Chapter Text
Floor 9 - Chapter 3 - Child's Play
After a not so brief explanation to Phillia about why, perhaps, taking photographs of your friends during intimate moments might not be the greatest idea in the world, the group had returned to Cal with the required ingredients. Jet took the chance to ring the chimes this time, and he did so with what could almost be considered too much force, as the chimes rang around the forest...
''Did you ever play an instrument?'' Rain asked, the question seemingly coming out of nowhere to Jet.
''Uhh, no, why?''
''That explains a lot...'' Phillia mumbled, miming either beating someone with a guitar, or destroying a guitar.
''Maybe be a little less forceful next time?'' Rain asked nicely, her eardrums still ringing, whilst Koharu and Phillia nodded along.
As they did, a familiar mist surrounded them, before taking the shape of the Forest Elf, Cal. As he walked around, Rain handed him the ingredients, and she swore that there was a hint of a smile on his face momentarily as she did. ''You have retrieved the ingredients, so we are very thankful to you. However, whilst you were gone, I have received a report that the king's physician has undertaken some tests on His Majesty, and believes that his ailments are purely down to poisoning.''
''So, this is to create an antidote then?''
''It should be used to produce a potion capable of identifying the poison that was used. However, we no longer have time for that, as His Majesty's ailment is progressing far faster than was anticipated.''
''I take it there's a plan then?'' Jet asked.
''Indeed. We have reports that the chancellor's confidant, the protocol officer, has been carrying a strange bottle around at all times. It should not surprise you that a similar bottle was found in His Majesty's chamber when he first fell ill. I would wager that the bottle contained whichever poison the Fallen used on him. If we can steal that bottle, we can identify that poison significantly faster, and therefore produce an antidote too. However, we will not have much of a chance. The protocol officer carries that bottle wherever he goes, and he is constantly surrounded by guards. If we act too rashly, I fear they would not be adverse to escalation...'' Exactly what was meant by that filled all present with dread. Keeping the king alive could now be the best option to actually clear the Elf War Quest, and prevent a full scale war... ''I shall need you to sneak into the palace, and distract the chancellor.''
''Uhh, what.'' Jet wondered if he'd heard that right, much like everyone else in the group. They decided they had.
''There's five of us, there's no way we'd be able to infiltrate anywhere like that! Plus, we're allies of the Dark Elves. Never mind not letting us in, they'd have... our...'' Koharu's eyes went wide as she realised what would happen if they were caught.
''I'm not asking you to break down the palace gate.'' Jet snorted at the thought. They'd be massacred before they got close to that.
''At least we'd be certain it was a suicide mission then...'' Mito muttered in annoyance.
''I understand your trepidations with this objective. It certainly isn't one that would be considered in any other circumstances, and it is not as if humans in the palace will draw attention on their own. Since our preparations began, we have been relying on a caravan of human merchants to supply us, and our war effort. If you could take your place amongst the children of the caravan, then...''
''Uhh, good luck with that. Never seen a six foot child, personally.''
''I see one every time I glance over.'' Phillia smirked, as Jet narrowed his eyes in annoyance. ''Just a joke...'' she looked on defensively.
''Phillia's joke aside, Jet's right. We might be children, but we aren't exactly children...'' Koharu stated, before realising something else, ''Plus, the Forest Elves know of us, and what we look like.''
''I believe I may be able to help you on both problems. Take this potion, and drink it.'' Admittedly, most children are taught not to accept strange potions from Forest Elves, but this was an exception to the rule. Jet was the first to down the potion, and despite the taste being best described as 'absolutely vile', he did notice some difference... his point of view. Instead of towering over his friends, he was now at chest level...
Koharu, on the other hand, was a little alarmed at what she saw. ''Uhh, Jet?'' She asked, looking down on him...
''Yeah?'' Jet knew what his own voice sounded like, and what he heard, was not it. ''What the...''
''Huh, never thought I'd see the day when I was taller than him...''
''So, this potion turns us into children?'' Rain asked, as Phillia began to drink hers.
''Only temporarily.'' Jet thanked the heavens for that. Last thing he needed was Strea seeing a ten year old version of him... again. She'd be even worse than she already was.
