《Ephemeral Cycle》 ----- Chapter 1 Hope you enjoy it folks! Also before I forget, if any of you have a recommendation for a new title I''m all ears. Titles are hard thus I''m pawn- ahem, giving you the opportunity to add your own mark to this fiction! Whew, that sounds much better. -------------- ¡°Just another fucking day,¡± muttered the exhausted man while dragging his aching feet through the door. The winter blew in freezing air and snow from the open door, chilling the man to the bone. Throwing off his toque and well worn winter jacket, he closed door - only stopping some of the frigid air from blowing in through the cracks. ¡®It¡¯s been a whole year with this fucking bullshit with her and it¡¯s still fucking haunting me. Why in the hell do you want me to jump into stupid university course that, you damn well know, I¡¯m just going to abuse. Four years of peace and quiet sounds nice and all, however, it isn¡¯t like I exactly have the money for school,¡¯ he thought as a car alarm blaired in the run-down neighbourhood. Prostitution, drug deals, and theft were so common in that neighbourhood that the people in his neighbourhood simply gave up caring. Most parents, who were forced to into the area due to their financial situations, only managed to tell their children to abandon thoughts of dealing with those people. If not, well, be prepared to pay for child support. Or be able to afford the habit. Andrew himself was no stranger to this environment, but it brought out a dull pain every time he saw the slum first hand. Andrew, a perpetually tired looking blond man all off 19 year old, lit up a cigarette before making his way to the faded leather coach. Pulling an empty coffee cup - turned ashtray - which was one of many things littering the table to his side. After ten hours on the job he slowly felt his tense body finally relax. Thinking back he scowled, to his dismay, he was told many times that if he would have taken care of himself he would likely be one of the most striking people in the city. With his piercing blue eyes, high cheekbones, tied back flaxen hair, and well structured face he was the picture of envy for many. Yet, he would give it all away in a heartbeat for a normal life. Over the last year, Andrew turned the once confident smile he held into a callous scowl few could withstand looking at. Many events prior could be used to show the bad lot given to him by the turbulences of life, but at this point in time it was all merely excuses that he was forced to deal with it one way or another. Turning on the TV - manually. He flipped through the channels unconsciously, as he did so many times before. Then he came across something that seemed to catch his eye, a strange public service announcement. Where he lived very, very few came on as while minor crimes were plentiful, major crimes were not. Further still, the weather seldom become something life-threatening. ¡°¡®...ease do not fear, the military in currently supervising major townsites in response to today''s terrorist warning. There is nothing to fear at all for the common populations,¡¯ replied the Minister of Defence regarding the commotion brought upon an anonymous group. Seizing several news channels to relay a message, or arguably a warning of sorts, to viewers across the globe.¡± ¡°What the hell is so big that it would cause a politician himself to get off his decrepit ass? Not even calling a damned spokesmen for the report?¡± Muttered Andrew in between the almost muted announcement between the news reporter. ¡°...¡± ¡°So are you going-¡± started Andrew before he was cut off by the news reporter¡¯s professional, upbeat voice. ¡°..that was the broadcast. Oddly enough, considering the effects we¡¯ve spoke of previously it has yet to be taken off air. If this isn¡¯t your first time listening to the broadcast you will likely be unaffected, however, for those just tuning in... ¡° Even with some semblance of a warning - albeit only implied - he couldn¡¯t prepare himself in time. A flood of knowledge came into his head, causing his head to feel as though it was was being pressed into a vice. Flailing around due to the excruciating sensation, he smashed his arms on the coffee table. Leaving another small crack into splintered wood and littering the floor with bills due to the sudden sweep of his arms. After the pain died down to a marginally more reasonable level, he felt something ominous happening inside his head. Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon. Feeling a strange sensation transmit from his brain to his his eyes he tightly closed them on reflex.When he opened them, however, a video seemed to loading in front of him. First, a blank sheet of blinding white light covered the vast majority of his vision, leaving only the corners of the his vision free, to show that he just barely wasn''t entirely blind. Almost immediately afterwards, a small translucent loading cursor appeared right in the middle of the screen. It was as if attached to the centre of his retina itself. ¡®Shit! Where¡¯s that smoke?! Well¡­ fuck, that couch was old as hell, but still that''s one hell of a cigarette burn,¡¯ sighed while craning his neck in an unsightly manner to catch sight of smoldering couch, pouring the remainder of a week old glass of water on it and smacking it a few times for good measure. It certainly wasn¡¯t an easy task - using only his peripheral vision - however, it was dealt with all the same after a few struggling attempts. ¡°Okay, are you going to screw with me now or actually start? Start, activate, vaminos, go?¡± Murmured the obviously annoyed man after restlessly waiting for about two minutes. Giving up on the invasive screen in front of him, he struggled to his feet. Feeling his way around to the kitchen, admittedly after knocking into a few chairs around, smacking an already bruised apple off the counter. He finally made it to what felt like the fridge, before pulling out his supposed dinner for tonight. ¡®How the hell do blind people do this? God damn it, this bloody screen keeps following wherever the hell I look. Okay, I totally regret ordering pizza or¡­ well, anything I can actually eat mindlessly,¡¯ cursed Andrew as he threw his supposed dinner back in the fridge irritably. Annoyed at the whole situation, Andrew pulled out another cigarette from the pack in his pant pocket. Feeling his way around to make sure he knows where everything is he finally calmed slightly. After an arduous process, he cleared away a small area before locating an ash tray and flicked his lighter, taking a puff. ¡°Oh for fucks sake-¡±
Hello, Andrew Marks, we solemnly apologize for the delay in relaying this message, yet, there seemed to be complications associated with remote access of your neurological system. Nonetheless, we are happy to congratulate as the 1 millionth contestant in this latest social experiment. You may be feeling rather apprehensive over this occurrence, but please do bear with us as we will work on the system¡¯s kinks out as they appear. Who are we you ask? You humans are rather predictable. This is an automated message, admittedly somewhat tailored to one¡¯s language and circumstances. I digress, we are known as the Corporation in your tongue. We work to supervise human behaviour. We are not, ¡®Gods,¡± as some may be quick to assume, we simply pride ourselves on the continuous development and treatment of our experimental subjects. At midnight, you may find yourself in a rather precarious situation but be assured it was all designed by you humans one way or another. For good or bad. Those not registered or are not within the preset requirements will be converted into, well, something to the effect of NPC¡¯s, or so your culture has deemed to name as such. Various abilities and ¡®improvements ¡® have been downloaded into your genetic structure allowing for increased growth potential thus you should have the power the survive in this world. If not, well, it was likely the treatment you may receive ¡®in-game¡¯ is not much different than you treated your fellow humans prior. Remember this, for you ¡®gamers¡¯ out there, no saves, no redos, it¡¯s purely based on your power to survive and rebuild. Furthermore¡­ We apologize for this interruption, it seems as though it is almost time to start. Good luck, Andrew.
With an instinctive glance at the stove-top clock, showing 12:00 in blurred red lights, Andrew turned before flicking the ash from the half burnt cigarette and taking a long drag to reflect on the previous message. ¡°Well, at least I can finally fucking see again. Damn, it¡¯s time? What the hell is going to happen, an apocalypse of sorts? Can I just sleep through this, seems like the best bet, considering I guarantee there is a ninety percent chance I¡¯ve gone completely insane.¡± With that said, feeling exhaustion hit him, he ashed out his cigarette instinctively just before finally drifting off into a near comatose sleep. ----- Chapter 2 In the process of editing and re-releasing the earlier chapters. It''ll be a slow process though, please bear with me!
In a completely barren wasteland stood a male figure, coated in smooth, obsidian leather. The morning sun was peaking through the sky spreading rays out light to clear the night sky before finally reaching the stoic figure. Crimson blood dripped off his blackened breastplate falling to the cracked soil which eagerly drank it all up - leaving nothing behind. In the background lay scattered corpses completely foreign to his eyes, some of which stood over 10 metres tall. A single cry was heard as a white hawk tore through the sky, gracefully landed on the shoulder of the dark figure. Hearing the cry from his faithful companion, two azure eyes slowly opened from the figure, taking in the whole scene as¡­ ------------------------------- ¡°What the hell was that that? Damn, whats with this fantasy-esque dream, fucking dragons too? Or some such massive scaly bastard anyways. Yeah, if memory serves I am batshit crazy anyways. What¡¯s one more sign?¡± Andrew sighed sluggishly he then tried to throw the covers back over his head. ¡°Huh, oh right I passed out on the couch. Fuck my life, regardless... coffee. Then I¡¯ll think about things¡­¡± yawned the tired man as he rubbed his bleary eyes before adding, ¡°Well, looks like we¡¯re not in Kansas anymore, but seriously coffee. Where the hell is it?¡± Taking a good look around he noticed countless changes in his run down house. Numerous holes gave way to the clear sky where the morning sun could be felt on his face. Emerald green budding vines wrapped themselves around the newly cracked walls, climbed in between the worn furniture before scaling through the holes in the ceiling. Yet, without any appreciation to the exotic scenery, he stumbled over to the cupboards to grab the instant coffee. Remarkably, it still seemed to be present even with the change of scenery. To Andrew, it was simply yesterday, however, the room seemed to slip through the hands of time. ¡®Thinking rationally, this is all a dream. Well, hopefully dream-me is kind enough to grace me with hot water.¡¯ sighed Andrew as he questioned his sanity for the nth time this morning. As he grabbed the rusted, that was a pain even in the best of times, it finally gave way, but nothing followed through the pipings. Glancing at the stove top clock that was working yesterday he, exhaled loudly in exasperation. ¡°Damn, well it was worth a shot, I guess? No running water, electricity and let¡¯s just assume all the food is bad. Can¡¯t I just-¡±
System merge: Complete. Loading interface: Complete. Removing barriers in player homes. Tentative. Please take a few minutes to get accustomed to the gameplay mechanics. Interface will be automatically brought up. Due to system code, ¡±np:1.103,¡± all players must view the basic tutorial.
¡°What the hell? God damn it, it¡¯s been years since I¡¯ve even had the time to my eyes on a video game. Now all of a sudden this happens? Kill me now.¡±
System error; attempts to end gameplay prematurely will be ignored no matter the method before players enter their respective zones.
Sighing loudly, he glanced at the holographic interface before playing around with it like a tablet in front of him. While there three bars on the upper left portion of the screen, there was little else in his field of vision aside of the eerily game like menu. Scrolling down the menu he saw: inventory, status, journal, settings(locked), and the help tab. Clicking on the help section as it fluctuated pointedly, he was given an overly convoluted overview of the situation. From what he could gather, he was currently located in a relatively peaceful Kingdom named Farwynd, which was a small kingdom located on what would previously have been known as the northern half of the North American continent. ¡°So elves, fairies, and beastmen tend to call this area home? Damn, what the hell do those people think of Canada? States are basically feuding humans. Mexico to Argentina is pretty much a jungle and mountains with apparently countless species of deadly animals. So, at least more those two, they pretty much right on the money for both accounts. And beyond that I don¡¯t know anything about the other continents. Is there supposed to a expansion pack or some such bullshit later on? Endgame: Australia with venomous, deadly¡­ everything? ¡± He quipped dejectedly to himself. Shaking his head to clear his thoughts he moved onto the first bullet: Gameplay Mechanics. Essentially, one would use their own power to combat situations and your own intelligence to interact and react to situations as they appear. No additional help will be given aside for inherent abilities, character specific abilities, as well as the ¡®level ups¡¯ resulting in stat bonuses. This is all in order to bridge the playing field between the two factions of, ¡®original,¡¯ occupants. Depending on your resourcefulness the system may grant additional benefits, however such instances are rare. ¡°So, basically kill monsters, get stronger and likely get paid for some random reason? Sounds interesting, maybe I can retire for a bit if I get ahead. Assuming this isn¡¯t a dream anyways...¡± yawned Andrew as he finally saw a small hope to end his old monotonous existence. ¡°Hmmm, oh right, certain skills cost stamina or mana depending on the intended effect. Obviously, magic is mana whereas physical skills cost stamina. With mana causing mental fatigue and stamina causing physical fatigue, it¡¯s fairly straightforward. How do you get them in the first place though?¡± In the help section there was actually no information available to him to tell him where he could acquire them, but he wasn¡¯t daunted all that much. Basically what flashed through his mind was him using a sword to dance in between waves after waves of goblins, orcs, or other typically antagonized fantasy races - slaughtering all the while. ¡°Basically what comes after that is some stat point system. I imagine this is relatively normal among the people around here.¡± as he viewed his initial sample Status off the help screen.
Andrew Marks Level 1 Str: 10 Agi: 7 Per: 11 End: 6 (-2) Vit: 8 Int: 9 Wis: 8 Chr: 9(-5) Status: Withdrawal decreases END, causes irritable behaviour thus decreasing CHR. Effect will increase as time goes on before slowly dissipating in the future if left untreated. Skills: N/A
¡°No health, or stamina values? Huh, oh well, realism or something. Speaking of which, the joys of being a smoker, I guess. Huh, lets see... ¡° As he instinctively tried for the pack of cigarettes in his pocket he noticed something strange happen to them. While he could pull out the pack without issue, every cigarette he pulled out almost instantaneously crumbled into a fine dust. After a few failed attempts he noticed a small window pop up in the corner of his vision. The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.
The item you are trying to use has ran out of durability. It will remain in a broken state, thus unusable, unless taken to an appropriate repair personnel. If used in this state it will break down.
Tossing the pack on the countertop, he sighed loudly, before finally looking back into the open tutorial menu. In addition to initial stats shown it came with a basic rundown of their intended purposes. Str: Strength; determines the amount of damage down by physical weapons. Agi: Agility; represents movement speed as well as provides adjustments to accuracy with ranged weapons and magic spells. Per: Perception; determines reaction speed, eyesight, and provides an increased chance of determining a creature¡¯s level and characteristics above the player¡¯s own level or external ability. End: Endurance; is directly related to the player''s HP, or health points, in addition to allowing for the tolerance of greater damage inflicted onto the player. Vit: Vitality; increases HP regeneration, stamina regeneration, and provides defence against physical diseases and poisons. Int: Intelligence; allows for a greater MP pool, or mana point pool, increased magical damage, and factored into comprehension of outside languages with Wisdom. Wis: Wisdom; increases MP, or mana point, regeneration, resistance to curses and damage-over-time (DOT) magical spells, and the other contributing factor for language comprehension and acquisition. Chr: Charisma; increases the chances of successful negotiations, sex appeal to the opposite sex, and grants bonuses in quest rewards. Additionally, bolsters the morale of friendly pets, companions, and troops under your care. Lck: Luck; it is a hidden stat that affects every aspect of combat, interpersonal relationships, rewards provided in the system. The initial stat value will not be shown in the menu unless otherwise unlocked, however, any increases to this value will be shown in the skills menu. Upon leveling up it is not possible to add additional points to value, only by completing certain conditions will the value increase naturally. Mor:Morality; Along with Luck this value will not be shown, however, many of the world¡¯s higher ranking inhabitants will be able to sense your inherent disposition be it, good, bad, or something inbetween. Many factions will use this value to determine whether or not the player himself is a benefit to their cause - or a threat. This method of screening is only available to members of those factions that are above five levels of the player. This stat will dictate what quests can be received by the player as well as the amount of trust an individual places in them. ¡°Hah, basically if I am an asshole I can only hang around other assholes because of some silly ¡®aura¡¯ type function. If I¡¯m good, all I can do is hang around some little angels, that are likely the most judgemental people out there. Whatever, I can deal with that later.¡± Facing back to the doorway he sighed, ¡®Soon I¡¯ll have to go out there, huh? Might as well finish this up beforehand though.¡¯ Turning back to last main point of the help section: Inventory. Apparently, as one of the benefits for being placed into this experiment, the players are given an inventory which can remotely store and dispense items on command. A maximum of 16 slots are provided where items may be placed. No (currently) living creature could be placed into the system, however, no matter the size of the object if it is compatible with the inventory command it could be placed into the system costing only one bag space. Certain conditions must be met, but ¡®item stacking¡¯ is possible in some instances. After checking the basic information he went into his own inventory section. Primarily, in order check if there was anything that may help him survive in this world. ¡°... Are.. are you kidding me?¡± Shouted Andrew he saw a small iron dagger pop out of thin air after his command. Grabbing the levitating dagger he tried to cut the apple he previously knocked over the day before. Grabbing the apple with his palm he tried to hold it still before as a system prompt appeared in front of him.
The object you are currently using lost the entirety of its durability, this object is now considered broken, and will be lost.
Ignoring the remainder of the message he turned his hand over where a small mound of fine dust appeared before sliding off onto the floor boards in a slow stream. ¡±Well, the system said [Novice Dagger: Durability n/a, Damage Rating 1-2] before so, while it is probably shit, it¡¯s all I¡¯ve got for the moment.¡± ¡°Hey, wait a moment¡­¡± After a little bit of experimenting with the dagger, in which he ¡®thought¡¯ the dagger to go away. And to his surprise it did, so again he willed it back into his hand. A few more trials with other objects that seemed as though they could help him. He decided to try the whole house. Placing his hand directly on the cracked walls, avoiding any vines for fear it would mess up the process, he willed the entire property into his possession.
System warning: As you are now considered the owner of this property you may store this residence into your inventory. As this is part of your ¡®old world¡¯ possessions, it will not take up a bag slot, but rather be considered your Player Home. When buying property, the Player will be given an option to place this house, however, only one home can be stored at a time. I repeat, you must purchase land in order to place in once again, additionally, this will be considered the end of your tutorial phase. Do you agree the terms?
¡°Sure, why the hell¡­¡± Before he even had a chance to finish, a foreboding voice played in his head,
Confirmation accepted. Good luck, and happy hunting
In a flash of light the house itself disappeared and in it¡¯s place stood a lush forest in which spiralling vines and bright, almost luminescent foliage grow from underneath the concrete. Hidden within that forest stood a few familiar condos, devastated by the forces of nature, leaving only the metal frame, but still upright enough to be perching in the undergrowth. In the background stood three skyscrapers that were once representative of humanity''s prosperity in the region - now reduced to a fraction of their original size surrounded by rubble. With the passing of time, buildings, once built to weather the greatest storms, were devoured by the slow creeping of plants that were let by the absence of the hands of man. ¡°Weird. Not much more I can really say. At the very least this place seems far better than all that nonsense dealing with people, should I just stay in this forest forever? So tranquil and quiet...Wait? No, no, no. What the hell are those this things?¡± As he was speaking a small squad of tiny green skinned creatures made their way over a small forest trail leading not far from his location. All of three feet tall, they almost blended in with the thick undergrowth of the forest interior but the glare of the light hitting their copper swords gave way to their slow advance. ----- Chapter 3 Three were armed with swords, two bloodied clubs, and another two were dragging a young bound woman with bows strung up on their backs. One of the sword wielding ¡®goblins¡¯ seemed to have some tattered animal hide compared to his essentially naked compatriots. ¡®Not as disgusting as I thought they would be,¡¯ muttered Andrew, half in shock and half in genuine curiosity. Even with the bruises on her cheeks and tattered clothes, she still seemed to be a rare beauty. Gorgeous, long flowing auburn hair swayed with every forced step of her long legs. A round face with sharply pointed ears seeming working well together. She possessed a voluptuous body and large hazel eyes that were, unfortunately, moistened with tears, yet she still glared at her captors with an infuriated expression. Looking over at the interesting sight he calmed his confused mind, thinking, ¡®All I have to do is hang out on top of some tree and I doubt they would be able to even see me, let alone attack.¡¯ As he stared at the slightly terrifying little creatures and the beauty in tow, he heard a shout come from her mouth, ¡°Hey you! Save me from these vile creatures!¡± Andrew sighed loudly as he tried to lean behind a tree, but he knew he was caught in the midst of it all. Now that she decided to speak up he most likely couldn¡¯t even leave if he wanted to. Even more so than before, he felt like leaving the women behind. But he wasn¡¯t so naive enough to think that he could simply get away from the little demons - without getting an arrow in the back. In reality, all he had on him was his small dagger, a sweater pulled all the way up draping the hood over his face. Luckily, before he decided to pack away his residence, he had the thought to put on some sneakers, but it clearly wasn¡¯t enough for a man who was faced with armed, vicious looking creatures. In response to the woman''s attempt to involve him he shouted, ¡°what the hell do you think you¡¯re doing?! Clearly this is you mess and now you involve me?¡± knowing full well it would not change his current situation one bit. As it was already too late to turn-tail and run, Andrew walked towards the group with the dagger appearing in front of him. The two goblin archers changed positions with the club wielding goblins, grabbing their bows and notching an arrow each. The three swords-goblins already were running at him, but he still stared furiously at the women who caused all of this trouble. Noticing that the three little bastards were now within about 5 metres, he finally started to move instinctively, first to left to avoid being surrounded while gripped his Novice Dagger tighter. ¡®So it¡¯s a knife fight with some green midgets while dodging arrows from afar? This will be interesting,¡¯ muttered Andrew angrily. As soon as the first goblin was within range Andrew stabbed the dagger into the goblin¡¯s sword arm with his reach before the little little green man could be swing his blade. Further punching it in the face with his other hand causing it stumble back and drop its sword. Within seconds, another goblin followed up with a swing of his copper sword aimed towards his throat. Without anytime to dodge it he simply sighed. However, the goblin abandoned his sword to fall low to the ground, wailing in pain. Completely perplexed he let down his guard momentarily as he looked over at the situation. ¡°Ha...Ha-ha, hahahaha, oh my God. Who designed this turn of events?! HAHAHA¡± cried Andrew a rare bout of genuine, tear-filled laughter. The last charging goblin turned away from him to look at his friend with an arrow impaled into his rear. The one who was hit by the arrow began chittering and snarling loudly at the other goblins who seemed to be laughing uncontrollably. Forming a semi circle around the afflicted goblin and laughed mockingly at the little guys face. Eventually the laughter of its companions, even the one with a stab wound on its arm, and enemy, irritated the goblin enough to start a miniature brawl between itself and the other one who loosed the arrow. Even with every tiny fist thrown his way the archer simply laughed and moved to the side before smacking the arrow still lodged in the other goblins rump causing the other goblin to grimace in pain before falling to the ground. Struggling to get up the goblin cried pitifully before chittering loudly at anyone who would hear it. Causing the remaining goblins and Andrew to double over in laughter. Being the first to calm down, Andrew breathed in and out deeply before taking up his dagger which was dropped in his fit of laughter. Calmly walking up to the goblin with the animal pelt who was trying to calm down the situation. Seeing as he was being completely ignored by the little green creatures he laughed to himself, ¡®I might actually enjoy this kind of place.¡¯ Tapping on the goblin ¡®captain¡¯s¡¯ shoulder he waved his free hand in front of his face before burying his dagger directly in the little guys throat. Surprise painted his face before his body turned limp. All the while, the other goblins simply weren¡¯t paying attention to their superior officer¡¯s plight so Andrew pulled out the dagger of the limp goblin and grabbed the short sword that fell to the side into his left hand. Two more corpses marked with a gaping wound in the throat, one bow wielding goblin and one club goblin, were dropped loudly in the semi-circle. The goblins finally caught onto the sudden revelation that their captain and two others were gone. While they were simply humiliating one of their own in his time of weakness. Two of them were injured so Andrew simply ignored those firstly and ran towards the remaining two goblins in the rear, stabbing one with the dagger before the goblin could even his raise its bow. At the same time the other goblin with a club came towards him swinging at his chest, but Andrew raised his sword. Deflecting the club cause it to smash into the head of the gasping goblin ending his life before he could bleed out. Retracting the dagger he stared at the goblin before shaking his head accusingly. The goblin, obviously distraught because he killed his own companion, curled up in a ball before crying loudly. Andrew didn¡¯t have the heart to approach the crying goblin so he walked back to the exhausted goblin with an arrow in his behind before sighing and shoving the dagger towards its throat. The last goblin with a lacerated arm run past Andrew before sitting next to the emotional goblin chittering something softly into its ear. The goblin gave one last look of resignation before raising its hand, tossing the sword to the side, and pointed at the women. ¡®She¡¯s your problem now,¡¯ it seemed to imply. ¡°Ah, my hero!¡± The woman who was confused by the whole ordeal finally called out before running over to him raising her bound hands in the air all the while. ¡°You have my eternal gratitude, to think I, Lisia, would be captured by these ver-¡± ¡°Be quiet, obviously you might not realize it, but that guy¡¯s not in a good condition. And also why in the hell did you force me to save you?! I¡¯m pretty sure that¡¯s not something that is considered proper to do. And how the hell did you get captured by these guys, how weak are you?!¡± Ranted Andrew as he glared at the woman. Walking past the woman without giving her a second glance he grabbed all the stray weapons on the ground and deposited them in his inventory before giving a parting apology to the emotional wreck, that was the once a vicious goblin, ¡°Sorry bud, but it was you or me ya know? Well, I don¡¯t expect you can forgive me, but it is what it is. You two are free I won¡¯t try to hurt you guys anymore.¡± ¡°Hey! Are you not forgetting about som-¡± Lisia started before being cut off with a raised hand over his back.
First Kill Bonus: You receive the best quality equipment from the ¡°Goblin Captain¡± deposited directly into your inventory, [Leg Guards of the Ambassador] Required level 2 Defence rating 3 Durability 30/30 Special Effects: Agility +2, increases EXP gain from defeating enemies and quest completion while maintaining a neutral morality. You have leveled up! You have three stat points to distribute into your primary stats. As you have survived past the initial stage we are granting you the passive skill [Dual Wielding] for your recent contributions in battle.
¡°Oh damn, I forgot to check my skills before I left¡­ well, my house?¡± muttered Andrew as he pulled up the skills screen he quickly allotted his bonus stats from the level up. And strapping on the Leg Guards which only covered from the top of his hips to about his knee caps in an unadorned, plain grey leather.
Andrew Marks Level 2 Str: 11 Agi: 8(+2) Per: 11 End: 7 (-2) Vit: 8 Int: 9 Wis: 8 Chr: 9(-5) Status: Withdrawal - decreases END, causes irritable behaviour thus decreasing CHR. Effect will increase as time goes on before slowly dissipating in the future if left untreated. Skill: Language Comprehension: (Intermediate) English, (Intermediate) Elvish {Farwynd Dialect} granted to allow for a simpler transition into the environment. Dual Wielding (Beginner - 1): While wielding two weapons Damage Rating penalty is reduced by 20%. Penalty currently at 30%. Grants easier range of motion and knowledge of advanced techniques are granted at base level up of the skill.
Placing his stat points in strength, agility, and endurance he felt his body shudder for a moment before calming down. If was so inclined he would have noticed his body slim slightly, muscles becoming more defined, and breathing became easier for the ex-smoker. Feeling somewhat fulfilled for the first time in a while he disregarded any small changes and let loose a small smile.Looking around he took a glance at the world around him sparking a small sense of excitement for the future. If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. ¡°Heeeeey ~~~, Anyone there~?¡± Andrew¡¯s smile disappeared as he retorted, ¡°How in the hell did you get rid of those bindings? Also, more importantly, get out of my face.¡± ¡°Hmmpt, if you were actually paying attention to this damsel in distress you would have noticed.¡± To which she received a pointed glare from the man who simply couldn¡¯t deal with her antics, ¡°Fine, I¡¯ll say it, just don¡¯t look at me like that! While you were zoning out to whatever the hell is so interesting in front of you I, uh, borrowed one of your blades to cut through the ropes. Now that that is all finished, escort me home now before some more of those ver- *ahem* goblins come back!¡± ¡°Can I ask you a question first, milady?¡± He replied caustically. She didn¡¯t even seem to register the man''s sarcasm and spoke energetically, ¡°Yes, of course! I live roughly ten miles west of here! We should get going so that we can make it back before nightfall!¡± ¡°Okay, now, now, don¡¯t get too ahead of yourself. My question, remember?¡± ¡°Yes! Go ahead!¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°....¡± she stared blankly at him for a moment, not understanding in the least. ¡°Why. Should. I. Help. You?¡± Andrew spoke in a slow and concise manner to get it through her head. ¡°You endangered my life, you realize? If I hadn¡¯t been so lucky as to see the goblin¡¯s stupidity firsthand I would likely be dead. And seriously, how the hell did you not manage to turn themselves unto one another to buy time for you to escape? It shouldn¡¯t have been that hard. But no, you had to threaten my life - my new life, might I add - all to have a slim chance at me somehow or another being able to free you. And if I were planning on saving you with the element of surprise, you damn well would have ruined it.¡± before sighing and shaking his head at her audacity. While he wasn¡¯t interested in helping the seemingly naive and entitled woman, he still didn¡¯t want to leave her defenseless. Taking a quick look at his inventory he pulled out two of the short swords taken from the goblins. One he used to replace his dagger so he could an extra 10 centimetres or so length on the blade for a weapon that was essentially the same his dagger before. [Copper Short Sword Damage Rating 1-3 Durability 7/10 Taken from a goblin so the quality is sub par, as well as having the grip being slightly too small for the average human. Liable to shatter if used on heavy armor.] The other he handed to Lisia before starting to walk towards the ruins of the town curious as to what could be inside now, well, besides scattered office papers and dilapidated computer equipment. Lisia who completely distraught, saw the retreating figure and became sullen. With a pout she started heading home, only to realize then, that it was in the same direction as the mysterious, temperamental figure. Rejoicing quickly to herself she quietly followed Andrew thinking: ¡®Oh, he¡¯s trying to act so tough, he can¡¯t help but to feel some desire to protect me from the evil monsters~.¡¯ As he kept walking almost aimlessly towards the bigger buildings he noticed his little stalker, admittedly far enough away to keep him from getting angry at her, but still close enough to cause him to be annoyed. ¡°Which direction am I going anyways¡­?¡± muttered Andrew under his breath. ¡°West! You taking me home, are you not? Oh, ho-ho-ho trying to be a tough guy and all that~¡± ¡°Hey, do you know where the closest goblin camp is by chance?¡± ¡°A little bit south-east from this location!¡± She replied enthusiastically. ¡°Okay!¡± he replied unceremoniously before changing directions entirely towards the closest band of goblins. Thinking it would scare her off after her run-in with them before, yet she still seemed oblivious to the implications. "Oh! He wants to slay all the evil goblins to take revenge for me~ What a true gentlemen!" she whispered to herself smiling broadly all the while. Compared to her, he was completely baffled, ¡®Why would she want to go back there, is she just an idiot? Or do she think something else completely¡­ Whatever, I can¡¯t be bothered trying to figure out a female¡¯s mind right now. Might as well get stronger, or else I won¡¯t be able to afford to have any peace and quiet when time comes to settle down in some town,¡¯ thought Andrew before trying to clear his head of all those unnecessary thoughts. With the sun high above his head he started to feel the sweat stick to his body. It had only been a few miles, but to someone accustomed to the ¡®old world¡¯ it was simply too far to go when looking to get into a fight with some stray creatures. It took another ten minutes but he finally found what he was looking for behind the trees in the distance. In a small clearing four goblins stood huddled together. Looking closely, there seemed to be a small canine being feasted upon by the four goblins. Even to the small goblins it could only be considered a snack considering the size of the critter, but they attacked it with abandon tearing flesh from its bones before swallowing it whole. Seeing the motionless man squatting in the bushes in front of her, Lisia¡¯s curiosity got the better off her and snuck over by his side whispering, ¡°What are you¡­ ah - AH -AHHHHHH!¡± Scowling at the girl who ruined his opportunity he whispered back, ¡°Run.¡± She took off, flailing and crying out hysterically attracting all but one of the goblins attention. As they started running after the woman, Andrew waited patiently in the bushes short swords at the ready. It took only three seconds or so before the first goblin made its way into the undergrowth about 7-8 metres away from the meal, as it passed a slightly shaking hedge it felt a blade slip into his chest. Shocked, the goblin didn¡¯t even utter a cry before the second goblin made its way through the thick bushes. Much like the first goblin, the second didn¡¯t even understand what happened as a blade was thrust into its throat. Finally, as the third goblin entered, a small cry was heard from the first goblin who had just now stopped moving, but it was too late. With an overhead slash that seemed impossible for the small statured goblin to block, Andrew slashed through the goblin¡¯s shoulder before embedding his second blade into the goblins heart. Even now, both Lisia and the other goblin were either oblivious to what was happening or simply didn¡¯t care enough to notice the figure in the tree line just outside of their vision. Once again pulling all the weapons into his bag slot he sighed, ¡®I wonder if she realises she was turned into bait. Oh well, too late to think about it now. This is probably a very, very bad idea but lets try it anyways.¡¯ As he was putting the three new weapons from the goblins into his inventory he noticed the bow and decided to try his hand at archery. Grabbing the bow, which clearly was designed as a long bow for an individual half his height, he placed one of his short swords in his belt loop before stowing away the other. Even though he was a complete novice in the ways of the bow, he was less than ten metres away. After notching an arrow, he pulled back the drawstring and corrected his aim at the little green creature - feeling the poor bow shudder the entire time. Loosing the arrow he saw the arrow fly towards the goblin. With a soft *thud* the arrow lodged itself into flesh and enraged the goblin. Slowly standing up and leaving the foliage he hide himself in prior. Scratching his head in embarrassment, Andrew awkwardly apologized to the fuming goblin, ¡°Ha-ha, ah, sorry. I didn¡¯t mean to hit your little dog/coyote/fox thing. One more try?¡± He lifted the bow up nonchalantly and aimed at goblin once again. Seeing his posture, the goblin sprang into action, grabbing his club just on the ground beside him, and sprinted after the man. As the goblin neared the man an arrow was released hitting the goblin square in the stomach. With pitiable yelp the goblin fell flat on its face before moaning loudly. ¡®Damn, I feel like I¡¯m bullying these guys. Okay whatever, I¡¯m done doing this. It makes me feel guilty for some reason.¡¯ He was still upset over the goblins essentially ambushing as soon as he got involved in this strange world, but after seeing the pitiful nature that these goblins expressed when they were defeated he soon got over it rather quickly. With a quick stab with the sword, which he tucked away previously, he put the goblin out of its misery. And with a sour feeling in the pit of his stomach heard the systems prompt.
You have leveled up! You have three stat points to distribute into your primary stats.
Andrew Marks Level 3 Str: 11 Agi: 9 (+2) Per: 11 End: 9 (-2) Vit: 8 Int: 9 Wis: 8 Chr: 9(-5)
Similar to before, he added two points into endurance, and one in agility simply so that he could move around more comfortably. He didn''t have have any magic so there was truthfully no reason to add anything to it if he could benefit from it immediately. Or, at the very least in the near future. Once again stripping the club off the dead goblin, he walked back in the direction of Lisia whose pitiful screams could still be heard a short distance away. ----- Chapter 4 After a couple minutes of walking through the thick underbrush, struggling to find any sort of trail through the dense forest, he saw her tied up once again by more goblins. Ironically, the area they seemed to be in was once some sort of intersection that had a stop sign just above the bound girl. This time giving up entirely on stealth, he walked out of the brush into the relatively clear area. While trees still popped up sporadically they didn''t obscure the line of sight for the goblins very much. ¡°Seriously, how did you piss off these guys so badly that they capture you everywhere you go? Oh also let her go I¡¯m kind of tired bullying you guys and whatnot.¡± ¡°Gaah, chhhhiii, chi, chhhhi¡± Cried one goblin, before it was echoed by another three, Andrew was completely confused, but Lisia seemed to pale at the strange sounds. ¡°Nooooooo! You can¡¯t do that! SAVE ME!¡± screamed the elf as her expression turned horrified and she tried to squirm away in a vain hope of escaping. ¡°Hey, translation please?¡± Muttered Andrew as he twirled his sword indifferently, just a little curious as to how she could understand such a language. ¡°Chuuui,chii, chhhhhii!!¡± Cried the goblin who held her captive, pointing his long spear at Andrew. ¡°NOOOO!!¡± cried Lisia another time, so Andrew inferred ¡°Gob¡¯ Chief wants to have his way with you so he can have beautiful children?¡± ¡°Yes! How can you be so calm about this?! And how could you understand him, I thought you humans were supposed to be idiotic creatures!¡± retorted Lisia anxiously. ¡°Standard fantasy stereotype, also it seems my time here is over.¡± Replied Andrew venomously. Usually indifferent in most cases, there was still one trigger that could truly make Andrew truly agitated. That was someone undermining his intelligence for no reason. While it isn¡¯t so far as to being a purely narcissistic trait, it still leans towards that direction. It isn¡¯t like he is uptight and petty, as he knows his limits and only speaks what he sees as fact and will admit his inexperience in other areas. It¡¯s one of the many reasons why he could not deal with society as it was before. Arrogant and judgemental people are far too common in society which caused him to withdraw away from them into order to preserve his sanity - and keep him out of jail from the resulting urges . Buh bye, have fun with those nice men, won¡¯t you?¡± As a goblin wielding a spear tried to stop him from leaving he grabbed onto the shaft off the spear. Spinning it around, he then impaled the goblin onto its own weapon without looking back. ¡°Kekeke¡­ CCCHHHICHIIII, GUAAAAGH¡± cried a seemingly important looking goblin, the ¡®Chief¡¯ in his goblin tongue before Andrew was surrounded by six naked goblins all threatening him with a dull iron spear. ¡®Clearly the ¡®elite¡¯ bodyguards, hey?¡¯ snickered Andrew before grabbing two spears just under the tip and pulled them out the goblin¡¯s grasps. Fixing his grip, he started waving them around wildly. He slashed two goblin¡¯s in the chest, momentarily stunning them, before thrusting a spear head into another¡¯s throat causing it die rather uneventfully. The other spear he used to wave around in a small hope to block the other spears from hitting him from behind. As he pulled back the first from the goblin¡¯s throat, he felt an impact. While he did successfully block one thrust by his makeshift defence, it wasn¡¯t enough to protect him from two spears that stabbed into his body. One clipped his legs and slid off leaving a minor cut on his thigh, the other landed directly into his forearms before sliding upwards - creating a deep laceration. Blood dribbled down his arm, but rushed to his head. He let go of spear he was trying to reclaim and threw the other at one of the stunned goblins. Grabbing another two spears within reach he pulled them out of the goblin guards grip, although it held some resistance it wasn¡¯t quite enough to stop Andrew. Disarming two more he swung both spears like a club towards the necks of their old owners in front of him as he heard a loud snap. Two goblins slumped down with all their strength leaving them he swung once more, paralysing one more from the neck down, but received a burning cut, layering over his already bloody forearm. Glaring at the remaining goblin, who seemed terrified of the strange human in front of him, he slowly walked towards it. Painful cries were heard from the immobile spectators but he narrowed his vision towards the goblin who cut him for the second time. Seeing that ghastly look in the human¡¯s eyes, the goblin dropped his spear before kneeling on the ground, ¡°Chhhhi, chit, ghua...?¡± pleading with the human to spare its life. Andrew, slowly pulling out a copper short sword spoke softly to the crying goblin, ¡°An eye for an eye, no more no less. Well, you weren¡¯t entirely useless compared to the others. Congrats¡­¡± as his voice trailed off, two slashes appeared in the goblin¡¯s arm crossing over one another and blood began to pour out. Andrew walked away before grabbing the bloodied spear - covered in his own blood, before jabbing it into the heart of the four resigned goblins in turn. While one glance to the surviving goblin, who seemed to faint when he made eye contact, Andrew turned around towards the goblin chief who seemed mildly amused with his show of strength. *Clap, clap, clap* With three claps that seemed to cause the air itself to tremble the Chief stood up and quelled the remaining loud goblins whom showed intense anger towards towards the strange man. The chief stood from his wicker ¡®throne¡¯ wielding a large meat cleaver, long since stained crimson from the blood it soaked in. Considering his background, he himself stood out quite a bit from the other goblin fodder. With a lithe muscular build that stood up to the human¡¯s shoulders, a surprisingly calm expression on his hideous, wart covered face the chiefs body seemed to radiate a feeling of confidence. If the man weren¡¯t so agitated for being injured by the little green men he would have probably abandoned the girl to her fate and ran. As he spoke an evil smirk appeared on his face, ¡°So, before we get to it, I¡¯d like to ask. Are you prepared to die for some silly little brat?¡± ¡°Kekeke, chi, chit,¡± laughed the goblin before resting his cleaver on his shoulder whilst shrugging his shoulders, as if to say, ¡®are you?¡¯ Laughing alongside the chief, his smirk widened. Seeing he was given time, he operated his menu, pulling out his second sword before inserting it alongside the other in his belt loop and calmly walked over to grab another spear from one of his earlier victims. [Iron Spear Durability 12/15 Damage Rating 2-5 Made by goblin craftsmen who valued quantity over quality, this weapon holds a half-rotted shaft and a spear point no different that a common iron arrow. ] Twirling the spear in his left hand, he spoke indifferently, ¡°Ready, whenever you are Mr Chieftain.¡± To which he got a happy smile from the goblin. Each approached the another with the goblin cries in the background eachoing through the forest, obviously supporting their leader. Glancing over, ¡°Oh, if you would be so kind. Tell the little bastards to shut up. It¡¯s annoying.¡± A series of unknown feral sounds erupted from the goblin chiefs mouth before each and every goblin was too terrified to open their mouths. ¡®Huh, he has the authority, but does he have the skill to back it up? Wait, it has been, what, four hours since I¡¯ve been here? Oh well, too late now. So-Cal brat over there better give me something for this. Hopefully some armor or another sword that will hopefully not shatter within a day¡¯s time,¡¯ sighed the man before raising his spears in an impromptu cross guard. The joyous goblin happily obliged him and raised his own cleaver before setting off in a light jog towards Andrew. Thinking quickly, he hurled one of the spears as hard as he could towards the chief. Before it could impale the creature, however, the large meat cleaver turned slightly to deflect the incoming projectile. In the background a small scream was heard, but it was quickly quieted by the remaining onlookers. Gripping his other spear both hands he held it towards the charging goblin. As the goblin neared, he slashed with his massive cleaver, but Andrew lightly stepped backwards just out of range for the full force of the blow. He felt a slight pain radiate from his shoulder and saw his favorite hoodie seemed to be ripped in two after being narrowly cut through. With a small motion, he propelled the spear into the goblins leg. Even with a quick pull the spear remained lodged in the wound, he simply gave up on the weapon itself before jumping backwards away from back swing from the goblin chief¡¯s blade. Silence reigned temporarily, both man and goblin received small wounds, but each was clearly indifferent to it. Andrew shrugged off the hoodie and pulled out the two short swords at his hip while eyeing the goblin failing to pull out the spear embedded into his leg. With a scowl, the goblin raised his massive blade, cutting through the wooden shaft of the spear in one clean swipe. ¡®Yeah, lets not get hit by that thing. Doesn¡¯t seem like it would end well for me.¡¯ thought Andrew with a wry smile before raising his swords once again and meeting the eyes of the goblin chief. While rage did flash for a moment it ceased shortly afterwards. Revealing a uncharacteristically gentle smile, almost as startling as any blood lust he could give off, the chief barked a few orders before having a couple goblins bring Lisia to the stage. ¡°GUAH GAUUGH! Chua cheg chiiui chi¡­ ¡° After a long series of unknown and feral sounds escape the chieftains mouth he turned around and raised his blade towards Lisia who stood only a metre away from the goblin. As time seemed to slow, he thought to himself, ¡®Huh, she was the first ¡®person¡¯ I met here, but it doesn¡¯t look like I¡¯ll be able to save her.¡¯ Weighing his options, he noticed there was essentially no way to save the unusually meek woman who was ten metres away from him as the Chief was almost directly in front of her. As the blade fell down and Andrew had yet to move, he didn''t feel the bloodlust radiating from the goblin as he did before. ¡®Well, too late now. Should I flee while I get the chance¡­ nope. There is still an encirclement of the little green bastards, well it has been interesting all the same New World,¡¯ muttered the slightly resigned man. With a clear *Shiiing* the blade flowed through the woman before embedding itself into the ground. With a small sigh, he looked to his rear to see the goblins turn away from him to open a path. Turning to walk away, he made it a few feet before a loud screech brought him back looking forward. ¡°WAAAAAAHHHHH, I WAS SO SCARED! THANK YOU! THANK YOU!!¡± Catching him off guard he looked over only to be stunned at what he was seeing. A auburn haired woman ran past the goblin chief, who was putting his weapon back over his shoulder unto some sort of harness, and embraced the perplexed man. With the woman crying deeply into his shoulder, he instinctively ran his fingers through her silky hair before stopping abruptly. The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings. The goblin chief, albeit without his massive meat cleaver in his hand, slowly made his way to Andrew before chittering loudly. Giving up, the Chief threw a small pebble lightly at the woman¡¯s head before speaking roughly, ¡°Wo...min¡­.¡± pointing at Lisia, supplementing with feral snarls and growls, before directing his gaze to Andrew, ¡°Min, tell.¡± Although entirely shaken up, she finally understood her role in the goblin chief¡¯s eyes. Somewhat hesitantly speaking, ¡°Umm, he.. wants you to help him¡­ in exchange he will give you¡­ me. Your woman, he says,¡± she stuttered a few lines before calming slightly and correcting herself, ¡°he wants you help his clan. His clan is one of the newest, therefore weakest in the area, he was impressed with your strength and wants you help him clear some land for him. Wild beasts and rivals are the... targets? Or something to that effect, but he will gift you with¡­ any woman, goblin or otherwise, in their possession you see fit, should you so desire. And help make you stronger. That is, of course, if we go with him otherwise he won¡¯t be so generous.¡± As she translated the feral sounds her face slowly paled. He looked at her in expectation, hoping she could speak the jumbled language before he spoke, ¡°Actually, that sounds interesting. I¡¯ll agree on two conditions, one you teach me that¡­ language, if you want to call it as such, of yours. And two, although I probably don¡¯t smell wonderful myself right now, please give me some space away from the hordes of sickly smelling goblins.¡± The chieftain, although looking somewhat irritated by his comments growled a few times towards Lisia. ¡®Seems like he can understand me fine, although speaking English seems to be beyond him¡­ wait, what about that girl? Damn, my head hurts from thinking about all of this. Let it be, I guess.¡¯ Although looking somewhat frightening, the goblin chief calmly walked up to Andrew and raised his hand. Confused, but not nearly as distraught as he thought he would be, he let the hand touch his shoulder. ¡°FUCK! NOT AGAIN!?¡± cried Andrew as knowledge of the goblin tongue flooded into his already throbbing head, clamping down on it like a vice. No worlds can describe the feeling, but the immense pain quietly ended before a strange euphoria was left in its wake. Although his headache from before ended, it still wasn¡¯t enough to coax him into doing it again, or so he promised himself. Automatically, a system prompt forced its way into in vision, reading:
Congratulations, Grok the Cleaver bestowed his knowledge of the Goblin language on to you. Current progress is as follow: Skill: Language Comprehension: (Intermediate) English, (Intermediate) Elvish {Farwynd Dialect} ** Granted to allow for a simpler transition into the environment. ** (Beginner) Demi-Human {Goblin Dialect}
] After dismissing that menu he noticed pulsating alert in the top corner of his vision curious, he clicked on it before seeing a level up screen. Allotting his points into strength and agility he gazed over at his new stats.
Andrew Marks Level 4 Str: 12 Agi: 11 (+2) Per: 11 End: 9 (-2) Vit: 8 Int: 9 Wis: 8 Chr: 9(-5) Status: Withdrawal - decreases END, causes irritable behaviour thus decreasing CHR. Effect will increase as time goes on before slowly dissipating in the future if left untreated. Skill: Dual Wielding (Beginner: 1): While wielding two weapons Damage Rating penalty is reduced by 20%. Penalty currently at 30%. Grants easier range of motion and knowledge of advanced techniques are granted at base level up of the skill.
Sharing a glance, both Andrew and the Chief, marched towards a relatively secluded area leaving behind a terrified elven girl who was too scared to even move to Andrews side. As the the goblins cleared the way to let the two pass, Andrew let a smirk before speaking quietly, ¡°Testing, testing, Grok the Cleaver is a little... ¡° deliberately leaving the remainder unsaid just in case the goblin was a bit tempermental, however, he did feel the need to tease his new, ''boss.'' He caught the side glance from the goblin before it sighed, muttering, ¡°you really need ta hold back a bit. I may be able ta stop the older ones, but the youn¡¯ins will probably snap if ya speak like that..¡± Andrew, indifferently, spoke, ¡°you¡¯re the boss, are you not? You should be able to hold ¡®em back for the most part. But anyways, what do you want me to do for your, uh, people?¡± ¡°Clan,¡± the chief corrected before staring off into the distance. ¡°While back, my cousin, the bastard he is, raided our camp and stole our women. Normally, even with one or two we are fine, but the bastard stole every single one! Now every brother of mine that dies can''t even be replaced.¡± With a deliberate look at Andrew who seemed to look back at the lot that failed to kill him before. ¡°Well, they were weak.¡± stated Andrew outright, although blunt, Grok was forced to nod his head in agreement. ¡°Which leads us to the problem of what I need to do to get stronger and, adversely, help your little clan,¡± added Andrew. ¡°First, help me ta slaughter some wolves for bit of security, ya see? Preferably killing the bastards on the way, before taking back the our mine that was ''reclaimed¡¯ by some adventurer-type. Who killed my men earlier only ta leave it open for some bloody bandit group ta move in. If you get the chance, grab his head. Or better yet, bound him him for some¡­ ¡®good-natured¡¯ conversation,¡± spoke Grok caustically, clearly sharing no love for humanity in general. ¡°Sounds reasonable,¡± replied Andrew ¡°also, one small thing, can you tell your fellow Goblin¡¯s to stop tormenting the elf? Don¡¯t get me wrong, she probably deserves a fair portion of it, but it looks like it¡¯s getting out of hand.¡± Lisia, who was sobbing quietly, was approached by three of the more aggressive goblins who, out of curiosity, started inspecting the strange creature in front of their eyes. All three were within arms reach quietly studying the rare specimen that stood before them. Just as one was about to touch her hair an intense feral snarl flowed out of the Chieftain¡¯s mouth. ¡°Whoever touches that girl, will have their arms cut off and be thrown to the wolf pit later! That creature is currently this one¡¯s property.¡± As he pointed to the tall, blond man who held his twin swords dramatically towards the curious group they all froze. The goblin, whose breath could be felt on the girl¡¯s neck, twitched before sprinting back several feet and thrusted his head into the ground while kneeling - towards Andrew. ¡®To them, women are probably treated more as property than anything else,¡¯ he mused to himself, entirely indifferent to the whole scenario. Stepping over the kneeling goblin, he raised his hand towards the petrified girl. Seemingly still somewhat scarred, he forced her to her feet while half dragging her back to where Grok was waiting for them - well, him specifically. Sighing lightly after seeing the strange behaviour of the human, he discarded the thought and gave one final cry, ¡°Camp. Now,¡± and bounded into the woods. The goblins soon followed and Andrew was forced to drag the dazed, uncooperative girl across the rough landscape by the scruff of her neck in an attempt to keep pace with his good arm. As he would have expected, the goblins ran in a completely unorganised manner, which slightly irritated the man for some reason, but allowed him to follow the slower goblins back to their camp. Half an later, an exhausted man pitched the delirious girl from over his shoulder onto the hard ground. Gasping for breath all the while before collapsing himself. Earlier into the run he gave up on dragging her, as it was slowing him down far more than he had thought, then decided to raise her over his shoulder in a fireman''s carry. Although easily less than a hundred pounds, she still weighed him down to no end, forcing him to dread every step he took. Coincidentally the impact woke her up from her stupor. Where, naturally, she immediately began yelling at the exhausted, injured man. ¡°How¡­ how.. how could you?! You, you throw me down like a piece of trash after dragging me through miles of thorns, rocks, branches-by the neck no less!¡± fumed the elven woman. Looking at her appearance now, no one would even consider her to be remotely attractive. Her once only slightly tattered clothes tore through to reveal a little too much flesh in some places but held just enough to hold some dignity. Scratches and bruises littered her body adding to those she had before her encounter with Andrew but the furious expression on her face was a sight to see for the exhausted man. After involving him in her problems he finally felt that she repaid that debt even if only a little. Softly muttering defiantly, ¡°Well, if you could have moved your flat ass a little bit through the woods you wouldn¡¯t be in that situation. Or better yet, not getting captured once again. Really, this world is full of ¡®what ifs¡¯ but what happened, happened. So deal with it. Unless, of course, you can become friends with the chief in my place?¡± Although not intended as such, he realised he threatened the elf-girl but decided against caring about. ¡®We are even now,¡¯ he figured. As he suspected, she paled at the mention of the massive goblin, Grok. Somewhat stuttering, ¡°Ha.. ha¡­ you wouldn¡¯t do something like that after all this, would you¡­? Of course not, you saved me and¡­ and¡­ I guess I¡¯m your woman now...¡± she murmured with a slightly red face in resignation. ¡°As far as they are concerned, sure, but I don¡¯t really care all that much what happens to you. Sure, it would be inconvenient, but I usually make do regardless. After this goblin thing is over you are free to go wherever. Maybe I¡¯ll escort you back; maybe I won¡¯t. Don¡¯t count on me, al...right...?¡± He replied as his voice was fading away and drifted off into a dreamless sleep. ----- Chapter 5 Back Story, most tend to ignore which is fair because it is kind of block-y even in my opinion, will modify it later as soon as I catch up on some of the chapter''s that are floating around my head. ------- Smelling a sweet scent waft into nose, Andrew staggered up to see what was happening. Although he didn¡¯t realise it earlier, he felt dull, throbbing pain in his stomach forcing him to remember back to the day before. ¡®So it wasn¡¯t a dream, huh? Well¡­ I haven¡¯t eaten for, what, two millennia for all I know.¡¯ he thought back with a wry smile. He still was slightly despondent but he felt that some small part of himself was connecting him with the environment. It gave him a small sense of hope for the future and drive to compete for it. In front of him stood as freshly bathed Lisia, standing over a small pot with a sweet fragrance exuding out of it. Garnering the most attention, however, was the travelling outfit sewn from a grey animal pelt to fit her curvaceous body perfectly. As he was staring rather intently on her body thinking, ¡®Where the hell did she get that, hell, even just the pelts. The goblins hardly seemed to have any to spare for themselves so why the hell would she have some,¡¯ although she turned her head around bashfully he caught the sight of an even more child-like than usual goblin hiding in the trees. With a rather nervous expression it seemed to be waiting to drop off a small pelt to - from the reverence in their eyes - their Goddess. Sighing, not even bothering to be disturbed by the worship itself, Andrew walked towards the river with the envious eyes of the goblins on his back. With a backwards glance, he glared at the goblins before lobbing one of his many clubs at the goblins faces. Scrambling they avoided it by a hairsbreadth, but in turn shrunk back in fear after meeting his eyes. Although it was meant only to teach them to keep their distance it seemed to cause them all to fear his presence. Getting tired of the feeling of harassing these goblins, he walked off towards the river to wash his face from yesterday¡¯s events. Approaching the river he was surprised to see the crystal clears water. Never before in his life had he seen a natural body of water with such a clean, refreshing look to it. Although he was starving, it wasn¡¯t like it was the first time it happened to him. Back when he was a child his mother was a heavy meth user who, ironically, met up with a fresh army brat who was on back in town after his deployment overseas. One thing led to another and he was born. Only his father had no idea he even existed. Let alone supporting her child, his mother wasn¡¯t even able to support her habit most days and often abandoned him on the street or in a stranger¡¯s house for days on end before she was coherent enough to even remember him. Luckily, besides frequent starvation and abandonment nothing too immensely bad happened to him. Even as he grew older and learned the tricks of the trade to survive on the streets, seeing his own mother sell herself in passing, neither ever acknowledged the other until they laid together in their dingy back alley to fall into a restless sleep on the streets. With all their moving around, it was no wonder that child services couldn¡¯t locate them, however, one night he found her unconscious in their meet-up location. At the age of 12 years old he found his own mother comatose in a dirty street. He vividly recalled screaming up and down the streets for someone to help but most turned a blind eye to the dirty street urchin. After no small amounts of abuse, in the way of pushing, punching, or kicking the hysterical boy away from the people, a kind young man finally lowered himself onto one knee to talk, face to face, with the young boy, Somewhat hesitant to follow the boy into a dark, isolated alley the man simply stood at the opening on the alley way before opening his phone passing it to the child. ¡°Call 911,¡± he instructed, but the boy only looked at him in bewilderment, assuming the boy was a method of bait, the man scoffed at him before walking away. Eventually the commotion caused a passing police officer to stop by the check out the situation. After being explained to him, the police officer ran directly into the alley where the boy directed him towards his mother. Luckily - or not so luckily - the mother was still breathing. Even after years of sporadic abandonment she was the only person who he even remotely had a connection with at this point in his life. Days came and went, in the hospital stood a small boy who refused to leave her side. A greying doctor came to him and spoke gently, ¡°She is getting better, but you have to do yourself a favor and get some rest. A nice lady will pick you up, Andy. You can have a lot of friends, food to eat whenever you want, and you will still be able to see her again whenever you would like. But, right now, this isn¡¯t the place for you.¡± Although previously entirely uneducated, he made great strides to better himself so that he could be by his mother¡¯s side. Four years past by rather uneventfully, he caught up to his grade level and more, shocking most people who had seen his nearly feral appearance before. ¡®A miracle,¡¯ one said to him in one of his monthly check-ups at the orphanage he resided in, but even with a few close friends he still didn¡¯t have much of a functioning social life. Eat, sleep, study. Even when his guardians got into contact with his biological father he simply replied to whatever was expected of him and kept quiet most of the time after that. It was just before he finished high school that his mother finally woke up. Improving steadily in his interactions with people he finally had what some would call popularity. Neither, the highest in the social hierarchy, nor the lowest but it was an overall improvement all the same. Feeling excited over the news he skipped class to run the three odd miles to the hospital. As he was he admitted and given some basic procedural conduct in the room, he was feeling his heartbeat almost as if it was going to escape from his chest. Creeping into the room, a greying woman turned her head to face him with her dull, pale blue eyes. Seeing her reaction, Andrew immediately felt tears moisten his eyes as he sputtered, ¡°H-h-how are you?¡± This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.¡°... Who are you?¡± she spoke in genuine curiosity. Laughing awkwardly in hopes of lightening the atmosphere, he spoke, ¡°It¡¯s¡­ been a few years you know? Well, over five to be exact, but I¡¯m¡­ Andrew.... Andy, remember?¡± ¡°Who is that..?¡± She spoke softly once again, tilting her greying head to the side. ¡°I¡¯m your son¡­¡± ¡°I¡¯ve never had any kids, let alone someone named Andrew,¡± she spoke with an increasingly firm resolution as a flash appeared in her eyes. ¡°I-I-I ¡­ see. Well, I hope you have a good day¡­¡± spoke Andrew as he exited the door where tears were already rolling down his face. As he got further, and further away his grief turned into bitterness and his bitterness turned into seething hatred. ¡®First, you take away my childhood, starving me, abandoning me to violent crack heads who beat me by their own convenience. Forcing me to steal, peddle drugs, all for a slip of bread and a glass of water. While you are having the time of your life having sex with anyone with a bloody dick just to shoot up a little more?¡± More and more memories rolled into his mind, but the woman disregarded everything that she ever did to him, caused him to him to suffer just so he could be at her side at her own convenience. Fuming, he wandered around until he was forced to go home, back to the orphanage. The next day, bright and early, he left for school again. Barely five minutes into first period he saw the crackhead, who beat him nearly daily in the past, face him and dislocated his best friend¡¯s jaw, then the dealer, who smacked him around whenever he saw him, shattering a classmate''s wrist. Other images flashed in his mind as madly swung at the innocent students before three of his friends, all football jocks, tackled him to the ground. Pinning every limb to the ground, he screamed, cursed the world before finally starting to cry. No one spoke for a long time in the class room. Even the girls who would gossip at every little thing were stunned silent as the quiet kid, who got along relatively well with everyone, assaulted numerous students before finally breaking down. Time passed, he was in an isolation cell with a detective and social worker whilst being chained to the opposing wall in handcuffs. ¡°So can you tell us why this incident occurred,¡± spoke the detective with a soft voice which didn¡¯t quite fit with his tough exterior. ¡°...¡± With dead eyes, Andrew simply stared off into space reliving those horrible memories. ¡°Hey, kid. You know we can help you out if you need it?¡± Tried the detective once again before letting out a long sigh. With no reaction from the dispondant Andrew, the social worker opened up his case file before reviewing it in silence. During those tense moments the detective fidgeted uncomfortably. The social worker took a passing glance at the officer before thinking, ¡®clearly he isn¡¯t exactly experienced in this sort of an interview.¡¯ ¡°Your name is Andrew Marks, correct? It says here, your mother, a drug addict, was taking care of you during your childhood when you living in the streets. Does this sound about right so far?¡± Feeling an ember of rage begin to burn in his stomach he scoffed loudly before turning away from the social worker. Smiling inwardly, the social worker thought, ¡®Ah, so that''s how it is.¡¯ ¡°And from what I can gather, she loved you very, very much. So much so that she sold herself on to others to allow you to eat and survive in that cruel environment?¡± This time he received a pointed glare seething with hatred, not to him, but someone else, likely Andrew¡¯s mother mused the social worker. Continuing on, the social worker pressed further, ¡°and even with such a cruel fate awaiting her, she still woke up to receive you with open arms, correct? Ah, I must be correct, she seems to love you very much, but here we are, her precious child in custody, surely she would grieve to hear of such a situation. Finally, after the torment brought upon by the social worker, he snapped. He screamed, all the while shaking and grinding the handcuffs on the pole, explaining the hell he put him through. Months on end without seeing her, starving nearly daily, occasionally forced to run drugs through the slums of downtown only to be beaten if he disobeyed. How he worked so hard for her recognition before being discarded and turned to the side by her indifferent words. How it was all ¡°normal.¡± As he spoke, his rage turned to callousness and his grief turned into emptiness. He felt his life leave him, no aspirations, no dreams, nothing left for him to lean on. For people merely cared about themselves. No one, even a mother, could ever needlessly help another. How life so was fake, shallow, irrelevant. The media, someway or another, got involved in the story and everything regarding his background found its way into public speculation. While most tended to distance themselves from these emotions, the overwhelming felt sympathy toward the young man who had been through so much. It worked out in his favor as the reparations that were charged were paid for by public donations and all criminal charges were dropped, however, the scar still remained. ----- Chapter 6 Returning his gaze to the water he saw small minnows playfully swimming alongside one another. Sighing deeply, and shaking his head he discarded his clothing before jumping directly into the small river¡¯s shallow water. Laying down on back he let body submerge itself in the clear waters before gently scrubbing his body with his hands. The cuts and bruises seemed to disappear slowly with every passing second of water¡¯s flow. Minutes passed in this gentle embrace before his body seemed to be removed off its natural fatigue and he, somewhat reluctantly, lifted himself up and out of the serene water. Walking a little further upstream, he cupped his hands under the water¡¯s surface before drinking the water directly.
