Anti-Hero: Journey Of Fear

"Mental defense." I whispered and stepped out onto the plateau. A small blue circle appeared in my vision. Like a slowly eaten pie, a line began cutting around the circle, darkening the area it had swept over. "Hello, it is good to see you again."

"Indeed, your friend and slaves are welcome to sit over there. Minor refreshments have been provided." The Mystery Man gestured off to the side where there were four chairs set up with a table and platter of food next to each. There was also a pitcher of water and glasses.

"Impressive, why don't you guys relax for a bit. That climb was a bit long." They went off to the side and I approached the circular table the Mystery Man was sitting at.

"Forgive me for not getting up, but that climb did a number on me."

"Then why choose this place to meet? I am sure the fortress would have worked."

"Ah, pull up your screens."

Mountain of Str-1 MAX

The refined air purifies your very being

+100% MP Regen

"So this is how you advanced in magic so quickly."

"One of the reasons. Sit please." The chair on the far side of the table slid out on its own.

"Mental defense. Sorry, but with your abilities I like to stay alert."

"That is no problem. Business must be conducted and you are wary for traps. I can appreciate that."

"Mystery Man seems like a flamboyant name."

"What can I say, it is far less pretentious than some of the names people take to call themselves. Certain women come to mind."

"How did you manage to escape them?"

"You can't ask me to reveal all my secrets. Let us just say that, my powers are quite strong if you know the right points to apply pressure."

"So, you had mentioned an impossible quest before?"

"Yes. There is a book located in the Durrunian Desert south of here. I need it to even know what to do to complete my impossible quest."

"I am going to guess that there are hordes of monsters, desert nomads, and probably an eldritch horror or two guarding the thing."

"I won't lie, for that would be poor manners. It is not easy. I have a general idea where it is and can provide directions. The problem comes from the distance and the…necessary fortitude to retrieve it. I had discussed this with Solid Steel, but they

won't have the resources for such an expedition for quite a while. I have other affairs I need to watch in the area, so I want to outsource the task to you."

"Mental Defense. You want us to test the waters. If we succeed then it is a win for you. If we don't then you learn something about the protections. What is in it for me?"

"What do you d.e.s.i.r.e?"

"To win."

"Hahahahahaha, very true for almost everyone. But what are the requirements to win this game? No one really knows. Some people have tried to use Prophecy magic. While almost all attempts ended terribly there was one success."

"Care to share?"

"The way to win is to complete impossible quests. Not just one, but five. Then a final quest will be unlocked and the person who completes it will beat this game."

"Five…impossible quests. That sounds impossible. Still how does this help me?"

"Name a price."

"Mental defense. I could just kill you instead, since you are competition."

"That would be poor manners. You wouldn't leave that chair alive if I became serious."

"You have nothing I want."

"Money, one hundred thousand dollars. More than enough to cover quite a bit of VR without having to resort to videos. All for a book. I would even be willing to advance five thousand as a sign of good faith." A rich prick, this really pissed me off.

"I could get the book and sell it to someone else."

"There is limited value to other people. So if not money, then what is it you d.e.s.i.r.e?"

"Information, you seem very well informed."

"Very well, what is it you d.e.s.i.r.e to know?"

"Mental defense." I was getting low on MP. "I want to know how you got so powerful so quickly."

"Luck and genius. I found out what the Lord looked like in this city and that he was a recluse. I then killed myself again and again until I respawned nearby with his appearance. I then replaced him. Overly simplified, but it sums it up."

"You're the Lord of Str."

"Yes, and with that position came wealth, money, and power. Also all the knowledge in his vast library was at my fingertips. The former lord was quite the recluse and loved books in his later years. Hence the reason for my older appearance." I imagined a young s.e.xy woman taking on an older man's body and shuddered at the horror.

"Impressive, I want access to your complete library, at least ten enchantments of my choosing, and five thousand gold pieces. When I return, I would like to spend some time in this city as well, food and lodging. Mental defense."

"You are smarter than many people give you credit for or have a lot of stat points in Luck. Five enchantments, finding enchanters is long and difficult and none currently reside in my city. A thousand gold. I hope to fix the enchanter problem but that is an issue I am still working on."

"Seven enchantments and three thousand gold. So what is your name?"

"Agreed. Now my name isn't part of the deal. You can refer to me as Lord of Str."

