The Dragon's Wrath: Ashes of the Fallen

by Brent Roth

  An abyss, because I couldn't see anything.

  It was dark, incredibly so.

  All I knew the last time, was that the left path smelled slightly worse. This time was much the same. The right side had an old odor that wasn't quite as strong… it wasn't that different, really.

  The fresher odor from the left side, gave them away yet again.

  Yeah, it was still a pungent odor, and it still hung in the air. Even with the strong breeze blowing through. My nose itched, but a twitch was all I bothered to do for it.

  My weapon required both hands.

  Not bothering to close my eyes this time, I didn't need to let my senses lead like before. The path we were taking was a familiar one.

  We were going to go left again.

  The two us headed down the left path until we reached the large, gigantic cavern. Sunlight still shining down through the gaping hole in the ceiling. A curious place, one that forced me to swallow the lump in my throat as I stared out at the boulders that littered my view. I was anxious now, having already experienced this moment.

  I was expecting them to pop their heads out next.

  They didn't disappoint.

  Dozens of beady eyes were peeking around the edges of the rocks before us, cautiously watching us as they hid in relative safety. If they were as simple minded as they looked, it wasn't too farfetched to assume they would use similar tactics.

  There was no reason to believe that they would differ, unless they somehow recognized me as the one from before and took extra precaution.

  That, was farfetched though.

  "Kate, stay back until it starts," I quickly blurted out as I lifted my halberd and started to pace to the side. "I'm bringing this fight to them, embrace the chaos."

  Breaking out into a run directly to my right, I cut across the room in an instant as a dozen eyes multiplied to a hundred. Hands were aglow in glorious synchronization as they had lined up and prepared to unleash a frozen hell.

  Bodies shifted and heads turned, in an attempt to follow my path. Keeping at full sprint, I reached the edge of the cavern in a few seconds as I quickly dove to the ground, not bothering to look.

  Like clockwork, a hundred frost bolts impacted and exploded all around me. The air directly above froze over as crystals of ice floated down over me. Completely covered in white frost, I rolled to my back and prepared to jump. With a one-count I was back on my feet as I turned into the oncoming second wave.

  Their relentless assault had begun.

  Strafing sideways as I continued to sprint in an effort to circle them, cold beams of ice shot forth in a colorful array of blues and whites. Another second and a tumble, dive and roll separated me from certain death. Kicked up dust rose in a cloud behind me while I pushed forward, a full charge in effect.

  The third wave came at an angle that was even easier to dodge.

  Simply outrunning the frost bolts and watching them sail harmlessly off into the distance, I continued to charge. I was getting closer, another wave, and I would be there.

  Their eyes were glowing in the distance, reflecting the sunlight in the shadow of the crags. In those eyes, fear was growing by the second.

  Hands raised as legs began to shake.

  Blue glows, only half in number.

  Then, no glow.

  The fourth wave never came.

  Smashing into the first Rattanorv with a shoulder check sent one flying into three others as they tumbled to the ground completely entangled. Raising my halberd with a half-motion, I released with a checked swing that cut through a face with ease. Resetting almost immediately, I swung again with reserved strength as the weight of the axe-head easily sliced through the soft-tissue of the rats.

  Blood splattered and splashed everywhere as I cut down rodent after rodent. Three consecutive swings and seven rats were strewn about in chunks and pieces. Consumed by the moment, my eyes were burning with rage as I let out with unfettered aggression.

  This was a slaughter.

  The rats, frightened, terrified of what they saw before them, attempted to run.

  I gave chase, cutting them down without breaking my stride. A swing from the left took three heads off, while a swing from directly above split another. Thrusting forward into the back of one and then flinging it off into a group of others, the impact jarring them to the point where they remained motionless in the panic.

  Rushing over, the momentum of my swing cleaned through a group of five as two were sent flying from the impact with the shaft and three were sliced to bits. Yelling at the top of my lungs, I challenged them.

  "YOU WILL ONLY DIE TIRED!"

  Panic stricken faces stared at me as they trembled in fear.

  They tried to regroup.

  A group of seven packed tightly with hands aglow caught my eye, only for me to notice the soft white hue underneath. Ignoring them, I charged in another direction as the corner of my eye was filled with fire. White hot holy fire, countless feet high, burning and rendering fat and flesh all the same.

  The bodies had started to pile.

  Blood and burnt flesh had filled the air.

  Defecation, littered the floor.

  A frost bolt, wayward and errant, hit me in the waist as I continued to run, oblivious to the pain. The impact was inconsequential, their spells were meaningless to me.

  The anger that had consumed me was boiling over.

  They would pay for what they did.

  Those fuckers from [FWB].

  Frost bolts rained down on me, hitting me in the chest as I dismembered a rat, hitting me in the back as I stabbed one through, hitting me in the face as I stomped a face. They couldn't stop me now, they were all going to fucking die.

  Raising my halberd in front of a helpless rat, I dropped the axe down intending to split it in two. Only, a frost bolt hit my hands and sent the weapon bouncing off a rock and into another rat. My target was split, but my weapon was lost in the darkness.