You have discovered a river which is connected to the Fae¡¯s pond. Due to bathing in the mystically waters all minor injuries have been healed, in addition to any minor ailments you may have been inflicted with.
Strangely, while his thirst was taken care of by the waters, his hunger was also affected. Now, while he could eat, he didn¡¯t feel the gnawing pain nor did he hear the irritating growl that once plagued him insistently. He simply felt - content. Redressing only with his black boxers and grey tank top, he tied his long hair back. With the aid of a small stick he packed up the remainder of his outer clothes. Due to the inconceivably large amount of rancid goblin blood spilled by his now allies, he opted against even touching them again but he forced himself to drop it off new a fire so he could at least burn them properly. He walked back towards Lisia and his campsite or, more accurately, the location in which he passed out the night before. In a few short minutes he made it back to see the fire dying with only a few fading embers still burning to maintain the heat from the breakfast. Considering the fire it should have long since been ready. Seeing no one nearby, he shrugged of sneaking suspicion that he was being watched and looked in the pot. A brown soup, with assorted vegetables that may or may not poisonous as he knew literally nothing about the ecology in this strange world. While it did look like she knew somewhat about the process of cooking it was a little too rough to be considered anything above a passing interest in the subject. Nonetheless, he grabbed a small, carved wooden bowl and upon not seeing a ladle he brought the bowl directly into the small vat of mysterious vegetable soup. Leveling it out he pulled it out so he could see it more clearly. ¡®Yep, just as I thought, nothing even looks remotely familiar. Turnip maybe? Oh well, likely she wouldn¡¯t be so cruel as to poison it. I did piss her off, indirectly threaten her, and whatnot but I imagine she would wait until she is at least safe.¡¯ As he was about to take a sip of the broth a scream forced him to raise his head. ¡°Who are you?!¡± ¡°Andrew Marks, nice to meet you, thanks for breakfast¡± He spoke indifferently before adding,¡±and stop standing there like an idiot, your skirt is waving in the breeze. And from what I can gather you definitely are not wearing anything underneath.¡± ¡°Yo- you, you shameless bastard! I knew it couldn¡¯t be true!¡± cried Lisia before her cheeks tinged a slight rosy shade. ¡°What can¡¯t be true? I¡¯m curious, enlighten me.¡± ¡°Uh, uhm nothing! Absolutely nothing at all!¡± she stuttered before finishing up rather defiantly. ¡®It can¡¯t be true! He, he was wearing a hood in the beginning and then was covered in blood spatter. Why is someone so callous, so.. so..¡¯ she began trailing off in her head. Yawning loudly, Andrew addressed a nearby goblin fan, ¡°Goblin A over there, do me a favor a throw a rock at her or something. She looks like she¡¯s broken,¡± before returning to his meal. It definitely wasn¡¯t horrible but there were quite a few things missing or simply just, ¡®wrong,¡¯ in the dish. Even so, he finished it without complaint and ending up scooping up another two portions before finally setting the bowl down. Seeing a small bruise in the middle of her forehead he thought to himself, ¡®must¡¯ve been one of my goblins, not one her little devotees.¡¯ Without realising, however, that the clan he was in was a heavily patriarchal system of belief, therefore even as a Goddess to the young goblins, the owner was placed on an even higher pedestal. Without catching the exact words in her angry grumble she sat down nearby asking, ¡°How was it, by the way, honestly I¡¯ve never done much of this kind of thing before,¡± as she pointed to the empty bowl. ¡°I noticed, but even so it definitely wasn¡¯t bad by any means. Maybe I am just not used to the taste of this kind of food.¡± replied Andrew as he looked off into the distance. ¡°I-I see, well if you liked it, I guess I can make more if you would be interested?¡± ¡°Sure, why not? Oh, if possible, after the hunt today add a bit of meat to the menu. Ah, that sounds demanding, regardless. What are your plans for the day?¡± ¡°I¡¯d rather go with you than¡­ *sigh* please just don¡¯t leave me alone with them, will you?¡± She spoke softly, half in resignation for the situation, half due to the face that he was the only somewhat decent person in the goblin encampment. ¡°Sure, but I refuse to do another princess/evil monster rescue thing again, so look after yourself as I won¡¯t always be able to.¡± replied Andrew casually. Not even paying attention to the pouting girl, he operated the inventory screen before pulling out one of the two iron spears that he grabbed as everyone rushed off suddenly. Lightly dropping it into her palm he stood up before ripping off his belt from his discarded pants. Luckily, it was a purely adjustable model that could fit any size, or so said the company. He slipped it off and tightened it above his hips just enough to given him room to insert the twin short swords but also to keep it from falling off his waist. The only downside was the fact that the belt was cloth - tough, hardened cloth, but cloth all the same. Estimating it would last two days if he was lucky, Andrew scowled thinking he¡¯d have to ruin yet another piece of clothing just for the convenience in this world. Even so, he placed his two swords on to his hip, and pulled out the iron spear to act a walking stick for the time being. Walking with Lisia in tow, Andrew slowly made it central portion of the camp in hopes of finding Grok, or at the very least the location of the wolves. Even simply meandering about, looking at the pitifully small mud and stick built shacks, he attracted the attention of nearly every goblin in their makeshift camp. ¡®In the few games I¡¯ve played, this is usually where they all pull out some weapon or another and try to murder you, hey?¡¯ he mused to himself whilst thinking about what would happen should these fifty men and children come after him. Creeping up behind a random working goblin laborer, he lightly tapped on his shoulder. ¡°What¡¯d you want, I¡¯m busy her ca...can¡¯t be..!¡± cried the goblin fearfully. Andrew curiously took a long look at the goblin to see if he came across him before or if he is just that terrifying to these villagers. Looking at him, up and down, caused the goblin no small amount of anxiety but it finally clicked for Andrew. Seeing crossed scar across the forearm of the goblin everything finally made sense. With a predatory smile Andrew said dramatically, ¡°Ah, Goblin Spearman! The man who cut this one¡¯s body! For such a valiant warrior such as yourself to be working with the fodder; have you no shame. The Gods¡¯ granted you that spear arm and now you simply pile mud bricks into a foundation? Alas, the Gods are cruel but I shall do my best to set you on the right way! If you are the man I think you are, grab your spear and come help me slay these furred menaces from your territory. Do you not wish to see your brothers safe, your children secure, and your home far from the fields of battle?¡± tilting his head as if forcing him to comment - and consent - in front of his goblin clan members. The Goblin, strangely, plain faced for his kind or perhaps slightly more feminine, sighed to himself before continuing the dramatic conversation, ¡°I, Taryk, of the Cleaver clan fear no beast. Follow me for I will guide you to den of mangy beasts. Let it be known, I, Taryk, will bring the heads and skins of at least ten wolves with the help of these brave companions.¡± After the announcement, he nodded towards the human who forced him into this assignment and marched south from the camp with a forced, appearance of determination on his face. Laughing inwardly to himself, Andrew pushed the confused Lisia by the shoulder before following along the tense goblin. After they got some distance away from the prying eyes and ears of the villagers he slowed to a stop before laughing outright. Taryk, giving a wry smile, chuckled a little bit before speaking, ¡°it¡¯s not that I don¡¯t trust your strength, but can you handle a pack alone? I can probably handle one¡­ with difficulty. This little miss, on the other hand, is kind of useless, doesn¡¯t look like she even knows which side to poke with.¡± Before nodding to the spear. ¡°Lisia, calm down. Even if he probably isn¡¯t wrong, in all honesty you should be the bigger person here,¡± quipped Andrew nonchalantly towards to annoyed elf before she could speak up. Giggling was heard in background but Andrew ignored it, moving towards past the Taryk, the forcibly recruited goblin, and his tag-a-long elf, Lisia. Shouting, ¡°Let¡¯s go already, I¡¯m tired of walking around in my underwear so let¡¯s kill some wolves so I can make some bloody pants. Oh, and Taryk, no idea we¡¯ll find out on the way,¡± he waited for his guide to catch up before departing for his first real quest. Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
Reclamation of the Goblin Village. Grok the Cleaver, Chief of the small Cleaver clan requested you to perform three deeds to show both your strength and valor. In return, he will grant the Player the strength to stand up towards their future foes as well rewards depending on the contributions for each successful mission. In Progress:
  • Kill the surrounding wolves, bringing back both the meat and skin to allow the goblin militia to grow stronger. Reward: Armor, ???
Optional: Assist Taryk in obtaining 10 wolf heads and pelts to ensure his reputation upon arrival back in the village. Reward: Unlocks Taryk as a (potential) companion, increases his strength, and improves relations with both him and the goblin clan. Optional: Kill the Den Mother. Reward/Consequence: While the surrounding wolves number dwindles, wars between each clan will intensify, however, as an individual representing the Cleaver clan the wolves will begin to feel both fear and respect towards the clan allowing Goblins in the Cleaver clan to utilize them as mounts in battle.
  • Reclaim the iron mine the clan once held possession of to increase the quantity and quality of available weapons for your troops. Reward: Weapon, ???
Optional: Locate and deal with the enemy Adventurer. Reward/Consequence: Grok will reward you with money, goblin women (based on availability), or gear. If captured alive, all three options are unlocked as repayment. Relations may be adversely affected with the Adventurers faction.
  • Assault the enemy clan, the Impalers, and rescue the captured women.
Optional: Annihilate the enemy military and chieftain, restoring the clan¡¯s honor and absorbing the Impalers clan goblins. Reward: Title, ???
Soon they cleared the camp borders and advanced further south down a winding trail. Feeling the cracked pavement under his feet covered by the dense foliage was a feeling he still could not get used to. As his mind drifted away he considered what had truly happened to his world. More so out of curiosity rather than concern, but from the looks of the environment - or, rather, what was left of it - it was his world, but, evidently, these types of creatures standing before him were not from his own. ¡®Were they brought over here and just re-coded? From the ¡®Corporation''s¡¯ claims and, well, my own experience, it doesn¡¯t seem to be that far-fetched.¡¯ Feeling the spear stuck to the ground he decided against paying attention to the more political aspects of how this, ¡®Game¡¯ came to be. Slowing momentarily, he pulled the butt end of the spear out of a wide crack in the concealed concrete forest floor before trudging forward once again. ¡®So basically, I just have to kill a number of wolves. Hmm, I wonder what level why would be.. Wait, is there even a even or health status screen thing?¡¯ Operating the menu screen to access the help section, he reread the article about combat. As he glanced over it he laughed at himself in self-derision. Apparently, in order to not interfere with ¡®game-play¡¯ the developers designed so that when looking at an enemy while thinking, ¡®identify,¡¯ one can see the enemies level, health, stamina, mana and depending on familiarity with the creature they can also see a brief description on their characteristics and abilities. In addition, this ¡®inspect¡¯ can also be used to examine equipment and items from outside of the menu screen. Approaching a small river the trio spotted a single silvery-grey wolf, back turned and drinking contentedly from the river. In all honesty, it appeared almost identical to its normal cousins but was quite a bit bigger. Standing nearly six feet tall and much, much longer. Raising a closed fist to tell the pair trailing behind him to stop, for no other reason than telling to be quiet and no interfere. ¡®I need to test my strength on that one. Massive jaws, claws, and paws. Oh, right!¡¯ he mused to himself, with a small smirk creeping up onto his face. Concentrating as he was told to do towards the large wolf, he thought, ¡®Identify.¡¯ Soundless a new notification popped up in the corner of the his vision, when he pressed on it, it read: [Mutated Grey Wolf (Level 7) Description: ??? Abilities: ??? ] He sighed to himself, thinking it wasn¡¯t even worth it to to check out the wolf. Yes, it was only barely within his abilities, but even so, in order to maintain some degree of stealth it simply wasn¡¯t worth it to use all that regularly. Forcing his iron spear into Lisia¡¯s trembling hand, he withdrew one of the goblin bows in his possession. Notching an arrow, from his dwindling supply, he aimed at the wolf¡¯s head which was just peeking out from its body, due to the awkward angle of the shot. Loosing it through the underbrush altered the arrow¡¯s trajectory a bit, but with pain filled cry from the wolf told Andrew he was successful. Exchanging the bow with the spear from Lisia¡¯s grip he noticed the wolf paw at it face a few times for glaring at the approaching man over its shoulder. Walking out of the brush and over to river bank he saw it surprisingly hits its mark. Just under the eye socket of the wolf¡¯s head was an embedded arrow. ¡®Normally I¡¯d be happy that it hit¡­ but what in the actual hell is that?¡¯ Between the feral snarls and growls escaping his throat he noticed something absolutely different from his expectations. Two heads, one bleached silver the other nearly identical - if it weren¡¯t soaking in its own blood, roared with fury. Pacing back and forth, glaring at the man all the while, as if deciding what is the most pain they can cause him before devouring him entirely. ¡°Hey, Cerb, looks like you¡¯re arguing with your ¡®twin,¡¯ or whomever that extra head is on your shoulders. Let¡¯s play fetch, ¡®kay?¡± Spoke Andrew callously before throwing the spear towards the ¡®pair¡¯ as hard as he could. Unsurprisingly, the two wolves both reacted the spear. One was clearly drowning in bloodlust causing its body to propel forward before the other stepped in, barking at the maddened wolf head, and forcing its body to veer off to the side. The spear, however, still flew straight and sliced the flank of the wolf¡¯s body shallowly before stumbling in the air and sailing past the charging wolf. As the spear left his hands, Andrew pulled his two short swords out of his make-shift holster into hands. Now, both heads of the wolf were enraged and attacked as one. Pouncing towards the human only a few metres away, they cleared five metres as they extended their claws to rip the man¡¯s torso apart. Ducking slightly, he dived underneath the pouncing wolf while tucking his blades in close to his chest. As he landed on left shoulder to start a roll he rolled forwards before lifting his tucked right sword up to stab deeply in the wolf¡¯s torso. Letting go of the sword lodged in the stomach of the wolf, he quickly stood up and sprinted over to his spear Just barely able to manage grasping the handle before an impact knocked him face first into the ground. Dazed and winded, he felt a searing pain in his back, before he unsteadily got back to his feet. Turning to face the monstrous wolf, he exhaled slowly feeling the air find its way back in his lungs but at the cost of adding a torturous pain to fill up both his chest and back. The wolf, seemingly enjoying this spectacle, paced back and forth before slowly, with a slight limp, making its way to Andrew. The iron spear in his right and his short sword in his left, Andrew approached the wolf, each staring at the other¡¯s eyes to try to find a sense of sudden movement. Finally, once more at a few metres apart, each party moved at once. ¡®Probably suicidal now, but I don¡¯t have much of a choice,¡¯ Andrew charged forward as the wolf pounced once more. Opening both sets of gaping jaws, the wolf bit down before it felt a sharp pain come from its chest once more - and again, and again, until it felt its power leave it and fell to the ground. Andrew, thinking quickly, stabbed the iron spear into the ground at an angle to act as a palisade stopping the wolf in mid air before diving underneath the airborne wolf once more. Slowly rolling over because of the dreadful pain in his body, he unleashed stab after stab into the wolf¡¯s body before it finally collapsed. Far too exhausted to move, Andrew, already covered in the wolf¡¯s blood now felt the entire weight of the corpse fall onto his chest. ----- Chapter 7 How do I do tables? It is absolutely beyond me at the moment, any one who is more tech savvy then please explain it in simple terms considering the RR {table} (obviously subbed with []) thing doesn''t seem to work. Anyways, enjoy! And feel free to leave comments!
------------------------------------------------- Struggling only made it more difficult with every passing second so he positioned his first blade, still embedded into the flesh of the wolf, with the little strength he had left to clear just enough of an area allow for some weight to be taken off, but better yet a clear breathing passage. ¡°A-a-a¡­ Andrew! Are¡­ are you.. alright?¡± Cried a once again shaken Lisia. Considering his position, he let out a small breath before looking at the notification screen in front of him.
You have leveled up! You have three stat points to distribute into your primary stats.
You have leveled up! You have three stat points to distribute into your primary stats.
Current quest progress:
  • 1/10 wolves slain
Congratulations! You have learned the skill, [Improvisation] due to your repeated use with scavenged weapons
¡°ANDREW, CAN YOU HEAR ME?!¡± Cried Lisia hysterically. Playing around with the menu - mentally, as he found out works, whilst ignoring the woman completely, he saw to his upper left existed a flashing red and green bar. ¡®Oh, health and stamina bars, I almost forgot about that. Well, so long as I don¡¯t die, there shouldn¡¯t be much of a problem.¡¯ Shrugging off the bars for the time being, he went back to allotting his new found stats and checking out his new skill.
Andrew Marks Level 6 Str: 12 (+1) (-1) Agi: 12 (+1) (+2) (-1) Per: 12 (+1) End: 10 (+1) (-1) Vit: 10 (+1) Int: 9 (+1) Wis: 8 (+1) Chr: 9 (+1) Lck: ? (+1) Status: Bleeding - Will continue to lose health until treated. Bruising - Due to the severe abuse your body has received, AGI, STR, and END will decrease by 1 until healed. Skill: Dual Wielding (Beginner: 2): While wielding two weapons Damage Rating penalty is reduced by 22%. Penalty currently at 28%. Grants easier range of motion and knowledge of advanced techniques are granted at base level up of the skill. Improvisation (Beginner: 1): You arm yourself to the teeth before encounter any situation, using any available tactics and weapons in a manner to ensure your survival in this new age. Increases attack rating by 5% for all weapons. Increases hit chance and critical chance by 2% for all weapons (be it; physical damage based melee, thrown, or projectile). Spell failure rate decreases by 3% and spell duration increases by 3%. +1 to all stats including luck.
Deciding on a path for general survivability, he evened out most of his more combat orientated stats. Even knocking Vitality up by three points in hopes to be in less pain, or at the very least, heal faster on the move. Dismissing the menu, Andrew found himself face to face with a fuming Lisia who shouted furiously, ¡°If you were alive, tell me! I was so worried, but no, you get had to stare off into space for the hundredth time instead of even letting me know!¡± ¡°Oi, Taryk, can you help me out here. This bastard is heavy and I don¡¯t think I¡¯d be able to handle it alone.¡± he spoke to Taryk, ignoring Lisia again, who he saw somewhat as a pest after being berated while he was still in a fair amount of pain. ¡°You may be small but you should be strong enough to give me leverage with the spear at least.¡± ¡°On it, but what about that one?¡± came a voice outside of vision. ¡°Lisia? She may be good at a few things but fighting sure as hell isn¡¯t one of them. Hell, even I¡¯m weak or at least compared to these furry bastards.¡± muttered Andrew before turning his away from the elf¡¯s face, or, as much as he could considering the circumstances. ¡°Hey! I heard tha-¡± ¡°Get ready, Human!¡± began Lisia before being cut off. Feeling a bit of weight taken off of his chest he dragged himself from underneath the corpse with difficulty. As he emerged, Taryk whistled jokingly, ¡°Well, I¡¯ll be, we have got ourselves a certified demon on the loose her, am I right Miss?¡± ¡°Yeah, yeah,¡± he spoke casually waving it off but he couldn¡¯t deny it at all. From his neck down he was soaked in crimson blood, four long jagged slashes flayed the back of his shirt which just barely hung on to his body. The once grey undershirt became dyed red with both his and the wolf¡¯s blood. The countless scratches from the trek had already started to heal but remained a bright red only emphasizing the dark blood he was bathed in. The only space the relatively presentable was his face, small cuts here and there from thistles or tree branches that swung into face on the way here. But all in all it was nowhere near as bad as the remainder of his body. Lisia, in shock because of screaming at what could easily be seen as a dead man, remained silent but Taryk spoke again questioningly, ¡°Not that I was paying too much attention before but did you get, bigger? Skinnier? What the hell, I can¡¯t even place it.¡± Laughingly lightly, ¡°Ah, that¡¯s the system here, from my experiences anyways, as you get ¡®stronger,¡¯ ie level up you body grows accordingly. Strength makes you, well, jacked? Agility, more toned, Endurance makes your body density greater, and Vitality¡­ no idea. Charm probably makes you more attractive, don¡¯t know if it¡¯s race specific though.¡± ¡°Interesting, interesting,¡± replied the goblin deep in thought, ¡°say, if I were to follow you around and get ¡®stronger¡¯ would that make me become like the Chief?¡± ¡°Probably - less ugly, I¡¯d imagine though. But seems like that¡¯s the case. No guarantees or anything. Plus there is the whole, ¡®You are likely to die thing,¡¯ but I don¡¯t know if that bothers you all that much.¡± As he spoke in a lackluster manner he wiped his now recovered swords on the pelt of the wolf. Walking around to the front of the wolf corpse - as he had imagined - Andrew saw the iron spears handle snapped into fragments under the pressure of the wolf¡¯s assault. While the spear head was perhaps recoverable, he truly didn¡¯t want to experience any more of that creature¡¯s blood any time soon. Deciding it was as good of a time as any for a snack, he snapped his fingers in front of Lisia¡¯s face. Startling her awake from what delusion or internal conflict she had at the time, he asked Lisia to gather firewood with him while leaving Taryk to work on the corpse. Even before the pair walked away, the lent Novice Dagger already made quick work on wolf¡¯s body expanding the already substantial pool of blood significantly. As the duo walked into the wood Lisia quietly asked, ¡°Hey, do you¡­ think someone like me could be able to hold my own against some of these creatures?¡± ¡°Sure, why not? Can you kill though? Seriously, it¡¯s kind of a pre-requisite if you want to improve by the, ¡®Game¡¯s,¡¯ standards. Or, at least, as far as I¡¯ve experienced anyways.¡± ¡°Umm, Andrew, do you by chance know what race I am? I can obviously tell you speak my language but some things that came out of your mouth seem so.. Foreign? I don¡¯t quite know how to word it, but, regardless, it¡¯s one of my sacred vows, upon coming of age, to protect the creatures of this world with my life - not slaughter them.¡± ¡°Huh, who was the one who screamed, ¡®kill all of the vermin,¡¯ or something to that effect, not too long ago,¡± yawned Andrew with a clearly uninterested expression. ¡°I - I - It, isn¡¯t like that!¡± Lisia pouted sheepishly. Clearing her throat - as if it would cause her previous lack of composure to disappear, she continued on, ¡°we defend our people as well, even if we have to break our vows! To simply go and attack an innocent species¡­ it is a little unfair don¡¯t you think?¡± ¡°Before or after they sink their fangs, claws, swords, or whatever else into your clansmen? Can you really call your home a safe one if your people¡¯s beliefs require the blood of their own to act. Also there is another issue of turning your belief system upside down for circumstances that are easily avoidable¡­ Well, assuming, of course, your people are not already on the bottom of the food chain.¡± ¡°Yo-you! You arrogant, ignorant, uncultured ass! To think I held some faith in you! You are the - ¡± Staring blankly at the ranting elf, as she spoke on and on, Andrew turned backwards and started to walk away. Looking over his shoulder he spoke, ¡°Hey, you might want to a get a move on or else you¡¯ll become some puppy chow. Whether or not you follow through with some unfounded ideal such as all life was created equally is up to you. But the wolves in this area sure as hell won¡¯t even bat an eye. And, at this point, even if you are being chased by some mongrel I¡¯ll just watch it for entertainment value.¡± Considering all that was required of them was a few pounds of dry small twigs, a bit of bark, and some slightly more sustainable logs to keep the fire ablaze; it was all dealt with rather quickly. Getting back into camp with a loose bundle of wood was quite a bit more challenging compared to gather the materials, however. With every step weighed down by the haul in his arms, he felt the wounds in his back throb sharply. It was all he could do to keep his mouth shut, refusing to show his weakness in front of the frail elf. Even to him, Andrew didn¡¯t quite understand why he was so insistent on keeping a composed face in her presence. ¡®Just male pride. Ridiculous, stubborn male pride. Or could it be¡­ She¡¯s the one holding me together? Unlikely, but whatever it is, I can think about it later. It¡¯s barely even been a full day here yet.¡¯ Shaking his head to clear his thoughts once more, Andrew headed back to the temporary camp. On the way over he spotted many animals and plants he disregarded earlier in his haste. Most creatures seemed to resemble those he was once used to, but the differences caused him to be slightly taken aback. Cyan coloured squirrels with a extra pair of arms as well as an additional tail seemed to try to threaten him by, ¡®pelting¡¯ him with berries. At this point his clothes were already essentially ruined so he didn¡¯t mind too much. Merely hoping that there was no corrosive substance in the strange berry that would cause him to lose another article of clothing for good. In addition, existing alongside the strange six - or arguably, eight limbed rodent, were miniaturized dogwood trees growing from the branches of the various species of larger trees; be it a traditional spruce or even a wilting willow.. ¡®Some sort of parasite or weed, perhaps? Wait, did I hear something?¡¯ ¡°...help¡­ help me.. I was.. wrong!¡± came out between gasping breaths behind him in the distance. ¡°Hmmm, what are you doing, please don¡¯t tell me you¡¯re¡­¡± started Andrew with a sigh. Shortly after, the surprisingly nimble Lisia leapt through the forest brush, trying to call out loud but nothing came out of her mouth. Still running, she ran up to the now agitated Andrew - tackling him. While she was sobbing almost soundlessly he lost his hold on the firewood still in his arms falling straight back onto his freshly wounded back. Wincing slightly before sighing loudly, he patted her back out of reflex before drawing his hand away. ¡°Fuck, why can¡¯t I bring myself to keep to me word back there? Elf, whatever is behind you will die by your hand. I¡¯ll help, but you will be the one taking his life.¡± ¡°...¡± Lisia looked at him with a stunned face. When he pushed her off of him and into the direction of the low growls, however, she tearfully consented by nodding her head rapidly. Lazily pulling out his two blades from his inventory and massaging his temples with the pommels for moment of comfort on his aching body. After he was through he noticed another ¡®Mutated Grey Wolf¡¯ come into his vision pacing back and forth like the king of the forest.. ¡°Prideful creatures, eh?¡± He muttered before quickly holstering one sword and grabbed a small, cracked log about the size of his forearm. Pitching it at the wolf who clearly didn¡¯t see such an object being a threat to it. As the log spun in the air, the wolf simply raised a paw to block it with a feral grin on face. Re-equipping himself once more, he saw the log end up hitting the top of the wolf¡¯s paw before causing it spin upwards connecting with one of the wolf¡¯s jaws. If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. While causing next to no damage, it fulfilled its role adequately. As one of the wolf¡¯s head became enrage, the other seemed to be barking excitedly. The one head that became enraged nipped at the other ¡®laughing¡¯ head furiously before a minor conflict began in between the two halves and disregarded both the elf and the human completely, all to nip and scratch at it¡¯s single body. Andrew seeing this was speechless, ¡®Is everything in this world completely idiotic? I mean, honestly, there is no reason to turn a potential blood bath into a relatively easy kill.¡¯ Not losing his chance, he ran up towards the preoccupied wolf. When he was within an arm''s reach away he swung his sword severing a tendon on the wolf¡¯s leg. Then another, and another, before the wolf fell over. Entirely unable to put pressure on the three legs the wolf, who attempted to get up, simply fell slipping on the blood that poured from each of the three slashes. Whistling quietly to himself, Lisia came over entirely petrified. ¡°From the looks of it, she was hiding last time. Didn¡¯t even bother to pay any attention to the fight before¡­¡± ¡°That¡¯s¡­ that¡¯s not it, I- I just would rather¡­ not do something like this.¡± ¡°Well, look at you go. See how much pain you¡¯re putting him through? Oh my, I thought those mighty¡­ something-or-another elves were protectors of the forest and cared for its inhabitants. And yet, a sadistic little elven women wishes only to view her kill bleed out, multiplying its pain ten-fold,¡± retorted Andrew indifferently while musing to himself. ¡®I genuinely feel that this type of species should have died out much sooner. Must¡¯ve been the elves keeping them alive, and well, gifting them with their false sense of pride.¡¯ ¡°So Miss Humanitarian, how about it?¡± Andrew spoke while holding the handle of the copper short sword out to Lisia. Her hesitation annoyed Andrew to some extent so he forced it into her grip before closing her own hand around it. ¡°Hold it, Elf.¡± The moment she touched the short sword she started trembling uncontrollably. ¡®Why must I do this?! He¡­ he can not be serious. How can you expect a lady to shed blood! Especially a pure and noble wood elf who swore to protect creatures like this! Such a beautiful and majestic creature¡­ that tried to kill me, even playing with me all the while¡­¡¯ cried Lisia painfully in her mind. Steeling her resolve after a few troubling minutes, she pressed forward with the blade in hand. Every step felt like an eternity for the young elf, each took all her willpower to lead her closer to the bleeding wolf. Even as she approached the powerless creature, no matter how she tried to justify raising the sword - she simply couldn¡¯t. Andrew standing behind her a few meters away saw the inability to act and let out a wry smile, ¡°Shouldn¡¯t it be me who would be hesitating about killing some animal? Damn, I thought the system would give these people, the new settlers - or, whatever you want to call them, a little bit of sense regarding the dangers of creatures that could kill you in a single moment.¡± ¡°It is not like that! And what is this thing about new and original whatever? I keep hearing such weird language coming from you! I want to know what that¡¯s all about!¡± ¡°Sure, sure, don¡¯t think you¡¯re getting out of your responsibility though.¡± replied Andrew casually before adding, ¡°Well, my world was incorporated into this one¡­ or something to that effect. Either way, my world, or the area where I lived, would be considered peaceful compared to this one. Dangerous to some extent, sure, but relatively safe so long as you¡¯re not an idiot - like those peace-loving, hippie elves. I digress, just normal humans and normal animals. No squirrels in drag; no wolves that decided having two heads would be a good idea for survival. And much more, but anyways, you should have the balls - or ovaries, I suppose, to push that knife through that bastards throat.¡± Stealing a quick glance at the wolf, he muttered, ¡°You fucked up. Prissy little¡­ Oh well I have an idea you¡¯re probably going to hate!¡± Evidently, the wolf¡¯s little life had already abandoned him during their conversation but Andrew was undaunted. He retrieved his sword from Lisia and started walking back to their camp to let Taryk know of the other wolf¡¯s corpse for processing. Walking into the camp surprised both Andrew and Lisia. What was once an intact corpse was stripped to the bones. Which, as far as salvageable items were concerned, had been piled into a corner for transportation. Sitting next to the stack of bones, fur, and blood, were the two heads bound together in a woven net of vines. Underneath it all lay a bloody mess that was once the organs, tissues, and a napping goblin whose mouth still had fragments of flesh clinging to it. Covered in blood and wrapped in the wolf¡¯s pelt as if were a blanket, the goblin slept in absolute bliss. Lisia was sickened by the otherworldly display whereas Andrew just sighed before speaking softly, ¡°wakie, wakie, still hungry? This time it¡¯ll be the same job, just save us some of the better meat this time.¡± With the mention of food the gluttonous goblin uncurled himself from the blanket before stretching and yawning loudly. Seemingly ready, Taryk, dagger in hand, excitedly ran to Andrew before being pointed in the right direction and running away for his new feast. As Taryk ran, Andrew already grabbed his short bow and drew an arrow from the quiver. Silently walking over to where he was being terrorised by the little mutant squirrel, he entered a clearing only to be greeted by getting a rotting berry explode on his face. As he suspected, the mutant creatures were too prideful to register any human as a threat to their well-being. Walking directly under the tree¡¯s branch that held the squirrel he lifted his bow. Even as he notched the arrow and took aim the squirrel taunted him by turning around and spreading his two tails out as if giving him a target. Standing on a relatively small branch the squirrel chattered loudly before lobbing a few, surprisingly well aimed, over his shoulder towards his face, missing by only a centimeter or two. Enduring the third berry, Andrew suddenly loosed his arrow - it missed, but as the squirrel jumped to the side Andrew mercilessly kicked the tree, shaking it to its core. Even as a creature as agile as the common tree squirrel - albeit typically less deformed, it simply didn''t have a spot to land when the branch swayed violently. Catching a small twig with the tip of its front claws as it fell. The squirrel shaked his rump triumphantly whilst being suspended in mid-air. Another boot to the tree and the squirrel fell, shrieking loudly on its flight 5 meters down. Andrew, calmly looking from below, raised his left hand catching the squirrel as it traveled faster and faster. As he increased his perception he noticed a large difference in reaction time and promised himself to max it out if at all possible. As the cyan coloured squirrel entered his grasps he clenched his hand strongly - breaking the squirrels legs in the process. A struggling gasp came from the creature before a defiant look appeared on its face. As the claws were rather annoying, and potentially disease-ridden, he dropped the squirrel on the ground before placing his foot on top of it to hold it down. All four arms struggled endlessly, but the tails were slowly being fractured with his weight and their resistance. ¡°Kill it, or I¡¯ll find another for you. I know how you¡¯re looking at me right now. Don¡¯t even bother hiding it as I don¡¯t really care about your opinion of me. I¡¯d suggest using a dagger or else if you want to try cooking -¡± spoke Andrew without even looking back. ¡°I get it! I get it! Just stop, I¡¯ll do it¡­ just give me a bit of time¡­¡± Lisia tried. ¡°Just so the creature will suffer - like last time? Poor, poor goblins¡­ Treating you as some sort of princess when in reality¡­¡± ¡°Fine! I¡¯ll do it, just one blow is enough right¡­?¡± ¡°Oh, the poor, struggling, critter under my foot must be in so much pain. How can we remedy this, I wonder?¡± Sighed Andrew dramatically. ¡°...¡± ¡°On zero, the squirrel gets loose. Should you refuse to kill the critter I won¡¯t even bother bringing you with me in the future. Just do what you want in the camp as the sole female, five, four, three..¡± ¡°Ah!¡± fumbling with the blade she literally just stole off of Andrew makeshift holster, she shut her eyes tight before slashing on the ground wildly just barely missing Andrew in the process. With her eyes shut she didn¡¯t register that she split off every single limb on the small critter and emptied its entire torso of any organs, but she kept slashing without a sign of stopping. As her tears came forth a window appeared in the corner of his vision.
First Kill Bonus! Lisia has complete the prerequisites enabling her to become a Companion to the Player. If you so choice to accept her, she will have an increased leveling speed, abilities granted by the system in the future for merits completed. As the Player interactions are of a greater precedent in experiment they will be given the right to assign the perks allotted by the system:
  • Level Boost
  • Receives Passive Skill
  • Receives Active Skill
  • Affinity Bonus
Faintly amused by this turn of events, Andrew took a glancing look at her still wildly swingly, exhaling heavily at this point.. No matter how he saw her he still couldn¡¯t see a sense any sense of ability for battle. ¡®Levels are essentially meaningless if I can just feed her enemies. Whereas affinity could be something extraordinarily vague and would be meaningless in most situations. Time to gamble, I suppose,¡¯ Debating between active and passive wasn¡¯t easy, but as he realized if she was still going to be of little help in a confrontation an active skill would likely be no more than a fancy parlor trick. With that in mind he was left with the passive skill, which likely would be entirely random due to her being fed a half dead critter.
Lisia has learned a new skill! Adaptability (Beginner 1): Ever-changing and ever-evolving in this world, the individual gains a great wealth of knowledge and mental fortitude. Those who are more open to these changes can see through various weaknesses granting them +5 intelligence, +5 wisdom, +2 perception.
For some reason or another the system essentially gave his full authority over Lisia¡¯s growth as well as the ability to read her status screen:
Lisia Jean Aira Dradrenau Level 1 Str: 3 Agi: 9 Per: 8 (+2) End: 5 Vit: 6 Int: 8(+5) Wis: 4 (+5) Chr: 10 Affinity: Nature (Small): When using nature based spells, such as restoration and rooting, duration and potency is increased by 15%. Skill: Language Comprehension: (Intermediate) Elvish {Farwynd Dialect}, (Beginner) Demi-Human {Goblin Dialect}, Demi-Human {Werebeast Common Tongue} Adaptability (Beginner 1): Ever-changing and ever-evolving in this world, the individual gains a great wealth of knowledge and mental fortitude. Those who are more open to these changes can see through various weaknesses granting them +5 intelligence, +5 wisdom, +2 perception. Minor Restoration (Beginner 1): Calling up the forces of nature an individual can quickly mend minor wounds at the cost of MP.
As the midday sun was drew overhead Andrew thought to himself, ¡®awe, so the game isn¡¯t that cruel as to completely screw over everyone then.¡¯
Good job Players! During you time in this ¡®Game¡¯ we have developed for you all we have been lenient as a certain degree of a learning curve is necessary for full engagement inside this experiment. Since your arrival in this world. Currently, 320 867 players are still active, you are the lucky few who¡¯ve braved the hazards and with luck and determination forged a path in this cruel thing we call life. But do not get careless. As your ¡®Training Period¡¯ is over we are now releasing the full difficulty as well as consequences from world actions. Be aware, even if you had no part in it, you are still a party to the act itself as a member of the same race. Thus, we are forcing you ride out the consequences. Traditionally these reactions are small scale, however, larger scale conflicts are not uncommon in these tumultuous times.
¡°Well. Fuck me.¡± ----- Chapter 8 Hello all! Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays! This chapter was a little rushed as I wanted to get it out to you all before the true, well, craziness(?) of the Holidays goes into full swing. Regardless, take it easy and kick back if your are given the chance you (probably) deserve it :P
Good job Players! During you time in this ¡®Game¡¯ we have developed for you all we have been lenient as a certain degree of a learning curve is necessary for full engagement inside this experiment. Since your arrival in this world. Currently, 320 867 players are still active, you are the lucky few who¡¯ve braved the hazards and with luck and determination forged a path in this cruel thing we call life. But do not get careless. As your ¡®Training Period¡¯ is over we are now releasing the full difficulty as well as consequences from world actions. Be aware, even if you had no part in it, you are still a party to the act itself as a member of the same race. Thus, we are forcing you ride out the consequences. Traditionally these reactions are small scale, however, larger scale conflicts are not uncommon in these tumultuous times.
Regional Event: A player, by the name of Yuki Hana, attempted a quest to annihilate a fledgling necromancer. Due to his failure, the necromancer revived his master, ¡°Fallon the Impotent¡± in a fit of rage to take revenge against the human Kingdom of Arlai. Take up arms against the waves of necromancer¡¯s forces or the human kingdom armies. Rewards vary based on contribution and the specific faction chosen. Those considered neutral will be considered an enemy to both sides.
¡°Huh, well that makes some sense, I guess. Normally animals wouldn¡¯t be so kind as to let people off even if they were that weak. Goddamn, am I going to need to walk around with a contingent of goblins just walk from here to there. Explains why there is less than ? of us now all the same¡­¡± muttered Andrew as he ripped the blade away from Lisia¡¯s hand in a irritated fashion. However, something strange seemed to be happening to her. Compared to the nearly endless crying, screams, and generally speaking rational behaviour for someone thrown into these situations, she was oddly quiet. Even as she stared at the blade, freshly dyed crimson. She still seemed composed. Far from five minutes ago where even the slightest mention of taking another''s life would bring about fear and panic in no small measure.. ¡°Hey Elf, how are you feeling?¡± ¡°I¡¯m fine, yourself?¡± ¡°No strange blows to the head, recurrent brain tumors, or perhaps a history of split-personality disorder?¡± ¡°None. Moments ago I just realised something¡­ To protect life isn¡¯t dependent on condemning those who take it, it is more to keep the balance of the forest in mind. A life is nothing more than a passing flame why care if one candle out of a million is blown out? But when there is no kin for a creature I do not think I¡¯d be able to take it¡¯s life,¡± spoke Lisia with a slight change of pitch in her voice. ¡°Huh, duly noted. Don¡¯t touch mental stats, lest you receive a new personality express shipped by some crack-head game designers.¡± ¡°Ah, I see. You must be concerned about me. I may seem somewhat different, but my personality hasn¡¯t been altered in any way. I just think I¡¯m¡­. more pragmatic? But seriously, why should I care about killing rodents when enjoy throwing things at a¡­ well, relatively innocent passersby.¡± Replied Lisia with a smirk. ¡°Yeah, yeah, do as you will,¡± sighed Andrew completely perplexed by the whole situation. Brushing off the strange occurrences, he signaled Lisia with a raised palm over his shoulder. Neither was eager enough to start a conversation, but Andrew was content with the fact that she seemed more composed and, well, less hysterical over some of the smaller things that will be prevalent in this new life. Yet, the entire change still made him take a second glance over every now and again to make sure she wasn¡¯t just messing with him. Finding their way back to Taryk took a few minutes but once again the goblin seemed to abandon the world during his assault on the wolf corpse. This time, a pair of wolves, slowly circled around the oblivious goblin while Andrew was walking back into the clearing. Noticing the rustling of the leaves, not unlike his ambush on the goblin squad only the day before, he immediately went to arms. ¡°Taryk, I know for some sick and twisted reason you like, ¡®playing¡¯ with these corpses but¡­ Do you really, and I mean really, have to do it while it¡¯s furry brothers are hanging out in the area?¡± ¡°Mmmhmm ~ wait, what? Shit. Did you say there were more of them around?¡± ¡°Probably, can you handle one? Ah, get your bloody spear out already. And elves are supposed to be good at this shit, right?¡± As Andrew spoke, two mutated grey wolves jumped out of the clearing and bounded in their direction. Andrew had only a few seconds left to react after he forcibly put the bow and quiver into the strangely calm elf¡¯s hand. Jumping forward was essentially the only move he could make when he had Lisia almost directly behind him and the corpse to the side. The other wolf, obviously aimed to avenge its fallen comrade, taking Taryk as his target. As he calmly stepped forward, he saw the deadly creature still onto the ground sprinting at him. ¡®Refusing to give up its mobility for slower prey. No jumping around like an moron. This time he isn¡¯t a complete idiot¡¯ he mused to himself. Waiting only took a moment for the wolf to clear the remaining six or seven metres. As the wolf neared closer and closer, Andrew bent his knees and gripped his two short swords tighter. When he was within a few feet of the wolf¡¯s distance to the roughly five foot tall wolf he dived just under the wolf¡¯s jaws. Spinning around in the air he slashed his sword at the front leg with both blades before landing on his stomach. Rolling away from the beast, he looked at the damages instinctively before calling out, ¡°FUCK! BASTARD!¡± In his adrenaline fueled charge at the wolf he received a small nick on his arms from the ground but the real damage was from his back. Crying out softly in pain as he tried to force himself to stand. If that were to have been the worst then Andrew would have accepted it, however, as he slashed with both of his short swords one of them shattered near the tip. From the looks of the wolf, it seemed to have been an effective attack as the wolf itself was stunned for a short while but Andrew was still irritated at the price he had to pay for it. Limping and almost refusing to put pressure on that leg, the wolf cried out in frustration. Using this as a chance Andrew swiftly pulled out a new sword from his inventory - still the same battered, old copper short sword. It was, however, an extra layer of protection to the man as he saw it. Running wearily to the rear of the limping wolf, he drew his sword in an arc against another leg as the wolf whipped his tail across his chest. Both attacks connected at the nearly the same time and both limped away once more. ¡®Fuck! What the hell is with that tail?! Some prick decided a two headed, five and a half foot tall beast wasn¡¯t enough? Yeah, let¡¯s add a bloody flail just because.¡¯ It was as if the tail was covered in steel barbs that flayed his chest with innumerable shallow wounds that stung with every breath which is not to dismiss the weight of the force with the tail itself. It wasn¡¯t much different than a medieval mace. The wolf, however, was also left with more wounds to show for it. Both the front and back of its right legs were injured beyond repair. Blood flowed out, tendons split open and exposed themselves the warm air, and occasionally a small shard of coppery or white light would glimmer on its front leg. Effectively downed the wolf did the last thing it could do in that situation. ¡°Aaawwwooooooo!¡± ¡®Shit, calling for reinforcements. Let¡¯s quicken the pace a bit.¡¯ With the call, Andrew arduously ran behind Taryk¡¯s wolf whom was kept at bay with each spear thrust causing it growl menacingly in frustration against its opponent that was barely half its height. With a quick slash to the hind legs the wolf collapsed into a sitting position that still seemed as ferocious as before. Andrew, not caring about formalities, holstered a sword and went to Taryk¡¯s side ripping away his spear. With a single thrust the wolf laid on the ground convulsing slightly. Not wasting a moment, Andrew exhaled loudly with agony written on his face. When he turned to look at his wolf he was mildly surprised. The head and torso was riddled with arrows - albeit shallow wounds on it''s tough pelt, they still served a purpose as the wolf was bleeding out at an incredible rate. Passing the spear back to the somewhat dissatisfied goblin, he knocked him on the head before telling him, ¡°Get back to work, no slacking off anymore. I¡¯m starving, injured, and in a hell of a lot of pain. And guess what; there is probably a few more coming." ¡°Shouldn¡¯t we run then Boss¡­?¡± Asked Taryk questioningly. ¡°If we could, that¡¯d be great. But I have a sinking suspicion that those wolves will not let us leave that easily. And since when was I your boss?¡° ¡°Perhaps we can outrun them?¡± Chimed in Lisia who started plucking arrows from the, now dead, beast¡¯s hide. ¡°I don¡¯t know about you, but I can¡¯t exactly run. Fight maybe, which sounds weird, but not run.¡± replied Andrew as he felt his rib cage. ¡°Yeah, it still hurts to even breath. Side note: Don¡¯t get hit by the tail.¡± ¡°Obviously,¡± scoffed both in unison. ¡°Well, next time I say, ¡®let¡¯s go hunt some wolves,¡¯ please let me know what to watch out for as you can obviously tell I¡¯m not from here.¡± replied Andrew irritably. ¡°We didn¡¯t know. At least for me, I just thought you were some wandering human from the southern kingdoms who thought to try his luck in these lands. Also, nearly every creature in this territory will inherently hate you by the way. Humanity has quite a few enemies.¡± replied Lisia with a snicker. ¡°Ah, useless, all of you lot.¡± sighed Andrew, before adding, ¡°Oh, Taryk get your tiny, green ass in gear. Also, can¡¯t this elf here heal or some such non-sense¡± as he nodded off into the distance. ¡°Say the magic word please ~ ¡®Can you please grace my body with your beautiful, wondrous magic touch ~¡¯ ¡° ¡°Taryk do you think Grok still needs some company?¡± ¡°Yeah, he used to burn through at least 3 or 4 women a night when our clan had the capability. Goblin women though, so they tend to be a bit less desireable than the more human-ish ones. So he would likely take his time with an elf I¡¯d imagine.¡± Taryk, playing along once more, replied rather insidiously whilst completely ignoring Lisia who was all of three feet beside him. ¡°Muuuu, fine, fine! This time is free, but next time at least use my name when you refer to me!¡± pouted Lisia, as her hands started glowing a bright green. As it flowed outwards, first to his chest, then back followed by his limbs a rather strange sensation erupted in his body. Not pain, relief, warmth, or anything one would expect. Merely a sense of being refreshed. As if one bathed in a mountain hot spring after a long journey. As she pumped more and more mana into the spell she wondered to herself, ¡®how can he still move, that¡¯s¡­ even most men from the village complain about a small cut or bruise but he fractured 2 ribs, lost however much blood¡­ essentially his body should be shutting down by now. If not by pain, then organ failure.¡¯ After multiple casts, the once near disfigured body of Andrew managed to regain some vigor and was relieved of a large margin of the pain. The blood from the previous encounters still coated his skin, but his wounds were no longer adding to that mess. Stretching his body, ¡®it feels like I¡¯m a new person, helluva lot better than before,¡¯ he felt his muscle releasing their tension significantly without nearly any pain except for his rib cage.. Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more. ¡°Ah, thanks El- Ahem, Lisia, happy?¡± spoke Andrew before a glare interrupted him, forcing him to alter his way of addressing her. Sighing lightly, he twirled his short-swords around his wrists, calling out, ¡°Come out you mangy bastards. I know you¡¯re there, you are kinda massive so that little bush you''re crouching beneath won¡¯t do shit.¡± With his perception being as it is, he could nearly spot their entire figures in the brush. ¡®Six heads¡­ Three this time, hey?¡¯ As if on cue with his declaration an arrow pierced into the woods before boring a hole into a wolf¡¯s head. A pitiful, grief filled cry sounded out before a trio of wolves stumbled out. Two figures were standing straight up glaring at Lisia who held the poor goblin bow as she notched another arrow. The last one dragged the left half of his body into a sitting position as he licked the other head softly. With an arrow embedded deep within the skull of the right head, the wolf¡¯s partner and brother since they entered this world had passed on. As its hopes were slowly crushed by his passing realization his grief turned into fury. The wolf jumped up barking orders at the two others in a deep growl, as if to say, ¡®she¡¯s mine, don¡¯t you even think about going after that elf.¡¯ The two other wolves bobbed their heads unceremoniously in agreement before they started to line up with their own respective targets. ¡°Ah, Elf can you handle one?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t call me that! My name is Lisia, and why would I not be able to? Obviously it will go after me regardless. And it¡¯s pissed off making it an easier deal with.¡± retorted the annoyed elf. ¡°Fine, fine, this big bastard thinks I¡¯m tasty so let¡¯s give him a chance. Taryk, you¡¯ve done it before. Just don¡¯t die¡­ ideally, anyhow.¡± Another arrow was loosed as the enraged wolf charged forward, breaking their conversation, hitting him in the centre of its torso, but it showed no sign of slowing down. The other two bounded forward as well leaving each to their own battle. As the first wolf clawed, pounced, and bite at the nimble Elf, Lisia kept dodging left and right- forward and back, loosing arrows at the beast all the while. As it got more and more riddled with holes the wolf gave a woeful roar before charging directly at Lisia. The beast itself showed no care for the arrows impaling its scalp. Driving the elf into a tightly packed wall of trees, the wolf dived at the elf. As this was going on, Taryk was also fending his wolf off. Each thrust was aimed directly at the beast¡¯s throat, eyes, or brain causing the wolf to instinctively step back after each thrust. Jumping towards the back of the goblin, it came close to closing its maws on Taryk¡¯s neck. Yet, each time that happened, he would rotate his grip on the spear before stabbing it behind his back once more nearly impaling the wolf. When the wolf finally backed off, each kept one another at bay with a few exploratory swipes or stabs. Naturally the two fell into a pattern where both continually were on the defensive as a slight error would allow the other to grasp victory. Andrew, on the other hand, danced around the wolf, nearly receiving the wolf¡¯s claws every strike, but managed to escape just outside of the attack range as he swung his two copper short swords down at every opportunity. Entering the wolf¡¯s reach, Andrew back stepped a claw after leveling his sword with its path. Feeling the blade connect and blood spatter on his face without even needing to use force himself, Andrew smirked devilishly. Stepping back once more, he saw the wolf lunge at him low on the ground. With the wolf¡¯s speed and ferocity it took all his strength to jump to the left side. Just barely escaping the wolf¡¯s path. Stabbing his twin swords in the still moving wolf was almost instinctual at this point in the fight. When he did finally feel them connect he was mildly surprised - and irritated. Even after the stab, the swords were locked in Andrew¡¯s hands. Refusing to release the pressure, he felt one drag across the hide before pulling out of the beast after half of the length of its flank. The other - while it did stab it and was dragged a few centimetres, the blade shattered into the wolf¡¯s body. Retreating once again he faced the wolf from their final confrontation. As Andrew¡¯s target was getting slower and slower, he back stepped from a vicious bite from the wolf¡¯s maw and sank his remaining blade into the wolf¡¯s throat. Twitching slightly, the wolf sank to the ground. Following that, Lisia¡¯s wolf fell exhaustively onto the ground near a tree where a certain elf managed to find her way up before raining arrow after arrow on the wolf¡¯s body. Taryk, as luck would have it, managed to grasp a small opening in the wolf¡¯s evasion and thrust his spear through the creature¡¯s leg. As he pulled back on the spear the wolf¡¯s other claw swiped at his body. Abandoning the spear for the moment he jumped backwards as far as his small legs could take him, falling backwards in the process. It was at this time an arrow loosed by Lisia found it way into one of the wolf¡¯s heads severing the life from part of its body instantly. Andrew came from the side before slashing at the leg of the beast causing it wobble for a moment before falling pitifully on its face. Retrieving the spear from the struggling beast, he tossed it to the still recovering Goblin hitting him in the face with the shaft of the spear. ¡°You bastard! What was that for?!¡± roared Taryk. ¡°Ah, sorry, sorry, expected you to have better reflexes though,¡± teased Andrew from the side. ¡°Well, I was on the ground as you threw it, so give me a break,¡± before sighing indignantly ¡°humans¡­¡± Grabbing the spear in one hand and rubbing his head with the other, Taryk walked up to the wolf in a relaxed manner before stabbing down with the spear. A small whimper was heard, but before it the spear could even be pulled out it vanished into the wind. ¡°Oh, something weird popped up Andrew. What is this level thing? And something or another about status points?¡± ¡°Hmmm, you can see that? Interesting, well looks like I can control it, wait why did the system just decide you were my companion? Whatever. I don¡¯t even want to think about it anymore. I¡¯ll deal with for you by the way; warrior elf, mage elf, healer elf, hunter elf, or something in between?¡± ¡°Lisia! My name is Lisia!¡± ¡°Hunter elf it is, Lisia.¡± spoke Andrew emphasizing the last word. As he looked in his status screen he noticed both Lisia and Taryk were forcibly recruited as companions thus giving him access to their stat screens, stat allotment, and even a brief overview of their background. Uncaring about their past he skipped past the introductory notification which, essentially, was a small biography and went directly to assigning their stats.
