《Another World (Straightforward title, aye?)》 Prologue The curtain of night fell upon the land like a suffocating shroud. The chirping birds and the frolicking critters were downed in silence, only laboured breaths ushered into the darkness. Caring for neither the ground she tread on, thorny and with undulating roots, nor the pursuers behind, with frothing mouths and glaring eyes, the dainty girl resolutely stepped into the unknown. Her face was draped in a sheen of sweat and grime, sticky crimson stucking to her cheeks and a cut above her eyes relentlessly discharging spates of blood, but she didn''t stop, not even once. For the fire of life burned strongly within her. *Crack!* But alas, through a series of misfortune, she toppled over an insidiously snaking root, as though it was placed there just to throw her into the fiery pits of despair. With a mouth full of dirt and a joint swelling purple the girl could do naught but unsheath a fine blade from her girdle. The shiv contained the same amount of hope as well as loss, as it would give her a last choice. To die with dignity. So she took it into her hands and clasped the hilt strongly, the dagger faintly humming in cadence with her desire.Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more. "I won''t give you this joy.", she mumbled to herself. "I -and I only- will decide my life!". So as to not fall prey to the predators, to not concede the last laugh to them, the girl made an almost unbelievable decision, with the shuddering blade pointing at her own chest. "STOP HER!", a dark voice hollered. "STOP HER AT ALL COSTS!", but it was to late. Leaving a trail of starry argent the knife cut through the air, homing in on the girl''s petite frame. "NOOOO!", giving one, last and desperate cry the assailants could only watch the scene unfold. The blade pierced through cloth, tearing each fiber apart, slowly as if to ridicule every single one of them; then it reached the skin, tasting the soft flesh and the first drop of blood, before... At once all sound vanished, the linchpin of the world shattered, and with the muted ring of displaced air a hand appeared from the void. It grasped the girl''s thin wrists that held the dagger in a vice like grip, stopping the blade just an inch apart from her heart. The hand, tanned and checkered in veins and weaving muscles, pulled onto her arms, the knife dislodging with a sickening squelch. "Huh?", is all the presumed leader and bawler could voice, before his head kissed the ground, his eyes watching his disemboweled body slowly swaying to the side before it succumbed to gravity. In just an instant a shadow swathed figure stood amongst the stunned bandits, dual-blades like living fire in his hands. The metal moved along his arms, sometimes tinted in a dull blue and then growing into a fiery red until it billowed out as a palpable grey smoke. The figure blurred before the screeching of metal against metal sounded out, the call of a hungry reaper. In but an instant everyone of the assailants was reduced into minced meat, some even into smoking ash, and it was then that Sylvia Wilkows regained her sanity. "I-I Uhm- Uhh...-!", She fumbled to find the right words, the pain in her chest giving her just that tad-bit of clarity, though before she finished the unknown shade sprinkled a greenish powder into the air. Fearing that it was deadly poison Sylvia tried to turn tail, but alas, the figure was quicker, much, much quicker and manhanded her by the collar. "Sorry Miss...", she heard a dulled whisper, before a equally dull pain laced through her stomach. With a spasm she inhaled the copious amounts of the verdant dust, twinkling like emeralds in the wind, thereafter she fainted, the knife dropping to the ground. "I really can''t believe this...", the figure talked to itself, clenching its hands and cracking its joints. "But dang its awesome! Like, fuck me but this is actually badass!" With a last joyous chuckle the unknown silhouette vanished once more. Chapter One A feeling of lightheaded-ness washed over me, and by the time I noticed everything changed. You can''t really explain it in a broader sense as it was just that. First came this feeling of diziness, as though I was slowly falling asleep, my limbs heavy and my mind weary. Being stuck in tar or quicksand must have felt just like it, being immobile, unable to differentiate up from down, left from right. But as quick as it came just as quick did it disappear, like a bad dream. There was a short sensation of falling overcoming my body before I stepped onto a soft ground, without noise. Everything felt so... wrong, so different. My body felt light, energy exuberant and seemingly thirsting for release, but on the other hand my body felt... heavier? Not in the sense of languid but simply heavier. Having more muscle, being bigger... stronger. I had more of a presence. I then openned my eyes, still wary of whatever it was that momentarily stunted my senses, and took in the breathtaking vista. All around I saw green, a whole sea stretching into the farthest reaches, and when I squinted my eyes I could see even further beyond. The fiber of the croacking branches, the most minute movement of the swaying leaves, they were all encapsulated by my inhuman eyesight. And mind you, I was terribly shortsighted! But it all felt so surreal, this ocean of green wheeling away with the wind. It was just too wonderful! Like a dream come true! There wasn''t even the faintest speck of human taint or muck present, only me and me only on this virgin soil. I was jubilant, empowered by the thought of this vast unknown waiting to be explored. I didn''t care for the circumstances at that moment, confusion yet to catch up, but I doubted I ever would. Studying for an uncertain future, working part-time at the side, nothing of it fit me. What I did love though, was spending time with my friends, doing stupid shit with stupid people, this I would miss. But nothing had been forgone, and much less I could do right now, not knowing where I even was to begin with. So I tried to take a step, only for a blazing light to blind me. Seeing this vast panel before me gave me a pause.
