Aegis Online

I stare down at the scrap of paper, before tugging it off the board and rolling it into a cylinder, tucking it into a pouch at my belt. A small notification pops up on my HUD. It reads, “Quest accepted: The Sleeping Manor!”

Turning to my friends-list, I check to see if anyone’s online. Harvenhaight is on, but he seems to be occupied with a quest of his own for the time being, so I just send him a quick ‘good luck’ message. Scrolling up to the top, I spot Asteria’s name highlighted. “Ooh, Astie’s online! Let’s see if she wants in on that quest, yeah?”

Sending off an invitation to party up, I wait for the little chime that indicates an acceptance, before grinning as the little triple-ding rings out. An incoming call shows up, and I answer.

“Hello, Kettrin darling! Sooo, what can I do for you? I don’t have anything planned for this stream, so I’m up for whatever!” Asteria’s voice coos in my ear, and I blush a little.

“H-hi, Astie. I got a new quest and I was wondering if you wanted to… to join me on it?”

“My, my! Kettrin, are you asking me on a date? Of course, I accept!” she purrs, teasingly, and I  squeak, my face turning red, before explaining the quest I’d just picked up.

“Oooh, a haunted house extravaganza? Count me in, I love scary stuff!”

“Well, I don’t! S-so… I expect you t-t-to... h-hold my hand!” I huff, and a tinkle of silky laughter fills my ears.

“Yes, ma’am. So, where are you right now? I’ll join you as soon as I can!”

I blink a couple of times, and then relay the name of my current location.

“Ah, the Claymore’s Grave? I know where that is, it’s on the other side of Vassim from where I am right now. Just a tick!”

I furrow my brow. This city is huge, what does she mean-

“Helloooooo!” A pair of arms wrap around my waist, and two large, round things smoosh up against my back.

“Gwak! A-Astie?! How’d you get here so fast!?”

She giggles, “Gimmel and Dr Frank got the Translocation Beacons up and running! They’ve been working with a rare type of Void magic that allows the transportation of goods and people! Remember? When his Simulacrum shot him and he reappeared a few minutes later? That’s how. And now, they’ve set up these crystals all over Vassim that allow anyone to do it! Just think about where you wanna go, and it’ll swallow you up and spit you out at the closest Beacon to your destination!”

I gawp. “Whoa, that’s… that’s really cool! Does it cost anything?”

“Nope! The Translocation Beacons are totally free, so feel free to abuse them!”

I tilt my head. “I mean, I have my wings and I love to use them, but I can see how that’d be really handy for all the non-fliers.”

As I bask in the glow of spending time with my in-game girlfriend, I get a message from Ulged. I didn’t realise I’d added him to my friends-list, but I must’ve done it at some point.

‘hey, if’n the pair o’ yeh want tae see summat Ah’ve bin workin’ on for the last twa months, Ah’m aboot tae mek an announcement! Yeh remember where mah shop is? Weel, Ah’ve go’ a large courtyard oot back, where Ah’ve finally go’ mah prototype ready fer a demonstration! Come ‘ave a gander! Ah’ll be waitin’ fer yeh!’

I blink, re-reading the message a few times. A prototype? Of what? What’s the crazy Gnoll up to now?! I brush a strand of colourless white hair out of my face, and turn to Asteria. “Hey, can we put the quest on hold for a minute? Ulged sent me a message. He says he’s made something and he wants to show us.”

My darling Alv smiles, reaching out and booping me on the tip of my nose. “Of course! I thought he only made weapons and armour; this must be something really special if he wants to have an audience! Let’s go!”

Suddenly, I find myself being dragged along behind the taller girl, my hand in hers as she sways her hips, moving faster in heels than I thought possible. I had a lot to catch up on when it came to girly stuff…

It would take almost two hours on foot to get to Bloodbath & Beyond, but Astie insists I at least try the Translocation Beacon in case I have to use my ‘normal human’ disguise, or something prevents me from flying. I humour her, and follow her to the one she’d used to ambush me with a glomp, a tall black pillar, with a large green crystal, cut and polished into a smooth, perfect sphere, mounted on the top.

“Just press your hand against the pillar and think about where you wanna go, easy as that! Watch!”

Before my eyes, Asteria reaches out, places her hand on the column, and vanishes in a swirl of green light. The crystal turns red for a few moments, and then it’s my turn. Touching the cool, slick surface of the pillar, I realise that it isn’t metal. It’s some kind of dark, volcanic glass. I focus on thinking about Ulged’s shop, and feel a buzzing, tingling vibration that extends all the way to the tips of my feathers. It grows stronger, the world shaking, before everything turns green and-

-I stagger, my hand coming away from the Beacon’s support post. I’m… standing in a small, circular plaza. I can see the sign for Ulged’s shop, swinging back and forth in the gentle breeze. A pair of hands steadies me, pulling me away from the pillar’s vicinity.

“Once you’re through, move away so you don’t get bodied by the next jumper. The crystal has a recharge window built into it for safety, but I wouldn’t stand still.” Asteria’s warm voice coos in my ear as she lets me regain my balance. I nod, gasping, “That was the weirdest thing I’ve ever done, and I don’t think I’ll EVER get used to that!”

