Death's Revenge: A LitRPG Sci-Fi Adventure (Venus Online 5) Read online

  Coldsteel folded her arms and shrugged her shoulders. "It's not like we're short on time."

  A deep voice called out from down the hall. "Three hours and forty-eight minutes, to be precise."

  "Thanks for the update, Oversoul." Coldsteel flicked her hand. "Don't mind him. He's really OCD."

  When Byron looked further, a heavyset man stepped up to the bars of his cell. Oversoul had a bald head, glowing eyes, a ghostly appearance and a red light over his head as well. "I'll take that as a compliment. Do not mind me. Continue with your tale."

  Byron shrugged. "Okay, I guess a week ago in game-time, I was just a guy working in a call center. In the subway, I met this old guy who got shoved onto the train tracks by a gang. I saved him, and he gave me a card that had a website to sign up for Venus Online. It turns out the old man was Otis Accolade, the game's programmer."

  Coldsteel raised her eyebrows. "No shit?"

  "Yup. They delivered the VR pod to my house, and I jacked in without any orientation. Didn't even know what Venus Online was. But it turns out Accolade's login gave me some sort of superuser status. That's what made me the Outsider."

  Kiki smiled and rolled her eyes. "That didn't take long at all, you big silly."

  "Well, there's more to it, but that's the abridged version. How about you guys?"

  Coldsteel pointed at herself. "I was working tech support at Best Buy when I got an invitation on my phone in a text message. That was two years ago in real-time."

  Oversoul called back. "I actually received an invitation in the mail. Snail mail, I believe you would call it. I seem to be one of the few players who have little experience with technology. I'm a literature professor in the real world, and I never even owned a smartphone or computer. Yet somehow, I was able to pass the testing, and here I am."

  Kiki clapped her hands together and bounced again. "Yay, I love it when you guys talk all funny and stuff."

  Byron grinned, reminded that the NPCs couldn't understand when they talked about the game. "So how'd you end up in General Deth's battleship?"

  Coldsteel leaned against the wall of her cell. "Well, we're all in the same clan, the Defenders of the Earth. We're playing for the Resistance. We were on a mission to get the shield code for Necros. Obviously, since we're in here, it didn't go too well. Right, Traumatize?"

  From a cell too far for Byron to see, a high-pitched man's voice called down the hallway. "Fuck you, Steel!"

  "In your dreams," she called back before lowering her voice. "Stupid idiot tripped the alarms."

  Oversoul rolled his glowing white eyes. "Which we warned him about."

  Traumatize called back, "I told you this mission was a fucking disaster from the start. We would've gotten caught either way."

  "I guess we'll never know now, will we?"

  Byron held up his hands. "Wait, what shield code?"

  Coldsteel swept her long hair back with her hands. "It's the reason the rest of the Galaxy hasn't just pounded the shit out of Necros and killed Lady Necralia. There's a force shield surrounding the planet. Only ships with a special code can pass through the shield, and the code is held by only the Necralia Empire's most powerful ships and trusted generals like Deth. If we could have gotten the code, we could lead an all-out assault and end the war."

  Byron smiled. He had been told by Accolade that he needed to kill the boss, Lady Necralia. The shield code could be what he needed to do it.

  Traumatize yelled, "Which is why we were never gonna get those codes. You know Venus Online wouldn't let that happen."

  Coldsteel folded her arms. "You'll have to excuse Traumatize, Byron. He's a conspiracy theorist. He thinks the game is working against us. You could've stayed on the ship, you know, Trauma."

  His voice echoed back to them. "Sit in the hangar bay of a Necralia battleship all by myself? No fucking way."

  Coldsteel jerked her chin back to Byron. "So what was your mission?"

  Byron looked down at Xana who had gotten to her feet. "We actually were running from Deth. Seems like the whole Empire is after me because I'm the Outsider."

  "I guess that makes sense. If you're really him, you're gonna end the war, like the prophecy said, right?"

  "More than that. Accolade told me that if I can kill Lady Necralia, that will end the game. We'd all be freed."

  She pushed her head forward. "He actually told you that? I wonder if that's true."

  "It's not," Traumatize yelled out. "And even if it was, there's no way we can do it."

  "Always the eternal pessimist."

