Jake watched as the stone circle was dug out from beneath the dirt and dust, having been so heavily buried that he hadn’t noticed it in the town square the several times he’d passed through before. According to Merina, it would take a while to fully clear and charge it, though they had everything they needed to complete the task, meaning that he would be able to access it by the next morning. The thought of finally being able to see Andy again made Jake smile, quickly sending a message to his friend to update him on the happenings.
“What are you grinning like an idiot for?” Bertram asked as he appeared beside Jake, “If you’ve the time to waste staring at construction, you’ve got time to train.”
“Right,” Jake nodded turning to follow him, but glancing back at the teleporter excitedly.
It took him a moment before Jake quickly realised that they weren’t heading towards the barracks, but rather to the back gate of the town. When he asked Bertram, the Assassin just huffed.
“Too much work going on around town,” he grunted, “Kicking up all the dust and doing my head in with the noise. We’ll be heading into your woods to do some stealth training instead.”
“Oh,” Jake nodded as they left the town, staring at the crowd of men and woman furiously chopping at the trees, “Wait, what are they doing?!”
“Clearing a path for the road to your manor,” Bertram laughed as Jake made to rush forwards, “Also gathering materials for the rebuilding of the town. You may have handed over enough gold to build a castle, but that doesn’t mean they’re going to spend it willy nilly.”
“I…okay,” Jake sighed as they moved past the woodcutters, several pausing in their work to watch them, before quickly carrying on, “I just hope they don’t disturb the ecosystem too much.”
“The what now?” Bertram hummed, before shaking his head as Jake started to explain, “Never mind, let’s just get started. What stealth type Skill do you have? [Hide]?”
“I started with that, yes,” Jake nodded, “But I Ascended it to [Silent Movement].”
“Huh, not a bad choice,” Bertram muttered, “Less useful than something like [Sneak] for direct stealth, but I suppose you don’t really need that with whatever Skill you got that lets you turn invisible. What is that, anyway?”
“Oh, it’s a combination of my cloak’s Ability and a [Shadow Magic] Spell,” Jake explained, the man in front of him just staring blankly, “What? Is there something wrong?”
“You have a Primal Magic Skill?” Bertram sighed, “What am I saying? Of course you do! Damned Travellers.”
“Actually, I have two,” Jake said, making the man just sigh even louder, “What?”
“Nothing, how many Ascended Skills do you have? Obviously, you have [Short Swords] and [Silent Movement], but any others?”
Jake nodded as he listed off his Ascended Skills, Bertram just deflating as he spoke.
“Seven,” the Assassin muttered, “Seven bleeding Ascended Skills! Why am I surprised? You’re a fucking Traveller, after all!”
“Is there a problem?” Jake asked, Bertram spinning to glare at him, before letting out yet another sigh.
“No. I thought I was talented for having three Ascended Skills, but you, as shit as you are at everything, have seven of the things at half my level,” he said, “But that’s neither here nor there. No, we’re here to train you into someone that can actually use those Skills, so time to start!”
“Yes sir!” Jake saluted as he watched the man in front of him grin, then suddenly vanish.
------
“He says he’ll be able to be here by sometime tomorrow morning,” Andy said, the others all looking at him incredulously.
“Right, tomorrow morning,” Shadow chuckled, “Right after all the full-timers log off, right? Including us?”
“Hey, it’s not my fault that things take time,” Andy sighed, “He says that they have to clear and charge the Teleporter before he can use it, and that’ll only be done by tomorrow morning.”
“You really need to give it a rest, Goldy,” Sophie huffed, “It was fine for the first few days, but this whole Jakey story is getting out of hand now! He’s not real!”
“He’s real!” Andy snapped, startling the girl and the others, before shaking his head, “Sorry, just…Jakey really does exist. Just trust me on this.”
“I do trust you, Goldy,” Holi hummed, “I’m sure your friend will be here by the time we log in again.”
