Awaken Online: Catharsis

by Travis Bagwell

  Jason's hands began forming hasty gestures as his lips mouthed arcane words. Shadows pooled around him and then leapt forward into the field. As each zombie crested the heads of the soldiers, its body exploded in a barrage of shrapnel and dark mana. Many soldiers were blown apart by the explosions. The position of the corpses above the troops also widened the damage radius of the shrapnel and caused shards of metal to rain down on the heads of the NPCs and players.

  And now I’ve brought zombie hand grenades to AO!

  The staggered explosions rocked the back of Alexion's army. Blood and rotten flesh pooled on the ground, as many of the soldiers were ripped apart. Some of the troops that had escaped death howled in pain, while the rest were left stunned and uncertain of what had just happened.

  Before the soldiers could recover, the demon appeared in their midst. Its form towered over the soldiers, and fresh blood still dripped from its scythe. Its manically smiling face stared at the soon to be departed.

  The demon struck the rear line of the army like a freight train. The bone demon waded among the disoriented and confused troops, swinging its scythe in huge swathes. Bodies were sent flying and men cried out for help. Between the explosion and the demon's killing spree, some of the soldiers and players panicked, scrambling away desperately.

  Dozens of enemy soldiers had fallen under the combined Corpse Explosions and the bone demon's fury. The pain filled screams of the soldiers rang through the air, overcoming the sounds of weapons clashing. The back line of Alexion's army seemed to buckle under the attack and nearly broke.

  Jason watched the battle carefully. His mana was nearly empty, and he was out of potions. He kept a close eye on his mana as his regen tried frantically to refill his massive, empty mana pool. The bar refilled ever-so-slowly as he watched the fight unfold.

  Suddenly, Jason noticed a commotion from the front of the enemy force. A golden glow weaved its way to the back of the army. The sea of enemy soldiers parted before the shining aura. Jason felt a wave of excitement and anticipation grip him.

  Alexion is coming.

  Jason grinned and he felt like ice was forming in his veins. His mind and body were still tired from summoning the bone demon in a rushed frenzy, but he still felt the familiar coldness curl in his mind. His hands tingled as they clutched at his weapons. His anger had dulled over the last couple weeks that he had spent in the game, yet he still relished the opportunity to see Alex’s character eviscerated by his demon.

  This is my chance to finally pay Alex back.

  Alexion soon emerged from the back of his troops, glowing with holy light. His eyes were globes of liquid gold, and his armor shone brightly even in the darkness and gloom surrounding the Twilight Throne. As Alexion broke through the line of troops, he surveyed the bone demon and took in the gruesome spectacle before him. Momentary shock swept over his face.

  The bone demon had been killing the troops in large numbers. Its bones were dyed red with blood, which only made the creature appear more demonic in the flickering torch light and occasional flashes of spells. It stood among the corpses of dozens of soldiers. When it caught sight of Alexion, the demon held its dripping scythe aloft and roared with bestial fury.

  Alexion quickly regained his composure and raised his sword, pointing it at the bone demon. “Grey Keep will purge the evil that is this kingdom. You will fall by my sword demon!”

  Idiot. I hope he will keep spouting that bullshit for a moment longer while I get my thieves in position.

  Jason took advantage of Alexion’s monologue, ordering his four thieves to activate Sneak and flank him. They swiftly approached Alexion's position, moving stealthily through the ranks of soldiers that were focused on the demon. Jason muttered a silent prayer that this would work. The thieves and bone demon were the only viable minions he had left besides the four mages. He was running out of options.

  Alexion motioned to his troops behind him. “We fight for the honor of Grey Keep and no evil can stand in our way. Raise your arms men. We fight or we die tonight for the good of this world!” The soldiers around Alexion mustered a lukewarm cheer, as they stared at the menacing demon before them.

  The bone demon stood impassively in front of Alexion during his speech. It looked down at him with scorn written across its bony features. The bones around its face crackled and crunched as it formed a grotesque grin. Then it lifted its head and roared again into the night sky. Its roar was greeted by flashes of lightning within the roiling black clouds that hung above the field. A bolt of lightning struck the ground between the demon and Alexion, momentarily blinding the enemy forces.