Asteria giggles and takes my hand again. “It’s okay; I just wanted you to know how to use it if you ever need to! Anyway, let’s get over to BB&B, yeah? Oh, before I forget…” She leans in, lowering her head to mine, and kisses me softly, her lips pressed to mine as I tilt my head back, rising up on tiptoe a little to meet her as her other hand encircles my waist, pulling me closer.

I don’t know how long we were there, locked in a timeless embrace, but an embarrassed cough breaks our concentration. Dizzily, I turn my head to see a small Andromal girl, furry goat legs, skin, horns, tail, and cloven hooves all of a deep, seafoam blue-green standing there.

“Hey, you’re the streamers WildRoseOfTheWest and Sky-Queen Kettrin, aren’t you? Sorry for, um… interrupting your, uh… yeah. I just wanted to ask, can I take a screenshot with you? It’d be so cool to tell my friends I met you both!”

I look up at my awesome girlfriend. “I mean, I don’t mind, what about you?” I ask, sneakily pinching her butt. She yelps, mock-glaring at me, before smiling at the little demon. “Sure! I used to do the same before I started streaming. C’mere, you!” she makes space, pulling the Andromal player into the gap between us as I spread my wings out, pulling my swordspear and armour onto my body as I rapidly equip myself, going to one knee so I’m more on her level, the butt of my swordspear resting on the ground as she squeals in delight.  To be someone that’s looked up to feels…nice!

“Okay, ready when you are!” Asteria’s silken voice announces, and the Andromal fiddles in the air for a moment. “Aaaaand… done! You guys are the best, thank you so much!”

I smile. “You must be new here, yeah? First time playing? I’m still a noob myself, but… if, at some point you feel like maybe being a guest on one of my streams, I’ll add you! What’s your name?”

She smiles and shakes her head. “Let me get the hang of playing, first! I’d rather not make a fool of myself on your channel! I’ll definitely keep an eye out for you, though, and one day we can play together!” She blinks her huge, glowing-coal eyes, and smiles, showing sharp, pearly teeth.

I smile. “I understand! No-one wants to feel like a liability. I’ll be waiting to see what you make of yourself in this game! Catch you around!”

  She waves and bounds off like a little bipedal goat, her hooves clattering on the cobblestone floor. I pause. “… Ah. I forgot to ask for her name.” Asteria giggles, and pats my head.

“It’s fine, I get the feeling we’ll see her again. Anyway, enough delays, to Bloodbath & Beyond!”

Taking my hand again, she starts hurrying towards the shop. I hold on, feeling her slim, warm fingers curled around mine, and blush faintly. How is it possible that I’m falling for her more than I already have??

As we enter the store, we’re greeted by Ulged’s giant furry crocodilian companion, who bows politely. “Greetings, Master Ulged is out back, he asked me to keep an eye out for you and send you through. Please, go through the door over there, straight through. He told me, “Charcoal, you must watch the store”, so I will stay here.”

I smile and curtsey back, before following the creature’s instructions, Asteria close behind. After making our way down a short back hallway, we emerge into a huge square courtyard, a crowd of other players and even a bunch of NPCs, milling about curiously, as Ulged stands on a wooden stage. There’s no sign of Mur, until I look around and up, spotting him crouched on a platform above the yard like a little golden gargoyle. I wave, and he waves back, before Ulged lets out a loud, throat-clearing cough.

“Thank ye fer comin’! Today, Ah hae a couple o’ wee announcements! First, Bloodbath & Beyond is enterin’ intae a business partnership wi’ the research facility operated by Dr Francois and his Dwarven allies, forming the Hephaestus Consortium! And the second announcement is in regards tae that. Ah’ve been workin’ on a project, and, thanks to the help from Gimmel Roundshield and his friends, we’ve gotten it into workin’ order! We have, for your perusal… The BEHEMOTH STEAM SPIDER-TANK!”

Silence. The sliding doors of the workshop’s backroom are hauled open, and something huge skitters out, hissing and chuffing like an angry mechanical cat. Six jointed legs, each tipped with a segmented foot, an armoured, curved hull, with a small front-facing viewport. A pair of blades, like mandibles, shining dull silver. Mounted on the sides, above and behind the blades, a pair of large crossbows with stubby arms. And, on the top, right at the back and extending over the whole length, a huge, cylindrical object that can only be described as a cannon.

The hatch hisses and slides open, the top of the cockpit opening upwards and revealing a slim, feline figure inside. Trinity stands, hopping out and taking up position next to Ulged. “The Behemoth MK1 is capable of reaching speeds equal to that of a galloping horse, with ranged capabilities that will enable the pilot to take down airborne and mobile targets with pinpoint accuracy and lethal effect. And, if that’s not enough, the siege-breaker arbalest mounted on the back can produce enough force to breach stone walls! And now, a demonstration of what this machine can do!”

Trinity leaps off the stage, almost diving back into their cockpit as the hatch lowers, snapping shut. A few moments later, the Behemoth begins moving again, and I can see Trinity’s face through the viewport, alight with wild excitement. Ulged adds, “Please step back behind the line, we’ll put up th’ barrier. For yer own safety, o’ course! Enjoy the show!”