  Kiki clasped her hands and bounced them on her thighs. "But this is awesome, right? We're gonna go to the planet Necros, where almost nobody gets to go. Isn't that totally cool?"

  Coldsteel smirked. "And Kiki's always the eternal optimist."

  Byron put his arms around Xana and kissed the top of her head. "Doesn't matter. That's what I'm gonna do. I'm getting that code and going to Necros so I can kill Lady Necralia, and get out of this game."

  Oversoul held up a transparent finger. "You forgot an important step, my boy. Before you do any of that, you have to leave this cell."

  Byron looked up at the bars. "Yeah. Baby steps."

  Chapter 3

  KIKI HELD out her hands to Byron with her palms up. "Well, this is totally awesome, because you're the Outsider, right? You're a level twenty-five. That means you're gonna get us out of these cells and kill everybody and lead the Galaxy to kick Lady Necralia's ass."

  Scarlet grinned. "That's the motherfucking plan, baby."

  Byron lowered his eyes to the ground, feeling a squirming discomfort. He had always been uncomfortable with too much attention, even at his job. He preferred blending into the background. "Look, I don't know about all that. I mean, I'm a level twenty-five and I've done some pretty big stuff, but I'm not really much of a leader."

  Scarlett put her hands on his shoulders and looked deep into his eyes with her glowing blue ones. "Sweetie, you're the captain of a starship. You've led us through some of the worst shit I've ever seen. You're sure as fuck a leader."

  Coldsteel spoke up. "Hey, not to interrupt your little pep talk, but in the Defenders clan, Oversoul is our leader."

  Oversoul cleared his throat. "Yes, well, I haven't exactly been doing a good job lately. We're trapped in here and I haven't been able to find a way to get us out."

  Byron could see the pain and frustration in the older man's eyes. He knew they both wanted to keep their crew safe, and he felt awful when any of his crew suffered, even though they were NPCs. He could only imagine how Oversoul felt in charge of live players.

  Byron followed the path of the walls with his eyes. He lowered his voice to keep it from carrying across the hall. "How do the locks work? Remote control? Force fields?"

  Coldsteel shrugged. "This is a video game, right? The doors are locked with keycards."

  "Of course. Always keycards. So we need to get a hold of one of those keycards."

  Coldsteel pointed out of her cell and down the hall. "Yeah, but the guards carry them, and we can't exactly run up and grab them from here. We can't even reach through the bars."

  Byron followed her finger to a Death Trooper at the end of the hallway. He could see a small red card on the guard's belt. "But all we have to do is get the card."

  He grinned at Chetaara. "Your TK code is charged up, right?"

  Oversoul widened his eyes. "Oh, you have a telekinesis code? I've been trying to find that spell, but it's very rare."

  Chetaara lit up with a smile. "You are a techmage?"

  "Indeed I am."

  "Always eager to meet a fellow initiate." She nodded at Byron. "To answer your question, yes, I can use my telekinesis."

  "Think you can snag that card and bring it to us?

  "My telekinesis has a limited range, Master, only within a few feet. The guard is too far away to get the keycard." She dropped to her knees and bowed her head. "I beg your forgiveness, Master."

  He gently tugged on her shoulder
s to make her stand up again. He always felt uncomfortable with her worshipful treatment of him. "It's okay, Chetaara. We just wait for the guard to get closer. Maybe when they bring us food or something?"

  Coldsteel shook her head. "They aren't stupid. They never come down this hallway except in groups of three or more. One of them is bound to see us take the keycard."

  "Which means we need to find a way to bring the guard closer on his own."

  Byron chewed on his lower lip as he looked down the hallway at the Death Trooper standing at the other end. The soldier faced the hallway with a rifle on his shoulder, unmoving. He looked like a guard at Buckingham Palace, but without even the face visible to show what the soldier looked at.

  "That's gonna be tough." Coldsteel sighed. "They don't break easily."

  Kiki leaned closer. "Oh, I know how to get him to come closer."

  They all stared at her.

  Coldsteel seemed especially shocked. "Really? You do, Kiki?"

  She beamed her wide smile at her. "Oh, sure. That guy - I know it's him because of the scratch on his helmet, so I call him Bob, but I don't know his real name - came down the hallway to watch me when I bathed last night."