Lisia Jean Aira Dradrenau Level 5 Str: 7 Agi: 12 Per: 11 (+2) End: 7 Vit: 6 Int: 8(+5) Wis: 5 (+5) Chr: 10 Affinity: Nature (Small): When using nature based spells, such as restoration and rooting, duration and potency is increased by 15%. Skill: Adaptability (Beginner 3): Ever-changing and ever-evolving in this world, the individual gains a great wealth of knowledge and mental fortitude. Those who are more open to these changes can see through various weaknesses granting them +5 intelligence, +5 wisdom, +2 perception. Minor Restoration (Beginner 2): Calling up the forces of nature an individual can quickly mend minor wounds at the cost of MP.
Taryk of the Cleaver Clan Level 4 Str: 12 Agi: 8 Per: 7 End: 8 Vit: 9 Int: 5 Wis: 6 Chr: 4 Status: Minor Bleeding - Health will continue to decrease unless treated. Skill: Spear Handling (Intermediate): Any spear put into your hands is a machination of death and suffering for those that stand before you. However, for those that get within your reach be warned for they can easily spell death towards a careless novice or veteran alike. Bonus 30% damage with all long handled polearm weapons. Increases armor piercing power by 15%. Increased chance of bleeding.
Andrew Marks Level 8 Str: 13 (+1) Agi: 15 (+1) (+2) Per: 14 (+1) End: 10 (+1) (-2) Vit: 10 (+1) Int: 9 (+1) Wis: 8 (+1) Chr: 9 (+1) Lck: ? (+1) Status: Bone Fracture - END is reduced until treated. Skill: Dual Wielding (Beginner: 4): While wielding two weapons Damage Rating penalty is reduced by 26%. Penalty currently at 24%. Grants easier range of motion and knowledge of advanced techniques are granted at base level up of the skill. Improvisation (Beginner: 2): You arm yourself to the teeth before encounter any situation, using any available tactics and weapons in a manner to ensure your survival in this new age. Increases attack rating by 6% for all weapons. Increases hit chance and critical chance by 2.5% for all weapons (be in, physical damage based melee, thrown, or projectile). Spell failure rate decreases by 3.5% and spell duration increases by 3.5%. +1 to all stats including luck.
----- Chapter 9 Back to real life, I apologize slower (ie normal ish)releases. Hopefully you don''t mind larger chapters as compared to more frequent smaller ones. Sometimes it just doesn''t feel ''right,'' so to speak.
Exhaling quietly, Andrew pondered something to himself. Walking over to the nearest corpse he tried to withdraw it into his inventory. As soon as he did however he received from the system. ¡®I guess that would be too good to be true¡­¡¯ Even so, it piqued his curiosity so he ended up clicking it.
As this is your first time depositing a deceased creature we, the Corporation, would like to remind you on one small matter. While it is possible to store deceased creatures in the bag slots, it is impossible to stack their unprocessed corpses, thus requiring a slot for each. Additionally each corpse, or any organic object in general, will age as if it were outside. -From your friendly, neighbourhood game masters
In spite of his feelings, he laughed in self-derisive manner. Lisia eyed him oddly but didn¡¯t say anything, whereas Taryk bluntly asked, ¡°What¡¯s wrong, why does it look like you want to stab someone¡­ repeatedly?¡± ¡°Friendly, my ass. They are well on their way to ending more lives than some entire countries. Not counting people they¡¯ve converted for their own twisted desires. Ah, whatever. Fuck them, and everyone else for that matter. I want a nap, you guys in? ¡°What about the wolves corpses? You don¡¯t plan on just leaving them, do you?¡± ¡°Feeling sentimental all of a sudden, El- Hmm Lisia?¡± shrugged Andrew before placing his hand on the body of the wolf once again With a small luminescent glow the corpse vanished into thin air and all that was left was a small pool of blood. ¡®Soaked into the ground too much? Well, regardless it¡¯s not exactly like I want 25 litres of blood.¡¯ As he checked his inventory he noticed the corpse.
Inventory Bag Slot: Novice Dagger Bag Slot: Copper Short Sword x3 Bag Slot: Worn Goblin Club x4 Bag Slot: Goblin Longbow Bag Slot: Goblin Arrow x7 Bag Slot: Small Pebbles x12 Bag Slot: Mutated Grey Wolf (Expires in Three Days) Bag Slot: [empty] Bag Slot: [empty] Bag Slot: [empty] ...
As Andrew was strolling about picking up the corpses from the immediate area Lisia and Taryk stood with their jaws wide open. For a few moments, not even the chittering, squeaking, and cawing of the forest critters were heard as five more fresh wolf corpses disappeared in a small flash of light. Leaving only blood and fragments of flesh upon the ground. Noticing the two lock-jawed companions of his, or so deemed the system, he sighed. Waving once in the air where they were staring, he got annoyed over their reactions. ¡°It¡¯s just a magically disappearing corpse, why so serious?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Fine, let¡¯s resort to this.¡± sighed Andrew as he lobbed a pebble at each of their heads in quick succession. ¡°OW, Bastard, what was that for?!¡± shouted Taryk ¡°Ouch, Andrew why the hell did do you do that!?¡± cried Lisia as she rubbed her head with a tear-filled eyes. ¡°Couldn¡¯t have hurt that bad, and I thought you were broken. My Uncle always said, ¡®to make sure something is broken, hit it again, otherwise it might just be acting up.¡¯ Or something to that effect. Now, Taryk, grab the pelts and heads you already dealt with from that mess over there,¡± nodded Andrew towards the pile of flesh, bones, and skin turned into an impromptu nest by Taryk. ¡°And Elf. Make sure no one else is coming to, well, kill us? I don¡¯t know. Be useful or something.¡± ¡°Hey! I -¡± retorted Lisia ¡°Don¡¯t care¡± before being cut off in their usual fashion. Before another pebble flew in her direction. The pebble flew grazing her shoulder, after a sudden jump she landed on her rear before glaring at Andrew with an irritated expression. As turned away from her, her cheeks puffed out and she pouted, however. ¡®Tch missed, there is always next time anyways.¡¯ Ignoring the elf sitting in a rather provocative position - legs barely crossed in a short wolf-pelt dress, whilst have nothing underneath, he followed Taryk to the blood soaked ground where he did his work on the second wolf prior. ¡°Please do not make go into that mess. Just grab the - probably bloodsoaked, pelt from the pile. Ya know, the blanket thing you were using.¡± ¡°Yeah, sure thing Boss.¡± ¡°Seriously I¡¯m not your ¡®Boss¡¯ you are free to do whatever in the hell you want. It is just that I don¡¯t really care to help someone who is belligerent so I¡¯ll ask small things from you. And in turn, you are free to do the same. And oi, did you really not realize you grew a foot taller yet? Or, did you was that supposed to be a surprise for me?¡± ¡°Wait, what? I¡¯m taller?¡± ¡°Yeah, by like a third of your previous height. You kind of should¡¯ve realized it by now, ya know?¡± ¡°No, no, no, that can¡¯t be true! I feel exactly the same!¡± ¡°Yeah, yeah. Wait until we get back and you can see all the goblin bitches going after you - shit, I still have to save them don¡¯t I? Whatever, can I please have that lovely pelt now?¡± While Taryk was bewildered, Andrew indifferently spoke towards the now muscular, 4 3/4 tall goblin. While he still was very small, his facial features seemed to progress out of their initial childish set into a more masculine and defined bone structure. This was entirely due to the system¡¯s interference during the level up and subsequent upgrades to Taryk¡¯s END and VIT stats. While Andrew did add a few points into STR and AGI it wasn''t enough to show for this massive alteration on the goblin''s body. Or perhaps humans had different evolutionary traits as compared to goblins. Andrew, uninterested in his own appearance, also changed somewhat, but since the stats were relatively balanced it wasn¡¯t anything as major as the others. Just seemingly more ¡®fit.¡¯ As for Lisia; due to the increasing in AGI her body slimmed down sustainably. Even though she still maintained a fair portion of her curves, her body cut back a lot of the excess fat on her body. Changing the once easy D cup to a neat C while giving a fair amount of muscle tone on her elegant, proportional body. Taryk, quickly pulled out the two heads he butched earlier before tossing them to Andrew. Although he caught them instinctively; blood splattered everywhere. While it wasn¡¯t as though he was exactly clean, the act itself bothered him. Readying another small pebble after he deposited the pair of heads he sent it flying towards the Goblin - but not before Taryk could toss the pelt outwards, interrupting his shot. As the pebble hit the pelt, it was brushed off before landing to the side of Taryk with an arrogant looking expression. Grumbling, Andrew picked up the crimson pelt from ground before depositing it into his inventory as well. ¡°Time for the other one?¡± Andrew asked to no one in particular. ¡°Sure, Boss. Ah, I actually went back to move it part ways here. It¡¯ll be in a rather out of the way copse ¡®bout midway between the two locations.¡± ¡°Why didn¡¯t you bring them all the way here?¡± Andrew spoke, as he raised his eyebrows. ¡°Too heavy ~¡± ¡°You just threw that at me 4 seconds ago. Don¡¯t spew that shit on me.¡± ¡°... Hmmm. Fine, I got hungry and lazy.¡± ¡°At least that makes sense, you twit.¡± Exhaling loudly, he cracked his neck in an overly dramatic way. Taryk looked over confused for a moment before the pain registered on his stomach. At his feet lay a small pebble. ¡°He holds grudges, doesn¡¯t he?¡± murmured Taryk with a wry smile while clenching his stomach. As they were moving towards the group of trees that Taryk spoke about, Lisia hung around in the back. As much for protection as her role as an archer, as her minor paranoia about Andrew suddenly lobbing another pebble at her. One the way over they encountered a stray wolf and quickly dealt with it. With a few arrows in its two skulls, a spear tipped into its chest and a sword stabbed through its throat would have been next to impossible to tell who got the final kill without the system prompts.
Congratulations! Your companion, Taryk, has gained a level! You have three stat points to distribute into his primary stats.
Placing one into AGI and two into PER so that he could be more balanced in the future, he disregarded the goblin spouting out something or another about how it was as if he couldn¡¯t even see before and deposited the corpse into his inventory. ¡°You seriously brought the wolf¡¯s materials through this brush? I get that it was probably a fair idea, but how in the hell did you get past these shrubs?¡± Sighed Andrew as he split another bush apart with his short sword-turned-machete. ¡°Ah, about that, there was a small path the even I could barely fit on a little while away. Came from the other side so it wouldn¡¯t help us very much though,¡± replied Taryk as he defended his face from a rebounding branch with his spear. ¡°I¡¯d rather not jungle trek through all this, but I¡¯m sure if ¡®Taryk, the Hero of the Cleaver Clan,¡¯ failed to live up to the expectations he placed on himself he would be greatly shunned by all his people.¡± Spoke Andrew in a dramatic fashion, yet, the monotone voice gave away his real opinions on the matter. ¡°Wait, what are you on about? We already did what I claimed for the Goblin camp.¡± ¡°....¡¯I will bring back the pelts and heads of at least ten wolves¡¯?¡± ¡°Yeah, count ¡®em. Oh¡­ You mean? Ah, I get you. Us goblins might not be the most intelligent species, but we at least know that each head is it¡¯s own¡­ well, thing?¡± ¡°And ten pelts, if I may be so bold?¡± ¡°Ten half pelts? No one would expect us to do full ones. Even Grok has trouble from time to time with the wolves. So ten pelts is a bit much. Hell, most of the time, or at least before, we would just send as many of us as possible to kill those kinds of beasts meaning if a Goblin has even a fragment of a pelt today, their ancestor was likely stronger¡­ or smarter than the others.¡± ¡°So the goblins gave up their ancestors honor to try to get into Lisia¡¯s skirt? No surprise there actually. Hey, are we getting close yet?¡± complained Andrew as arm was being stabbed mercilessly by a bunch thistles. ¡°Just a little bit more and we¡¯ll be there.¡± Nearing the small tightly bundled copse of trees, the trio slowed their advance slightly. Not out of concern for potential predators, but because the bushes of leaves became thistles and trees grew thicker and thicker forcing them go around each one with great difficulty. It was if there was a natural fence line to keep away invaders. As Andrew was the first to exit the forest brush he noticed the untouched crimson dyed pelt just sitting in the middle, hung on a tree branch near his entry point, as if it were laundry left up to dry. While the surrounding trees themselves were generally rather small and sparse, a few did sporadically sprout out from the ground. To his dismay, even though the majority of the thistle and smaller bushes ceased their growth in this location, the trees in the distance themselves formed an almost impassable nature wall around some small hill. A single small exit from the natural fort appeared a little off to the side of the party. ¡®Definitely a trap don¡¯t know if they could have made it more obvious though.¡¯ thought Andrew as he readied his swords, pulling an extra into his holster just in case. ¡°Goblin. Are you just an idiot or did you want to die right now?¡± spoke Andrew to the emerging Goblin callously. ¡°Huh, I swear I left it around here¡­ Ah, that¡¯s it! Wait, why do you look so pissed off - again? Hmm let me rephrase that, why do you look more angry than your usual pissed off self?¡± ¡°Because some idiotic goblin... led us to a rather unpleasant spot? ¡° chimed in Lisia, extremely uncomfortable being in the open of this clearing. With the cries of dozens of wolves, shadows danced around from the inside of the fort¡¯s interior before a chorus of howls seemed to deafen the party almost entirely. Soon after, Andrew and the others were surrounded by eight, 7 foot tall wolves, each head drooling, nipping at the air before them, or just simply looking menacingly at them. With no way out, Andrew dropped his two blades from his hand before raising them while inspecting his opponents. [Mutated Grey Wolf Alpha Level 10 Due to their loyalty to the one Den Mother each smaller pack was absorbed into a large family. These Alphas represent their packs while acting as a personal guard to the Den Mother herself. Possesses incredibly high intelligence for it¡¯s species and is able to understand common languages to some extent. Their consciousness is interchangeable as the minds of each leader has merged with the passing of time. Abilities: ???] ¡®Yep, no hope in hell I can kill them all in one go. Not even counting the bastards hiding away from the area right now.¡¯ ¡°Hey, wolves, you should be able to understand some of this at least. I came asking for a truce between the Cleaver clan of goblins and would like to speak to your Den Mother, master, superior, or whatever in the hell you want to call ¡®em,¡± addressed Andrew towards the wolves who seemed to become seething at the mention of their Den Mother from the human¡¯s lips. ¡°Also, I¡¯m curious about something here, should you males out there wish to help me out on my little situation feel free to teach me. Ah, I missed the question entirely, ¡®if you are the pride of your pack, why are your children so weak?¡¯ ¡° Said Andrew whilst pointing to the nearby blood soaked pelt laid bare upon a branch. ¡°Before you get all riled up I wanted to know which among you has the authority to even lay eyes on the Den Mother, let alone share a bed? Because it is rather shameful that such a magnificent creature such as her would have such poor children.¡± Shaking his head, he picked up a sword off the ground and pointed at the most vexed wolf. The others backed off leaving the two a bit of room in the tight circle. Clearly they weren¡¯t too happy with the conversation, but if it were to remove a rival from them, why not? As Lisia and Taryk, slipped a few metres back Andrew pointed to the wolf and laugh provocatively. The wolf, not pleased at all, growled towards Andrew and ran full tilt towards the stationary man. 1 metre, 2, 5, even 10 metres were cleared in the blink of an eye by the furious wolf. Approaching the smirking human, it opened its jaws wide in an attempt to rip Andrews head off of its body. Andrew, on the other hand, wasn¡¯t too impressed by the beast. ¡®Definitely faster than the others but isn¡¯t it¡¯s only major factor the size of it? Bigger they are..¡¯ With a light toss he threw his holstered short sword in the wolf¡¯s gaping mouth and stepped back a bit. The alpha still far beyond reason, snapped its jaw shut at the flying blade with its colossal teeth - shattering the sword into small pieces. These fragments split off of the blade and during its flight slashed, stabbed, and embedded themselves into the wolf¡¯s mouth causing it to stop its charge. Yelping resentfully with one pair of eyes dyed red with fury but unable to take over the other half of its body, the other crying out in pain. ¡®Two different nervous systems¡­ how in the actual hell is that possible.¡¯ Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author''s preferred platform and support their work! Dashing to the injured sides body the only response was a blade into the wolf¡¯s heart.
You have leveled up! You have three stat points to distribute into your primary stats.
Immediately he put them into his agility stat, raising his max speed, to help him keep up with the wolves. Ignoring the approaching circle he shouted out once more, ¡°Is that all you¡¯ve got? Honestly, I thought you were supposed to be the top of your packs, will you send another to fight or simply allow this human to show your prided ¡®Den Mother¡¯ the weakness of her own kind?¡± As he pointed to another wolf, once again fuming, the twin heads roared with fury in unison before charging at Andrew. Taking a quick glance to the sides to pray that no more were invited by his taunt, Andrew waved his sword relaxedly in front of his face. ¡®Damn, the agility stat is kind of ridiculous. Actually all of them are, but¡­ Intelligence seems to be a double edged sword,¡¯ mused Andrew with a wry smile. Like the first, the second wolf took off immediately, closing the distance in a split second before arriving at the idling human. Even before the jaws came near Andrews face, he vanished. Appearing to the side of the wolf he stabbed the wolf¡¯s flank in quick succession before slicing a tendon in the wolf¡¯s leg. Effectively crippling the wolf, the other wolves gazed at the once great alpha wolf with both amusement and pity. Looking around at the massive corpse beside him and the one on the way, Andrew sighed, ¡®If this keeps happening how the hell will I be able to have room to fight these overgrown mutts? Well, one more won¡¯t make much of a difference.¡¯ An awkward moment of silence passed through the area, of course, with the exception of the moaning and panting wolf Andrew just crippled and left to bleed out. Raising both hands, with a newly equipped goblin club in his left and a copper short sword in his right, he pointed at two more wolves. As the two bounded in his direction, Andrew leaned back slightly while resting his foot on the first wolf¡¯s corpse. Seeing the two get closer and closer he waited until they were right within reach before acting. Taking a breath, Andrew hopped up on the corpse before using it was a springboard to soar over the two wolves. Neither willing to lose this chance, the two wolves jumped up at the airbourne man, opening their gaping maws further and further. At around 5 meters in the air, the trio met one another. The first wolf to reach him received a small club thrown down his throat causing it choke and convulse momentarily, whereafter it flailed around, kicking the other slightly in one of its snarling heads. As his upward momentum was starting to crumble, Andrew - entirely idle in the air saw the two fast approaching him. Rotating his hips and swinging his legs upwards he dodged one claw only to have his leg covered in lacerations from the flailing wolf¡¯s tail purely by chance. Clenching his teeth hard to endure the pain, Andrew swung his legs around once more to stop his spin - or, as much as humanly possible, and leveled his short sword with the one of the beasts midsection. As soon as his blade sunk into flesh, so to did the wolf¡¯s teeth. With one of the wolf¡¯s heads firmly locked onto his legs, Andrew viciously stabbed again and again, getting closer to the wolf¡¯s spine with every thrust. For what seemed like an eternity Andrew hung in the air, stabbing the wolf while it tried to rip his thigh off of his body. The only saving grace was the equipment he received acted as some deterrent to the actually wounds. But the pain was still too intense. If it was before the new age, Andrew, or any other human for that matter, would have already passed out. But with each stab even as Andrew was losing strength and his much needed willpower to keep conscious, the wolf finally seemed to loosen his grip on the man¡¯s thigh. With a punch to the face of the wolf, sending it surprisingly far distance away, Andrew freed himself only to be met with the hard ground. Winded and sore, Andrew had little power to get up from off the comforting ground, yet, when a savage snarl approached from behind he immediately sprang forward. Diving forward, Andrew felt like he hit a wall. A soft, fuzzy, slightly matted wall - that happened to be vomiting out wooden splinters. Taking cover underneath the oblivious wolf, the one in pursuit came quickly behind Andrew, tackling the immobile wolf in the process. As the two bickered for a moment with a small bite or claw swung into the empty air as threats, Andrew crept behind - and off to the side, in lieu of the tail swinging furiously back and forth - the relatively uninjured wolf. Grabbing another short sword from the inventory, Andrew pulled the floating sword out of the air before tightening his hold of the new blade. As the howls, snarls, and all other manner of noises created from the were incredibly loud neither noticed the relatively small human approach. ¡®Even the encirclement doesn¡¯t even bother to let them know? Huh, friendly creatures, hey?¡¯ With a quick dash behind the wolf, timing his dodge from the aggressive, deadly tail, he used a cross slash on the nearest hind leg of the wolf. After he swept his swords away from the second leg the wolf finally seemed to register the agony of standing. Seeing the other collapse in their stance, the other wolf took this opportunity to finish their little spat by tacking the downed wolf, threatening to close its jaws around its neck. Andrew obviously didn¡¯t let this opportunity pass as the wolf growled softly a single sword was inserted directly into its throat from the side. The other blade - mirroring the first, ended up in the other wolf¡¯s throat. As the two collapsed, Andrew limped out, covered in the life blood of the two creatures, washing Andrew thoroughly with crimson blood. ¡®So there heads have different nervous systems by they only have one heart, therefore cutting off one head would completely kill the wolf by disrupting his blood flow.¡¯ Attempting to walk about his realisation wasn¡¯t wise, but Andrew shuffled his way over towards the centre, closest towards Lisia anyways. ¡°Ow, fuck, Hey El- Ahem, Lisia seems like you haven¡¯t been eaten yet, mind healing me?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Elf?¡± ¡°LISIA! DAMN IS THAT SO HARD?!¡± ¡°Said it the first time, heal please or we may all die ~¡± spoke Andrew light heartedly, though the tightness on his face and tone of voice dictated otherwise. ¡°... Can you please just not look like a demon, or some other disgusting creature that bathes in blood, even for a day?¡± muttered Lisia as the strange green glow floated towards Andrew. ¡°Not my choice, but for this week that seems to be my prerogative.¡± Feeling a slight reprieve of the symptoms, he once again shook his body loose.
You have leveled up! You have three stat points to distribute into your primary stats.
Just like before he placed all three points into agility, oddly enough the other wolves didn¡¯t seem all that inclined to attack him. It was a peculiar mix of fear, excitement, respect, anger, and many more than Andrew simply couldn¡¯t determine on the spot. Sighing loudly to himself, he walked towards the four corpses in the middle - evidently, the second challenger bled out already, before depositing them into his inventory soundlessly. The wolves stood stock still more a long while. Sniffing, calling, and cautiously scratching the place where the corpses disappeared from where their kinsmen were once alive was limit of what they did as they began to move. ¡°Hey random wolfie number one? Are you listening? Damn, sure that is interesting and all, but what would happen if an enemy were to take advantage of your¡­ your.. damn it all. Why didn¡¯t I think of that before?¡± sighed Andrew for the ¡®nth time today. The slightly conflicted expression on his face turned to irritation when the wolf¡¯s ignored him once more. ¡°Andrew, please¡­ please don¡¯t tell me¡­¡± spoke Lisia who didn¡¯t even know quite how to react to this action. ¡°Oi, Mutt.¡± called out Andrew, however, just as the sound reached the wolf¡¯s ears so, to, did a small pebble embedded itself into the eye socket of the - unfortunately wide-eyed creature. ¡°Don¡¯t fight like a bitch, the bastard before almost got me, maybe you¡¯ll have a chance? And the rest of you - Calm. The. Hell. Down. Oh, you come though.¡± Andrew pointed out towards the surprisingly obedient animal who slowly trotted over with confidence - or rather, arrogance, even though one of it¡¯s four eyes were sealed behind a rock. ¡®He wants nothing more to do the same to me too, and then some, I¡¯d imagine,¡¯ mused Andrew with a small smirk on his face. With the extra three agility he just added his attack movement speed had increased by a large margin, making the bipedal man almost as fast the quadruped wolf. Although both were at level ten, the existence of a separate weapon acted very much in Andrew¡¯s favour. As did the gauntlet styled battle he incited from the creatures. Too proud to turn down a battle, but too proud to cooperate with their rivals. In fact, should Andrew leave right now, a new hierarchy would be created and wolf¡¯s themselves would likely be indifferent to whether the man¡¯s had his life or not. But. That¡¯s not how Andrew wished to play it. Leaving behind the screaming wolf to his rear, all four legs severed from its body, ears cut off, and a copper sword embedded just far enough inside the wolf¡¯s body. Sitting almost directly beside its heart, to kill him instantly should he move or struggle. With a few lines of slashes that were meant only to bring about pain and suffering to the arrogant creature. Withdrawing another sword, Andrew glanced back at the encirclement before calling out, ¡°Hey, Goblin, Elf, be on your guard in case they get antsy because I was a little sadistic to that arrogant looking one.¡± ¡°A little sadistic, that¡¯s all, right? Not, ¡®I¡¯m secretly a mass murderer from whatever world I popped out of?¡¯ Kind of thing, retorted Lisia in obvious disgust, but still brought up her bow she dropped on the ground. Just leaving the bow unloaded. ¡°Meh, I don¡¯t like that kind of arrogance, do you?¡± ¡°No; Can¡¯t say that I do¡­ But really? To that much of an extent?¡± replied Lisia, though, most of the words went to the empty air instead. Seeing each grab their weapons - in as gentle and non-threatening as possible, for tools meant to slaughter one thing or another, he approached another wolf. Raising his twin swords forward as he approached the three remaining creatures, he suddenly stopped. Feeling what could only be described as a nearly limitless blood lust, the wolves all howled in unison before lowering their heads. And what approached was monstrous. A pitch black wolf with a serpentine tail and just one head whose eyes had purple iris and obsidian vertical slits in place of it¡¯s pupils. Standing over 9 feet tall, it exuded a sense of danger like no other creature he experienced thus far. With an ominous violet glow, the beast slowly transformed in front of his eyes. When it was all over, he was swept off of his feet. Not by fear, anxiety, or anything of that nature, but falling on the ground rolling around like a madman while laughing hysterically. The once terrifying creature, transformed itself into a small 10 or 11 year old girl, with snow white skin, fine, wavy black hair, and far too large of a chest for her height. Trying to stand elegantly above the human, but stumbled unto her face in the process. As she fell she managed to show off her serpentine tail coiling up and around her naked body in an attempt to hold her back up - but, that action, obviously wouldn''t work.
Sheylin the Enchantress Level 4 Description: ??? Abilities: Transformation, ???
Laughing even harder now, he spoke to her callously as she was getting up, ¡°Hey brat, did you just sleep around with a bunch of mangy dogs so you could feel important about yourself?¡± Surprisingly she was speaking clearly with a soft alluring voice as she replied, ¡°Nope~ that was mother, she told me recruit you, or something ~. You have proven yourself worthy to bred with her, she just wants strong children. How about it? You sleep with her give her a strong child so that he may help us with our goal in the future~¡± ¡°Ah, well considering your age and proportions I actually wouldn¡¯t be against it, as she is probably quite attractive, but I¡¯d like the women I sleep with to not have dog fur stuck in their private parts. Hmm is that racist in this world? I digress, why the hell is she breding an army or whatever? Just curious.¡± ¡°Well, I¡¯m sure she¡¯ll tell that to you over the pillow talk later on, unless of course, you ~ want ~ me ~¡± spoke the little girl, who attempted to act seductively, but failed miserably to the disinterested man. ¡°Children are disgusting creatures, in my world and this, apparently. Goal, your mother¡¯s strength, and how many more are in your pack. Those are all questions I¡¯d like to ask. Oh, that guy finally kicked the bucket, hey?¡± Ignoring the pouting child and moving around to pick up the corpse, he noticed a smaller wolf cub appear from nowhere licking the wounds on his mutilated body with each pair of eyes radiating grief and anger. "Excuse me, pup I need to take something your Dad has been holding on for me.¡± said Andrew as he pulled out the copper sword, long since stained with the wolf¡¯s blood. ¡°Oh Sheylin do you mind if I take this corpse?¡± ¡°Hmm, it isn¡¯t really up to me to decide, but oh well, it really isn¡¯t that big of a deal. But in return you absolutely must have a meal with us. And I won¡¯t take no for an answer.¡± she said as she wrapped her tiny arms around his legs, trying to rub her bust as sensually as possible. Though to Andrew it was no different than a cat rubbing your leg as you walk past. ¡°Big words for such a little girl,¡± quipped Andrew noncommittally as he pushed off the clinging girl from his leg. ¡°Ah, you really do need to meet my mother, she is the most beautiful, elegant, amazing, woman you¡¯ll ever meet ~ ¡° spoke Sheylin with her eyes twinkling in reverence to her mother. ¡°And my two companions: the goblin and the elf?¡± Nodding towards the two standing slightly behind him. Taryk gave a rough nod whereas Lisia was clenching her fist fuming. ¡°HEY, FOR THE -¡± ¡°Yeah, that is perfectly fine, what¡¯s that saying, ¡®food tastes better with company?¡¯¡± Interrupted Sheylin, simply for the sake of expediting their conversation. ¡°Hey, Boss... ¡° started Taryk before being cut off by Sheylin. ¡°Probably a trap, something to that effect? Well, if we really cared about the masses those wolves would have ganged up on you to slaughter you instead of the little escapade you were playing. As their leader, teacher, mother, so on and so forth, she taught them to respect the strong even when they are enemies. That is because enemies and allies is truly just a blurred line between ideals and communication is necessary to secure our future.¡± ¡°Well spoken - for a child at least.¡±As she pouted adorably, Andrew nodded towards his companions to signal them to follow him. ----- Chapter 10 I feel like I did a bad job of editing this one... if you find any mistakes I may have missed, left me know please!
Sighing, Andrew gave up on thinking of the politics of the matter and instead decided to follow his stomach. After hours of harsh battles and trekking through the forest he was positively famished. Nodding to the little girl, he walked up to both the overhung pelt on the tree branch and the wolf¡¯s corpse in turn, depositing them in his inventory only to receive a notification when he attempted to deal with the corpse.
You have reached maximum capacity in your inventory. You will not be able to place another object until something is removed.
Grumbling, he dropped the small pebbles, goblins clubs, and wore both the quiver on his back and the novice dagger at his hip to make room. Finally, as the light faded and they were in a relatively clear area, just pools of blood located here and there. Making their way after the retreating figure of the girl, the trio was being corralled by the remaining wolf alphas who seemed oddly happy over the misfortunes of their brothers. One in the front and two in the rear, but at relatively respectful distances so even Lisia wasn¡¯t anything more than a little nervous. Entering the small opening in the natural, wooded fort, the trio noticed something rather strange. Inside the walled area area was serene meadow with only a few trees popping up here and there. Each wolf was paying their respects towards the young girl by laying down with their heads on the ground. As she walked past, they, too, rose from their subservient position sending inquisitive glances towards the human, goblin, and elf. While the pack wasn¡¯t overly hostile, they weren¡¯t welcoming either. But such treatment is expected towards outsiders. Within the elevated meadow, each rolling hill seemed to serve as a dugout or den for the massive wolves. In total, as far as the eye could see, Andrew counted over 80 of the creatures in the open. ¡®Ten or so in each of the original packs¡­ I wonder how the three remaining ones will split the families from here on,¡¯ mused Andrew with a wry smile, finally realising the alphas treatment of him after Sheylin came around. In some sense, it was a blessing for Andrew to come along and quell some of the building tension between the families. Though it could be done in various ways, the result would have been essentially the same for the mutated wolf packs. With the surrounding crowds wolves growing thinner and thinner, they approached a massive willow, within the branches stood the small parasitic dogwood trees in full bloom. Giving an interesting scene to behold. Birds soared through the air, critters danced and played throughout the branches. The setting sun peered through the canopy and gave the impression of anything but the den of the leader of the vicious, hostile grey wolves Andrew encountered all day. Near the base of the nearly 40 metre tall tree was an entrance that seemed beyond what mere wolves were capable of building. With a near perfect arch made of two small trees intertwining themselves at around 4 metres above the ground, bended and curling over one another before extending slightly to the sky just in front of the cavernous, hollowed out willow. A perfectly circular tunnel was dug and polished to a smooth finish where even the trees knots themselves were not visible. ¡®Clearly this was the work of that Den Mother. Magic, slave labour, anime abuse, whatever it is, it doesn¡¯t really have anything to do with me for the time being,¡¯ mulled over Andrew as he stepped up towards the entrance of the Den Mother¡¯s lair. As he went a few more feet inwards, he and the others were pushed back with a sudden gust of air, knocking out everyone except for the three wolves - who stood on guard at the entryway. Even little Sheylin was pushed onto her rear with the other three. ¡°Mother! Why are you treating your gues-¡± started Sheylin before she began to shriek like a banshee, ¡°AH, COLD! COLD! COLD! WHY?! YOU KNOW I HATE BATHS?!¡± As Sheylin began to sob quietly Andrew looked over at her genuine doubt before saying, ¡°That was cold? At most it was lukewarm and even then it would be pushing it¡­?¡± Eyeing the other two, he noticed that they were both shivering uncontrollably, teeth chattering, and their faces turned slightly blue. ¡°Ahaha, as expected of my new man ~ you are rather surprising you know!¡± a melodious voice echoed through the space, each syllabol more enticing than the last for the two man of the group. Even Lisia was blushing a bit, seemingly forgetting about the rude awakening she experienced a few second prior. With long ebony hair and flawless porcelain skin, Sheylin¡¯s mother strided up to Andrew in all her natural glory. Twin peaks that would easily cause the careless to topple over and an rear and hips that seemed to balance out her excessive upper body. Even the thin waist only served to emphasis the those two features. Looking up he saw two bewitching violet coloured eyes, with a vertical slits for pupils. Though he was physically attracted to her, she seemed to rub him the wrong way for a number of reason. ¡°Did you warm the water up for me specifically or are those three just complaining needlessly?¡± ¡°Nope ~¡± She began as she eyed up his now spotless body, though the blood stains still remained on his clothes, it was dyed a uniform colour of red so it wasn¡¯t anything that would set him apart from the crowd all that much. Even the blood that matted his own hair seemed to disappear. ¡°You simply took it like a man, even those supposed alpha wolves still yelp and shiver for some peculiar reason. My daughter on the other hand¡­ Well, although she still has her uses, it isn¡¯t like I¡¯d entrust anything too major for someone who can¡¯t even take a bath without complaining,¡± launching a scathing look at her daughter, whom was still shivering violently, before softening her gaze somewhat. ¡°Lisia, I never know you swung that way?¡± joked Andrew as he stripped off his water logged shirt. Putting the already distant Lisia further in a daze. ¡°My name is Lisia! Damn it, get it right!¡± She replied automatically, as if she has come to expect Andrew to use it at every opening, but refusing to have it stick to her forever. ¡°As I said before, ¡®Lisia¡¯, Lisia,¡± sighed Andrew before spanning his gaze around the room. ¡°Lisia, looks like you and me are the other clothed people here, huh? How about it, I¡¯m game if you are,¡± quipped Andrew with a teasing voice only to see her blush deepen greatly, embarrassed and annoyed at the suggestion. ¡° ¡°What¡¯s the point of clothes. It¡¯s too much work.¡± ¡° Taryk and Sheylin looked at each other in surprise. Every syllable was in sync and neither realised the other was speaking until they finished. ¡°You really know what¡¯s up, shapeshifting slut.¡± praised Taryk with his usual brazen attitude leaking out once more. Even going so much as to pace over to her, checking out her body with major scrutiny before sighing slightly and muttering, ¡°if only you were closer to my age¡­¡± ¡°Same to you, green, crossed muscle head.¡± As with Taryk, she too advanced and circled around the entirely naked goblin lightly dragging a finger on top of the scar Andrew inflicted before commenting, ¡°Ah, I¡¯m 18, close enough?¡± ¡°Woah, really?¡± No matter where Taryk looked he couldn¡¯t find a trace of the age on her. ¡°... You are actually older than me¡­ you huma- ahem, weird shapeshifting reptilian snake human type species, truly are a inscrutable race. 17.¡± ¡°Great, shall we?¡± Spoke Sheylin before Andrew decided to step in between the two. ¡°What happened to, ¡®trap¡¯ something or another, actually I don¡¯t even care.¡± Shaking his head, and lowering the loaded pebble he picked up for emergencies, ¡±Mama Reptilian shapeshifting snake-human, or so says the wise fellow over there, I¡¯d like you know why you care about me. Your, ¡®shapeshifting slut¡¯ daughter, spoke warmly about you and some goal or another. I¡¯d like to know about it before I associate myself too much with you guys, because, well, I can?¡± Addressed Andrew clearly as he shook his long hair slight in a vain hope to rid himself of some of the water. ¡°Hmm, I probably can¡¯t trust you whatsoever, but it wouldn¡¯t affect you in the slightest. And you don¡¯t seem to be the type to meddle without a valid reason. Fine, fine, fine. One condition, however ~ ¡­¡± ¡°No, I will not have sex with a woman who slept with and birthed dozens of wolves. Humans, elves, some other fairy tale non-sense, maybe. Just not mangy wolves or any other animals really,¡± spoke Andrew with a irritated expression as he glanced over her body for the second time. ¡°Ah, I see... it was worth a shot anyways. If you are not into women that¡¯s fine. I can turn into a man too? Temporarily, of course,¡± smiled the Den Mother with a provoking smirk. The smirk, however, was turned upside down just moments later. A small pebble pegged her square on the forehead. As the temperature of the room began to drop, the expressions of everyone present - besides Andrew, began to pale. Even the mischievous Sheylin pleaded her mother to at least save her new, ¡®toy.¡¯ ¡°Okay, for one; fuck you. Not literally, that¡¯d be kind of dangerous in a couple of different ways: diseases, fleas, mites, so on and so forth really. Secondly, I¡¯m straight, I just would rather not sleep someone no better than prostitute. Thirdly, you and I both know it, you may kill them, but in the meantime I can kill your daughter. Now, no more lollygagging and order one of your furry harem bastards to get us some food. And quit looking at me like that. Fucking masochistic mongrel.¡± Immediately after the initial surprise from the throw faded, the woman unleashed a breathtaking smile that awed everyone except for the irritated man. Whistling quietly, Taryk nudged Sheylin before whispering, ¡°It seems like the Boss has tamed your mother, what will you do now, Shey?¡± Sheylin whispered back, ¡°it¡¯s the other way around, she always get like that when she found a toy that she¡¯d go to the end of the world to captu- ahem, obtain.¡± Laughing far too loudly for their hushed discussion, Taryk spoke arrogantly, ¡°you haven¡¯t seen boss yet when he¡¯s really angry, hell, even that mutilated and tortured wolf was because he was annoyed at the wolf¡¯s approach and had the power to deal with him. Now, I¡¯m not saying I have, but when he does finally explode it¡¯d be a sight to see¡­ On the sidelines, at least.¡± Reflecting slightly Sheylin spoke casually now that everyone was already listening to the two of them, ¡°Interesting, interesting. Seems like I picked the right mate, Mother always said, ¡®Don¡¯t bite off more than you can chew,¡¯ surely I wouldn¡¯t be able to handle him¡­ yet. You on the other hand¡­¡± With a passionate look in her eyes she approached the young goblin. ¡°OUCH, What was that for?!¡± Cried out Sheylin as her kiss was interrupted by a light whack of a spear shaft. ¡°Trap or something. Boss is usually right. But, regardless, maybe when we are out of your territory. The furred devotees would probably rip my body to shreds just because you are some new princess-in-training? Ah, are you housebroken though, we really can¡¯t get you to meet my parents if - AH, WHY?!¡± With a coy expression on her face, the fireball disappeared from her hands and she ran up to Taryk who was wildly rolling around trying to smother out the magical flames. ¡°My Love! Oh, how could the world be so cruel as to do such a thing to an innocent, kind, brazen fool. It¡¯s such a shame that the Heavens themselves designed these flames to last hours on end! How can we save such a - AHHRGH¡± With a double blow of retaliatory flames from her mother and pebble impacting her forehead, she promptly passed out. Sizing each other up, Andrew and the Den Mother both laughed lightly at the same time, ¡°interesting, interesting, if you are so inclined, you can ¡®discipline¡¯ me and my daughter at the size time ~¡± flirted the Den Mother as she held her daughter in one arm and Taryk in the other, sending some spell that stopped the flames and healed most of the damage. ¡°You left them some ¡®parting gifts,¡¯ so to speak, as a reminder for tomorrow, hey?¡± smirked Andrew, when he received a sly nod in confirmation a small smile crept up on his face. ¡°Now we are even for him throwing one, or two - how do you count your children - anyways, of your son¡¯s heads at my face. I owe you my thanks,¡± Andrew bent over forty five degrees and gave as formal as a bow as he could without breaking out in laughter at the ridiculousness of it all. ¡°Anyways, can I please have food? Lisia, I forgot to ask, do you care if we eat meat¡­ Lisia? Ah, don¡¯t bark now, you don¡¯t want to be influenced by the scary, unconscious midget over there.¡± ¡°Y-yeah, but¡­ what in the hell happened, I saw it all, but I just don¡¯t understand,¡± began Lisia before sighing and signaling Andrew to explain with her perplexed eyes. ¡°Okay, Taryk and Sheylin, ie scary midget slut, or whatever derogatory word you¡¯d like to use at any given moment, are a thing. She¡¯s crazy; he¡¯s a blunt idiot, but hey, it¡¯s entertaining right Mama Wolf?¡± Looking lost for a moment, the Den Mothers violet eyes lit up suddenly, ¡°Oh, my name! How irresponsible of me, Sharlin, nice to met you two. That green one will obviously be dealt with later,¡± meeting a sudden glare from Andrew, she sighed, ¡°Not in that manner. Just ¡®educated¡¯ and ¡®screened¡¯ as any parent should test when they are looking for their child¡¯s first mate.¡± ¡°First?¡± Replied Andrew in puzzlement, ¡°I thought she would have been a - ahem, ¡®free spirit¡¯ like her shameless mother. Especially considering her being 18 years old. Damn, you really are a bad influence, ah where was I¡­ Taryk and Sheylin, check. Me and Sharlin, check - ¡± ¡°Wait what, you are planning on sleeping with that wolf now?!¡± Cried Lisia in alarm. ¡°Nah, she want¡¯s me, I want food. That¡¯s all our relationship is. That sounds bad; no sex whatsoever with furry vixens. And hey, storytime. Goals,¡± commanded Andrew with a harsher than usual tone of voice. Seeing the irritated human, Sharlin sighed lightly before beginning her story¡­ A long arduous story about persecution and something else before Andrew began to fall asleep. This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it. ----------------------- Seeing the Sun rays nearly blind him as he opened up his eyes, indicating he was asleep for far longer than he would have thought, he felt uncomfortable. Not physically, but a sense of emotion turmoil though he know nothing about what could have cause it. Lazily stretching on the ground he felt he elbow touch something peculiar, not the soft grass underneath his back, nor the countless flowers blooming around him. Sleepily gazing towards the object he sighed before going back to sleep. ------------------------- Waking up once more, he shoved the sleeping beauty off of him. Dressing in his boxes, leg guards, and crimson undershirt, he prepared himself for the day even finding his weapons tossed haphazardly off to the side. Sharlin was still restlessly moving towards him in an attempt to grab him once more so he shook her slightly. With no response, he flicked her on the forehead. Neither did calling her; nothing seemed to work. So he grabbed a trusty pebble from the ground beside his resting spot and lobbed it at her. Walking towards the tree home, he asked a series of questions to her: ¡°You actually did what I think you did last night,¡± nod, ¡°You thought it would be a good idea since I was unconscious,¡± nod. ¡°Did you at least use some healing spell on it afterwards?¡± Nod, ¡°You realise I will have no part in this shit later,¡° nod. ¡°Taryk?¡± Yawning cutely, Sharlin spoke indifferently, ¡°I tied the two up at separate corners of the room with a few guard dogs just in case either one of them gets cheeky. Probably loose now though.¡± ¡°Honestly, I really don¡¯t care much about what to me¡­ at least while I¡¯m asleep. Don¡¯t get any ideas about this later,¡± stifling a yawn as well, Andrew continued on, ¡°just don¡¯t let Taryk get eaten by the pack before he even has a chance to lose his virginity, okay? It¡¯d be inconvenient to train another goblin with your pets - or rather children, ya know?¡± As they entered the willow tree¡¯s interior, Andrew was met with a marvelous smell. Small piles of meat were skewered on tree branches before being roasted over a small fire. In a pot nearby there was a small stew brewing with strange vegetables floating to surface once more. Now that the trio essentially had free reign over the wilderness nearby, Lisia took it upon herself to gather the freshest ingredients and prepare a sizable breakfast. Likewise, the now freed Sheylin, sat by the fire and spit roasted various birds and critters - which looked rather crispy to begin with. ¡°We have an announcement to make,¡± began Sharlin, momentarily confusing the entire group, ¡°myself and.. this human - ¡° ¡°Andrew,¡± cut in Taryk, in between bites from his raw fox corpse. ¡°Myself and Andrew¡­ Are expecting!¡± Everyone either spat out their food or fell to the floor. Lisia, especially, was quivering and stuttered, ¡°Is this true¡­¡± in a voice few could hear, if not of course, for the silence that just into being. ¡°Taryk watch yourself,¡± cautioned Andrew as her glanced the smaller shapeshifter, ¡°Sharlin, took advantage of me when I was asleep, speaking of which, Lisia can you use your magic just in case she lied about purifying whichever canine STD she has come into contact with - because we all know that you have,¡± glared Andrew now at Sheylin¡¯s mother, Sharlin. ¡°I¡¯m kind of at that point where nothing should really surprise me anymore, cooperating with goblins, wolves, and some other creature that literally just raped Andrew¡­ whom doesn¡¯t seem all that affected,¡± sighed Lisia before a small green glow encased her hands before leading up towards Andrew¡¯s lower body. After a few moments of awkward silence Taryk spoke up, ¡°Congratulations, now will it be another monster like that one over there,¡± pointing at Sheylin with an entire fox femur in his mouth, ¡°or maybe, a cross breed? Wolf-human slut? Wait, is that how the beastmen came to be?¡± Exhaling lightly, Sharlin replied with a slightly saddened face, ¡°Yes, my species was responsible for the majority of the diversification of this continent. Over the boundless seas, exists a land where hailed from - ¡° ¡°Northern Africa, or whatever the hell it would be called now?¡± cut in Andrew, curious to see if his conjecture was correct. ¡°Afrikah¡­ Where is that?¡± Attempting to draw a crude map of the world on the wooden floor with a burnt stick was difficult, but eventually after some ¡®do-overs¡¯ he finished it to a barely adequate level. Pointing towards the first landmass he drew, ¡°Assuming it hasn''t changed much, we are here in the northern portions of this continent. It¡¯s name was called North America and down here is call South American - sometimes referred to as Central America, or at least I do. Anyways, over here is Europe, And below it is Africa. Where I¡¯m thinking it¡¯d be located would be on the Northern reaches of the African continent or perhaps somewhere in between the landmasses. ¡°Wait, stop getting me distracted, oh right, your goal: I imagine you want a permanent home, correct?¡± ¡°Yes, but to do that we need territory, power, influ- ¡° started Sheylin before being cut off. Scratching his head, ¡°Why? What¡¯s the point of all that, basically just bring your pack to some wooded area, build a cabin and be done with it all. If you¡¯re really keen on it all, go up to the Goblins, Treehuggers, or Beast-man and be like, ¡®hey, I like to hang out with these guys, I¡¯ll tell them to not kill you, so please avoid starting a war,¡¯ kind of sounds arrogant, but it is the best I can come up with on the spot.¡± ¡°It isn¡¯t that easy! What if -¡± ¡°- They find out? So what, who cares if you can turn into whatever in the fuck you want. Hell, if you want to agree to my original proposition then you should be good. Team up with the Cleaver clan of goblins, let them expand and conquer the other tribes around here with some help of your pack and then you¡¯ll have pretty much all three of your previous requirements,¡± unintentionally half-ordered Andrew towards Sharlin and her daughter, Sheylin, before gorging himself on a two foot long branch covered in spit roasted meat. Though no clear response came from Sharlin, one could tell from her silence that the matter was being passed around in her mind. ¡°Hey, don¡¯t just fill up on meat!¡± Reprimanded Lisia wearing a nervous expression, before shoving a bowl filled to the brim with her homemade soup. As the breakfast went on the group chatted and bickered, each grew more comfortable of the other. Not even paying attention to the three nude people and the other two greatly under dressed individuals. As soon as they finished breakfast Andrew asked for a secluded space in the meadow, so the that the other wolves wouldn¡¯t see the process of skinning or the mere process of butchering their brethren. Sharlin, still glowing from the morning, happily obliged his request and led him as well as Taryk to a small desolate area where even the grass could barely manage to survive. ¡°Why is this place like this?¡± spoke Andrew as he eyed the barren soil in a ten meter radius, with dry soil and powdered rock fragments. ¡°War,¡± Sharlin responded, speaking quietly, but with a clenched jaw and the venomous way she spat out the word, it clearly had impacted her more than he would have thought for the usual carefree woman. ¡°Our enemy, the horned wind serpents, moved further into our territory causing many of these children to die needlessly. This is where we buried them afterwards.¡± ¡°That poisonous?¡± Replied Andrew indifferently, eyeing the dying ground, receiving a solemn nod shortly afterwards, ¡°So gargantuan, poisonous flying snakes decided to move in on your space, huh. Clearly you fought them off well enough, but why do you look so distraught right now, they should have been sent with their tails between their legs at this point, hey?¡± ¡°Ah, well I personally killed their leader and most of their group, but many of my children died because of the ambushes they launch when the pups go out on patrol.¡± ¡°Guerilla warfare, not bad for animals. Though that¡¯s where we got it from anyways, oh Taryk get started already.¡± Selecting the ten corpses which stayed suspended in the air until each was placed floating above the ground. Eventually the first fell, following that each dropped in turn, which sent the earth flying. Andrew side stepped the bigger dust clouds while holding his breath to avoid potential contamination from the soil. Taryk, on the other, wasn¡¯t quite as prepared as Andrew, as he was staring at the suspended bodies. When the dust rose Taryk started choking and wheezing after it entered his lungs sending him to his knees. . ¡°Bas- *cough* *cough sta-¡± ¡°Sharlin?¡± ¡°Yes~¡± With a bright blue flash, Taryk was encased in a ball of water, which started glowing before a small hole punctured the hole giving him a breathing passage in the mystically water. ¡°Ah, even though I was suffocating a second ago¡­ it felt really good? What the hell is up with your magic, woman? Also, aren''t you closer to those snakes than wolves?¡± asked Taryk inquisitively as his breathing passage cleared - just before it closed back up again. Watching the drowning goblin and the coy look on Sharlin¡¯s face, Andrew sighed loudly. ¡®Like mother, like daughter; I suppose.¡¯ Drawing his short sword, he placed the tip directly on Sharlin¡¯s throat. ¡°Stop. Heal him first then we¡¯ll talk about potential punishment. His death means your daughter¡¯s, or at the very least yours as well, ya know?¡± Following his declaration the sphere of water disappeared into nothingness, leaving a sopping wet goblin gasping for breath and woman with a bead of blood dripping down her throat. ¡°Feisty, I like that ~¡± ¡°Shut up, Taryk you alright?¡± Asked Andrew as the goblin was heaving on the ground. ¡°Why, in the actually fuck, did you you need to surround him with water anyways?¡± ¡°His lungs would have been poisoned, however, to no fault of my own, if I may add,¡± coquettishly responded Sharlin, wagging her finger provocatively. ¡°Yeah, yeah. You picked the most hazardous location in your territory. So you sure as hell have some blame, you twit. Now, Taryk, I know you¡¯re fine now so let¡¯s get to work. Although I¡¯d love to send you on your way, please stay here for a bit to make sure your children don¡¯t come over or if we get poisoned again.¡± ¡°Ah, so it¡¯s like that ~¡± Sharlin spoke as if in sudden realization, ¡°Now, now, your wife here won¡¯t ever leave you. I love you too ~¡± ¡°Shut your mouth, close your legs, and stop touching yourself. It¡¯s disgusting. Go behind a tree, or something. Don¡¯t act like one of your mangy mutts when you¡¯re clearly human - ish, anyways.¡± With no small amount of sexual harassment and toxic dust that refused to settle, the trio finally left the burial ground with an extra ten pelts and twenty individual heads. Finally ridding himself of the dagger he had to wear on his person for the entire morning and restocking his supply of pebbles.
Inventory: Bag Slot: Novice Dagger Bag Slot: Copper Short Sword x3 Bag Slot: Goblin Longbow Bag Slot: Goblin Arrow x7 Bag Slot: Small Pebbles x4 (Uncommon) Bag Slot: Small Pebbles x12 Bag Slot: Mutated Grey Wolf Pelt x2 Bag Slot: Mutated Grey Wolf Head x4 Bag Slot: Mutated Grey Wolf Pelt x 10 (Uncommon) Bag Slot: Mutated Grey Wolf Head x 20 (Uncommon) Bag Slot: [empty] ...
Though he had an inkling of what the reasoning behind the uncommon materials he received he decided to check it anyways:
Small Pebbles (Uncommon) These rocks were subjected to environment with an excess of animal venom allowing the poreous rock to absorb some of the venom. Causing minor poison damage when it breaks skin and the rock has a chance to touch the blood stream.
Mutated Grey Wolf Pelt (Uncommon) Due to the caustic environment in which the wolf was processed its properties are changed as some of the poisonous dust has permeated through the materials. Though it¡¯s durability will decrease, either in the raw form or as a finished product, it grants the user a minor affinity to poison so long as it is worn. Additionally poison resistance increases based on the craftsmen¡¯s skill.
Mutated Grey Wolf Head (Uncommon) Quest Item: Due to the volatile relationship between the wind serpents and the wolves, an individual seen carrying this object will cause their relationship with the wolves to deteriorate while increasing familiarity with the wind serpents. Does not affect Grok¡¯s evaluation of the object.
----- Chapter 11 Once again, editing was done is a sleep deprived state, but I think it''s alright grammatically (SP?) Anyways, enjoy!
Deciding it was time to head back to the camp, Andrew and his two companions said their goodbyes for the time being. ¡°Bye, bye love ~ Feel free to come back whenever and if you can get that fledgling camp to be somewhat less¡­ well, pitiful let me know and then I¡¯ll reconsider your offer. Though for now my children won¡¯t hunt your kind to extinction anymore.¡± ¡°That was the plan? Well, whatever it isn¡¯t like it¡¯s my problem really. Regardless, tell them to keep hunting the little green midgets, but any goblin with a crossed swords type scar or charcoal mark on their left arm -¡° ¡°If you are refering to me, make it right because that way you won¡¯t have to cut me again.¡± grumbled the goblin, waving his scarred forearm as close Andrew¡¯s face as possible, though he still was a bit too short. ¡°Fine, right, though for Taryk it has to be his left,¡± teased Andrew as he swung his sword jokingly - a hair¡¯s breadth away from the face of the goblin to rid himself of the goblin who was standing too close to him. ¡°Either works, crossed mark on their forearms, correct? Well, I¡¯ll tell the children, though some are out right now so they may not be very welcoming,¡± sighed Sharlin as she saw the interaction between the two, feeling somewhat jealous about the familiarity between the three. ¡°If they¡¯re your abominations wouldn¡¯t they smell your scent on me after last night?¡± Muttered Andrew as he pointed his blade in her direction now. ¡°Now, now, let¡¯s not be hasty. They may, but actually I have a better idea.¡± Within a split second she slipped past his sword, planting her lips on his. While he reacted indifferently at first considering he was lost for a moment, he soon pushed her away and immediately regretted not stabbing the blade through her neck this morning. Following the kiss, throbbing pain erupted in his skull as new information tore through his brain cells as they forcibly inserted themselves within his mind. As his body spasmed he slashed his sword wildly while rolling on the ground.
