Awaken Online: Catharsis

by Travis Bagwell

  While he was waiting for the thief to return, Jason carefully examined the position of the enemy army. Alexion's force had made camp half a mile south of the walls near the graveyard. Jason hadn't focused on it before, but the graveyard seemed to be built in a natural clearing in the forest. The road continued south from the graveyard and then curved gradually west. The forest surrounding the area was dense and almost impenetrable.

  To the north of the graveyard, the trees thinned considerably. Jason expected that the former, warm-blooded residents of the city had likely harvested many of the trees near the walls. The forest quickly gave way to cracked, gray dirt and the shriveled vegetation that was now common within range of the Twilight Throne’s dark influence.

  Jason watched as the NPC engineers began industriously cutting the trees in the forest to build siege engines. Jason expected that, in the interest of expediency, some developer had greatly simplified the construction process for siege weapons because the engineers had already made considerable progress in less than one in-game day. The siege engines would likely be completed later that evening, and then the fight would commence.

  He could see that the engineers were constructing what appeared to be several large trebuchets, a battering ram, and two siege towers. Since he wasn’t an expert on medieval siege equipment, Jason had to pull up the in-game console in order to find some reference pictures. The semi-translucent screen floated in front of him in the darkness as he did some quick research on the wooden structures the engineers were constructing.

  In addition to the larger machines, Jason noticed that the engineers had built a number of ladders.

  It looks like Alexion is planning to go both through the gate and over the walls simultaneously. Won’t that spread his forces too thin?

  Jason shook his head. Alexion may be intelligent, but that didn’t mean he was an expert in siege warfare. Jason expected that these types of large-scale battles hadn’t occurred during the beta. There had simply been too few players. Most likely this would change in the future. Jason doubted that the players would remain this clueless as the game progressed.

  The trebuchets were being constructed a couple hundred feet north of the graveyard and closer to the city walls. A quick online search revealed that the range on a typical trebuchet was about three hundred yards. With some magical reinforcement, Jason was assuming that this range could be increased to something a bit more significant.

  Good thing other players and NPCs can't see my cheat screen while I’m sitting in this tree, he thought with a grin.

  He had sent his other thieves out to scout the woods for enemy troop movements. He was wondering if Alexion would try to strike the city at two different points simultaneously. The thieves had to be exceedingly careful, as the area was teeming with players and NPCs. The information that they returned with was fuzzy at best. From what Jason had gleaned from their reports, it looked like Alexion was keeping his troops near the graveyard.

  Jason’s surveillance of the enemy camp was suddenly interrupted by the return of the thief that he had sent into the city. More time had already passed than he was expecting. He hopped down from the tree and retreated farther back into the woods to hear his thief's report.

  “Okay out with it,” he ordered the thief. “What did they say?”

  The thief coughed harshly and phlegm and congealed blood spewed from its mouth. Jason sighed. Zombies could be disgusting.

  “Master, I’ve reported to the Shadow Council. I told them that you had managed to reduce the size of Alexion’s army and that you estimate his losses at approximately five hundred NPCs and travelers.”

  “Yes I know what I told you to say,” Jason said impatiently. “What did they say?”

  “After conveying the information as you ordered, Jerry asked me to give you a special message,” the zombie replied. It then moved toward Jason at an unnaturally fast pace and puckered its decrepit lips.

  “Oh god! Stop!” Jason forgot he was still standing near an enemy army as he backpedaled away from the zombie.

  The zombie promptly ceased its attempt to kiss Jason and stood at attention.

  “Damn Jerry,” Jason grumbled.

  Onyx looked at Jason with humor dancing in his eyes.

  “Yeah sure you're amused when his bullshit is directed at me,” he said to the cat.

  Turning back to the zombie, he ordered it to finish its report.

  After another harsh coughing fit, the zombie relayed the information Jason had been waiting for. “The army of the Twilight Throne has increased to approximately 480 soldiers or six divisions. Three are currently stationed at the south gate. The other three are stationed along the west, north, and east walls of the city in case Alexion tries to launch a surprise attack from another direction.”

  Hmm. Safe move on the council's part. However, 240 soldiers don’t seem sufficient to hold a city from 1,000 players and NPCs. Those other three divisions are also going to be wasted during the fight.

  “What am I going to do?” Jason asked aloud.

  His primary goal should be to take out the trebuchets. Unfortunately, he expected that they would be heavily guarded. Alexion would probably anticipate an attack by Jason on such a vulnerable target. With Jason's hit and run tactics over the last few days, he probably didn't think Jason was capable of taking on more than a hundred soldiers in a direct confrontation, so maybe the defending force would be manageable.

  Looking at the remainder of the siege weapons, Jason could visualize a rather spectacular charge on the walls. Alexion would have to commit most of his forces to the attack to be successful.

  There isn't a way to avoid a direct confrontation this time.

  As he thought about his options, a glimmer of a plan began to take shape. Jason grinned in anticipation. The tantalizing chill of his mana invaded his mind and swirled behind his eyes. He quickly beckoned three thieves over to him and gave them careful instructions. They bolted off into the darkness toward the city. Hopefully, the council could execute Jason's orders quickly.