Megrez''s Asterism (Rare 10) O O (Perfected)
Nargacuga Helm X (Rare 9) O
Nargacuga Mail X (Rare 9) O
Nargacuga Braces X (Rare 9) O O
Gigginox Surcoat (Relic Rare 9) *** (Arcane +5)
Gigginox Cuisse (Relic Rare 9) *** (Arcane +5)
Wonder Charm (Rare 10) O O O
Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author. I knew what this was... This was damn M*nster H*nter! And this was one of my sets! All of a sudden it was not just a single light that came hurling at me from sheer nothingness. Instead hundreds piled ontop of each other, all the sets I created and saved, and more. A mix of rainbow coloured globs compounded with the prior lights and concocted a myriad of beauty. (HOW THE FUCK!? Do I make the tables smaller? In the draft it is only a few cm wide but in the actual chapter it covers the whole screen....)
Strength 830
Magic 15
Skill 1225
Speed 3570
Luck 500
Defense 790
Resistance 1110
This too appeared so familiar... *SNAP!* I snapped my fingers as the famous quote: ''Eureka!'' explodes from the depths of my mind. This had to be F*re E*blem! Though the values were totally corrupted they were a blessing nonetheless. Most of the time a stat of 50 would be over-the-top strong but what could 3k then achieve? My fingers were itching to test it out while my mind screamed at the idiocy of it all. Game elements? A new world? Was I high on drugs or what?! But another part of me could tell, this was real, or a very, very lucid dream, if so: Let''s do our worst! Finished with my little soliloquy but to engrossed with the novelty of everything around me I hadn''t even realized that my ability to move was restored and was therefore still with one leg in the air, slowly slanting forward. Gravity pulled me down faster, but before I had a fateful encounter with the dirt beneath I willed myself to step down. The earth shook, basketball-sized rocks were chucked away like dirty laundry and even the wind howled from the impact. My body rocketed upward, experiencing weightlessness at its peak, piercing through the clouds and then fall back to earth. Startled by the encroaching ground and the dangerous prospect of being reduced to a red puddle left me panicking, throwing my arms around before assuming the fetal position. *BAM* With a dull sound echoing throughout the surrounding forest I landed, unharmed save for a little bruising around my arms and the smallest of scratches on one finger. This impossible feat should have rendered me dead, absolutely, be it from the sudden acceleration or the decceleration, whatever it was, my organs should be a bloody mess by now. But no, instead I was perfectly fine, far from harmed. "Now this is what I call a fantasy!" And with a joyous cry and curiosity abound I toured the forest below, consequentely meeting the first few sentient beings of this new but strangely appealing world. Chapter Two I was left confused, sick and fearful. Whatever it was that overcame me in the spur of the moment, it scurried away just as all the build up adrenaline receeded into the depths of my body. And I started retching, violently spewing torrents of acidic gastric juices. If it hadn''t been for the lush vegetation offering up ample support I would be lying in the cold, hard dirt, probably looking down on my hands drenched, nay, soaked, in hot blood. My stomach continued to churn as the same question wuthered through my head, like a peal of thunder it crashed through my sanity. ''YOU. JUST. KILLED. SOMEBODY!'' Each word echoed on perennially, abiding by a vow to forever keep this experience as a remembrance to be deeply anchored in my psyche. Bile rose and climbed up my throat, foaming out from between my fingers. And then came the pangs of guilt wrecking me, flaying me alive. Couldn''t I have knocked them out? I could, couldn''t I? But why, why did I truly want to kill at that moment? I had this insane thirst for blood, I awaited eagerly for carnage, though that could have never been me.The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. I have no death wish and neither do I wish it upon others, never did in fact! Nonetheless, in that particular situation, as the scene re-played itself hundred times over in my head, I truly hungered for bloody vengeance. ''Inhuman...'', Is all I could tell myself. This was simply not normal! I had to be crazy! Mad! Lunatic! I wanted to die. Being a monster out to kill and hunt, better finish myself off now. Would I even still be the same after this is all over? I couldn''t tell. S?????o?????? ????w?????????h?????????????A?????????t???????????!?????? But what answered the tempesting turmoil in my heart was a dismal whisper, a devil