"How about Mystery Man? Mental defense."

"Hahahaha, that too." He pulled out a map and pushed it across the table. "This is the location of the tower, which the book is kept in. It should be located on the top floor of course. The local NPCs are fairly hostile to outsiders. There are sand worms also in the desert, so watch out."

"Sand worms…"

"Unfortunately their body structure and unique abilities make them particularly challenging at the moment." He pulled out a book from under the table. Hazards of the Durrunian Desert by Noe Madden. "That should help educate you on what you may face. In addition I require this task to be completed before spring. I am also sure you want to make it to Lady Breckley's wedding."

A headache suddenly hit me. "Mental defense…" I managed to gasp out and the attack disappeared. "What did you do?"

"I have created a brain embolism inside your head. While it used up all my MP you will die in six to ten months unless treated. Unfortunately for you the magic ability needed for such a task is insanely high. It appears that you will have to succeed or death will find you. You can kill me now, but then neither of us gets what we want."

"Everything else?"

"Will be provided, think of this as incentive in case you get another offer for the book." I sent him a glare. "Normally it wouldn't hurt as much but I had to take a chance while you let your defense lapse for a second. I honestly don't know if this can be healed by another form of magic. But the time you spend looking is time you should be retrieving that book."

"Everyone to me, hamster. Watch yourself, he has silent mind magic. You want to know something? That was poor manners after we had come to a deal."

"I suppose you are right."

"I also don't believe you are out of MP." Tor hit him with a Wisdom debuff. One had an arrow aimed and Two and Three had their weapons in their hands up to his neck. "You are going to pay extra for that, if you don't…well. If any of us die, the rest of you make his death as painful and long as possible."

"You can't win this fight." He snapped his fingers, then he snapped them again. Michael stepped up to the plateau from the stairs.

"The agreement was a peaceful meeting. Kenji asked me to observe and call off Solid Steel if you did anything." Michael said.

"You owe me." The Lord of Str spat out.

"Indeed we do, but we follow our agreements. Otherwise we would lose trust. Also the ad revenue is offsetting your payments. Kenji agreed to a long term ad line in exchange for keeping you honest and other concessions."

"You see Mystery Man, you got c.o.c.ky. Undo what you did." I said.

He let out a long sigh. "You are fine. It was just a bluff by compressing the air around your head. Nothing was done to your brain."

"Your magic, explain it now."

"I use Telekinesis, I won't say the god's name so don't ask. I can manipulate the physical world and I have silent casting. Your defenses were still up but I targeted you just when they were about to run out to make you think I did."

"How did you get silent casting? Tell me and I will consider that trade for what you did."

"Max level mental defense unlocks silent casting."

"Interesting, that is more than enough for Solid Steel. I shall take my leave." Michael disappeared back down the stairs.

"Well played." The Lord of Str said.

"Plots within plots. I honestly didn't want to fight since you helped me get away in Balkor."

"I actually believe you surprisingly enough. I apologize. Sometimes I get carried away trying to force people to do what I want."

"We shall take our leave then. Goodbye Mystery Man, I hope our next meeting goes better."

"I do as well. My real name is Anova so you know." That was too gender neutral to tell if he was really a man or a woman. I knew this was going to keep on bothering me.

"Take care then, Anova." We left the mountain top and began to descend the stone stair case.

"We heard most of that. Are we really going to the desert?" Three asked. I rubbed him on the head and he let out a yelp.

"Yes, I wanted to get away from other people for a bit to let the heat die down. Eventually someone stronger will be in the area and we will be crushed. A trip to the desert is as good as any. Also it gives us a place to return to and rest afterwards. We go out there for a couple of months. Kill monsters, meet the locals, take a book, and then come back here for some relaxation."

"Doesn't sound that bad. This whole game is stressful." One said.

"I like that idea." Two added.

"While I appreciate the support, there is only one person's opinion other than mine who counts around here. Tor?"

"This book is going to be tough. If you don't know, a bunch of players put together a list of the worst places to spawn. The Durrunian Desert was near the top."

"Well if we don't like it we can just go somewhere else." I replied.

"Also won't you burn with your white skin?" Tor asked.

"Shit."