  All he could do now was wait.

  Later that evening, the siege engines were completed and Alexion's camp was alive with movement. It seemed the impending battle had reenergized the troops. Soldiers strapped on their armor and weapons, while archers strung their bows. The players adjusted their equipment one last time and checked their consumables. Many of the NPCs and players had rested during the “day” in anticipation of the fight, so that they were ready for action.

  The soldiers settled into ranks north of the graveyard facing the wall. The large siege towers sandwiched the neat columns of troops, and the battering ram was centered on the south gate. The soldiers were all heavily armored in mail. The front lines carried sturdy tower shields and spears while the troops near the rear worked together to carry the large ladders. A contingent of archers was positioned at the back. Jason could also see small groups of mages located in pockets among the soldiers. They were each assigned a group of shield-toting soldiers.

  Probably healers and support casters.

  A small encampment had been built further south of the army. The NPCs had constructed makeshift wooden walls around the trebuchets and had dug out the ground on the outside of the walls into a shallow ditch. Jason could also see a faint, glimmering globe encasing each trebuchet.

  Alexion isn't taking any chances! Is that some kind of shield spell?

  Alexion had committed a defensive force of approximately one hundred NPCs and players to guard the trebuchets. The soldiers stood outside the bulwarks that ringed the siege engines and faced south. The engineers hadn’t had time to build larger fortifications. Mages and archers stood inside the hastily constructed defenses. Some of the mages appeared to be chanting and gesturing toward the wooden structures while others surveyed the woods south of the encampment.

  Apparently they know I'm coming, Jason thought dryly.

  Alexion stood in the middle of his soldiers on the front lines facing the Twilight Throne. H
is location was obvious since he would occasionally cast a spell that produced a blinding radiance that illuminated the walls of the city. Jason recognized the spell. It was the same light magic that had taken out several of his Night Children. Alexion freely cast the spell while surrounded by his own troops, so perhaps its damage was based on alignment or affinity or possibly it only targeted enemies. What really puzzled Jason was the continuous way Alexion cast the spell. Either the spell cost no mana, or, more likely, Alexion was chugging mana potions continuously.

  It must be nice to be made of money.

  Jason was standing just south of the graveyard. He had quietly moved his entire force up beside him. A total of fifty-three zombies and skeletons stood at his beck and call. As he looked over his small army, a sense of pride welled up inside of him. He had spent days cultivating this miniature force, and it had already destroyed nearly a third of an army.

  His eyes panned back to the neat lines of soldiers and the heavily guarded trebuchets. His heart beat frantically as he considered what was coming. He involuntarily clenched his hands in anticipation. This was an all or nothing battle with a city hanging in the balance. A worm of doubt crept into Jason’s mind.

  Can I actually do this?

  The image of the massacre in the market flashed through his mind. On its heels came the chaotic whirlwind of ice and flame that had swirled over Alexion's camp two nights before. In both cases, thing had spiraled rapidly out of control. There had been some planning involved in each situation, but perhaps he had just been lucky.

  He shook his head and looked past the army at the Twilight Throne. With his improved eyesight he could see its cruelly spiraling towers reaching into the sky and the city's residents that lined the wall. It was a city that he had created from the ashes of his rage. It was filled with undead that he had given a second chance at life.

  Yet the city represented something more to Jason. It represented a turning point in his life. It was the digital gauntlet he had thrown to the ground, challenging himself to become something more. He was done with hand wringing. He would take what he wanted.

  This was his city.

  His resolve hardened and his dark mana washed over his body like a breaking wave, cleansing his mind of doubt or hesitation. His eyes shown a resilient obsidian, as black tattoos of energy crawled over his body.

  In this moment, Jason had only one desire.

  “I am going to show them exactly what it means to fuck with my city.”

  Onyx eyed Jason carefully, and a strange expression flitted across his feline face. He looked proud.

  Jason's dark eyes watched the army that was readying to attack his city. His hands clenched in anticipation. His doubt had been quickly replaced by growing excitement, and his mana pulsed in time with his rapidly beating heart.

  An eerie silence hung in the air as the two armies eyed one another. Jason could feel the rising, almost palpable tension that hung over the field.

  Another explosion of light ripped through the darkness that hung over the field, and Alexion's shouted words broke the silence. From this distance Jason couldn't hear what he was saying, but he imagined it was some rant about how they were there to slay the evil undead.

  Blah blah blah. “I'm an asshole that rolled a lighthouse as my class.” Just get on with it already!

  Jason glanced over and saw that Onyx was also glaring in irritation at Alexion.

  He murmured to the cat, “Make certain you stay back. You don't want to be caught in what’s coming next.” Onyx looked at him incredulously before nodding ever-so-slightly.

  Did the cat really just nod at me?

  Jason shook his head. He was imagining things again. He had been spent a lot of time alone in the woods.

  He turned his attention back to Alexion's army. As the human strobe light finished his inane speech, a deafening cheer came from the army and they stomped their boots rhythmically. The vibration could be felt through the ground all the way to where Jason sat.