beckoning. *** Sylvia woke up with a start, the smell of putrid blood, maybe even feces, hung thick in the air and haunted even her dreamless sleep. She exhaled a stale but quiet breath, lying low and anticipating a sudden ambush, her nerves still frayed. As she found herself alone, with no signs of life surrounding her, no spectres or bandits in the vicinity, she bolted up. Hurried hands felt for wounds, for bruises or the like, but she found nothing. Not even a scratch remaining and her skin unblemished, maybe even glossier than before. And then she remembered. The ghoulish figure, a man of shadows, tearing those savage bandits apart like wet paper. And the blood, a shower of sanguine; and the smell, a smell of incinerated flesh and molten metal, burnt hair and sizzling flesh. From the corner of her eyes she could still see the grotesque remains of her pursuers, now morphed into a macabre picture of brutality, but she choose not to dwell on it. She had seen such scenes before -though rarely worse- and she became jaded against it. ''I am alive...'' That is all that mattered to Sylvia, to take a few breaths more and be blessed by life. She would take revenge into her own hands, become a vindictive shrike that will hound after those that betrayed her, and then she would thank her benefactor, the person that safed her and spared her a life of misery or a lonesome death. Glad, Sylvia felt truly glad to be alive and with a plaintive smile and heavy heart she mentally saw off those that protected her, at the cost of their lives. Their families had to be informed and reimbursed, which was just one of the many tasks she had to do. So she beared her body erectly, stood tall and took heart. After a few unsteady steps her gait turned more resolute, her back petite yet broad, shouldering burdens of sheer magnitude; her eyes aflame like golden prominence. Chapter Three Laddom. A small frontier village wedged between the Scurab Mountainrange and the northern edges of the Scurab Black Forest. Off-road and far away from the nearest townscape the village was only reachable through a narrow and meandering dirt track, one that was at most able to accomodate a single, impossibly tiny carriage. Framed by thorns, inhabited by savage predators lurking behind every second brush and sitting atop a steep slope this quaint sanctuary remained untouched by many a filthy influence. Likewise it stood alone, for decades or even centuries. Nonetheless the folk of Laddom were happy, a truly hale and vigorous ilk that went on their daily lives as farmers, working the hardy soil, or hunters, prowling and tracking game. The cityfolk that witnessed these people outside their cozy village home might describe them as boorish, rough and perpetually grumpy. Though that was indeed the truth, who would hold it against them if they were suddenly robbed of their peaceful home, with crystal clear rivulets gargling unpoluted snow melt and healthy earth that still retains its boundless nutrients, turning every harvest into a reason for drunken celebration. This small patch of untamed land was their home, their personal haven! As much as teeming danger lurked everywhere so did nature''s wonders and beauty. They couldn''t even begin to imagine what it would be like to forsake their snug little village; thereafter surrounded by people they didn''t even know by name! Terrifying! But today the mood was particularly solemn. Laddom''s mayor had just yesterday discussed an unsettling matter with the village elders. A reoccurring phenomenon that haunts the surrounding forrest. Of foragers and hunters returning in due haste, battered and fatigued, mumbling of nonsensical guises and apparitions. A man with nary a fleck of skin on his face but instead a red skull; a garish joker covered in feathers of green, blue and pink; a vicious warrior clad in teeth and bones and a black greatsword slung over his back, oozing out scalp-tingling bloodlust. Those were just one of the many faces this spectre assumed. And it was just a few hours prior that a handful of scouts reported this wraith''s presence to be in close vicinity of the village. This was a matter of utmost importance, as neither of the elders nor the villagers knew of this creature''s might. But to instill fear into the stallwart hearts of Laddom''s natives spoke volumes in and of itself. And this was exactly what kept Chieftain Rakkon Ifrin on edge. *** "So? What shall we do chief?", the elders were restless. Never before had they convened a meeting like this if not for the imminent distruction of the village or the Kingdom. And yet, for a single unknown figure they went to such lengths. But if the witness reports were truthful then they had all the reason to be trembling down to their boots. A ghost scaring Dragons?! Something didn''t add up. Rakkon folded his iron-clad hands before his chest, a lengthy, red-scaled tail hovering furiosly in the air. "I. I honestly don''t know. There had never been a case such as this... Whatever it is that roams this forest, it is dangerous." -Bearing his weight onto the coal-black table and pressing a finger on the wood he let the words settle.