Congratulations, Sharlin the Den Mother bestowed his knowledge of the Beast language on to you. Current progress is as follows: Skill: Language Comprehension: (Intermediate) English, (Intermediate) Elvish {Farwynd Dialect} (Intermediate) Demi-Human {Goblin Dialect} (Beginner) Beast {Mutated Wolf Tribe}
When it the pain finally subsided to a dull migraine, Andrew opened his eyes to see Sharlin holding a severed leg to the stump of what used to be her calf before slowly mending and reattaching it with a spell. This was, of course, due to his pain induced frenzy and the fact she decided to push for another kiss when he was in pain. ¡®Fucking bitch, I wish her leg would be gone for good,¡¯ thought Andrew with a agitated smirk on his face, seeing the grisly scene brought some relief, however, the pain reduced the joy that he would have normally received from seeing karma get the best of her. Without waiting for Sharlin to fully recover he tossed a poisoned pebble at the still open wound before turning away to leave. Ignoring the cry of agony in the background, he briskly walked away from the little enclave in the woods. Taryk nudged the horrified Lisia, getting no response, he spoke, ¡°Elf, your boyfriend is leaving, shall we?¡± ¡°MY NAM- AH! WAIT!¡± Lisia ran forward to catch up with the agitated man with rosy cheeks ignoring the first part which woke her up from her stupor. Sighing lightly, Taryk muttered, ¡°now I can see why you do that race thing with her. It¡¯s almost the only thing that¡¯ll get through her thick skull. But, two of them, Boss really does have a few tricks I¡¯ll need to pick up on.¡± He used his spear as a walking stick, walking leisurely, not even bothering to catch up to the two ahead of him. Exiting the central area they passed through the curious eyes of the wolves, a few even tried to sniff them directly, but any who got within arms reach of Andrew was promptly kicked square in the chest. A few cries were heard but it seemed the wolves got the message and no longer bothered Andrew and his group. One wolf cub, however, did trail them all the way out of the near impassable fort entrance. Emitting a slight bloodlust that didn¡¯t even cause the group to bat an eye at the creature. When it started growling and barking at the group, Andrew finally paid attention. ¡°You want to avenge your father? That is cute, kid, come back when you¡¯re a little bigger, ¡®kay?¡± As Andrew said, the wolf cub was only about a feet and a half tall, essentially a newborn for the massive species. ¡°NO - FATHER - WEAK - ME -STRONGER - GET- HELP,¡± through his newfound knowledge with the language he understood the broken conversation. Clearly, as a youth his ability to converse was hardly anything to write home about, however, it was enough to get across. ¡°Hmm, Taryk, typically most of your clan was weaker than you were in the beginning, hey?¡± Shouldering his walking spear, Taryk shrugged casually, ¡°pretty much, let¡¯s just say I¡¯m in about the top five percent or so, combat wise.¡± With a fiendish spark in his eyes, Andrew inquired further, ¡°say, would Grok be against¡­ a combat instructor? Little bastard is already at your original level so training hand-to-hand and evasive techniques wouldn¡¯t be impossible for the common folk. So long as we forbid weapons and do a slightly, ¡®interesting¡¯ course the pup should be fine. The goblins on the other hand... ¡° Catching his drift, Taryk smiled insidiously as well, leaving only the slightly annoyed Lisia to act as a voice of reason. ¡°Hey, do you realise you¡¯ll probably kill more goblins in the pit than you would save in battle?¡± Waving her off, Andrew continued, ¡°we¡¯ll feed the little bastard something else besides goblins, so are you game Runt?¡± With a loud ¡°awwhoooo,¡± Andrew translated for the other two, ¡°he says, ¡®basically leave them alive, while learning to fight people? Sounds good,¡¯ albeit in a much more broken and nearing a brain damaged speech pattern,¡± to which the wolf howled, in an attempt to defiantely say he was, in fact, not brain damaged in either head. Taryk laughed without even understanding the wolf¡¯s reply, Lisia sighed loudly in exasperation, and Andrew shrugged and started walking once more. With the new tag-along, they headed back towards the goblin camp. Although they already cut through a trail, it seemed as though the trees, thistles, and tall grasses regrew in the span of the hours. Andrew employed his new canine ¡®pet¡¯ to scout out the areas for an easier trail, but the animal seemed to consistently lead them into more and more dense terrain. Finally they managed to get out of the brush only to be greeted by angry snarls directed at them. Entirely not in the mood for diplomacy, Andrew slashed four throats before the little pup could even intervene. Although Lisia tried to console it in the beginning, but the pup seemed to look at Andrew in admiration. ¡°Wolfie, move your ass along. Your big bro¡¯s were in the way,¡± with a light pat, two wolves disappeared. ¡°Rar, arrrh rufffe,¡± cried the wolf, where Andrew simply wave his hands causally speaking, ¡°Yeah, vanishing wolves, so interesting, move it or your next, brat.¡± As they walked into the camp, every goblin was on high alert. Clearly, the wolf pup brought along traumas for the tiny people, though it could have been attributed to Grok¡¯s ¡®invention,¡¯ the Wolf Pit. Punishment for unruly goblin boys and girls, in which the subject is thrown into a pit outside of town and curious patrolling wolves ¡®play¡¯ with the creature. Should someone survive for a full day any transgression they committed will be forgiven, but few are courageous enough to tempt fate again thus decreasing crime in the tribe. Most goblins simply screamed in terror when they saw the wolf. Even though it was a child, it was still just short of half their height, after all. As most of the were fleeing rapidly, Andrew ordered the wolf cub, ¡°Tackle and restrain one of the slower ones.¡± With rather impressive mobility for such a young wolf, the wolf ended up tackling an elder goblin who promptly passed out in fright, ¡°another.¡± Finally after three more goblins, one younger one remained conscious - although tears and snot were being poured out at an alarming rate. Andrew, twirling his short sword, simply asked, ¡°the Chief?¡± With the comparatively heavy paws on his chest the goblin stuttered, ¡°I-I- I DON¡¯T KNOW! PLEASE HAVE MERCY!¡± Lisia, seeing this display, felt a small sense of pity for the creature. Though many things have happened in the past couple of days, she realised the goblins themselves weren¡¯t inherently horrible. Speaking softly she asked the goblin once more, ¡°Do you by chance know where we can find the Chief, this is not an interrogation, though my friend here my be a bit rough, you will not be harmed whatsoever. You have my word.¡± ¡°GODDESS! YOU SAVED ME, HE - He -he was at the stone mason¡¯s place ordering more arrows for a hunt. Goddess, please marry me!¡± With every passing word the fear turned into devotion towards the supposed ¡®Goddess.¡¯ While she was quite embarrassed she still maintained a gentle face, ¡°thank you. For you to hold onto yourself in the face of such a beast, you will truly become a valiant warrior.¡± Andrew and Taryk were both snickering in the background, ¡°Ah, praise be to the Goddess of the Elves, El- ahem, Lisia.¡± spoke Andrew with a toothy grin on his face. Walking away, Andrew looked over his shoulder towards the young goblin. He seemed to be shouting loudly proclaiming his new found faith and already started running towards the trembling goblins giving a pseudo sermon about his ¡®deity.¡¯ Catching bits and pieces of the sermon, Lisia got progressively more embarrassed, though it was only shown with a pinkish hue appearing on her face whenever she glanced to see Andrew¡¯s reaction. Her reaction calmed down significantly as soon as they left ear shot of the congregation and approached the direction in which the young goblin pointed them to. ¡°Stone Mason Gob¡¯, Grok?¡± called Andrew as he ducked into a tight building that looked marginally more sturdy than the mud and twig huts placed around the village. Even though the building was larger than the others, Andrew still had to crouch to keep from hitting the ceiling. Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon. ¡°Ah human, and Taryk what a pleasant surprise, I assumed you died on your hunt. Well, so be it, what have you come here for?¡± Called a deep voice in the back of the building. Evidently, the Chief too, needed to crouch in this place. More so out of concern of the uneven ceiling where he could potentially hit a spot or two if he wasn¡¯t careful. ¡°Andrew,¡± called Taryk slightly apprehensively. ¡°Yes? Oh yeah, being tall isn¡¯t all that it¡¯s cracked up to be, hey?¡± ¡°How¡¯d you know? Oh well, hopefully we can build better places in the future. Chief, we got the pelts and then some. Also try not to hunt the wolves.¡± ¡°Really? Even I could have killed this human the other day, how¡¯d you manage that? It takes me a bit to even kill one of them. And getting taller? The fuck is with you guys?¡± Muttered Grok as he played around with a stone arrow. ¡°Hey Taryk, shouldn¡¯t I be the one reporting?¡± Glancing at the goblin who simply shrugged it off, he continued, ¡°anyways, Gob Chief, if we, and by that I mean I, assimilate the other clan and just generally fuck up the others in the area the wolves will create an alliance with us.¡± ¡°Wait. Our nemesis, the bane of our existence, would agree to that? Instead of playing around with our corpses?¡± Replied Grok absolutely flabbergasted. ¡°Yep, this guy slept with the Den Mother so we have an in, also we already have a, hmm, ¡®lets not fuck each other up,¡¯ kind of treaty?¡± Said Taryk in his usual blunt manner. ¡°Non-aggression pact? That what you were thinking of?¡± Seeing a confused look, but a nod nonetheless, ¡°Yeah, anyways with a bit of self-mutilation you guys are free to wander around. Well, give it a few days so word can spread. And I did not slept with her. She took advantage of me when I was asleep - big difference. Oh, and hopefully there is no conflict, but your little clansman here decided to court the daughter¡­ Shapeshifting slut, or some such non-sense.¡± Still seemingly confused, Lisia supplemented from the outside. ¡°basically, cross styled scar or mark and wolves won¡¯t kill you. Unless you irritate them like Andrew here. Apparently he is the only one allowed to attack the Den Mother¡­ or her children.¡± ¡°Y-you attacked the Den Mother?!¡± Cried out the Chief in alarm. ¡°Sword drawing blood on her throat and severed her leg,¡± reflected Andrew lost in thought for a moment. At this point Grok, the muscular, intimidating leader of the goblin tribe fainted. Andrew being annoyed at the supposed leader¡¯s reaction asked Taryk to drag him outside of the tiny building. Basically crawling out of the low doorway the group left the stonemason¡¯s shop and Taryk guided them to the Chief¡¯s residence, with the goblin leader being dragged behind him. ¡®Word sure travels fast.¡¯ thought Andrew as they made their way towards the residence. Dragging the Chieftain certainly shouldn¡¯t have improved the people¡¯s perception of them, but each goblin, that wasn¡¯t scared witless, gave a look of admiration towards Andrew and Taryk. Lisia, of course, had her own fans which seemed to be quickly building a religion based on her beauty and benevolence. Entering the residence which as only a couple feet taller than the others, but made of rickety wood and stone as compared to mud and twigs, as if it was his own to begin with, Andrew closed the wooden door to block out the gathering crowds line of sight. Nudging, slapping, and calling out didn¡¯t work so Andrew decided to pull out another pebble. Just before he was about to throw it the Goblin woke up complaining, ¡°Son of a - OW! WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT?!¡± Attempting to draw the blade on his back, only to realise it was removed beforehand, he cursed to himself under his breath before looking around. ¡°Took you long enough, now tell me something, where are these bandits you spoke of earlier? And here.¡± Although he kept four of the uncommon hides for himself he dropped the remainder along with the two normal ones. ¡°And I have two more corpses that you guys can help skin and fuck around with. Too much work and, well, disgusting even though this one seemed to enjoy it.¡± nodding his head towards Taryk, which he couldn¡¯t help but cringe slightly when he remembered the bloody nest the goblin claimed for himself before. ¡°...¡± With wide eyes and face that seemed to be loosing color again, Andrew spoke up: ¡°Faint and I¡¯ll send another rock your way.¡± ¡°Who do you think I am? I¡¯m a leader of this tribe you can¡¯t threaten me! And I would never faint over such a trivial matter,¡± started Grok, signalling the start of a rant. Before he had a chance to continue, Andrew cut in, ¡°then get this, one of my companions has started a cult in your tribe, it¡¯ll only take a few more days before they usurp you to crown their Goddess.¡± Feeling anger, shock, dismay, and a multitude of other emotions pushed him near the edge - as soon as twenty wolf heads appeared out of thin air surrounding him, staring at him with dead eyes whilst being suspended in the air, however, he fainted again. This time even Lisia was snickering whereas the wolf cub finally pawed at the door, indicating it wanted to see what was going on, as most puppies do. When he saw the carnage on the floor and the goblin laid down underneath a mountain of wolf skulls he looked at Andrew in a new light. While the pup was marginally upset at its kin being dead, he was still impressionable enough to move past it for his goal of becoming the strongest grey wolf in the area. As a small shadow darted from Andrew¡¯s hand the Goblin Chief woke up again, this time buried underneath the wolf heads. Crying miserably, the chief begged, ¡°no more! I give, just get them away! Bastard! Why do you do this to me?!¡± Andrew sighed, and started piling the wolf skulls into a corner of the rather spacious room. While the goblin was grumbling looking at the pile of skull indignantly, he noticed one was moving. Curious, the goblin neared the pile. With a sudden pounce, the pup managed to clear the pile it was hiding in and landed directly on the goblin¡¯s chest. As the Chief was screaming in terror at the little, unexpected beast, the trio were laughing uncontrollably. When he finally came to, Grok started swinging wildly at the beast, yet, every strike missed marvelously. This, in turn, caused the trio to laugh even more and even a few gasps from behind came before a chorus erupted. As it would seem, Taryk decided against closing the door, opting for a public viewing mostly because he thought it would be interested at the time. Though it wasn¡¯t as he had expected initially, in the end it surpassed his expectations significantly. ¡°Taryk,¡± came a slightly composed voice and the door closing, before continuing, ¡°that actually wasn¡¯t planned at all, not going to lie, but it will make my suggestion more appealing to you.¡± ¡° *Cough* Wh-what did you have in mind?¡± wheezed the Chief as he laid on the ground trying to catch his breath after his ordeal. ¡°Combat lessons for the common folk!¡± spoke Andrew excitedly. ¡°It¡¯s not like you to be happy over something like that, boy..¡± eyed Grok suspiciously. Laughing somewhat awkwardly Andrew tried once more, ¡°let me rephrase that, let this little guy terrorize your people for our - well, mostly my entertainment. Call it training, physically or mentally. But more importantly, as more people fail miserably against this runt, your image will return back to normal. Ah, also armor would be nice.¡± Though he understood the whole idea and for that matter was actually somewhat enthusiastic about it, he still was vexed about being forced into this decision. ¡°Blackmail or¡­?¡± ¡°Nah, I brought a fair amount of animal parts here, I figured you¡¯d be able to do something or another about them for when I fight the bandits,¡± shrugged Andrew as he jokingly lifted up a wolf head from the pile. Twitching slightly from both nervousness and anger, Grok took a long breath to calm his nerves before speaking, ¡°Fine, give me a day. I gotta do it myself, ya know, but now I have to send that little devil out to harass the kids or else people will start to question my orders. You just said ¡®mark,¡¯ correct? Bastards need to take a knife to their own arms. No charcoal shit will do now.¡± Shaking his head, he followed up with the information Andrew actually wanted to hear, ¡°southeast about three hours or so on foot? Been awhile.¡± ¡°Just mimic the one I gave to Taryk, anyways, Runt stay with the Grok, the big scary, Goblin Chief,¡± receiving a disinterested snort and turned head in response, Andrew sighed. ¡°Fine, you do what you want for most of the day, but the more you harass the little green men the better you¡¯ll get at it. Do you know what that means Runt?¡± ¡°Awaroowhorrro?¡± growled the wolf questioningly, to which Andrew responded, ¡°yes, the more you harass the little green men the better you¡¯ll get at it. And then - the next time you want to rip out someone¡¯s throat you¡¯ll be better prepared! Not mine though, okay?¡± Receiving a dubious wag of the wolf¡¯s tail and silence, Andrew opted to not think about it for the time being. Even Taryk paled slightly at the conversation, seemingly not as resistant to the wolves threat as he thought prior, but he quickly got over it pledging, ¡®if that¡¯s how the Boss does things, then why not raise a miniature war machine? I still have so much to learn! I need to study him more intently from now on!¡¯ In comparison, the goblin chief seemed to be on the verge of a mental breakdown, whereas Lisia simply put her hand over her face and exhaled loudly. The rest of the day went relatively smoothly. Although a few horde of noisy goblins appeared, interrupting Andrew¡¯s nap, trying to get a glimpse at the strange domineering man, the goblin who dragged around their leader, or the beauty whom the entire male camp now prayed to. Andrew simply took it as target practise and unleashed a flurry of rocks that downed all but the most agile of goblins. Which, in itself, made him a little proud of his growing skills. As night came and past, the trio woke up from their secluded camp. While many goblins hid in the shadows awaiting the arrival of the newest sensation in their camp the three ate their dinner calmly, while a few pebbles being thrown at the more obvious of stalkers.
After this day Grok implemented a special division of his trained goblins to wear white clothing and tall (for their size) board shields to drag unconscious members away from the party. Even then, they too were sometimes targeted depending on the man¡¯s mood at the time. But that is a story of another day. ----- Chapter 12
Walking over towards Grok¡¯s residence, the trio was followed by a rather larger crowd of curious onlookers. ¡®Apparently he hasn¡¯t had time to implement the new training schedule; thought Andrew with a wry smile, full of expectations of what is to come in the near future. ¡°Andrew please don¡¯t grin like that, it is slightly disturbing,¡± muttered Lisia as she glanced over to man where the goblins seemed petrified because of the little action. ¡°Don¡¯t tell me how to live my life and I won¡¯t tell you how to live yours,¡± spoke Andrew as he continued to grin whilst juggling a few pebbles just to see the reactions of the crowds face. ¡°Wait, I did tell how to live your life already, but that was regarding the whole, ¡®it is easier to stay alive if you aren¡¯t some pacifist who is seeming ready to die tragically instead of shedding the blood of the little monsters.¡¯ ¡° ¡°Yeah, well, this and that are different. Before it was survival, now it¡¯s bullying the little goblins - ¡° ¡°Who kidnapped and nearly raped you?¡± Interrupted Andrew as he indifferently shrugged his shoulders, ¡°why should I care about their well-being? I¡¯m just getting paid, albeit in material goods, to help these guys become self-sufficient. If that means a little bit of slightly entertaining training methods, then by all means. Don¡¯t have higher expectations for me than what I, myself, can reasonably accomplish. If that meant running away from a zombie swarm and leaving these ones to fend for themselves, likely I¡¯d do it.¡± Lisia sighed, not pressing the conversation further. Reaching the doorway of the Chief¡¯s home, the trio walked straight in, not even bothering to call or knock. Seeing a lazy goblin stained red while covering himself with the pelt of one of the wolves as a blanket, Andrew¡¯s expression dropped. ¡®Is this a racial thing? Disgusting creatures. Well, I guess I just hoped Taryk was a special case, but clearly not¡­¡¯ ¡°Chief?¡± Called Taryk softly nudging him lightly - then slapped him and screamed it once more, ¡°CHIEF!¡± While the goblin chief was slowly stirring from his slumber, Andrew got impatient. ¡°So what can I do for you bastards,¡± grumbled the goblin as he drank some siphoned wolf blood out of a goblet with one hand while rubbing his forehead with the other. ¡°I had to deal with the armor for most of the afternoon and then all of a sudden I hear half the fucking village is unconscious. Where do you think I got those problems from, I wonder.¡± ¡°Armor, wolf training progress, and I was curious if you knew something about coffee.¡± Stated Andrew matter-of-factly, though the last request had a somewhat hopeless feel behind it. ¡°Oh, and we¡¯re going to kill some of the wolv- that¡¯s not it, the bandits? Yeah, them,¡± even though he was getting more and more used to being without it, seeing the morning drink in the Chief¡¯s hands reminded him of his most loved possession back home. ¡°The armor is just behind you in that chest,¡± nodded Grok towards a rather worn wooden chest with brass bearings, ¡°as for the other two, the bandits were, as I¡¯ve said before, about two hours or so southwest in a mine. Coffee? Sounds pretentious, try the elves perhaps -¡± ¡°Ah, I see. So I just have to kill a few elves and then I¡¯ll get coffee, weapons, and maybe money. Taryk, Lisia you know where we¡¯re going now, hey?¡± ¡°Stop!¡± cried Lisia, evidently with her village being closest near their location, the idea of Andrew slaughtering her family wasn¡¯t a very pleasant thought. ¡°Trade! How in the hell did you just jump to murdering my kin!?¡± Fumed Lisia as she glared at the three men who had eager looks on their faces. ¡°Fastest way to get coffee.¡± ¡°Boss knows there is more to be gained, he is an inspiration to us all!¡± ¡°It seemed the easiest way, two birds and so on.¡± Murmured the three with sparkling eyes, where only Andrew matched her stare. Sighing lightly he muttered, ¡°Fine, let¡¯s not slaughter the village - BUT, and I mean it, I reserve the right to kill anyone who pisses me off, family or not. It will be your job to act as an ambassador of sorts for me. Fuck, anyways lets just kill those bandits and be done with it though.¡± Ignoring the remainder of the continuing conversation around him, Andrew went to the chest to pick up the armor he requested last night
Wolf Fur Half Cuirass of the Western Wind Required level 10 Defence rating 16 Durability 25/25 Special Effects: Agility +1, Endurance +1, Strength +1 Small Affinity to Poison, 5% resistant to all poisons and diseases.
Although at most it looked like a grey leather vest, it still was was better than wearing his abused, blood dyed undershirt during combat.Taking a look at his stats he was rather happy to see the changes.
Andrew Marks Level 10 Defense Rating: 19 Poison Resistance 5% Str: 13 (+1) (+1) Agi: 21 (+1) (+2) (+1) Per: 14 (+1) End: 10 (+1) (+1) Vit: 10 (+1) Int: 9 (+1) Wis: 8 (+1) Chr: 9 (+1) Lck: ? (+1) Affinity: (Temporary) Small Poison Affinity: Grants the bearer a small chance of causing poison damage on each blow. If under the influence of a foreign poison or disease, the bearer will gain a slight bonus in recovering from, and bearing with, such an ailment. Status: Skill: Dual Wielding (Beginner: 6): While wielding two weapons Damage Rating penalty is reduced by 30%. Penalty currently at 20%. Grants easier range of motion and knowledge of advanced techniques are granted at base level up of the skill. Improvisation (Beginner: 3): You arm yourself to the teeth before encounter any situation, using any available tactics and weapons in a manner to ensure your survival in this new age. Increases attack rating by 7% for all weapons. Increases hit chance and critical chance by 2.5% for all weapons (be in, physical damage based melee, thrown, or projectile). Spell failure rate decreases by 3.5% and spell duration increases by 3.5%. +1 to all stats including luck.
Significantly more excited than when he left for the wolf hunt, he half-dragged his still conversing companions out of the door as he armed himself fully. Three short copper swords hung on the fraying holster, the short bow strung up on his back, and the quiver of arrows hanging off of his right shoulder. And to top it all off, a small dagger placed inside the seam of his boxers. Eventually he gave up on dragging the struggling companions and simply walked towards the end of town. At the end of camp¡¯s borders he met a little wolf cub who seemed to excitedly jump up and down, barking all the while. ¡°Did you ¡®play¡¯ with the goblins yet?¡± A few yips and barks later, Andrew shook his head lightly, sighing, ¡°no, if you can¡¯t even harass unarmed green half-men then why should I take you to fight real people. With all due respect Taryk,¡± spoke Andrew as he glanced over to see the slightly out of breath elf and leisurely goblin approaching. ¡°None taken, it¡¯s not exactly wrong anyways. I am rather hesitant to spar with the cub... well, unarmed, anyways. Give me a spear any day and the kid won¡¯t even realise he turned into a kabob,¡± smirked Taryk devilishly as he twirled his spear dangerously close to the fuming wolf. The wolf indifferently swatted it away, surprising the goblin, however, he still kept his provocative smirk. Feeling somewhat lenient towards the bickering pair - for reasons beyond him at the time, only two regular pebbles were launched. With their experience they didn¡¯t even bother to dodge as the pebbles sailed past their faces, scraping only a small layer of skin off in the process. ¡°Let¡¯s move, I won¡¯t feel safe sleeping in a village that, a: doesn¡¯t have any trained soldiers, b: has civilians who are susceptible to die at any given moment from a stray fucking dog, and c: doesn¡¯t have coffee.¡± ¡°... Your real reason is you want to arm yourself and, in turn, your allies so you can raid an elf village - all for some strange plant?¡± Muttered Lisia who immediately saw through his plan. At this point she simply gave up on any further comments, but that didn¡¯t stop Taryk and the wolf cub to ponder about what such a plant could do to cause a man to do so much to obtain it. Sensing some order, in other words, silence, returning to their group, Andrew once again ordered, ¡°Runt, seriously. Play with some of those goblins and I¡¯ll take you on the raid later; not slaughtering the elves... yet,¡± completely confirming Lisia¡¯s suspicions, though she didn¡¯t quite feel like bringing it up again to the excited man. With slightly lonely shadow departing from the group, Lisia once more felt a small sense of pity for the wolf, ¡®all alone in such a foreign place, I wonder if he can adapt after leaving his pack, basically all he has is us three¡­ the other two don¡¯t really count, do they?¡¯ Glancing around, she soon found herself alone. Two figures, one small and one large, faded away quickly from sight as they entered the forest¡¯s interior. While moving forward towards the mine they did encounter a few wolves, but oddly they seemed to bow excessively to man before he could even think to attack. Word had clearly spread amongst the pack and it seemed few even wanted to see the strange man, let alone fight him. Awkwardly scratching his head the first time, he soon gave up on caring about the peculiar show of courtesy and ignored them entirely on later encounters. After an hours walk Andrew complained lightly, ¡°Ah, I really, really shouldn¡¯t have equipped myself to this extent before I left,¡± as he deposited two swords which, unfortunately, kept smacking into his legs with every step. ¡°Obviously,¡± muttered Lisia, whereas Taryk sarcastically pointed out, ¡°you don¡¯t say? The only one here which has some magical appearing/disappearing bag thing decided to do things the normal way and is complaining?¡± Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere. ¡°You can¡¯t really see where I¡¯m coming from, how many times have you carried a bow with a quiver, three swords, and a dagger - in addition to actual clothes? ¡°Laundry day?¡± Joked Lisia before she received an irritated look from Andrew. Although it stopped her, she still held a slightly bashful smirk, as per usual he sighed and kept walking. Wearing only the bow and a single sword in addition to his gear now, Andrew felt his load decrease by a fair bit. Though he was somewhat tired from the walking, boredom got to him more so. Every now and again he would notch an arrow or toss a pebble at some small critter in the forest¡¯s canopy above of them. While occasionally the arrows did miss; the pebbles did not. For a small bird or squirrel one blow with either was typically lethal to the creature, but sometimes he would have to end the beast¡¯s life with his own hands. During his trek, he filled his inventory with snacks for later and even pledged to learn a fire magic skill to be able to cook, eat, and walk. Eventually they did finally reach the more mountainous region, indicating that the mine would not be far from their location. Wordlessly Andrew, Taryk, and Lisia all brought out their weapons from their bodies and advanced more cautiously. After some time, Lisia, in the middle of the two, nudged Andrew slightly before pointing off into the distance. Following her gaze, Andrew drew his bow and motioned her to do the same. *whoose* With two arrows sailing past the same gaps in the thinning brush, a slight gasp was heard before something hit the hard ground. ¡°What was that? Marcus, are you¡­ you¡­ what happened?!¡± Screamed a voice off in the distance. Lisia notched another arrow and set it flying past the trees. This time while the cry was much, much louder, it was still rather brief. Hearing a low voice muttering, ¡°well, thanks for giving me a chance, you guys.¡± ¡°Stop fidgeting, if you want someone to blame, blame yourself. Learn how to throw that thing fifty yards then you can join in the festivities. Oh, hopefully one of those two had a half decent sword, spear, or damn near anything that won¡¯t shatter on a bloody wolf,¡± spoke Andrew, leaking a little bit of malice when he gazed at the poorly made short sword. Casually approaching the two sentries, the trio gazed at the two bodies. ¡®Both elves, hey? All the more reason to take a bigger look at the village,¡¯ mused Andrew with a predatory grin on his face. Seeing an iron blade on the ground, evidently dropped when the man tried to cover his throat, Andrew picked it up to inspect the sword. [Dull Iron Pointed Golok Damage Rating: 6-9 Durability 37/45 No Level Requirement A single bladed weapon created in large quantities to supply military forces. Made from an adequate blacksmith, this weapon will stand the test of time - should appropriate maintenance be completed at regular intervals.] ¡®Golok? What in the actual fuck? Whatever, pointed machete short sword.¡¯ With a single, slightly curved edge, sharpened triangular point at the tip, the sword reminded Andrew of an odd looking machete. Though it was longer than his previous weapons, it wasn¡¯t unbearable. Having an actually handle that didn¡¯t restrict his grip was also a welcome surprise. Taking a practise swing, mutilating the sentry¡¯s corpse to a small degree in the process, Andrew stripped off the bandit¡¯s woolen undershirt. Though blood, dirt, and grim marked a few locations on it, it was at least marginally better than his current tattered shirt. Glancing over at the other corpse, Andrew shook his head. ¡°Eating animals like the little monster you are is all well and good, but - and by that I mean, actually fucking just don¡¯t, I¡¯d rather not have you nibbling on the bodies on humanoids. Seriously, stop you fucking glutton.¡± The goblin simply ignored the exasperated man. With a pebble launched at a high velocity the goblin did finally back off, however. With a growing immunity to such occurrences, Lisia, though disgusted, did not even reprimand the unsavory actions of the goblin. Instead she passed off her bow to Andrew and picked up the surprisingly elegant elven made bow which was dropped by the other elf - whom had his neck and shoulder devoured to a small degree. In a few moments, the pouting goblin finally calmed down, the indifferent man walked forward, and the elf refastened the new quiver and bow. Once more on the way towards the mine, the three no longer attacked from afar. Taryk, being the prime cause of this, marched forward while glaring at a napping human shouted, ¡°wake up, I¡¯m going to kill you, but I¡¯d like to have a bit of a challenge, ya know.¡± To the human, however, it was a series of feral snarls and animalistic barks. The surprised man, though intimidated at first say the goblin and laughed callously. Slowly equipping himself with his iron sword, not unlike Andrew¡¯s new toy, the bandit approached the goblin who casually waited on him to prepare. Although, the bandit did call out to the goblin, Taryk simply shrugged and approached with his spear drawn. The bandit coldly laughed and approached as well. As soon as the two were within reach the bandit swung his sword aiming for his opponents chest. Calmly stepping off to the side, Taryk swept his spear at his opponents feet knocking the bandit to the ground. Exhaling loudly, Taryk stabbed his spear into the bandits stomach. Withdrawing it calmly he turned to walk away muttering, ¡°too easy, when will I- OW SON OF A BITCH!¡± In a last ditch effort to harm the goblin, the bandit slashed wildly at the slowly retreating figure of the goblin. Inflicting multiple slashes into the goblin legs and back before Taryk had a chance to jump away. With rage burning in his obsidian eyes, Taryk pounced on the human ripping off his sword before using it amputate each and every limb on his body. Left with a sliver of life the bandit stared wide-eyed at the goblin who began to feast on the shoulder of the downed opponent. ¡°Figures, he is just that kind of guy,¡± spoke Andrew indifferently before continuing, ¡°he had to learn his lesson sooner or later, it definitely could have been worse.¡± With his eyes, he motioned Lisia who was standing in the distance looking at the grisly scene to heal Taryk. As the spell began to take effect Lisia murmured, ¡°because you are the reason this happened - actually it¡¯s probably Andrew¡¯s fault entirely - but still, either way you¡¯re only getting patched up just enough to move. Nothing more,¡± while the bleeding was stopped and the wounds closed; long scars and bruises of the exchange marked his nude body. ¡°... And this here is why armor is a good thing, or at the very least, clothes. But nudist goblins are free to suffer if they so choose.¡± With a slight limp, Taryk pleaded Lisia to heal him further, but no matter what was said she simply ignored the little green man and continued to walk forward with Andrew who came up to grab the sword from the newly deceased bandit. Depositing his copper sword, that was still hanging from his waist, he wielded the two blades as he marched forward into the bandit''s den. Even as they approached what seemed to be an entrance to the mine, no bandits barred their way. Whether it was the screams from earlier or a matter of preferring to hang out in the darkness of the mine shafts themselves, the bandits hid themselves from the group. ¡°Taryk, don¡¯t play around this time. Lisia fire-at-will - just not at me, preferably. Now let¡¯s do this,¡± spoke Andrew loudly as he began to holler at the bandits to come out. Not caring from formalities, as the first bandit exited, Andrew launched an arrow, clipping the bandit in the shoulder before he shouted, ¡°ATTACK! HELP!¡± Soon after, bandits poured out of the entrance in irregular intervals. The first wave of five or six bandits barely exited the mine before they found themselves riddled with arrows. The second managed to go a bit further, but ultimately were downed groaning in pain. The third and fourth attacked together. Those who could, dodged and ducked some of the arrows as they ran towards the group and those that couldn¡¯t were used as temporary shields for the bandits advance.. Taryk was the first to meet them, with a few jabs at their throats and chest they, too, fell. Those that discarded Taryk as a threat had ran up to meet with the two archers while more and more were pouring out. Facing the approaching bandits, Andrew tossed his quiver to Lisia and picked up his two blades on his waist. When one slashed at him, he raised his blade to meet up with the attack, as he impaled the bandit with the other. Swinging his sword sideways, he launched the blocked sword into the emerging crowd in front of him hearing a sharp cry of pain. Raising both swords he blocked another two slashes, however, it left him defenceless for a third approaching him from below. As soon as the dagger came from underneath, Andrew panicked excessively, but that wasn¡¯t enough to dodge the blade. Feeling a sharp pain very, very close to location he was rather protective over, he exploded. After kicking the tiny elf in the face, knocking him unconscious, he slashed wildly with abandon. Severing limbs, heads, and all other manners body parts while only dodging the lethal blows. As he emerged from the circle of corpses, which started to become piled high, he noticed Taryk and Lisia cooperating seamlessly. With arrows picking off the bodies around the goblin, Taryk focused on stabbing his spear to those in front - occasionally skewering two at a time in the densely packed line. With him in front, few were able to sneak past, those that did, however, were riddled with arrows - never quite able to catch the nimble elf. With a few dozen corpses, or those infinitely close being one, the onslaught grinded to a halt. Though a loud raged filled roar did break the trio¡¯s opportunity to celebrate, they didn¡¯t stop finishing off the few remaining bandits who seemed to be momentarily stunned. As the last was promptly put out of the way, Andrew turned to see the goliath panther man walking out of the entrance. While his head was entirely black, his body maintained a healthy degree of sun exposure allowing Andrew to pick him out of the pitch black entrance. Even if it was midday the entrance itself was suspiciously dark, he didn¡¯t dwell on it too much. At a staggering 8 feet tall, the panther man wielded a large double headed battle ax. With a wicked curve seen almost exclusively on those intended for public executions and size of the ax nearing Andrew¡¯s own height, he hefted it up on to his shoulder nearly effortlessly. ----- Chapter 13 Short chapter but it is a conclusion to the previous one so I figured I should just leave it up here, Enjoy! [Can someone also link me to a RRL table wiki, they are difficult and I don''t like the centered one I''m using for system, regardless it''ll still work for the time being. ]
Stretching his arms slightly, Andrew spoke indifferently to the massive beast-man, ¡°hey, do you prefer one-on-one or are you ballsy enough to take all three of us?¡± Reflecting for a moment, the beast-man pointed his vicious battle ax at Andrew while growling something Andrew could not decipher at all. Giving up on conversing with the creature, Andrew shooed the two others away and took up what seemed to be the challenge. Grabbing his bow he left on the ground before he was overrun by the bandit swarm, which was surprisingly still intact after the stampede, he notched an arrow. Aiming carefully, he loosed it at the marginally confused panther head. With a small back step, the arrow slipped past his massive frame as the beast-man finally reacted to the comparatively small human. With a beastial roar, the panther advanced with startling speed and grace dodging the arrows narrowly each time they approached. ¡®Just like a bloody cat, not too shabby,¡¯ complimented Andrew slowing his rate of fire in favor of accuracy. When the beast-man reached about five metres of Andrew, he abruptly threw the entire bow at the head of the charging panther. With a light swing of its ax, it easily cut through the decrepit bow without breaking a step. However, that was the chance Andrew was looking for. Quickly jumping into the beast-man¡¯s guard as it struggled to reposition its ax, Andrew advanced around the enemy whom kept moving with its immense momentum. Lightly stepping to the side, he stabbed his two iron swords into the creatures thigh. Without being able to stop his charge at all, the beast-man adversely dragging Andrew¡¯s blades out from his thigh causing a massive wound on the one leg of the beast-man - nearly severing it off in the process. Blood began to flow and an agonized roar sounded out; nearly shattering Andrew¡¯s eardrums, who finally began moving away from the furious creature. As he took a perfunctory glance at his surroundings, he sighed dramatically. Although this action enraged the beast-man, Andrew could not help doing such an action. As Andrew fought with the bandit leader his two companions seemingly got bored. Taryk took it upon himself to end the lives of those still wailing while pillaging their equipment - though that simply amounted to a large pile of iron tossed haphazardly in a pile. However, each spear he took was treated with such care that one would think it was a historical relic. Likewise, Lisia plucked out any arrows she saw scattered along the ground and on the corpses. When she finished grabbing the arrows she wandered off the bushes, seemingly looking for fruits or vegetables as a snack. Taking all this in Andrew couldn¡¯t help but have his reaction slowed somewhat. With a battle ax sent towards his neck Andrew had no choice but to go to the ground. As he dived underneath, he angled his swords behind him, inflicting deep lacerations onto the interior of his opponents legs, further pressing one of his enemy¡¯s legs to its end. Stunned somewhat because of the disappearing human, the beast-man paused for just a moment. Even in such a short time period; cutting, stabbing, and essentially eviscerating the panthers lower torso was no difficult feat with his new blade. Compared to rather dull copper short swords that seemed to tempt fate in every motion, these blades seemed to glide through the creature¡¯s flesh. The battle ended with a soft *thud,* where the powerless beast-man dropped his ax and was laying still on the ground. Walking casually Andrew approached the hulking bandit with his swords drawn. With pleading eyes that seemed to ask for an end, Andrew stabbed one of his blades into the chest of the bandit. Tiredly muttering, ¡°if you two are finished over there, can one of you start a fire or something? I can see you two have been eating during this little ordeal, but I have not,¡± Andrew picked up the colossal ax before examining it closely. [Double Headed Bardiche Damage Rating: 10-14 Durability: 26/50 A once great ax taken from an executioner''s burial site. It is said that the one who obtained this weapon would have to pry it from the hand of the state executioner of the Kingdom of Arlai himself - even after the hands of time taken his life, his soul would remained in his bones acting as a guardian over his most beloved possession. It can cleave through metal as easily as it can cleave through flesh and bone. Tempered in the blood of many, few are able to cope with such malice it will instil into its bearer though the trade off can be considered to be worth it to some. Special Abilities: Blood Lust: When in combat, the owner¡¯s blood will boil - metaphorically, granting them increased strength for every individual they have slain, as well as temper their power for the opponents they have yet to end. Blood Tempered: Soaked into it¡¯s very core is the blood of those it deems unworthy. For an owner to be accepted, it will test their resolve while at the same time granting them the power they require to defeat their foes. When it is above 15 durability the weapon will be able to split rock and metal and easily as it would flesh, however, the resultant bloodlust will grow stronger in turn. ] Interested at the uniqueness of the weapon he received, Andrew placed his hands on the weapon itself, depositing his two swords for the time being. When holding an ax that was as large as he was, it was blatantly clear he wouldn¡¯t be able to get far with such a weapon. In fact, it took a substantial amount of his energy and strength just to lift the weapon. That¡¯s not even considering swinging the monstrosity that was its weight. When he was playing around with it he didn¡¯t even notice anything like the aforementioned, ¡®Blood Lust¡¯ trait applied on to the weapon. Losing interest, he deposited it into his bag - after pulling out the small animal corpses and tossing them at Taryk who wasn¡¯t paying the least bit of attention. With his new practise tossing pebbles at the goblin stalkers, he gained a fair bit of experience throwing things by hand. While Andrew did throw the critter¡¯s corpses rapidly, Taryk reacted just as fast. Raising his spear, he skewered all but the first one that was sent his way - which he ended up swallowing whole. With a joyous smile, he thanked the muttering man, ¡°thanks Boss! I was getting hungry, ya know,¡± before placing his old spear directly over the fire he started. While Taryk was oblivious to Andrew¡¯s original intentions, he good naturedly cooked the critters - fur and bones included - as the man murmured indignantly, ¡°save me some, I was the one who shot those down.¡± After their meal of raw forest fruits and unprocessed, cooked meat, the three finally realised they dined in the middle of a corpse ridden clearing. Though they weren¡¯t affected too much by it, it still caused Andrew and Lisia to think about their beginnings before they met one another. ¡®If this was even a few days agoI would probably be throwing up a little at this point, but now it¡¯s normal? Ah, whatever, let¡¯s just not think about it. It isn¡¯t like my previous lifestyle was much better anyways.¡¯ mused Andrew as he threw another saskatoon-type berry into his mouth. ¡®Would I have been killed otherwise? Why did I even leave my home! It isn¡¯t like me to run away from home because of such a small issue, I could be sitting near a warm hearth, playing music, singing, dancing, but I¡¯m here killing this and that and it doesn¡¯t even bother me anymore? This is too much, I need something to drink - a lot of something actually.¡¯ mulled over Lisia as she began fantasizing over the taste of her family¡¯s homebrewed wine. Abruptly getting up, Andrew walked over to the pile of weapons Taryk created earlier. Although he picked a bad time to do such a thing, it did make things convenient for Andrew at this point. In the end he stored all of it, luckily the bandits weren¡¯t very diverse in their weapon choices so he was able to fill his inventory with all the bandits weapons.
Bag Slot: Novice Dagger Bag Slot: Small Pebbles x34 Bag Slot: Small Pebbles (Uncommon) x3 Bag Slot: Dull Iron Pointed Golok x8 Bag Slot: Sharpened Gladius x4 Bag Slot: Double Headed Bardiche (Uncommon) Bag Slot: Sharpened Iron Spear x7 Bag Slot: Worn Elven Bow Bag Slot: Iron Arrow x 47 Bag Slot: Mutated Grey Wolf Heads (Uncommon) x4 Bag Slot: Mutated Grey Wolf Pelts (Uncommon) x4 Bag Slot: Iron Dirk x14 Bag Slot: Leather Sheath [short sword] x8 Bag Slot: Leather Sheath [long sword] x3 Bag Slot: Rusted Iron Morningstar x3 Bag Slot: Coin Purse x 31 (2 Gold, 87 Silver, 398 Copper)
While he had no use for money at this point in time it was always welcome as far as he was concerned. Nor did he know the exchange rate and valuation of the currency, but he imagined he could easily deal with it later. The thing that made Andrew that most excited was the existence of proper gear. Pillaging a pair of pants, boots, weapon sheaths (adjustable belts attached), and clothing designed for the outdoors, he would finally appear presentable to a normal society. Admittedly more on the roguish side of the spectrum, he could finally wear his under clothes for what they were meant for - under clothes. This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. Even with his companions pocketing a few weapons for themselves - though Taryk shamelessly asked Andrew to hold onto a couple spears for him, he still had quite haul from the bandits. Especially when you look to see the levels earned the group.
Taryk of the Cleaver Clan Level 11 Defence Rating: 0 Str: 14 Agi: 14 Per: 12 End: 11 Vit: 10 Int: 6 Wis: 6 Chr: 7 Status: Skill: Spear Handling (Intermediate 4): Any spear put into your hands is a machination of death and suffering for those that stand before you. However, for those that get within your reach be warned for they can easily spell death towards a careless novice or veteran alike. Bonus 33% damage with all long handled polearm weapons. Increases armor piercing power by 16.5%. Increased chance of bleeding.
Lisia Jean Aira Dradrenau Level 12 Defence Rating: 4 Str: 11 Agi: 17 Per: 16 (+2) End: 10 Vit: 10 Int: 8(+5) Wis: 5 (+5) Chr: 10 Affinity: Nature (Small): When using nature based spells, such as restoration and rooting, duration and potency is increased by 15%. Skill: Adaptability (Beginner 8): Ever-changing and ever-evolving in this world, the individual gains a great wealth of knowledge and mental fortitude. Those who are more open to these changes can see through various weaknesses granting them +5 intelligence, +5 wisdom, +2 perception. Minor Restoration (Beginner 6): Calling up the forces of nature an individual can quickly mend minor wounds at the cost of MP.
Andrew Marks Level 15 Defense Rating: 19 Poison Resistance 5% Str: 16 (+1) (+1) Agi: 24 (+1) (+2) (+1) Per: 17 (+1) End: 14 (+1) (+1) Vit: 12 (+1) Int: 9 (+1) Wis: 8 (+1) Chr: 9 (+1) Lck: ? (+1) Affinity: (Temporary) Small Poison Affinity: Grants the bearer a small chance of causing poison damage on each blow. If under the influence of a foreign poison or disease, the bearer will gain a slight bonus in recovering from, and bearing with, such an ailment. Status: Skill: Dual Wielding (Beginner: 9): While wielding two weapons Damage Rating penalty is reduced by 36%. Penalty currently at 14%. Grants easier range of motion and knowledge of advanced techniques are granted at base level up of the skill. Improvisation (Beginner: 5): You arm yourself to the teeth before encounter any situation, using any available tactics and weapons in a manner to ensure your survival in this new age. Increases attack rating by 8% for all weapons. Increases hit chance and critical chance by 3% for all weapons (be in, physical damage based melee, thrown, or projectile). Spell failure rate decreases by 4% and spell duration increases by 4%. +1 to all stats including luck.
Treating one level¡¯s worth of Taryk¡¯s points as an experiment, Andrew placed three of them into his charisma stat and what came out of it surprised the whole group. After a few blood curdling sounds erupting from his body - and everyone else¡¯s for that matter, after the alteration to their stats - instead of the 4 ? foot tall muscular goblin, a short, only slightly green hued elf came into being. With flowing black hair where he once was bald, an athletic build, and gaining another ? foot in height, he seemed as if he could bled into a elven village. Although there were differences between the two, with a cloak he could pass off as an elf without issue. Whether this was a combination of increased stats like endurance and intelligence, it was hard to say, but the end result surprised the normally unphased Andrew and caused Lisia to stare wide-eyed. Additionally, as Andrew tried to maintain a balance for Lisia, she didn¡¯t change in a large manner, however, her once round face became slimmer as did her body. But the only place to slim down excessively was her stomach. Showcasing her now-prominent curves even more so. While not as big in some respects, she could undoubtedly be Sharlin¡¯s equal in beauty. Her eyes also showed a fairly large change, instead of the muddy hazel that rested there before, a near perfect emerald color twinkled with the reflection of the sun light. ¡®Maybe charisma makes people look more ¡®normal,¡¯ well, instead of monstrous brutes,¡¯ thought Andrew after seeing the changes on the other two. Andrew, already athletic, become slightly more burly with muscle definition nearly on the entirety of his body. He also grew a few inches, leaving him around 6¡¯2¡¯¡¯. Ironically, to go with his new ensemble, his entire presence changed from that of an ordinary man to something akin to a trained assassin. With cold, steely blue eyes that seemed to radiate inscrutability to the world, to his long flaxen hair tied behind his back, it was as if no one could control this individual should he deem them unworthy of his time, or simply, he should he grow tired of the environment. Although bewitching at first glance, the second and third would cause someone to back further and further away in trepidation. Likely the biggest catalyst for the change was the large jump in levels for the group resulting in the obvious addition to the stat points. ¡®Hypothetically, if the ¡®NPC¡¯s¡¯ stat boost are predetermined - or are slightly restricted to their activities, to a degree in regards to what can increase and what cannot, that would explain the generic appearances of the ¡®beings¡¯ I¡¯ve encountered so far. Hell, if we can change this much, why would other tribes not be able to, if that weren¡¯t the case. Player rights, maybe? Damn, all this hypothetical and theoretical non-sense is annoying. Stats points mean mutations, that is good enough for me; fuck genetics and anthropology,¡¯ pondered Andrew before it got to be too tedious to think about. Returning his gaze to the cave¡¯s mouth, he inquired, ¡°hey, you probably have better eyes than me, do you think there is something suspicious with that mine, or is it just me?¡± After a moment of contemplation Lisia spoke hesitantly, ¡°it seems like there is something else to it, but did you want to deal with it yourself or just send the camp¡¯s goblins into it? Either way would be something you would do, honestly.¡± ¡°Have you ever gone spelunking before?¡± Asked Andrew with a grin creeping up onto his face. ¡°What¡¯s that boss?¡± Cut in Taryk before Lisia answered, ¡°he is saying let¡¯s explore that place, as for why, I have no idea. Regardless, it¡¯ll be more interesting than hanging around this grave yard,¡° waving her hand to point out the cold, dead bodies left abandoned in the front of the entrance. What caught her attention, however, was a minor stirring underneath the ring of corpses where Andrew once fought. ----- Chapter 14 Just finishing up and editing the next chapter, should be out early morning tomorrow after I finish work this evening! Time and a half makes hungover work slightly more bearable haha
As Andrew looked in confusion in the direction where Lisia lost herself in her gaze, his body shuddered slightly. Soon after, an almost palpable aura of anger and death emerged as he slowly approached the figure, who was struggling to loose himself from the surrounding corpses. As soon as a hand was pushed out of the decaying mess, Andrew grabbed it. With a bone shattering grip he held the hand tightly before rotating his shoulder, freeing the struggling figure in one moment and slamming him down on to the hard ground the next. ¡°ANDREW! STOP! HE DIDN¡¯T MEAN ANY HARM,¡± shouted Lisia tugging on Andrew¡¯s wrist to let the small boy go, but Andrew simply asked, ¡°let¡¯s just assume someone tried to rip out your ovaries, how would you feel about it?¡± Although stunned for a moment, she knew she couldn¡¯t give him any more time to punish the boy, lest it turn into something more brutal. Thinking quickly, she pleaded with Andrew, ¡°please, I beg you! This one is like a brother to me, we lived in the same village. There must be an explanation!¡± With the boy no longer whimpering, well, nearly as much anyways from Andrew¡¯s grip, he quirked his eyebrows. Sensing the deathly silence, she sighed to herself, ¡®luckily I¡¯ve got his attention, but for Kai this likely won¡¯t end well, no matter what.¡¯ Even so, she steeled her courage before speaking, ¡°Kai, you have to tell us what happened. And apologize for almost making a woman out of Andrew here,¡± while she tried to lighten the mood, a deep cry of agony was heard from the boy¡¯s lips, ¡°I-I¡¯m sorry, I didn¡¯t mean it like that, anyways... speak now!¡± ¡°W- w- what do you mean I never did anything!¡± Cried the boy defiantly, trying to hide his small iron dirk behind his back. Andrew turned to Lisia holding a small pebble before speaking coldly, ¡°you know the one I used on the Den Mother? This is the same type. Trust me when I say even your magic won¡¯t be able to stop the slow, agonising pain. Physical wounds and poison are much different, you know?¡± Lightly tossing up the pebble up and down, Lisia reflected on what happened before. ¡®In his pain-induced frenzy from the wolf mother¡¯s ¡®gift¡¯ to him after he severed her leg¡­ which didn¡¯t even bother her in the least¡­ he threw this at her¡­ and¡­ and oh my!¡¯ almost shrieking now, she slapped Kai on the face before speaking in a grave voice, ¡°apologize now! You should know the stories about the leader of the monsters in the night,¡± to which she got an obedient nod from him, ¡±this man punished one of them with that stone he is playing around with right now. She who can create and destroy almost an entire species, even after taking her leg, she still didn¡¯t utter a sound¡­ until he threw that rock.¡± Although the message was conveyed in an extraordinarily grim manner, Andrew found it almost comical how she described his recent events. As soon as the sentence left her mouth he lost the majority of his animosity towards the child. At second glance, the child looked to be around 14 or 15 years old. The delicate features and small frame made him seem as though he was a slightly larger toddler. When he broke out of that train of thought, he noticed the child bowing with his head on the ground, quivering uncontrollably. Looking at the frightened child he felt a small sense of guilt, but Andrew was still somewhat upset over the incident so he didn¡¯t let it bother him that much. Speaking casually he turned to Lisia before nodding, ¡°feel free to heal him, he¡¯s your burden, however,¡± paused Andrew dramatically, before adding, ¡°Taryk, you see it every day, let him too,¡± while she was still feeling content over his declaration, she failed to notice the latter part of it. Taryk, on the hand, quickly caught on and approached the boy. Taking the same iron dirk thrown on to the ground previously, he efficiently cut an extremely large cross shaped scar on to the boys undamaged forearm. Even as she saw this happening, Lisia could not even react. Earlier when he was speaking about her village, he gave her a clear concession about his future treatment of the villagers. And clearly this was him acting on the lenient side of things. If it were to have an older man or woman who attacked him - in a bandit group, no less - then he, and many others. would have acted in a much more ruthless manner. The only saving grace was the child¡¯s face, giving him a small sense of guilt in regards to bullying someone so young. However, that was only the immediate reaction as after he noticed the stature of the child, he saw what simply looked like a small, malnourished teenager. ¡°Brat, so tell me this: why were you hanging out with bandits? If I don¡¯t like your answer¡­¡± spoke Andrew light-heartedly, however, the young elf began to shake even more. ¡°Lisia, are you going to help him or what?¡± ¡°Huh? Oh, yes!¡± With a green tinged glow radiating from her palms, it crept away from her own body before landing on the young elf¡¯s wrist. Blissfully ignoring the rest of surroundings, the young elf, Kai, stared at the maiden who was healing him, with enamored eyes. ¡°It makes so much sense now, hey Taryk?¡± Quipped Andrew as if in sudden realisation, entirely forgetting about the boy¡¯s circumstances. ¡°Boss, do you mean the pre-pubescent attacking Lisia with his eyes? Hell, even us goblins are not even as obvious sometimes,¡± replied Taryk, nodding his head in agreement. ¡°She¡¯s probably just into that sort of thing,¡± spoke Andrew with a smirk. It took a moment for Lisia to register the comment and further still to notice the boy¡¯s relatively innocent gaze colored by something darker. Still not entirely sure as to the meaning of such an odd combination, she backed away a little bit in trepidation as soon as she finished her treatment, unwilling to let him approach her. ¡°BIG SIS-¡± screamed Kai in untamed excitement, but as he approached a small, normal pebble hit him square on the back of his head causing him to flip forwards, landing face first on to the ground a few feet in front of Lisia. ¡®Something¡­ well actually, a few thing about it him absolutely rub me the wrong way. Is there some abandoned elves orphanage somewhere around here?¡¯ thought Andrew with wry smile.. Lisia, who saw the running boy fall flat on his face, released a forced smile, ¡°Kai, don¡¯t bother to stay around here if you can¡¯t restrain yourself. Or else, well, it can hurt a bit. We are going to explore the mine so can you do us a favor and give them a proper burial¡­ or at least pile them up as you read the ¡®prayer of the departed,¡¯ so that those here may rest in peace?¡± ¡°Before you go gallivanting about in an open grave, tell us what the deal is with the mine,¡± questioned Andrew as he rolled a smooth pebble between his fingers. ¡°I-I-It, it¡¯s the home of those bandits!¡± ¡°Thanks Sherlock, now how about something we didn¡¯t know?¡± ¡°Ummm, the first level is alright, the second has their treasures, but the third is supposed to be really, really, really scary!¡± Added Kai as he began to back off from Lisia, hoping Andrew would finally drop his pebble. ¡°Really? Well one was enough anyways. Basically remnants of their forces, treasure, and scary monsters, correct?¡± Said Andrew unceremoniously while Kai nodded his head frantically. ¡°Well, what are you all waiting for? Is Kai going to help pillage the mine or do a eulogy to those careless bandits? Realistically, it doesn¡¯t matter either way as both will likely be dangerous for a child at least.¡± Gathering some courage, Kai spoke defiantly once again, ¡°I¡¯m not a child! I am 15 years old, a full grown man!¡± ¡°As a ¡®full grown man¡¯ are you willing to take the punishment for fighting alongside criminals who stole away my brothers¡¯ home?¡± Cut in Taryk venomously, still somewhat vexed about his kin being slaughtered here earlier and for some reason pinned Kai into the same group.. ¡°WAH! I¡¯M A CHILD SEE?!¡± Cried Kai as he dramatically started to suck his thumb. Andrew was annoyed at his total lack of self respect so he launched another pebble. ¡°Whatever, do as you see fit. Lisia please remember he¡¯s your responsibility,¡± spoke Andrew as his voice trailed off slightly when advanced to the mine¡¯s entrance. Entering into the eerie darkness of the cave, the man, goblin, and two elves advanced further into the pitch black cave. Kai was scared witless and became almost glued to Lisia, who hated the contact with such a shameless child, however, she beared with it for her agreement. While Andrew did get annoyed at the inability to see for a bit, his high perception came into effect as soon as his eyes adjusted to the low light levels, granting him and his two companions the ability to see to some degree in the dark cave. Kai, on the other hand was entirely blind so Andrew forced a Iron Dirk into his hands and told Lisia to escort him out where he would be less of a hindrance - to Andrew that is. ¡®He¡¯s just going to go on without me afterwards, might as well stay outside,¡¯ thought Lisia as she essentially dragged the blind boy back, with him taking every chance he could to cop a feet. Occasionally she would throw him forward and step off to the side. Causing him no small amount of anxiety being left in a dark place with no reasonable way out. Leaving just the two of them, Andrew drew both of his swords as he came up to what seemed to be a small storehouse. Somewhat stealthily unlatching the door and entering, he saw a dimly lit room with a greying man hunched over a desk, scribbling onto a book. More so out of curiousity than anything else, he recited [identify] in his mind and opened the flashing window.
Alfre the Blind Level 14 Description: Though he was once blinded in a grueling, vicious battle against the human who held the lineage of the dragons, he had taken it upon himself to write the legendary tale that was his battle. Additionally, chronicling the exploits of the progressively more infamous hero.