  After a moment, the roar of the soldiers began to fade. A mischievous grin curled Jason’s lips. His instructions to the council had been quite clear.

  The army of undead that lined the walls of the city stood in utter silence. They showed no reaction to the roars of Alexion’s soldiers and they didn’t make a sound. They simply stood there, impassively gazing at the army before their gates.

  As the silence lengthened, Alexion's troops began to shift nervously. The bottomless quiet drove home the point that no amount of shouting could have accomplished; the army they faced wasn't human. This army was already dead. They didn't feel pain and they didn't relent. They lived in darkness. In silence.

  As time stretched on, the troops' anxiety noticeably increased. They recalled the unsettling attacks and endless darkness of their trip. Many glanced nervously to the edges of the tree line to the east and west of the gate as though they were about to be attacked.

  Jason's felt his dark mana pulse in time with his heartbeat as he watched Alexion's army. His campaign of psychological warfare was starting to pay dividends.

  Alexion tried to recover his army’s morale and cast his protection buff. The soldiers near him glowed a faint gold that illuminated the area around them. A faint cheer went up among the troops as Alexion let off one more blinding explosion of light.

  “Charge,” screamed Alexion, as he raced forward toward the wall.

  I have to give him some credit for leading the charge, Jason thought grudgingly.

  The army moved forward, first at a lumbering pace, and then at a trot. They approached the walls with ladders and shields raised. Desperate shouts were torn from their throats as they threw their lives at the dark stone wall. The battering ram lumbered forward, protected by a cadre of mages that cast defensive shields around it to protect it from arrows and spells. The siege towers creaked and groaned as they rolled toward the walls where the undead army waited.

  As the approaching army neared, the undead finally acted. Vile curses, bolts of darkness, and arrows rained down on the approaching troops. Many soldiers perished under the hail of spells and bolts. Screams could be heard amidst the shouts of the soldiers as many fell to the ground, wounded and bleeding. Yet Jason observed that the glowing soldiers near Alexion, and the shining knight himself, seemed almost immune to the spells as they nobly raced forward on the leading edge of soldiers.

  Jason turned his attention away from the attack. He had his own work to do. Without any fanfare or speeches, he moved his minions forward. He needed to destroy those trebuchets quickly before they caused too much damage.

  The trebuchets were located northeast of the graveyard, and Jason moved his undead soldiers and Death Knights north along the western edge of the graveyard. The group hugged the walls of the cemetery, trying to keep out of the line of sight of the enemy's sentries. Once he was in place near the northern side of the graveyard, he moved his Death Knights forward and positioned his guards behind them. The large bone shields would provide cover during the charge.

  He kept the remaining five thieves for himself, and the stealthy group quietly scaled the wall to the cemetery. They retreated to the interior of the graveyard, Jason perching in Sneak on top of one of the tombs near the northeastern edge of the graveyard. He would have a good view of the battle from here and would be able to cast curses unnoticed. His thieves crouched around the tomb, keeping an eye on the graveyard.

  In spite of his orders, Jason looked down and found Onyx sitting quietly beside him. He glared at the cat in irritation.

  Onyx gaze met his levelly. He seemed to be saying, “Did you really think I was going to miss this?”

  Shaking his head, Jason turned his gaze back to the field. He could only hope that the cat stayed out of harm’s way.

  He had sent his fire mage and two thieves around the other side of the cemetery so that they could flank the trebuchet from the south. All three were ordered to maintain Sneak until the defenders were distracted and the protective shields that gli
mmered around the siege engines were down. Then his fire mage would do what he did best - set those damn things on fire.

  All of this took mere minutes as Alexion’s main force attacked the walls. Jason spared a brief glance at the attack on the city and noted that the siege engines were moving into position. The undead hadn't managed to penetrate the shields guarding the siege weapons. His eyes moved back to the trebuchets, and he saw that they were winding up for an attack on the walls.

  Damn it.

  Without hesitation, Jason attacked.

  His Death Knights rounded the northern corner of the cemetery and made a lumbering sprint toward the trebuchets from the west, their bone tails swinging from side to side. They were followed closely by the troop of guards and soldiers, who huddled behind their bulky forms. In total, this force consisted of over forty minions.

  The NPCs and players immediately spotted the group of charging undead. Their eyes widened in surprise. Some of the soldiers took several involuntary steps backwards as they saw the lumbering, dark giants race towards them. The ground trembled as the small group of undead rushed forward, a testament to the massive bulk of the Death Knights.

  Icy claws dug into Jason’s mind, and the chill cascaded through his body. This is what he had been waiting for. Why had he been so anxious? They were going to pay with their lives for messing with his city.

  Jason troops sprinted across the short distance to the makeshift bulwarks. Spells and arrows rained on his Death Knights and struck the reinforced bone shields with little effect. As they saw how little damage was caused by their attacks, the defenders began to panic. The soldiers on the frontlines had stepped back until their backs pressed against the wooden walls. Several soldiers tried to desperately scale the wooden bulwark.

  Then his Death Knights collided with the group of soldiers.