Tiamat's Revenge: A LITrpg Harem Adventure! (Blackest Night Book 1)

by Jack Crosby

  “Maybe when the battle’s on my terms,” I laughed.

  There was no question that Zara was going to use some sort of fire spell and it was a new one: Dragon flame

  She twirled her staff and opened her mouth; jets of fire escaped and hit our new friend. The crystal monster (or I guess golem would be the appropriate word) showed no reaction to the pain except to lurch back a bit. The attack did take away health, at least.

  His first attack was just a standard physical attack: Big swing

  My quick step activated and it missed me, but Zara got hit. I was surprised that the attack did such little damage to her, “Level up a bit, huh?”

  “We’re in my abode, my stats are boosted quite a bit.”

  “Does that mean partial summon will…?”

  “Trigger a nuclear explosion? Let’s find out!”

  Who was I to ignore the amount of joy in her voice? When my turn came around: Partial summon

  It was a thing of beauty to see her fly into the air again. She was like a beautiful angel of death as she prepared to unleash her fury on to our adversary. I couldn’t help but to be fascinated as her eyes turned red and the skill flashed across the sky: Dark flare

  The golem never stood a chance. Whoever sent this creature into the dragon’s lair wasn’t prepared for how strong Zara was here. As the blasts exploded all around the crystal creature, it was obvious the battle had been won. As the last attack finished up, the golem shattered into a heap in front of us.

  “That was a lot easier than expected,” I said.

  The battle faded away, leaving just Zara and I. “Curious how someone would find me, well besides you. I’m guessing you found the crystal in the Kaiser Village, which means…”

  “I found a few books; one dedicated to you and another to a summon named Typhon.”

  Her face darkened when she heard Typhon’s name. “If Typhon is summoned to this plane again, he’ll join with Gibraltar. He revels in destruction, along with Ifrit and the ice goddess, Shiva.”

  “Rumors are already swirling that General Victor is to summon him soon. I’m going to stop him,” I declared.

  She didn’t say anything but she didn’t have to. “Zara, what’s wrong?”

  “If the time to summon Typhon is coming soon, then so is the time for Bahamut.”

  I’d heard that name only once before, from Kira. “He’s another summon, right?”

  She shook her head. “Not just a summon, but the Destroyer of Worlds. When Bahamut comes, there’s no turning back.”

  That was head shaking worthy news. “How do we prevent that from happening?”

  “You need to find Alexander,” she said as both hands gripped on to my shoulders. Her face came in close. “The holy summon will be able to provide you more guidance than I will.”

  “Newsflash, I don’t remember these little side trips once I go back. How will I remember to find this Alexander?”

  She backed up just a bit. While she was thinking, I did take a few minutes to appreciate just how stunning Zara was. Yeah, I knew there was a monstrous dragon hidden somewhere under the façade, but that didn’t stop me. She was curvy and hot.

  “It just might work…”

  “What might work?”

  “Don’t worry about it, like you said, you won’t remember this encounter when you go back. Just trust me.”

  There was an old Skylonian saying that said dance with the girl you came with. That seemed appropriate, all things considered. “Okay, I trust you.”

  “Good. Our time is growing close to an end, but I think we’ve got just enough if you’re interested?”

  Was I ever! “Not that I’m discouraging this course of action, but I assumed each of these adventures was to find some sort of stone that would help later.”

  “You already did, the crystal.”

  Fair enough; ruby, onyx, crystal. “So, what are we waiting for?”

  Zara slowly took off her mage’s robe and her bra covered breasts revealed themselves to me. They looked downright divine. As the robe hit the floor, she took two steps out, freeing herself from the heap of cloth on the floor. The way she did it, nice and slow, adding a few winks and a tongue flick for good measure, was just too much.

  Then the mist began to form. “No, no, not right now!”

  But my screams were lost on myself as fate intervened, sending me back right as I was about to experience Zara is her full glory.

  ****

  I shook my head, lost in a fog for a moment. No one had time for that. Instead, I began my focus on the vast number of books. I was hopeful the one I’d need would pop off the bookshelf. Even as I thought how unlikely it was, two books clunked off the bookshelf on to the semi-rotted floor that was barely hanging on.

  “Hello?” I shouted.

  No answer… Could it have just been a coincidence? I stepped over and picked them up. On the worn, dusty leather of the first book was a picture of a dragon, an evil looking dragon. Tiamat. I glanced over at the second and it was a picture of a large humanoid creature, with one giant eye in its forehead and mouth opened like it was roaring towards the sky. Typhon.

  Someone was watching out for me, that was for sure. I drifted back over to the Tiamat book and opened it. A lot of the pages were no longer legible from being trapped in such shitty conditions. But, I did make it to one page that was clear as day, as if the words had been burned on to the paper:

  When the kingdom of the sky falls,

  Hope will die with it.

  For it marks the return of the summons,

  With the Uprising becoming moonlit.

  Chills an up and down my arms. This was a prophecy, one that was already in motion. Again, forces were at work, that couldn’t be denied. I stored the Tiamat book into my bag and quickly opened the Typhon tome. Again, the pages were in bad shape, but I was able to make out a little here and there. It wasn’t anything as dire as the prophecy of a world becoming Moonlit (whatever that meant), but the few details it gave me confirmed what I fear. The use of a summoned creature pretty much marks the end of whatever the summoner wants destroyed.