¡°Eh. Who''s there? Rae, is that you?¡± ¡°Yeah, yeah,¡± replied Andrew casually waving his hands slightly, though to a blind man it would hardly make much of a difference. Sheathing his swords, he heard the man continue. ¡°Are you sure? You sound¡­ different. Well either way, Boss was looking for you on the second level.¡± ¡°The panther bastard?¡± ¡°Nah, I know you¡¯re new here, but you aren¡¯t that green. Anyways, he was just a lackey. Though it likely would be a hard fight between the two of the them,¡± laughed Alfre as he stopped his scribbling. ¡°Hey, I feel like I must¡¯ve asked you this before, but may I see your book? Honestly, just a little bored hanging around here all day, could use a bit of reading material,¡± lied Andrew naturally, going with the flow of the conversation. ¡°Sure, thing. It took me two years to get to this point though so be careful with it, ¡®ight?¡± ¡°Yeah, of course Boss.¡± spoke Andrew casually, however, Alfre did stiffen up a bit at the mention of the term. Without any resistance Andrew grabbed the book and began reading. Laughing charmingly after a few minutes he spoke once more, ¡°it¡¯s quite a tale from what I¡¯ve read so far, though the last couple pages you seemed to to run dry, did you have another vial of ink I can grab you?¡± Cursing softly, Alfre spoke after a small breathe, ¡°would be so kind? Also what was the last part you could see?¡± ¡°Ah, well it was a little too advanced for me I¡¯m sorry. I can read it somewhat, but it has never been my strong suit, ya know?¡± Setting down a new vial of ink and book, he guided the man¡¯s hand to the inkwell. Andrew continued, ¡°if I had to say though, it would be something along the lines of¡­ Dragon Kid? Oh well, after that guy¡¯s battle with you he seemed to fail for a temptress who led him astray? And then he become progressively more and more dark. While I can make out something about a massive dragon - not the kid, it seems like he¡¯ll be fighting more of them, hey? Anyways, big dragon fight after the smaller ones. Wait - the fuck? This place actually has dragons?¡± Due to the fact he was making it up as he was going along, he did have a few breaks and arbitrary questions to stall of time. ¡®I simply can¡¯t handle being rude to this guy, seems far too nice to hate,¡¯ thought Andrew with a wry smile. Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation. ¡°Ah, good. Only a little bit behind then,¡± smiled the man warmly before flipping his book back about ten pages, ¡°by the way kid. You realise it isn¡¯t polite to lie to an old man, a blind one at that?¡± smirked the greying Alfre. ¡°Ah, so I¡¯ve been found out ¡®Boss,¡¯ anyways, I don¡¯t think you are the type for material possessions so I was planning on taking a bit of gold here and there and checking out the bottom level. Well, just because, honestly,¡± Andrew attempted a sardonic smile while fingering his sword from his holster. ¡®Although he is blind, he is still basically my level, it¡¯d be an interesting fight,¡¯ mused Andrew as he waited in anticipation. Yet, the fight never came. All that came forth was a mocking laughter that seemed to roar throughout the small shack. Even Taryk who had waited on Andrew outside was concerned and entered. Sniffing the air, Alfre¡¯s expression brightened even more, ¡°a halfblood, hey? Interesting, anyways I won¡¯t stop you. Actually, after you¡¯re done - assuming you are still alive - take me back to someplace with fresh air with pocket full of gold and all tell you where the ¡®vault¡¯ is, ¡®less of course, you want to trek miles underground aimlessly. ¡°Do tell, old man,¡± probed Andrew, as he signaled Taryk to lower his spear. ¡°What? Still, no respect for your elders? Alas, this generation is truly horrible,¡± sighed Alfre dramatically, ¡°Well, either way you might as know about the whole story..¡± Beginning by waiting patiently, Andrew slowly lost his nerve after two minutes of deep silence. As he wasn¡¯t worried about the man¡¯s skill due to his inquiry on his level, he flung a pebble at the senile man. Crying pitifully for but a moment, Alfre regained his calm as if nothing happened. With another dramatic sigh and cough, he continued, ¡°there is no hope for you at all, is there? Abusing a poor, old blind man-¡± ¡°Who happens to be the leader of a bandit group? Surely people will make an exception for such circumstances?¡± Interrupted Andrew, completely tired of the shirade. ¡°Fine, the vault is going to be on the second level of the mine. You will have to go down a shaft, but the little bastards shouldn¡¯t have moved anything recently. If you reach a fork in the road turn right and look on your left side after about 7 or 8 feet. Oh, watch out for suspicious rocks, but whatever I don¡¯t really care to tell you anything else.¡± ¡°Taryk let¡¯s go raid that vault!¡± ¡°Yes, Boss! Spears are for me though, just saying.¡± As the pair exited the storeroom into the darkness excitedly, the old man smiled devilishly as he muttered, ¡°should I have told them they needed a key? Or that the second floor was evacuated for a reason and no one was even able to set foot in there? Doesn¡¯t matter now,¡± finished Alfre drowsily as he started to drift off into a deep sleep. Twinkling in the torch light, a small silver key slipped from under shirt to expose itself to the room. As he started to pace through the utter darkness again, Andrew thought to himself, ¡®¡®little bastards¡¯? I wonder if he was referring to the bandits or the ¡®really, really, really scary monsters¡¯ that the brat was worried about. I suppose it doesn¡¯t really matter much at this point. Kill whatever is guarding the treasure and hopefully I¡¯ll be able to arm those little green midgets to do my dirty work with the elves for me,¡¯ smiled Andrew devilishly. After exposing themselves the lit storeroom previously, it took a few moments of walking into walls, pickaxes, and piles of excavated dirt to right themselves. Moving forward with slowly adapting vision, he heard a small cry from Taryk. Grabbing to his side where the goblin-turned-elf should be he only touched the stale air of the mine, calling out loudly, ¡°Taryk, where ya at, buddy? Don¡¯t run off now.¡± With a muffled voice coming from below, he instinctively looked down. Though everything was in shades of black and grey, the spot immediately to left was even darker than the floor he was standing on. ¡°Bastard, there was kind of a giant hole around here, not exactly my fault, now is it?¡± Testing the black pit, which he assumed to be safe as Taryk was still complaining to him, he nudged the area with his foot until he got a basic layout of the hole. A rectangular shaft about three and a half feet wide and two and half feet long. How deep, he wasn¡¯t certain, but since he couldn¡¯t find a ladder or rope he simply jumped. Although he only fell for what seemed like a second, he still felt the pain course through his legs and lower back. Rubbing his aching legs, he muttered, ¡°definitely not my brightest idea, you good though?¡± to which he felt the butt end of the spear prodding his body. ¡°Yeah, legs hurt a bit, but nothing too major. Now, stupid question, but shouldn¡¯t we have brought a torch or something?¡± ¡°Think of it as training? And yeah I¡¯m with you there, next time we will, remind me though. Rope would¡¯ve been nice too.¡± Although now their vision would extend to about ten or twelve feet in front of them, it still wasn¡¯t nearly enough for the cavernous shaft that they fell into. At around twenty odd feet, from their spot, to each wall on either side, the shaft was at least 40 feet wide and there was no telling how long. Deciding that sitting around wouldn¡¯t accomplish anything - let alone, tell them where to go to climb back up, they set off forward in hopes of finding the vault. While they did leave a spear impaled into the ground, which Taryk adamantly protested against, it would serve much of a purpose besides giving them some landmark in the dark, empty space that was the mine. Walking for about ten minutes they hand yet to find anything major. With twists and turns in the shaft itself, nothing pointed to a fork in the road. Luckily they did eat before this excursion, but that would only last so long in such a place. Taryk was the first to complain, albeit mostly out of boredom, ¡°Boss, I¡¯m hungry. Did you leave any food in your bag thing?¡± ¡°Nope, just deal with it, it¡¯s been like an hour tops. Next time bring a backpack around with you so you can stuff it full of raw meat.¡± replied Andrew indifferently, though the tediousness of walking with seemingly no purpose was getting to him as well. To Taryk, however, it was a revolutionary idea. One that would be start of him wearing clothes for the rest of his, should he get out in one piece, or so he thought to himself. Unwittingly, they began to near the wall instead of staying in the middle of the tunnel. With a low rumbling, which previously was heard every couple of minutes or so, they ignored it and kept walking. As Andrew was about to say something to the goblin to kill time he felt a sharp pain on his shoulder. Taryk cried out as well, as he rotated his spear-turned-walking-stick into an aggressive stance. After both of them jumping forward, they slowed down to turn around. Andrew also immediately pulled out his twin swords. In front of them stood two, five foot tall inuit inukshuk type statues. Taking a giant rock for example, their body was marked by a small cavity between what would be their legs for mobility, two outstretched completely straight arms, a tiny head, and a gaping hole where their stomach would have been located. Beyond that they were almost completely indistinguishable from the rock walls that surrounded the two men. With feet that seemed melded in with the shaft¡¯s floor and their stiff bodies, they attacked the two with a decent amount of speed - for what could be considered a pile of rocks. With puppet like actions, they charged forward, never lifting their feet as the ground seemed to move around them, and rotated their torso, using their arms to a produce a startling amount of force. As they approached, Andrew and Taryk both dodged to the side, swinging their weapons to meet with the approaching statue. As their weapons connected to the chest of the two inukshuks, Taryk¡¯s spear and Andrew¡¯s sword slid of their respective targets, sending sparks as they grinded against the statues¡¯ course stone bodies. Cursing loudly, Andrew spoke up to the irritated goblin, ¡°finally got what you were asking for, hey? Anyways now isn¡¯t the time, I¡¯ve got a plan¡­ though I don¡¯t know if it will work, you down?¡± ¡°What¡¯s Plan B?¡± ¡°Run?¡± As the goblin grumbled about the statues ridiculous bodies, Andrew dodged another blow while operating his inventory screen. As he deposited his two swords, he withdrew two spiked maces, in their place : [Rusted Iron Morningstar Damage Rating 5-8 Description: Although this weapon was intended to be far larger, the owner decided to trim the handle so that he or she could use it with one hand. Due to the modification, the mace head will be disproportionately larger, affecting the weapon¡¯s centre of gravity, granting it increased blunt and piercing damage dealing capabilities in exchange for decreased attack speed. ] Grabbing them both out of the air, he tossed one to Taryk, as he yelled, ¡°Plan A! Catch! Hit them really fucking hard with this thing!¡± Ducking under a sweeping arm, Taryk jumped to reach the morningstar, as he complained, ¡°the hell is this? How are you supposed to hit something with this thing¡¯s balance -¡± ¡°You were using a half-rotted wood spear for how long? Though it had a decent point it wasn¡¯t any fucking different than an arrow head. Anyways, like this,¡± backstepping for a moment, he moved out of range just in time. Swinging the morningstar to meet with the statues arm - borrowing its momentum, Andrew heard a satisfying crumbling sound. Although his hand had gone completely numb, the statue lost one of their entire forearms. Returning the shaking mace into a decent grip, albeit with two hands this time, he brought the mace up high before letting it speed downwards towards the statue¡¯s head. Although it seemed to move backwards, the blow swept through the rocks that acted as its hand and chest before stopping new the stomach cavity. The statue kept sliding backwards as it finally slowed. Andrew exhaled loudly while brushing off dust and debris from his stinging face. When his morningstar smashed into the statue¡¯s head, the rock fragments peppered Andrew¡¯s face, dealing shallow cuts with each fragment that tore past - and into - his face. Looking over to Taryk¡¯s side he noticed that while the statue was missing its arms and head, it still kept moving in for the kill. Slowly craning his head, he just had time to glimpse the legs of the statue moving towards him rapidly. With no time to move he could only brace himself. It was as if a linebacker tackled his legs, but the inukshuk obviously didn¡¯t have any equipment to protect himself or the target. Feeling his legs give way and lose contact to the ground, he found himself on the side of the shaft¡¯s wall. With a strange premonition, he immediately forced his battered body off the stone surface. As he moved, he caught the sight of two more stony arms reaching from the walls, shattering the surface of the wall he was just at. Growing more and more angry as he felt the pain radiate from his body, he gripped his morningstar to meet the charging pair of legs. ¡®If it¡¯s broken into shards it won¡¯t exactly be able to tackle me then, now could it?¡¯ Thought Andrew, as he smashed the morningstar into one side of the creatures stony legs. With a sickening crunch, the legs leaked out a viscous brown sludge and one of the two legs was out of commission. The other stopping momentarily was promptly smashed almost immediately after the first. Taking a quick glance around he began to charge, not at Taryk¡¯s statue, who was on it¡¯s last leg - literally, but at the arms which were still reaching out battering the wall continually. With a well timed swing, both were smashed from above, leaving only a stub that seemed to slow while dripping the peculiar brown liquid. As Taryk finished pounding the fragments into a fine dust, Andrew commented jokingly, ¡°good form, we¡¯ll make a man out of you yet.¡± Shortly after his face turned serious, ¡°aim for the closest thing to the ground, wall, and my God lets hope we don¡¯t see them on the ceiling,¡± seeing an obedient nod on the goblins battered face, riddled with cuts from the exploding fragmentation, much like Andrew¡¯s, he withdrew another weapon. Grabbing the double headed ax which seemed far lighter than before, though that could have been stat boosts acting up, he deposited his morningstar and Taryk¡¯s spear. With a few swings of the nearly six foot tall ax, Andrew finally got himself used to such a weapon. Or for what one can reasonably expect, considering the circumstances. ¡°We definitely fucked up. Not much other choice than to go through,¡± sighed Andrew whilst speaking to himself, he hefted up the axe on to his shoulder and began walking on his sore legs. ----- Chapter 15 What started off as 2 chapter event seems to have taken 4... Anyways! As promised, though maybe a bit early, here is the next segment. I only did a rough edit so bear that in mind. Normally I don''t have to do much unless I get into one of those writing ''moods'' where 7 pages just come out of from nowhere and an hour passes by... Ahem, enjoy!
Seeing another approaching after removing itself from the cavern wall, Andrew walked forward with his ax still resting on his shoulder. Hoping that description holds true to it promises, if not, well, there are worse weapons to use when facing an opponent who is almost completely immune to blades. As the two neared one another, he swung down his massive battle ax, splitting the rock from its head to pelvis in one swing. While fragments still rained down on the man, it was not nearly as bad it was prior. Watching the two halves fall apart, he waited to test a small theory of his. No more than three seconds later, the two halves started moving once again, this time separately attacking him from the left and right as soon as they stopped their shaking. With far greater speed than when the two were whole, they approached Andrew who was standing a little too close for comfort. Jumping backwards, Andrew dodged one rotating arm, only to be hit by another in his chest. Panting while stumbling back he yelled, ¡°fucking rocks! I¡¯m being beaten by a fucking pile of rocks!? How the hell is that possible.¡± As he raved almost madly, he swung the ax viciously at the two statues legs, bisecting the two halves even further. As the brown sludge flowed out of the rocks lower calves, the blade on the ax seemed to greedily drink up any remnants of the sludge that still rested on it. If one were to look at the blade closely, instead of relatively clean, battered iron; it now held a light brown hue that seemed to radiate bloodlust. In the monochrome world where the two were fighting, however, such observations would be nearly impossible to tell. As Andrew, smashed the legs further as a precaution, he heard massive rumbling in the cavern echo deeply throughout the tunnels. Seemingly coming front of him, Andrew was relieved that there was finally a sign he could use, ¡®time to find that bloody treasure and leave. Or just leave, at this point I don¡¯t even care which.¡¯ Taryk slowly came from behind, cautiously asking, ¡°Boss are you alright, when you were slashing that rock-man-thing your eyes suddenly lit up. Even if blood red is your colour of choice over the past few days, I don¡¯t think it¡¯s healthy. Either way, do you have another ax like that?¡± With Taryk lovingly caressing the shaft of the ax, Andrew sighed. While he didn¡¯t like people getting that near to him, with the almost entranced look in the goblin¡¯s eyes, he couldn¡¯t bear to pulled it away. Finally, after no small time subject to jet-black puppy dog eyes Andrew said, ¡°nah, it was from the panther guy from before - wait, you were playing around with the half dead guys at the time. Anyways, there¡¯s just the one. After we deal with these bloody rocks I¡¯ll give it to you. You may want to grow a bit taller, though¡­ Damn, what level are these guys anyways?¡± ¡°Level?¡± Asked Taryk in puzzlement, however, silence was the only thing he got back in return. Trying again, Taryk questioned, ¡±Boss, hello?¡± Andrew tried to play are with the systems¡¯s [identify] feature, looking at the brown sludge that leaked from the rocky inukshuk shells. Unfortunately, whether it was the liquid itself, or the rocks that it was once composed of, he couldn¡¯t find any trace of a level or description when it was already deceased. ¡®Realism, or some such non-sense, I¡¯d imagine.¡¯ Gathering his wits and moving forward he called the still somewhat expectant looking goblin. As they walked toward the previous disconcerting sound Andrew describe the basics of what could be known collectively as the [system]. While it wouldn¡¯t affect the goblin all that much in the future, it still acted as a minor reprieve from the tediousness of walking forward, in the pitch black, endlessly in relative silence. As they advanced further and further into the cave system, they did encounter a small number of the inukshuk statues, but their number never did exceed one or two. It was primarily when they strayed from the centre of the tunnel, however, separate occurrences of course did happen when they least expected it. With the increasing creaking and rumbling that consistently echoed throughout the cave, there was no clear sign of the statues arrival. This, naturally, gifted the two with even more bruises and scrapes on their already abused bodies out of their negligence and inability to hear or see the statues approach. It was around this time that Andrew finally got the answer he was looking for.
Animated Northern Golem Level 14 Description: With a body that puts most armor to shame, these brutes know little else than attacking their opponents head on. With no forethought and planning these creatures are known for their quick approaches and ability to phase through certain minerals. Should one fight these golems in a mountainous or rocky terrain be prepared for sudden reinforcements coming through the walls, ceiling, or bedrock. As a peculiarity in their design, these golems cannot attack individuals in groups larger than two individuals. Instinctively they will avoid these confrontations, however, they been known to decapitate their own in special cases, however, this is usually not much of an issue for these creatures.
¡°Damn it all, I really shouldn¡¯t have checked it out,¡± laughed Andrew derisively. Due to Andrew being out-of-sorts with the occasional ambushes, he failed to notice that each of them had gained levels over the consistent encounters of ambushing inukshuks. Andrew gained three, whereas Taryk gained five catching up to the human. ¡°Hey, I¡¯ll make sure you are stronger, can see more, and that it will, well, hopefully hurt less getting hit. But beyond that did what something else, faster maybe, or do you trust me?¡± ¡°First three sound good. So long as I can shove this spiked mace up a few of their rocky ass holes, I¡¯m happy,¡± spoke the exasperated Taryk, causing Andrew to be slightly fearful over the future with this goblin at his side. However, as he saw it, it was an issue for another day. As it stood, Andrew put three points in each of the previously mentioned stats; strength, endurance, and perception for himself. And for Taryk, he placed four into each with three going into agility because of the goblins indifference to the matter. With a spine chilling noise emitted from their bodies, the two stretched lightly before continuing - nearly blindly - deeper into the tunnel. In hopes of finding the way out as soon as possible they stayed as near to the centre as they could. When they were in a tunnel that¡¯s radius was wider than even their line of vision, it was no easy feat, but it was somewhat manageable with Andrew¡¯s ax and Taryk¡¯s mace to clear the way. It took another half an hour before the two could find what they were looking for. The tunnels grew smaller every step they took over the last half an hour, leading the two to a few skirmishes that could have been otherwise avoided, which unfortunately for the two, broke Taryk¡¯s original Morningstar. However, it was worth it to the two as they both exhaled a long awaited sigh of relief. ¡°He said the right side, hey?¡± Spoke Andrew as he excitedly lifted his massive ax in a small ¡®hurrah¡¯ motion. ¡°Don¡¯t remember. I¡¯m hungry¡­¡± complained the goblin, who dragged his weary feet towards the right side nearly automatically. ¡°Okay well, you ate more than me, you are smaller than me, and have been fighting less. Please don¡¯t remind me, you bloody glutton,¡± muttered the now annoyed Andrew, whose mood was entirely ruined by the one simple comment. It wasn¡¯t like it was the first time he heard it, but to him the situation called for a different response. Certainly nothing about their lack of food. It was mostly a matter of spending too much time with Taryk and it led to a point where his usual mercurial temperament was becoming even more volatile. Ignoring the goblin who was almost at a point where he himself was a puppet like those inukshuk statues, Andrew continued to the right tunnel. As per the man¡¯s instructions, as soon as he considered himself ¡®in¡¯ the tunnel, he walked forward about five feet before carefully examining the wall in front of him. With the omnipresent darkness surrounding the two, Andrew had to stay about two feet to the wall to be able to see any detail at all. While the wall directly in front didn¡¯t show any signs of a potential short cut to the supposed vault, a foot further into the tunnel, Andrew saw what he thought to be the answer. Feeling somewhat confused and greatly concerned he paced back and forth in front of the crack. Earning him an inquisitive look from Taryk, whom was ignored completely as Andrew immersed himself in thought: ¡®So, this passage is only about a foot wide and looks like something like a crack from an earthquake. But even with its jagged edges and twisting seams, it seems too suspicious.¡¯ Testing the rock wall, Andrew pressed his hand directly onto the rocks surface of the passage and waited. No more than two seconds later, a pair of stubby stone arms forged themselves out of the rock wall and began viciously smashing the point. ¡®I¡¯d rather not chance it, being smashed to a pulp doesn¡¯t sound like my cup of tea, but I wonder¡­¡¯ mused Andrew, with a dangerous expression on his face. Ignoring the two arms still battering the stone, he lightly tapped the spot immediately to the side of one of the still moving arms, opening and closing like the wall was its hinges. As the second second passed, another set of arms appeared from the wall. On the exact spot which was battered directly before, appeared a set of arms. One of which was promptly destroyed leaking a brown sludge before it could even have a chance to move, the other which was still operational, smashed down onto the arm of the first set as it raised itself, resulting in a cloud of dust that choked Andrew who was standing far too close. After a small coughing fit, during which he actually spat up some of the brown sludge fit in amongst the debris, he measured the distance in his head from which the two arms appeared the first time. With that in mind, he withdrew a spear. With the ax in one hand, should the worst happen, and the spear in the other, he tapped the two original locations with the spear tip once more. When nothing happened, he moved onto a spot a little further from the two - weaving the spear past the still moving arm on the far side. Again another set was created, the original pair was now gone and two stragglers still were left. Raising his ax, he severed the two at the base of the wall and prodded the area. Even with his hands nothing came out of it, either above or below. Though the path was still too tight to wiggle his way through with a two second delay, he found a way he could slowly advance. Tedious, but safe. Or as far as Andrew was concerned. Tapping the other side of the wall in about six inch increments with the longer reaching spear, he stepped back. After the dust cleared all but the arms on the immediate ends were destroyed. With a swing of the ax, those too were destroyed. As he tested the corridor he found nothing amiss, so he shimmied his way into the small crevice and repeated the cycle. While it was extraordinarily difficult to swing the massive ax in such a small environment, he did accomplish his task. Giving up on the spear as the ax worked just as well for his purposes, he tossed it to Taryk who warmly accepted his new beloved treasure. Even though he was only about halfway through the twenty foot long crack, he called for Taryk to follow. Mostly due to the fact that every foot or so he advanced, slashing through the rock hands, Taryk would question him. Though it began as scathing remarks about why someone so large would try to go through the crack in the wall, it eventually became concerned ramblings that caused Andrew no small amount of patience. With the goblin-elf on his heels - who barely even touched the walls to begin with - he advanced and made it to the final stretch. Swinging his ax one last time, he cleared the last pair of stone arms. Walking out into an open cavern with some strange glowing rocks embedded into the ceiling, giving them a fair bit of light, the pair was dumbstruck with what they say. Without any emotion, Andrew muttered, ¡°Oh for fucks sake... I really should¡¯ve just found my way back. Yay, treasure, so exciting ~ fuck that noise...¡± Backing away slowly, the two peered at what lay in front of them. Differing from the standard inukshuk puppets they saw before, these seemed to be made from shale in the shape of all manners of races. In one platoon, it was filled with humans; another, elves. Furthermore, dwarves, hobbits, goblins, beastmen of all sorts and sizes riddled the area. Fur, feathers, scales, or carapaces; all stood on guard with their weapon of choice locked tightly in their grip. There was roughly 500 in total and each seemed to stare at the crack intently. Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author''s preferred platform and support their work![Vlad Freeborn the Cursed Level 11 Description: For decades this man has roamed the world. Never stopping; always in search of new and interesting adventures and exploration. It took like 30 years, however, he got what he wanted. As he and his party advanced through these very mines, a wicked mage turned those of use into stone. Those that seemed useless were simply incinerated and used in a dark ritual. Though poorly done, it served him well over the last few decades: the cursed as a final guard to his laboratory and those deemed useless who can phase through the very rocks core to form a body to protect his home. Even though he has long since past, his creations still stand as his final testament. While they are loose from his direct commands, it was instilled into their very core that intruders will be dealt with mercilessly.] With the last part deviating from the original description on each one he attempt to [identify], he came to the conclusion that each was between level 5-15. Though both Andrew and Taryk were more than capable of killing such opponents, the number was unsettling to say the least. As the two tried to retreat, a small pulse came from the battle ax Andrew still had leaned against his shoulder. Due to feeling the strange sensation, Andrew momentarily looked up to see the muddy blade of the ax glowing brightly. Turning his gaze, he sighed loudly, ¡°well, Taryk, we¡¯re probably screwed, it has been nice knowing you.¡± Likewise, Taryk replied, ¡°I can¡¯t really say too much about it all, but it has been the first time I really felt alive in a while, so don¡¯t let it bother you. Anyways, lets at least kill a few of them. Give me another mace just in case this one gets stuck in one of these ass holes.¡± ¡°Right? That¡¯s exactly how I felt when I came to this world. Well, time period? I don¡¯t even know anymore,¡± shaking his head he cleared up his thoughts before continuing, ¡°well, if we make it out of this, let¡¯s have our names ring throughout the hearts of all - be it fear, envy, admiration, love, I don¡¯t really care. Lisia, of course, is included in all this. I just want to be remembered, instead of dying in a gutter where no one will even take a second glance.¡± With a nod from each, the two stopped their retreat. Pulling the last remaining morningstar and tossing it on the ground behind him. The slate army¡¯s scarlet eyes still followed their every movements as they approached with uniform steps. Out of the ten contingents, one kept their advance where the others stopped in a well-practised motion. ¡°Humans¡­ only 50 on 2? This one we got, hey Taryk.¡± ¡°Yeah, the others will be interesting, but either way let¡¯s go!¡± Meeting in the middle with a slow walk between the standing army and the passageway, the two readied their weapons as the contingent did theirs. With the massive ax in his hands, his twin swords at his hip, and spear strapped to his back with a slight repositioning of one of the longer holsters, Andrew called out, ¡°are you sure this enough to take us down? We are pretty strong you know?¡± However, the only reply he got was a massive thundering boom when their weapons smashed into the cavern floor - at exactly the same time. Whether it was swords, spears, maces, or staves, each hit the ground at exactly the same time as they marched forward maintaining the noise in perfect rhythm. Leveling his eye with the opposing leaders, he noticed, to his delight, it was Vlad. While the others may have had slightly higher levels, the contingent as a whole was rather weak. Andrew gave up on conversing with his silent enemy and simply charged. With appropriate army tactics, a spear wall was placed immediately through the gaps in the shield wielding men, but Andrew merely used the length of the ax itself to cleave through the forward ranks of the contingent. With every swing, he had to dodge the incoming spear thrusts or push back the surging swordsmen. As if he were dancing on a fine line, he swung the ax in a horizontal slash to clear as many as he could with each blow. Gentle sidesteps and back steps were just about the most he could accomplish whilst wielding such a weapon. Even as the shield bearers raised their shields, swords, and spears to defend, it held no significance to ax who keep flowing through each bisected piece of equipment. With an ax of that size, while it was extremely efficient in attacking, it had the obvious deficit of being largely unable to defend. With every four or five he cleaved through, he himself was stabbed, slashed, smacked, or hit by one of the opposing sides weapons. It wasn¡¯t until Taryk finally clued into Andrew¡¯s near suicidal charge that he finally came to aid Andrew. When Taryk helped mitigate some of the pressure, Andrew finally began to shine. As only around half of the number of came his way, he readily dodged and side stepped many of the blows - swinging his ax all the while. Each soldier whose body was pummeled and dismembered covered the floor in pooled brown liquid and black, decaying blood. Each statue needed only one swing to take out of commision, however, each who fell still grasped onto a small fragment of life. Defiantly attacking the man¡¯s legs with their fallen weapons, each blow tore through his skin covering his body in shallow cuts. But as the rage and bloodlust consumed him, he merely began stomping on the heads of those still crawling while never slowing his ax. Unlike the other inukshuk statues, after the head collapsed so too did the petrified soldier. After around three or four minutes of fighting the last of the ¡®cursed¡¯ contingent fell. Trying to catch his breath, Andrew quickly rested his ax on the ground before he began to fiddle with his menu. Unbeknownst to him, the surrounding pools of decayed blood and brown sludge slowly crept up to the ax head. Infusing it with a near demonic aura as the blade began to change. Compared to the previous plain twin crescent moon styled head, a muddy obsidian metal appeared with vicious curves and spikes. It was no much different than a fleur-de-lis appearing on the head, though the ¡®arms¡¯ dragged up and down past symbol, weaving an near interlocking that would be guaranteed to eviscerate those unlucky enough to meet with the cruel weapon. Due to that fact that Andrew was the one who ended nearly 80% of the group, he gained two levels whereas Taryk only gained the one.
Taryk of the Cleaver Clan Level 17 Defence Rating: 0 Str: 19 Agi: 18 Per: 16 End: 16 (-1) Vit: 10 Int: 6 Wis: 6 Chr: 7 Status: Bleeding: Will continue to lose health unless treated. Brusing: Endurance will decrease by 1 until treated. Skill: Spear Handling (Intermediate 4): Any spear put into your hands is a machination of death and suffering for those that stand before you. However, for those that get within your reach be warned for they can easily spell death towards a careless novice or veteran alike. Bonus 33% damage with all long handled polearm weapons. Increases armor piercing power by 16.5%. Increased chance of bleeding.
Andrew Marks Level 20 Defense Rating: 19 Poison Resistance 5% Str: 21 (+1) (+1) Agi: 26 (+1) (+2) (+1) Per: 20 (+1) +3 End: 19 (+1) (+1) (-1) (-1) Vit: 12 (+1) Int: 9 (+1) Wis: 8 (+1) Chr: 9 (+1) Lck: ? (+1) Affinity: (Temporary) Small Poison Affinity: Grants the bearer a small chance of causing poison damage on each blow. If under the influence of a foreign poison or disease, the bearer will gain a slight bonus in recovering from, and bearing with, such an ailment. Status: Bleeding: Will continue to lose health until treated. Bruising: Endurance will decrease by 1 until treated. Hairline Fracture (Rib Cage): Endurance will decrease by 1 until treated. Increases stress will cause the bone to fracture further. Skill: Dual Wielding (Intermediate:1): While wielding two weapons Damage Rating penalty is reduced by 40%. Penalty currently at 10%. Grants easier range of motion and knowledge of advanced techniques are granted at base level up of the skill. Sword Mastery (Beginner:1): While wielding a bladed weapon, be it single or dual edged, the damage rating will increase by 5%, increases chance to sever limbs by 2%, and attack speed increases by 3%. Ax Mastery (Beginner:1): While wielding an ax damage rating increasing by 5%, bleeding chance increases by 2%, and attack speed increases by 3% Improvisation (Beginner: 7): You arm yourself to the teeth before encounter any situation, using any available tactics and weapons in a manner to ensure your survival in this new age. Increases attack rating by 9% for all weapons. Increases hit chance and critical chance by 3.5% for all weapons (be in, physical damage based melee, thrown, or projectile). Spell failure rate decreases by 4.5% and spell duration increases by 4.5%. +1 to all stats including luck.
If a second and third contingent weren¡¯t approaching the two, Andrew would have noticed his new skills. Although likely he would be somewhat content, he would have lost interest in the interacties associated with the topic. Quickly allocating the stat points into strength, agility, and endurance for the two of them, he simply closed of the window which announced:
Congratulations Andrew! You have advanced to level 20, for this milestone We have granted the players skills tailored to their needs. For those that focused on the military route, we gifted them skills to help in their conquest. For the scholarly types, skills that may benefit them and, in turn, the world. Few players had chose the route of the unknown, also deemed as the mysteries of magic in this world, for them they will have unique skills tailored to their disposition. For good or bad, you are all the future of this world.
Author¡¯s Note: Spoiler : Too much magic can be dangerous. M''aiq once had two spells and burned his sweetroll. ----- Chapter 16 Longish, 5500 words? Anyways enjoy what was originally planned as routine bandit hunting :P
¡°Elves and dwarves fighting alongside one another? Taryk is it just me or does that seem wrong for some reason?¡± Spoke Andrew as he leveled his weapons once more, cursing the acute pain that seemed to come from his chest. Laughing awkwardly, ¡°Ya, two very, very different people. I could see it if they would hate one another. Though I would have thought both of the little humans would fight together. Not the elves,¡± Taryk said with a forced smile as he saw the numbers near with every thundering echo of the weapons slamming into the ground. ¡°I take high, you take low?¡± ¡°Sure thing Boss, don¡¯t wanna get stabbed ¡®there¡¯ again, do ya?¡± ¡°Bastard, how about you just go ahead and eat those rocks? This fucking gluttonous midget will starve before me, I swear.¡± ¡°... That could work, but as - shit. SHIT! DUCK!¡± Screamed Taryk as rain of arrows appeared from the elven contingent. After the arrow storm was loosed, the warriors from the dwarves came charging even before the arrow could reach their respective targets. The four and a half feet tall dwarves wielded weapons seemingly far too large for their small stature. Though stocky, it wasn¡¯t nearly enough to use a five and a half foot long greataxe or greatsword. With less than graceful steps they charged behind the arrows, occasionally tumbling under the weight of their weapons. ¡®Compensating much?¡¯ Thought Andrew with a wry smile, though he was fiercely trying to dodge and duck from the arrows. With only a few sudden sharp pains, he made it through the fire, however, he had neither time or opportunity to check on Taryk¡¯s condition. Raising the massive ax away from its position - largely amounting to a vain attempt to block the arrows flying towards his face, he readied himself for the charging dwarves. Even before the dwarves came within range, he started cleaving the space in front of him with a systematic horizontal figure eight pattern. The fearless, or perhaps mindless, dwarves simply rushed headlong into the killing field. Without any major signs of resistance, the ax kept its simple path as it severed limb after limb from the approaching wave. He kept his rhythmic pattern as it seemed to him the dwarves still madly came into the attack, after a few moments he sped it up to combat the thicker waves of dwarves coming. With a major strain coming from his battered muscles he tried to keep it up. But, as it were, a dwarf had decided to use his massive halberd as a javelin and threw it at the unsuspecting man. It wasn¡¯t until the halberd cleaved through the second unlucky dwarf that Andrew finally saw it. Destroying his attempt to keep the dwarves at a distance, he was forced to turn the blade of the ax towards the flying halberd. With a great clash of steel, both blades rang loudly in the cavern - echoing on the walls. For his ax, it survived well intact, but he had to jump back from the still surging group of dwarves. The halberd, on the other hand, was split in halves, with one section flying off in the distance behind him and the other cutting deeply into his shoulder. Wincing slightly, he felt the air speed past the front of his face. Fanned out in a semi-circle around the man and the still fast approaching dwarves, were the elves. Bows notched and aimed, though they themselves seemed against shooting their own as they didn¡¯t immediately fire. Screaming in frustration in his head, he charged into the dwarven ranks, knowing full well how ridiculous of a situation it was. But it was the only solution he could think of to rid himself of those who simply waited to launch an arrow into his skull. With a final cry of defiance he met the blades and maces of many a dwarf. Completely consumed with the thought of massacring the contingent that pushed him to this ledge, he swung. And swung, and swung. Even as blades brushed past his skin or lodged themselves completely, he kept attacking. Never stationary; always moving towards his next victim. It was the only thought process left in his mind; kill, kill them all. With no one else around to stop, or even slow, his actions he kept going past the pain, fuelled by a deeply hidden rage that nearly threatened to consume him every waking moment since his days in the streets. Now the filter was removed. No dwarf still stood standing in mere minutes, those who remained bisected, but still moving, were crushed ruthlessly underfoot. Seeing the elven contingent still up and moving after his elimination of the dwarves, he picked up at great ax at his feet. Hurling the ax horizontally, he cleaved through a few elves before it simply arched off into an empty field of battle. Wielding another, he threw it once more before taking the last one at his feet and speeding towards the now sparsely packed elven contingent. With two axes in his hands slowly him down while arrows whisked past his face, luckily none hit the man. Even if they were to have pierced into the man at this point, it would likely be completely disregarded in his fury. Only ten metres or so from the nearest elf, he hurled the looted ax. Neatly bisecting the one and shattering two more behind it. Finally it once more flew softly into the crowd harmlessly. Now at five metres he noticed something strange. With their attention half turned to him and half turned behind, he simply took his chance to end more of the creatures. The first elf he met raised his bow in defence of the massive double headed ax, but he simply laughed out loud maniacally. Splitting the bow in two - and the elf behind him - he continued his near mindless assault on the group of archers. With the relatively trigger cautious elves holding their fire unless Andrew himself was directly in front, he quickly decimated their ranks, receiving only a few glancing blows with the point blank arrows. Black blood and brown sludge once more littered the cavern floor, however, as the last elf was decapitated by Andrew¡¯s ax, so too did its pelvis shatter into small shards. Surprised, but still on alert, Andrew repositioned his ax so that he could swing at any time. Yet, what met him was something a bit outside of his expectations. Taryk, with several small arrows still sticking out of his shoulders and upper arms, wielded the morningstar with such a grim resolve that it even caught Andrew off guard. As soon as the two made eye contact, they laughed merrily. ¡°Ah, Bro, didn¡¯t think you made it, what took you so long?¡± Questioned Andrew happily with his blood red irises dimming slightly. ¡°Demon, we meet again! What a surprise, I was gonna ask you the same thing!¡± Replied the wounded goblin, who himself seemed as oblivious to the pain as Andrew was at the moment. Without any further conversation, the two met up with the next three contingents of slate covered soldiers. One goblin, hobbit, and a dog faced goblin-esque squad approached the two. Both merely kept their pace as they met up with the hundred and fifty, 4 foot tall, creatures. As the man and goblin approached, the dimmed red irises flared up once more. Again the rage surfaced after its temporary retreat, demanding the destruction of the small creatures in front of him. Diving straight into the depths of the ranks, he was slashed occasionally with a small dagger or sword, however, the massive ax quickly dealt with the creatures. As he could swing and kill them twice over for how long it took them to enter the range to use their small weapons, he swiftly dealt a quick death to those who got in his way. It was mostly a matter of compatibility as they could only truly harm him if they surrounded the man, but they simply weren¡¯t given time to organise such an assault. With Taryk ending those still struggling in the rear and blocking those that dared to approach from that behind, the goblins ranks were devastated quickly. The hobbits, although known for their agility, couldn¡¯t display any major independent thought and they too were quickly put off as well. A race that would excel as an assassin, but failed to have the forethought to act on it due to their condition. Such was their curse; their end. The dog faced creatures who wielded long staves and kept their near animalistic instincts, approached the pair next. With their small canine teeth and wooden staves which were swung in truly unconventional ways, they vaulted over Andrew¡¯s swinging ax or dived underneath. Sometimes biting their ankles, sometimes slamming their staves into the blind spots of the two, simply acting only to intensify Andrew¡¯s anger. Finally having enough of the small, agile menace, Andrew released a furious roar. Instinctively the dog-faced creatures trembled so he took the chance to grab one by the neck and squeezed. Incapable of screaming out loud, the creatures froze seeing this display and as the head was ripped off and thrown to the feet of the surrounding creatures, they seemed to change. Whether it was their inherent pack-like nature, mere anger at the man or perhaps the world, they charged. Abandoning any of their instinctive tactics they came face-to-face with the massive ax without fear. For every brother that was beheaded, their efforts redoubled, flooding into the man¡¯s ax and eventually even clawing at his face as they clogged up his ability to swing such a large weapon. Taking a breath, whilst completely ignoring the claws and bite marks covering his body, he jumped. With his speed and strength it was little wonder that he found himself 7 metres in the air before he finally stalled. Rotating his waist, he heaved the ax to further his acceleration. Continuing his fall downward, he himself spun rapidly with the ax moving with him. Tilting the ax downwards with little resistance. he finally touched the ground - carving a wide trench along the way. Though it wasn¡¯t gentle, it hardly made much a point to man. His body was still spinning for a few moments as he tried to regain his footing. Slowing to a halt, he find himself blocked on all sides by the rocky corpses of the dog faced tribe. Looking around in slight confusion, he heard a voice, ¡°you done in there, outside is good now, ya hear?¡± ¡°Yeah, yeah, give me a moment,¡± spoke Andrew with a deep exhale as he lifted his ax once again. Cleaving a path through the corpses surrounding him, spraying blood and sludge all over his body. Again he was greeted by the goblin, but the two simply waited for the next group to appear. As he waited, he went to grab a few of the greataxes left by the dwarves bodies. Gathering four of them, all resting by his feet, he spoke callously to the awaiting force, ¡°Time to get a move on, or else we¡¯ll die of old age. It isn¡¯t like there aren¡¯t more of you guys raring to go.¡± ¡°Ya, send more of the furry bastards, they seemed to actually be a challenge,¡± said Taryk with his usual impetuous fashion, which the slate army seemed happy to oblige. Whether planned or they reacted to the goblin¡¯s taunt, the next three contingents were all beast-men. More beast than man, however. With a once flowing manes now covered in rocks, men that seemed to have taut cat-like features, the other¡¯s seemed to be something akin to the panther man, though whether feline or canine it was hard to judge over the rocky exterior. No weapons seemed to be worn, however, the slate covered men and women seemed more than ready to engage with their fist, claws, and teeth. Once more marching towards the two, the previous battle rumbling of slamming weapons was no longer heard. Only silence reigned in the dimly lit cavern. ¡®Padded feet... on rocks? Well, here¡¯s to hoping they won¡¯t be as sneaky as the dog-goblins,¡¯ mused Andrew as he stretched out his arms. Already arrogantly pacing up to the group was Taryk who, for better or for worse, resigned himself to die fighting. With a deep sigh, Andrew grabbed the axes and started dragging them forward. With the constant grinding of metal on stone, he approached to see the two sides waiting for someone to start. Setting his own ax down, he grabbed one of his borrowed axes and threw it. Even with ten metres or so between the two groups, only those in front could see the flying blade and dodge in time. Those behind weren¡¯t so lucky. Even more so when a second came their way - then a third, and finally a fourth. Within the first few seconds twenty five already fell. While they themselves held onto a sliver of life, it wasn¡¯t enough to be considered a threat to the pair. Even as the first ax was lobbed over into the group, those in the front had already started advancing. Carefully at first, but they soon abandoned that tactic as the ax blades just barely swept past them into those behind. Andrew was only just barely able to grab his ax before the first came within reach. Completely unable to swing with the creature so close, he chose the next best option. With a heavy kick he sent the charging lion flying back into two more, causing them all to fall helplessly on the ground. Not paying attention to such targets for the moment, Andrew began to cleave his ax rhythmically, launching rocky body parts from the targets into the distance. Although he was occasionally hit from behind due to the agile nature of the enemies, Taryk promptly stopped those from doing anymore damage with their claws. Ironically, even as Andrew dealt the most damage to the creatures, it was Taryk that was the one to managed to kill just as many by finishing off the near helpless ones left in Andrew¡¯s wake. Advancing into the beast division, which simply looked essentially to be the same at this point, Andrew felt a hand reach for his foot. And then the other. Though he could be considered to be the strongest in the fight, the constant fighting had drained him immeasurably and the surprise of it all made Andrew stumble - into a flying claw. With one side of his vision growing dark, he fell into a slight bout of madness. Immediately grabbing the beast that swung his claw, ignoring those other attacks that came into his body, he tightened his grip on the beast¡¯s arm. With one quick pull the arm was removed, then another. Then the lion¡¯s legs were severed by Andrew¡¯s ax. Andrew spoke venomously, ¡°Taryk, don¡¯t you fucking dare touch that one, leave him where he is. He¡¯ll witness this whole charade coming to an end.¡± Whether Taryk received it, Andrew wasn¡¯t certain, however, the bisected beast who held his legs had every other limb severed from his body before Andrew began wildly attacking the hordes of rocky beast-men. Giving up on strategy and clear-mindedness, he simply charged weaving through the ranks of the beasts with his massive ax clearing the way. As the last fell, he panted loudly trying to catch his breath. Eventually he walked over to the two still squirming torsos of the beast-men. Speaking softly, ¡°whether or not you can feel pain will be decided, I suppose. Anyways, sit tight and don¡¯t die before I come back.¡± With an almost inaudible crack of his neck he looked forward to see the last contingent that lay in front of him. While the number was still 50, the arrangement was clearly different than last time. Of the 50 grey rock covered creatures, 15 were human, 10 of which wearing shield and sword, five spears. Another 10 were burly dwarves, once more wielding their obscenely large greataxes, behind those were ten more elves. Fitted with bows and arrows behind the organised ranks of the shield wall and berserking dwarves. 5 more stood in the shadows with small glistening blades, hobbits or goblins from their stature, however it was simply too far to make them out clearly. The remainder were 14 feet tall scorpion styled demi-humans. Standing on six legs and possessing a large tail which doubled as a venomous stinger: it was a centaur of monstrous proportions. Likely reading Andrew¡¯s possible intentions, Taryk dragged a few of the remaining greataxes that were left from the original contingent of dwarves. In total, ten were brought over when Andrew was studying his enemy. Completely absorbed in thought, he didn¡¯t even register the scraping noises as it was dragged over the slate corpses and stone floor. Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author. ¡®What¡¯s the most efficient way to burn through that army? I¡¯d really, really would like to test that theory with that fucking bastard,¡± even with only one good eye, Andrew was adapting to the new sense of vision. But every time he noticed his lack of vision in his left eye, it caused anger to rise further inside of him. Taryk, standing behind the fuming human, murmured to himself quietly, ¡°so this is what it¡¯s like to see Boss mad¡­ yep, do not wanna be that rock kitty back there.¡± The blood red color from his eyes seemed to deviate slightly. No longer did it just come forth from his eyes, it also radiated from his ax. Feeling a strange sensation of reluctance to set down the ax, Andrew was puzzled, but managed to urge himself to do so. Lifting a five and a half foot tall greataxe, he lightly waved it back and forth mockingly before launching it over to the group. As the first connected, shattering a shield and three men behind it, another was launched in the same spot. And another until he ran out of ¡®ammunition.¡¯ He completely cleared the middle most column of the small army, even taking the head off of a scorpion man the process. ¡°Hah, this could be fun. Taryk, target practise?¡± Spoke Andrew with a predatory gaze towards the army. ¡°Huh, whad¡¯ya mean¡­? Oh! I see, let me try too though.¡± As the group was repositioning themselves Taryk approached with four more greataxes. Three he left at Andrew¡¯s feet and one he tested in his grip. Complaining loudly, ¡°How¡¯d you do do that? These damn these must weigh about as much as me! Or, well, when I was short,¡± however, he still threw the ax before he sighed to go grab new ones. Seeing the goblin¡¯s ax only skim up to the shield bearing men¡¯s legs, Andrew laughed loudly before hurling his three in rapid succession. Once more cleaving through the shield and taking the lives of at least six more. Waiting on the goblin, Andrew noticed the small rhythmic pounding of weapons come once more. Small at first, growing louder and louder with every passing second. Noticing the goblin feed one ax into his hands, Andrew hurled it and three others as the army finally began to march towards the pair. With at least half already downed by the army¡¯s own weaponry, Andrew laughed derisively at the approaching wave. With a single smooth motion, Andrew hefted his prized ax unto his shoulder as he met with the group in the open field. Seeing another ax fly into the group, he laughed even harder. While the stubborn goblin tried once more, he simply wasn¡¯t cut out to throw a forty pound ax with such accuracy. With crimson eyes and a seemingly burning ax, Andrew met a small group of arrows in the middle of his own march. Compared a swarm of fifty projectiles that was literally impossible to dodge entirely, the five remaining archers simply had no way of hitting the man. Those that could dodge were lightly sidestepped, those he couldn¡¯t were blocked with the ax. In no time at all the two sides met once more. Swinging his ax towards the shields, he cleaved through the first as he spun in a complete circle to take the life of two approaching beastmen. Another swing ended the lives of the hobbits group entirely as they tried to attack his flank, and another still finished off the last of the shield bearers. As the approaching spearmen blended in with the agile beastmen and berserking dwarves, he received a few small holes that otherwise shouldn¡¯t have been there, however, they too were dealt with in an orderly fashion. In a few short moments all of the ordinary troops was devastated and only the indifferent scorpion men still stood - save, or course, for the one who currently was without a head. Seeing their less than enthusiastic approach towards the man decimating their rock-covered comrades, Andrew walked calmly back to where the stockpile of axes were, in other words, the location of the dwarven contingent that now lay motionless. After dropping his pebbles, to which was rather annoyed, he loaded his inventory up with 16 of the remaining axes. Walking casually to the location where he stopped his previous slaughter, he stared at the still indifferent scorpion beastmen. Seeing no major reaction to his presence he sighed loudly while muttering, ¡°you all better be more than a couple of idiots otherwise I¡¯d feel like one myself for doing all of this. Well, either way it needed to be done, I guess? Whatever, here goes.¡± Withdrawing each of the at even intervals Andrew created a line of floating greataxes, although they would only last for a minute at the most it was still plenty of time for Andrew¡¯s plan. Once more setting his now crimson glowing ax on the ground where the last contingent lay dead, he gripped the first ax. With a small drop, he felt the entire weight fall onto his arm. Testing it momentarily, he swung it a few times before hurling it across the room. As the first neared its target another was released. So on and so forth. Slight startled because of the man¡¯s action, the first scorpion, tried first dodged to the side, only to realise his companions were casually chattering their legs in expectation to the sides of him. With nothing left to do, the scorpion ducked while trying raise its tail in a last minute defence. With his failed first move, he simply didn¡¯t have time to react. Thus, as the tail came over his head, his entire human torso was severed from just under his rib cage. At this point the others who deemed the comparatively small human as a meer pest were alarmed - it still didn¡¯t stop three more from becoming victims of Andrew¡¯s axes due to their negligence. With five still remaining, Andrew sighed loudly, ¡®Apparently the shitty rock axes won¡¯t do much to those bastards. At least the non-human parts anyways,¡¯ with the other¡¯s finally cluing in as the first cried out, they managed to raise their tails, duck, or merely scuttle away in time. Now with their full attention Andrew called out arrogantly, ¡°Five more, five more axes? Let¡¯s play a little game, shall we?¡± As he had said, there was only five axes remaining from the line-up. As soon as he saw the defensive abilities of the carapace Andrew was annoyed, though it didn¡¯t stop him from throwing a few more to be sure. As each side looked down upon the other, it was truly a scene to bear witness to. A demon bathed head to toe in black, decaying blood and brown sludge dribbling down his body. Paired with deep, crimson eyes and a brightly glowing ax lying underfoot and several floating axes in front of him. In front stood pitch black centaurs - man and scorpion. Five brothers covered in shale with their shiny obsidian carapaces layering over their colossal legs and massive tail. Taryk stood on the sidelines entranced over the whole scene, refusing to budge his eyes in hopes of catching even just a bit more. Andrew deposited four of the floating axes before sending one towards a scorpion. With a loud rumble caused by the shattering of iron and rock, the blade fragmented in front of the leftern most scorpion. Calling out indifferently, ¡°you seem to be pretty high and mighty from up there, are you willing to teach this one a thing or two?¡± Although it was questionable as to whether or not the man could understand him, the scorpion did advance alone. Tapping one leg awkwardly to the others, he received a another series of taps, ¡®morse code?¡¯ Mused the man as he lifted his ax up on his shoulder. Meeting on a relatively corpse free spot in the cavern, the two stood waiting for the other move. Andrew, being the challenger, acted first. Moving towards the six legs rapidly, he closed the ten metre distance in less than a second. With the ax still resting on his shoulder he went after the closest leg. The scorpion, casually raised the targeted leg as it seemed to smirk under the stony exterior. With the leg raised Andrew simply moved to the next - closer and closer towards the tail. As Andrew seemed to begin swinging his ax - he tossed it forward. Grabbing a sheathed short sword from his side he immediately throw it towards the human body of the beast. Grabbing the ax still in the air, he then chopped at nearest leg. However, that wasn¡¯t necessary. As the leg was cleaved off, the giant¡¯s body slowly slumped to the ground. Seeing that reaction, Andrew immediately jumped up onto the body of the scorpion and cut off its head. With battleground entirely quiet, Andrew then chopped off its tail. The legs then soon followed. After the entire corpse was dismantled, he looked over to see the others¡¯ reactions. Taryk clapped happily from the sidelines whereas the other scorpions stood in disbelief. ¡®These ones were given a little bit more than the others from the looks of it,¡¯ mused Andrew as he tossed another ax. With the massive tail in one hand tossed haphazardly on the floor and his great ax in the other, Andrew advanced to the one he challenged. Deciding he ought to know a little more about his opponents he used the [identify] feature on them. [Experiment Si-07 Level 25 Description: Some say magic is a blessing; some a curse. However, to these poor soul, it certainly is the latter. Few know the horrors this creature has endured during the mage¡¯s reign in this area, however, it is certain that those that know cannot speak of it. Whether inability or the conscious choice to abandon that facet of humanity, these creatures merely exist at this point. Created by a vile magic that deviated from nature¡¯s intended role, it fused the bodies of two to create the being that stands before you. While it possessing human characteristics, it is likely that the feral nature of the animal DNA will remain dominate. Tread with caution young adventure, theses creatures are not to be taken lightly. ] ¡°Well, damn. That was vague as all hell. Anyways, level twenty five. Cool. Now, hurry the hell up you bloody insect!¡± Roared Andrew after finishing his external monologue. Although tapping was heard, no action came from the four. Waiting impatiently for one to stand up, Andrew withdrew another sword to replace the one he left in the scorpion¡¯s slate human torso. Walking towards the scorpion as an added measure to force it into one on one combat, Andrew slowly made his way up giant creature. When he neared about five metres from the line of scorpions, he brought his ax forward once again. Hearing the consistent tapping on the ground, but no movements, Andrew got irritated, ¡®such a prideful creature before they were involved - now they simply want to prolong their own insufferable lives. Too big for their own good, be it size or ego.¡¯ Even with Andrew nearing even further, the creatures showed no sign of attacking him. As the silent irritation wore off and turned into loud scoffing laughter. After a small series of breaths he moved. Dashing to side of leftern most scorpion once again, he narrowly dodged a tail coming towards his body from the right side. Considering his distance to the scorpion he swung his ax with as much force as he could generate towards the first of its legs. As the leg was being raised above Andrew¡¯s head - it sudden split. Although only the last three feet or so of it was cut off, it was still enough to limit its mobility. Pressing forward Andrew moved to the next. With a quick reaction and speeding tail Andrew dodged inwards - almost directly underneath the carapace of the scorpion. Seeing a giant mouth with rows upon rows of gaping teeth and a smell that could only be rotting flesh coming from its 4 foot wide, circular mouth. Horrified for but a moment Andrew finally found his nerve. Not wanting to near such a thing, he quickly slashed underneath the carapace before running out. As he exited from the rear, he took with him a leg that wasn¡¯t even being raised. The other directly across soon fell as well. However, as the tail straightened out beside him, he felt the air rush past his face. Looking to the side, he saw another venomous tail stabbed into the abdomen of the scorpion he was fighting. As the tail left the other¡¯s body Andrew immediately jumped back as far as he could. Not only did it seem that the venom from the tail was highly poisonous, it was also dissolving the first scorpion¡¯s body at an alarming rate. Sighing, he threw a short sword directly into the chest of the decaying scorpion before moving onto the next. Even as he dodged another tail, he operated his menu mentally to retrieve another blade. Grabbing the levitating blade from the air after sidestepping a crushing leg. He finally after jumping back from a colossal stinger he immediately threw it once more. This time he wasn¡¯t so lucky. The blade harmlessly bounced off the rocky, hard carapace of the scorpion¡¯s tail before it landed gently on the ground. Then was crushed unceremoniously underfoot. Displeasing Andrew greatly, he merely went back to swinging his ax towards the creature¡¯s legs. As he cleaved one leg off he jumped back to dodge one tail. With another waiting for him in midair. Raising his ax to meet the tail head on, he heard a loud, reverberating sound echo through the cavern. As the needle like tip of the tail met with his ax, Andrew was pushed back ten metres, rolling backwards before having his body dragged through the rocky open grave that was behind him. Fanning his rage even more, he, with great difficulty, brought himself up to see the sneering expressions of the scorpions. Even the one missing its leg seemed to brighten up considerably. Dragging his massive ax behind him on the ground, generating sparks and cutting shallow lines where he walked past. As his crimson eyes seemed to darken to that of darkest, heaviest shade of black, he withdrew two swords. With one already on his hip, he placed the other in the sheath and wielded the last in his left hand. Marching steadily towards the group with a slight limp, Andrew faced them once more. Seemingly excited noises came from the scorpions side with their clicking and clattering conversation raging on in full swing. As he neared the group, he stopped. Dropping his ax and picking up the once discarded tail of the first beast, he stared intently on the group with eight foot long venomous tail. Sinking his hand into the rocky exterior of the tail in his right hand and the sword in his left, he threw the venomous tail towards the group. While it was blocked by one, a sword neatly came through the opening created. Beheading the bystander scorpion from before. As he picked up the ax the two others turned their heads to see a small pool of blackened blood collecting on the creatures back, dripping rhythmically onto the ground. Andrew, just the opportunity as it was given. Quickly closing the remaining ten metres of distance and swinging his massive ax. With a few corrections in his form and swing, he cleaved through the entirety of the scorpions right legs, leaving it with only three on one side to let it stand - if at all possible. The other, still missing the one, raised its tail trying to stab the relatively small human. Nimbly sidestepping the tail, which pierced into the ground, Andrew furiously swung his ax. Severing the top most portion of the tail, he unceremoniously dodged another, severing that too. Briskly pacing past the other side of the crippled scorpion, he met with the other who seemed to tap angrily at the man. Staring at one another, the two moved in unison. Both charging towards the other, they met with one final clash. Jumping up to the charging beast¡¯s human body, he bisected it from head to carapace. As the scorpion slumped over, Andrew jumped off its body, taking one final glance at the fanning out halves of its body - still attached. ----- Chapter 17
Looking over at the one still squirming, Andrew stared at it with almost palpable malice. The creature was still struggling and Andrew had no desire to let it go easily, however, a small idea came to his mind. Taking a cursory glance at his surroundings, he saw the goblin still staring wide-eyed even long after the whole ordeal ended. Sighing loudly, he came towards the crippled scorpion. With a few swings of his ax, it now lay still, though a few convulsions were enough to let him know it was still alive. With the creatures no longer a threat, Andrew walked casually to the goblin. ¡°Taryk get your ass over here,¡± called out Andrew with a long drawn out sigh. ¡°Yeah! Sure thing Boss, that was incredible. By the way ,why did you just cripple the one? Couldn¡¯t ya have just kill ¡®em like that rest?¡± Asked Taryk who seemed far more excitable than usual, though considering the circumstances it wasn¡¯t to surprising. ¡°Going from certain deathmatch ¡®ta life, Boss¡¯ll show everyone how it¡¯s done!¡± ¡°Idiot, it hurts - a lot. I know you¡¯re not in much better of a state. Anyways you kill that one. Don¡¯t be a pest and just do it,¡± spat out Andrew as he was coming to realise the state of his body. In hopes of getting them up on their feet faster, or just because he didn¡¯t want to carry or hear a complaining goblin, he left the last one alive in hopes of allowing Taryk to advance further in regards to his level. Essentially so he would have more points to throw into vitality. Which, from the description, was essential for a quick recovery. With fervent, tear filled eyes, Taryk questioned Andrew continuously asking whether or not it was alright. And each and every time Andrew¡¯s reply would become more annoyed. However, finally the goblin took his requisitioned dwarven mace - the morning star broke long ago - and hopped up onto the creature''s carapace. With a few deep echoes from rocks shattering and decaying blood flying, the creature seemed to move no more. Now finally looking at the notifications on his screen, he was shocked. After battling the hordes of slate covered men and women, the two gained considerable increases to their levels. Andrew gained five, whereas Taryk gained six. Likely, it was due to the original differences in level with the smaller enemies that come before. Where Taryk benefitted from it, Andrew did not, or well, not nearly as much as the goblin. The other deciding difference was the higher leveled scorpions whose death granted Andrew a fair degree of progress in his ¡®on-screen¡¯ strength.