“Thanks Holi,” Andy nodded, stopping as they approached the gates of Dusk Keep, a massive crowd gathered outside it, “What’s going on?”
“Dunno,” Shadow shrugged, “Let’s go find out.”
The party hurried over to the crowd of players, pushing through to see a train of wagons standing just inside the gate, a merchant shouting at one of the guards.
“I have all the documentation right here!” the man yelled, “So let me through!”
“I apologise, sir,” the guard said slowly, “But we can’t just let you go through the Wilds for a supposed frontier town.”
“Do you have any idea just how much money this is worth?” the apparent merchant fumed, slapping his hand against the cart beside him, “They’re buying all these materials at twice the market price, as long as they can be delivered within the week! You delay me anymore, and you’ll be losing me more Heads than yours is worth!”
“Sir, I’m going to need you to calm down,” the guard said flatly, “Threatening a guard is a serious offense.”
“You…” the merchant snarled, before jumping up onto his cart and cracking the reigns, “I am leaving!”
“Sir, I cannot allow you to-,” the guard shouted as the long train of carts started to move, jumping back as a heavily armoured man stepped in front of him, glaring, “You’ll regret this. The Wilds aren’t something you can just stroll through.”
“That’s why he hired us,” the armoured man sneered, spinning to show the embroidered cape on his back, black with a white bird.
“What? The Black Falcons?” the guard suddenly paled, stepping further back, “B-but you only take-.”
“The best paying jobs,” the man cut him off, nodding, “So get out of the way, gate boy, we have coin to earn!”
A large number of other people, some as heavily armoured as the first man, others in leathers and even robes, and all wearing the black capes, cheered as they emerged from beside the wagons, forcing through the crowd of players in front of them. A few players protested, but quickly backed off as the mercenaries snarled and began to draw their weapons. It took several minutes, but the road was finally clear, the heavily laden wagons off on their journey as more and more followed them out.
“Damn,” Andy hummed as they slid past the train and into Dusk Keep, “What was all that about?”
“No idea,” Shadow shrugged, “Wait…didn’t you say that your friend’s town was in the Wilds?”
------
“Stealth is easy,” Bertram said as he appeared behind Jake once again, making the man spin to try and spot him, only seeing empty air, “You just have to stay out of line of sight.”
“How?” Jake muttered, spinning around again to see nothing, “Why can’t I keep up with you?”
“I’m staying out of your line of sight,” the voice came from just above him, Jake looking up to see the Assassin sitting on a tree branch, “Good instincts. Most folks don’t bother to look up or down much, so it’s fairly simple once you get the hang of it. Of course, you don’t have to worry too much about that with your Spell and cloak, but there will be times when you can’t rely, or even use, them.”
“Right,” Jake nodded as the man dropped down in front of him, “So, what do I do?”
“Exactly as I said,” Bertram hummed, “Stay out of line of sight.”
------
Amelia Hart growled as she danced around the World Boss. This was the fifth time she’d faced the monster in as many days, and she had every one of its moves and patterns memorised. A pot flew out, the Spellsword easily catching it before it hit the ground and tossing it back, shattering against the Kobold Tinkerer’s chest, dowsing it in oil. The monster squealed in indignation, swiping at her with a stick that had a scorpion tied to the end, Amelia spinning away out of reach.
She set her feet as she stopped, lifting her rapier, and pointing it at the monster, then surged forwards with a blast of wind, piercing it straight through the heart.
“Less than two minutes,” Brian said from the entrance to the cave where the monster appeared, “You have beaten your personal best, Miss.”
“Still not enough,” Amelia panted slightly, opening her Character Screen, and looking at her Skills, particularly the Ascended ones, “They aren’t going up anymore. While training with a World Boss was useful for the start, I think I need new prey to advance any further.”
“An astute observation, Miss,” Brian nodded, stepping aside as she strode from the small room and into the cave proper, the sounds of other players fighting off kobolds echoing around her, “Will there be anything else?”
