by too.” In fact, I’d almost died as a result of the spell.


    “The blob spell,” I explained to the others, “is a composite one with two stages: noxious fumes and necrotic spikes. Both can be deadly.” Expanding further, I went on to describe both stages in as much detail as I could.


    “That spell sounds… nasty,” Shael said when I was done.


    “And impossible to avoid,” Anriq added, before shifting his regard to Safyre again. “You said ‘main attack.’ What else should we watch out for from the overlord?”


    “I’m sure they have other spells,” Safyre answered. “But the nether blob is the only one I’ve heard of.” She threw me a questioning look.


    “It was the only spell it used against me,” I confirmed. Realizing that I’d reached the limit of what I knew, I turned to the only member of the party who’d yet to contribute anything. “Anything to add, Adriel?”


    The lich chuckled dryly. “My information may be a little out of date. But like Safyre, I’ve only ever heard of the overlords using one spell: blobs of nether.” She shrugged. “Given the creatures’ nature and purpose, though, that’s not surprising. They don’t need any other forms of attack.”


    I frowned. “Why’s that?”


    “In my day, the overlords only appeared in a sector during the final stages of the void’s takeover,” she replied. “Their purpose was always twofold. Firstly, to flatten any remaining player structures still standing, and secondly, to drastically increase the nether toxicity in the region. Usually, by the time an overlord arrived, it was already too late to repel the stygians. But on the rare occasion a House did manage to push them back, the overlords invariably escaped death.”


    Anriq scratched his chin. “How’s that possible? As slow as the creatures are, I would have thought they’d be easy to run down.”


    The lich barked a laugh. “You’d think that, wouldn’t you? But nothing could be further from the truth. An overlord threatened will simply float upward, placing itself beyond the reach of most players. From up high, its blob spells remain devastating. Attacks launched from the ground on the other hand… well, I’m sure it won’t come as a surprise to learn that most fall short of their target.”If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.


    My frown deepened. “No one’s killed an overlord then?”


    “I didn’t say that,” Adriel said primly. “A few Houses have. But it required concerted effort to do so.”


    I leaned forward. “How did they do it?”


    She laughed harshly. “With great difficulty. The overlords have no eyes or limbs to disable. And the tentacles beneath them? They serve no purpose other than anchoring the creature to the ground.”


    “But the thing is so big,” Anriq protested. Surely it must be vulnerable somewhere!”


    “It isn’t,” Adriel said flatly. “An overlord’s entire body is covered by a hardened outer shell—like a turtle’s, only thicker, much thicker. Nor do the creatures feed, so they have no need of mouths either.”


    “Physical attacks are out then,” I murmured.


    Adriel shot me a shrewd look. “You’re thinking of using psi against it, aren’t you?”


    I nodded.


    “Well, that might not work as well as you think,” she replied. “An overlord lacks a nervous system.”


    My brows furrowed.


    “Why would it need one?” Adriel asked rhetorically. “It has no limbs, and every inch of it is covered in nearly impenetrable hide armor.”


    “What about its mind?” Safyre asked quietly.


    “That I’m less certain about,” Adriel admitted.


    “So how did those Houses you mentioned do it?” Shael asked.


    “By splitting the overlord open,” the lich replied grimly. “It took time as you can imagine. Cracking an overlord’s shell requires repeated blows to the same spot—which is not easy when the damn thing is flying a few hundred feet above you.”


    I sat back. “Alright, I’ll admit taking down the overlord might be a tad harder than I expected.”


    Laughter followed, if of the uneasy type.


    “I still think it can be done, though.” I pursed my lips as I ran through the options. “What if we…”


    ? ? ?


    Ghost has unmanifested.


    A little later, our small party—minus Ghost—was back on the surface. We had a plan of attack, if not one, everyone entirely bought. Still, I’d been convincing enough that they all thought it was worth a shot.


    In preparation, I’d cast my buffs, replenished my mana, and loaded my void armor with two powerful spells.


    You have cast enhanced reflexes, load controller, and trigger-cast quick mend.


    You have acquired the tier 5 spell, furious storm (stolen), and the tier 6 spell, noxious vapors (stolen), and will retain memory of them for the next 2 days.


    You have successfully stored the furious storm spell in the ring, mage’s surprise.


    More importantly, though, our two elites had painstakingly buffed every member of the party. Their effect was tangible and left me buzzing with anticipation.


    Adriel has cast undead’s champion (+100% damage inflicted) and warrior’s boon on you (+20 to all physical attributes).


    Safyre has cast aether grace (+50% chance physical evasion) and aether protection on you (+50% reduced nether damage).


    The party was sheltering inside a veil of concealment cast by Adriel—no purifying dome was in place as yet—and thus far, the stygians, some five hundred yards away, were unaware of our presence.


    “Everyone ready?” I whispered, surveying the others.


    Shael, Adriel, and Safyre nodded. Anriq, though, stepped forward, a small object in the palm of his hand. “Before we start, you should have this back.”


    Glancing down, I saw it was the Seeking Eye of Sylvana.


