Game Over...
DO YOU WISH TO START OVER AGAIN ?
The inquisive sentence floated around near the virtual soul that experienced its end. As if mocking the companions of the dead body, the murderer crushed mercilessly the corpse before the party of the deceased.
The inhuman being opened its maw and a light shone brightly from its throat along with unbearable heat.
The "soul" did not want to see this scene. It had experienced it countless times. Countless times while trying to find a good end route for this hellish game.
"Fuck it... You've seen it chat. I don't think this game has a good ending to begin with. Can someone update the list of outcomes ? Max Magic and Elemetnal RES strategy isn't working, even with the safest route and planning. Even rallying the Six other Sins didn't work. By the way, how did we last ? Did someone count it?"
- 3 min
- 3.17
- 3 something
-...
"Well that's annoying then. I thought I lasted at least 5 minutes... But that makes no sense, right ? There's gotta be an ending where you save the world. If I speedrun this I might have two or three more runs left to try, what do you think guys ?"
The figure watched his chat getting hyped for the last time surely. In less than a day, the game would shut down.
"Alright ! Let's do this guys ! Good ending you better prepare yourself !"
...
Game Over...
⊗ DO YOU WISH TO START OVER AGAIN ? ⊗
"Well, that was fun chat... Thanks for the laughs and sticking out with me all this time. It must have been boring at some point, no ? You bunch could have done something else other than watching me play this dead game...
Maaaaan. Guess we'll never see the good ending. And Wrath's backstory even less. Seriously, why did the dev begin a romance route with her if we can't even talk to her until the last fight..."
The streamer looked back to read a few messages of his audience. Some were consoling him, some were sending crying emojis, some were still speculating about the game's lore.
"Oh, Skamandy's right ! We never got the chance to learn about the kindgom that was destroyed in the setting ! Like, the only thing that's shown in-game is a weird ruin ! Aw that's such a shame. Feels like they dropped this part of the plot to finish the story sometimes... y'know, sometimes I wonder if people managed to crack the gamefiles, it'd at least give us an idea of what happens and the enemy's lore..."
- Never cracked, people still respect Indie games
"True true. That was rude of my part."
- Just be honest, you just wanted a romance route with Wrath, we know you
- This
- ... Liz will get you for this.
"Agh! Guys ! You're killing me ! It's not my fault that she's beautiful in the cutscene ! Not as beautiful as Liz but beautiful nonethless. Bah, anyway. Not that the game's reaching EoS, we could maybe find another game out there to discover ? Heard that there were plenty of retro JRPG games that could interest me. Talked about this with the mods a few days ago... Hear me out chat..."
---
The stream had just ended and the content creator was now intensely looking at the countdown displayed on the screen. Three minutes left until the shutdown.
That streamer... that was me. Straal. While some enjoy playing gacha and other raging with Souls-like, I was focused on RPG's.
In real life, my name's Jean. I'm a pretty normal citizen. Relatively good salary from a job in bioengineering, a comfortable house and a childhood-friend turned-girlfriend. Her name ? Liz.
Got a very good life. With my sharp face and messy hair, Liz alwasy said I was fairly attractive. I took her world as they were. My features were just a bonus for my friendly and easygoing behavior she said.
I have hobbies, streaming of course. Reading fantasy novels. Learning about animals and going hiking during the weekend. Others too, but my main passion was still JRPG's.
Mostly the old school ones, from before the 2070's. The genre became niche in the mid 50's, the time during which VR tech and games truly progressed. And with that, funds and the general interest eventually forgot about JRPG's. A shame. I had my fanbase and I streamed for fun so that wasn't really a problem for me.
But that became a problem for devs and studios that mainly created such games. With no resources and investments, games were becomming rarer. The only game that managed to pierce in these recent years was "Sins of Marka", the game that was about to EoS in a few...
The concept was cliché as hell, I won't sugarcoat it. A commoner nobody gets enrolled into the most prestidigious magic academy of the game world; Marka, where they prove themselves as a powerhouse and aims for the top while also managing an Adventurer life outside of school time.
2:02
Your goal, well the main character's initial goal is to get information about his parents, who disappeared after exploring some ruins somewhere. Along the way, you form relationships, go through hardships and strenghen yourself.
But then, as you progress through the plot, you discover that the main character's parents were murdered by a subordinate of the Seven Deadly Sins, who are all about to awaken.