We reached the bottom of the mountain and Michael was there waiting for us. "Welcome, I am glad things did not end in violence. This way we managed to select three candidates from the local talent." I got confused looks but ignored them. "In addition the scythe sold for one hundred and thirty seven thousand dollars. The buyer unfortunately is over in Galmore, so it will be about a month before final payment is transferred."

"Not a problem, at least it isn't halfway across the world."

"Indeed, I will send them into the room one by one." We entered a room and there were five chairs behind a table.

"Sit, we are getting an evil bard."

"An evil bard…really?" Tor asked.

"Yep, I want entertainment on the journey and a theme song." The door opened and a younger looking woman came in and stood in front of the table.

"Name and reason for being here."

"I am Elmera. I am a big fan Rain"

"Any active singing skills?"

"No."

"Charisma stat?"

"Ten…."

"We aren't taking you, but you are welcome to spend the night with me."

"Ah…no thank you." She quickly left the room.

Next came a pretty boy. I mean he looked like someone off a model catalog. Square jaw, blue eyes, rippling muscles, but in a runner way not a weight lifter way.

"Name and reason for being here?"

"Elrado, to improve my art. I dream of becoming the greatest bard.

"Any active singing skills?"

"Inspire, the people who I view as friends gain a boost."

"Charisma stat?"

"Forty six."

"Why join with me?"

"Adventure and fame. What better place then besides the most evil of players."

"Nope, we aren't taking you. But you are welcome to spend the night with me."

"I don't roll that way. I sing for my art. Don't you want to hear me?"

"Temperament is far more important than singing ability." He left the room. The others just stared at me. "What? I want an evil bard, not a mama's boy."

The last one to come in was a middle aged woman with frizzy black hair going everywhere. She wore men's clothing and had a sword strapped to her hip.

"Name and reason for being here?"

"Word in Str is that you are looking for a bard."

"An evil bard, and yes. Your name?"

"Call me Black."

"Any reason why?"

"Because I like the color."

"It isn't really a color but the-" I rubbed Three's head to shut him up.

"Neat trick." Black said.

"Yes, sometimes he lets his mouth run away. Now why do you want to join?"

"Because, I am having trouble finding a team. I figure if all I need to do is to sing, this can't be that hard."

"Why the team trouble?"

"Well…."

"Well what? If you are going to travel with us, we have to trust you."

"The men are all pervs and try and hit on me. I like women." She gave Tor a glance and Tor smiled back.

"First if you join you get to be third in command after Tor. These three are my slaves. If they give you trouble, then make them do chores or give you a back rub." Two gave me a glare. One let out a sigh. Three smiled and drummed his fingers on the table.

"Now singing, what is your charisma stat?"

"Zero, it is a useless skill."

"Interesting. Can you sing us something?"

"I love my dogs, they are lovely dogs, they woof woof woof. There is that good enough?"

"Here is the deal, if you join, you have to master evil singing, so that means singing all the time. When we meet enemies I want you to make their ears bleed and their brains hurt. That was a good start, but it could be a lot worse."

"Kenji I don't think this is a good idea." Tor said.

"Come on, didn't you hear her. She was terrible. She doesn't care about singing, and has no stat points in Charisma. It is brilliant, I couldn't have asked for anyone better."

"Sing all the time?" Black asked.

"Of course, you need to find the terrible singing skill chain. Also you need to improve vocal muscles."

"Vocal muscles don't work-" I rubbed Three on the head again. He was going to run out of hair at this rate.

"I know, but since she probably is dumping her points into the physical stats, it is perfect."

"Let's discuss pay." She said.

"Pay? What pay?"

"I am a mercenary of Solid Steel. I decided to give this a shot instead. I owe them quite a bit for the leveling and gear. So pay up to get me."

"Michael!" The man entered the room so fast I was sure he had been hiding outside.

"Yes, what can I do for you?"

"How much does Black owe?"

"Her current contract is held at seven gold, due to the assisted leveling and gear."

"Seven."

"Yes, most of it is based on our assisted leveling rates. To provide enough monsters to easily kill can be quite expensive."

"Fine, One go to the wagon and pay this in all the silver and copper we have, then go to gold."

"Very well." Michael turned and left with One right behind him.

"So Black how do you feel about needless violence and torture?"

"Not my thing, but I want to travel."

"You have to follow my orders and then Tors."

"Sure."

"Problem?"

