Squad Games — A Mercenary Company Turn-Based/Tactical LitRPG

Manslayer lit a second torch. ‘You come with me,’ he said to Christoph. ‘Twerk and Baron—stick together.’

Christoph dutifully followed the Durnish warrior to the opening at the other end of the chamber. On the way, he caught a glimpse of the figure whose tomb this was. He was encased in steel and chain armour, like a great king of old from the stories.

Manslayer turned to look at him sharply, probably fearing he would do something stupid and bring more undead down on them. It wasn’t deliberate on Edmund’s part, but he made Christoph feel useless. He’d single handedly taken down four skeletons; while Christoph hadn’t inflicted a single point of damage. Why am I even here? Why is Stiff paying me money?

Manslayer seemed to sense his mood. ‘Don’t beat yourself up over things, Christoph. It takes time to build up the experience I’ve got. But there’s no reason you can’t get there.’

‘Really? You started off as bad as me?’

‘Of course I did. You’re a quick learner. You’ve every chance.’

‘Chance?’

‘You’ve a chance. Look at young Jaelin. On any mission, that could happen. If you’re lucky, and you survive, you get better. Harder to kill. In my experience, it’s a game of luck, more than skill.’

That was a sobering thought.

The opening was short, leading them into a subchamber. It stretched away left and right, but it was narrow, the far wall only a few feet away. The only objects were two stone plinths, located at each end. They were like the one in the main chamber, but much lower, making them look more like beds, and presumably were where the two skeletons had been lying in wait.

Manslayer and Christoph examined one each, but there was nothing of interest. They left for the opening from which the four skeletons had emerged. This led to a very similar shaped room, but slightly longer. On one side were three more stone beds. On the other, behind a fourth bed, was a wooden chest.

‘Could be a reason for revelry,’ Manslayer said, as they approached the chest.

The warrior took a while to study the lid, then the sides of the chest. He examined the walls around it. Christoph realised he was checking for traps.

‘Let’s do it,’ Manslayer muttered, stretching out the fingers of one hand. He opened the chest. Nothing terrible happened.

Inside, they found gold and other precious metal, in bars, coins, and finely worked jewellery. There were gemstones, and other items. Christoph’s eyes widened. He’d never seen so much in one place. ‘How much do you think it is worth?’

‘Quite a bit, no doubt,’ Edmund answered, almost dismissively. He was uninterested in the treasure. Instead, he pulled out a rod, about three feet long. The shaft appeared to be made from a long, single bone. At one end it had been carved and worked, and a large transparent diamond set on top. Manslayer frowned, as if concentrating. A clear light appeared in the centre of the jewel. It grew, until the entire stone was filled. It didn’t stop, expanding outward, the light stronger and more intense.

Christoph had to close his eyes and look away.

‘Sorry,’ Manslayer muttered. When Christoph looked again, he had somehow muted the light back to a reasonable power.

‘How did you do that?’ Christoph asked.

‘It can understand what you want. Here, try it.’

Christoph soon mastered the rod, picking the exact amount of luminescence he wanted.

‘Shine it here.’

Christoph held the rod over the treasure chest. The gems inside sparkled, revealing their beautiful reds, blues, and greens. It also revealed something pinned to the inside of the chest’s lid.

Manslayer took care when detaching it. Just as well. It was parchment, probably made from animal skin. It crackled when he opened it up. It seemed to be a map, representing four locations.

‘I think this one,’ Christoph said, pointing to the diagram at the bottom, ‘is supposed to be this barrow. See? That’s the mound with trees on top. And the stone wall.’

‘I see. You’re right. In which case, it can be studied later. It’s of no immediate help.’

Manslayer returned the parchment to the chest and they carried it out into the main chamber.

Twerk and The Baron had already deposited a similar looking chest by the central plinth.

‘Well?’ Manslayer asked them.

‘Treasure,’ The Baron said. He flipped a coin across his knuckles. ‘Quite a lot actually. But nothing to help our friend here.’

‘And that coin, which he refuses to return to the chest,’ Twerk said with a scowl.

‘I did not refuse at all. I just don’t see why—’

‘—Then put it back,’ Manslayer said. ‘Stiff will adjudicate who gets what. We don’t get to decide we deserve this or that.’

‘Alright, old chap,’ the thief said. ‘Keep your hair on.’ They carefully studied The Baron as he returned the coin, watching out for tricks. ‘There. Now, one last place to search,’ he said, indicating the opening by Jaelin. The Explorer lay stretched out; the rod Christoph carried revealed grey skin, as if he were already dead. Auntie Fem could help him no further, and was now seeing to Ashlyn’s wounds. Christoph dearly hoped they might find something to save him.

He led them into the last subchamber, which had the same shape as the other two he and Manslayer had visited. His heart sank. Two stone beds, and nothing else.

‘Only one skeleton emerged from this room,’ The Baron reminded them. ‘Let’s have a proper look.’

But there was nothing out of the ordinary about either stone.

‘Pull them aside,’ the thief persisted.

It was desperate stuff, but they did as he instructed. Moving the stones revealed nothing, except dust. The Baron got down on his knees. ‘Bring that light here, will you, Christoph?’

The thief scrabbled in the dust with his fingers. Christoph thought the man had gone mad, but then he saw it. When The Baron brushed the dust away, he revealed a thin, straight depression in the floor. Manslayer and Twerk got on their knees to join him. They found two corners, the lines continuing at a right angle, until they had traced the outline of a rectangle on the floor.

Manslayer brushed aside the dust in the centre of the rectangle. ‘Nothing.’

The Baron dropped his bag to the floor and retrieved a crowbar. ‘This might work.’ He jammed the sharp end under the rectangle and heaved. ‘Give me a hand, will you, Edmund?’

Muscles bulging, they heaved, and the stone rectangle lifted. Christoph bent down to grab it.

‘Mind your fingers,’ The Baron warned him. He and Manslayer used the crowbar to manoeuvre the heavy stone a few inches aside. This then allowed them to shift it away safely.

A dank smell emerged from below. When Christoph reached over with the rod, the light revealed stone steps going down. ‘Well done, Baron,’ he said.

The thief shrugged. ‘It’s my job. Now, we must be careful not to go charging down there. Would you trust me with that rod, so I can get a good look?’

Christoph handed it over, and The Baron shone the light down into the depths.

‘No more risen, at least,’ he said cheerfully.

When Christoph looked down, he found there wasn’t much to see. After the stone steps ended, there was only a few feet of space dug out, lined with stone slabs. The floor was a muddy puddle. ‘There’s another chest, at the far end,’ he said, upon seeing the only piece of furniture. It sat on a stone plinth, keeping it out of the water. ‘There must be something valuable down there, since they went to so much trouble to dig out this level.’

‘Perhaps,’ said The Baron. ‘But we must take care. Look at the stone walls. Do you see?’

‘I do,’ said Christoph, surprised he hadn’t noticed at first. There were drilled holes at various locations, of differing heights, in both side walls and the far wall. ‘You think they are some kind of trap?’

‘They could be a way of draining away water. But I rather think they are there to kill the uninvited, or unwary.’

‘What do you think might issue from those holes?’ Manslayer asked.

‘I really don’t know. I propose we poke something down there, until it passes near one of those holes, and see what happens. Ideally, something long enough to keep us safe.’

‘Well,’ Manslayer said. ‘We have plenty of bones.’