(Author: Hello all! Happy Father's Day. Someone asked about Odin's stats so here goes. Like the last chapter stated: Odin is ranked 257 out of 683 heroes. That means there are at least 256 heroes stronger than him through a combination of stats and levels. Odin's stats are high but he is not the strongest. However, his experience is the most unique given what he's been through. The time has come to introduce the arena! Blood! Death! Someone ending up as lunch for another while another loses his lunch watching it. The carnage! The adrenaline! All that good stuff. Odin returns to Lana and they head to the coliseum. The dark elves sent by General Izala have also arrived in Sea Wolf Cove. All that's left for them to do is to find who has the Dread Ring and take Odin to the Fallen One. Enjoy.)
------------Chapter 9: The Coliseum-----------------
Odin used his spear to mine some of the crystals that once sealed the elder dragon.
The crystals were obviously very powerful and he could use them as materials for his enchantments. He tested out his mithril shield and curved mithril sword spikes as he imagined being attacked by a swarm of trolls. After fighting imaginary trolls for thirty minutes, Odin stopped and stared at the now empty crystal cavern. One day he would transform into a dragon that looked like the one trapped inside. He would look like large dragon with brilliant black scales and dark purple eyes that would instill fear when looked upon. The only difference was that he would be much more powerful than the one he absorbed.
Trillion remained dormant in his mind and he hadn't hear even a whisper since the event ended. He only had about three friends: Marcus, Trillion, and Lana. Johnny was in his friend's list but he barely new the boy for half a day before they parted ways. To the rest of the world, Odin would be cruel and relentless if they wronged him. Kindness for kindness and bad for worse.
Odin wrinkled his nose at the smell of rotten blood and burned the bodies of the trolls with demon dragon fire. He did not want to start a plague with their rotting bodies. If you killed something, you had to destroy the body or bury it very deep. Some people just overlooked the small details and real life was different than a game or story book. If a hero tried to save the village, he could, but he might overlook some of the long term affects of his choices.
A wise man once said, "For every action, there is a reaction. For every wrong, a right. An endless cycle of balance and imbalance. In the end, there is no life without death. No beginning without an end."
Odin finished burning the bodies and destroyed the cave before returning to the bridge. He took one last look at the direction of the cave before continuing down the path to Lana's house. He paused as he saw her watering her flowerbed in front of her house. The scene reminded him of how peaceful his life once was before he followed Marcus to the gaming convention where it all changed.
He was no longer human now and he saw mana strands everwhere he looked. They were permeable though but sometimes the thicker strands glowed and blocked what he would have seen if they didn't exist. He could stop the mana flow near his eyes to not see the strands, but his life was in danger now. Peace had become a dream now. There was no character selection or in-game store to alter his character. He was stuck for what he was: a monster, wanted, and knight with abilities no one had on Earth.
"Hello Odin," Lana smiled as she saw him walk to her. "You've become stronger. The life energy is more vibrant around you as if you are made of it."
"Hey Lana," Odin said softly as he followed her into her house.. "A lot happened during my training. The trolls are dead and the dragon is gone."
"You killed it?" Lana asked.
"Yeah, for an event. The Chaos attacks should be halted for about three months save for individual actions," Odin nodded as they sat down around a table. "I also read something about the Fallen One. He is chasing me as well as the Witch King."
"No," Lana gasped as her face turned pale. "This is bad. The Fallen One is an ancient evil that has existed since before the Chaos. When my people and the other races of this world besides the beast and monsters appeared on this planet, the Fallen One was ruling it. The records of my people state that the world was covered in darkness before the Fallen One was driven back and split into many pieces. Most of those pieces were sealed away. A small speck of the Fallen One escaped and controls a small kingdom on the other side of the planet. If he is chasing you, he has begun trying to rule the world. He'll desire the Rings of Power once more. All five used to be his, each representing one of the five primary elements of nature. The elements are wood, fire, earth, gold, and water. Each of the Rings of Power hold absolute authority over one of those elements. The Dread Ring contains the power over the element of wood. The Witch King was feared due to his power over earth and wood. The reason the Chaos can escape their prison world beneath the earth is because of the Witch King and his Ring of Power."
