Call of Carrethen: A LitRPG and GameLit novel (Wellspring Book 1) by Stephen Roark

Author:Stephen Roark [Roark, Stephen]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2018-07-17T22:00:00+00:00

40

The Crimson Catacombs

Portal space swirled around me, and I fought to resist the feelings of security it gave me. So long as the blue and purple walls were swirling around me, I was safe. Nothing could harm me as the game swept me away from Stoneburg to the Crimson Catacombs.

The game.

It felt almost wrong to refer to Carrethen that way after what had happened.

The developers had advertised Call of Carrethen as “stepping into another reality,” but that was wrong. Call of Carrethen was my reality, and I was about to face the most difficult situation I’d ever had to face.

I couldn’t help but think about the gamers who’d bought the Wellspring, their copy of Call of Carrethen, but for whatever reason, hadn’t logged in yet. No doubt they knew what had happened by now—the whole world would know by now. Did they feel cheated, having their dreams of Carrethen dashed?

They don’t know how lucky they are.

Sections of the portal began to peel away, revealing stone the color of blood, and I found myself standing in the Crimson Catacombs. I was shocked at first. For whatever reason, I’d assumed Vayde’s portal would drop us off outside, but I was wrong. We were in, and when I turned around, all I saw behind me was a rock wall. The only way out of this dungeon was the portal at the bottom, or a Bindstone back home, and that wasn’t an option. D portaled in beside me.

“We’re all here,” Xavier said, and I looked around to see the rest of my party standing at the ready. We were surrounded on all three sides by the dark, crimson walls of the dungeon. A tunnel, the only way to go, stretched out in front of us.

The air was acrid, acidic, and smelled… dangerous. Patches of green moss, or maybe just rotted vegetation, clung to the walls here and there, and from somewhere deep beneath us, I could hear what sounded like the chattering of… insects.

“Ilizak,” I said to D. He nodded grimly.

“I don’t like this place.” Baltos sighed.

“You’re not supposed to,” D replied, sounding a little snippy. “It’s a high-level Ilizak dungeon. We shouldn’t even be here.”

“What level are we talking?” Baltos asked.

“Forty and up,” D replied grimly. Everyone was visibly tense.

“What’s the next move?” I asked. “You’re the one who’s been here.”

“There’s only one move,” D replied. “Run.”

“What are you talking about?” Xavier asked. His usual bravado was fading from his voice. It was one thing to be brave when you know the score, but an entirely different story when facing the unknown.

“That’s how it’s done,” D explained. “There’s a route to get to the bottom. This place is like a maze, the Ilizak are way too high level for us, and will gang up on you if you stop. The only way we make it down there is by sticking together and running to the exploit spot.”

“Won’t the Ilizak run us down?” I asked. “We’ll have the entire dungeon on us.”

“There are a few places to lose them,” D replied.

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