- "Quite so." "What do you mean you don''t know?!", Saghanna Ifrit, his younger sister and Great Elder, lashed out at him. "There is this- this... thing!- shuffling through our home and you just want to sit idly by and twiddle your thumbs?! Are you for real?", her ivory horns crackled with arcs of deep blue electricity, twirling and dancing like feverish serpents. "Rakkon, I agree with the sentiment of your sister. We can''t let such a volatile factor run amuk through our woods, lest we risk our all doom.", another broad-shouldered individual spoke with deep gravitas. His dark-brown beard rustled as Morgon Oum braced a hand against his chin. Before another could add their two cents, Rakkon lifted his hands.Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road. "I know, I know. But for now we don''t even know this... uhm... man''s location, apart from some sporadic sightings all around. What? Do you think he will just: ''Bam!'', in a flash appear in our midst? Ready to be butchered?!" -Rakkon could only snarl in aggression.- "Don''t take me for a fool!" But just as his voice melded into the pensive silence a guardsmen barged through the door. As a close knit-community no one actually frowned over this untimely intrusion but the pale face of the aghast man gave them a sense of foreboding. "B-Bad news! The-the... It is here! That- this... That thing! It appeared! A-and... Lady Avianna is confronting it!" The blood drained away from Rakkan''s face as he overheard his darling niece''s name. "Where?!" -He shouted with scarlet wings breaking away from his robe.- "Tell me where that demon is! NOW!" Apprehensive of the fiery wrath that was unleashed upon him the man buckled to one knee. "The p-plaza.", he told in a hushed whisper. "They are at the main-plaza." But Rakkan never heard his final words as his back already disappeared through the roof. The elders looked at one another, stunned. How did the intruder manage to get past them unnoticed? What kind of arcane ability could elude their detection? Or, much worse in fact, how powerful was this man to sneak inside, unobstructed? All those thoughts raced through their heads but the next second they too vanished in sparks of fire, bolts of thunder, blades of wind or quakes of earth; joining the fight that was bound to happen. *** The silence was thick in the musky yard. People nervously scuttled about, the rattle of their plated armor the only noise so far. Beads of sweat ran down Avianna''s cheek as she watched the approaching foe. A man, undoubtly, of stature two heads smaller than her, barely reaching her chest, but filled with vigor and a fire hardly anyone could compare with. Clad in teeth and bone, mail as black as the night and pervaded with throbbing, vermillion veins, he was a living disaster. Each scale that clad his chest, each fang that protruded from his armored knuckles and each patch of blackened hide brimmed with an undisputable ferocity, unleashed by only the mightiest of predators. This armor alone was testament to her adversaries strength, that whomever or whatever could kill such beings would be a legendary figure. She could only gulp audibly, cursing her rashness that led to this moment. If only she had stayed away, prevented her hubrys from marching onward without the slightest inkling of her opponents battle prowess, then it wouldn''t be her facing the brunt of this infernal rapacity that was being exuded. *Shrrrrrk* Tearing through the impasse was the crips sound of a sword unsheathed. Avianna could only gape at this sudden scene, not just how a sword half as tall as her simply appeared out of thin air but moreso at the frightening power it withheld. A sword of embers and bone. A fiery amber crossguard transitioning into a bleach grey fuller, framed by spines of glow and tipping off into a scorching point. This weapon looked to be made from a single, perfect piece -a composition of masterful craftsmanship and miraculous materials molded into a unique blade. (Someone! HELP! WTF is wrong with my tables?! I just can''t get it centered, or the background turn black for that matter... It''s triggering me so hard... BOI!)