"Then these primary elements are the most powerful of all the others. I had always thought it was fire, air, water, and earth," Odin sighed.
"Those are the four basic elements of mana, the fuel for our spells and warrior arts," Lana replied. "The records of my people say that the army of General Izala is the Fallen One's eyes and ears as well as the dagger in the knight. They are an army of dark elves who specialize in espionage and assassination. I would not trust a dark elf. Chances are, they work for General Izala. I will accompany you from now on, if you'll have me. I know much about the dangers you face and hope that you meet with my people instead of heading to the capital of the beast kin in Uzalga. I can't say much, but what I can say is that you are being used by Harker."
"It seems that there is much I don't know," Odin laughed weakly. "I trust you Lana. I'm glad to have you by my side. I just hope you're accustomed to running for your life as I have many enemies. Dragons, the Witch King, and the Fallen One all want me for their own twisted purposes, dead or alive. After the fights in the coliseum, we leave for Uzalga. We'll head for your people as you wish. Elves must have fountains of knowledge and I would be foolish to reject an opportunity to access it."
"Great," Lana smiled. "Now as for your fight in the coliseum, there are many things you should know about it first. The fights in the coliseum are not just for one day. It lasts a month and occurs every three months after it ends. There are many tests to undergo for some of the more difficult fights for a volunteer. As much as the island loves fights, the masters of the islands only enjoy seeing the wicked die without a fight. If you do not prove you are strong enough for the fight, you will not be able to participate."
"So it's like an elimination to weed out the weak and prevent a fight that lacks entertainment. The more equal the fight, the harsher and bloodier it is as well as more unpredictable. These kinds of fights make the most money for gambling," Odin nodded. "I assume there are ranking systems and different kinds of matches?"
"The rankings are pretty much like the adventurer's guild. The ranks from weakest to strongest are F,E,D,C,B,A,S and SS. However, there is never any arena fights ranked S or above. Furthermore, just because a fight is given a rank, doesn't mean that the arena is very powerful. There is more than one kind of interpretation for strength," Lana answered. "There are fights where only one man can survive out of a group of five or more. There are individual fights against other participants or monsters. There are also fights with group against group. I will watch you fight from the stands and try to see if any dark elves are hiding. The trials to qualify for the fights is tomorrow. I suggest resting first. Tomorrow is a big day. Some will try to assess your true power. Best to hide your power and display only a little amount over the bare minimum qualifications."
"I see. Thanks Lana," Odin said and went upstairs to the guest room to rest.
System NoticeSystem will now install updates.
Alpha Phase has been completed.
System has been remodeled.
All racial changes will now finish integration.
Prosthetic limbs will now be altered to feel like the original.
Heroes who are part human will now feel hunger based on their race.
Evolutions are now inaccessible.
Partial genetic changes are still available.
Racial changes are still available.
Physical appearances will be revised.
Beta Phase now commencing.
All heroes awarded Vessel of Deities.
Received Ark of the Phantom For surviving the Alpha Phase you have received a Vessel of Deities.
An orb containing a small piece of a Deity's power.
Allows the hero to transform into a seven meter tall giant of armor.
Hero cannot die while transformed.
Restriction: Odin Argent.
Uses mana upon use.
Transformation ends when all mana is consumed.
Restricted access until level 40.
Charged with impure life energy.
Learned: Eclipse DesolationUnlocked a class skill.
By gaining the ark with the power of the Phantom Deity, you gained his power.
Incorporating its power, the Witch Knight can blast a wave of energy at the opponent.
Non-elemental energy wave.
Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author's consent. Report any sightings.
System NoticeDeities are powerful immortals who live in one of the 9 Immortal Realms.
Primordial Gods are the master of Deities and live in the Divine Realm.
Current location: Mortal Realm.