  Fifteen rats remained as I had been blinded by my rage.

  My thirst for blood was becoming insatiable.

  I wanted more.

  Flash stepping into a group of them, I grabbed them with my bare hands and snapped a neck and spine with ease. My near superhuman strength too much for their weak bodies to overcome. One rat tried to run as I smashed two of his friends together, and a quick step on his tail halted its retreat.

  It turned to me, almost pleading.

  But my boot found its way through.

  Sweat rolling off my face, I was completely soaked in blood and my boots were covered in shit. Literal shit, figurative shit, and all kinds of shit I didn't know of.

  Body parts were everywhere, corpses were everywhere.

  Katherine, was there.

  Standing in the center of the light.

  She stood like an angel with arms open, as I started to regain my sanity.

  My heart was racing, my breath labored, my head… was heavy.

  Then I realized, that my stamina bar was nearly fully depleted.

  Physical exhaustion had already set in.

  Letting out a sigh, I looked around the room and witnessed the carnage that been laid out. The room was a complete mess… over a hundred dead Rattanorv were spread evenly throughout. Some clusters were burnt, but most had suffered melee wounds.

  I looked the part of an ax-murderer, more than a hero-adventurer.

  Yet… I wasn't bothered by that fact. My anger was overflowing before the fight, during the fight, and immediately after too. Now, I felt relieved, relaxed and justified.

  "Ouch," I said as I tried to stretch my arms.

  One look at my body, and I was hurting.

  Cold burns covered me from head to toe and half of my face felt numb. My health was critical too, at only twelve-percent. Though twenty-four seconds to live was fine enough. Katherine had the mana to spare.

  Still standing where I had come to a stop, Kate beckoned me over to her side.

  I obliged.

  While
walking, I continued to look at the destruction I had caused.

  There was really an unbelievable number of dead.

  Taking a seat next to Kate, she worked her magic and brought me back to life in quick order. Restoring my health first was of the most importance, and then recovering my injuries right after that.

  They weren't serious injuries though.

  Thinking over the details of the fight while I let Katherine work, it was rather surprising how quickly the Rattanorv fell apart. Intelligent and able to devise a strategy, they fought wisely en masse with large group tactics yet when forced into an unknown situation they broke down and panicked. Consumed by their fear, they lost all sense and barely offered any resistance.

  They were physically pathetic and had no weapons, while equal in level to the [Outcast Goblins]. Without any organization, they weren't much better than a lowly fox.

  Their only saving grace, was their large numbers and ranged spells.

  I died the first time due to my overconfidence.

  This time, my overconfidence with a slight change in strategy, decimated their entire clan. As far as I knew, this cave was now clear and free of rats.

  That was pathetic.

  Staring blankly at the walls that surrounded us, I finally noticed a flashing icon at the bottom of my visual field. A system message, alerting me to something… something most likely connected to what had recently transpired.

  I hesitated, unsure if it was a good thing or a bad.

  Well, there was only one way to find out.

  Opening the message a single ding chimed. Followed, quickly, by a series of system event messages that I hadn't seen in a while. Ones that brought a smile to my face.

  Ones, that were extremely special.

  [You have gained the Skill: Frenzy, due to constant fighting in an Enraged State.]

  [Frenzy: When Activated, the Player gains an Increase in Attack Speed and Attack Damage, and a Decrease to Negative Mental Effects and Crowd Control. Drains Endurance at a rate of 200%. Requires Enraged State to be Active.]

  Ding.

  [You have gained the Skill: Enrage, due to fighting furiously while in a rage.]

  [Enrage: When Activated, the Player gains a 25% Bonus to Endurance. Requires an Angry Disposition. Increased Fatigue if in an Enraged State for extended periods.]

  Ah, so that's how it is.

  That explained a lot.

  I had been angry, sure, but it seemed unnatural. During that fight I felt nearly unstoppable despite being pelted by numerous [Frost Bolts]. The Crowd Control effects from the [Frost Bolts] should have slowed me down considerably but they didn't.

  My movement was hardly impaired.

  I also felt stronger than normal.

  It wasn't adrenaline alone, after all. Now, I knew the answer to my questions. The game had awarded me a set of new Skills, Activated Skills that had Persistent Effects so long as they were toggled on. In other words… Rare Skills. These weren't run of the mill abilities you could learn from another player or NPC that was more proficient than you… these were specialty skills.

  Oh.

  "You're shitting me," I blurted out after the realization had set in.

  "Ah, did I do something wrong Sigurd?" asked Katherine immediately in an apologetic tone. "I'm sorry, I will be more careful."

  "Ahh no, not you Kate, I'm sorry," I replied as I placed my hand on top of hers. "I was just thinking out loud, I was gifted something, from the Gods."

  "Oh…" she said, trailing off.

  Continuing to hold her hand, I closed my eyes as I tried to think.

  The way skills were earned in Dragon's Wrath was a bit different from most other RPG games. You didn't get them by simply hitting a level requirement and paying a class trainer to grant you a new skill. Here, you had to earn all of your skills and abilities through hard work, some luck, and a little ingenuity.