Before too long, everyone had reverted to their younger selves, and probably looked a right sight. ''Couldn't do clothes too, could you?'' Jet and Rain, both wearing long coats were suffering the worst from this, Jet twirling his half empty sleeve around like a helicopter's rotor blades. Mito, having no frame of reference to really work from, wondered if the potion reverted personality to the age of ten too...
''Unfortunately not. Here are some clothes more to your sizes though...'' The group were all handed an item each, which adjusted their current equipment to fit their new, smaller stature.
''Let's hope they don't recognise us like this, else we're not really going to be able to fight back, are we?'' Jet equipped Hope quickly, and discovered that his sword was absolutely gigantic in comparison to him... and idly thought that he now understood how Strea must feel every time she equipped that sword of hers.
''Considering the plan is to not get caught, I don't believe combat should be of great concern for you. At worst, you would be banished from the castle. We are not so cruel as to consider the notion of executing children, no matter what Lyusula may have told you...'' Cal seemed offended at his own suggestion, but was quietly ignored by everyone present. ''I have an associate waiting by the river to the north, who shall help you in this mission. Farewell.'' As suddenly as he'd appeared, Cal had disappeared, leaving everyone standing there in the dust kicked up.
''So, we'd best get going, right?'' The younger Rain asked, not wanting the potion to run out whilst they were inside.
''Agreed, let's head north to the rendezvous.'' With a much higher pitched voice, everyone tried to contain their amusement at Jet's new voice.
(-)
The group of now children found their way through the forest, to the banks of the river. To Jet, it felt like being back at his grandparents, and taking a daytrip to Gloucester, wandering along the banks of the Severn, in a place much less industrial than home. Despite the tension they were facing, it felt kind of nice to just think about those days, and not right now. It hadn't escaped his attention that they were not exactly going to be treated well by either side if they failed, and hell, if they failed... they might accidentally ignite the war further. It wouldn't be hard for the Chancellor and his goons to pin the whole conflict on them, and by extension, Lyusula, given their current actions, and... what the hell was he thinking? This was a quest line in a video game! Granted, a very realistic video game, that was now their reality, but still... ''Penny for your thoughts?''
''Just thinking about old times, really.''
''Home?''
''Little bit, yeah. Walking down the river Severn, not worrying about a war... you know, normal stuff.''
''Guess even you're scared too?''
''When did I ever give the impression I wasn't?'' Jet wondered aloud.
''I can't say, but there's this air you give off sometimes, it helps reassure people.'' Koharu explained as simply as she could. Exactly what it was, she couldn't place either, and she'd have put money on it that Jet wasn't even aware of it, let alone understood it.
That was certainly something no one had ever told him before, and as a result, he couldn't think of a better response than... ''Huh.''
''Are you two coming?'' A rather less familiar voice came from Phillia, who was already about 500 metres ahead of them...
''We're coming!'' Koharu shouted back, as she pulled Jet along, and out of his almost trance like state. It was a lot easier to do when both of them were practically the same height now...
(-)
Before too long, the group had found themselves at a small wooden pier, jutting out into the river. A tiny affair that had probably been built quickly, to load up small boats, rather than larger vessels, and more than likely ended up being used for fishing half of the time anyway. In the treeline nearby was a similar musical instrument to earlier, and it had been decided that Rain would be the one who went and rang it... ''Hnnnghh... urgghh.'' or would try to, anyway. She struggled to reach the instrument, and it took Phillia stepping in, and on Rain's shoulders, to actually ring the chimes.
As the chimes rang, a familiar mist began to swirl around the group, and before too long, another Forest Elf stood in front of them. Unlike Cal, whose armour had been almost pristine, this one's armour was far more dented and scuffed, a surefire sign that he'd seen some form of conflict at some point recently.
''Ah, you must be the humans. Please come along, as we do not have long.'' Before the group could say anything, they found themselves looking at their infiltration vessel, and both Jet and Koharu had just one thought as they did... ''I miss the Tilnel.''
(-)
As the group sailed over, almost all of them were busy discussing their plan once they reached the shore. The remaining member, however, was a little pre-occupied with keeping his dinner down, as he looked into the water. Despite vomiting not being a possibility in the game, that didn't make the sensation of motion sickness any less awful. Granted, his newfound smaller frame made this a little less awful than had he still been six foot tall, but that didn't stop the actual sensation.