  "He did?"

  Scarlett blurted, "You bathed? How? You got a fucking shower in there?"

  Kiki giggled. "No, silly. I'm Acarid. We bathe just by rubbing our antennae to clean ourselves, but I have to take my clothes off to do it, and I guess Bob likes the view, because he came closer the last time so he could see."

  Traumatize called from the other end of the hall, "How come I never saw you bathe?"

  Kiki rolled her eyes. "Because I do it when you're all asleep, silly. I'm totally shy, even though some people say I'm not."

  Xana flashed a smirk. "A pervy prison guard. That'll work."

  Oversoul pointed to Kiki. "So if you undress again, it might bring the guard close enough to allow Chetaara to use her telekinesis code to steal the keycard. Can you do that, Kiki?"

  Kiki winced. "Aw, why do all our plans have to be about my tits? Fine, but don't everybody look."

  She reached behind herself to untie the cloth wrapped around her chest. He moved to turn away, but Byron kept his eyes lingering for just a fraction of a second too long to take in the sight of her three dark nipples.

  He turned his back on Kiki, but Scarlett just kept watching with a big smile.

  "Yeah," she murmured. "That would get my attention, too."

  He heard Kiki whisper. "Psst, hey, Byron. It's okay. You can look."

  He froze for a moment, unsure what to do.

  Scarlett widened her eyes at him. "That's called an invitation."

  He turned his head a little.

  Kiki stood in her cell, completely naked and stunningly beautiful. Her three breasts looked as round and perky as peaches, and she had taken off her shorts to show smooth pussy lips peeking out between her thick thighs. She looked back at him with half-closed eyes, and had her hands on her hips with a bent leg in a very sexy pose.

  "Like what you see?" she whispered.

  He swallowed a lump in her throat as he nodded. Her alien body seemed so exotic and different, and his cock responded as well, thickening against his thigh. She seemed to be as attracted to him as he was to her. He'd had a lot of women throwing themselves at him in the game, but after years of being fat and unattractive in the real world, he never got used to it. Or tired of it.

  Kiki giggled and gave him a wink as the antennae on the top of her head curled down. The thin stalks began stroking her forehead and cheeks. "Is he watching?"

  Byron tore his eyes off her to glance at the hallway.

  Sure enough, the guard had broken his rigid pose to take a few steps closer. Even through the black visor of the helmet hid his face, the way the guard tilted his head showed he was checking out Kiki.

  Byron pretended to be looking at the wall of his cell while whispering, "Chetaara, that close enough?"

  Chetaara stretched out her hand towards the guard before shaking her head. "Not yet, Master."

  "We need to bring him in closer. Time for more bait." Scarlett reached out and unsnapped Chetaara's bikini top.

  Chetaara's top fell away, and her huge breasts sagged only a little.

  With her casual attitude towards nudity, she seemed more annoyed than upset as she turned to Scarlett. "Really, dear, you could have just asked me to take it off."

  Scarlett winked. "Not as much fun. Think Bob's into lesbian action?"

  Without waiting for a response, Scarlett placed her hands on Chetaara's breasts and leaned in to kiss her. As she stroked Chetaara's boobs, the two moaned and pressed together. Watching them kiss made Byron's cock throb.

  In the cell across from them, Kiki gasped. "Wow, that's so hot. You girls are really sexy."

  Byron shot another glance down the hallway. The guard had taken a few more steps closer, focusing his attention on the two girls. "We're making progress."

  "Not enough." Xana dropped to her knees in front of Byron and unzipped his jumpsuit from his neck to his crotch.

  Panic surged through Byron. He wasn't as open as the girls about sex, and knowing everyone could see what was about to happen made him take a step back. Xana grabbed his boxers to stop him before yanking them down to his ankles.

  His cock sprang out into the chilled air, right into Xana's mouth. He gasped as her plump lips closed over the swollen head and sucked it deeper before he could even register it went in. He grit his teeth as her cheeks tightened around his shaft, and drew him deep.

  Xana paused with his glistening cock in front of her mouth and whispered, "You like being watched, Byron?"

  He shook his head. "Knowing other people are watching makes me wanna run and hide."