Taryk of the Cleaver Clan Level 23 Defence Rating: 0 Str: 21 Agi: 20 Per: 18 End: 18 (-3) Vit: 20 Int: 6 Wis: 6 Chr: 7 Status: Severe Bleeding: Will continue to lose health unless treated. Severe Bruising: Endurance will decrease by 3 until treated. Skill: Spear Handling (Intermediate 4): Any spear put into your hands is a machination of death and suffering for those that stand before you. However, for those that get within your reach be warned for they can easily spell death towards a careless novice or veteran alike. Bonus 16.5* % damage with all long handled polearm weapons. Increases armor piercing power by 16.5%. Increased chance of bleeding. Mace Mastery (Beginner:3): While wielding a mace or similar blunt weapon damage rating increasing by 6%, armor destruction chance increases by 3%, and attack speed increases by 4%
Spoiler : Nerf, Author Fail :(
Andrew Marks Level 25 Defense Rating: 19 Poison Resistance 5% Str: 21 (+2) (+1) Agi: 26 (+2) (+2) (+1) Per: 25 (+2) +3 End: 19 (+2) (+1) (-3) (-3) Vit: 22 (+2) Int: 9 (+2) Wis: 8 (+2) Chr: 9 (+2) Lck: ? (+2) Affinity: (Temporary) Small Poison Affinity: Grants the bearer a small chance of causing poison damage on each blow. If under the influence of a foreign poison or disease, the bearer will gain a slight bonus in recovering from, and bearing with, such an ailment. Status: Severe Bleeding: Will continue to lose health until treated. Severe Bruising: Endurance will decrease by 3 until treated. Bone Fracture (Rib Cage): Endurance will decrease by 3 until treated. Increases stress will cause the bone to fracture further. Skill: Dual Wielding (Intermediate:2): While wielding two weapons Damage Rating penalty is reduced by 42%. Penalty currently at 8%. Grants easier range of motion and knowledge of advanced techniques are granted at base level up of the skill. Sword Mastery (Beginner:2): While wielding a bladed weapon, be it single or dual edged, the damage rating will increase by 5.5%, increases chance to sever limbs by 2.5%, and attack speed increases by 3.5%. Ax Mastery (Beginner:7): While wielding an ax damage rating increasing by 8%, bleeding chance increases by 5%, and attack speed increases by 6% Improvisation (Intermediate: 1): You arm yourself to the teeth before encounter any situation, using any available tactics and weapons in a manner to ensure your survival in this new age. Increases attack rating by 10% for all weapons. Increases hit chance and critical chance by 5% for all weapons (be in, physical damage based melee, thrown, or projectile). Spell failure rate decreases by 5% and spell duration increases by 5%. +2 to all stats including luck.
Already feeling the bruises and cuts begin to heal, Andrew simply laid on the ground to feel his body repairing itself with every blood curdling noise that came from his body¡¯s cells. After almost half an hour of this peaceful rest, Andrew raised his still somewhat weary body up off the ground. Taking a cursory glance over to Taryk, he noticed the goblin was in a deep sleep. Not having the heart to wake up the dreaming goblin, at least for the moment, Andrew stretched out his limbs. He was feeling somewhat refreshed, or at least in comparison to the screaming pain was in only a short time ago. Looking over his side, he laughed mockingly to himself, ¡°why am I cuddling a giant ax that is still covered in blood and that disgusting sludge? Ah, this is too much. Anyways, I don¡¯t plan on giving this guy over to Taryk anytime soon,¡± however, as he looked more intently on the ax he was somewhat confused, ¡°why the hell did it turn out like this? Did the bloody twits up in their offices decided to turn me into a demon? Hell, thankfully no one besides the sadistic goblin could see me with this thing,¡± though he spoke in such a manner, he didn¡¯t stop cradling the massive ax in his grip. With the now matte black head of the ax not even glimmering in the dim lighting, two wicked curves that seemed to pierce, rip and then finally sever limbs from the unlucky victims body. It was now a little taller than Andrew, though it hardly made much of a difference regarding its weight. Out of the new design came a three foot long ax head that seemed to be a cross between a pole ax, battle ax, and a badiche. Whether it was the long, opaque curves of the blade itself, weaving from left to right in a small ripple, or the jagged point at the top meant to bleed the target dry; it was clearly a symbol of death to those who bore witness. [(Awakened) Axe of the Demonic Fury Level Requirement: N/A Durability: 50/50 Damage Rating: 23-35 As it consumers the life¡¯s blood of the slain, it will automatically repair itself and further it¡¯s evolution. Taking many owners in the past, it has a long history of bloodshed that few other weapons can compare to. Armor is simply a burden when facing this weapon. Only the highest quality materials may stand up to this ax which was forged in the blood of tens of thousands. Special Abilities: Blood Lust: When in combat, the owner¡¯s blood will boil - metaphorically, granting them increased strength for every individual they have slain, as well as temper their power for the opponents they have yet to end. Blood Tempered: Soaked into it¡¯s very core is the blood of those it deems unworthy. For an owner to be accepted, it will test their resolve while at the same time granting them the power they require to defeat their foes. When it is above 15 durability the weapon will be able to split rock and metal and easily as it would flesh, however, the resultant bloodlust will grow stronger in turn. Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon. Evolution: For each enemy killed and granted the honor of feeding their blood to this weapon, this ax will evolve. Adopting different characteristics depending on those slain to further its lethality.] With a small smile appearing on his face, he finally managed to take a glance at was lay in the distance behind the gargantuan scorpions. A 5 metre wide tunnel was dug through the cavern walls, with some wooden timbers framing the walls and roof, it seemed to be well used at point in time. Even with small glowing ores giving off a dull light throughout the shaft, it still seemed endless to the man. With significantly sharper vision in the one remaining eye after the stat allotment, he walked towards the entrance out of simple curiosity. Heralded by a soft rumbling in the cavern walls, the walls between the timbers seemed to come to life. With swaying arms and stocky bodies at least 50 inukshuks statues flooded the room. With a momentary pause, each lined up in two separate columns. One to the left and one to the right in front. Cursing softly to himself, Andrew readied the ax that leaned on his shoulder. With the two lines now organised, the first pair attacked. Utilizing his approach on the dwarves, he merely swung the ax rhythmically low to the ground. As the first was bisected from the knee, so too was the second. As they approached from each side, in an attempt to distance themselves from one another, they were met with the ax at nearly the same time. Following this another pair came from the line, then another. Muttering as he finished up the last pair of inukshuks, ¡°well, this is anti-climactic, were they this difficult to deal with before? No matter, I really want to get the hell out of here.¡± Even as the noises from the scattering rocks sounded, the goblin simply paid it no heed and kept sleeping amidst the rocky corpses of the beastmen for some strange reason. Calling out a few times did nothing to wake Taryk, so he did the next best thing. With a small shale fragment from one of the corpses thrown towards the goblin, he did end up waking up. Not from the rock, however, but a sense of danger that seemed to be planted into him over the past few days. The frail rock, however, was crushed to a fine dust as soon as it exited Andrew¡¯s grip, giving him a small sense of dissatisfaction. With the dwelling on that feeling, Andrew and Taryk walked towards the tunnel¡¯s entrance. Taryk looked in awe at the inukshuk corpses that littered the way, but he restrained himself from speaking out. They past the rocky corpses and walked towards what he had hoped to be the exit - or the vault, should the old man¡¯s information hold true. With each passing timber joist that threatened to collapse with each of the consistent rumblings of the cavern, they neared their destination. With no enemies barring their way, the two made quick progress toward the end of the tunnel. After about five minutes or so of walking Andrew noticed a brighter glow in the distance. With the previous orange torch light like ores emitting small amounts of light from before, the almost fluorescent white stood as a bright contrast. Advancing into the light, the two felt their eyes water and sharp pain flashed for a moment before they readjusted from the pale darkness of the underground world. Stumbling blindly for a moment, Andrew complained loudly, ¡°damn, I only have one eye now thanks to that lion¡­ wait where is that little bastard, hopefully he didn¡¯t bleed out already. Assuming, of course, they can die that way,¡± while rubbing his temples and blocking out some of the light shining directly into the two. ¡°Don¡¯t worry Boss. You seemed busy so I lined them up to watch the big fight, though they were alive before I don¡¯t know about now. Anyways, food, treasure, or real sunlight. That¡¯s all I want right now,¡± spoke Taryk. Thinking for a moment, he added, ¡°actually, hell with it - all three.¡± ¡°Yeah, let¡¯s get out of this place. Honestly, we can probably come back after we eat - even if I don¡¯t actually want to.¡± As there eyes adjusted to the intense light, they finally began to make out the small black door. Not in the mood for such intrusions, Andrew simply swung his ax towards the door itself. As a loud, reverberating clank of metal erupted from the door, Andrew was inwardly somewhat distressed. Although a deep groove was cut into the metal, no other damage was seen. While this was the first should a thing happened, Andrew quickly got over his confusion. Instead of targeting the door directly, he aimed for the surrounding rock frame.With a screech of metal grinding stone, the ax tore through the wall adjacent to the door. The first slash cleaved a deep line vertically a foot from the door. The second further still and the third was a diagonal slash that sent sparks and rock flying away from the two grooves. In ten seconds a new doorway was created, this time, without the nigh impenetrable door. After a short while of appreciating his handy work, Andrew entered the gap. With the same white luminescent ore embedded in the ceiling, the pair advanced into the room. In the brightly lit room with a design reminiscent of a large cabin that had a 15 metre radius from the centre of the dome like room. In the dead centre stood a small, decaying wooden desk. Around that, however, lay something else entirely. The two came to see the inner workings of the mage-turned-scientist, in large cages were cages of countless corpses. All reduced to pearlescent bone with the passing of time. Some large like the three headed dogs that must¡¯ve have exceeded nine feet whey were alive. Some small like the nine-tailed foxes that curled up next to their young as they slowly starved to death. Others were familiar like the two headed wolves and what seemed to be a snake with wings. Andrew pondered listlessly, ¡°so the origin of those specific creatures are this guy? I thought it was that whorish Den Mother, though she probably couldn¡¯t have done modifications of that nature. At most, ¡®humanising¡¯ some of the monster, either form or intelligence.¡± In a few others petrified critters were kept caged. And upon being looked at by Andrew they pawed, squatted, and tapped the iron bars chaotically. Though, slightly sympathetic to their plight, he didn¡¯t want to be known for destroying the ecosystem more than it already is with the released mutant wolves and snakes. Clearly those were what the mage deemed as successes and likely released a few select ones with pride to lay waste to the local fauna. It could also be said that they were the ones lucky enough to escape however many years ago. After a few more moments of quiet contemplation, Andrew turned to see a fuming Taryk. Matching his gaze he was slightly taken aback. In an attempt to create a new species, Goblin women, from their own bone position and that of their infant offspring, were forced to copulate with the massive three headed dog. In a single cage there were the bones of countless goblin women huddled in a corner and the massive dog laying in the middle. With a small chute attached, the offspring was loaded into another smaller cage by the women themselves. Some canine, others goblin, most somewhere in between; each child was remarkably different. The only clear relation between them all was the only entrance being that small chute. Shaking his head at the scene which could only be called disturbing, more so for the man watching it all happen, he turned his gaze to the more traditional style of a work area. Walking over the old maple desk, topped with countless journals and research notes, he took a quick glance at the man¡¯s most recent findings. [Taking a look at the genetic structure of the creature known as the goblin, one can easily hypothesise their inherent ability to breed with various other canine races. With my advancements in perfecting the ¡°Gaia¡± spell, it can be reasonably inferred that the cross breeding, both physically and magically, is entirely possible. Due to the volatile nature of genetic manipulation results vary extremely. However, despite all this I was able to create a new race of sentient, (somewhat) intelligent humanoids. Adopting their stature from the goblin race and the instinctive responses of various canine species (with a little touch of my own) they excel where goblins may fail. With genetic growth as the outmost concern. ] As it continued on and on about the various attributes of the goblin women and canines forced into the same cage Andrew skimmed over that part to look at what seemed to be the end of the journal fragment. [....This is merely a means to the end, for should the prophecy come true, life as we know it will change. For that I need to design creatures that may survive the harsh conditions to come. Those who doubt me, so be it. However, those that I have created will stand against the turmoils of life - and thrive. Empires rise and fall, but the world does not. If no one stands up to that menace, no one will be safe. Me, my children, or the ignorant people who simply survive on a day-to-day basis. Given enough time I will try to see my children to their full potential, however, I fear that time is not on my side. One can only prolong death for so long. ] After reading the first, Andrew gave up on the remainder. He had no desire to read about the cruel methodologies he utilised to create his so called ¡®children.¡¯ The entire laboratory seemed so cruel, nothing in this world could wash away the man¡¯s sins, nor could anything wash anyway Andrew¡¯s; his companions, or even the world¡¯s population. Ironically, it was a simple demonstration of the desire for bettering the world with a forced hand. No creature would want to take part in such an experiment if only it were to appease the one man. Be it human, goblin, wolf, or snake, none should be subjected to such treatment. But they were, even in the past such things were common and now where power reigns supreme, few can say otherwise. Even with good intentions, the fact that they were not so much research subjects as they were guinea pigs vexed Andrew greatly. If they were mere subjects willing to take part then he would have had no issue with the whole premise, but that wasn¡¯t the case. Wanting to just leave and get out of the mine in its entirety, Andrew dragged the fuming goblin past the cages, research desks, and mason jars of preserved embryos, into the doorway he created. Taking on final glance at the twisted laboratory, the man simply turned around and walked away. ----- Chapter 18 (I¡¯ll preface this chapter will letting anyone reading up to point that the name Ulfer was changed to get away from too many blatantly obvious references, Ulfer->Alfre ie: the joys of adding unplanned content *Sigh* While it isn¡¯t anything big, it¡¯s something I feel the need of letting you know about, basically it¡¯s just chap 15 that¡¯s affected, but to those that snuck in I¡¯m sorry :/)
Getting so far as to end of the nearly fluorescent glowing ore, Andrew turned back around. Idle curiosity is what largely drove him at this point. However, it was something he wanted to check out. Returning to the door, he checked his inventory screen, withdrawing the arrows for his bow. Leaving them floating in mid air for the moment, he looked towards the door and pressed his hand against to cold, hard inky metal. With a simple thought, he tried to store it into his inventory, before a notification flashed in front of his face. Placing it, he sighed loudly before turning around.
The object you are currently trying to store is considered locked. In order to store this object you must first unlock it.
Rounding the corner he found is target. A small, slightly bent latch that was currently covering the doors frame. With a simple twist of his wrist, he unlocked the door and placed it into his inventory. Knowing only that it was hard enough to stop his ax, he decided it was worth it in exchange for a couple dozen stolen arrows. As he thought about looking it over in his inventory he heard the arrows fall and the goblin calling out for him. Putting it off until later, he moved forward once again. Meeting up with the goblin who seemed confused about his sudden disappearance, Andrew just shrugged off any questions that were called out out to him. Completely outside of the white glowing ores, they were subjected to the dull orange torch light from the ores embedded in the ceilings. With just enough light to see, but not enough to make out the finer details, they walked past hoping their eyes would adapt to this lighting once again. With the cavernous room in sight, Andrew started to think about the way back to the surface. While it was all hypothetical and largely unlikely to come to fruition, it was the only thing he could do to not become agitated because of the situation. A few steps from entering the room, Andrew felt an impact, and then another. And finally another until Taryk stepped to side of him raining blow after blow unto the inukshuk hanging from the ceiling. With the intense pain caused by what is essentially three straight mace blows to the chest, Andrew became furious. Not entirely from the damage, but also the notification that forcibly opened up in the corner of his vision before disappearing again.
The current chest armor, Wolf Fur Half Cuirass of the Western Wind, has lost all of its durability. As consideration to the Player it may still be used as clothing for a short period of time, however, upon removal it will cease to exist. All bonuses attributed to this piece of armor have been removed.
Literally taking the mace from Taryk¡¯s still moving hands, Andrew kept pummeling the head and shoulders of the creatures until it turned into a fine floating mist of dust. As the legs could no longer attack from such a position, they moved from the ceiling to the floor seamlessly. Charging at the man, they moved forward in an attempt to tackle to furious target. With one hand grabbing the mace and another stopping the charge with his bare hand, Andrew held it down and started hammering at the struggling statue. As dust and sludge flowed from the statue, it eventually came to a halt. But Andrew, on the other hand, did not. With every hit from the dwarven mace the rocky casing cracked and split. When the cracks became too deep they shattered and fell off the body - only to become the next targets in his fury. With no trace of its existence and deep holes in the cavern floor, did he finally stop. ¡°I just got that armor like eight hours ago and now it¡¯s ruined,¡± seethed Andrew, before giving a serious look to Taryk speaking, ¡°Taryk, as soon as we get back to the camp we are going to send an expedition to kill even single one of those fucking things. Nothing less than complete extermination. Maybe you¡¯ll become some gob¡¯ general in the process, but it will happen.¡± Although Taryk say the grim determination in Andrew¡¯s eyes, he knew it was only a matter of time before it would pass. Without a target in front of him to exact his anger on, it would likely dissipate soon for Andrew. Agreeing somewhat reluctantly he said, ¡°Yeah, sure Boss,¡± however, he didn¡¯t look Andrew in the eye. Still fuming, Andrew recalled the room, ¡°you know those statues, who is to say they didn¡¯t have a part with the women before they were converted? Or hell, they could just be the dogs brought back to life themselves. Surely such a thing is alright to leave alone, hey?¡± Stunned by his words, Taryk nodded with determination and hatred coursing through his eyes as he took a long pondering side-glance at the fine dust. After kicking the dust that was once a animated statue, Andrew and Taryk left to see the centre of the room. Looking around with a intense glare, he tried to locate the two that caused him to lose his eye. With a malicious smile creeping on his face he spotted them on their stomachs. A quick kick to the side propelled one up into the air. Seeing it fall further away from him, stalling momentarily, he sighed. The other wasn¡¯t any different. Unfortunately for Andrew, the two captives left the world with a pool of black and brown blood. Peering to outskirts of the cavern, Andrew searched for a way out of the room. While he immediately remembered the crack in the wall, another trek of that proportion isn¡¯t something the two would like to sign up for. As this was a base of operation, Andrew figured that there must be a convenient way either up to the surface or merely someway to move to a higher floor of the mine. Pacing through the room in at least three revolutions at this point, looking for a clue or secret exit. After the forth, however, he did ignore his pride, asking the goblin, ¡°Hey, know any way to get out, secret stairwell, ladder, elevator maybe?¡± ¡°Evelator? What the hell? Why would I know where something is if I don¡¯t know that something is? Boss, did that last bastard hit you on the head or something?¡± Questioned Taryk in genuine confusion. ¡°A. Way. The. Hell. Out. That¡¯s all I want, well, obviously there¡¯s more though that¡¯s priority number one,¡± sighed Andrew intentionally using slow, concise words as his sarcastic personality surfaced more over the last few days. ¡°Oh, why didn¡¯t you just say so,¡± spoke Taryk as he tilted his head, shrugging his shoulders after a brief moment of silence, he continued, ¡°I thought you wanted to go back for the two rock kitties, anyways just between the white and orange light. Ah! You¡¯re half blind, right? That makes sense then!¡± ¡°Why are do you seem so happy about that¡­? Whatever, let¡¯s just go.¡± This time following Taryk, Andrew intentionally tapped the walls every now and again in hopes of drawing out another statue. However, they never came. With the two trudging over towards the laboratory for a few minutes, they reached border between the two lights. Sure enough, as soon as the two made it to the border of the light Andrew came to see the small passageway between two half-rotted wooden joists. Being a few feet wide and leading the two into a small, rickety ladder. Although somewhat hesitant to use such an old device, the two quickly got over such a feeling. With the simultaneous rumbling of their stomachs, matching the ever-present rumblings of the cave, they store their gear in Andrew¡¯s inventory and moved upwards. With the goblin in the lead, Andrew kept climbing for about a minute¡¯s time until he went too far in the growing darkness. ¡°Jesus-fucking-Christ, one don¡¯t stop without saying anything; two, you really need to wear clothes now, I¡¯ve decided for you. A lesser man would have already thought to kill themselves if they headbutted a goblin¡¯s asshole,¡± spoke Andrew dramatically, irritable still, he was longing for the cool, clean breeze of the outside air and bountiful sunlight so he wasn¡¯t truly anything more than annoyed. ¡°Hey, I ran into something up there too.¡± ¡°Then open it up?¡± ¡°Tryin¡¯ ¡®ta, just won¡¯t go,¡± spoke Taryk as he demonstrated a knock on the wooden barrier. Sighing slightly, Andrew grabbed Taryk¡¯s mace from his inventory before handing it up to the goblin wordlessly. With a few taps - that quickly became full force blows - the wooden barrier was reduced to splinters, cascading over the two as it fell. What finally greeted them was the sweet smell of the summer air and the starlit sky casting a deep sense of finality for the two, both muttered at nearly the same time, ¡°it¡¯s over¡­¡± While Taryk¡¯s voice trailed off listing the near endless list of food would eat at the next opportunity and investing in a small bag to bring snacks along, Andrew stared off into the starry sky from his position on the ladder. If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. After roughly thirty seconds of the goblin''s unmoving body and complete nonsensical babbling, Andrew got fed up with his position underneath the goblin and simply shoved him out. Flying about five metres in the air up and away from the vertical shaft, the goblin screamed, ¡°WHY?!¡± Indifferently speaking, ¡°you took far, far too long. Instead of planning these little food endeavours just do it, well, it was mostly because you were blocking me as well.¡± Seeing the indignant behaviour of the goblin after he spoke, Andrew laughed happily. Stretching out slightly, he noticed a small fire slowly reducing itself to embers far in the distance. Out of curiosity, he left the goblin who was still muttering something or another and paced over to the campfire - with his ax now in his hands. As a precaution, he hefted the massive ax up unto his shoulder and continued his walk towards the fire. On the way he saw a few critters, which we could likely shoot down at a moment¡¯s notice, however, he put it off for later. As he approached the two make-shift bed rolls, he noticed the fragrant smell coming from the campfire. At this point, he completely disregarded any pretense of stealth or caution in favor of checking out the food that seemed to be on display. With a slight stirring, that Andrew disregarded, he crept closer and closer to the small copper pot. However, as he was about to reach it he felt a soft thud on his arm. Confused, he looked down to see an elven arrow sticking out of his forearm and a quivering elf who seemed half angry and half terrified. Speaking in a low, deep voice, ¡°Now, why would you do that? Please elaborate, or I can always test this ax out of you too.¡± As he pointed the ax towards the elf, clearing any distance she may have had to the advantage of, he noticed her tears pour down. Stuttering, ¡°I-I-It isn¡¯t like that, I swear! I-I just thought you were some bandit, not a demon - nope, not at all! Like, y-you can do whatever you want to me, but leave the boy! He¡¯s only a child!¡± ¡°That one, oh I was under the impression that he was about fifteen or sixteen, not some ¡®child¡¯ as you seem to put it,¡± spoke Andrew while maintaining his icy facade. ¡°H-How did you¡­?! GODS SAVE ME FROM THIS BEAST!¡± Crying out pitifully she fired arrow after arrow at Andrew, who simply sidestepped, blocked, or leaned away from each projectile. After her quiver was empty he spoke with a light-hearted smile, ¡°¡®tis a shame, you know? Ending such a skilled archer, the -¡± ¡°ANDREW WHERE YOU AT?!¡± Called Taryk, who completely broke Andrew¡¯s attempt to mess with the poor Lisia. Laughing loudly he waved his massive ax in a small greeting, scaring the elf even more, until she came to. ¡°Andrew¡­? It¡¯s been half a day and you¡¯ve turned into some monster¡­ How the¡­ No, I refuse to think about it. It¡¯s you, right?¡± Tried Lisia through an adorable pout and indignant exasperation as the tears slowly stopped pouring out. ¡°Yeah, please make me some - well, a lot of - food for when I come back,¡± laughed Andrew as he set off once more. ¡°Wait, you¡¯re leaving already?!¡± ¡°Yeah, some unfinished business to do.¡± Without another word he swallowed the entire vat of lukewarm soup still on the embers, burning his hands and mouth somewhat, and set off towards the mouth of the mine. Seeing Andrew leave Taryk began to follow, however, the now completely empty pot caught his eye and he himself ran into the forest. Lisia, completely stunned, didn¡¯t know what to do so she simply sighed and picked up her fallen bow and began plucking the arrows she fired at Andrew only moments before. As she finished up her task, Andrew entered the pitch-black cave. Giving himself a moment to adjust to the darkness, he left the caves mouth and started for the storeroom. In just a few minutes he opened up the latched door and greeted the blind old man. ¡°Hey, how are you old man?¡± Spoke Andrew jovially as he leaned his ax on his shoulder. ¡°I¡¯m good, or well as good as one can expec-¡± Before the blind, old man had a chance to finish, Andrew cleaved through his body with the massive ax, leaving two halves twitching on the ground and a pool of blood expanding quickly from where he lay. ¡°Bastard, all I wanted was some treasure and you had to try to kill me - indirectly, admittedly, but still,¡± said Andrew with a satisfied smirk on his face. It was at this point that a notification forced itself into his sight, reading:
Congratulations, you have completed a Hidden Quest. In retaliation to the less than desireable outcome of the quest, in which Alfre the Blind had inflicted unto the Player due to his information, the Player had decided to end his quest line with his life as the catalyst. Title Granted: the Wayward
Due to killing a main quest supplier, the Northern Territories will no longer have an ability to transform its citizens into a force that can reasonably resist against the waves of the future. Be weary when travelling this area as hidden dangers may now appear at any time. As the Player killed the Mage who inflicted great pain and suffering on the local creatures, he may be seen as both a hero and a villain for what is to come. As the Mage was beginning his path of redemption, his life was cut short. His death will deal a large blow to the fighting strength of the creatures in the North. Additionally any creature he once created in now forever stricken; bound to their fate for generations to come as the knowledge of the ¡°Gaia¡± spell is seemingly lost from the world. In the future the Northern Players¡¯ actions will determine the course of the future. Without a local driving force to prevent their future few will survive. Pray that they will stand with the citizens to combat the future hordes. Should they not¡­ Title Granted: Renegade
Title Merge: the Wayward Renegade
Scoffing at the notion that the blind old Mage was that important for the future, Andrew merely looked over his body. As his body was severed from his head to tail-bone, no clothing was even remotely salvageable. However, Andrew saw a small silver key glimmering off in the distance from his body. Taking a quick glance at it, he was reminded of the cages in which the goblin women, dogs, cats, and all other manner of critters now lay abandoned or deceased. Even so, he did pocket the key should it it turn out to be important later on. Feeling his irritation surge he tried to press it down, but he could not. Venting out his agitation on the thin wooden walls covering the interior of the storeroom, Andrew swung his blade. It took about five minutes of methodically smashing, cleaving and otherwise destroying the small room to calm down. When he did, however, he was greeted with a strange sight. Behind the wooden walls of the desk, now turned into mere planks covered with iridescent flames from the shattered oil lamps, stood a inky black door. Completely disregarding the reason why a blind man would need light, Andrew jumped over the small flames to front of the door. Instead of testing the key he just received, he cleaved through the walls beside it. After a few more swings, a dark room was revealed. Although the flames cast small shadows dancing around into the room, not much else could be seen in his cursory glance. Sighing slightly, he walked further into the room and waited for his eye to adjust to the new lighting. Within thirty seconds he was able to see the complete room. Similar to the size of the room he just devastated, it only held one object. A large silver chest lined with inky corners and a dark keyhole lay in the centre of the dark room. With dust, blood, and sludge coating the once pristine key when he put it into his pocket, he simply inserted the key and turned. Given that he was expecting gold, silver, jewels, or at least weapons, he was sorely disappointed. However, it still didn¡¯t stop him from reaching into the chest. That is, of course, until he saw the contents laying on the bottom of the chest. At that point, he pulled his hand back and merely tossed his bow next. Withdrawing the entire chest into his inventory, he turned to leave - grabbing the second door on his way out. ----- Chapter 19
As the fire began to roar in the night, a dark figure approached the camp. With a darkened skin and pitch black hair, long since stained from the decaying blood of his enemies, the man walked towards the peaceful camp. Taryk who had four long branches of critters impaled on them, casually roasted his scavenged meat. As he saw the man approach Taryk waved one of the branches, scattering burnt fur and feathers, to the dark figure. ¡°Ah, where¡¯d ya go?¡± Greeted the goblin through bites of his well-done once cyan colored squirrel, eventually just tossing it into his mouth whole, questioning further, ¡°whur di¡¯ ¡®ou guh - *Ghumph*, why did ya go back before eating?¡± With a wry smile, ¡°Took a quick wash at the river. I did eat a bit, or rather stole some from the el - Lisia. But, either way, beyond that you don¡¯t wanna know.¡± ¡°Why? Why wouldn¡¯t I wanna know?¡± said Taryk inquisitively. ¡°Give it a bit of thought, you¡¯ll be very, very pissed off with me otherwise,¡± spoke Andrew a knowing smirk, confusing the goblin, but inciting his curiosity further. After about four seconds of silence Taryk called out to Andrew excitedly, getting so loud as to wake up the sleeping Lisia. ¡°Tell me, tell me!¡± ¡°What the hell are you two doing?!¡± Scowled Lisia towards to two making a racket so late in the night. Without speaking Andrew pulled the grimy silver key from his pocket and tossed it the goblin. Seeing the silver shine through the coats of black, red and brown, Taryk¡¯s eyes lit up. Jumping up at the man¡¯s legs, he kept firing question after question towards the man. As soon as the goblin started demanding spears as payment for getting the treasure without him, Andrew just laughed. Eventually as Taryk just gave up hounding the man replacing it, naturally, with a critical glare, Andrew spoke out, ¡°calm down. There wasn¡¯t any treasure - well, kind of? Anyways, it¡¯s actually nothing important, why would I lie to a gluttonous goblin about it?¡± Intensely analysing his face for any sign of discrepancy, Taryk finally seemed somewhat satisfied and turned to walk away from the two. Lisia was still slightly confused about what all transpired in the mine, though Taryk did mention some things, he left the remainder of the topic for Andrew to retell. With almost expectant eyes coming from Lisia, Andrew sighed before relaying the story - with the exception of his last excursion into the mine. Running through a number of emotions during his tale, she finally sighed and got up. With a small green glow, she started healing his forearm - wounded from her own arrow. Placing her hands directly on Andrew¡¯s face he felt the strange sensation flood through his head once more. While the cuts on his face slowly faded, three parallel scars remained above his left eye. One cutting through his eyebrow, another across his eye itself, and the last ending around his nose. With the healing he received he was able to open his other eye. But even if it moved along with the other, it didn¡¯t allow him to see anything. As the two sat in relative silence, Andrew spoke up, ¡°why did you stay? You are easily strong enough to go back home, well, by yourself for sure anyways. Even if you took that brat, you could likely find you way rather easily.¡± Taking a long breath before she spoke, she replied, ¡°you know, it¡¯s strange. I¡¯ve thought about it and could have gone there and back many times over instead of waiting. Rather, I just feel like this is where I belong for now. I have no intention of leaving my family, or running off with you, but I feel like I can grow here. Or at least get stronger to be able to defend my family when I do get back home.¡± ¡°Pragmatic fellow, I don¡¯t know if I should feel used or not,¡± laughed Andrew as he took a bite from a small bird Taryk left on the side. With the crunching and tearing noises finally slowing to a halt, he continued speaking to the somewhat embarrassed elf, ¡°well, either way, I can¡¯t complain. Do as you will. For that matter, could I use you as a guide to that village - no, I won¡¯t burn it down. Though I feel like there are people that will rub me the wrong way.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve resigned myself to that, to be honest with you, however, just please listen to me before you do anything drastic. That¡¯s all I ask for. Anyways, though I¡¯m hesitant to suggest it¡­ Try the Den Mother to see if she can do something about your eye,¡± with a heavy sigh she turned to look away, not willing to see his expression. Although he was annoyed at her suggestion, he didn¡¯t let it show on his face. With an indifferent shrug, he changed the topic. ¡°Although I¡¯d like be able to see with it again, I¡¯d rather talk to someone else. Anyways, that¡¯s for a later day. At this point I plan on organising the little green men to clear the ridiculous rock creatures.¡± ¡°Can they handle that¡­? From the way you described them, it seems like they would just be torn apart one at a time.¡± ¡°Taryk will watch out for his little underlings, you and me will go to the village with that brat over there,¡± spoke Andrew as he nodded his head towards the sleeping elf in the distance. ¡°Deal with that kid firstly then I can kill off the other tribe. At that point in time they should be humping like rabbits, so I can move and hopefully actually sleep in a place without irritating stalkers.¡± ¡°Yeah, that¡¯d definitely be nice,¡± agreed Lisia as she seemed to recall something unsettling, ¡°those little creatures seemed to stare at me as if I were something strange. Lust and veneration seem to radiate off of them, I just don¡¯t get it. At least the combination anyways...¡± Snickering slightly, Andrew replied, ¡±O¡¯ Great Goddess, you who have saved the pitiful souls of the damned goblins. Alas, some things are just meant to be. Though, it might be related to being the only women in the camp, who can say? Actually an attractive one at that, but it is what it is. All I can say, should you stay with me, is to deal with it until we save the goblin women so they have another way to release their ¡®urges.¡¯¡± With a gentle yawn and a blushing face, Lisia spoke quickly before turning away, ¡°It¡¯s time for bed, I haven¡¯t see anything roaming around so we should be alright. Good night!¡± With a brisk walk towards her makeshift bed-roll, she laid down her head and turned her body away from the man. With a sigh Andrew also turned away from the group he leaned his back against a tree. Leaving the massive axe at his feet, he promptly fell into a dreamless sleep. ----------- Waking up shortly after sunrise, Andrew yawned wearily. Shouldering his ax, he found his way to the stream he discovered earlier the other night. As he stripped-down he saw the grey vest break apart into small fragments. Moments later; collapsing further into a fine dust and dispersing into the modest breeze. Half-expecting such a thing happening he simply shook his head and stepped into the water. As the cool water swept past his ankles, he breathed calmly and began lowering his body. Splashing and scrubbing the viscous, decayed blood and brown sludge took a long while, however, he managed to get rid of a fair portion of what he missed the day before. With his skin no longer black, or even grey, for that matter, he noticed his reflection on the blurry water¡¯s surface. Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit. His long, flowing golden hair that he had once before seised to be. Replaced by a dull, matte black, mixed with a small amount of red and brown; dyed with the inky blood of the enemies. With all the blades, axes, and claws sweeping past him even his long hair was cropped down to only a shaggy inconsistent mess. Grabbing a small iron dirk from his inventory, he started trimming the longer portions. As an hour past, he finally came out once more. With shortly cropped black hair, his now tanned face, and chiseled features, he was a far different man than when he came into this world. Even his once grimy ax was washed clean. Though it was black as the darkest night, it was no longer dripping blood here and there. Given that it was already a terrifying and wicked design, it almost seemed lost without it, however, Andrew appreciated its cleanliness all the same. Once more abandoning his previously stolen stained clothes, he spent only a small time saving his fraying underclothes and legguards from the blood and sludge. However, they too, were dyed black. As the three we up and about doing their own things, a small elven boy stood awkwardly next to a tree. Seeing the still unburied bodies of the bandits he reflected on how close he was to joining them. By sheer luck, a fellow villager from their village happened to be with the man. ¡°How in the world did she get involved with someone like him¡­ It¡¯s not allowed! We are supposed to be together! Who can defy the word of the Chief¡¯s son! No man can go against an army of us elves if we get serious... I decided! I will just get Papa to get rid of him¡­.¡± muttered Kai loudly as he continued his rant. Even before the small elf started Andrew had already walked from the behind the tree line after his bath. Hearing this Andrew was torn. Annoyed at the blatant thoughts of betraying someone who had spared him before and the obnoxious boy was openly giving him a reason to punish him. Withdrawing his iron dirks from their position in his inventory, he stood in the open facing the oblivious elf. With four daggers floating in front of him, he rapidly threw it at the pondering elf. Not even registering the attack until the first dagger impacted the tree, Kai froze. Glancing at a ruthless looking man wielding an ungodly, demonic looking ax in one hand and playing with a dagger indifferently in his other, Kai slowly turned to his side. With two daggers only centimetres from his head and a third uncomfortably close to something between his legs, he cried. With tears welling up in his eyes and a certain area growing darker the boy collapsed on the ground. As he sobbed incoherently, Andrew tossed the last dagger. With it skimming past the elf¡¯s forearm - landing just millimetres away Taryk¡¯s previous design in his arm - Andrew calmy said, ¡°calm the hell down, you just get threatened me. Plotting is all well and good - just don¡¯t get caught. Otherwise, pretty knives like to meet pretty little boys. It¡¯s a match made in Heaven, you know?¡± Scoffing loudly, Andrew indifferently turned and walked away from the whimpering elf with the small cut on his arm. It took him another minute or so after he threw the dagger to find Lisia. While she heard the cries from afar she didn¡¯t take the situation too seriously explaining, ¡°he¡¯s always been like that, entitled and pretentious. It isn¡¯t as though he is a bad child, but it is true that his father is the Chief for however much that amounts to.¡± ¡°Yeah, so maim, but don¡¯t kill? Anyways it isn¡¯t that big of a deal. Why did that brat join the bandits anyways?¡± ¡°Neither, if possible, don¡¯t hurt him any further. For me, please? And why not?¡± Sighed Lisia as she turned to look towards the abandoned corpses lying only a short distance away. ¡°From the sounds of it, he was decided to leave home for an adventure and was enticed to join up - likely as bait for the more wary ones.¡± ¡°So he was full fledged bandit¡­¡± murmured Andrew before adding, ¡°still regret me not killing him? Considering you¡¯ll pretty much just amount to being a caretaker over the next little bit.¡± Opening her mouth to began to say something, but closed it with an uneasy look. With a forced smile she continued, ¡°yeah, well, could be worse? While I don¡¯t care much about the others anymore, family is still family - no matter what could or has happened in the past.¡± ¡°Yeah, yeah, lies - all of that - but I can respect that all the same for what it¡¯s worth. Even if I don¡¯t agree, it¡¯s just your prerogative. Anyway where¡¯s the goblin?¡± ¡°Taryk? Hunting last I saw, didn¡¯t want any of the food because of its lack of bone marrow, blood, and body parts.¡± ¡°Sounds like him,¡± said Andrew with a wry smile, continuing, ¡°well I gotta send him off to the camp. See you in a bit,¡± turning around, he waved his hands casually catching the sight of Kai hiding behind a tree - holding his bleeding arm. Shrugging his shoulders, he left for the tree line. Searching the forest for a few minutes he came to a grisly sight. Essentially just as Andrew would have expected, Taryk gathered a pile of small nine-tailed foxes, squirrels, birds and other such animals, laying in the pile of half-eaten beasts napping peacefully. Grabbing a small rock on the ground, he tossed it towards the goblin. In a split second the goblin jumped up high, dodging the pebble. Yawning, he greeted Andrew before asking him, ¡°what¡¯s up Boss? Why did you over so early in the morning?¡± ¡°It¡¯s hardly early morning anymore, anyways, whenever you want to leave, head back to the camp to organise a small expedition to clear the mine. I imagine Grok would be happy to hear about it. Though, you should lead them so your little brothers don¡¯t die. I¡¯ll be at some elf village babysitting a brat and his guardian.¡± Yawning now as well, he turned to leave, but stopped just long enough to pull out a new spear and mace for Taryk. Ignoring the excitable goblin, Andrew kept going to find Lisia treating the small elf who seemed to tremble as he saw Andrew approach. With a devilish smile, Andrew spoke up to the child, ¡°Yo what¡¯s up brat? Hopefully that didn¡¯t hurt too much. Otherwise you¡¯re in for a long trip¡­¡± trailing over just to mess with the elf. With Kai nearly passing out in fright Lisia reprimanded Andrew as she tossed him his dagger, ¡°is that really worth your time? You could just not terrorise small children - or small people in general for that matter.¡± Catching the flying blade the elf brought along as supposed evidence, he laughed ¡°Nah, it¡¯s fun with this one for some reason, maybe because he is a little criminal, a loud mouthed one at that?¡± Pausing momentarily he raised his eyebrows questioningly, he didn¡¯t think she would be defensive over the little elf, there it seemed to be more going along with the two elves. ¡°Be that as it may¡­ Just please restrain yourself. There are separate issues than this,¡± spoke Lisia with a sidelong glance, releasing a heavy breath. ¡°Fiance?¡± Questioned Andrew putting things together, or as much as he could, from what information he had available to him. Seeing the tightening expression on Lisia¡¯s face Andrew laughed loudly, ¡°you with this kid? He seems like he is pushing 8 years old max.¡± Maintaining a genuine smirk and snickering all the while, he called out for the two to lead him towards the village taking a small pile of fruits to go as his breakfast. ----- Chapter 20 Rewatched HSOTD I definitely need more zombies... Anyways maybe in the future, I left it open for the future. I digress, enjoy and thanks for reading folks!
Trekking forward down the mountainous outcroppings of rocks and spruce trees, the trio leisurely made their way to the elven village. While Lisia and Andrew walked side by side, Kai stayed far to the rear. In an attempt to distance himself from the man, Kai kept at least ten metres of distance between the two of them as the three walked. They had encountered a few wild boars that aggressively growled at the group but were stopped with a throwing knife to the throat. They kept going through the forest, only stopping to recover Andrew¡¯s knives or Lisia¡¯s arrows. After around two hours later Andrew noticed they were missing the young elf. With a small sigh he stopped and called out to Lisia, ¡°I thought the kid was your job?¡± ¡°He is, right now from what I can see, he is ¡®relieving¡¯ himself behind those bushes,¡± coupled with an indirect head nod, Andrew decided to keep going. Lisia soon followed, and then a loud cry came from the background. ¡°Remind you of someone?¡± Chuckled Andrew as the small elf came stumbling forward with his pants between his ankles towards the two. Andrew turned his head slightly to turn away from the elf. Although Taryk was seen far too many times for his liking, the kid was, at least in Andrew¡¯s mind, a relatively normal person. Smirking, Lisia feigned ambiguously, ¡°not at all. Whatever could you be talking about?¡± Feral growls erupted from the rear as Kai cried further as he ran. Andrew coupled with his massive ax, walked calmly to the front meeting the oncoming enemy. With a bushes shaking behind the child, Andrew and the young elf crossed paths just before the creature came out. With glistening silver fur and two sets of razor sharp teeth, it roared at the group and pounced at Andrew. As it advance it turned itself over in the air, curling itself in a small ball as it landed. As it backed away from the blade of Andrew¡¯s ax it lowered his head submissively. While the two elves behind him could not understand him, Andrew spoke out to the wolf, ¡°hey, nice save. Lay off the kid, he wouldn¡¯t even be considered a snack to you. One quick question: Can your whor- ahem, your Den Mother, repair people¡¯s eyes?¡± Whimpering slightly at first, the wolf growled, barked, and swatted the ground a few times to get his point across. ¡°Ah, so you don¡¯t know for sure, but you were there when I cut her leg off? Fair enough, if you get the chance, ask her for me please,¡± spoke Andrew while shrugging his shoulders and waving the wolf off. The wolf turned around and bounded off into the forest in which he came and Andrew turned his sight over to the two. Lisia gently put her hand on his face, releasing a deep breath, whereas Kai openly gaped at the man. Annoyed at the look the small elf was giving him, Andrew spoke with a pointed glare, ¡°pull up your pants. Shameless brat, even if you are eight years old, it doesn¡¯t mean you can run around naked - unless you¡¯re a goblin? Because if that¡¯s the case I can introduce a few more like Taryk to you.¡± Still open-mouthed, Kai froze before quickly pulling up his britches. Evidently the goblin still terrified him nearly as much as the man standing before him. Seeing the man now moving, Kai summoned up as much courage before speaking hesitantly, ¡°Y-you¡­ know.. the wolves? The monsters of the night¡­ it¡¯s true?¡± ¡°Yeah, now get a move on. Lisia explained the other day to you, hey?¡± Said Andrew casually, not even turning his head, nor stopping his stride. ¡°Y-yeah, but¡­ it¡¯s real? Like really, real?¡± Stuttered the elf shambling along. ¡°Yeah, just about as ¡®really, real¡¯¡¯ as the, ¡®really, really, really scary monster¡¯s,¡¯ whose blood I was covered in last night. Hence, the new look on yours truly. Ah, that sounds arrogant, doesn¡¯t it? It wasn¡¯t intended that way, but oh well,¡± said Andrew as he leaned the ax to his shoulder once more. ¡°So are you¡­ going to k-k-kill me like the rest of them..?¡± Mumbled Kai as hushed as he could possible speak. Earning him a sidelong glance with a horribly faked predatory grin on Andrew¡¯s face. Even with atrocious acting, the boy was terrified, squealing in fright until Andrew laughed cheerfully. Seeing their interaction, Lisia let out a rare, genuine smile thinking, ¡®just like brothers - one of which being slightly vengeful, but nevertheless at least they are passing the whole, ¡®let¡¯s kill the other phase¡¯.¡¯ Pondering her thoughts afterwards, she became slightly perplexed as to how she came to such a conclusion. However, she simply shrugged it off as being inconsequential when she saw the outlying buildings from her village appear in the distance. With their familiar elegant feel, she felt like a long journey was finally over. The small wooden buildings were intricately carved with flowing patterns mirroring that of nature¡¯s own designs, lush verdant fields appeared all over the horizon interwoven through the forest itself. Slowly passing the near endless orchards of fruits and rows of strange vegetation, the three eventually made it to the town centre. Tall and strong wooden buildings neatly surrounded the main square, being both decorated and supported by corinthian styled wooden pillars, seemingly carved straight from a cyprus tree itself. All of the main centres of business seemed to gifted with an exquisite design specifically for the them. Whether it was for the fletcher carving arrows under the skylight or the blacksmith who was ringing away in his forge, they all possessed a building seeming carved and built for them alone. The fletcher¡¯s pillars were carved with the image of a great elven man wielding a bow to defend his family. The blacksmith; a sword. The apothecary; a mortar and pestle. Continuing on throughout the square, with all bearing a unique feature and even a separate terrace for showcasing their goodes. As Andrew was seeing this all, he was stunned, expecting a backwater village - not unlike the goblin camp. But, as it would seem, the elves here had prided themselves on their craftsmanship to an impeccable degree. ¡°Oh, brat you can run off now, go play in a sandbox or something. I have adult things to do,¡± spoke Andrew with a grin, as he turned to head towards the blacksmith, leaving Lisia forced to accompany him. Kai, on the other hand, with an indignant expression decided to trail behind the two out of idle curiosity. Lisia, seeing the treatment of the small elf smirked before it turned into a small sigh, ¡®hopefully he doesn¡¯t get too crazed over something. It¡¯d be next to impossible to settle him down without maiming someone - wait, I feel like I should be more worried than I actually am...¡¯ Walking directly to the elven blacksmith made Andrew mutter breaking Lisia¡¯s train of thought, ¡°I thought elves were supposed to be peaceful, having a weapons shop seems to be kind of out of place¡­¡± A high pitched voice came from the rear, ¡°no, you¡¯re mistaken! We elves pride ourself on being the very best warrior! So that we can protect our own and nature¡¯s own children!¡± ¡°Really? Like really, really?¡± mocked the man gently. ¡°I only said that like once! Give me a break! Anyways, as I was saying¡­¡± started Kai as he took a long breath to prepare for his speech - only to be cut off by Andrew. ¡°Yeah, yeah, elves are cool, strong, and really, really, really, great. Now if you¡¯re that important help me grab the best blacksmith.¡± Spoke Andrew with his usual indifferent response. ¡°Okay! His name is¡­ wait! Don¡¯t trick me you peasant!¡± ¡°Peasant? Oh my, this one is asking for a fight, right Lisia?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t get me involved with your problems Andrew¡­¡± sighed Lisia as she turned around with a small fruit bought from a nearby vendor. ¡°I thought you were supposed to stop me from killing these people should I feel insulted, Mrs Guardian?¡± ¡°This and that are different things, he is but a child, I don¡¯t see you lowering yourself to his level,¡± spoke Lisia through bites of a strange fruit she had just picked up. ¡°Could be fun?¡± Looking at Kai¡¯s blanched face, Andrew smirked before telling the two to quiet down as they were attracting a fair bit of attention.. As they were stalled at the front of the terrace¡¯s entrance talking, a large, scarred human male approached the trio asking politely, ¡°Can you please move? I¡¯d much rather not have to test this blade on you, so if you don¡¯t mind?¡± Immediately stepping to the side due to the man¡¯s tone instinctively, Andrew took a moment to realise the man¡¯s words. Withdrawing the massive ax from his inventory, that he thought would be conspicuous in such a place, he pointed it at the man in one hand wordlessly. At first anger flashed in the man¡¯s eyes, following that - pity. As soon as he took a look at the man effortlessly holding it; fear. With a quick back step the man bounded off to in the other direction. Now that everyone¡¯s eyes rested on the human with the massive ax, Andrew quickly ducked into the weapon shop¡¯s terrace covered in elaborately designed lattice, with neatly trimmed vines creeping up. Seeing no small number of few interesting designs on the weapons and armor displayed Andrew was once again astounded by the craftsmanship of the equipment he was seeing. Flowing engravings, sculpted pommels, and near perfect artistic renderings painted, carved, or simply forged into the steel. Given that all of his weapon so far were essentially hand-me-downs in one way or another, seeing mint condition weaponry caused him to lose himself in it all. Kai didn¡¯t linger gawking at the weapons, grabbing the main blacksmith - surprisingly human - still covered in black soot and nearly dragging the well built man out of his workshop. With smalls burn marks coating his forearms and a long nordic styled greying braided beard, that¡¯d likely be a detriment to his line of work, the blacksmith looked at the man in front of him. Seeing the Andrew¡¯s interest in the wears, the smiling blacksmith patiently waited for his customer to be ready. With the Chief¡¯s son as a guide, he was hardly in a position to do otherwise. Taking about five minutes to scan through each and every item, Andrew finally sighed loudly as he turned to the blacksmith who was waiting on him. ¡°Hey, this is all well and good, but I was wondering if you could do a special request?¡± Spoke Andrew with hopeful eyes as he gazed at the other intricate designs on the metal. ¡°Depends on the go- ¡° started the blacksmith habitually, but stopped as soon as Kai gave him a scathing look, gently laughing to cover it up, he continued, ¡°Of course, that is what I¡¯d like to say, but materials will have to be provided unless you wish to purchase them from my humble shop?¡± ¡°Nah, copper, iron, and steel is usually solid - not so much copper actually - but I had something else in mind,¡± walking backwards to a clear area in the store front¡¯s grassy exterior, he withdrew the first inky black door from his inventory. With a crashing sound echoing through the district, most people came to see what the commotion was about from the opening of the terrace. Whether it was due to instantaneously appearing door, the crushing weight of it all, or the metal itself - or perhaps it was all three - but the blacksmith stood stock still, gaping at the scene. No one else saw the object appear so they only questioned the reason for such a heavy door was placed on the ground in front of the weapon shop. However, they too were strangely quiet. Lisia whispered at his side, ¡°this man was known for his nearly infallibly composed face, be it work, home life, or even in war - he had seen it all. It¡¯s next to impossible to surprise this man. He was a sergeant during the Great Wars before he fled to this village for political turmoil, killing hundreds of monsters and demons on the way. And never once has anyone seen him surprised in these last ten years. Most are probably concerned about that, if anything.¡± ¡°Great Wars? Hmm sounds interesting, anyways OG can you please respond now? I rather don¡¯t like the attention, you see? Hello? Anyone home in there?¡± After a few minutes of coaxing the man out of his silence he was promptly guided into the shop¡¯s rear with an almost mad barking coming from the old man¡¯s mouth - ordering his two apprentices to drag it in. Seeing the apprentices struggling to even lift the heavy door, Andrew quickly left the workshop under the intense scrutiny of the blacksmith¡¯s gaze and dragged the door behind him. With the grass scraped to bare soil and the cobblestone flooring of the interior ruined, Andrew brought it into the room. Noticing a fervent gaze locked onto the door, Andrew sighed at the man¡¯s obvious desire to take possession of such an item. ¡°So that the problem with supply is dealt with, would you be so kind as to tell me if it¡¯s possible to request something? Of course, the extra materials are yours to keep.¡± This novel''s true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there. Unhidden greed radiated from the man, practically yelling, ¡°yes! Yes! Anything, just let me know what it is. It will be my first priority!¡± Bowing dramatically, he looked around after a short moment and forced his two confused apprentices down with him. ¡°Oh calm the hell down, it¡¯s just a door - a really hard one - but yeah anyways, I have another item that should be put with my request,¡± dropping the two of the four wolf pelts, which covered the a large section of the room when they lay flat, caused the blacksmith to open his mouth once again. ¡°Y-you killed these creatures pack leaders¡­? To me and my men it¡¯s difficult, however, not impossible. To find them though... ¡° started the Blacksmith sighing slightly in admiration. Moving forward, he spoke up once again with a quivering voice, ¡°so what can I make for you¡­ With such a large piece of metal it¡¯s possible to do many, many things with it, but it¡¯s up to you, I guess?¡± ¡°I¡¯m surprised you recognise them as the leaders. You¡¯ve got a good eye old man. Four door-metal short swords like this guy, maybe prettier? Nothing that¡¯ll affect their function, however,¡± spoke Andrew as he tossed the sheathed golok to the man, ¡°also armor made with the pelt and the door-metal - preferably light. Well, so long as it doesn¡¯t get in the way too much, I won¡¯t complain. And no metal on my shoulders. It looks really ridiculous and inconvenient for swinging weapons. Basically a black or grey leather jacket with metal inserts?¡± Thinking, he took a look at his body in hopes of finding something he had missed, seeing it he laugh self-derisively, ¡°damn, I¡¯m still not wearing pants, huh. Those too. But yeah, something like that. Anyways you seem like you should be able to do something from that description.¡± ¡°Well¡­ I can¡¯t personally¡­¡± spoke the blacksmith in resignation, ¡°but I do know who can¡­ she¡¯s difficult to deal with in regards to personal requests as she tends to like absolute control over the process and doesn¡¯t like dealing with the ability to kill so much as artistic value¡­ perhaps you can get her help with processing the metal, but I¡¯ll get started on the leather base shortly.¡± With a small wave of his hand, his two assistants sprung into action. Grabbing the two large wolf pelt from their spot on the floor, they quickly cleared a large workbench, with the blacksmith eyeing Andrew¡¯s body critically. As the two were grabbing the pelt, the old blacksmith rubbed his soot-covered beard, shouting out Andrew¡¯s measurements by eye to the two. With a few charcoal scribbles on a small hide used as paper, the old man motioned Andrew¡¯s group forward. In the blackened workshop rested a rather plain circular, iron door. With the blacksmith in the lead, he grabbed the doorknob located in the exact centre of the iron frame. It took a few veins to pop open on the man¡¯s arms, but the door finally opened with a stiff creak. As it was cracked open, heat poured out from the passageway. Immediately sweating because of it, Andrew complained loudly, ¡°do you do your bloody work in a volcano or something? This heat is ridiculous. I¡¯m not made for temperatures like that.¡± ¡°Well, it¡¯s your fault for bringing a rare metal and asking us to do something with it,¡± sighed the man, not pleased with Andrew¡¯s words one bit. ¡°Oh, if you weren¡¯t aware the metal is called Ravinite. About mid tiered in the rare metals category, though both special and legendary materials tend to be more valuable, they are almost impossible to find - or work with - so rare metals are essentially the best most people will ever see for standard purposes. This here has the benefit of being hard and strong, at the expense of it¡¯s weight. Given the ax you are carrying, I doubt that¡¯d be much of an issue¡­ by the way how did it get cut? I heard it¡¯s impossible with standard weaponry yet¡­¡± ¡°Oh, this guy did it,¡± spoke Andrew casually waving his ax, ¡°I got angry that I couldn¡¯t break into a vault, originally to steal some things, so I broke all the walls around the door. As you can see - it worked. Alas, there was nothing of importance in that vault.¡± ¡°... And no guards stopped you?¡± At this point Lisia stepped into the conversation, ¡°Edward, it isn¡¯t polite to ask a person¡¯s situations. I doubt Andrew would care all that much, but it was reclaimed from a deceased man¡¯s vault - who happened to be a very bad individual - so it is hardly stolen. Just let it be.¡± Waving her off in an annoyed man, he spoke, ¡°fine Lis - wait Lisia? That¡¯s you?¡± After his sudden realisation of Andrew¡¯s companion, he spoke excitedly lowering his eyes, ¡±you look different. And smaller- AH WHY?!¡± A quick smack on the face by Lisia was all it took to stop the man from speaking, however, she did cause his body to swivel and fly through the air in the process. Casually commenting from the sides, Andrew spoke up, ¡°huh, so agility can be used to generate more force too. Thanks Lisia, Old Man.¡± ¡°Why are you thanking me for being hit?!¡± Retorted the man in pain and confusion. ¡°Didn¡¯t I say it clearly enough? Anyways, is that the blacksmith?¡± Sighed Andrew as he saw his supposed blacksmith. An elven woman with pitch black, flowing hair, snow white, unblemished skin, and a willowy body slowly strutted forward with a confident and nearly seductive gait - oddly, refusing to look Andrew in the eyes. Andrew, however, was more irritated than anything else. With her pale purple eyes batting bashfully, she cutely turned her head from Andrew¡¯s glare. Speaking timidly with an oddly enticing voice, ¡°have we met before? I don¡¯t seem to recall you, though you seem to have something you wish to ask of me¡­ yet, the animosity?¡± Although he was still annoyed, it didn¡¯t seem to be directly related to her so he indifferently asked, ¡°know someone by the name of Sheylin, Sharlin¡¯s brat?¡± Seeing her face stiffen slightly with an ugly scowl, he lightly bobbed his head before continuing with a wry smile, ¡°oh, if you don¡¯t know, that¡¯s fine. Anyways, those two are something to the effect of work associates, but I believe we have business, correct?¡± Recovering her bashful facade, the woman cleared her throat and spoke, ¡°yes, yes. I overheard something about a rare metal and I gather your intention is to have us forge it into a weapon of sorts?¡± ¡°Four actually, this old man has the spec¡¯s for both a weapon and armor build. As promised you can keep the rest, but don¡¯t short me on it¡­ Forge Mother?¡± With a mocking gaze directed at her, she slipped a vicious look in her eyes back to him before returning back to her normal coy self. ¡°Ah, such imaginative titles are far, far too distant, please call me by name - ¡° started the woman until a hysterical old man interrupted her. With his reverent gaze falling, the old blacksmith cried passionately, ¡°you who have never gifted us with your name, to give it to a stranger! What has such a person done to earn your respect - your trust?! Tell me so I that I can do the same!¡± Admonishing lightly, she smiled brilliantly at the man, ¡°Edward, such formalities are too intrusive. You¡¯ve only had to ask,¡± turning her gaze back to Andrew - though looking at his side - she continued, ¡°Alas, before I was interrupted I was about to say it, although you may already know of me, my name is Tarylin.¡± Lisia seemed to follow the flow of the conversation well enough, but the little elf beside her seemed lost as he muttered, ¡°is that such a big deal?¡± However, he was promptly quieted by Lisia. ¡°It¡¯s rude to interject, anyways if you¡¯d still like to know just ask after¡­well, after Andrew gets his new equipment. Alright, little one?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not little! You are to be my wife, how can you say such things!¡± Kai screamed out, raising his hands in the air defiantly, earning him an iron dirk flying in his direction. With another small cut where he was previously targeted - he quickly quieted down. Andrew, ignoring the whimpering elf, restarted their conversation, ¡°so, I imagine this won¡¯t be a problem? And sorry about that brat, he¡¯s, well, a brat? I digress, weapons, armor, and now that I think about it some of throwing knives like these?¡± Unceremoniously walking behind Kai, he grabbed the dagger that was embedded into the wall and tossed it to the woman¡¯s feet. Earning an irritated look from both the woman and old blacksmith. It only lasted a moment before she righted her face and picked up the iron dirk. Testing it by tossing it up and down, she frowned slightly, commenting, ¡°this is horribly balanced, for what will be a heavy blade, it needs a better form. Although I¡¯ll take this as a reference it will not be the final design, if that should suffice?¡± ¡°Huh, you¡¯re passionate about minerals, ah, I think I could introduced you to someone, hey Lisia?¡± Dodging a small blow on his back as a signal to stop his sentence, Andrew continued until the end, earning a curious look from everyone in the room, but an almost menacing one from Lisia. Laughing calmly, he kept talking, ¡°Seriously, if you ever feel the need, just ask. However, I have to meet up with that work associate that I mentioned earlier to fix my eye. It¡¯ll likely be a less than ideal trade for me, but it should be done sometime soon. Anyways, how long?¡± ¡°A week? No, I think, due to the special circumstances - with the metal, of course - I can speed it up to about three days or so. However, would you be willing to leave the original weapons here so that we can match them as closely as possible?¡± ¡°No problem, I have another, plus this one here,¡± said Andrew as he lovingly caressed the ax with a teasing expression. ¡°Oh wait, you seem to be the olde- ahem, one the wisest people around here, I was curious if it¡¯s possible to get coffee around here. Little brown bean, slightly addictive, bitter, any clues would be wonderful, Forge Mother.¡± After his provocation Lisia sighed dramatically, muttering from the sidelines whilst speaking to herself, ¡°... I swear that mouth will get you killed on day. I thought you were okay with it from before? Or is it about the slightly useless talking to wolves thing...¡± ¡°Maybe, no, and yes, respectively,¡± casually replied Andrew as he felt the room¡¯s temperature soar. ¡®Maybe I shouldn¡¯t have called her old? It¡¯s getting even more hot than before¡­ Oh well, too late now,¡¯ mused Andrew as he placed both hands on the axe¡¯s handle. ¡°What. Did. You. Call. Me?¡± Spoke the woman as her coy face began to crumble, strained creases began to appear, and the once young looking woman seemed to age exponentially. Andrew, while not afraid of the woman, absolutely detested the heat wave - to point he even decided to do something he normally would never have. Sighing dramatically, he spoke indifferently, ¡°I need to learn some ice magic - fire would be nice, but only for eating not incinerating rooms with ambient temperatures. Hey, I think you misheard me.¡± ¡°Then, pray tell.¡± Seethed the Forge Mother, as even the blacksmith was realising her forced expression and became nervous. ¡°Such a young, beautiful, elegant, women would hardly crank up the heat for such a minor squabble. Due to your youthful, attractive features one can reasonably expect that they would turn down the goddamn heat.¡± Starting off acting with a dramatic flair, Andrew finally gave up as it was getting too hot for him to concentrate on such antics. Indifferent to the woman¡¯s response, whether good or bad, Andrew turned to walk away. The expected explosion did not happen, however, with a cheerful shout the woman threw herself onto Andrew¡¯s turned back. Yelping loudly, he roared ¡°get off! get the hell off! Damn it! Fucking bitch, I swear you must be burning hot right now!¡± She took that as a compliment and only gripped harder, purring softly into Andrew¡¯s ear, ¡°I knew a man would come to love me the way I am, I knew this day would come, did you want me right here? Just say the word, hun~¡± As she passionately kissed his neck, his modern undershirt began to melt and fuse unto his body. Shouting, ¡°How about, ¡®I will sever your fucking head head and shove it up your ass.¡¯ Seriously, it¡¯s hot! Stop. Fuck it, no new weapons. Don¡¯t blame me then. Get off!¡± Dropping his ax, he quickly gripped his sheathed short sword. Reversing his grip, he stabbed at the women on his back furiously, eventually to a point where he even started cutting himself, but with the searing pain on his body he couldn¡¯t even feel his sword slip across his skin. But even as each stab feel into her body, it would only last a short moment before quickly healing again. However, that didn¡¯t stop her from feeling the pain. Around the fiftieth strike she finally loosened her grip on his neck. Andrew, quickly taking the chance, grabbed her still attached arms, pryed it off of his neck and literally threw her across the workshop. As she shattered a small wooden workbench Andrew was nowhere to be seen. With a small dust cloud rising at the entrance and his missing ax he was gone. After a few tense moments, Kay was the first to speak the question everyone had on their minds, ¡°... What just happened¡­?¡± Startled and completely confused as what could cause Andrew to act like that, Lisia stuttered, ¡°I don¡¯t know¡­ but¡­ if i know him¡­ Damn, Kai! Let¡¯s go! NOW!¡± Shouted the elf in a panic as she raced out of the room after Andrew. ¡°O-okay?¡± Kai tried to keep up, but as soon as he exited the workshop Andrew was nowhere to be found. ----- Chapter 21 (I guess this can be considered the beginning of a new arc? Well, word count wise, book may be more accurate but whatever. Politics essentially - which is not my thing. Next few will likely be considered delving in other characters and whatnot. Anyways, tell me your thoughts as this is something I actually never fully considered until reaching this chapter.)