Beclouded Dalamadur (Rare 10)
Attack1122 Element240 (Para)
Avianna looked on in utter terror as the shade approached and with sword in hand, every step traversing countless meters. It crashed into her with its indomitable speed, taking the air out of her lungs as a shoulder slammed into her chest. *Cough!*, carefully retreating Avianna bared her fangs with a gutural snarl. Her fingernails morphed into serrated claws, each sharper than the next, and soon her skin burst apart as scale after scale overlapped one another. A writhing mass of flesh and polished shards bulged free from her tailbone, trashing about in concert of her roiling emotions. But in spite of her primal transformation the shadow only snickered, stepping down once only to appear straight in her face. A low growl was followed by an onslaught of criss-crossing swipes, the very air torn asunder by the power behind each swing. Yet, the shadow deftly evaded each attack, even the sudden, bright-white firebreath didn''t rattle its composure. Instead a fist came flying. Connecting square to her stomach, the sudden strike left Avianna winded once more. She gasped for breath and the prior lunch loudly announced itself as it came trickling down her lips. But her enemy left no more of such leisure, as he came at her with untiring fervor. *Shiiink!*, the glowing blade bit into her thigh with no mercy shown, only quick-thinking narrowly avoiding a swift amputation as she backstepped. "AAAAH!!!" she cried out as not only intense pain but also a growing numbness was unleashed upon her in all its brutal glory, the young and naive dragonkin hardly spared as another clean cut marked her stomach, the scales giving way to the blade like soft butter meeting hot iron. Today marked the first day that she had ever experienced such blood-curdling agony, such pure, white-hot liquid fire burning through her veins. She wanted to run away and hide, cry and scream, but the demon was right on her heels, catching up to her with an expressionless face ever so terrifying. With an unyielding grip her body was jerked backward, the bones of her remaining wings groaning under the pressure as an armor-clad hand pulled at them. "NOO!", she shrieked and kicked back at the figure behind her. But alas her foot never connected as she was pounded into the earth, her back arching as a fist pummeled her deeper into the small crater. "KAH!", coughing up goblets of blood and bile she tried her best to make her body obey her commands, but the strain put on her meager muscles and flesh had finally taken its toll, now immobile and whimpering she couldn''t put forth an ounce of resistance. "Please... No... more..." She pleaded, much to the amusement of the unrelenting demon that stood with one foot atop of her, with eyes so very condescending. "Pitifully weak", it mumbled and slackened the pressure. "I expected more of... dragons." Avianna only gave a self-mocking smile, her cries muffled by the ruptured earth. Weak?! She was one of the strongest of her kin, and yet she had been played like a fool; disfigured and dishonored she now lies beneath her enemies mercy. ''There is no one that can vanquish this... aberration'', she thought as swound took her into a deep sleep. Though she could feel a powerful warmth cursing through her body the instant after, alleviating her aches and granting her blissful and painless solace. *** Rakkan, impotent and trembling, watched as his dear niece''s body lied motionless. Like a merciless reaper the ghost continued to stand above her, with arms reared back, the incandescent blade gleefully anticipating. "NOOO!", Rakkan cried and plunged from the high skies. Reminiscient of a meteor his figure came crashing down, like heavenly retribution, onto the demon.