  In this moment, the bone demon rushed forward and Jason's thieves struck.

  However, the effect wasn't what Jason was expecting.

  Alexion exploded in golden light, revealing and injuring Jason's thieves. The golden blast didn't slow the bone demon, but Jason saw that a chunk of its health had been shaved away.

  Frantically, Jason urged his thieves in closer and repeatedly cast Corpse Explosion with the mana he had managed to regen. The blasts did little damage since the thieves had lost a considerable amount of health from Alexion’s attack. However, the blasts staggered Alexion as the scythe of the bone demon descended upon him. Unable to dodge the blow, the blade connected solidly with Alexion’s ribs and sent him hurtling back into his troops, scattering them like bowling pins.

  A moment of silence fell over the field as all eyes watched Alexion's prone form with bated breath. He lay on the ground for a moment and then groaned. He slowly pulled himself to his feet and coughed up blood onto his mailed hand. A large dent had been formed in his steel breastplate. Then he looked back at the bone demon, a dead, almost emotionless, expression on his face.

  “I didn't want to have to do this, but you've forced my hand,” he muttered.

  Not so eloquent now are you, asshole? Jason thought with a smile.

  Alexion's free hand moved in a complicated pattern as he began chanting in a low voice. Golden globes appeared in the air around him, their number growing rapidly as the spell continued. The orbs spiraled around Alexion and then contracted in on his sword. As he completed the spell, his sword erupted in a golden flame and doubled in size. He was left holding an enormous flaming greatsword that flickered with holy light.

  The knight turned back to the demon, brandishing his flaming sword with both hands. Alexion's eyes glowed a brilliant gold and light spun around his steel-clad body in glowing bands. “Now let's see how well you stand against this, you undead fiend.”

  As he finished speaking, Alexion rushed forward and engaged in a series of rapid-fire blows with the bone demon. The flaming greatsword and bone scythe clashed with such force that small thunderclaps could be heard each time they collided.

  Jason urged his dark mages into action, and they repeatedly cast curses at Alexion. After witnessing how other dark magic had barely damaged Alexion, Jason expected that his holy aura somehow made him resistant. His fears were confirmed as he saw the curses slide harmlessly off his body. Jason could only hope that repeatedly casting the curses would allow one or two to stick.

  Alexion and the bone demon danced across the field trading massive blows. The force of their strikes caused ripples of force at each point of impact. Nearby soldiers were knocked down and the occasional stray strike decapitated or maimed those too slow or too stupid to move out of the way. Their fight caused a large clearing to form at the back of Alexion's army as the troops scrambled madly to escape.

  This was now a battle between two titans.

  Alexion’s greatsword darted forward and slammed against the bone demon’s scythe. Jason’s saw small fragments of bone spray from the impact site. The bone demon’s tail lashed forward at Alexion’s legs, striking his greaves with vicious force.

  The surprise attack tripped Alexion, and he was forced onto his back. The bone demon drove his scythe downward with such force that the displaced air emitted a howling sound. Yet Alexion’s parried the blow with his
sword with a clash of steel. Then his free hand began moving in another series gestures.

  Back! Jason ordered the bone demon telepathically.

  The demon sprang backward as Alexion’s body burst into golden flame. The flames then surged into the ground and streaked toward the bone demon, cracking the dirt of the field and causing large flaming rents to appear around Alexion.

  Jump on him! Jason ordered.

  The demon gave Alexion a mocking grin and jumped into the air over the holy flames of the Consecration spell with its scythe held high. The colossal demon flew through the air, and its scythe raced toward Alexion with a ravenous howl.

  Alexion barely rolled out of the way. The scythe slammed into the ground with a shower of dirt, and the demon tugged at its weapon, trying to dislodge it. Alexion scrambled madly to regain his footing and turned back to his foe. His breath was coming in ragged gasps as he tried to recover from his near death experience. The demon finally yanked its scythe out of the ground in another eruption of dirt. It raced toward Alexion and the fight continued in earnest.

