Heyho dear viewers as I present to you chapter 5. Things are getting started and I hope you are as hyped as me. There will very likely be a few edits happening as to polish this chapter and I would appreciate helpful input as it took me countless rewrites to get this chapter to look the way I wanted it to and yet am still left with big questionmarks atop my head as im pondering how to further refine these clunky sentences. As result of this I have the next two chapters foundation alread laid out nicely though and only in need of furher editing to be completed, so look forward for them tomorrow or the day thereafter or the day thereafter or... you get my drift.

Anyways, hope this turned out well, please enjoy. 

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I came to myself blinking rapidly. 

A fiery red sun hung up above me in the sky and sounding through the air was a single commanding voice.

“Ready. Draw. Fire!” 

I flinched at the sound of snapping wood all around me and stumbled into someone, after which an annoyed sounding voice told me to watch it. 

My eyes finally adjusted to the brightness and I finally managed to see what was happening around me, though I was left with more questions than answers afterwards..

'What the heck, no.... Where the heck is this and what the hell is going on?' I wondered, trying to get a better view on my surrounding. Yet, only managed to see the sky above, filled with hundreds of arrows and the immediate area around me which was filled to the brim with men. 

And not any men, but knights, each and every one of them hidding his body beneath a medieval set of plate mail. Polished to glitter in a silver sheen and shimmering with the reflection of the sun. Not to mention the longbows which each of the surrounding knights held within his hands.

Through a gap in between the knights' heads I was able to make out a single imposing figure, standing at the very front of this formation and which I guessed to be some commander or general of sorts. As his attire greatly differentiated him from the common knights in my sight.

The armor he wore was unlike theirs gracefully ornamented and had deep blue cloth peaking through numerous gaps within it.

It became apparent that he really was a general, as he raised his left arm and shouted out aloud the same words uttered only moments before. His voice booming across the archers ranks with an intensity that swallowed all other sound.

All the while they drew the strings of their bows back in perfect unison, raised the heads of their arrows up into the air and with the last command barked out aloud, released their holds. Sending a volley of arrows, which covered the sun for for the entirety of a second, to soar up into the sky and off into the distance, where they then made for their descend.

'None of these people have a health bar or a name tag attached to them.' I realized, which made me wonder whether all these men were Npcs or maybe players like me. 'No way these are all players, at best there are more players scattered in between this bunch the same way I am.' 

Looking down upon myself I noted that I wore armor as well. The same shiny plate mail everyone else wore. Except I seemed to miss the bucket shaped helmet which all the other knights had firmly placed onto their head.

'Welp, at least I have a weapon.'

While raising my left hand as to get a better look at the longsword that was sheathed and strapped onto my belt, I also took note of the kite shield that was strapped onto my left arm. 

'Neat, this will come in handy for... whatever is happening here.'

By knocking against its surface and listening to the sound it made I could confirm that it was indeed made of wood, though that left me to question its durability.

'And this armor... will it actually repel attacks? It looks like proper armor alright and its heavy as one. Surely enemy attacks won't just phase through it or anything of that like though, right?' 

After all Mr. Miyamoto had explained that every object and every 'thing' within Second Life had been coded up to the smallest detail. Surely they had made sure that mass, weight and density of an object was to affect and interact with its surrounding.

Back in Lands of Arcania Online this hadn't been the case and armor actually had no other function but to reduce received damage. It was why many people sought to avoid heavy armor, as it decreased a players speed and agility, causing it to be an armor class exclusively used by so called tanks. 

A tank being a player who had taken it upon himself to soak up damage for his allies and whose job it was to keep enemies attention affixed onto himself. Though tanks had become a rarity these days as the fewest people were willing to bear the limited, yet partially still intense pain that came along with the virtual reality experience. Which I had never minded though, as I seemed to have a relative high pain tolerance by nature.

I had taken a liking to tanking back in Lands of Arcania Online and I was intending to follow the same path within this game, which was why this question was extremely important for me. 

It would have a huge impact on my playstyle were armor to actually act as it would within the real world, which I assumed to be the case since the CEO couldn't stress it enough as to how life like everything was supposed to be within his game. I was especially hoping for my assumption to be correct because that would make it a lot easier for me to keep up with all the martial artists that had sprouted from the ground like weed the second VR-games had made their appearance. 

I myself had never been a good fighter by nature, my reaction speed and sword skills only average and my body control nowhere near what others, especially younger players, could pull off these days. Not to mention that I was way to lazy to practice on a daily basis, which was why I had sought out a more fitting playstyle not relying on brawn but brains instead.

I took pride in my ability to outwit others and while I wasn't cheeky enough to call myself a genius or anything of the like, I still believed myself to be quite clever. Which combined with the wide array of control skills a tank usually had at his hands, allowed me to often turn around seemingly lost fights even when facing off against more skilled opponents.

'So, let's find out then, shall I.'

Without batting an eye and eager to confirm my assumption I went on to draw my sword, after which I drove it tip first down and right into my foot. 