Odin and other heroes who were sleeping woke up upon seeing the constant system notices. Each of them finally unlocked a class specific skill incorporating the power of a Deity. The whole world trembled as each hero received an orb which was an ark they would use to transform. Ancient ruins began appearing all over the world and new types of monsters and new continents appeared as the world even expanded and doubled in size. No one but the heroes knew what was going on.
The alpha phase was over. Just like in a game, the world was reformatted and edited for new content and improved gameplay. Stats were officially locked and titles were no longer awarded. In the Divine Realm, the Primordial Gods were amused as their new toy was upgraded. Now the world would become even more entertaining. The world expanded and the Chaos took advantage. The Chaos took over most of the new lands that appeared and ceased all attacks while its creators and masters, such as the Witch King, began making their plans. The tides of change have come and gone. Now the planet had to adjust to the changes made by the tsunami. They had born witness to a greater power they could never understand and had no ideas that they were just pawns in a game to the Primordial Gods.
Odin grabbed his stomach as the global expansion of the planet ended. He felt a hunger he never experienced before. His glowing, iridescent blue eyes gazed at the mana strands around him. They had seemed to change. They were more dispersed and many of the crimson and azure mana strands seemed to break off and plunged into the earth. Lana ran upstairs to Odin's room to make sure he was alright. She gasped as his hair had turned abyssal black with some hair strands the color of a dark orange like his dark orange and white monster core. She felt life energy emanate strongly from a strange orb that appeared beside Odin. Odin put the orb in his spatial ring and stared at Lana.
"Do you have a monster core?" Odin asked. "I need to feed. The world changed somehow. As a Hero of the Thousand, I know this. I can feel the hunger of a monster now. I'll probably need to feed on monster cores often."
Lana quickly gave him a monster core from her spatial ring and watched Odin press the monster core against his own crystal monster core and watched it dissolve into impure planetary life force and disappear in his chest. Odin sighed in relief as the hunger passed and thanked Lana.
"It's morning," Odin murmured as he saw that the night suddenly changed to dawn. "The world has changed. Nothing we can do about that. You should go ahead and eat breakfast Lana. I'll join you downstairs later when we leave."
Unsure of what transpired, Lana nodded and headed downstairs. Odin would always need to feed on monsters and devour their cores now to survive. He would no longer absorb monster cores to evolve, but to survive. He changed into his usual gear and left for the coliseum after an hour.
He joined a large line that formed outside the coliseum. There were several open areas where tests would be conducted. The first test was a test of strength. Anyone who wished to volunteer in the gladiator games in the sands of the arena within the coliseum had to break at least 20 boards made of ebony wood, wood as hard as steel.
"This test usually eliminates some of the weaker people already," Lana said as she gave him one of the boards that would be used. "The wood is as hard as steel. Usually people who only want to participate in the weaker fights pass only the first test. You're Volunteer Number 71: Witch Blade. It would be best not to say your real name while you are here."
Odin had both hands on the ebony wood board. Curious as to how strong it was, he pulled it from both sides. He smiled awkwardly as it tore in two quite easily. He incinerated it into ash with his lightning before Lana looked back.
"The tiles are quite hard right? No magic can be used to break the tiles. It should not be hard for you, knowing what you are. Just don't stand out too much unless you want to fight in the gladiator games with several of the strongest gladiators gather to fight very powerful monsters," Lana said and saw him smile. "Ah, you do wish to participate in that arena. The requirement to fight in the most deadly fight is to break 50 boards. The minimum requirements are high for all three trials. There are also seven rounds of slaughter before the grand finale with the most powerful of beasts there."
Odin waited until it was his turn. He tapped the board lightly and turned away. The number of boards he broke were fifty seven. He started toward the next testing area when someone got in his way. The man was over six feet tall and quite muscular. However, he only broke thirty eight boards and did not qualify for the top ranking arena games. The big man pointed a huge pike made of a mix of mithril and steel and pointed it at Odin's face.