  Jason anxiously inspected the bone demon's health and saw that it was slowly fading. The fight at the trebuchets and the attack on Alexion's army had weakened it severely. He couldn't see Alexion's health, but it must also be getting low after standing at the front line of the army and then receiving that massive initial strike. The bone demon also seemed to be landing the occasional swipe on Alexion's armor, shaving off small portions of his health.

  I really wish I had decided to take the Enrage spell at a moment like this, Jason thought desperately.

  There was really nothing he could do but watch. His mana was nearly empty and he was out of potions. Except for the mages that were frantically casting at Alexion and the bone demon, almost all of his minions were dead.

  Then the fight came to a sudden dramatic end.

  The bone demon committed to a particularly heavy horizontal swing. Alexion ducked the blow instead of parrying and stepped close to the demon. With a flash of golden light, Alexion slashed at the demon's right leg. His blade sank into and then severed the extremity. The bone demon tumbled to the ground with a deafening boom and the distinct sound of crunching bone.

  Jason felt a sinking feeling in stomach as he watched helplessly from the sidelines.

  Is this it? Did I lose?

  His eyes moved to the walls. There were only a hundred undead left standing. The defenders had been severely diminished by the ranged attacks of the assaulting army. Jason could just make out Grunt’s large form in the distance. He assumed Jerry must be nearby.

  Will they all die because I failed?

  Even with the numbers he had killed, Alexion’s army still greatly outnumbered the defenders. Nearly seven hundred NPCs and players still assaulted the walls. With Alexion supporting them with his defensive spells, it was unlikely that they could hold the city.

  Jason turned his head back to Alexion. He watched as the glowing knight slowly approached the now vulnerable bone demon, gloating in his victory. His face was twisted in a mocking grin.

  “And so it ends demon. Did you really think you could win against the light?!”

  Alexion gleaming sword descended and then penetrated the bone demon's skull as it feebly tried to reach for its scythe.

  Dark magic spiraled around the bone demon as his body began to disintegrate. Thunder peeled across the sky. Alexion raised his sword triumphantly and turned back to his troops. However, Jason noticed him wince as he lifted his arm. The battle had taken a lot out of him, and he was on his last legs. Once the healers woke up from their shock, it would only take a few healing spells and Alexion would be back in battle.

  With his flaming greatsword held aloft, Alexion removed his helm with his free hand. This scene seemed eerily familiar to Jason and he felt the bottom drop out of his stomach. If only his bone demon had been at full health!

  “Victory for Grey Keep!” Alexion screamed.

  His remaining army roared in response and lifted their weapons into the air.

  Jason could only sit and watch as the last traces of dark magic from his bone demon swirled and faded into the night sky.

  There's nothing else I can do!

  All of his work over the past weeks had culminated in this moment. Yet he sat defeated on the edge of the field, his dark mana fading as doubt and despair clouded his mind.

  Jason glanced back up at Alexion’s gloating form, and his brow furrowed in confusion. A halo of dark energy had formed around Alexion’s triumphant face. Time seemed to slow as the halo grew larger and larger. It almost appeared that Alex stood in front of a black hole.

  Then Alexion's head abruptly exploded in a cloud of bloody mist. Fragments of bones flew in all directions as tendrils of dark energy wrapped his corpse and lifted it from the ground. The energy lashed at the steel and exposed bits of skin, tarnishing the metal and rotting flesh. Then the dark void dissipated. The headless, heavily-armored body toppled almost comically to the ground with a crash of steel.

  As the headless corpse fell to the ground, Jason could see a figure standing approximately fifty yards behind Alexion. It appeared to be a young girl with long blond hair. She held a large wooden recurve bow in her hands, and the string still vibrated from the release of the arrow. Her eyes were filled with cold rage and shone a dark, unholy obsidian.

  The girl was almost painfully familiar, and Jason's breath caught in his throat.

  Riley! What hell is she doing here?