  The odd thing was, to summon Typhon, it took magic yes, but it also took a very special condition. Of course, that was part of the page that I couldn’t read.

  **Cut Scene**

  Ruined Caravan

  “Victor, you’ll pay for this.”

  Master Yamato was brave in his final moments. “Do you know what this is?” I asked as I held up the blade I carried.

  The old fool’s eyes got very large. “How did you…?”

  The Dark Star, a sword that made other swords seem so obsolete. “I sent Skylonus into ruins, it was only a matter of time before its most prized possession came into my hands.”

  The dead bodies of all those foolish enough to travel with Yamato circled us. With his death, nothing would stop me from completing the summon of Typhon. This would almost be as glorious as when Skylonus fell to Tiamat.

  We still had plenty of time before the summoning would begin. “You’re a scholar, Yamato. Would you like to know the secret of how to instigate a summoning?”

  “I don’t need to know how your devilry works, Victor!” he spat.

  It was such a shame the rest of the men were scouting the perimeter around the ruined caravan. I did love an audience when I had a story to tell. Oh well, Yamato and his defeatist attitude would have to do. “It’s simple, really. Folklore states it takes complicated spells and certain conditions to bring forth one of the monsters.”

  “If you’re going to bore me with tales that I’ve, in fact, helped write, then by all means kill me now.”

  Yamato’s fire still burned bright. How could you not at least respect a man that didn’t fear death, that didn’t fear me? “What the tales got wrong, including the ones penned by you is that there’s nothing complicated about it. Where there is a willingly summoner, drive is the only thing that is required.”

  “Oh?” That got his curiosity’s attention.
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  “Any one with enough mages can put the incantations in motion. What took me years to figure out was the conditions and how to attain them. Did you know, for instance, that the Harvest Moon used to be referred to as The Moonlit?”

  He shook his head no. A scholar until the end, this new information was being stored away in his brain, even though it would never be used.

  “During The Moonlit, certain barriers to our world our weakened. During that time, a summoned creature can be forced from the prison plane they were banished to, back to our world. Did you know after the summoning ritual, they even take the shape and likeness of us?”

  He pondered that last part for a moment. “You’re telling me Tiamat still walks on our world?”

  “Yes,” I hissed in triumph. “She’s out there, just waiting to be called again. Unfortunately, the right circumstances haven’t been met just yet, but they will be. However,” the first ray from the moon cascaded over the field. “Tonight is the perfect night to bring Typhon back into the world. I just need one more thing…”

  “What’s that?” Yamato asked.

  I jammed the Dark Star into his chest. “The heart of a centurion virgin.”

  Out of respect for the old man, I killed him first, sparing him the agony of having his heart ripped out of his chest. Besides, the screams would’ve been awful. With his fallen body ready to be harvested, I was about to set out doing my work when one of my soldiers appeared, Alyssa.

  She tossed a Nagano Nation scout on the ground, alongside what looked like a bear cat. “I found these two trying to sneak in. Don’t be fooled by the cat, sir. It talks and attacks.”

  My eyes were only on the girl; she was opening weeping as she saw the dead body of Yamato lying at my feet, not even cold yet from his death…

  ****

  Night had fallen and no one was back yet. Something about the air didn’t feel right. Kira and Yamato should’ve been back in the inn when I returned. The caravan wasn’t that far behind us. And where were Alyssa and Rico?

  No, something didn’t feel right at all.

  I left the inn and went to the item and weapon shops. Both were getting ready to close, but neither was willing to turn away something willing to pay full price. With my potions restocked and a few new charms to equip, I was as ready as I was going to be.

  ::Equipped Lion’s Heart – Plus 5% attack/defense/speed/dexterity::

  ::Equipped Star Fragment – Plus 150 HP::

  Fully rested, I ventured outside the walls of the village and I walked right into a boss battle.

  “I wondered when you would show up with my sword.”

  The figure across the field from me was Kraven. So, this was how it was going to be. “Just you and me this time, huh?”

  “When I bring back the head of the Skylonian prince, I will be hailed a champion.”

  There was an excellent chance that everyone in the Gibraltar army knew who I was. Unleashing Fury of Skylonus during our last battle wasn’t anything I regretted. It was time to embrace who I was; I was the future of a rebuilt kingdom. I was also the destroyer of Gibraltar.

  I held on tight to Kraven’s own blade, pointing it at him. “Today, I’m more than just Prince Dante; today I am your doom.”

  With that, the battle began.

  Kraven had improved a little bit since our last battle, but not by much. His first strike against me showed that we were more than equals. I countered his physical attack with one of my own, taking a much more significant chunk of health from him than he had of me.