"You cheated Witch Blade. Someone like you could never break fifty seven boards with a simple tap. Furthermore, you dare call yourself Witch Blade," the man laughed, the crowd clearing. The man was a very powerful local with a reputation. No one wanted to get on his bad side.
Odin merely glanced at the man before grabbing the pike and crushing it in his fist. The man was only level 18 and people were scared of him? It seems the rankings did not consider levels in the eyes of the heroes. Everyone who saw paled as he crushed the pike. Even if it wasn't pure mithril, such strength was definitely out of their expectations.
"Just be glad we're not in the arena," Odin said as he grabbed the color of the man's shirt and pulled it forward, smashing his forehead on the big man's face. "If we were in the arena, you'd have more problems to worry about than a broken nose and a few missing teeth. Get lost."
Odin ignored the cursing big man and felt a bang sound a moment later on his back, forcing him forward one step. He looked back and saw the big man stare back at him, wide-eyed, as he looked between Odin and the crushed pike in his hands while blood flowed down his face. Odin gabbed the guy's arm and used sent a spark of lightning in the man's body. The crowd watched as the man twitched violently before he slumped to the ground, unconscious.
"All fools," Odin spat and turned to face Lana. "Are all these people as weak as that guy?"
"No," Lana said, smiling as she gestured to the next area. "But most of them are."
Odin and Lana walked to the next testing area while some people in the ground pulled the poor man out of the way to continue the first test. Odin paused as he detected small waves of azure and crimson mana strands converge on someone watching from a distance. He looked to his left and saw an elf with skin the color of stone and glowing purple eyes.
"Lana, what do you see to our left hiding behind the wall over there," Odin whispered to her.
"I see a wood elf," Lana answered as she took a quick glance. "Wait, I can sense enormous mana strands around her. It must be some kind of illusion magic. Why? What do you see?"
"It appears that the spies of this General Izala who serves the Fallen One you mention before are quite good in their job. Most likely they will participate in the arena where I will fight," Odin said.
"The spies and assassins always work in groups of twelve," Lana warned. "Four to scout the target. To determine the target's strengths and weaknesses. Four to join them to assassinate the target. Half to fight from a distance while the other four fight face-to-face. The last of the four assassins oversee the mission and are the strongest. They intervene should the other eight fail. The last four never fail. Two of the twelve always know necromancy. That way, not even death can stop them from their mission. How many do you see?"
"All twelve of them. Not only that, they seem to have noticed that we saw them and dissolved their illusion. They know I won't run. Seeing as they revealed themselves, their objective is not to kill me," Odin observed.
"They must know you are a monster," Lana realized. "They must aim to take you to the Fallen One to bind your monster core and make you his slave. What do you want to do?"
"I'll kill them in the arena. I chose to be a knight and I gained the Witch Knight class. I will face them head on and skewer them with my spear," Odin said, the bloodlust rising within him. "I want those monster cores and the flesh of monsters to cook and eat. Since the events of last time, I have an unending hunger for monsters. I always feel a need to feed. The hunger can only be controlled, but it always comes back. I can't let some dark elven assassins stop me."
Lana nodded and Odin passed the second and third test with ease. The second test tested his reflexes while the third test tested his speed. Odin and the dark elves stared at each other as the other twelve also passed the trials. Odin cracked his knuckles and couldn't wait for the first of the fights in the arena. He found out one of the dark elves would be fighting with him in his first fight in the first round with nine others surrounded with various monsters. The fight would end when all monsters were dead unless the participants wanted to keep going until one man stood standing.
"I'll start with one and slowly kill my way until you're all dead," Odin said silently as he and Lana walked past them to return to her home. "Try to make it entertaining. I killed a dragon and it wasn't much of a fight as it had its magic sealed. You should be better than that. I'll be waiting in the sands in the arena. You better bring the best armor and weapons you got because I'm going to kill that dark elf first before I kill and take my prize, the bodies and monster cores that are just waiting for me to take them all and devour them."