“No,” Amelia said flatly, walking towards the entrance to the cave, “Have the rest gather up outside, it’s time to move on.”
“Yes, Miss,” Brian nodded again, heading off into the darkness as she walked towards the light.
“Not enough,” She growled, “This is still not enough.”
------
Skill [Free Movement] has levelled up.
Skill [Silent Movement] has levelled up.
Jake panted as he darted between the trees, trying to stay out of sight as he moved. It had proven more difficult that he’d expected, especially as the Assassin that was training him seemed to be able to appear at will just beside him.
“Not good enough,” Bertram hummed as he stabbed Jake in the side with one of his stiletto blades, bruising him but not penetrating the armour, “You’re getting better, but hardly good enough.”
Skill [Medium Armour] has levelled up.
“Ow,” Jake muttered as he staggered back, looking at the man in annoyance, “Do you have to stab me each time you find me?”
“Yes,” Bertram grinned, “Pain is a great teacher, and with your gear, I don’t have to hold back at all.”
The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.
“Still,” Jake sighed, looking up at the trees, the first light of dawn starting to trickle down between them, “It’s almost morning. I think that’s enough for now.”
“We still have a few hours before the Teleporter will be done,” Bertram huffed, “No rush, your lordship.”
Jake just groaned at the sarcasm the man used in the name, still not used to his new Title. Shaking his head, he readied himself for another mad dash through the woods, before pausing, a strange, yet familiar, tenseness forming in his chest.
“Someone just entered the woods,” he muttered, the feeling growing stronger, “Multiple people.”
“You sure?” Bertram hummed, Jake just nodding as he looked in the direction the feeling told him they’d come from, “Well then, might as well test your Skills against them.”
“What?” Jake blinked, looking at Bertram as the man smiled.
“Go check on whatever just arrived,” the Assassin chuckled, “I’ll follow behind you to make sure you’re doing it right, but something more practical than playing hide and seek will be good for you. And remember, stay out of line of sight.”
“Right,” Jake nodded, jumping into the trees as he shot off into the lifting gloom.
“Fast,” Bertram muttered, shaking his head, “Bloody Travellers and their too many Ascended Skills.”
------
Enki hovered beside Gaia as they watched the pair dart through the woods, one staying a good distance behind the other, and not for lack of trying.
“So,” the Primal of Civilisation hummed, the sound like a hundred bricks being laid at once, “This plan of yours. It proves…interesting.”
“Of course,” Gaia nodded, “I thought of it, after all. My Champion will bring a true piece of civilisation to the Wilds but will also bring a bit of the Wilds into civilisation.”
“And how can you be so sure that will work?” Enki asked, interest in his eyes as he looked at Gaia.
“I’m not,” she admitted, “But I trust him. He shall be the bridge that crosses the gap between us and allows us to once again be at peace.”
“You speak highly of the Traveller, yet he is still weak,” Enki muttered, looking back down at the man as he neared the pack of Shadow Wolves that had just entered his forest, “How can you be so sure that your plans will not go awry? What if he simply chooses to slay these beasts you have called?”
“I don’t think that’ll happen,” Gaia smiled, “Watch.”
------
Jake paused as he saw the familiar forms darting through the early morning shadows, their bodies seeming to merge with the darkness as they moved between the trees. Shadow Wolves. He followed after them as they moved with purpose, quickly arriving at the Cave, and sitting down to rest, raising questions in Jake’s mind. Why were they here? How were they here? The only other Shadow Wolves he had encountered had been the corrupted ones and Luna and her pups, so what did more suddenly appearing mean?
Shaking his head, Jake dropped down from the tree he was hiding in, walking calmly into the clearing around the Cave, several of the wolves immediately standing and growling at him. Jake stopped, looking over each with [Observe], getting the familiar screen above their heads. Shaking his own head, Jake stepped forward again, the wolves reacting by grouping together and snarling, several snapping at him.
