Nova Terra- Greymane

by Seth Ring

  After a quick tour of the citadel, the first thing Thorn did was head to the great room of the fortress. Taking out the [Control Orb] from his inventory, Thorn activated it, choosing to place the control point where the throne would go. With a flash of bright light the process that Thorn had witnessed in the Keep reversed. Seeing the [Control Orb] melting and reforming the Wolf Throne, Thorn had a hard time keeping a grin off his face. As he stood watching the throne being reconstructed, Thorn heard hurried footsteps behind him. Turning he saw Velin and Mina both rushing in.

  “Thorn, the scouts have arrived! We need to get the army together since the main force will not be far behind. Wow, look at that view!” Distracted by the large balcony that ran the length of one side of the great room, Mina dashed outside, taking in the sight of the valley. Dark green forest stretched far into the distance, lying quietly under the twinkling stars. The soft breeze blew against Mina, causing her to grab her hat as she looked down. In the distance, the mountains cut against the sky, like jagged teeth under the bright moon.

  “That is really pretty.” Mina walked back inside and started examining the tapestries that covered the opposite wall. “This place must have cost a fortune. Looks like we picked the right side this time. Ah, I mean…” choking on her words, Mina blushed and looked away, her voice trailing off.

  “It was expensive, but I think it is worth it.” Sitting on the newly reformed Wolf Throne, Thorn pretended he had not heard Mina’s last sentence to spare her embarrassment. “This will be our base of operations from now on. I was hoping to do this when Oberlin was back but we don’t really have a lot of time so I’ll go ahead and announce the official formation of our guild.”

  “We’re starting a guild?” Mina looked at Velin and then Thorn, confusion written all over her face.

  “Yes, I told you that, didn’t I?” Thorn scratched his head. A lot had happened recently and as preoccupied as he was with planning the valley’s defense he had been quite distracted. “Honestly, I can’t remember. Anyway, we’re starting a guild.”

  “Hey, that is awesome!” Mina cheered. “But there are only three of us so far. How are we supposed to get more people?”

  “We’ll be recruiting mostly natives, actually. Wolfkin disciples who become Night Walkers.” Seeing Mina’s expression revert to confusion, Thorn sighed and held his forehead in his palm. “Disciples from the Moon Temple become Night Walkers when they finish their training. Since we will be housing them and I am sort of their boss already, Elder Havva has agreed to allow them to join our guild.”

  “Does this mean we will be getting players as well?” Velin asked, getting out her notebook to scribble some notes.

  “Potentially. We have the right of refusal, obviously, but it is conceivable that any player who succeeds in joining the temple will be able to graduate into the Night Walkers, and therefore, into our guild.”

  “Oh wow, that is genius!” Mina’s eyes were wide with excitement as she smacked her fist into her palm. “The Temple of the Moon is the primary way for new Wolfkin players to gain classes and advance which means that they are going to be walking right into our guild. It is like one of those spout things with water that goes straight from one place to your house!”

  “A pipeline?” Velin’s face didn’t even twitch as she explained for Thorn’s benefit.

  “Exactly, a pipeline.”

  “Correct. My goal was to find a way to build a reliable pipeline for recruiting new members. We are not going to be exclusively Wolfkin, obviously, but since we are already in control of this region it makes sense to use that to our advantage. Plus, since we can recruit natives, why not do so in a way that consolidates our control?”

  “So, what is our guild name going to be?” Mina was obviously much more interested in the answer to this question than she was in Thorn’s schemes to consolidate his power.

  “Nova Luna.”

  “Nova Luna? That is pretty.” Mina considered it for a few minutes, before nodding her head sagely.

  “It means New Moon.” Velin tossed in without looking up.

  “New Moon, right.” Mina pretended she had known that from the beginning.

  “I was thinking that we would keep it in line with our moon theme.” Thorn said, trying to suppress a laugh. Opening his interface, Thorn clicked on his guild tab and activated it.

  Guild Formed: Nova Luna

  Congratulations! Your guild, Nova Luna, has successfully been formed. In order to grow your guild, the first step is to find members to join. Once you have found a new member you may add them to your guild from the guild panel. On the guild panel you will find everything you need to set the rules for your guild and to identify your guild’s operating region. This will give your guild members the option to use that region’s re-spawn point in addition to any other re-spawn point they have bound.

  A [Region Management System] has been detected. Would you like to combine your guild tab into your [RMS]? Doing so will automatically bind this region as your guild’s operating region.

  Yes

  No

  Immediately after Thorn selected yes, the guild tab he was staring at vanished, replaced by his [RMS] which had gained a new tab. Selecting it, Thorn made a mental note to spend some time figuring out what the countless options were used for as he scrolled down. Ignoring the questions asking him to set up the guild, Thorn found the spot for adding other players and sent invitations to Mina, Velin, and Oberlin.

  “I’ve invited you to the guild. Alright, there we go.” Seeing that Velin and Mina had accepted the invitation, Thorn looked at the elven War Priestess.

  “Velin, when you have some time, can you set everything up? I honestly have no idea what most of these options are so I’m probably better suited to guard the gate than try and be the guild leader.”