The rest of the group however, had less green thoughts on their mind...
''So, once we've got in, and found somewhere open around the back of the castle, we take this bottle, smash it, and cause as much chaos as we can? I am understanding that, right?'' Mito asked, although she already knew the answer.
''Yep, is everyone clear on that?''
''It sounds simple enough...''
''Please don't jinx us, Rain.'' Phillia winced as she spoke.
''Ughh. Yeah, that's... huuu... fine.'' Jet tried to keep his gag reflex in check as he spoke. He wasn't doing a very good job of it.
(-)
After a short time, the group were back on dry land, and at least one of them was evidently very happy about that, considering he was attempting to kiss the sand...
''Is he normally this weird, or is this a side effect I should be worried about?'' Mito asked, concerned for... well, take your pick, really.
''Nah, he's always like this. Well, usually not this bad...'' Phillia shrugged, as if it weren't weird to her.
''Okay, I think I've got my bearings back now.'' Jet stood up properly for the first time in about half an hour, and momentarily forgot about his height, or lack thereof. ''Or not.'' he uttered as he staggered backwards.
''We'd better get going, even if you haven't.'' Rain began to unload their wares from the boat, and before long, everyone was mucked in, taking the packages and putting them onto the solid ground. With that done, they set about giving everyone an equal amount of work, and setting off for the short walk to the castle.
As they did, the first thought that occurred to everyone was the scale of the task at hand - the castle was huge, and not just because they were tiny. Four massive towers soared above the walls, almost certainly holding a number of probably very alert guards, whilst the two on the drawbridge made sure that no merchants found the portculis landing on their heads. The best word to describe the structure as a whole was simply, imposing. Conversations about the sheer scale of the place could be heard around them, from the NPCs that formed the rest of the merchant caravan, some of it relevant, and some of it... not. What exactly the two NPCs ahead were on about ogling, none of them were sure they wanted to know...
''Right, we're only allowed in the inner courtyard, so we drop our bags an' go, righto?'' Well, that was certainly a useful bit of information. Whatever distraction they needed to make, it had to be in the courtyard. Everyone was looking around for a decent way to distract someone, until Mito found her opening... there was a horse tied to a post over there, and as long as she was quick, she could untie the rope, give the horse some 'encouragement' to live a little and the commotion caused should give them a free run in...
So her plan was set into action, and she bolted over to the horse. An unhappy looking horse it was, too. Probably didn't like being tied down, she figured, and quickly untied the knot, before slapping the horse's back. Unsurprisingly, this led the horse to bolt, taking an unfortunate merchant with it as it dashed uncontrollably around the courtyard, bringing chaos as it did so.
The distraction was just what was needed, and the group raced off deeper into the castle, whilst the Forest Elves frantically tried to get the horse somewhat under control, eventually reaching the back of the castle. A fairly enclosed space, clad with wood and with very little ventilation... exactly the type of place you really didn't want a fire. Which was bad news for them, because...
''FIRE! FIRE!'' Jet shouted as loud as he could, as he smashed the bottle against the wall.
''FIRE! HELP!'' Koharu yelled at the top of her lungs.
''FIRE!'' Rain shouted as they began to sprint through the nearby corridor, the smoke obscuring their vision as they did.
(-)
Nearby, the protocol officer was 'swamped with paperwork', or so he'd claimed to his underlings. In reality, and in a twist of irony, the protocol officer was in fact, against all protocol, asleep on his desk. Had anyone seen him, they'd have reckoned he was a 'do as I say, not as I do' kind of boss.
''FIRE, Sir, there's... huh?'' The guard looked considerably less than impressed at the sleeping protocol officer, and thankfully, whilst his attention was turned to the unenviable task of waking up his sleeping higher up, he completely missed the five children sprinting past behind him... and the one turning back quickly, to slam the door on them.
Typically, the protocol officer chose that specific moment to wake up... ''What is the meaning of this!?'' The officer did not seem all that pleased at the door, and was now struggling to open it. Why would it not open?!