    “I don’t need it anymore,” he explained. His look turned sheepish. “I know you think we can do this, but I’m less certain we’ll all come out the other end alive.”


    Solemnly, I took the proffered item. “Follow the plan and everyone will be alright,” I said, projecting as much confidence as I could as I addressed the group at large.


    “We will,” Safyre replied on everyone’s behalf.


    “Then let’s not waste further time.” Drawing stamina, I cloaked myself.


    You have cast vanish. You are invisible. Duration: 5 minutes.


    “Here I go,” I said for the others’ benefit before turning about and cutting across the barren plain.


    My destination?


    The nether portal and the hovering overlord.


    ? ? ?


    The stygian Power had taken up position over the portal itself. Hanging high above, it discharged a blob groundward every so often, ratcheting up the nether toxicity in the vicinity to tier twenty-four.


    The void tree, overlord, or whatever was in charge of the stygians, had clearly changed tactics. No longer did the void seem interested in ambushing us, now it appeared content to simply besiege the portal.


    We couldn’t afford to let the status quo stand, though.


    Not because the stygians had us trapped in the sector—they didn’t—but because retrieving the Rings and the Pack were crucial to the rest of my plan. And of course, by killing the overlord, we would not only weaken the stygians, we’d strengthened our own side too.


    The nether toxicity at your current location has increased to tier 24! Damage negated by void armor.


    I drew to a halt the moment I entered the enormous plume of dense yellow surrounding the gate. Two things concerned me. The second stage of the nether blob spell being one and the overlord the other.


    The last time I’d encountered the Power my stealth had been insufficient to conceal me from its gaze—or whatever means it used to perceive its surroundings. This time, though, my sneaking was elite-ranked—and I had vanish, too. Would they suffice?


    Only one way to find out.


    Moving haltingly, I advanced further into the near-solid sludge of the nether.


    Multiple hostile entities have failed to detect you.


    Tense, alert, and with one wary eye on the incoming messages and the other on the floating overlord, I crept closer to the nether portal.


    Despite my wariness, though, the Game alerts remained reassuringly consistent.


    Multiple hostile entities have failed to detect you.


    Multiple hostile entities have failed to detect you.


    …


    …


    So far so good, I thought. I was already thirty paces into the plume and about as deep as I thought I needed to go. The overlord hung about six hundred feet in the air, beyond the range of even my shadow blink.


    On this excursion, though, it was not my target.


    You have found an anomaly!


    You have failed a Perception check. Anomaly unidentified.


    Mid-step, I froze.


    Despite the Perception failure, I knew what had to be waiting ahead. Given where I was, it could be only one thing.


    A necrotic spike.


    Clenching my teeth, I lowered my foot directly onto where I suspected it lay.


    A necrotic spike has been activated! Damage negated by void armor.


    Logically, I’d known the ebon shard would not be able to injure me, but rationality counted for little when it came to remembered-pain, and I had been unable to contain my trepidation.


    See, I told myself, it doesn’t hurt. Your defenses are better this time around.


    Forcing myself to relax, I resumed my advance.


    I managed only a single step, though, before motion drew my attention. I glanced up. The overlord had started spinning on its axis.


    I frowned. Had it sensed the spike’s activation?


    Probably.


    Multiple hostile entities have failed to detect you.


    But despite being able to sense something amiss, the stygian Power was still unable to pierce my stealth. Comforted by that fact, I took another step.


    “Are you sure it’s wise to keep going?” Ghost asked quietly from her shelter inside the Cloak.


    It was not just the overlord that worried her, I knew. It was the mist too. A nether toxicity of tier twenty-four was no joke, and staving off its effects was draining my void armor fast.


    “Maybe not wise,” I replied. “But necessary.” Ghost had a point though. I had to speed things up. Quickening my pace, I triggered another spike.


    The overlord spun faster.


    Ignoring the creature’s reaction, I found and deliberately stepped onto a third ebon shard.


    Void thief triggered! You have acquired the spell, necrotic spike (stolen), from an unknown entity and will retain memory of it for the next 2 days.


    Necrotic spike (stolen) is a tier 6 spell that, when triggered by a hostile, will drain 5% of the target’s health. The damage inflicted is magical in nature and will bypass all physical defenses and armor. The spikes will remain manifested for 5 minutes before dissipating.


    I smiled in pleasure. I’d completed another of my goals. The first one—verifying the ability of my stealth to hold up against the overlord’s scrutiny—was also a success.


    I spared the creature another glance.


    The overlord’s tentacles were wriggling vigorously. Clearly, it was agitated. My grin widened. No doubt its inability to pinpoint me was driving the Power more than a little crazy.


    “Objective one and two completed,” I reported over the farspeaker link. “It’s time to move onto objective three.”


    “We’re ready,” Safyre replied.


    I drew psi. “Alright, here—”


    I broke off as the last thing I expected happened.


    “Michael?” Safyre asked worriedly. “What’s wrong?”


    “It’s the portal,” I replied absently, my gaze fixed on the luminous doorway in the distance. “It’s opening.”