“Why are you here?” he muttered, taking another step forwards, the largest of the wolves suddenly leaping towards him. Jake didn’t move, instead sweeping his cloak to the side to reveal his armour and activating its Ability for the first time.
A wave of palpable intent swept out of him for several meters, catching the leaping wolf in its radius, which immediately dropped to the ground and whimpered. The effect ended moments later, the wolf shaking its head, before snarling at him again, starting to circle the man as the rest of the wolves watched. Jake didn’t move as the wolf moved behind him, a strange sense of calm in his chest as he simply waited.
The wolf behind him leapt again, before a shadow moved, and a large form slammed into it, the snarling wolf easily six feet tall at the shoulder, pinning the smaller wolf to the ground with its jaws. The other wolves froze as a series of howls sounded out behind him, seven more figures appearing form the shadows, each as tall as the other, except one, which was smaller than the rest. Luna barked at the largest of the pups, though they could hardly be called pups anymore, releasing the wolf in his grip, stepping back, and looking proudly at Jake.
“Good boy, Alpha,” Jake smiled, the wolf letting his tongue hang out of his mouth as he panted happily, Jake looking to Luna, “Do you know why these Shadow Wolves are here?”
Luna just shrugged, Jake sighing as he looked back at the other pack, who had huddled closer together. Taking another step forward, Jake spoke, quickly switching his active Title as he remembered something.
“I have no plans to harm you,” he said softly, “I just want to know why you’re here.”
The largest of the new pack, having returned to the group, looked into his eyes, Jake able to see the intelligence in them as it bowed its head, growling softly.
“Gaia?” Jake blinked, unsure of how he’d understood the wolf, but knowing that he had, “She…called you?”
The wolf nodded, Jake letting out a relieved sigh.
“That’s good,” Jake smiled softly, “I trust that you will help defend the Dark Woods and this Cave, then?”
The wolf nodded again.
“Alright,” Jake hummed, turning back to Luna and her children, “Well, I guess this is goodbye.”
The eight wolves looked at him in confusion for a moment, before Luna huffed, barking at Eta as the smallest of the wolves trotted up beside Jake.
“What?” Jake said, “Luna? Are you…are you telling me to take Eta with me?”
Luna nodded, Jake quickly using [Observe] on the smaller wolf.
Eta, Shadow Wolf
Beast
Level: 15
“Wait, what?” Jake blinked, “How is Eta still such a low level compared to the rest of you?”
Alpha let out a sound like a chuckle, quickly stopping as Luna glared at him, before she looked back at Jake, as if waiting for something.
“Oh, right,” Jake nodded, holding his hand out to Eta as the pair began to glow green, “Nature’s Hand.”
The collar of vines around Luna’s neck quickly vanished in a burst of green light, before a new one appeared around Eta’s neck, the Shadow Wolf yipping happily, Jake opening his Pet Screen.
Pet Status Page
Name
Eta
Species
Shadow Wolf
Level
15
Loyalty
Jake Grey
Health Points
200
Magic Points
-
Stamina Points
250
Training Points
7
Skills (3/5)
Traits
Bite [6]
Hunt [5]
Track [6]
Runt of the Litter
Eager to Please
“He has two Traits?” Jake muttered, opening each of them.
Runt of the Litter
Born the weakest of his litter.
Gains Experience more slowly.
Eager to Please
This pet is eager to please their master.
Bonus to Training Point gain.
“Oh, that explains some things,” Jake nodded, looking back at Luna as she huffed, “Thank you for entrusting Eta to me.”
The wolf snorted, Jake getting the feeling that she wasn’t so much entrusting Eta to Jake, as entrusting Jake to Eta, making him chuckle.
“Well then,” Jake said, turning back to the new pack as the morning sun crested the trees of the small clearing, “I’ll leave you all to get acquainted. I have other things to do.”
The new pack just nodded, visibly relaxing as Jake walked away, Luna and her children quickly taking charge as they greeted the newcomers. Jake just walked into the woods with Eta at his side, pausing as he felt a familiar presence watching him.
