Minutes passed slowly as Jaina huddled on the floor with Gisley and Chandice. Evalynn stood at the statue, giving them an update on the invaders prowling the forest. Zorac and his friend Grom watched at the doorway while Santos prowled the camp in stealth.
Every one of them was injured with Gisley's glitter pool spent. She lamented that she could draw more power if she had her magic pond, but it was corrupted and useless. Jaina was close to full health as her regeneration far exceeded the others. She could also absorb mass, converting a portion of the material into health and stamina. The process was slow, but she used it to power her healing kiss, restoring the group whenever she had enough stamina.
The girls were in a state of shock, unable to believe their plan to create a home had gone up in flames. It was impossible to imagine so many people would believe a lie simply because it was convenient. It gave them an excuse to behave badly, causing physical harm for their profit. Chandice was particularly upset, not at the loss of her shop but for Gisley's pond. The fairy woman had wanted to create a place of peace and beauty where travelers would be greeted by open and willing arms. Gisley had meant to give people intense and passionate sexual encounters, offering her love freely. Now people thought of her as the chief villain, using powers of suggestion and mind control to dominate other women. Roric was the mastermind, and Gisley was his bait, her beauty and charms carefully crafted to lure travelers to their doom.
Worse was the warning Santos delivered that people knew Gisley's true value. She and Jaina were worth a fortune to the right buyer, and there were people eager to make the purchase. Jaina couldn't believe that anyone believed she would go to them willingly. They couldn't force a collar on her, and they couldn't hold her with any binds. She could use her morphic ability to absorb materials to eat through ropes, straps, or even chains. Not to mention she could become fluid for a short period and escape any cage. They would have to contain her inside an acid-proof glass bottle and never dare to open it to have any hope of holding her.
Gisley could be held but never silenced. If she went to sleep, she could prowl the dreams of others, provided they had been sprinkled with her glitter. Rajeen and others had access to a supply of this glitter, and Gisley would find them in short order, bringing her allies running. She would never accept a collar from anyone but Roric, and no amount of coaxing would change that.
They debated how these silk princes could believe that either of them would accept being kidnapped and sold. Did they believe they had so much wealth and power that the girls would thank them for stealing them away to live in their palaces? It seemed ridiculous to believe, but then people often believed ridiculous things. Gisley suggested they might try to impress the girls with power and station, making them the gems of their collections. They would offer them anything they wanted in return for accepting their collar.
Jaina shook her head and said nobody had the wealth or power to buy her away from Roric. She began to lament that the collars weren't locked because that would change everything. If they were locked, nobody could remove them, and they would belong to Roric forever. Even if he were slain, a locked collar would remain, and he would know their exact location at all times. The only way one of these princes could gain possession of them would be if Roric decided to sell them. They all agreed that would never happen, at least not unless it was under safe conditions like Jaina's sale to Rajeen.
The time trickled by as Evalynn grew more tense. Players were searching through every inch of the forest and drawing ever closer to the hidden entrance to their valley. Once they found it, it was only a matter of time before they spotted the village, and the carnage would begin.
"A group of seven is picking through the battle sight," Evalynn announced. "Let's hope that keeps them occupied for a bit."
"That puts them near the valley entrance," Zorac said. "How long until Roric respawns?"
"Another hour," Jaina suggested but wasn't truly sure. It was hard to gauge the time in the chaos that had erupted.
"And you are sure he will spawn here?" Zorac asked.
"I think so," Jaina said and looked at Chandice. "Or maybe he will spawn where his totem is?"
"I think by default that is a spawn spot," Chandice agreed. "But as the master of this area, he had the option of setting it to any bed in the village."
"At least both places are close together," Grom said as he looked away from the doorway.
"Why are you watching the doorway so intently?" Gisley asked as she stirred from her huddle.
"We are watching for flying players," Zorac replied. "We don't dare go out if somebody might spot us from the air."
"All we can do is hunker down and wait for the respawn, then run like hell," Grom insisted. "We run straight to Rajeen and bolt the doors behind us."
"We can't hide in Rajeen's inn for the rest of our lives," Chandice said. "We have to find a way to put a stop to this."
"Rajeen is working on that," Zorac insisted. "She told us she was pressing all her contacts to counter the lie and find out who was spreading it."
"Santos said the same thing," Jaina added. "He even paid a personal visit to Alexandria's brothel, but it was abandoned."