  The world seemed to speed back up. The soldiers stared at Alexion's body for a moment, before roaring in anger at their leader's death. The soldiers turned to the small blond girl that stood casually behind the army and rage marred their features.

  Then they began to rush at Riley.

  She released arrow after arrow into the onrushing group as she moved backwards with quick, nimble steps. The bolts were covered in a coiling black substance. Where they struck, flesh melted from bone. The soldiers screamed in pain, their advance slowing. Her accuracy was uncanny, and she shot with an almost unnatural calm in the face of the onrushing soldiers.

  However, Riley was still going to be overwhelmed by the dozens of soldiers that charged at her. For a moment, Jason considered letting the soldiers kill her. She had certainly thrown him under the bus at Richmond.

  Yet he had to admit that her being here was strange. He also hadn’t missed the part where she blew Alexion’s head off. Jason’s chances of defending the city were now considerably improved. That gave her a few grudging points in his book.

  Riley also served as an excellent distraction, since many soldiers had pulled away from the army’s main force to chase her. The longer Jason could keep those soldiers busy, the better.

  Damn it. I guess I will help her.

  He mentally directed his ice mage to freeze the ground in front of Riley, and his dark mages rapidly cast Curse of Weakness at the approaching soldiers, slowing their movements.

  With Riley momentarily safe (if she kept running), his gaze turned back to the tumult of the battlefield. Without Alexion’s defensive buffs and directions, the soldiers were disorganized. With so many different avenues of attack on the city, Alexion had spread his forces too thin. This had been an acceptable tactic when the troops were supported by the knight’s defensive buffs, but, with Alexion gone, the soldiers were now vulnerable.

  Now is the time for the finale! I just hope the council had enough time to get them in position.

  Jason telepathically ordered his three almost forgotten thieves to attack.

  Nothing happened for several long moments and Jason’s brow furrowed with worry. He looked beside him at Onyx and the cat seemed to shrug.

  Then an ear-splitting howl went up through the woods on either side of the gate. A horde of undead rushed into the clearing, flanking the enemies attacking the gate.

  Jason had ordered the council to move the three divisions out of the city through the north gate. This move left the wall poorly defended
, but gave Jason the opportunity to launch a counterattack in the field.

  The downside of this plan was that it took a long time for his thieves to make the journey back to the city. It was also a struggle for the council to move the troops into position without alerting Alexion’s army. Finally, there was a problem regarding communication. There was no way for his thieves to both notify Jason that the army was in position and stay with the troops so that Jason could tell them when to attack.

  There were a number of things that could have gone wrong with this plan, but it was now paying off.

  Sinister curses, bolts of dark energy, and grey arrows streaked toward the players and NPCs in front of the gate. They were caught in a crossfire of missiles and the shields of the front line were pointed in the wrong direction. Alexion’s soldiers screamed in pain as arrows penetrated their flesh and wicked corruption overtook their bodies. The undead soldiers struck the front lines, fighting with wild abandon. Only massive injuries disabled their limbs and they felt no pain. The undead didn't fear death.

  Jason’s army fought with well-trained coordination and maintained their eight-man units, even in the heat of battle. He watched as the undead soldiers drew attention from the enemy, while the thieves ambushed the enemy soldiers from behind. Blood erupted from well-placed strikes on the soldiers' necks and backs. Meanwhile the mages provided ranged support, while debuffing their opponents.

  Jason smiled as he watched his army in action, and a sense of pride welled up inside of him. Most of his minions might be gone, but his army and the residents of his city lived on.

  He turned his attention back to Riley. She had circled south as she ran from the soldiers and was now cut off from the undead reinforcements. A trail of bodies lay behind her, a testament to her skill with the bow. She continued to fire into the oncoming soldiers, as she backpedaled quickly. Yet many soldiers were still chasing her and she was slowly losing ground.

  Several corpses lay behind the girl, and Jason quickly cast Specialized Zombie three times in quick succession with his newly regen'd mana. The freshly formed zombies pulled themselves from the ground, unnoticed by Riley.