"You really are going to take me just like that?"

"Well, I think Tor wants to have a go with you. Mind if we watch?"

"Nope." Tor said. She got up from behind the table and walked over to Black.

One returned five minutes later just as Tor was finished putting her clothes back on. "What? what happened? Why do I miss all the action?"

"Because you get to run my errands."

"Tor want to have a-"

"Later, I need you functional. Black can you get your clothes back on, we are leaving."

"Yeah, wow…." She muttered. I just shook my head. "I have arranged with Solid Steel to fairy us across the river. We will cross the Ebony River north of Vlat and then make our way south to the desert. Based on the map I just got, the tower is in the middle of the place. We will probably stop in Vlat to resupply on the way. There aren't roads out to the west, but Solid Steel will be providing a heavier duty wagon to cross the plains."

"Then why did we have to clean the one we had?" One said.

"Because you ask questions like that. Now we leave at first light tomorrow. The first thing I want to do is go over all of our stats and skills as a group. Does anyone have a problem with that?"

"That seems a bit private." Black said.

"We are going to be fighting insanely powerful monsters that will rip your t.i.t.s off and lay babies in your c.h.e.s.t." I had no idea if that really was the case, but it was the sentiment I wanted to convey. "So either you are part of this team or not."

"I guess, it just seems like something we should keep secret."

"Normally yes. We are family now. I am the Dad, Tor the mom. You are the crazy aunt, and you three are our trouble making boys from next door."

"I am older than-" I rubbed Threes head again and he shut up before he got burnt.

"Maybe, but does anyone have an issue with me being in charge?"

"Nope, just make sure to treat me well." Tor reached over and placed a hand down below and gave a strong squeeze.

"I understand. Black, you need to loosen up if you want to join us."

"But-"

"No buts. Can you loosen up and obey?" There was a long moment of silence.

"You railroad everyone else around you. I am not one of your minions." I let out a small sigh at that. I leaped over the table and slapped her. She stumbled back and I landed a punch in her gut.

"Get her weapons and cut off her clothes."

"After all that trouble you are going to kill her?" Tor asked.

"She would be difficult and complain. I do whatever I want and don't put up with this shit. You at least don't complain or w.h.i.n.e. I don't have to explain every single thing to you either. She would be a burden."

"I see your point. It would have been nice to have another woman, oh well."

"You are going to regret this. Solid Steel won't let you do anything to one of their own and get away with it." Black said from the floor where her clothes were being removed.

"I paid out your contract. You are just some random person now. One you want a go?"

"Meh, the minus five percent to all stats for thirty days is a harsh for some player on player action."

"Yes it is. Oh, Three. I want you to make Black log out or give permission to us to do whatever we want. Keep her presentable."

"You make things so hard." He w.h.i.n.ed.

"I am sure you can do it. Black you want to give in? If you have seen my videos, things can get fairly bad."

"Do what you want to my auto pilot. Asshole. Logout." We all stood there in shock at her sudden departure.

"Ok, that was surprising. Alright, One you can take the back, I got the front. Three you are welcome to her after we are done." There were no objections.

We left the room and Michael let out a small sigh when he looked in. "It is really annoying to clean up that kind of mess."

"You are being paid well enough so stop complaining. She was complaining too much." I said the last sentence with a pointed look at Michael who looked like he was holding in a sigh.

"I see. Well, do you want to have a bath and then an early dinner since you are departing first thing tomorrow?"

"Yes." We went to the bath house again. Tor took all three of the minions for a round and then we lay in the water. I had One massage me in the water while we relaxed.

"So Two, who is this Albus person and why do you want to kill him?" I asked.

"He was a friend in real life and then he managed to get his hand on a powerful artifact by sacrificing me."

"What artifact?"

"A staff, from what I have heard it acts as a spell booster." Probably like the scythe, I thought.

"So revenge?"

"Yes, also he is my dad in real life."

"Ouch, that has to hurt." Family betrayal, there was no mercy in this VR.

"Indeed, so when I find out where he is. He will die and start over. Preferably as painfully as possible. Being fed to hundreds of snakes is quite painful."

"Ouch. Three help out One here and I want to hear more about you."

"Not much to say. I used to service capsules in my local area. Then my grandmother died and I got an inheritance large enough to quit work. I mainly write romance novels online."