No matter how real this game seemed, in the end it was still just a game and I wasn't as delicate as to shy away from a bit of virtual discomfort in exchange for such crucial information. 

Ignoring the questioning gazes which were thrown my way, I couldn't help but shout in joy as I found my former assumption confirmed. 

Without causing me even the slightest bit of pain, the blade had been easily deflected and only left a tiny scratch on the surface of my greaves. Thus causing me to believe that my armor had completely nullified all damage, though I couldn't confirm this assumption as my sight was also devoid of any visual indicators to tell me what my health percentage was at. 

Happy with my discovery I now found myself pondering another question though.

What would be able to penetrate my armor? 

Surely maces and blunt weapons of the like were still a huge threat to me, right? After all those sort of weapons were especially designed for fighting armored enemies. Axes could also cause a problem, I guessed, as I believed them to have the potential power and especially mass necessary to pierce through armor, though, since I had never been hit by a real axe before, this was all just me guessing.

'I bet I will find out sooner than I wish.' 

For now I had to find a way out of this crowd. Since, besides the fact that I hated crowds, the noise of the constant arrow volleys threatened to drive me insane. I would need some space to think, not to mention that I had to get a clue as to where I was and what the heck was going on. 

Yet, still, I couldn't help but worry as I sheathed my sword again. If whatever we were shooting at wore as much armor as we did, this was bound to be a long day.

'No way I am killing a freaking knight with this toothpick. I would be lucky already If I managed to dent somebodies armor with this thing. Man... why couldn't they hand us some proper weapons... swords are so goddamn useless.'

The last thing I did before making my way through the mass of knights, was to confirm that I could effectively hide my entire upper body behind my shield. With which I then proceeded to push my way through the rows of men behind me.

Soon and many angry shouts thereafter, I found myself in the back-lines of the crowd, which made it a lot easier to move since there were far less people lingering about back here.

I halted as to catch my breath, when my eyes fell onto the notched battlement reaching out of the stone floor, making me realize that I stood far up above the ground and atop a wall.

Taking in a deep breath and leaning over and into a nook of the nearby battlement, I prepared for the worst. Though nothing could have prepared me for the sight I was left to behold.

'Holy -'

Far off in the distance and stretching vertically up into the sky, stood a mighty citadel, erected up atop a mountains flat top. The likes of which I hadn't even dreamed about.

Multiple towers and spires stretched out of its white, Gothic structure and reached far into the sky. Though three of its majestic, winding spires towered above all else and even pierced the clouds up above the construct. Seemingly holding them in place. 

A city, which was split into seven districts, rested beneath its feet. Each district placed at a different height as they had been build atop seven different plateaus which surrounded the mountain citadel.

And, encircling this entire place was an enormous wall. The one I currently found myself standing on. 

About five hundred meters to the left, stood a high and pointy spire and the same distance away to the right was a wide and flat tower. It would seem that I would have to reach either one of them if I planned to get to a different segment of the wall or if I wanted to get to the bottom off it and into the city below.

'So, let's straighten things out a bit. That weird voice before has told me I need to prove myself... so this is some sort of test, I guess? But what for? Am I to slay a certain amount of enemies? Is this perhaps just a tutorial? Am I to hold these walls for a set amount of time? Or is this a quest for survival? Urgh... what the heck, at least tell me what you want me to do here!' 

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For the next few minutes I kept reviewing my situation, but came to no conclusions even after viewing it from all possible angels. Yet, I became sure that fleeing into the city would be my worst possible move, as I found it likely that I was supposed to fight. After all, what would I prove by fleeing an oncoming battle? 

'That's right, nothing. I'll stay and fight!'

Not to mention that for me this was pretty much a dream come true. 

Fighting a epic battle atop a massive castle? Hell yeah! 

How often would anyone get a chance like this in their lives. The mere thought caused my entire body to tremble in excitement. 

After all I was a gamer at heart and lived for this type of challenge. 

'Bring it game!' I thought, while making my way towards the other side of the wall, eager to see as to what sort of enemy I was to face. 'Give me your best shot!'

This time I didn't push through the middle of the knights ahead of me but kept walking towards the tower while keeping close to the battlement, prefering its open top instead of the completely enclosed spire.

I eventually reached a less crowded spot, between two battalions, where it was easier for me to push through their ranks. I still managed to cause quite the uproar though and dozen of archers threw bewildered looks and enraged shouts my way. 

Obviously I wasn't supposed to disturb their formation and walk around as I pleased, which became even more apparent as I breached the last line of men and trespassed onto the unoccupied area at the front atop the wall-walk. Which apparently was reserved for generals to take their position across and in front of their battalions.

Yet, even though the two closest generals turned to look at me and both their faces distorted into enraged grimaces, they ignored me. Probably because commanding their forces took priority.

Lowering my head I could feel heat rising to my cheeks, yet tried my best to ignore the stares as I pushed forward, where I then leaned through the notch in the battlement. Upon which my entire body froze up.