  She gave him a coy smile. "Um, your dick says otherwise."

  He didn't respond, but had to admit some part of him seemed to be enjoying the attention, because his cock pulsed even more just thinking about the eyes on him. Apparently, he had an exhibitionist streak he'd never known about.

  "Fuck yeah," Scarlett murmured. "Suck that cock, baby."

  As Xana worked on him, Byron looked over his shoulder. The guard had taken another step down the hallway, but Xana had made sure to keep Byron's back to the bars. Bob the Guard would have to get even closer to see the show.

  Scarlett and Chetaara continued to do their part, running their hands over each other's breasts and butts.

  Across the hall, Kiki had her head bowed to run her antennae over her stomach and down her hips. Byron thought she looked gorgeous as she stroked her legs with her hands, giving him shy glances. When she turned around, he gaped at her amazing ass. The cheeks weren't as big as Khloe's, but they were large, plump, and round. As a buttman, Kiki's ass made sweat prickle under his arms.

  He surged as Xana teased his shaft with her tongue, and her fingertips traced the curve of his balls. He didn't last long.

  He thrust once more as he shot his load into Xana's mouth. He felt her throat bob as she swallowed his seed.

  "That's it," Scarlett moaned. "Shoot that hot cum down her throat."

  The guard had come all the way down the hall now, openly watching the action, and standing only a few feet away.

  "Now," Byron yelled.

  Chetaara broke out of Scarlett's embrace to thrust out her hand. Light flickered across her fingertips as the keycard at the guard's belt flew off and into the slot next to Kiki's cell bars. The bars gave off a loud clang before sliding away.

  Kiki became a blur as she leaped out of her cell. All questions in his mind about how she fit a warrior class vanished in a split second.

  Her left hand shot out to slam into the guard's neck. As he stumbled back, gurgling, she ripped his rifle from his hands, spun it around, and fired it into his chest. The blast knocked the guard back into the wall.

  It all happened in a fraction of a second, and left Byron with his jaw hanging open. Beneath Kiki's bubbly personality lurked the heart of a warrior.

  A
s the guard's corpse slumped to the floor, Kiki tossed the rifle to the ground. "Wow, that was easy. Totally wish we'd done that three days ago."

  Coldsteel pushed her head closer to the bars. "Well, maybe if you'd told us about Bob's tendencies, we could have."

  "Whatever." Kiki slipped her ragged clothes back on while pointing her index fingers at Byron. "It was all thanks to Byron. Hooray for the Outsider!"

  "Well," Oversoul grumbled, "it was technically my plan, but we're not keeping score. Come, Kiki, let us out. We don't have much time."

  Kiki snatched the keycard out of her cell door and pushed it into the lock next to Byron's cell door. It slid open, and he quickly pulled his clothes back on while the girls hurried out.

  Once outside the cell, he watched Kiki run from door to door, unlocking them for everyone. Oversoul and Coldsteel stepped out of their cells, nodding at Byron as he appeared.

  "Seriously," Coldsteel said, "that was nice work. Very nice."

  She winked at him.

  Byron kept his head down. "Uh, thanks, I guess. Kiki did most of it. That was amazing fighting."

  Coldsteel ran her hand down her hair. "Yeah, she always surprises people when they see her in action."

  When Kiki reached the end of the hallway, all the cells had been opened and at least twenty humans and aliens had been freed.

  One thin man with a black mohawk and blue eyes charged up to him, and Byron recognized his voice as Traumatize. He had a light that showed he was a real player, too. "That was fuckin' awesome!"

  Kiki, Oversoul, Coldsteel, and Traumatize all took a moment to give each other high fives. They argued a lot, but seemed to have a real bond.

  Traumatize gave Kiki a crooked smile. "I especially enjoyed your little shower."

  Kiki wrinkled her nose. "Oh, gross, don't remind me. You weren't supposed to look, remember?"

  She spun around on one foot and faced Byron with her hands together over her chest. "Did you like it, Byron?"

  "Uh, yes. I did." He felt a little awkward, especially with Traumatize glaring at him.

  "Oh, come on." Traumatize folded his arms. "We've been on the same ship for years and you never gave me so much as a wink and a smile, and this douchebag shows up and you're giving him the goods?"