  With a new sword came new skills from the soldier. Angry punch

  I took the short blow to the stomach and it hurt. The jerk knocked the wind out of me, slowing down my speed. Fortunately, the new charms I’d purchased helped me recover faster and I was still the next one to attack: Sweeping strike

  The next four turns we an exchange of skills. Slowly we were both whittling down the other’s health bar. Soon, I’d have a choice to make, waste a turn on a potion or go in for the kill. My spirit gauge wasn’t all that close to being filled up, so I just continued with physical attacks and skills: Quick strike

  Kraven finally entered the red. His armor was busted up and his face was covered in blood. “Even if you defeat me, how do you think you will stop General Victor?”

  His words meant nothing to me. I’d kill that bastard, too. “Shut up and die.”

  He used Knight’s edge, but it missed. I immediately countered with a physical attack and followed it up with: Wind Blade

  It was my most powerful skill, one that apparently when combined with the sword I was using, took on different properties. The Bastard Sword turned red and the skill unleashed became: Violent storm

  Kraven was knocked off his feet and the battle came to an end.

  The man was on his last limb. “It matters not, I was going to die anyway.”

  His eyes rolled into the back of his head, his ominous last words still lingering in the air. Just what the hell did that mean?

  The after-battle rewards began to come. I immediately leveled up to twenty-one, learned a new skill called Bane of Gibraltar, and picked up a new set of equipment, Lieutenant’s armor. Still, even with all of this, I had a really bad feeling.

  ::Equipped Lieutenant’s armor – plus 52 defense, Fortification activated (plus 15% to all statuses)::

  I kept going forward, away from the village. As darkness fell and the moon’s light bathed the fields around me, I got this very weird feeling. I’d only been a baby the night Tiamat had been summoned and destroyed Skylonus, but the stories Rex has told me, it was like déjà vu.

  The other weird part was how quiet it was. No random battles or soldiers walking around. I couldn’t help but to feel this was not normal at all.

  “Dante!”

  I looked over and saw Alyssa running towards me. “Where have you been? Something’s not right here.”

  “I know,” she cried. “I found the caravan, it’s been destroyed and everyone has been killed!”

  No other words needed to be said

  ::Alyssa joined the party::

  We wasted no time crossing the dark fields to find the wreckage of the caravan. The first thing I saw was Yamato lying on the ground, his chest cracked open like a walnut. I had to turn away, quickly.

  “Well done, Alyssa,” a voice boomed.

  When I turned to meet the new player on the field, I saw a large man in bright armor standing in front of Kira and Rico. At least they were alive!

  My face contorted to a snarl. “General Victor.”

  “Prince Dante,” he matched my tone. “The last remnant of a fallen kingdom.”

  “And you’re the first brick to fall of your own kingdom.”

  Here was a man who knew he was in charge. His laugh was chilled, eerie. “If Gibraltar ever falls, I’ll be the last brick, boy.”

  Alyssa joined him at his side. I tasted bile rising from my throat as I realized what happened here. “The Skylonian prince, just as you asked, sir.” She saluted him.

  “You bitch,” I grumbled.

  Alyssa didn’t even have the spine to meet my gaze. “With the prince captured,” she continued. “We won’t need to summon Typhon.”

  Victor didn’t even bother to acknowledge her. “Take these two back to the dungeons. They can rot for all I care.”

  “Sir,” she squeaked.

  “The Skylonian prince dies tonight. Or maybe worse, I haven’t decided.”

  That was rich. “You might want to ask me my opinions on that.”

  Alyssa did as he asked, scooping up Rico and dragging Kira to her feet. Two soldiers came and assisted her as they walked away into darkness. I silently swore to free them as soon as Victor was dead.

  ::Alyssa left the party::

  The battle started immediately. Victor unleashed his sword – the Dark Star! “Are you familiar with the skill this sword possesses?” he asked.

  I was. When his turn came first, I braced myself for the strike of all str
ikes: Doom

  It was the forbidden skill, no Skylonian who’d ever possessed the sword used it. The moon above us turned red and that’s when all hell broke loose. Victor shoved the Dark Star into the ground. The sky broke out into bright lights, the stars that were spiritually connected to the sword. Each one blasted down upon me, taking more than my health bar each time I was hit.

  The battle was over before it even started.

  When the last star’s attack subsided, I was on the ground, broken and defeated. The battle came to an end as quickly as it started.

  “You’re going to have a front row seat for the show, boy,” he taunted as he stood over me. “We’ll see if you can survive a second summoning.”

  The earth shook; Typhon was coming. There was nothing I could do but lie here on the ground. Victor left me alone, to die, and to see the destructive powers of a summon. Winds began to whip all around me and rain beat down on my body. The was the beginning of the storm.

  I don’t remember much of what happened next, my body could only take so much abuse before it gave way. Before the blackness took hold of me, I remembered seeing lightning strike after lightning strike destroy the village of Kaiser. All those innocent people killed in blinks of an eye. Fire were everywhere, the sounds of screaming and death filled the air.

  ****

  The last vivid image I had was of a giant looming in the shadows of the storm. His one eyes sought me out and etched a vision of fear into my mind that I’d never soon forget…

  End Disc 1

  One year has passed since Typhon was summoned.

  General Victor has become King Victor, his dread rule

  Taking over the Central Continent

  With the last stronghold, Nagano, about to fall,

  He begins to set his sights on the last two remaining continents…

  **One Year Later**