“Not exactly what I expected,” Bertram hummed as he dropped down beside Jake, “But I guess you handled that pretty well. No bloodshed, at least.”
“Yeah,” Jake nodded, petting Eta on the head, “Now, I think that it’s about time to head back to town.”
“Fine,” Bertram laughed, glancing at the space above Jake’s head, “Though you’ll probably want to change your Title back from whatever that is.”
“Oh, right,” Jake nodded, once again changing his active Title back to Lord of the Dark Woods, “Thanks.”
“No problem,” Bertram hummed as they moved back towards the town.
------
“That was…strange,” Howard muttered as he watched the screen, having slowed the feed down to real time to watch the man’s interaction with the wolves, “How did he manage to calm those wolves so easily? He just switched Titles and…”
“Sir?” his secretary said, placing a cup of coffee on his desk, “The Board is requesting a meeting with you as soon as possible.”
“What about?” Howard sighed, having a good idea what the men and women of the Board were after.
“Your latest…employee,” the man replied, Howard just nodding, “They are worried that they are going to destabilise the game again.”
“Unsurprising,” Howard muttered, shaking his head as he looked up at the secretary, “Tell them I’ll be on in ten minutes. I just have to finish with something first.”
“Of course, sir,” the man nodded, walking quickly out of the room as Howard looked back at the screen, a slight grin forming on his face.
“I look forward to whatever you do next, Jake Grey,” he hummed, stretching out his back as he opened a new holo-screen, preparing to face the Board once again, “Anything that makes those bastards squirm.”
------
Jake looked at the circle of stone as it thrummed with power, glowing symbols lining its edge.
“So, you going to keep staring at it, or actually use it?” Bertram asked, standing on one side of Jake as Eta stood on the other.
“Just preparing,” Jake hummed, pulling one of his gloves off and slipping on the three rings, each on a different finger. They fit perfectly, just as every magic item did, and Jake opened his Character Screen to check his Stats.
Character Profile
Name
Jake Grey
Class
Champion
Level
13
Reputation
Unknown
Health Points
280
Mana Points
260
Stamina Points
310
Fate Points
5
Power
21 {+7}
Intellect
22 {+4}
Agility
25 {+6}
Wit
22 {+1}
Vitality
22 {+6}
Charisma
20 {+2}
Skills (17/20)
Titles
Combat
Evasion [6]
Hunting Bows [3]
Medium Armour [6]
Short Swords [4]
Utility
Aim [4]
Free Movement [8]
Inspect [7]
Observe [7]
Silent Movement [8]
Creation
Alchemy [5]
Butcher [3]
Cooking [3]
Crafting [7]
Gathering [6]
Skinning [3]
Magic
Nature Magic [2]
Shadow Magic [2]
Lord of the Dark Woods
Frontrunner
Giant Slayer V
Pioneer
World Breaker
Touched by Corruption
Champion of the Wilds
Persistent
“Okay,” he said, “I think I’m ready.”
“Then get on with it,” Bertram chuckled, Jake pausing as he looked at the man.
“Why don’t you come with me?” he asked, Bertram just shaking his head, “Didn’t you say you prefer towns and cities?”
“I do, but only Travellers can use the Teleporters,” Bertram sighed, “That’s why Machie didn’t have ours active. That and the drain of funds meant he would lose some of his luxury.”
“Really?” Jake blinked, “So then how do natives get around?”
“The same way everyone does,” Bertram laughed, “The old-fashioned way. Now quit stalling and get on the damn thing!”
Jake stumbled forwards as the Assassin shoved him onto the Teleporter, a screen appearing in front of him as soon as he stepped onto it.
Teleportation Pad
Locations:
Dusk Keep
“Well then,” Jake said, looking down at Eta, the wolf having trotted up beside him, “Shall we go?”
Eta woofed softly, Jake smiling as he selected the only option on the list.
And then the world went white.