Kael stared at the Ancient Key, his heart still beating a frantic rhythm against his ribs. The low, monstrous scraping sound was getting closer, clearly originating from whatever chasm the gorge concealed.
True Passage...
Any experienced Aethelgard player knew that "True Passages" usually led to late-game zones or hidden mega-bosses. Level 2 Kael was not equipped for that. The bridge, while terrifying, was the known path.
"No shortcuts," Kael muttered, snatching the Ancient Key and shoving it into his tunic pocket. "I'll stick to the buggy, statistically improbable main questline."
He turned toward the bridge. It was horrifying: two frayed ropes supporting foot-worn planks, swaying violently over a misty drop that promised certain, messy death. Below, the churning water roared.
Goal: Cross the Rope Bridge. Critical Success: 100%.
He stepped onto the first plank. The bridge instantly lurched. Kael swallowed his rising gorge and focused on the core concept: he would succeed. The universe would find a way. Perhaps a perfectly timed gust of wind would stabilize him, or the tension in the ropes would miraculously re-balance itself.
He took five more shaky steps, focusing intently on placing his feet. He was about halfway across when the rope bridge suddenly stopped swaying. It didn't stabilize; it became unnaturally, violently still, as if every molecule of rope and wood had been instantly frozen in time.
Kael looked up, bewildered. Standing directly in the middle of the bridge, exactly where the rope was most dangerously frayed, was a man.
He was dressed in a suit that defied the grime and decay of the forest—a pristine charcoal gray with a subtle, shimmering pinstripe. He wore polished leather shoes, and his hands, folded neatly behind his back, held a gold-tipped cane. His eyes were the unsettling color of polished quartz, reflecting the dizzying drop beneath their feet without a flicker of concern.
"Kael," the man said, his voice as smooth and quiet as polished marble, easily cutting through the roar of the river below. "Or do you prefer Shadow Knight?"
Kael felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand up. "Who are you? How do you know my name?"
The man smiled, an expression that failed to reach his unsettling eyes. "I know many things. I am often called many names. Fate, Fortune, Probability... though 'Fate' has a nice ring to it, don't you think?" He gestured to the surrounding forest, which still looked blurry and wrong through Kael's HUD. "Your situation is, shall we say, a statistical marvel. An aberration."
"My skill is glitched," Kael ground out. "The system broke."
"The system adapted," Fate corrected gently. "It was confronted with an absolute zero, and responded with an absolute one. You are guaranteed success, regardless of the odds or the collateral damage. A marvelous concept, but difficult to implement neatly."
Fate casually reached into his waistcoat and pulled out a small, exquisite silver locket, suspended on a fine chain.
"A simple wager, Kael. The bridge is stalled for now, but my intervention is only temporary." Fate tapped the locket. "This is the Locket of Sure Footing. It grants immunity to fall damage. I'll bet it against... well, against nothing. You have nothing of value yet. Just prove to me that your Critical Chance: 100% is indeed an absolute."
He then pulled out a small, antique deck of cards. "Choose the high card. Ace is high, deuce is low. Simple, binary choice."
Kael's mind raced. He had to win. He would win. But how would the universe manage to secure this win from a simple deck of cards? Would the ink be poisoned? Would the card spontaneously burst into flames?
"Fine," Kael said, his voice surprisingly steady. "Deal me in."
Fate chuckled, dealing two cards face down onto the rough planking between them. "I'll take the left."
Kael nodded. "Then I'll take the right."
Fate lifted his hand, about to flip the cards, when a sudden, violent CRACK echoed from the canyon wall hundreds of feet away. It wasn't the monster; it was the intense pressure that Fate's presence had created, causing a stone high above to shear off.
The stone plummeted, picking up speed, a missile aimed straight at the bridge. Kael flinched, but Fate didn't move. The stone missed the bridge entirely, but its passing caused a small, violent updraft of air in its wake.
The updraft wasn't strong enough to move the men, but it was just enough to catch the very edge of the right-hand card, which Kael had chosen. The card flipped, revealing the Ace of Spades.
— Wager Critical Success! (Air Current Card Flip) —
Fate looked down at the Ace, then at the still-face-down card on the left. He sighed, looking more disappointed than surprised. "Of course. It was statistically guaranteed." He slid the silver locket across the planking. "Congratulations. May it serve you well when probability tries to reclaim its due."
Kael picked up the locket; it felt heavy and cold.
Fate took a deep breath, the impossible stillness of the bridge dissipating around him. The ropes began to sway again.
"They are watching, Kael," Fate said, his voice now serious, losing its playful edge. His quartz eyes seemed to look past Kael, out into the swirling mist of the gorge. "The great anomalies draw attention, and you are the most powerful anomaly of all. Do not rely on luck. Rely on the result."
Before Kael could ask who "they" were, Fate stepped backward—not toward the forest, but straight off the side of the bridge. Kael yelled, rushing to the edge, but there was nothing there. No falling body, no splash. Fate had simply ceased to exist, leaving Kael alone on the wildly swaying bridge.
Kael clutched the locket, his mind reeling from the encounter, when he heard the monstrous scraping sound again. This time, it was beneath the bridge, and the frayed ropes began to strain with a horrific creaking sound as something enormous brushed against the planks far below. Kael looked at the ropes, saw the strands snapping, and knew the reprieve was over...
What a strange and chilling encounter! Kael now has a piece of powerful gear, a mysterious warning, and a very large, angry monster threatening to destroy the only path forward.