From that moment on, the story takes a dark turn. As soon as you begin to uncover this, attacks all over the world are launched by followers of the Sins. Your goal turns into your typical "save the world and destroy the Seven Sins".
1:13
What truly made this game different despite the unoriginal plot was the completely new gameplay and interactions thanks to nowadays' hardware. A very lively game wherer actions had a long lasting impact on the rest of the game. Of course some major events couldn't be altered but funnily enough you could prevent some of the Sins from reappearing. Which could make things way easier, or harder too.
But seven years of service, seven years where the community desesperately tried to find a single good ending. Seven years where we tried to slay Raya, The Sin of Wrath, to no luck. The boss was unbeatable. Even with the strongest artifacts, the strongest defense, the strongest magic, The Wrath overwhelmed the player, their party and their allies with landscape-destroying attacks. She was on a whole other realm than the rest of the game's enemies.
When other enemies were cunning and used tacticts to defeat the players thanks to their advanced coding, The Sin was just pure strengh, overwhelming power that crushed you in an instant. Even the sturdiest shields couldn't stand more than five blows, even the strongest magic enchantments lasted barely more than ten seconds against her flames.
The devs said themselves her Wyvern behaviour was greatly inspired from a monster of an old game about hunting monsters and creating clothes out of them. Something called "Tgrex" or something was the base material for the AI.
0:37
The title suited the character. The few information you heard about her was that she was in search of revenge, with an unquenchable thirst for violence and chaos. Hate and resentement described her best.
But the reason why people tortured themselves, why they didn't complain much was because she was hot when she appeared in her introduction cutscene.
But while you could learn about the backstory of the other Sins when you defeated them, how they became the Avatars of Sins, you could barely learn The Wrath's name before the final fight.
Well now, everything was in the past. I'd never be able to see my waifu again now.
0:00
I stared at the screen. There it was. The end. After sighing, I pulled out my phone and texted Liz. We had a rendez-vous just after stream at a nearby café. "Macaron fondant". As the name suggested, the café's speciality was macarons, Liz's favorite pastries.
I hummed while looking at myself in the mirror, trying to arrange my wild hair.
Right, deodorant too. Aight, let's do this.
If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.
A few minutes later I was stolling in the streets with Liz, chatting happily about her new job interviewand other topics. She too loved "Sins of Marka" and tried to reach a happy ending with me. Everytime she played solo or with NPC's who weren't interested in the main character because "even in another world, I was the only one she'd love". She was cute.
"Today I'm picking five mango cream macarons and seven strawberry ones ! How about you ?"
"Heh, you sure you'll be able to eat all of that ? You're so cute when you pick too much. You always end up begging me to finish your treats."
"Sh-shush ! A-anyway. I've watched the end of your stream... You said the Sin of Wrath is hot, didn't you...?"
"Huuuh yes ?" I asked carefuly. Her pouty face was cute too. Just like mochi. It made me want to poke it.
"Hm. Then maybe I should cosplay as her, don't you think~"
Urgh, I'm so lucky...
Our faces got closer to each other's and we both blushed. Even though we had been seven years in a relationship, we still had our moments of shyness.
Multiple potential criminal targets found. Commencing annihilation.
What ?
A defective droid just came out of a dark alley. The pulse rifle it was charging was menacing. Liz and I both began to run. These droids were used to dispose of criminals, when they were functionnal and without any error in their code. They were supposed to recognize normal citizens from people who commited grave crimes.
The droid opened fire. We both tripped on a corpse it just sniped.
Ah.
At this distance... there was no hope to escape from it.
At least we didn't feel our heads getting blown off by the pulse. Seems that the bit of code that imposed a painless death was something that couldn't be corrupted.
----------------------------------------
Scree- ?
Wha- what the fuck ?
"Sweetie, see ? It's beautiful."
It ? Excuse me ? I'm not a thing !
"Of course Kalia ! it has Their blood ! The blood of Wrathful Fire ! I already sense great power from its heart ! This child will be an outstanding Wyvern when it grows up !"
Why is my father... a dragon thing ? Wait no, he said Wyvern. Am I...
What the fuck ? Why's there a tail ? Where are my hands ?! I don't want arm wings !Where's my dick ? Where's everything ? Nonononononono! I've got no genitals ! What am I even ? Screeeeeee !
What the fuck are my parents ?!