  You trained your proficiencies, and when you were proficient enough, you could seek out someone more advanced than you and have them train you, assuming their mastery was high enough. I already had another Rare Skill, one that I often forgot about.

  [Deadeye] allowed me to have increased Accuracy when shooting any projectile weapon, how that worked in-game, I wasn't entirely sure. I was awarded the skill after hitting twenty-five moving targets in a row without missing, all of them over a one-hundred yard range. I didn't know of the parameters until I met the conditions, and then suddenly, poof, I had the skill.

  There were other ranks of the skill as well. I wasn't aware of the conditions that needed to be met though. That was how these Rare Skills were. Secretive and almost entirely random to the player base at the moment.

  Whatever the case, I had grown immensely from this excursion.

  "Let's go home, Kate," I said softly, squeezing her hand.

  "Yes, Sigurd," she replied as she placed her other hand on my shoulder.

  There was still a lot of work to be done.

  Chapter 69: New Faces

  (Monday, October 11th Game Day / Monday, April 5th Real Day)

  Dragon's Breach, the crown jewel of the far Northern wastelands, was rising once again. The walls and main buildings were completed in record time, and so too, were the critical infrastructure buildings. Work had already begun on the towers and their main structures had already taken shape. It wouldn't be long now, perhaps a few days at the most, for this village to be fully fortified.

  Those that lacked practical skills worked the land, performing the manual labor that was equally necessary. Digging the moat took an immense effort and was largely supplanted by the warriors that were left. Even the priests, were asked to join in.

  They would be pulled away though, for a few new faces were arriving shortly.

  That meant one thing, the resumption of training… more accurately, the beginning of my first training camp. Things were changing in Dragon's Breach.

  I wasn't going to fall victim again.

  The blacksmith was back in action, far too busy with their assigned project to pay me any heed. I wasn't bothered by that though. They were asked to produce axes and shields as rapidly as they could. Pattern-welded axes, iron heads with steel edges.

  They already made axes previously for the warriors, now they were reworking the weapons, forging them anew. Upgrading, in a sense. The shields weren't necessary for a two-handed axe user, but I wanted them to have one. A shield on the back was better than nothing at all.

  The axes were quickly taking shape, which brought a faint smile to my face.

  Bearded axes specifically, they were large and long enough to create separation and provided an amazing amount of killing potential to boot. That, in addition to the fact that I was somewhat partial to the style and heritage made them all the more special.

  They would be the signature weapon of Dragon's Breach.

  I would make it work. My cheap warriors that no one the game-over wanted, would work with the right guidance. I was sure of it, and I was betting my all on it.

  Leaving Ansgar and Enok to themselves, I continued on.

  The shipbuilder was next, and he had been busy as well.

  Working in the darkness of the night, the light provided from a series of torches and the moon was barely enough to get by. The men and women didn't complain. We were pressed for time. Even if, there was no immediate threat clearly visible.

  A self-imposed deadline, was what we were all working on.

  "Stigr, how goes the Longship?" I called out to the shipbuilder.

  "It's comin', short a hand'll take me 'nother day," he replied with his almost broken English. His knack for cutting sentences short was easy enough to get used to though.

  "You've got the time," I followed up while examining the boat. "Won't be a week or two before we need her, take as much time as needed, can borrow one of the kids too."

  "No need, I'll be done with her 'n weeks' time," he yelled back. "Youngins'll take more time than'er worth, headache is all they'er."

  "Go
od work Stigr, I'll send food and drink your way," I said as I walked away.

  Roald had been busy, running errands to the Northern Triangle in order to procure supplies. We lost a lot of stored food in the fire, all of it really. Meat was easy to replace, bread and beverage though, was not quite as easy.

  He was expected to arrive within the hour, but he knew what was needed.

  I didn't have to babysit him anymore, the death and destruction took care of his penchant for flirting on the job. He was now a fine working man and kept his flirtatious habits to after hours, though none would have it nowadays.

  Everyone was stressed, even if they didn't show it.

  "Ah, right on time," I mumbled to myself while staring at the village's square.

  Friday had finally given way to Saturday.

  Night had turned to day as the rising sun brought light and warmth into the world. Only to be followed, by numerous beams of golden-white light that shined down on the center of the village. Engulfing the small area with its radiance, the beams of light faded and then returned an instant later.

  Alternating between golden glows and fading whites, every instance spawned a singular NPC. One after another, they filed out from the light. Fourteen warriors and ten casters, ready and willing to serve their leader.

  Dare say, their master.

  They were free men in theory and they believed that to be the case. I even treated all of the NPCs as if that were the truth. The reality though, was that an NPC was essentially a slave. Disguised partially by their free will, I had learned through forums that it would take extremely sadistic behavior for an NPC to leave their player.

  If you recruited them and treated them at least like you would a pet, they would do as you say. They might not perform to their utmost though, if one treated them poorly.

  I didn't have to worry about that.

  Every NPC that lived in my area that had been recruited by me, had been treated kindly. I had earned their respect and now they worked hard for me. They didn't complain, didn't argue, nor did they disobey.