  “Of course, it would be my pleasure. There is a role called administrator that will allow me to make changes with your approval. I’d be happy to show you how to do it as well.”

  “Thanks, maybe later.” Thorn found the drop down next to her name and set Velin as an administrator, giving her control of the guild settings. Rising from the throne, Thorn summoned his silver wolf armor and drew his massive metal spike. “Right now, it is time to go greet those scouts.”

  CHAPTER FOURTY-ONE

  The morning sun was starting to peek through the trees when Thorn and Mina met up with the Wolfkin Dusk Walker that had spotted the advancing Crimson Snakes. Velin had deployed Wolfkin volunteers to be on the lookout for the advancing army and Mina had gotten the report as soon as she had logged in. Rushing to the hill where the Crimson Snake scout had been seen, Thorn and Mina were greeted by a Wolfkin dressed in leather armor and holding a bow.

  “Greetings, my lord,” whispered the Wolfkin scout. “Hello, Lady Mina.”

  “At ease.” Thorn replied, his eyebrow rising as he heard the way the scout addressed the Ice Witch. “Tell us the situation.”

  “Yes, sir. The advancing scouts are moving at about half speed. They are holding a semi-circular pattern to increase the range of their search. The scout I spotted stopped on this hill about five hours ago and returned to the other world.”

  “Hmmm. They probably logged out to sleep. That means we should have at least a few hours before they are back. Did all of the scouts log out?” Checking his clock, Thorn realized that it was about midnight in the real world.

  “It appears so, sir. We have been able to find tracks, but no enemy scouts.”

  “Excellent. Let’s rotate south. Might as well use this opportunity to delay them.” Bringing the Wolfkin Dusk Walker with them, the three rushed south, following the half circle path that the Crimson Snake scouts had occupied. Unsurprised by the Dusk Walker’s ability to keep up with him, Thorn was a little taken aback when Mina refused his offer to carry her.

  Shaking her head resolutely, the Ice Witch had muttered something about being perfectly capable in her own right and then, in a flash of icy wind, teleported forward. Each
teleportation could take her fifty meters forward, allowing her to outpace the two runners easily. Constantly casting the teleportation spell was obviously taxing and Mina soon began to breathe heavily.

  “Hey, Mina. Hold up.” Thorn called for her to wait in between two teleports.

  “What? Hey, what are you doing? Put me down!” Lifted off the ground unexpectedly, Mina grabbed tightly onto Thorn’s head as he set her on his shoulder.

  “There is no need for you to waste your magic here. I need you fresh when we ambush the scouts.”

  “Hmph. Fine.” Turning her head away, Mina lapsed into silence. Thorn could tell that she was still angry at him. Ever since she had logged in she had been much quieter than normal.

  The group of three ran through the forests, occasionally seeing a Wolfkin Dusk Walker who would rise from their hiding places to point the direction to the next location. Within half an hour they had made it to the southern end of the Crimson Snake formation and met up with the Dusk Walker who was responsible for watching for the enemy.

  “Let’s wait here.” After finding the spot where the scout had logged out, Thorn walked to a small copse of trees nearby. “Plan is simple, when the scout logs back in, we’ll attack. Once we take out the scout, we will retreat a bit and watch for more scouts.”

  “How are we going to ambush them from here?” Mina asked, looking at the distance separating them from the tracks.

  “Leave that to me.” Grinning, Thorn pulled out his giant siege crossbow from his inventory. Resting the arbalest on his shoulder, Thorn made a shooting motion at the spot where the scout had logged out. “As soon as they log in, bam! Though, I will need you to back me up if I miss.”

  “Sure thing, I got it.” Mina patted her chest confidently. “You know, I think we need a cool symbol for our guild. Like, something really distinctive.”

  Used to Mina’s abrupt subject changes, Thorn nodded, happy that she was getting back to her normal talkative self. He produced one of the silver tokens with the mark of Hati that he had gotten in Hati’s Ascent, handing it over to her.

  “What do you think about this? I am thinking of adapting the symbol of Hati. We’re already really closely tied with the Moon Wolf and the Wolfkin, so using it shouldn’t be an issue.”

  “I think it is a pretty cool symbol, though I think it’d be better to use the citadel instead of the wolf head. Same idea, but with the outline of the citadel. Or maybe the citadel with the wolf head on top of it.” The longer she spoke, the brighter Mina’s eyes got.

  “Yeah, that is a pretty cool idea.” Thorn nodded, his eyes fixed on the empty field where their target would appear.

  For the next five hours they waited for the scout to log back in. Thorn used much of that time to compose messages and plan for the impending war, all the while lending Mina’s unceasing conversation half an ear. About half-way through the wait Thorn’s stomach began to rumble, interrupting Mina.

  “Really? Didn’t you eat on the way over here?” Mina rolled her eyes. “You are ridiculous.”

  “Hey, there is a lot of me to maintain.” Thorn protested, spreading a small blanket on the ground next to him. “It is time for a snack.” He began to pull steaming hot dishes from his inventory, setting them on the blanket in preparation for his snack. After the sixth dish the two Night Walker’s jaws dropped open. However, their shock at the amount of food Thorn got out for his snack paled in comparison to the horror they felt as they watched him swallow whole plates of food in a few bites.