In a quaint village surrounded by the warm embrace of nature moved a shadow. Blurring past the villagers until it cleared their line of sight completely. As the villagers commented on the strange occurrence, it moved further and faster and in no time at all left the village¡¯s boundaries. With no sense of time, direction or distance he kept going as the buildings blurred into trees, trees into meadows. Each landmark passed by at a breakneck speed as the shadow ran until he saw a lake. Not bothering to stop, he jumped headfirst into the small lake swimming further under its surface as its cool waters surrounded the man. Carrying a large ax in his hands, he half swam and half sunk to the bottom where the waters stubbornly resisted the fading afternoon sun. Finally feeling his hands touch to soft silt of the lake¡¯s floor, his pained face began to wash away. As a satisfied expression came forth, he leisurely paddled the water around to turn his body. His feet now touching the ground, he sighed inwardly as he complained, ¡®damn, what the hell did she do to her body? It felt like I was being drenched in a pool of magma. There is no way in hell anyone can deal with that. No wonder she¡¯s a lonely, old hag. Ah, anyways, this feels nice, so cool and almost...?¡¯ After about three minutes in the lake¡¯s embrace he began to feel slightly unwell. With tightness in his chest and a slight headache coming forward, he decided it was time to leave the cool waters. Casually raising his body with a slight push off of the floor bed, he ascended into the water. Lightly kicking with his feet, he deposited his ax to inventory and took a look around. Seeing schools of strange fish that he all but ignored earlier, all of which bearing unique shades of colors, tones and features that he wouldn¡¯t have seen if he hadn''t taken this leap. Some had an extra pair of fins running parallel or perpendicular with their standard set at their side. Another with a retractable long spike from its head chasing after the other schools, barreling through the groups only to come out with a few smaller ones still pierced unto his spike. The spike slowly grew smaller until they were pushed off and the fish merely floated into the barracuda-like creature¡¯s mouth. While it did eye up Andrew, the creature simply turned away to go after more conventional prey. It was an interesting mix of new and old, simple fish he had once seen in aquariums with striking modifications done unto their bodies. Some grew fairly large, however, Andrew never felt threatened by the schools of fish that would scurry around him. ¡®Ah, I suppose I should at least be on the lookout for other people - other ¡®Players¡¯ rather,¡¯ mused Andrew as he continued his long ascent. Thinking about his small trip to an aquarium in the past, he reminisced the few good moments of his previous life. A few curious fish swam up to his face, gently brushing their smooth scales across his face and torso breaking his thought. In the end, with a few stares from the more wary ones, Andrew resurfaced seeing a slowly darkening sky, overlapping with the water¡¯s surface he was now treading. Taking a few short breaths, Andrew leisurely swam to the shore. As he hit dry land, Andrew ran his fingers down his body, trying to flick off as much of the extra water on him as much as possible. Feeling the fading sunlight on his cool back, he was conflicted as he was reminded of the woman. With a bitter frown he thought, ¡®should I just call it a day? Damn, even the bloody sun reminds me of that woman. Can you not hug someone when your body¡¯s temperature is over 700? Reasonable, right? Ah, whatever if I go back I¡¯ll just get angry. Three days, should she hold her word, so what till then. There can be an elf family reunion without a third party so I¡¯m sure Lisia will be content. Anyways, I¡¯m done with today.¡¯ No longer caring about drying off his body, he laid on the beach, half submerging himself once more in the cool waters of the lake and peacefully resting in the fading sun. ------------------------- While Andrew was in the midst of relaxing for the first time in a long time, Lisia had finally given up her search. ¡°How the hell can he run so fast?! He isn¡¯t in the village which can be considered to be a good thing, but where is he?¡± Spoke Lisia to herself as she paced back and forth around the market place. Seeing Kai and the old blacksmith, Edward, waiting at the smithy¡¯s terrace she reluctantly called off her search. As Lisia was walking over to the two, Kai nervously asked, ¡°are you okay? What were you so worried about¡­?¡± Sighing lightly with a bitter smile, she spoke, ¡°oh, just mass murder, assault, and generally causing destruction. From what Taryk was saying, Andrew isn¡¯t a person to be taken lightly of when he¡¯s angry, but¡­ it didn¡¯t seem that way...¡± ¡°How can that be?! He stabbed our Holine- ahem, the grandmaster! Repeatedly! He should be killed on the spot!¡± Fumed Edward as furiously waved Andrew¡¯s short sword around threatening no one in particular - drawing quite a few wandering eyes. With a wry smile, she began ¡°good luck with that, but the Forge Mother seemed to alright with it for some reason, whatever it is I don¡¯t really want to know.¡± With two other nodding their heads in approval she smiled awkwardly. ¡°Anyways, he isn¡¯t here.¡± With the old blacksmith now calming down somewhat, she held a self-deprecating smile as she looked into the man¡¯s eyes. Seeing his eyes sink down, turning from anger to criticism, she forced the next words out, ¡°just deal with the request as even that woman seemed to happily start the process... and stop looking at my chest!¡± Having enough of his blatant stare, another fist was thrown Edward¡¯s way who tried to dodge the small blow. With his vision on something else, however, he was a bit too slow to react. Sending him flying across the terrace into the now bare soil. As he rolled and cried out, the wandering eyes merely shook their heads and kept walking. Evidently, as her body began to change under the effects of the system, she herself began to feel torn with her new body image. While she could easily say it was an improvement in quite a few areas, in others she did feel a small longing to have what she had lost. Disregarding the man who struggled to stand, Lisia turned past the gawking Kai and walked towards her home. As the small elf tried to follow at her heels, she bitterly smiled at the boy, ¡°don¡¯t you have to tell your parents you¡¯re safe? I¡¯m sure they¡¯d love to hear it. Especially after you ran off without telling anyone.¡± Kai¡¯s face was dyed with a small amount of guilt as he spoke, ¡°Y-yeah, I guess you right. Are you¡­ okay? You seemed to be pretty shaken up with his disappearance - no, that¡¯s not the right word, worried?¡± Lisia spoke as a wry smile crept up, ¡°about the town, yes. About the individual himself, no.¡± Shaking her head to clear any unnecessary thoughts, she continued, ¡°quoting from what he told me last night, ¡®I can take care of an small army of statues - likely that applies to people too - so don¡¯t worry about me in the future. If you wanna do your own thing in the future; all the power to you.¡¯ Anyways, he isn¡¯t in any danger himself, it¡¯s the people around him with which could annoy or outright vex him for whatever reason.¡± ¡°Then why are you with him? Like, you could have just as easily left him as soon as we got back home, unless I¡¯m missing something,¡± questioned Kai with a perplexed look, seemingly begging for an answer. ¡°Progress,¡± started Lisia before she stopped to think. ¡°He has a lot of potential to be a definite driving force to this village, her people, and the creatures around it. However, he still will have a few trials to overcome and I want to be there so I can guide him our way. Whether or not he becomes a burden - time will tell. But I have faith that he can be¡­ taught? No not that, moved away from some of his less than desirable tendencies - like sending untrained, wait are they trained now? Whatever, sending untrained goblins to clear a mine that almost killed him in the beginning.¡± Hearing just one of the plans Andrew brought into effect, Kai was once again stunned. Staring intently at Lisia, as if to tell her to speak more of it, he received only silence as a response. ¡°Go on little one,¡° Lisia waved her hand gently and walked off into the sunset with Kai awkwardly standing in the middle of the road, not sure if he should follow or not.. A couple minutes of casual greetings, shopping for a skin of wine to drink on the way, and listlessly wandering around to delay for the inevitable. She made it to her house. A small two story cabin, decorated with roses lining the doorway, that span 15 metres wide and deep. Once it stood tall and proud but the hands of time had worn the outer appearance to a near decrepit degree. Cracks, splinters, all other manners of damage happened to the wooden cabin and was all but ignored. Standing awkwardly on the small porch, Lisia calmed her fraying nerves, ¡®I can do this, he isn¡¯t here anymore. I don¡¯t ever, ever have to deal with him again. I might be true that to my parents what I did was wrong¡­ but even so! I¡¯m their daughter. I¡¯m their daughter¡­¡¯ As she reached for the door, a deep growl came from the interior, ¡°who is that! If you¡¯re gonna come in - come in! If not; go home!¡± In a loudest voice she could muster - which didn¡¯t amount to much - she squeaked, ¡°I¡¯m home¡­¡± ¡°Who¡¯s that? Hell if I know what you¡¯re saying with that mumbling, get in here if you wanna talk,¡± barked the voice from inside once more. If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.¡°Okay¡­¡± spoke Lisia quietly as she pushed open the door with a loud creak, he a forced smile she spoke, ¡°hey Dad, how are you doing?¡± With a man sitting arrogantly at the kitchen table, three empty casks of wine at his side, he spoke, ¡°ah, it¡¯s you. Where¡¯s the other one? Raine? Wasn¡¯t he with you a few day¡¯s back?¡± Inquired greying elf. With two faded scars coming up from his chin to his ears - one of which was cut in half - he abruptly asked Lisia. ¡°Y-you see, he - we got captured by goblins¡­ and -¡± started Lisia as tears appeared in the corner of her eyes. With a small snort the man interrogated, ¡°Raine? By Goblins? You¡¯re kidding, don¡¯t pull that shit on me. What really happened brat.¡± As the man¡¯s unforgiving glare, she stuttered, ¡°I-It¡¯s true! I swear it to you! He -we were ambushed as night when we went to take our pilgrimage!¡± ¡°No, he couldn¡¯t have died. Not by them at least. One last chance,¡± spoke the man menacingly through gritted teeth. ¡°I know you¡¯re still upset about Mom, but -¡± as she was speaking a small wine cask was thrown at her head. Taking a small step back, it soared past her. The wine slowly dripped down the door as the smell of alcohol floated through the room, or well, more so than before. Standing atop a small scarlet puddle was Lisia who nervously tried to hide her face from her roaring father. Looking down, not daring to meet the venomous glare she knew she would be getting, she waited in silence. ¡°I swear to you I¡¯m DONE with her! Don¡¯t bring it up, damn stray! If it weren¡¯t for her, you¡¯d be dead in some damnable forest by now - yet you disgrace her name! Disrespect me!?¡± Fumed the man as he approached Lisia. With every approaching step Lisia tried to retreat further and further back. As her back hit the wine soaked door, she began to tremble. Even seeing the wrinkling palm coming, she didn¡¯t turn away. In fear of disappointing her father any further she stood still to take the blow. With an echoing crack Lisia turned her head downwards, silently brooding it all over in head. In comparison, her father began another tirade. ¡°Who the hell do you¡¯re speaking to?! I raised you, I have every damn right to tell you what you¡¯ll be doing for me. No ifs, ands, or buts. You are my property as much as you are that brat¡¯s now,¡± scoffed the man as he turned back to grab more wine to drink. ¡°But Father¡­¡± began Lisia, before being cut off once more. Merely glancing over his shoulder, he spoke out, ¡°Do you listen to anything? Is it really that hard to get through that thick skull yours? Hell, for a whore-born child in the bush you really are self-important, aren¡¯t you? At least my son, Raine, was good, no whoring around, no fucking drama, only needing a bit of wine to go through the day. But you, you¡¯re no different than that little brat - I got a helluva lotta gold just to sign your ass away, don¡¯t know why someone would need a useless twit as this stray, but money¡¯s money.¡± ¡°Raine,¡± spoke Lisia through gritted teeth, ¡°good? You say? How?¡± Laughing gruffly Lisia¡¯s father spoke, ¡°how wasn¡¯t he? Anything he did was infinitely better than what a mere orphan like you could accomplish, I¡¯d even go far as to say he was one of the most influential guards this village has had in the last five years. You, on the other hand, merely picked some fruits or berries from the orchard to make your way through life. Running around, testing some new recipe or another all in some vain hope you could replace her.¡± As he took a long drink, he stared venomously at Lisia. ¡°But, you can¡¯t. And you never will be able to. So just do what I tell you and maybe you¡¯ll still be considered family - or what that even amounts to for your position. Where is my son? I won¡¯t take another lie.¡± ¡®He¡¯s dead; dead and gone,¡¯ thought Lisia with a strained face as she tried to put to it into words, ¡°he died saving me¡­ I was running away - ¡° With a reverberating crack, Lisia instinctively put her hand to her face. As the red mark slowly dyed her cheek, she became terrified - and then furious. ¡°Why!? Why do I have to tell you anything? After she passed away all he did was abuse me - more. Tying me to a tree and then running off for hours on end. If I was lucky, I¡¯d only have a few well hidden bites from the vicious little bastards we supposably are meant to protect. If not, then I¡¯d limp home to the temple to get some senile priest groping me while he did the, ¡®ritual¡¯ for his magic. Why did I learn magic, you might ask? To hide the damn scars, bruises, and whatever the hell he did to me from you and mom. Let¡¯s just say that there were more ¡®rituals¡¯ were expected of me. You know what made it worse? I was eleven years old.¡± Pausing for a moment, Lisia took a deep breath, ¡°and that was just when I was a child, later? When Mom passed and no one else was there for me, he¡­ he... well, let¡¯s just say he got what was coming to him, but selling me off to some child for money?! I am literally a slave - property of some man I¡¯ve never known before in my life. And guess what, you signed it all off, giving away my everything for gold to pay for your habit. You as a father?¡± With a fire in her eyes she stared at the man before scoffing loudly. ¡°Yeah, I¡¯d rather be an orphan any day of the week.¡± As soon as she uttered the last words, she turned away from the fuming man, who was completely indifferent to her story - only by his blurred mind did he recognise her tone - her disobedience. Just as she opened the door, a hand gripped her shoulder. After being hit one too many times by him, she didn¡¯t hold back. With a simple backhanded slap she sent him hurtling through the room. As the sounds of bones creaking and wood splintering, a small, extraordinarily detailed wooden table lay collapsed under the man. Without turning her head she walked out of the small cabin and never looked back. Looking closer, it was as if the old wounds had already reopened as even with fury burning through her eyes, pity and sorrow colored her face. ------------------------ With Grok¡¯s help, Taryk was given control of the expedition to the mine. Leading fifty goblins who seemed all but skin and bones, Taryk presided over them with a commanding presence shouting: ¡°ATTENTION! All of you are gathered here today for one purpose. What is it, perhaps? TO KILL!¡± Roared Taryk as he paced back and forth in front of the small goblin army he gathered. Even those that didn¡¯t recognise his new features - which amounted to all of them - instinctively fell in line to his commanding voice and fearsome presence. Dyed crimson in the blood he slept in from his afternoon nap, he waited for the first goblin to raise a shout. As the first did, so to did the second; the third, and so one. Until every last goblin chanted, ¡°Kill, kill, kill,¡± did he finally continue his speech. ¡°Now you all may be wondering why we are here right now. Guess what? WE HAVE THE MINE!¡± ¡°MINE, KILL, MINE, mine? Kill?¡± With the goblins getting confused with what to shout towards their new leader, Taryk sighed loudly, muttering ¡°mine.¡± ¡°MINE, MINE, MINE, *kill* MINE¡± Now that most of them were on the same page, Taryk continued, ¡°me and the human¡­ and elf, I guess? Anyways, me and the human cleared the bandits and the rock army and the mine is now ours! We¡¯ve only need to kill a few rocks and it¡¯ll be all ours! The ore, the weapons, the TREASURE!¡± ¡°TREASURE, TREASURE, TREASURE, *kill* *mine* TREASURE!¡± Every single goblin licked their lips nearly insync and had greed painting their entire face. Those from afar that heard the word quickly ran to the spot Taryk was inciting his small contingent. Seeing the goblins come from every corner of the village he nodded slightly to the newcomers and continued. ¡°Some may die, but those who live will be rich! Treasure, weapons, and all manners of things to impress the women when we save them!¡± ¡°WOMEN! WOMEN! WOMEN! WOMEN!¡± Evidently, the goblins were more interested in certain rewards more than others, but Taryk was unfazed. As each goblin plainly laid out their desires in front of their new commander, Tark inwardly smiling at his predictable brothers - although he wasn¡¯t much better. It was only until he calmed the crowd down with a raised fist that the gluttonous chants finally died out. With the curiously mumbling to one another about the strange gesture, Taryk walked towards his weapons in the centre of the line. Lifting his spear in one hand and his mace in the other he shouted, ¡°NOW WE WILL FIGHT SO WE DON¡¯T HAVE TO HOLD BACK ANYMORE! FOR DEATH! FOR WEAPONS! FOR TREASURE! FOR WOMEN!¡± ¡°FOR WOMEN!¡± resounded throughout the camp. At the end of his speech no goblin remained in the camp, opting to join them on their mission to clear the mine - for the implied benefits. With two hundred male goblins, ranging from 3-40 years old that only had one goal in their minds, Taryk set off for the mine. After some deliberation Grok decided to join, almost entirely based on the fact that otherwise he would be left alone the camp. Riding the wolf cub who happened to grow exponentially to battle with the now four foot tall wolf under his body, Grok sighed in admiration of his once eternal nemesis. Runt, the wolf cub, and Grok now had become inseparable, his first true best friend. Brought together by the bonds of torturously instructing his fellow kinsmen all in the name of training and the strange human he had once thought to kill. ----- Chapter 22 Regarding the next chapter release, it''ll likely be a two or three chapter dump as each is in the same time period. But, regardless let me know how this one is! PS: (not used properly, but oh well) As a new ''book'' the coming next chapters will be character progression, obligated explanatory things about the new aspects introduced and minor characters brought into the mix... And then action, a hell of a lot of it ;) PPS: Is three fronts too much, or just two? Haven''t started that far, so leave me comments if you''ve been following you''d likely know where I''d be taking this portion of the story.
¡°I suppose it¡¯s time to leave. The camp was east... south-east from the village, but where am I? Oh well, east until I figure out where I am,¡¯ spoke Andrew to himself as he chewed on a fruit he saw Lisia pick up before. With essentially no survival skills in this world, he realised how reliant on his two companions he was for basic necessities. ¡°I will find a way to reward them in the future, anyways let¡¯s go to.. well anywhere with directions to a village to I don¡¯t even know the name of,¡± laughed Andrew self-derisively as he gently leaned his ax onto his shoulder. After nearly a full day of lazing around on the beach of the lake, Andrew eventually decided to continue moving forward. Downing a small glistening bird, that literally shined like a sapphire, he deposited it into his inventory to act as a snack should be able to find the opportunity to cook. Worst case scenario, he figured, he would just throw the bird out to the stray beasts prowling around for an easy meal. Walking in the direction he thought to be east, he kept going at a steady pace. As nothing seemed to be even remotely familiar, he was entirely lost, but he wasn¡¯t too distraught. He just took it as another journey of sorts. Given that the dense forests from before seemed to disappear, he altered his path slightly north thinking that the south would typically holds more prairies. Whereas the north would be colder, thus trees and if all things go well - snow. However, as expected the first sign he saw was not even remotely familiar. Across the grasslands he saw golden wheat growing up in scattered, inconsistent rows. ¡®Not quite as picky as the elves, huh?¡¯ Mused Andrew as he saw a small village stand at the centre of the wide field. The houses themselves were falling apart, but they still stood. Quiet, but still noisy enough for the life to be felt coming from it. Quickly depositing his near-omnipresent ax, he kept his leisurely pace walking towards the center. Without hurry, Andrew made his way past the tall stalks of wheat, brushing his hand past as he moved. Feeling the roughened grains fighting momentarily before swaying along with his stride. Each step was angled awkwardly as he was trying to follow the resulting path from the erratically sown crops. With his vision was covered by the ears of the sickly looking wheat, he trudged his way through the fields trying not to damage the weak crop as much as possible. Finally dodging the last of the stalks of wheat, Andrew was momentarily taken aback by the sight that lay before him. In the fertile fields, the village itself shone in the midday sun, showing the brightly gleaming metal and stone identifying the buildings. While it could have been a great center years ago, now the signs of disrepair had shown their mark. Roofs without shingles, those that did have them were few in between and even then it was patched with mud and rock. What stood out the most, however, was the square. Gleaming in the bright light of the sun, three figures stood. With polished, custom made armor, swords raised in the air, and even a banner meticulously designed with fine silk, they stood impeccably straight with a noble¡¯s air radiating from them. Glittering in the light of the sun, the black swan, centered itself around the iridescent glow of crimson lights, seemingly to show the elegance of the human¡¯s legion. ¡®Geese more like. They probably mean, ¡®we¡¯ll even look noble cutting off your head and dragging your entrails around,¡¯ scoffed Andrew slightly at his jaded interpretation of the banner¡¯s implication. He began approaching the square to see what the commotion was all about. With growing restlessness in the crowds, he finally heard a shouted sounding throughout the village. ¡°Hear me, hear me! We, the King¡¯s knights, are here to welcome you into our cause.¡± Spoke the man confidently as he sheathed his sword as he opened his arms wide, ¡°any man willing to fight the growing menace in the west will be given fifty pieces of gold should they succeed! Those who fight valiantly, but do not, will not be unrewarded! Everyone who signs up will be given ten pieces immediately, those who die will have their families compensated - BUT those who succeed will become the richest of the village. I know well the situation in these troubled parts. Few adventurers are willing to lend you a hand, yet you must fight off the beasts day and night,¡± paused the youngest looking knight for dramatic effect, inciting the crowds into a frenzy, slinging out curses towards the cowards who¡¯d refuse to help their plights. With raised fists and pitchforks being thrusted in the air in anger, the knight kept his neutral gaze. Taking a deep breath, he yelled out, ¡°NO MORE! After the war is over this village will officially receive the protection of Arlai, no more will you have to fight each day to survive. With royal guardsmen sent to protect you and your families, you will have nothing to fear during these battles. When you return, everything thing will be just as you left it¡­¡± The knight fidgeted slightly as he hunched over, eyes laying on the floor in front of him as he spoke cautiously, ¡±Alas, I suppose I lied, your homes will no longer stand,¡± seeing the restless movements from the villagers, the knight gave off an almost completely imperceivable smirk, but held his gaze to the ground. Raising his hands to quiet the frenzied group, even dodging a stone thrown haphazardly, he sighed loudly continuing, ¡°it is because of the King¡¯s orders that if you fight with us, tradesmen of every color will be sent to tear it all down - in favor of a true village. No, a true town! They will rebuild this dying village into a place prosperity! Of peace!¡± Roared the knight as his hunched back became straight, his eyes fastened to each villager and a wide grin plastered on his face. The two behind him stepped backwards and the knight who spoke followed, signaling the end of his speech. Silence took over for a short time, but as the first began to shout the rest followed. This time holding enormous favor for the young knight. Cries of joy and excitement bursted from the crowds as each man, woman, and child held each other rejoicing. Even with the man walking off the makeshift stage, the shouts continued for a long while, drowning out any other noise that might have been heard before. With the near fanatical shouts praising the Kingdom of Arlai, Andrew sighed softly muttering, ¡°...¡¯Of taxes,¡¯ more like. Not to mention should they return, there is a difference. I suppose it¡¯s is time for that then, hey? What was he called again¡­? Oh well, not important, Impotent Skeleton declared war on humans because of one of us ''Players'', or something to that effect.¡° Feeling a slight tap on his shoulder he was greeted by a tanned, young man, no more than thirty years of age. The man standing before him was not much different from himself. Armed with a longsword at his hip and shield glistening on his back, the browned haired man seemed fairly young, but experienced. Seeing the crowd, the adventurer gave a small sigh and turned to Andrew with a wry smile. ¡°You hiding from the pitchforks? I wouldn¡¯t peg you for the type,¡± chuckled the man as he eyed Andrew up. Andrew¡¯s mouth lifted a little as he asked with a simple nod, ¡°adventurer?¡± Receiving a small shrug, the man spoke, ¡°sometimes. I think it would be more appropriate to liken myself as a blade for hire - mercenary, if you will.¡± ¡°I was thinking about that at one point, you know?¡± Sighed Andrew as he shook his head slightly, ¡°it¡¯s just that I¡¯d probably be liable to be put to death if I kill a client or commanding officer. There isn''t many people I like, let alone would be willing to protect, you ever have that problem?¡± ¡°Well, as you can see, no, not yet anyways,¡± laughed the man touching his shoulders and lightly caressing his neck, ¡°there were a few cases a couple of years after the Great War though, but those things are behind me.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve heard about it, but only in name. What is this Great War?¡± Inquired Andrew. ¡°They say that it happens about every fifty years or so, at least from the few books I¡¯ve actually read, in one way or another. Regarding the last one, which was the largest so far, we got pissed at the elves, they got mad at the dwarves, the dwarves with the¡­ So on and so on. It¡¯s basically that everyone was left to protect themselves while they were busy kill everyone else. Simple, right? Well, humans got pissed with everyone so the old empire collapsed into smaller ¡®Kingdoms¡¯ if you wanna you wanna use that word.¡± ¡°So that¡¯s what brought us to today - in history, mind you. How about you, what did you show up here for?¡± Questioned Andrew as he shielded his eyes from the gleaming shield. ¡°Same as you, I¡¯d like to think,¡± spoke the man with a grin creeping on his face. ¡°Gold.¡± ¡°Ah, one of those types, hey? Anyways, I¡¯m just looking for directions. While a war sounds interesting, money doesn¡¯t hold much merit for me - for the time being.¡± ¡°How about prestige then? Reputation, so on and so forth,¡± laughed the adventure as he continued on, ¡°there are three reasons why people like us do what we do. It has nothing to do with survival after the first stage, either it¡¯s money, women, or fame. You don¡¯t seem like you¡¯d have a problem with one of them and money is off the table apparently, so that leaves us here. Say what you will, but I¡¯ve seen more men die for these reasons than anything like honor or loyalty.¡± ¡°... Cynical one, aren¡¯t you? Well, I can¡¯t fault you for that,¡± grinned Andrew as gazed at his sheathed sword. His grin slowly turned to silent contemplation as he struggled to word it properly, ¡±In the beginning survival was the driving force... now I don¡¯t know. How many have died by these hands? I can¡¯t say. Yet, it seems like for the time being it is the only path for me. Regardless, all of this psychological non-sense is tedious. Have you ever considered settling down?¡± ¡°Once in the past. After a year¡¯s peace, a plague took out the woman I loved so I gave up ¡®homes¡¯ and returned to where I belong . Before you say anything, don¡¯t apologize, it¡¯s long since been buried. The road still waits for me and I will tread where things take me,¡± as the man¡¯s grin turned forced, Andrew immediately closed his open mouth. As Andrew stood awkwardly trying to figure out something to respond with, he eyed the man¡¯s attire and said without thought, ¡°why money? I can¡¯t imagine you¡¯d need more than a pocketful to live like a king in some of these parts,¡± spoke Andrew as his gaze turned from the adventurer to the falling buildings in the distance, subtly nodding at them. As an awkward smile crept up, ¡°secret. You have yours, I¡¯m sure, I have mine. Gold is necessary to fulfill the small dream of mine, however.¡± ¡°¡®Attendants¡¯?¡± Said Andrew as a playful smirk. ¡°The ones who get paid by the night and leave in the morning, maybe. The ones who stay in your head, no,¡± snickered the man in response. As the two were talking about more cheerful topics, the crowd had dispersed and a knight approached the two. With gleaming silver plate encasing his entire body below the neck and streaks of gold flaked on his chest and shoulders, he began to speak cheerfully, ¡°Look at what we have here! Brave adventurers looking for fame and fortune?¡± This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. With a quick sidelong glance to check if anyone from the crowd was nearby he quieted his voice from the loud, heralding one he used previously, ¡°different rates for men who¡¯ve proved themselves before. Unlike these here who¡¯ll likely die in the first wave or two, men that have already braved the perils of life and death are given a much, much more substantial salary. This small amount of gold can hardly replace your potential income after all, so titles of minor nobility are granted to those who show valor and courage on the field of war.¡± ¡°Well, as someone who is well-versed in the art of war - and being paid for it - I would like to add a clause for my friend and I,¡± smirked the mercenary as he pulled his sheath from off his belt, revealing a bulging coin purse underneath. ¡°Paid in advance for each battle, only committing to one confrontation at a time. And drop the titles. I need only gold, gold, and more gold. As for my friend here, I can¡¯t speak too deeply about his requirements, though I don¡¯t think they will be too excessive.¡± Sighing loudly, Andrew loosened his sword from the sheath and spoke out to the knight, ¡°well, in truth I could care less about the money. I only want to perhaps a way to find some people to help me further my ability. If you can teach me, I¡¯d gladly join to learn more from you all, however, if you are as weak as the fodder you are preaching to¡­ Well, this conversation will be over. Oh, random elf village, most likely north - know anything about it?¡± With the knight thinking over the terms, the adventurer interjected, ¡°ah, well I heard one being in that direction, but I¡¯ve never been there. I started working my way up from the south after all. It gets too cold up there.¡± ¡°Cold? It¡¯s ridiculously hot as it is already. Please tell me winter is coming soon so this bloody heat wave will by over,¡± muttered Andrew as he pried off his blackened undershirt from his chest - pulling skin with it. Seeing Andrew wince slightly, the adventure let out a wry smile commenting teasingly, ¡°true man of the north, eh?¡± As a reflex, Andrew said, ¡°wrong side, we don¡¯t say ¡®eh,¡¯ common misconception. Looks towards the far eastern side and then you may be right, but not from where I come from.¡± ¡°Ahem - are you two done? We can agree to those terms, but you¡¯ll have to provide you own way there and food. We only have so many supplies we can bring up with these ones,¡± spoke the knight with a indifferent nod towards the excitable crowd, ¡°and too little time to call for more men or grain. Do as you will until the battle, but we¡¯ve already had skirmishes with those bony bastards. You¡¯ll be paid accordingly, assuming you¡¯re worth your claims. And - you.¡± With a small *shing* the knight pulled out his decorated longsword causing Andrew to mutter, ¡°pretty, but is it a decoration or true steel?¡± ¡°Ready?¡± Said the man as he backed up slightly to give Andrew a bit of room. ¡°Have at ¡®er,¡± replied Andrew as he drew the short sword to meet the swinging blade of his enemy. With tiny sparks lighting up the two blades, they both took a step back. Andrew¡¯s blade was no worse for wear, however the knight¡¯s longsword that once held extravagant engravings sketched into the blade was scratched wickedly. As a frown came on the knights face he swung again. As the blade neared Andrew¡¯s chest, Andrew merely raised his sword slightly to interfere with the charging blade. As the two met, Andrew flicked his wrist, leading the knights blade to break their gridlock and side down Andrew¡¯s sword. Casually stepping back from the still moving shallow swing, Andrew raised his blade to the knight¡¯s semi-exposed throat. Sighing loudly, he spoke casually, ¡°you are new to the ¡®order¡¯ or whatever the hell you call it, hey?¡± Seeing the sword point just under his chin, he trembled slightly, before dropping his shoulders with his sword clanking on the ground. ¡°Y-yes,¡± letting loose a long exhale as Andrew removed his sword, he continued, ¡°unfortunately, I¡¯ve been thrown into this order¡­ well, without much training. The elders are far more skilled than me, but they needed people at the villages, recruiting so that we don¡¯t have to resort to conscription. Although we have done so in the past, very rarely does it ever work to a great extent. Moral and some such reason.¡± ¡°¡±Blue-blood?¡±¡± questioned the two in unison, causing them to laugh loudly in front of the unarmed knight. ¡°Ha, oh well, When will this be? I¡¯ll need to be somewhere in about two days¡­ no make it four. I don¡¯t want to go back there unless I have to... ¡° Sighed Andrew with a troubled face. While he wanted to meet up with the two he figured that they would have enough to do over the next few days to keep them busy. Given Lisia¡¯s return to home and Taryk¡¯s task, he didn¡¯t think they would be ready to leave for a few days. ¡®It could be nice to meet some new people too, though I don¡¯t think many will be too sociable on a battlefield.¡¯ ¡°Anyways, all I want his some basic armor, nothing fancy, to hold me off. And someone to teach me magic, preferably of the elemental nature,¡± after some thought, Andrew decided to alter his request slightly, earning him a disapproving look from the brown haired adventurer. ¡°Magic? You¡¯re really into that fairy shit? Oh Rywen, by the way.¡± Questioned the brown haired adventure, Rywen, as his eyes narrowed slightly on the man with an arched eyebrow. ¡°Campfires, dealing with sweltering temperatures, and other annoying tasks.¡± Replied Andrew indifferently. Waving off the man, as he turned to the knight, ¡°if you can do that, by all means I¡¯ll help.¡± ¡°That¡¯s it? I could probably steal it from one of these peasants here to give you all that you asked for right now. Back home there are academies that offer much more than that in any major city¡­ Well, to each there own. I¡¯m sure it won¡¯t be an issue. And, a day¡¯s travel west is a meeting spot that we are sending everyone, though I¡¯m not sure when we¡¯ll be sending people off to battle. As you can tell.. I¡¯m not exactly qualified for such information, but so be it.¡± ¡°You are qualified to requisition rewards?¡± Questioned Rywen as he glared at the young knight. ¡°Y-yes!¡± Feeling Rywen¡¯s gaze at first was bad enough, but Andrew quickly joined in, pressuring the young knight to speak out, ¡°if nothing else I¡¯ll arrange it from my father¡¯s estate! He¡¯s a duke so such things are nothing to him!¡± ¡°... Then why are you here?¡± Sighed Andrew even though he already knew the answer. ¡°Politics. Anyways get a move on! I¡¯ve had enough of this interrogation. That¡¯s supposed to be my job. South west, you¡¯ll see some caravans if you¡¯re on the right path.¡± ¡°Oh, you¡¯ve said there was a den of beasts around here¡­ Do you by chance know where that is?¡± As the two looked at Andrew inquisitively, Andrew simply shrugged and left in the direction of the so called beast¡¯s den. Thinking he might get lucky, Andrew marched a little north-west in hopes of finding the den. It took only a half hour to find the clearing with a substantial burrow in the middle of the open. Tempting any curious critter or man to their fates it was as arrogant as the beast was domineering. Ignoring the obvious trap-like nature of the burrow, Andrew called out loudly, ¡°Hey! Wolfie? If so get out here! I wanna ask a favour!¡± As the burrow quaked slightly, a shadow passed from the front door, barking ¡°Humin, what want?¡± ¡°Lone wolf? No matter, a ride to battle. Anyways, you¡¯ll be free to hunt on the way and check out the village in depth to find any weakness so you can attack later on. Think, eating the dead of the battlefield, free meals¡­ or you can just fight because I¡¯m apparently the Den Mother¡¯s mate?¡± Waving his hand dismissively, Andrew walked up to the beast, growling out all the while. ¡°Food? Mate? ¡®Kay I fight,¡± growled the wolf as he swatted the ground a few times to show his resolution. ¡°What ride?¡± ¡°This,¡± replied Andrew as he jumped onto the wolve¡¯s back. As the wolf instinctively tried to jump and buck Andrew off, he eventually gave up when he realised there was no ill intent. Andrew, on the other hand, was rather annoyed at having the impromptu rodeo, but realised it was his fault to begin with. Gently patting the side of the wolf, Andrew asked politely, ¡°can you take me to the village first? Then we can go to the battleground. With Andrew¡¯s new mount, who begrudgingly followed Andrew¡¯s request, he quickly made to the village - greeted by a large number of spears, pick forks, and small knives pointed at him. Shouting loudly he called out, ¡°he is a friend, he will not eat any of you.. unless you die. Be that as it may, if you attack I¡¯ll have to do the same.¡± Leveling the giant, blackened ax that towards them, Andrew stared at the crowds to see if any still had any ideas and was accompanied by a feral growl that terrified the crowd. With the townsfolk now entirely petrified, largely from the wolf, but also from the vicious looking ax; he made his way up to the startled adventurer. ¡°I figured you had something up your sleeve¡­ but this? What in the actual hell? How can you tame such a beast? At least in such a short period of time,¡± with the wolf growling with it¡¯s two heads towards the relatively small man, Andrew interpreted for him as he tossed the small sapphire bird towards one of the mouths. With a bone shattering snap of its jaws, the one head seemed content, whereas the other was even more agitated, ¡°Calm down, I¡¯ll get another, you glutton. You have the same stomach don¡¯t you?¡± Turning his head back towards Rywen, he sighed and what back to topic, ¡°I have another at the camp anyways, but not ¡®tame,¡¯ basically, think of it as a mutually beneficial agreement. He eats some of the dead; I kill them in comfort. Not much more than that.¡± As more growling was heard the disgruntled head - far too close to the Rywen, for his comfort - Andrew sighed, ¡°Yeah, yeah, I¡¯ll feed you later, but don¡¯t get lazy - or cocky. Anyways you wanna ride? Or do you have a horse or something?¡± ¡°H-horse. I think I¡¯d rather use him than¡­ that,¡± squeaked out Rywen as he pulled out a small whistle. After an irritatingly high pitched tweet - that irked both Andrew as his new found mount - a bulky, spotted black and brown war horse came trotting up. Completely indifferent the the large carnivore, the horse sauntered up to Rywen who clutched the small leather stir up and smoothly mounted it. Grabbing the reins, with a loud neigh the horse reared up and he questioned Andrew with a raised eyebrow, ¡°you ready? And can you ride that thing bareback?¡± ¡°We¡¯ll find out,¡± smirked Andrew as he growled towards the wolf, to tell the wolf to set off towards the south west. With the grasslands blurring past, the two set off towards the battlefield. Andrew on a vicious looking silver wolf and Rywen on a powerfully built steed that easily kept pace. ----- Chapter 23 Short Chapter (2.5k or so) Taryk Special!
With a horde of goblins charging behind him, Taryk cried out loudly, ¡°Stop! We¡¯re here!¡± The chanting grew louder as the remaining goblins began to catch up. Although tired, they were extremely excited for this battle; or rather, it¡¯s benefits. Their temporary leader, Taryk, was tapping his feet impatiently as he saw the last of the two hundred goblins come wheezing in from the back of the pack. Sighing loudly, he spoke to Grok who rode the wolf, Runt, beside him, ¡°Hey, I¡¯m going to scout, make sure to tell the younger ones to make torches so that we can see. Oh, and rope from some woven vines. Otherwise it¡¯ll be.. interesting.¡± ¡°Who are ya talkin¡¯ to? You know I¡¯m the leader right now?¡± Replied Grok agitated that he was being told what to do. While he himself thought the directions made sense, the simple fact that Taryk passed off the task to him irritated him to no end. ¡°Chief, I¡¯m gonna borrow some of the stronger ones to steal - well, borrow - some weapons, you can deal with the mess that is the camp. Isn¡¯t that the leader¡¯s job?¡± Spoke Taryk with a raised eyebrow. ¡°Still, ya telling me what to do and all that,¡± defiantly replied Grok as he shook his fist in as threatening a manner he could while stumbling off the wolf¡¯s back. ¡°Well, do whatever you want, I¡¯m gonna borrow ¡®bout ten of the others. You gave me that much authority, ya know?¡± ¡°Fine, but the leading goes ta me, ¡®kay?¡± Spoke Grok as he firmly stamped his feet on the ground - multiple times. ¡°Yeah fine, I¡¯m gonna steal weapons that¡¯ll actually kill them. Don¡¯t go in otherwise you wanna die.¡± As if done with the whole conversation, Taryk merely turned and raised a hand of his shoulder casually. With a small ¡®harumph,¡¯ Grok turned away and Taryk walked off towards where the goblins gathered. Surprisingly, for such simple minded creatures, at least where their carnal desires were concerned, they efficiently began clearing a space for their new base camp. Even going so far as to cut down small trees to build temporary shelters, gathering larger branches as cover and support. Actually building huts that could be arguably superior to their old, mud ones. As he glanced over the goblins setting up a temporary camp at the mine, Taryk called out while pointing, ¡°you, you, you, you¡­ follow me!¡± After pointing out fifteen goblins, five more to spite Grok, Taryk walked towards the camp he was at only the day before. Taking the goblins back towards the rear entrance, he roared, ¡°form up! No stragglers, y¡¯all be pretty blind down there for a bit, but it isn¡¯t too bad so don¡¯t expect anything else. Just stay where I tell you to!¡± Assigning four at the top of the ladder to sort and grab the reclaimed weapons, he climbed down the ladder. The eleven remaining goblins were following him closely and he reached the bottom rung as the first one down. Hearing the squeals of the goblins who didn¡¯t pay attention to his warning, he yelled back at them to quiet down. Going deep enough to block out the majority of the sunlight, only a small pillar of light stood above the ladder, but was growing darker with each step the goblins from behind took. This, naturally, caused them squeal louder resulting a headache for Taryk. With his superior eyesight, the relatively slow descent was no issue for letting his eyes get accustomed to changing brightness. Especially with the torch-like glow of the ores further in, shedding some light on the tunnel ahead. Casually speaking, ¡°Told ya, don¡¯t blame me. Anyways this is nothing. It¡¯ll be worse later on,¡± Taryk pointed to a goblin, who could hardly see him, and forced his spear into the goblin¡¯s hand. ¡°You hold onto this, it¡¯s mine though. I¡¯ll gut you if you break it - not even kidding. Anyways, four stay here, and the rest follow me!¡± As the goblin¡¯s whispered amongst themselves, not wanting to advance further into the dim lighting the tunnel, Taryk sighed pointing at the four goblins closest to the ladder shouting, ¡°Ju¡¯ Ki¡¯ Hy¡¯ Ba¡¯ will stay. The rest follow me.¡± With a few disgruntled mutterings, Taryk led the remainder through the tunnel. As the goblins came from the small shaft into main tunnel, Taryk and his party of goblins saw the radiating white light. Sighing loudly as he relived the images of the scene in there, he raised his voice, ¡°DO NOT, I REPEAT, DO NOT GO TOWARDS THE WHITE LIGHT! ANYONE WHO DOES WILL DIE BY MY HAND.¡± After the voice reached their ears - and again, and again - with the loud echo, the goblins instantly looked back towards the laboratory. The almost blinding white lights seemed to pull everyone in from the darkness, none could even see two entry ways carved into the stone. Although tempted, no one seemed curious enough to test Taryk¡¯s patience. With the remaining goblins in a slightly organised group, Taryk led them to the center of the room. As he was on lookout for the inukshuk statues the entire time, he didn¡¯t notice those trailing behind. Stopping every fifteen seconds or so, he grudgingly rounded all of the curious goblins up and brought them in the center where the dwarven army lay demolished. ¡°Gather!¡± As the shout echoed throughout the cavernous walls, each goblin huddled together over the corpses. Seeing that they were relatively obedient he continued, ¡°This is just one group of the rocks we were fighting! Just here alone is fifty weapons axes, maces, greatswords - wait, we threw some of that shit around¡­ There are a lot of axes, maces, greatswords, daggers and so on here! Stay by me and carry as much of this shit as you can!¡± As he heard the slightly disgruntled mutterings of the goblins around him, he pursed his lips, adding, ¡°AND KEEP THE BEST FOR YOURSELF!¡± ¡°WEAPONS! KILL! TREASURE! WOMEN! WOMEN! WOMEN!¡± The reverberating shout echoed through the cavern and the goblins quickly got to work. Without regard to Taryk¡¯s original caution, the goblins ran to from each corpses looking for the best weapon they could see. With the pandemonium that ensued, Taryk rubbed his forehead and complained loudly, ¡°idiots, all of you. Shit - HEY! GET BACK FROM THE WALL!¡± Stolen novel; please report. As one of the more daring goblins ran to the furthest piles away from Taryk¡¯s location, he brushed up against the wall. Taryk, mace in hand, ran towards the goblin shouting, ¡°COME TO ME! NOW!¡± With a slightly inquisitive look, the goblin paused for a moment. As Taryk¡¯s expression was tightening, the opposite happened for the daring goblin. As soon as Taryk neared the statue, he was greeted by a familiar sight coming his way. The other goblin¡¯s head, knocked off by the rotating arms of the statue, flew only centimeters past his face. Taryk released an angry roar, ¡°THIS! IS! WHY! WE! KILL!¡± With one swing the statue¡¯s forearms were obliterated. The next took out it¡¯s head. Then shoulders; chest, pelvis. Finally as the brown sludge poured from the one leg, Taryk held the other struggling one. Calling to a frightened goblin, ¡°You¡¯ll have to do it sooner or later. Take the mace; have revenge. It¡¯s for your honor and your brother¡¯s life.¡± Seeing that goblin was hesitant, Taryk screamed, ¡°NOW!¡± as menacingly as he could, breaking the goblin out of its stupor. With the mace trembling in its hand, the goblin struggled to even lift it from the ground, however, he finally leveled it against the squirming leg. ¡®How did Boss do that?! With one hand!¡¯ Thought Taryk as he clenched his jaw and gritted his teeth. The first, second, and third swing missed. But the fourth hit. With a resounding crack, the mace was aimed directly at Taryk, who had to release the leg and jump away to avoid being smashed by his own subordinate. The legs took that chance to advance forward to the other goblin, charging directly into the goblin¡¯s mace. As the goblin flew back from the impact of the swinging mace, Taryk smirked when he saw the leg finally collapse and disconnect from the ground in a pool of brown sludge. ¡°THIS IS WHY WE FOLLOW ORDERS! STAY BY ME! GRAB AS MANY WEAPONS AS YOU CAN! NOW! MOVE, MOVE, MOVE!¡± With the other goblins scrambling to find weapons - within ten metres of Taryk - Taryk headed towards the goblin who was knocked back. Dragging the stunned goblin back on his feet, Taryk asked, ¡°You alright?¡± ¡°Y-yes? I feel¡­ weird? Like something is growing inside of me, am I poisoned? Or crazy?¡± nervously spoke the goblin as he trembled slightly. Laughing loudly Taryk patted him on the shoulders smiling ear to ear, ¡°You¡¯ve earned it, that¡¯s all yours now,¡± nodding to the mace. After talking to the goblin who ended the statue¡¯s life, Taryk noticed the frantic gathering of weapons from the others. As soon as each held a blade, mace, ax in one hand and another in the other, Taryk stole a glance around and sighed. While he picked up yet another mace from a dwarven corpses and ordered them to follow him, only taking a short sidelong glance at the head of his morningstar that he shed so much blood with - impaled into the skull of elf. Nearing the ladder, the small group of goblins met up with those at the bottom rung. Taryk casually ordered, ¡°bring these to the surface, tell the others above that no one is to touch them besides sorting between axes, swords, and maces and all of that kinda shit. First dibs will go to the gatherers, then you guys here, and finally ones at the top. Now climb! And you all - back to work!¡± With the goblin¡¯s scrambling up the bottom rungs of the ladder, struggling to carry the heavy weapons, Taryk order the rest to drop their arms and gather more. As only fourteen goblins were trying to supply an entire 200 goblin camp, the process was grueling and many times Taryk had to order some of the exhausted bottom most goblins to switch out from the ones leisurely waiting at the top. Feeling no need to help in that regard, Taryk leisurely watched them work and occasionally help save the goblins who got too close to the walls. Occasionally Taryk would even pull one goblin off to the side and provoke another attack by the inukshuk statues. Wielding a heavy mace in hand, Taryk quickly disabled the creatures and watched as his brothers grew stronger and stronger - seemingly for no reason at all. But it was proven by Andrew when he gifted the last kill to Taryk so he introduced such as a system to try to increase the odds of his troop¡¯s victory. As the weapons began to pile up around the entrance, so to did the bodies of the heaving goblins. With only a third of their force able to be equipped, with some less than ideal weapons; Taryk opted to tell the original group to rest in a separate clearing as he couldn¡¯t be bothered to remember their names or faces. Walking leisurely to the groups of goblins freshly roasting a small boar like creature Taryk was slightly confused, speaking up to a nearby goblin with a grievous wound on his arm, ¡°Why did you cook him? Seems like a lot of work to build the fire and what not. If it¡¯s already there sure, but this camp was set up like an hour ago.¡± In between bites from the boar¡¯s leg, the goblin still focused on the food in front, ¡°it mine, I kill¡¯d tit, get yur own.¡± With a passing glance over to Taryk wielding the dwarven mace, the goblin¡¯s body shuddered and the other goblins enjoying the meal began laughing like hyenas at his expense. Taryk simply raised his eyebrow waiting for an answer which promptly came. ¡°I-I-I got het, ya see? I was hungry then me and dem otha bastards tied em up¡­ and cooked ¡®em ¡®live, sorry Chi- Bos- Commander?¡± Stuttered the quivering goblin holding out the half eaten roasted leg to Taryk as a peace offering. With a wide grin on his face Taryk happily accepted the token of friendship and joined the group in devouring the pig. Within minutes the small group cleaned the boar of anything except the bones, which were just tossed directly into the small fire. Wiping his greasy hands on the nearby grass, Taryk abruptly stood up and shouted, ¡°All of you come with me!¡± Seeing their lazy looking expressions, Taryk sighed loudly grabbing the mace he left off to the side and spoke loudly, ¡°Last to come gets their heads smashed in? Just kidding, but actually hurry the hell up.¡± With that, the second group of terrified and confused goblins were brought down to the rock army¡¯s resting place to pillage for more weapons. ----- Chapter 24 Short Chapter (2.5k or so) x2 Lisia Special! Next will be a full run-down of Andrew''s battle. Thanks for reading!