"Brah! You little spitfire ! Did you just release you first breath ?! Kalia ! have you seen this ?! It's not even a day old and its already spitting fire ! Ahaha ! The Prophecy was true ! The one who will hold The Wrath and supress it at last is born !"
"Hon, don't say such things. We're the Great Priests but even for us speaking lightly of this matter is not something we can do."
"But look ! That's the first saying of the Prophecy ! The wyrm, child of the Wrathful who set the world ablaze shall quench Their thirst for revenge with its newborn fire and douse the flame of life of the Progenitor. That's the first sign ! We are both direct descendants of the Wrathful ! And this child made its firstborn fire !"
"Please Fireroc. Wait at least five years, let us observe if there are more signs."
"I get it Kalia. Let's wait. You hear that huh ? What a cute Wyrm you are, sweet Raya."
WHAT ?! Raya ?! As in... Raya, The Drake Sin of Wrath...? Not... possible...
---
During these five years, Raya grew among its new kin. It took surprisinlgy well the change of race and of anatomy. It didn't take well the fact that it would be nor male nor female until it reached fifteen, the age where Wyverns developed their sexual dismorphism.
From the perspective of its past life, Raya could describe itself as a typical Earth-style wyvern. Two arms that acted as wings and arms, a set of hindlegs, a tail, scales, a snout and a sharp row of teeth on its jaw.
In "scaleless form" which meant humainoid form, Raya looked like an androgynous teen. Firy red hair with orange and yellow tips. Light lean muscles and patches of scale-plates on its hips, shoulders, lower jaw and neck.
The head was decorated by two Z-shaped horns that pointed towards the back of the skull, the hands and feets had sharp talons attached to them while the arms looked like the ones from harpies, except that the feathers were remplaced by a wing-membrane.
The whole package also came with a Fire Breath. In scaled and scaleless form.
Raya learnt at school that this tribe of Wyverns was the closest in lineage to the respected but dreaded original Drake Sin of Wrath. Yes. Every Wyvern was Their descendant. This... was never said in the lore.
The Fire Breath was the proof of a close blood tie with the Dragon. The further the element strayed from actual fire, the further the blood of a Wyvern was from their Progenitor's.
Water and Earth Wyverns were more common but the Primordial blood was diluted to a point it would take a hundred generations to even come back to a quarter of Their blood in the next Wyverns' veins. Wind was the second closest blood-relatives to the Projenitor and there was a moderate amount of them, spread around Marka.
In contrast, there were only a handful of Fire Wyverns. All in this village. The birthplace of The Wrath. The tribe included a thousand Wyverns right now.
Raya also discovered something from its parents. Kalia and Fireroc were the priests of the tribe, its spiritual and political leaders. Raya would inherit the title as it possessed the purest blood in the tribe. The two parents were tasked to protect and hide away the ancient artefact known as the Hearth of Wrath. Their Heart.
The artifact that held all of The Sin's Essence. Its rage, its pain, its desire of vengeance. It was protected by arrays of fire magic and Wyvern Breath that would incinerate anyone who'd try to step closer. Even fellow Wyverns apart from the couple of priests.
At some point during its studies, the Wyrm questiond itself whether the events of the game would happen because the original Raya would attempt to steal the relic. She would become the Sin itself after all.
Former Jean swore he'd never come in contact with the dangerous thing unless necessary the day these thougths came to be.
"Ohoh~ Honorable Wyrm Raya ! Stolling around in scaleless-skin ? It's rare to see you in that form. Look at you little reptile, already as big as a teen Wyrm ! You are sure to be the One !"
Krrrrrrr...
"Elder Kran. Good morning to you. Basking in the sun am I right ?" The old Wyvern nodded while releasing a moan of relaxation.
"Well you're right Elder. I'm much more used to the body of scales. It always feels weird to crawl around when I'm without them. It's like I'm naked and... pretty much defenseless."
"Hm hm. I was like you back then. I felt the same. By the way, I heard that your father is looking for you. YOu know what day it it, right ?" the Wyvern stated slowly as she scratched her back scales with her tail.
Krrr.
"Thank you for the info, I'll be going then."
"May we meet later, Honorable Wyrm Raya."
The young Wyrm paid no mind to the formal tone of the much older interlocutor. "Honorable"... The members of the tribe had started calling it as such after an incident depicted in the Prophecy.