  Not wanting to be left out, Mina jumped in with gusto, desperately grabbing food to shove in her mouth before Thorn sent it down his throat into the bottomless pit that was his stomach. Practically choking on the food, Thorn patted her on the back.

  “Slow down. There is plenty.” Turning to the astounded Night Walkers, Thorn gestured with the large turkey leg he was holding. “Are you hungry? Please help yourself. Don’t stand on ceremony either, I am not really into that.”

  After the four of them ate their fill and Thorn had cleaned up the plates, he picked up his arbalest again and aimed it loosely at the field. He was not completely sure where the scout would be spawning but he was confident that his giant bolt would be enough to take them out. After another forty minutes of waiting, one of the Night Walkers noticed a slight shimmer in the air and called it out in a low voice.

  In the field a figure appeared as if they were stepping through a film of rolling mist. A young woman in the familiar crimson armor covered by a dark green cloak began to materialize. Looking around as she logged in, the female scout failed to notice Thorn and the others hiding in the nearby clump of trees. Her body broke through the last wisps of ether a giant crossbow bolt as thick as her wrist smashed through her crimson chest plate, blasting her body into shattered lights. Just as quickly as the scout had arrived she was sent out of the game.

  “Alright, let’s retrieve the bolt and anything she dropped and retreat. We need one person to stay here and let us know if the army is moving this direction.”

  “I’d be happy to that, my lord.” One of the Dusk Walkers stepped forward, his fist thumping on his chest in a warrior’s salute.

  “Make sure you keep your distance. Absolutely no engagement allowed. Hide somewhere nearby and as soon as you spot the army, retreat to the Moon Wolf Citadel and report to Velin. We’ll need every possible fighter back at the pass, so prioritize safety over everything else.”

  “Yes, sir!”

  “Mina, I am going to head off the scout west of here and then retreat, you deal with the scout to the northeast.” Thorn turned to the other Dusk Walker. “I am trusting you to keep her safe and back her up in case there is more than one enemy.”

  “Of course, my lord!” Giving a warrior’s salute, the lanky Wolfkin gripped his bow tightly, his eyes shining with pride at Thorn’s trust.

  “Bah, I don’t need help.” Mina grumbled. “I don’t lose one on one fights, ever.”

  “Mina, don’t mess around. This is serious. We are trying to buy as much time as possible but if you go and get yourself killed we will have serious problems later.”

  “Okay, okay. I get it. Man, you’re starting to nag like Velin.”

  “Alright, let’s go.” Patting the short Ice Witch on the head, Thorn gave an encouraging smile to the two Wolfkin and the group split up, heading to their respective jobs.

  Thirteen miles northwest a large group of people wound their way slowly through the underbrush like a giant crimson serpent. At the head of the group, Telis and Korith, Angdrin’s two lieutenants, talked quietly together as they led the way.

  “That’s what I’m saying. I feel like we’re grasping at straws.” Korith grumbled in a low voice.

  “Hush!” His crimson armored companion looked around to see if anyone could hear. “You know it is not going to end well if anyone hears you so stop talking about it.”

  “Don’t pretend you feel any different about it.” The warrior spat on the ground. About to continue he was stalled by Telis’ raised hand.

  “Hold on. I got a message from Jace.” Her eyes grew wide in excitement. “She was killed almost as soon as she logged in. Southeast of here, ten to fifteen miles away. Send the two nearest scouts to check what is going on. We’ll take a fifteen-minute rest and then adjust our direction if needed.”

  “Hold march!” Bellowed Korith, causing the winding column of players and natives to stop. “We’re taking a fifteen-minute break so eat your rations if you have them but maintain march readiness!” Turning back to Telis who was still reading the message she had received from the scout, he frowned. “What is going on? What did Jace find?”

  “Chill out. I’m still trying to make sense of this. She said that she spawned but as soon as she did she got hit by a giant spear and was killed.”

  “A giant spear?”

  “Yeah, the shaft was at least the size of her wrist.”

  “Whoa, that is big. Sounds like an ogre’s spear. I really hope it isn’t ogres.�
� Korith groaned, rubbing his bald head.

  “We’ll find out soon. I’ve dispatched Ellie and Silverflare to that position so we should have more information soon.” The more even tempered of the two, Telis re-read the message while getting some rations from her inventory.

  To the south, two scouts that had logged in nearby got a message and immediately changed their direction, heading toward the spot where their companion was killed. Moving carefully, the male scout smoothed back his silver hair with both hands, revealing sharp, pointed ears. As an elf, he had a natural affinity for moving through nature and made good time getting to Jace’s last known position.

  Studying the empty field from afar, a slight prickling along the back of his neck told him that there was something off. Thanks to his class he could sense the danger in the air, though he could not pinpoint exactly where the danger was originating. Concerned, he was about to retreat when he heard a sound and the temperature around him plummeted, reaching zero degrees in less than a second. Shocked, he tried to throw himself backward but his feet would not move. As an arrow cut a path through the back of his neck his brain caught up to his ears.