Within the village inn sat a lone person. Few others were still up. Opting for using the morning for their own devices, but she didn¡¯t seem to care. With every passing moment, she would sip on the skin of wine. Of course, using the gold and silver from the long since dead bandits to fund her evening. As the skins of wine become kegs; kegs into barrels. She seemed no worse for the wear, but the barkeep still choose not to engage her other than dropping off more of the sweet red wine. Seeing listless woman still drinking silently with a brooding look, the barkeep sighed loudly. Intentionally smacking the counter a little too loudly to grab her attention, she instinctively looked up. With a knowing look from the middle aged elf behind the counter, she became confused. However, just as she tilted her head, a small iron key was thrown to her and a muffled sigh broke the silence. ¡°Last room on the right. Sleep it off; free for the night. We¡¯ve all been there so do as you will, but some things need a night¡¯s rest to decided if it¡¯s worth dwelling on. I¡¯ll send a hand to fetch a barrel just in case.¡± Nodding her head, she noticed the brightening sky coming out from the window and turned to move her sluggish, hunched body towards the room. ¡®Dad wasn¡¯t always like that¡­ But him ¡­ why does whose blood flow through my veins matter? It didn¡¯t before mom passed¡­ Now¡­ Why was I put through that¡­ only to be shunned? Do I really not measure up as¡­ anybody?¡¯ Pondered Lisia as she staggered to the room. Even the elegance on the place seemed to fail the further away the rooms got from the bar; however, she didn¡¯t mind. Only trudging along with thoughts rolling around in her mind. ¡®Can he¡­ Would he come back for me? And what will I do in the meantime.. I¡¯ve got to be something more than a slave sold at the whims of another¡­ No I am more. I am more than that. Right..? ¡® ¡°... destiny is not written. One only has to take a step forward to grab what they want, move past something they don¡¯t, or choose to accept it all. Life is for the living; not those who dwell on its faults,¡± came a muffled voice from behind her back. Whether the barkeep, the arriving kitchen personal, or a stranger - she didn¡¯t know. However, she took the words to heart and quickened her pace. Entering the dusty old room, not terribly different from a broom closet with a small cot, she locked the door behind her and slept. ------------ As the afternoon sun came directly overhead, Lisia was slowly stirring from her room. As a pounding headache came from her head, she sleepily tried to heal it with her magic. While a fair portion of the pain was alleviated, the remainder still stood stubbornly resisting her. Whether it was the alcohol still in her system or her inability to concentrate, she could only sigh as she gave up on taking the easy way out. As she exited her room, she was greeted with the day¡¯s brightness flooding into her vision. With her already sore head, the light only made it worse causing an involuntary cry to come out of her lips. Looking over his shoulder the barkeep simply smirked, ¡°that¡¯s what you get. Anyways, you gave me your coin purse to clear up the tab as it came around. While I won¡¯t say it was the brightest idea, it happened nonetheless.¡± Still blinking owlishly trying to clear her blinded vision a small coin purse came her way. Hearing it jingle as it came flying in the air, she tried to catch it. As she leant over too much, her headache kicked in and her body fell rigidly. While earning a few curious and judgemental looks from the few people that came for a late lunch, she finally grab the coin purse from the dusty floor. Not surprisingly, it was noticeably lighter. After a somewhat critical look towards the barkeep, he simply shrugged and Lisia began to remember some of last night. Given what she thought she drank, she could only sigh loudly and run her fingers through her hair, clearing the dust and grime from it almost contemptuously. With the headache only growing worse by the second, she muttered, ¡°can I have something to eat, preferably something light?¡± ¡°Course,¡± spoke the barkeep as he brought up an already prepared, steaming tray for the elf from under the counter, ¡°I thought you would be hungry and no, this isn¡¯t the first time I¡¯ve seen this, I know the process very well, unfortunately.¡± With a few tightening creases showing on the man¡¯s face, she didn¡¯t say anymore. Eating at an extremely slow rate, she finally finished off the plate of the last of the new lukewarm vegetables and rice. Pushing the tray away, she noticed something dark at her side. Giving an inquisitive look towards the elven barkeep, she asked, ¡°What¡¯s this¡­ Liquid? Juice?¡± ¡°Let¡¯s just say it was a necessity for me in dealing with the aftereffects of the day after in the past. Some human caravans will bring this around from time to time and I¡¯ll try to stock up on as much as I can. Try it.¡± As she sipped the hot liquid, she immediately frowned, ¡°This is bitter. Why would anyone want to drink it?¡± But, as per the man¡¯s instructions, she drank it to the last drop all the same. ¡°I could make it sweeter, but sometimes that¡¯s all you need as a ¡®pick-me-up¡¯ in the morning, Java something or another? Anyways, you¡¯ll get used to it if you can afford such a thing. Even down south such things are luxuries, but that¡¯s not important. Feeling better?¡± ¡°Yeah, somewhat? Anyways thanks for it all, I¡¯ll be sure to pay you back in the future.¡± Smiled Lisia weakly as she fished out a few more gold from her dwindling purse for the man. ¡°Stop. I didn¡¯t do it for the money, you look¡­ well, let¡¯s just say you look like a friend of mine. She was a beauty, but always level headed so I hope that one day you can become like that. That¡¯s all the tip I need.¡± Spoke the man with a forced smile on his face turning his gaze to the side, clearly reminiscing about his past. Pushing the now empty cup to the man, she rose from her seat. ¡°Thank you,¡± came a small voice as she began walking away. Looking at the counter the man shook his head, ¡°Just like her. Refusing to have even the slightest debt.¡± On the counter lay half of Lisia¡¯s remaining gold, silver, and copper. Enough to cover her expenses twice over - not taking into account that it was already paid in advance. Although the indirect sunlight was bad at first, due to her time adjusting in the inn it wasn¡¯t too terribly painful for her to shuffle around. The first stop for her was a small stand that sold fruits extraordinarily cheaply as they themselves could be harvested for free with a small walk. This was, of course, to wash the bitter taste from her mouth from the strange beverage as soon as possible. After she had savoured the juicy peach-like fruit, the ¡®Java¡¯s¡¯ taste still kept to her tongue, but was noticeably weaker than before. Deciding it was enough for the time being, she continued her stroll around the town. With a few casual greetings to the few people who actually recognised her, she made her way to the Chief¡¯s manor. With perpetually opened pearlescent gates carved from the finest of marble, this building stood long before the elves¡¯ migration over to this forest. Winding rose thorns and petals were carved into the marble from days of old and the gate itself was one of the many inspirations for the designs of the other buildings built around such a manor. As Lisia walked towards the building she, once again, felt awed at the immense thought and detail put into the design of such a building. Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings. Silently walking past the large gate, capable of more than enough room for two carriages to pass by one another, she made it to the outer courtyard. In a similar fashion as the gates, the corinthian-style pillars were in full bloom, matching the beds of flowers, shrubbery, and exotic trees that decorated the path. Ceaseless moving past the scene, she focused on only one thing; to return her freedom. With the bow and quiver of arrows on her back, she trekked her way past the alluring flora and directly opened the marble covered door. As the doors creaked open, she slipped in and eventually they came gliding to a stop. Trying to be as quiet as possible to avoid startling a rather disruptive individual, she kept her pace with near soundless steps. Nearing the large double stairway, leading to a small indoor balcony she saw where reason for being her. Just as she was about to open her mouth to greet the middle-aged elf standing before her, a deafening slam was heard from the entry way. ¡°MY LOVE! Why didn¡¯t you tell me you were coming over! I would have prepared a feast for you!¡± Rambled Kai as he started passionately at Lisia, not even registering the spiderweb of cracks appearing on the antique marble wall, he forcibly opened with all his might. Indifferently looking past the woman in front of his now turned face, he stared angrily at the young boy who nearly destroyed a priceless relic - The iconic foundation for which this village was founded. ¡°Some gall you have there, boy,¡± started the angry man before his forehead no longer creased, and his eyes softened somewhat, ¡°I swear next time, I will punish you, you hear?¡± sighed the tired man. ¡°Yes! I will never do it again ~ ¡° spoke the boy energetically, still locking his fervent gaze on Lisia with pink cheeks. Whether it was from embarrassing himself in front of his fiance or simple lust, Lisia wasn¡¯t sure, but she chose not to let it bother her. Staring at the man ahead of her she simply asked, ¡°Will you let me free?¡± ¡°Free? When did I ever imprison you?¡± Replied the Elven Chief as he tilted his head questioningly to Lisia. ¡°You know my father¡¯s deal as much, if not more, than I do. Don¡¯t play dumb, it¡¯s my life on the line for a drunk¡¯s chance to pay his way through wine,¡± sighed Lisia as she glared at the middle aged man in front. All the while Kai simply stood in shock, opening and closing his mouth randomly, but never uttering a word. With a cursory glance, Lisia saw the strange behaviour of the boy and continued to look over to the Chief. ¡°Now release this supposed marriage, that¡¯s all I ask. I am officially abandoning my family name so his word no longer can destroy my life any further,¡± resolved Lisia. ¡°What?!¡± ¡°NO! ELV-¡± ¡°SHUT UP BOY! She is an elf, a former priestess at that! No one will subject themselves to such a thing, the gods simply forbade it! It is the only reserved for the sinners, the destroyers, the lovers of - ¡° ¡°NO! MY LOVE! DON¡¯T LEAVE ME!¡± Cut in Kai once again, this time running with tears falling out of his eyes towards Lisia. As the young elf neared Lisia jumped up, clearing the elf by a good two feet, causing him to run into his equally approaching father. With a small cry and the flailing of limbs, the tangled up elves slowed to a stop on the middle of the staircase. Lisia exhaled loudly as she continued, ¡°Sinner? No, nor will I become a destroyer, yet you act as if this is the end of the world. My life as a villager may be over, but in return I will have a new home. One that can¡¯t be taken, bought or sold from under my feet.¡± With a final look towards the pair, she spoke out softly, ¡°I will never be your slave,¡± and walked away. Finally realising the intentions of the elf, the Chief quickly called out, ¡°guards, guards! Apprehend her!¡± If only to save his son from the first heartbreak that he now felt, he felt the need to do anything in his power. As two shadows blurred into the room, Lisia sighed as he stepped back slightly and scanned the two in front of her. Two burly elves - a peculiarity among elves - stepped in with spears level towards Lisia, blocking the only exit. As her body tensed up, she let out a small sigh and pulled the bow from her back. With one arrow notched and another resting in hand, she aimed at the two, calming asking, ¡°Can you please move?¡± Almost in unison, the two moved to look at the Chief who merely nodding his head with a forced smile. Taking the expression as a signal, the guards charged at Lisia. A mere moment later the guards had already closed in about five meters away from Lisia. However, this is where the Chief shouted frantically, ¡°Move! I meant for you to move!¡± Tuned out completely from the noises around her, Lisia reluctantly let loose her arrow and then quickly shot the other. As the spears fell out of their grips, they sailed past Lisia on both sides and soon did the groaning bodies fall. Spending one last glance to the group, Lisia scoffed loudly and walked out, only moving around slightly to step over the two downed guards. The first to break the silence was the Chief, ¡°K-Kai did you know about this?¡± Who still stared at the spot just past his head where the spear impacted the wooden staircase- impaling itself only two inches from his skull. ¡°...¡± As Kai was numbly nodding his head to his father¡¯s question, he found himself in a precarious position. Much like how he almost turned Andrew into a woman with the swing of a knife, he too shared the same fate. Within the damp cloth of his pants stood the second spear, tall and erect. Pinning his pants to the floor was the steel point no less than an inch away from his little member. No longer paying attention to the now long departed figure, the Chief tensely looked at his two disabled guards shouting, ¡°look what happened! I thought I told you to let her go!¡± With a pained, yet indignant crease appearing on his face, the guard spoke out wretchedly, ¡°We always used the symbol for attack! You can¡¯t blame us for what happened, it was her who shot the damned bow,¡± with a quick nod from the other and a, ¡°yeah, that¡¯s right! He¡¯s right!¡± From the other guard, chiming in. ¡°You¡¯re the damned oafs! It was always to stop! Smile; stop. Frown; attack. Get it!? You just never had to let anyone go that¡¯s all!¡± Cried out the furious Chief, however, his anger quickly faded and he said again, ¡°Whatever, what¡¯s done is done. You, however, definitely lost your wife though.¡± Receiving a half critical and half soft expression, Kai was deeply saddened, but he himself felt that he could never stack up to her as he was right now. As his depression came forward, it quickly turned into acceptance; from there- determination. Resolutely looking at his father, he shouted ¡°Fathe- No Chief! I will train until I can win her back, there is no use for a weakling like me right now, so I will live with the guards, the hunters, the humans, the goblins, whatever it takes! I just need to get stronger for my love!¡± ----- Chapter 25 Hey! Transition type chapter. Felt like it was necessary to do it before the battle. Enjoy!
An hour of passing caravans on the dirt road, the two made it to a large clearing with thousands of men standing blankly. Some were wounded, others without even a scar, but they all had a grim look present on their face. Seeing the two approach from the east, the soldiers stiffened instinctively seeing the massive wolf, however, as they saw the horse at its side, they calmed down. Speaking professionally, a soldier in tattered leather armor, missing the vast majority of any steel plates it once held called out to the two, ¡°Halt. You seem to be the forerunners of another contingent. May I ask how many more were recruited with you?¡± Sharing a confused look, the two kept a small smile on their face, ¡°How many?¡±, ¡°Why should we care about the dying village¡¯s numbers?¡± With the two acting like that, the soldier¡¯s expression hardened for a moment. Waving his hand to the listless men behind him, he continued, ¡°We all are farmers, tradesmen, and common folk. Hold your tongue, even if you are adventurers, you cannot afford to segregate yourselves too much. You can never know when a fellow¡¯s spear will strike from behind, you know?¡± Taking a short moment to register the response, Andrew sighed slightly and his small smile turned into a cold smirk. ¡°As per the fledgling knight¡¯s promise, please requisition some basic armor for me. Weapons are covered; I just need something to wear. Something to cover my body from the spears coming from behind,¡± laughed Andrew indifferently. The soldier, entirely unfazed, merely nodding his head towards a large tent saying, ¡°That is where you can request goods, services, promotions, payment and so on. Anyways get out of my sight. Very, very few people like you tend to last more than the first clash.¡± Commenting from the side, Rywen muttered, ¡°Friendly man. Now if I weren¡¯t being paid I would walk away now. Oh well, politics and all of that; can¡¯t have you walking around naked like that¡­?¡± ¡°Andrew.¡± With a casual nod, Andrew started growling to the wolf. A second later, he was bounding forward to the war camp¡¯s center of operation. The smell of dusty, aged leather flooded into Andrew¡¯s nostrils causing him to cough once trying to clear the strange, almost palpable smell from his mouth. Nearing the entrance, Andrew barked, ¡°Stay here and don¡¯t kill anyone,¡± and dismounted from the wolf. With a slight scoff, the wolf turned away and stood silently as if uncommitted to agree to his request. Rolling his eyes, Andrew turned from the wolf and entered the tent. Followed by the adventurer, Rywen, the two slipped open the flap and entered. Inside the large tent stood four figures, all but one in uniform military fatigues with battered, well-used armor resting on stands behind them. Two men and one woman stood in line in front of a small plain, ebony desk with rim-rod backs in full military fashion. As the woman glanced over to the two incoming men she scowled slightly. Turning her attention back to the other three, she spoke. ¡°Dismissed, this information will be confidential until otherwise noted. Commanders, prepare your respective squads and outfit any of those newcomers who require it.¡± The leader had fading scars that marked her otherwise flawless face, framed with a set of short-cropped, chestnut hair that lay in light curls around her head. Three retreating figures brushed past the duo, one even laughing mockingly, ¡°Good luck, you may need it today,¡± as he faded from view behind the leather flap. With critical, upturned eyes, she glanced over to the two, judging their physiques before finally smiling weakly. ¡°You two are some of the better specimens, I suppose. But, and I mean this seriously, do you have what it takes to survive that field?¡± Laughing lightly Rywen spoke, ¡°We¡¯ll find out. Not much more we can do beyond that. Regardless, this one here is looking for something to wear so he doesn¡¯t have to walk around indecently.¡± Immediately a slightly offended look shot towards the adventurer as Andrew scoffed, ¡°Please, I¡¯ve been around nudist goblins for days. This is nothing. Although to normal people, he is right in that regard, but what were you talking about previously with the other three?¡± ¡°An operation. Taking the fight to them to avoid needless casualties. Anything more is off-limits¡­ unless you¡¯d like to volunteer?¡± Spoke the woman with a mocking smirk, clearly not giving the two any credit. Rywen immediately laughed as he spoke, ¡°You got that right. Hell, I¡¯ll fight to live any day - not go out to die.¡± With his interest piqued Andrew paused for a second before commenting, ¡°What would you have us do? Well, clothes is a prerequisite as I¡¯ve said before. Run up to their flanks slashing at their heels before turning to run. Or something to that effect, maybe?¡± The woman¡¯s smug face fell into a small show of shock, but she righted herself quickly. ¡°Ahem. Well, are you truly serious? Should you agree and back out then I¡¯d have to send you to either stay at a separate camp entirely for information control or lock you up until after it¡¯s over. Currently, thirty veteran soldiers are being held in standby so that they may strike at any time.¡± ¡°No, you can¡¯t be seri-¡± started Rywen before Andrew continued, ¡°Yeah, shoot. I¡¯m game for it.¡± Sighing slightly, the woman ignored the other man¡¯s look of shock and continued, ¡°Meet up an hour south-west, or try to make contact with the other woman you saw in passing. Likely, she¡¯ll still be in camp.¡± Turning her gaze towards the other man, she smiled, ¡°And boy, do realise that you¡¯re part of this now. Thank your friend, here. Anyways, grab something from behind you,¡± nodded the woman towards the well-used armor standing behind him. Looking over the armor, he noticed it was divided into four categories: One being lightweight, used primarily for scouting parties. Another being slightly heavier; still holding both the leather and cloth, but small iron plates were added in as well. The other two would be considered heavyweight. One almost entirely metal, ranging from around 50 pounds of iron surrounding the owner¡¯s body, and the other was no more than a portable wall. Two inches of steel surrounded the body in this design, only opting for a few millimeters where joints are concerned. As he looked towards the armor he all but forgot about his, now hysterical, partner-in-crime. Turning his gaze over the four, he mused self-derisively, ¡®Well, this one isn¡¯t much a choice, but what do I do about that.¡¯ Unceremoniously picking up the medium armor. Andrew quickly pulled off his leg guards, put on the new pants, and threw on the heavy leather jerkin over his chest. Rolling his shoulders back and forth testing the new fit, he muttered, ¡°Yeah, I knew it. It¡¯s too annoying,¡± he threw off the jerkin and received a strange look from the woman in the process. Turning his back around, he withdrew a small iron dagger in front of him - blocking her line of sight - and began to get to work. The dull blade managed to end many creatures, but it was less than ideal for this task. Eventually, he gave up and pulled out his great ax and carefully cut the shoulders off of the jerkin. Seeing such fine control over the massive ax for what would be a meaningless task to begin with, the woman was stunned. But she held her tongue. Rywen, on the other hand, opted to voice his dismay, ¡°Why are you doing that? Firstly you involve me in a suicide mission, now you wrecking your armor that finally got?! You have a death wish, don¡¯t you?¡± Glancing over to the two only after his work was done, he saw the woman give an involuntary nod as Rywen gave him a scathing glare. Speaking indifferently, ¡°That kind of thing on armor is annoying. How could I swing this guy here if I had restricted movement? It is only logical that I deal with it before I die because of it, you know?¡± Exhaling deeply, the other man opened his mouth to begin another speech, but the woman cut in. ¡°Go now. I have no idea what the hell is wrong with the two of you but do not disappoint¡­ well, yourselves. I really have no expectations for you two at this point. You¡¯ll probably die, but good luck. Anyways, find the girl or ride there yourselves, it¡¯s up to you.¡± As a small sigh was heard, she promptly waved them off and turned to work on the paperwork on her desk. Placing the modified jerkin over his shoulders, he shrugged a few times, rotating his arms to test his new equipment. As the corners of his mouth raised, he put his leg guards back on and left the tent soundlessly. Just as he pulled himself up onto his somewhat rebellious, silver mount, a miserable cry was heard from inside. ¡°Wait! Wait, you bastard!¡± Seeing the man emerging from the tent, Andrew casually spoke, ¡°Are you ready? And don¡¯t look at me like that, I promise you won¡¯t die. Just stay behind me and end the cheeky ones.¡± With an exasperated sigh, ¡°You¡¯re awfully confident about this, can I know why you¡¯re involving me in all of this?¡± With a small shrug, Andrew spoke out with a small grin creeping up, ¡°That¡¯s just how it happened, she kept talking and brought you in all of this. I¡¯m sure you still have time to run to another battlefield if want to abandon the money on this one.¡± Turning his back, Andrew growled quietly, ¡°Hey Wolfie do you think you can track down the female that came from the tent before?¡± ¡°Wom-min, smell weird. Blood and flower, I find.¡± Barked the wolf as it turned its two noises towards the air and set off in a light jog. Seeing the man whom he had brought with him leave, Rywen eye¡¯s flashed with indignation; however, he didn¡¯t bother trying to refute Andrew¡¯s words. If he had wanted to he could have easily left the confines of the camp to look for an easier job. ¡®Well, I can always run later,¡¯ thought Rywen with a wry smile as he mounted his horse. Patting the neck of the beast, he spoke softly, ¡°Catch up to the man. He might be fraud, but even if the chance is small, he very well may be interesting.¡± Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. Andrew noticed the horse sauntering over to him but paid it no mind. A quiet bark or growl back and forth told him all he needed to know about the changing directions of the woman. Eventually, as the wolf stopped pacing back and forth in the interior of the camp, Andrew suddenly felt like he was being thrown off his mount. Just as his mount slowed to a stop, the wolf pounced forward clearing a small bonfire and nearly tossing Andrew off into the ground - or fire itself - in the process. Narrowing his eyes as he righted himself on the wolf, Andrew spoke out coldly, ¡°What is the purpose of this?¡± ¡°Wom-min - leave. Horse seem tasty, I eat?¡± Growled the wolf as he cocked his heads to the side, completely maintaining his stride. It Andrew a moment to remember who he was dealing with and could no longer feel even remotely agitated by the wolf. Not even raised by human hands; born from the wild¡¯s itself. ¡®Maybe I have too high of standards for wolves, goblins, and other little creatures like that. We¡¯re all human - whether we wear, fur, scale, bone, at least in this ¡®age,¡¯¡¯ laughed Andrew as he thought about it all. At this point the horse and rider managed to catch up to the wolf, showing the impressive abilities of the horse¡¯s speed. Not bothering to speak too much, Andrew only nodded once towards the pair and turned his head in front of him. Hearing a soft growl Andrew''s eyes lit up brightly. ¡°Hey, wom- um Commander? As an acting representative for this military, should you really be hiding in a tree?¡± ¡°No ones here ~ Just ignore it, fellow adventurer,¡± spoke a hardened voice trying to act coy. However, with his eyesight, he could completely see the woman¡¯s outline in the tree¡¯s leaves. With long, dark hair fluttering occasionally in the wind, her lithe body trembled in the tree. Speaking rather nervously, but still in an attempt to act composed, she continued, ¡°Hi~ Well, it seems I was found out, now off you go! Nothing to see here, just a simple woman admiring this wonderful nature of ours.¡± A small smirk, Andrew opened his arms wide - one of which still holding onto the massive battleaxe - and spoke gently, ¡°I know you¡¯re scared of at least one of us - I¡¯d wager me, actually. But do not fret my friend and I here will not do anything to harm you.¡± Turning his gaze, he lightly patted the necks of the two heads in succession as he continued, ¡°We came on orders, you know? That strange woman in the tent, I know you saw us, or rather, you would have it you weren¡¯t hiding right now.¡± ¡°R-really? You''re saying, you came from the General¡¯s pavilion? But you two aren¡¯t regular military. That much is clear. Are you sure you two are not simply bandits waiting to take advantage of me¡­¡± replied the woman hesitantly as she curled herself behind the trunk of the tree removing herself from Andrew¡¯s line of sight. ¡°If I wanted to then we wouldn¡¯t be having this conversation,¡± started Andrew before being cut off by Rywen. ¡° - That¡¯s what they all say, isn¡¯t that right miss? I cannot speak of this fellow too much as we had just met. Yet, being in the same room as we were just in, you must recognise this armor. Although modified on a whim, it should still be somewhat familiar, right miss?¡± Cordially replied Rywen with a polite bow, finishing it with an almost imperceivable wink, standing straight up. Seeing the man¡¯s behavior, Andrew sighed, ¡°Yeah, yeah, shoulder plates are seriously annoying. Anyways, will you get down or what?¡± Getting an annoyed glance directed his way - by both parties, if he could see her head popping out of the tree - Rywen continued, ¡°Clearly, my friend here isn¡¯t good with words. He simply can be considered to be pragmatic, he has little experience in the actual flow of conversation. Anyways, feel free to stay in there as long as you¡¯d like, but please tell us where we may meet up with the others who were placed on this mission. So long as we have some information, we surely wouldn¡¯t have to bother such a maiden anymore, isn¡¯t that correct Andrew?¡± ¡°Yeah, yeah,¡± replied Andrew casually, feeling the heated glares of the two were not exactly comfortable, so he stepped out of their conversation, saying, ¡°I¡¯m going to feed this one, give me ten, twenty minutes or so. Bye.¡± As an indifferent hand was raised signalling his departure, Andrew took off on the wolf. Within moments, the wolf brought Andrew downwind to an incredibly large boar guarding a small den. Seeing the scene Andrew sighed but didn¡¯t hold back. First hurling a throwing knife at the beast, he stuck the pig directly in its raised throat before it even had time to react to the predatory scent the wafting in the air. In a smooth movement, he sprang up from his seat on the wolf and severed its head. Depositing the corpse and throwing the knife into his inventory, he walked up to the lazily drooling wolf. Seeing the wolf¡¯s eyes flash with surprise and anger towards Andrew, he sighed before growling back, ¡°Move to another spot. These ones are still aggressive enough to be annoying.¡± The pair walked off from the scene and chose a small forested clearing to resume their meal. Due to Andrew being absolutely famished from the day¡¯s trek with only fruit in his stomach, he crossed his arms as he stared at the wolf devouring the raw meat. After a few seconds of the wolf devastating the corpse, Andrew decided to walk up to the wolf. Pressing one hand on the nearest head of the wolf, who snapped at him instinctively, Andrew scoffed lightly and held it down while he proceeded to chop off a yet untouched, hind leg. As he walked away with the leg, the wolf stared at him furiously but quickly turned his attention to the remainder of the corpse as if entirely forgetting about the small incident. Using his great axe as if it were a skinning knife, Andrew peeled away the skin and fur from the severed leg and immediately took a bite. As the bloody chunk of meat entered into his stomach, he felt it roll, thrash and otherwise try to rid itself from the meat. However, within seconds, it calmed down greatly. Andrew then took another bite and another until only bone remained, muttering, ¡°Well it easily tastes better when it¡¯s cooked, but as a last resort, it should be fine.¡± Given his vitality stat, his stomach was three times as strong as a normal person, allowing him to eat raw meat with little to no problems attached. However, such a thing was of little point to Andrew who measured himself within real aspects rather than the numbers. Seeing that wolf was now content, Andrew immediately jumped up on the lazily resting wolf¡¯s back, calling out, ¡°Let¡¯s go back, hopefully, we¡¯ll have some answers by the time we get back.¡± At first, the wolf only sat there unmoving, with a gentle voice Andrew spoke out, ¡°Please? Anyways, it shouldn¡¯t be too long before you get strong enough to hunt anything on this prairie by yourself. Hell, I¡¯d even go so far as to say humans simply wouldn¡¯t cut it anymore. Now can we can we go, or do you still wanna hang out here for a bit?¡± Perking its ears, the wolf thought about it for a long while causing Andrew to get bored and begin to lay on the wolf¡¯s back. After a few minutes of quiet contemplation, the wolf barked, ¡°I kill snakes? No Pro¡­ blem?¡± Raising his body back to a sitting position, straddling the wolf, Andrew casually spoke out, ¡°That much depends on you. Though, I wouldn¡¯t be surprised all the same. From what I know, you¡¯d probably still have to avoid eating them because of their venom, but beyond that, sure?¡± Accompanied by a feral growl that tore through the woods, scattering the resting birds and critters, the wolf bounded forward. Struggling to stay on for a moment, Andrew held a wry smile as he realised his mistake in getting the wolf riled up. In a few short moments of feeling the wind drag across his body, Andrew was greeted by a sight he didn¡¯t quite expect to see. Shaking his head, he turned the wolf around to give the two a bit of time. However, hearing the padding steps of the wolf, the woman quickly covered herself and buttoned up her military fatigues - missing a few in the process. With a wide smile covering his face, Rywen spoke out happily to Andrew, ¡°What brings you here so soon? Alas, it was about time anyways, eh?¡± ¡°Not, ¡®eh,¡¯ but yeah that¡¯s correct,¡± started Andrew as he turned back to the two. Still seated on the wolf, Andrew saw the flushed faces of the two, where the woman desperately tried to hide herself - from both Andrew¡¯s eyes and the wolf¡¯s feral grin - the other man did not. Dressed only in a small linen cloth that wrapped around his waist, he grinned from ear to ear as he looked over towards the woman. ¡°Whatever, you kids have had your fun. Now let¡¯s go back to the camp or whatever so I can find real food.¡± Even though he had eaten some of the meat, it was nowhere near enough to keep him after essentially fasting for the entire day. A look of surprise came on the woman¡¯s face as she mumbled, ¡°Well, you see¡­ you may have to eat quickly because it¡¯ll happen soon. And why did you have to bring a damned wolf!?¡± The wolf, once still looking away by Andrew¡¯s orders, turned around to stare menacingly at the human woman. At first, confidence was present on her face, but seeing the wolf¡¯s stare land on her body, she shuddered and hid behind Rywen. Andrew seeing this, let out a wry smile as he replied, ¡°Why not? It seemed convenient for both of us at the time. No more, no less. Now, anyways we¡¯ll talk on the way, but get dressed, get mounted - the horse, if you were wondering - and let¡¯s get going.¡± Crimson dyed her cheeks, but she quickly followed Andrew¡¯s orders. Considering she shooed her horse away as soon as the wolf came along to hide, she was forced to join on the other¡¯s mounts - Rywen¡¯s horse for a few reasons. Nearing the small camp, Andrew only saw at most fifty people trudging along restlessly. Commenting from the side the woman spoke with a forced smile, ¡°In two hours we began our raid, I hope you two are ready.¡±
Chappy Approved? Threw that in there for you. ----- Chapter 26 Aaaaaaand this one will be the last one for a little while. Because I love you all. Alas, RL is eating up a bit of time. Quite a few chapters are done (rough draft only - no major editing), but I need to work on a way to format those chapters into the story. Three individuals are really, really hard to write at a given time. To interlace them for timeline consistencies or not, and all that non-sense. Anyways, enjoy! Thanks for reading!
Feeling the eyes placed squarely on the two, Andrew and Rywen stiffened slightly. Although they weren¡¯t intimidated, the sheer number of looks did catch the two off-guard. Weakly raising the corners of his mouth and his hand alongside it, Rywen greeted the group, ¡°Hello all, we are the supposed reinforcements,¡± with a small laugh that was echoed by the entire group, he continued, ¡°Now we may not look like much, but such is the way of the battlefield, am I right?¡± The last critical gaze softened as Rywen spoke and in no time, a group came forward to greet the new additions. As Rywen and the group were chatting happily Andrew simply smiled here and there, nodding at most, as soon as any question or comment was sent his way. Although the other soldiers were interested in Andrew, his wolf, and the massive ax; few went out of their way to chat openly with him. As the small group began to shift away from Andrew, Rywen had already dismounted and was led off into the distance. ¡®Just like before, hey?¡¯ laughed Andrew inwardly, as he began fidgeting by himself. Seeing the lone man, the woman who originally held Andrew as an object of fear began to feel sorry for him. Her man from before had already abandoned her so she spoke up, nervously forcing out, ¡°Andrew, is it? There is a small roast over there, would you like to join me - alone. No wolf. He is to stay far, far away.¡± Smiling wryly at the woman¡¯s invitation, Andrew got up and thanked her for the offer. Dismounting the wolf, who seemed relieved that the burden on his back was removed, he followed the woman who kept ten meters away from the wolf at all times. With a small smile, he neared the woman and growled loudly towards the wolf who tried to follow him. ¡°Stay somewhere nearby, but away from this woman, okay?¡± An indifferent snort came from each head who then began to bicker about what to do in the meantime. With a casual growl, ¡°And don¡¯t eat any humans yet,¡± they looked down not meeting Andrew¡¯s eyes, merely turning their conversation away from the man in a few leaps. Rolling his eyes, Andrew looked towards the woman who seemed frozen on the spot. ¡°Y-you can talk.. to them?¡± ¡°Yeah, it kind of was forced on me, but it has its perks, I suppose? Anyways, thanks for saving me back there, Miss...?¡± ¡°Diana, my name is Diana, currently acting commander of this mission,¡± beamed Diana as her face turned from shock to pride. With her chin raised high, she continued, ¡°Seeing as you are a newer mercenary, at least from outward appearance, you likely haven¡¯t gotten used to this environment. It is my job as the superior officer to guide strays such as yourself to become valuable members of the team!¡± As a small laugh leaked out, Andrew¡¯s spoke lightly with a forced smile, ¡°Stray? Can¡¯t say I like that term. Oh well, too much work. Anyways, can I eat now? From the sounds of it, we¡¯ll be busy for the next little bit afterward.¡± Andrew kept quiet and went straight for the food. Taking the well done, spit-roasted boar from the fire where it lay abandoned, Andrew began devouring the meat at an alarming pace. Only stopping to wipe the grease from mouth and hands after he was done. Being greeted by the beautiful woman¡¯s alarm, he casually spoke, ¡°All I ate today was fruit, raw meat, and now this, so please bare in mind that normally I¡¯m not this much of a savage,¡± laughing at the end of it, he noticed a small, unrestrained laugh escape from the woman¡¯s lips. ¡°Not one to sugarcoat things, are you?¡± Snickered the woman as she leaned over. With a slight flick of her wrist, she wiped away the grease from his mouth, ¡°You remind me so much of my little brother, however, the wolf is, unfortunately... well, it¡¯s something that is both different and similar at the same time.¡± While her face remained smiling, her tone gave away the sorrow she was reminded of. Andrew lightly tapped on her drooping shoulders, ¡°Keep your head up, he won¡¯t be able to tell this to you anymore, but know that your brother is always watching. Keeping you safe, laughing when you laugh, fighting when you fight, and crying when you cry. No matter the situation, your brother is always with you; supporting you. But... I think we have company.¡± Raising his hands from her shoulders, Andrew lifted her chin and gazed over her shoulder. The entire company waited behind the two, seeing their captain¡¯s moment of vulnerability. Hearing the murmuring from the group behind her, she gave one last smile to Andrew as her face harden right before his eyes. With one last wink, she turned to the group shouting, ¡°Well, everyone is here, correct? Then, stop gawking and grab your weapons! NOW!¡± Standing tall and proud the woman began issuing order after order to her company. In all of a few minutes, each man and woman sat on their mounts and issued a loud war cry. With the noise echoing through the plains, the group set off towards the enemy. --------- With thirty odd men and women, the group left twenty others who acted solely as scouts, messengers, and other non-combat orientated tasks. In the darkening sky, the thirty odd troop neared their destination. Even as the smell of rotting flesh rolled through the sweltering air, the troop still advanced soundlessly through the night. All were veterans of battles near and far. Though few had obligations to the kingdom they served, many acted to destroy the menace before it could advance towards where their family lay quietly sleeping. It was this reason, paired alongside the benefits should they succeed, that many would allow their families to prosper even in their passing. As the laughing and shouting turned to quiet contemplation, the group saw the outline of the camp that lay before them. In a vast stretch of land that extended as far as the eye can see, hordes of creatures moved through the night to and from. The rattling of bones and feral growls sounded in the air. In such an atmosphere the men and women held their breaths as they waited for orders. "Know this, this is not a suicide mission, it is only bringing the fight to them. Attack quickly and quietly, then retreat. We will deal a blow to these bastards, however small it may be. Don''t get surrounded, stay mounted, and above all else keep vigilant. There is no telling what kind of dead have risen. Whether man, woman or child, they are no longer human; no longer the people they used to be. Have no mercy!" Called out the Commander, Diana, quietly through gritted teeth. ''This is far more than the scouts reported, it was only supposed to be a war band of five, six hundred, but now... thousands - tens of thousands,'' thought Diana as she reared her horse up and began a slow charge through the night. Wielding a long, two-handed sword she advanced at a slow speed being trailed by the thirty other men and women who held back a loud shout. Andrew focused on the camp in front, holding back for a moment before growling at the wolf to advance, "Go forward, keep the enemy to one side, and stay just close enough for me to swing this ax." Pawing the ground indifferently, two noises came out nearly at this same time, "Hu-min dumb," "We know, hu-min, we fight before." With one final laugh at the defensive creature, he was sent flying forward into the charging mass of hooves, each covered in light cloth to muffle some of the noise. The wolf simply did not need such a feature as he bounded forward with impeccable grace and agility, dodging the mass of horses as he brought himself up the front of the pack. Standing side to side with the commander, Andrew called out, "Don''t die out there, okay?" Before disappearing into the distance. At this point Rywen caught up to the man, only to be left behind once more, looking at the woman who seemed speechless at the disappearing figure, he smiled wryly and drew his sword. You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version. Andrew being the first in the line, met with the shambling corpses who only now realized that he was in front of them as the ax arced their way. Without any time to react they felt their entire torso become far lighter than it should have been, but kept moving. As feral growls erupted beside him, Andrew finally began to notice the stirring in the otherwise indifferent crowd. Although only moderately troublesome by themselves, the corpses held the vast advantage in numbers. The wolf began prancing around the outside line of the undead, occasionally swatting wandering corpses away while Andrew swung his ax. Each swing dropped at least five in the tightly packed groups, but they still managed to crawl with one arm towards the group even if their torso was severed entirely. Pursing his lips, Andrew began aiming for the heads of the creatures, but even if that did end them, each undead was vastly different from the other. Some were goblins, others elves, humans, hobbits, dwarves, beast men and all other manners of humanoids Andrew hadn''t even heard about - let alone saw - before. With the occasional feral beast thrown into the mix, there was absolutely no set height for his attack. ''Might as well try that,'' thought Andrew as he began to shift his ax. With the wolf dancing around, Andrew ordered, "Stay close, I''ll be busy for a little bit, okay?" As he swung Andrew raised one leg, shifting his weight slightly with the momentum of the axe''s movement, now sitting side saddle on the wolf. With another hop from the wolf, Andrew was sent some distance in the air. Feeling the ground get closer and closer, Andrew righted his body in the air and kept his ax moving to counteract his light spin. Facing the growing horde of the creatures Andrew shouted, "Come at me! Not other people, the dead ones. The rest of you stay where you¡¯re at." While the others had a large sense of comradery, they simply wouldn''t care if a man intentionally chose to throw himself in such a scenario willingly. As a few scoffed at his action from the corner of their eyes, Andrew continued his onslaught. Much like he had before with the dwarven contingent, Andrew rhythmically rotated his ax, cleaving flesh and bone in fell swoop. No undead could block his blow, but they still managed to press forward. The others, seeing the thinning crowds around them all looked towards the black haired man as he continued his work. Each blow sent at his a dozen body parts flying, but even so; more kept coming. Focusing on the shambling zombies in front of him, Andrew failed to notice to small creatures approaching from the rear. Before even the curious onlookers could react to warn him, he was assaulted by a crowd of rotting squirrels who scurried up his legs and back, scratching, biting, and thrashing their bodies against him. At first, Andrew didn''t realize it, but as the fourth squirrel barreled up his arm, many more followed all slowing his movements considerably. The bites and scratches were mostly at most annoying, but as soon as he felt a rush to his head, he bellowed, "GET OFF!" Shaking his body, Andrew tried to pry each of the little demons from his body, but to no avail. As his ax began to slow, the undead forces began to make it within striking distance of Andrew. Clumsily striking out with rusted pitchforks and sharpened sticks, they pierced into Andrew''s exposed arms and he felt his face begin to burn. With a glowing red mist covering his once obsidian axe¡¯s blade, his eyes began to match the blade, and he jumped back. In one leap he cleared ten meters and began to throw the squirrels of off his body. Each had his head crushed in the process as he threw them back to the crowd of undead. After five seconds of methodically destroying the squirrels who ravished his body, Andrew lifted his ax once more. This time charging into the mix of undead, Andrew vaulted into the crowd with his burning ax furiously. From the outside, only the glowing ember-like light could be seen and each man and woman stood in silence. However, as the ax moved through the crowds with increasing speed, the undead too began to pile up on Andrew. Feeling only the sharp pricks of makeshift weapons, Andrew''s eyes burned even hotter. After another swing, Andrew rotated his body and swung the ax like a whirlwind through the crowds. First up high and then down low, each undead body was thoroughly disabled with sickening sounds of bones snapping and blood cascading forth. Long since starting his assault, he was covered by the decaying crimson-black blood of the creatures. While it was predominantly crimson, blackened blood still coated the ax before being slowly absorbed.. Now only a few still fought against the crowds of undead. The remainder, including their commander and newest recruit, Rywen, stared blankly at the man from high atop their horses in a wedge formation - only stopping their stare when a curious undead shambled over to them. Hearing a cry to the side, Andrew immediately snapped out of his delirium and jumped over the undead towards the source. As the cry bellowed deeper and deeper in tear filled sobs, Andrew reached the man with a spear sticking through his arm and threw the man out of the fray with one hand, yelling, "Commander!" Almost entirely focused on his movements, the commander quickly stared at the incoming human projectile and dropped her sword hurriedly. As the man soared in the air towards her, the sword clanged loudly on the rocky outcropping they stood and she was forced off her horse. The others stared at the man they lay crying pitifully in her arms and exhaled loudly, but were woken up by a shout, "Fight! Why must we let a single man take all the glory! The gold!" Rywen, being the first to wake up for the stupor, shouted loudly, and advanced headlong in the fray with his shield leveled and sword dancing through the hordes. While he remained mounted, his horse seemed no worse for the advance than Andrew''s wolf - who laid on the ground biting and tasting each of the corpses after stomping on their heads. "Deryk, you lead the attack, formation three! George, assist him; kill the undead bastards for good. Baron, the rear! Go!" With the new orders supplied the men and women cut a path to Andrew, keeping a three-meter wide radius his axe¡¯s range. Rywen was the first to approach and called out to Andrew, "Hey, help is on the way, why - What the hell!?'' Seeing the glowing red ax was one thing as magic was well-known in the kingdom, but the eyes were something else entirely. Biting back a scathing remark, he shut his mouth and stopped talking to the man who was in the heat of battle. Andrew, who turned at the call, glanced back to the horde in front and kept attacking. Although the humanoids creatures were tedious, it was the smaller beasts that truly got under his skin. For each dozen ''people,'' he''d bisect, a small badger, fox, or even bird would dive headlong into the fray and savagely attack his body. Given the size of his ax, its mobility, and the sheer number of the surrounding creatures, it was no small surprise that each normally timid critter that would ravenously attack him would deepen the glow in his eyes. For thirty minutes the fight wore on and men and women were marked with wounds everywhere; however, no one died. A few horses lay neighing in pain but were silenced by their owners, who couldn''t see a way to save them in that situation. Seeing Andrew slice the last undead in the outskirt of the main camp from head to toe, the company let out a small breath. Rywen, with a silly grin on his face, was the first to speak up, "Imagine all the gold! Congratu-" With an inquisitive stare, Andrew tilted his head and spoke quietly, "It isn''t over yet." ----- Chapter 27 Hope you enjoy it!
"It isn''t over yet.¡± Spoke Andrew quietly through gritted teeth. ¡°I do suggest you guys move, though." Those around him looked at him in puzzlement, but Andrew continued, "Actually, get the hell away from here. Now!" Sensing the strange mood, Diana quickly ordered, "Do as he says! No questions; mount and fall back!" Those without mounts quickly joined on the others and bounded off into the rear, Rywen looked at Andrew expectantly but did not say a word. Seeing the looks of the commander and Rywen who stayed, Andrew sighed, "You too," firstly eyeing the woman, he continued, "You wouldn''t be able to handle it and Rywen, neither would you. Nor would it be worth the gold." Calling the wolf, Andrew quickly gave a wry smile as he saw the wolf trudging along merrily with a whole family of undead squirrels in its two mouths. Mounting the wolf he then took off towards an eerie, reverberating stomp. The two were left standing in confusion, but as a sight came from the far tree line, they began to panic. A monstrously large black rhinoceros came slowly from the inner of the camp. Flattening undead legions with each step. Standing at sixty feet tall, blacked skin that shone like dull iron, and only a small amount of rot on its steel-like body. As its three horns pointed at Andrew, the entire group shuddered. Within the camp, resounding roars came out as smaller rhinoceros came bounding forward. Seeing the group in the rear huddled together as they only wanted one thing; to leave. However, with a single order, their hopes were dashed, "Stay here, stand down, but be prepared to assist at any time!" Rywen stood with the commander with a wry smile as he reflected, ''No wonder he wasn''t scared, but what''s the point of learning magic when that ax will rip them to shreds in a single blow.'' With a tight smile on his face, Andrew muttered, "Just a building-sized rhino/triceratops, nothing to be too worried about... oh shit. A building sized rhino with her carriage sized children. What in the actual hell, why do I have to do this again?" Although he couldn''t answer that question, he still felt obligated to taking out the creature if only to see if he could. If he couldn''t - he''d just have to turn tail and run. "No harm in trying, I guess," was the last thing he spoke for a long while. Directing all of his concentration to the task at hand he focused entirely on the rhino in front. Without even bothering to slay the smaller undead that barred his path, Andrew simply left it to the wolf to jump over, trample or otherwise destroy the hordes in front. After thirty seconds of dodging blows of the spears and stepping on the heads of the smaller creatures, the wolf reached the middle field between his allies in the back and the giant rhino ahead. It was here that the charging rhino''s met with Andrew. Turning his gaze over the children of the monster, Andrew leveled his ax off the side and ordered the wolf with a predatory smile, "Slip past them on the side, I want to try something." With the group of five rhinos nearing Andrew, the wolf swiftly jumped to the side and bounded to the side of the leftmost one. Only holding his ax in a sturdy grip, he felt the blade meet a moment of resistance before sliding through the creature''s flank. With a grin plastered on his face, Andrew was content. Ax in hand, he could at the very least deal some damage to the main force, but he didn''t get complacent. As the wolf slowed to a somewhat to turn to chase after the group, nipping at the beasts ankles, Andrew swung again. Neatly slicing a massive chunk of flesh and bone from a beast''s back before moving to another on his side. ''So you can''t turn very well, hey?'' Laughed the man as his eyes began to dim from their blood red color. No longer feeling the blood rush to his head, Andrew calmed his thoughts and began swiping at the rhinos. Given their immense body size and that Andrew was behind them, each blow could only at most seriously wound them. Without getting too riled up, Andrew systematically seriously wounded each rhino before turning his attention to the monstrous one. As if seeing its kin infuriated the beast, he began moving faster and faster through the crowds sending undead flying, or simply crushing them on the spot. Seeing this Andrew was less than enthused as now he would have a nearly impossible time trying to avoid the hooves which promised a quick death. Barking quietly, Andrew moved around the front of the fallen rhinos and severed the head of their bodies. As they began to roll, a muffled cheer was released in the distance, but Andrew didn''t have the luxury to pay attention such things. Sitting on the wolf he was at most nine feet tall. Compared to such a giant he had no real way of target anything vital to the beast. Thinking quickly, he growled to the wolf who bounded off at his instruction. As the hordes of undead blocked their way, Andrew ignored them for the most part, only slashing at jumping beasts who seemed to retain some instinct from when they were alive. Slashing the fifth beast, this time, a half-skeletal tiger. Andrew had to bend his back to dodge. With the pounding footsteps already deafening him Andrew could barely hear the flying undead being propelled through the air. Indifferent to the situation where he was thrust into the air by the force of the hooves hitting the ground, the undead goblin tried to grapple Andrew. In a short moment, the goblin was split in two vertically and brushed past Andrew who coughed slightly as decaying blood flew into his mouth. Not a second later, Andrew growled loudly, before jumping off the wolf. The wolf, already privy to his plan, jumped and bounded off into the distance leaving any onlookers shocked. Rywen, with creases appearing on his forehead, spoke out quietly to himself, "He isn''t suicidal... is he?" With such a distance between the two, Andrew, even if he could hear normally, didn''t catch a word and continued through the air. As the foot stomped down, Andrew readied his ax and drew his sword. Just as the foot was about to raise itself off the ground, Andrew struck out with his ax, burying the blade deep into the massive legs until it finally stuck itself deep enough to stop moving. As Andrew pierced his sword into the fleshy insides of the beasts open wound, the rhino let out a deafening roar that shook the surrounding camp. Almost immediately after feeling the pain, the beast shook his body and quickly raised his leg with great difficulty, before sending it back into the ground. As more feral growls from below were extinguished, Andrew held onto the ax as his whole body shook with the immense vibrations. As soon as his body started responding to him once more, Andrew deepened his sword and pushed out his ax - creating a larger wound on its way out. One handily swinging the ax twice into the space above, Andrew pulled himself up from the embedded ax and lodged his sword into the tissue of the second wound. Andrew held on for dear life as the second bone shattering stomp came forth, but with his sword lodged firmly into the wound and ax still deeply embedded he resumed his climb. The third and fourth brought him hanging nearly onto the beast''s torso, however, the beast wasn''t so forgiving. With a pained tremble, the beast started his charge once more. Seeing the direction the beast was heading Andrew stiffened slightly before yelling at the top of his lungs, "RUN!" Even before Andrew shouted, Diana had already nervously made the call as she reared her horse, "Retreat back to the base!" Hearing the orders from their superior they gratefully obliged, although seeing the man single handedly assault the monstrous beast was interesting by itself, being charged at by the rhino was a different story altogether. However, the beast, even injured, could cover an immense distance with each passing step. And the speed only increased as it moved further. Andrew gnashed his teeth as he hurried his climb. Each step threatened to tear him off of the rhino, but he held strongly onto whatever grip he could create. When the distance shrunk to only fifty meters between his allies and the beast, Andrew finally reached the top of the creatures back. Using the exposed bone from the creature''s back as a grip, Andrew wildly swung his ax as he carefully advanced towards the beast''s head. As his original target was the frontmost leg, the distance wasn''t very large. However, the pressure was immense as each step brought the squad closer to death. Although he didn''t know why he seemed to feel the need to protect these people, the thought surfaced all the same, and at the very least he knew he would rather not see the commander and his new friend die in vain. Whilst thinking about these useless thoughts, Andrew shook his head and quickened his pace. With one final swung he cut out a wide groove of flesh near the nape of the beast''s neck. Andrew unhesitantly jumped into the shallow trench he had just dug out with his ax and felt the warm blood of the beast drench his entire lower body. Using the trench as a foothold of sorts, Andrew sheathed his now useless sword and wielded the ax in two hands. Swinging lightly as first to adjust his strength, Andrew cleaved a path into the beast''s neck. Widening it further with each successive blow he abandoned his temporary foothold and jumped into the cavity he had just created. Again and again, he swung his ax not even paying attention to the surroundings, only hoping to end the beast as soon as possible. At first, it was skin, then flesh. After that bone. By the time he had severed the spinal cord he was entirely focused on chopping and cutting. Not paying attention to what happened around him. Just after swinging one last time, he found himself standing on air. Not expecting the neck to have been completely severed already, he wildly swung his ax to try to catch some skin or bone. But the ax only slide through effortlessly. As he plummeted to the ground so too did the head on the colossal rhino. ------------- Just as the beast was nearly upon them, it started to slow. However, it was still significantly faster than the fastest horse they brought. At the same time, Rywen and Diana both gulped as they looked to the rear. Support the creativity of authors by visiting the original site for this novel and more. Stumbling along, the beast no longer held any grace or control over its movements, with each passing step becoming more and more erratic, the two slowed their horses. Diana ordered, "Fan out! Two directions, now!" As the beast stomped along the ground it had already nearly caused the horses to become crippled with the vibrations it released; the soldiers immediately took to the sides without a further thought. Merely wanting to save themselves, they thought nothing of military discipline and honor. However, with the thunderous quakes of the rhino slowing, each man and woman took a quick glance to the rear. Seeing the head of the beast hanging on by only skin, they breathed a sigh of relief but what came next shocked them. As the head fell, so to did the man inside of it. Holding back cries, they slowed their pace from the collapsing beast. "ANDREW!" Cried Rywen as he saw the body falling through the air, hopelessly slashing at the remainder of the neck. As the relatively small human fell, he swung his ax one last time at the still advancing fallen body and disappeared. Tense moments passed after seeing the massive creature came a complete halt. As one began to salute, the rest followed. In military fashion, they mourned the loss of the warrior who fell protecting them. Even the commander gave a small salute, however Rywen refused to do such a practice. With a loud shout, he ran directly up the decapitated creature, screaming, "Search! At least, find the body before you assume he''s dead!" Drawing his sword he went directly towards the behemoth that threatened them only mere moments ago and began cutting his way through the exposed flesh calling out for Andrew. With a small sigh, Diana ordered, "Deryk keep an eye out for the undead, Baron scout the rear, and George... help the search." In their eyes it was only a hopeless endeavor, however, he certainly had earned the right for such a process. Given the approaching undead in the distance, they would only have a few minutes, but at the very least it could appease their guilt. ---------- He found himself falling inside the beast. After cutting a hole into the creature¡¯s neck, he tumbled into the ripped apart the esophagus. With each bounce of the ribbed throat, Andrew fell deeper into the creature. Losing grip of his ax in the fall, he saw as the blade drag through the throat flooding the passage with blood and mucus. With the tidal wave of vicious fluid showering over him, he couldn''t even manage to grip the walls of the esophagus for some traction to slow his fall. With the little starlight fading fast after twisting turns he final heard a splash. In short seconds, the man was completely submerged in a vat of stomach acid. Feeling the acid corrode his body in its entirety, he felt his skin shrinking at an alarming rate. With no way out besides up, he swam. Breathing in a small breath, he felt his lungs burn, but continued towards a wall holding his breath. As he felt his skin slowly dissolving he reached for his now rusted sword. The sheath had already fallen victim to the acid and he merely had to grip the handle and pull the few remaining strands of leather off with it. Stabbing the walls of the throat with one blade and withdrawing another he climbed up the interior of the stomach. Pulling himself up with the swords as they pierced into the creature''s stomach. Each stab coated his body in more blood and mucus, making the trek horrifyingly slow. Yet, still the acid burned. Every orifice of his body was affected and his skin burned black like he had been frostbitten head to toe. Pushing past the excruciating pain Andrew moved toward the top. Each sword took all of his energy to stab into place but he had dealt with it as the dull crimson glow returned to his eyes. Nearing the middle of the throat he felt a small pride in reaching his ax. Just tossing one sword down the throat, he held himself in place with the other and grabbed the lodged ax still stuck into esophagus walls. As soon as he touched the blade the pain faded. But in its place was a profound burning rage. Gaining the strength to move again, he cut a new path out, escaping any noxious fumes through the beast¡¯s heart. Although it had long since stopped beating, the blood soothed Andrew¡¯s body as it washed the acid from his skin. Basking in the creature''s blood for a short time, Andrew released a small, devilish smile as the pain completely washed away. The ax, however, only burned brighter. As the glow intensified, so too did his smile fall. Replaced with only searing rage that held no equal on this battlefield. --------- Following her orders seamlessly the salutes ended and each man drew their weapons as they lifelessly glanced around them. It wasn''t until they heard a shout that they regained their vigor. "He''s alive! Call the-" spoke Rywen excitedly as he half dragged Andrew out of the gaping wound. "BASTARD! WOLF, COME HERE NOW!" Half-growled Andrew, seeing the bounding wolf come over with chunks of the smaller rhinos in his mouth, this time, Andrew flashed a terrifying grin. Moving his sore body towards the wolf with the ax dragging behind him, Andrew let out a furious roar. And jumped onto the approaching wolf who turned in midair and caught the man. With the ax now wearing demonic-looking, twisting spikes jutting from each end of the axe''s blade, Andrew approached the undead at a startling pace. Each man and woman were astonished. The deathly aura radiating from both him and the ax, the crimson eyes that seemed to devour one''s soul with a single glance. Although, indifferently slaughtering the creatures before, even as they worked together he didn''t hold anything more than a slight frown. Now, however, nobody wanted to fight alongside the man in his rage. Diana looked towards Rywen, who at this point became Andrew''s caretaker, and tilted her head questioningly. Seeing the unspoken question, Rywen held a wry smile as he spoke, "... At least, you don''t have to sacrifice villagers to deal with this camp." And as a forced laugh came from him, the rest merely shook their heads and sat down. A man pulled out a small pipe and loaded tobacco in it. Taking a few puffs, he passed it to another who began drinking out of a wineskin. With a solemn atmosphere, they watched from afar as the bloodshed unfolded. Driving deeper into the undead ranks, Andrew tore through the flesh of the creatures effortlessly, each swing severing what remained of their life instantly. With the wolf passing through the thickest ranks, Andrew roared loudly, "DIE!" As he finally reached what he thought to be the center of the camp, he dismounted to wolf and began swinging wildly. Nearly every undead creature was brought forth by the scent of his blood and those he had slaughtered before him. As the crowds grew thicker, Andrew simply sped up his ax to deal with them faster. No longer caring about destroying each for good, he severed them from their waist and moved onto a different group. As the night''s sky showed the first sign of dawn, Andrew stood over the mountain of corpses at his feet. Early on those that were bisected crawled to Andrew''s feet and as he ended them, the remainder showed up. Not bothering to move he simply kept jumping higher and higher on the mound of corpses as they began to pile up. As the last finally let out their last deep breath, Andrew finally felt his anger dissipate and noticed a small squad approaching him. Covered from head to toe in crimson and black blood, Andrew''s red eyes finally faded back into their steely blue as he gazed at the newcomers. "What do I owe this pleasure," spoke Andrew irritably at first, however, he took a deep breath and continued as politely as he could manage, "Waiting all night for me? Oh well, anyways General. What do you want?" Looking at the mountain of corpses which brought Andrew nearly fifteen feet in the air, the woman spoke cordially, "Ever thought of full-time employment?" "Nope. Not my thing, anyways I am hoping this was up your standards?" Replied Andrew with a raised eyebrow. Before the general could begin to speak, Rywen cut in, "As his manager, I believe we have gone above and beyond our appointed task. In addition to having my request at sign-up being ignored, I would now like to negotiate our rewards." Andrew was dumbstruck for a second, but the general pressed on, inquiring "Speak, what would such an expense equate to? And furthermore, how much for future services?" Rywen raised his hand to his chin and thoughtfully contemplated, "Each villager is given something to the effect of five gold - even if they die. So, as a representative of my client, we will request one gold per slain regular undead, under the assumption that an above average villager may kill five before they are killed themselves. Of course, due to the valuation of such a camp being rather large, each kill will be reduced by half. Do you agree on the first condition?" After a moment of thought, she continued, "I agree, however, the ones slain without cuts, will be treated as being killed by the beast. Although, a separate price for him is negotiable - the affiliated deaths are not - is that fair?" Gnashing his teeth as he was seen through Rywen spat out,"Tsh, fine. Moving on, the five cubs and the behemoth, I suggest fifty per smaller one and a thousand for the large one." "Forty, and seven." spoke the woman without hesitation. As their haggling went back and forth, Andrew rubbed his forehead and jumped off of his small mountain of corpses. As he felt his head become dizzy, he started dozing off. The last thing he heard was, "and a fifty percent cut for me, as the acting manager," to which Andrew immediately replied, "Twenty." And then he closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep. (Kind of a) Hiatus Notice I''m extremely sorry, folks! :criesBo: This story, being one of my first, seems to have gone in a direction I have not wanted it to go. I was greatly influenced by whatever it was that I was reading at the time, so the quality must have been dropped sustainably. Planning was only Stolen story; please report. I''m looking to rewrite the novel, or at the very least, edit it heavily. Currently, my working copy has 107k words in it so it''ll be a longer process, but I don''t like the idea that I could and/or should possibly have to do it in the future.