"Send me a link, so we can check them out."

"Awesome, what about you Tor?"

"Just a girl floating along."

"That is the spot One, keep going. So what about you?"

"I do design work for the Omnitrek Space Program."

"What kind of work?"

"Robotic mining."

"Ahhhhhhh. I was hoping you were going to say blacksmithing. Well at least all of you are full time in VR. Those people who have to pop out, sucks to be them." I splashed Tor with some water. She gave me a glare which turned into an evil grin and splashed me back. Soon enough water was flying everywhere.

We finally calmed down. "Too bad we can't stay here." One said.

"At what I am paying, good god. I had to trade the cloak for all of this." Everyone looked at me in shock. "What you thought Solid Steel would just betray the Lord of Str, put up with our murdering and bloody corpses everywhere if I wasn't? Also they are getting a lot of heat for protecting me. Things are going to get tough, and I need people I can trust. I also wanted a chance to get to know you all better without all the chaos of running around."

I continued on with my impromptu speech. "One, you like this team atmosphere. You wanted a group to be part of in game. A place to hang out and have fun. People who don't mind some s.e.x. Two, you are more quiet and reserved but you are pissed at life. Well this group gives you a chance to vent a bit. Three, you are bored and this gives you an outlet. Tor, you are a woman who likes to be in the action. You also don't mind being second in command." There was a long moment of silence.

"Aww Kenji likes us." Three said. I reached out and gave him a not so gentle squeeze. He let out a yelp.

"Be grateful I aimed low this time, if you lose anymore hair you will go bald."

"Then we would be twins." He reached out and squeezed me back gently. We both let go.

"I would say get a room, but I have already seen it all." Tor said.

"We need a team name. And I swear to god that if anyone suggests anything similar to Sparkly Rainbow Unicorn Princesses there will be punishment." There was a bunch of chuckling at that.

"How about the Dominators?" One said.

"Or the Masters of Death." Three said.

"Maybe the Fornicators." We all looked at Tor. I thought I saw her blush a bit through the steam and look away.

"The Sheathed Swords, since we sheathe our swords in our enemies bodies." Two said.

"I have it. Anti-Heroes, since we are the scourge of heroes everywhere." One said.

"That is actually not half bad." I said.

"Anti-Heroes, cheesy but half the groups already are or they are way too pretentious. Like the group called Black Death with a bunch of want to be assassins."

"So do we feed princesses to dragons?" Three asked.

"Maybe, just have to find one."

"What about the Sparkly Rainbow Unicorn Prin…." One trailed off as we all looked at him.

"One, you just used up your reward for coming up with the group name."

"What no. Sorry, She-Hulks. I meant She-Hulks."

"I forgive you this one time."

"Oh I finally know what I want as my one thing."

"Hmm, I looked at One."

"I want-" There was a loud boom and the entire fortress shook.

***

Ramponator: Interesting team, Rain of Blood has put together

6996: They need a symbol

GODHAXLOL: HORSEY

FaceReaper: Why did he blur out the Mystery Man's face

FallenGod: It isn't that hard to figure out

TheLordBreckley: Avenge me my noble brother

TidalWave: I want to join

Ramponator: Who doesn't

6996: Smart people

FallenGod: Idiots

UltimataSecret: The ones who aren't depraved or insane

***

Anova sipped some fruity wine while thinking over the events of this morning. Everything was going to plan. Rain of Blood would be out of the area for a while, allowing for a chance to consolidate power. "That man is a menace." He mused while he took another sip.

Thankfully everything had worked out. As the leader of Solid Steel, he knew all about Kenji's ploys to keep the meeting safe. Only the service representatives knew his true identity and they all referred to him as a customer to throw people off. Losing on purpose was always hard, but Rain liked to dominate. If he wasn't in control then he lashed out.

It was simple enough to do a backstab and then become cornered and give up minor information so Rain felt strong enough to win a future battle. Death would have been inconvenient but it would have taken a day at most to get back here and three weeks to grind up the levels. It was a well-placed gamble and Anova smiled as he took another sip of wine.

Prophecy magic was still in its infancy, but he was making headway with minor predictions. Soon enough he would be able to know far reaching events with ease. As for winning the game, well, no one knew that. There was no chance of Rain figuring the lie out and debunking the claim any time soon.