"Did he say why?" Zorac asked.
"Something about her receiving a visitor from a group called the silken princes. Whatever her dealings are with them, this visit sent her into hiding," Jaina explained.
"Huh," Zorac said as he tried to understand it. "I wonder why?"
"I have heard of that group," Grom said. "Supposed to be nobility or something in the far northwest. A collection of kingdoms outside the spawn ring. From what I hear it's a lovely place with large cities and many villages. I can't say I have ever heard anything particularly bad about them."
"Santos said they had large harems and were fond of adding to their collections," Jaina said before pointing out how she and Gisley were such rare race and class combinations that they would be prizes worth a fortune. Apparently, these silken princes competed for social status and standing. The prince who could possess them would be able to brag he had the most exceptional harem.
"I can see where that would entice them," Zorac said with a nod. "Maybe Alexandria had some kind of contract to deliver you?"
"Nobody knows," Jaina said and hugged Gisley to her chest. "All we know is she needed me for something, and when Gisley revealed her wings in the dungeon, she was added to the list."
"I have heard of fairies being rare," Grom agreed. "I can't rightly say I have ever heard of a morphic. A changeling or a shifter is more common."
"Those are hero players," Jaina sighed. "A morphic isn't."
The two men exchanged glances, and then Zorac looked at Jaina intently. "Are you saying you are a monster player?"
"Does that matter?" Jaina asked with a hurt expression. She could hardly believe the look of surprise on their faces as they reacted with shock at the news.
"No, of course not," Zorac said quickly. "It's just I had no idea, and this makes the situation worse."
"She will reset if they can get their hands on her," Grom sternly said. "The rest of us can die and be fine, but we can't let her be killed."
"I hid my anchoring object just outside the forest," Jaina interjected. "It's a small glass cube, and we buried it behind a large rock. So long as I don't die too far away."
"But Rajeen is far away," Zorac replied and dropped to one knee before the girls. "And I don't care that you are a monster player. Do you think somebody could look like Grom or I and not be mistaken for monster players? So we understand what it's like to have people hate you just for what you are."
"Thank you," Jaina replied as she stroked Gisley's head. "I meant to tell you."
"You don't owe me an explanation," Zorac said as he got up. "I would keep that to myself too. Roric and I share the rare distinction of being hero versions of what is typically a monster race. I have met lizardmen who are the monster varieties, and they have had some hard times."
"You don't get away unscathed all the time," Grom cut in. "Remember that summoner in Dawnfast?"
"I would rather not," Zorac groaned and turned back to the doorway. "We have been lucky so far. Nobody has found the valley."
"Our luck is about to run out," Evalynn said. "They have some kind of druidic sprite helping them. She has uncovered our path and is leading them to the canyon."
"Damn," Zorac grumbled and took up his club. "You stay at that statue. If the village comes under attack, you make the bridge and run. Jaina must not be killed or captured."
"What about Roric?" Jaina pleaded.
"He will have to take his chances with us," Zorac said. "Grom and I will hold this ground. We will delay them as long as we can. Maybe he will be able to escape too."
"I could fly him over," Gisley offered. "I can carry one light person."
"Roric is bigger than all of us and wears medium armor," Jaina pointed out. "Can you carry him on your disk?"
"No," Gisley admitted. "The disk has to be near the ground. If I flew over the edge, the disk would fall to the ground below, and if it got too far away, it would vanish. Roric would fall the rest of the way and splat. When I get to level fifty, I gain fairy blessings that would help, but that's useless right now."
"We are running out of time. This sprite is using some kind of spell to part the foliage and reveal our tracks. They are in the canyon and heading right for us," Evalynn said.
"They won't even search the valley then," Grom said. "They are going to come straight here."
"The ramp is gone. That should buy us some time," Zorac insisted.
"Except for the climbers or the ones who can levitate or teleport," Grom listed off.
"Still nobody that can fly?" Chandice asked.
"I am assuming that if they had people who could fly, they would have done so by now," Zorac replied. "But that doesn't mean I am right. They might be walking the ground because of the dense trees."
"I am willing to bet you are right," Grom said. "They probably can't see a thing from the skies, so they dropped down to walk. When they spot this village, they will shoot right up here."
"Then we stay hidden until we can't hide any longer," Zorac insisted. "The village looks deserted. Maybe they will assume we ran."