During a ceremony, a two years old Raya had accidentally entered the altar where the Hearth of Wrath was located, without being turned to ashes. All under the eyes of every member of the tribe, who was scared shitless up until moments ago then. Something about "The guarding purgatory shall not take offense in the prescence of the One."
It scoffed. If these events had happened in the game, that Prophecy was as reliable as a wet firecracker. After a long walk, it finally arrived in front of its father's form.
"Young Wyrm." the tone was solemn. It was the tone of Fireroc the priest, not the tone of Fireroc the father. "You have reached the age of five. The age where Wyrms become proper Wyverns.
A trial awaits you deep in the nearby forest. You will have to prove your strengh, prove your flames, prove that you are of Their lineage ! And at night !
You will return not as Raya the Honorable Wyrm, but as Raya the Destined Wyvern ! Make your tribe proud ! Make your parents proud ! Make yourself proud !"
Right... The Destined Wyvern. The title of the One who shall end The Wrathful. More like Raya the Destined world toaster. Not like I'll let it happen. I don't know what happened to the original Raya but I won't go down the same path. And hell, I'm taking back my dick too when I'm fifteen ! Now what's that trial about ? And where is it ?
...
"All for the Kingdom !" a voice declared on a cliff.
"All for the Kingdom !" countless voices echoed back.
"Capture the so-called Destined Wyvern. Kill the rest while we're drugging it. It needs this to awaken the Wrath within itself."
"Understood General !"
---
This is taking way too long ! What the fuck is this trial ! Dad said night but it's almost midnight already. I left at four in the afternoon !
The Wyrm had been clawing at and charging through Vineguard Spiders and Wild Tusks for something like two hours.
RHAHHH!
The first trial was simple, bruteforce its way through the river's current. The other side had a runestone it'd need for the second trial. This second trial was easy too. Incinerate the forest under five minutes to find another runestone. But the third trial didn't make any sense. The Wyrm was getting impatient and the smoke coming out of its snout was a clear sign that it was very angry.
Its claws dug through the earth and it put its head on the ground.
The spiders and the unfortunate boars ended up getting fried by the powerful Flame Breath that stretched in a cone shape in a twenty meters-radius.
Raya lifted its neck from the scorched soil and smelled the air. Its pupils shrank. The iar had a taste of... blood and smoke ! Not one of the tribesmen's smoke. It learnt to recongize each of their smoke scent. It belonged to another fire. A fire of its former kin.
The powerful front limbs dragged the rest of the Wyrm's body with ease. The trees standing in its way met their early demise and the fauna got away as soon as possible. The animals instinctly knew that although normally not dangerous for them, a charging Wyvern with flames in its mouth was not something you wanted to encounter.
Raya came back to the tribe's territory and witnessed a terrible sight. The members of his tribe were getting chased down by humans in armor bearing an unknown flag. He recognized nothing from their gear. No archives, no game data, nothing that could help identify the soldiers. But why did everyone stay in humanoid form ? Couldn't they just transform and squash them ?
"RAYA ! RUN AWAY !"
That was Fireroc's voice. Raya turneed to see his father in half Wyvern-form clashing with a burly man with decorated armor. His mother was nowhere to be see-
She was in Wyvern form. Raya should have been reasured, if not for the balista darts that pierced her skull and her throat. Now that he saw her, his vison focused and he stared at the corpses of all the tribswyvern who were on patrol today. All impaled in the same fashion. Skull and throat.
"RAYA ! RUN ! AVOID THE SMOKE ! IT'S FORCING US TO TURN SCALELESS !"
A dart whistled in the air and impaled Fireroc's felt wing to the ground. He roared in pain before sending a fireball towards the last working balista.
But he couldn't move without tearing the limb apart. The man he had been fighting turned around and grinned as he saw Raya. But the most concerning part was the bloody bag made of Fireroc's wing membrane in which the Hearth of Wrath was.
"RAYA !"
The soldiers were all in front of it, holding nests, harpoons, blades, spears. The man was in front of it too. Why were they doign this ? Why were they butchering its second life ? That was hateful.
A tiny spark ignited somewhere in its being, but Raya had never felt so cold apart form when it died with Liz. A part of it wanted to do as its father said. And a part of it...
The Wyrm opened its jaw and engulfed the troupe of soldiers in its flames. The breath was so intense that it made the nearby constructions tremble by the air vaccum it created.
The soldiers all cried out in pain and horror, even the burly man. The only problem was the battering ram coming straight for Raya's skull.
"Goodnight, lizard."