''Damn that Wendelin! This is his work! It has to be!'' The officer shouted, as he continued to pound on the door, but no matter how much force he applied, the lock simply wouldn't budge. It was almost as if someone had jammed the lock from the outside...
(-)
''You're kidding, right? That won't work... will it?'' Rain had been part of her fair share of mad plans, but this was made those look comparatively sane. Why Jet had stopped had quickly become evident, as he bunged up the lock with a sticky nectar like substance...
''Let's hope it does... else they will be pissed!'' Jet tempted fate again, and less than thirty seconds after he said those words, the door swung open and a very unhappy, and portly looking forest elf charged out. In that moment, and whilst hidden, Jet cursed his big mouth, and noticed the bottle hung on the belt of the protocol officer...
''I'll make a distraction, one of you grab the bottle!'' Jet spoke quietly to the group, and rushed out of the darkness. ''Please help! My friends are still in the fire!'' The look of disgust on the protocol officer's face seemed to be a telling indicator of the man's personality... namely, he was an absolutely heartless bastard.
''Get this little rat off of me!'' He pulled at Jet's collar, and Jet played the part of a struggling child, swinging and lashing out at the officer, one swipe throwing the bottle clear of the fat man, and as he did so... Jet felt his point of view get higher. Now was really not a good time for this, but if he had to... ''What the... GUARDS!''
Jet shrugged, and threw a single open handed strike, impacting the protocol officer in the side of his face, and his eye, forcing him to let go of Jet... who did the only sane thing, and ran like hell as he grabbed the bottle on the floor.
The group, now back to their actual ages, began sprinting again, with a number of guards searching for them, made their way back into the courtyard, which was still in disarray. The carnage wrought by the horse earlier, alongside the chaos wrought by a non-existent fire had left everything completely disorganised, and in amongst that, the group split up, weaving through the crowds of people, and making their way to the gate...
Now came the hard part, as the crowds no longer masked them, and they had no doubt that news had already reached the towers outside. The run across the bridge would easily be the most dangerous part for them, and as such they made sure to run as fast as they physically could...
''GET THEM!'' A voice yelled from a tower, and as soon as it did, something unexpected came across Rain's path... ffdoop - as an arrow stuck itself into the stones beneath her. ''Oh great, they've got archers!'' Jet scrambled to pull his shield from his inventory, and slowed down to give the archers something to aim at, not that it worked, mind you, as the arrows continued to rain down ahead of the group. Luckily for them, leading the target wasn't something they were very good at, and most arrows fell short of them, bar a few that had found themselves lodged in Jet's shield as it was stowed on his back.
(-)
The group, still in one piece, had made it across the bridge, and scrambled into the forest, avoiding the path until they were sure they were no longer being followed. As the realisation that they were no longer being pursued set in, Jet was the first to relax slightly, and started laughing in relief, as the rest of the group all began to calm down, and rest.
''Is it always this mad with you guys?'' Mito asked, leaning on the handle of her scythe for rest.
''It's never boring though...'' Jet seemed a little too happy at that response, Mito thought to herself.
''That was mad though... you risked yourself just to complete a quest! Why?''
''I'd like to give you an answer, but truthfully... it was a spur of the moment decision. I didn't really think it through.''
''A death game, and you, in your own words, don't care enough for your own safety, to throw your life on the line for nothing more than a little bit of progress?'' Mito looked annoyed at the brazen display of recklessness, whilst Jet just shrugged before he spoke.
''I never said I don't care for my own safety, so kindly don't put words in my mouth.'' The pair in purple stood face to face with each other, staring each other down as they did. A few tense seconds passed, as the girls looked at each other, each wondering what was going through the heads of those in the stand off, before both backed down, with no words being exchanged. ''We should probably make our way to the shore now.'' Jet spoke, before he began to walk off...
{Author's Comments}
Sorry for the late chapter this week, life got in the way somewhat. For the next few weeks though, I'm going to be moving this towards a two weekly schedule, whilst I work through other stuff. I'm hoping normal service will resume come the beginning of June.
This floor will probably be the longest yet, and so we're only just approaching the halfway mark...
Anyway, thanks for reading this, and if you enjoyed it, please leave a review or send me a PM, and follow/favourite the story.
Signing off, Midland 2541.