'Well fuck you too game... What the heck...'

Revealed to me were the sheer endless plains resting before the city gates, which stretched out all the way to the horizon. Though it was not the beauty of the plains that caused cold sweat to gather on my forehead, but the fact that the entirety of the landscape ahead of me was filled to the brim with what appeared to be hundred of thousands of men. All marching slowly but surely towards the city.

The initial shock slowly turned to disbelieve and then to horror. The size of the invading army was greater than anything I would have ever dared to imagine and no matter how I looked at this situation, there appeared to be no way for us to have a chance at winning the upcoming battle. Prove for this was the fact that, even though hundreds of men fell every second under the constant downpour of arrows, we barely appeared to scratch their numbers, as each fallen man was instantly replaced by another. 

What truly caused all the color of my face to drain until I became as pale as a ghost though, was not the sheer size of the enemies army, but the war machinery that they had brought along. They had siege turrets, catapults, rams and more, dozen if not even hundreds of them. 

I started counting the siege turrets heading our way but was almost instantly interrupted by a sight that left all emotions within me to be overshadowed by panic.

Off in the distance I spotted hundreds of flaming boulders soaring up into the sky and coming right at us. Each one of the projectiles drawing a flaming streak behind it through the air.

I couldn't tell you as to why our enemies had set their projectiles aflame or how they did it, but it definitely looked impressive.  And there also wasn't any time left to ponder the question, as the boulders came flying fast.

With no second to spare I threw myself onto the ground and behind the battlement, my hands covering my head, all the while the generals atop the wall were barking out more orders.

A few heartbeats later a multitude of deafening explosions boomed through the air, shaking the ground beneath me and leaving the entire wall to violently tremble. All the hile I held my eyes closed, knowing fully well that were a boulder to head my way I would have no chance to react anyways. 

After a few dozen of seconds the trembling wall came to a rest and only far in the distance did an occasional explosion still go off. Meanwhile I was trying my best to stand up, when I opened my eyes again to behold the chaos that had ensued everywhere before me. 

Big gaping craters were strewn across the entire wall and in its wake only countless disfigured corpses left to decorate the surrounding areas. All the while the remaining knights had abandoned their formations and were now either running for their life or remaining frozen in place. Though there was also a small group of knights under the lead of a general, which had remained in order and were now taking up formation all along the battlement.

I was astonished by their discipline, when suddenly I found myself engulfed within a shadow, upon which I raised my head and witnessed the last boulder making its descend.

Luckily it wasn't going my way but drifted off further to my right. It seemed as if it would simply pass over the wall, which would have left it to smash right on top of the city behind us, but it instead crashed right into the middle of the spire that had lead onto the next wall segment, about five hundred meters away from me.

A light flared up within the spire, when only a single heartbeat thereafter the entirety of its frame was send flying everywhere, as a massive, fiery red and dome shaped explosion went off inside of it.

'Really? Flaming boulders that explode... Sheech, well I am not going that way, that's for sure.' I thought as I stood crouched beneath and clinging onto the battlement, the heart within my chest beating faster than it ever had before. Though, soon thereafter panic froze me up again.

The spire before me had the entirety of its frame not turned to dust, but ripped apart as to rain down onto the heads of the people beneath it. Hundreds of panicking voices all around me screamed. “Run.” And I was left with no second to spare as, within the instant of a single heartbeat, the entirety of the crowd before me transformed into a raging torrent of fleeing people. 

A primal survival instinct within me welled up and told me to follow the masses, but luckily I remained unable to move, which turned out to save my life.

Countless pieces of debris crashed onto the wall all around me and right into the midst of the fleeing masses. It was a horrible sight to behold as one person after another got turned into a bloody puddle beneath a rock, though that still wasn't quite as bad as seeing multiple people getting shredded apart by smaller, cannon ball like stone projectiles. 

Fountains of blood erupted from within the masses of people, dying everything in their reach in a deep crimson red, all the while the ear piercing screams of hundreds and more dying men sounded out from all across the wall. 

I could only watch in horror as dozens of people died within the blink of an eye either ripped apart or crushed, all the while dozen more knights were trampled to death beneath the feet of their comrads.

Though the worst of it all happened, when the biggest fragment yet crashed onto the wall. Not only did it instantly flatten an entire battalion beneath it, but it also proceeded to slide across the wall-walk, leaving only a giant streak of blood and crushed corpses to litter in its wake. 

Within a few seconds our numbers across this wall segment had been reduced to at least half the former amount, less even if counting all the injured men with one or more holes within their bodies as already dead. Though they were still screaming and begging for mercy as of now.

Unfaced with the massacre unfolding before my eyes I slowly  managed to rise to my feet, my legs still wobbly under the weight of my body even though all the tremors had long since passed. What had shocked me weren't the gory deaths of my fellow comrades or the sight they had left behind, but the speed with which those men had lost their lifes. Which left me to feel exposed and vulnerable.

My eyes came to a rest on the area where moments before the giant spire had stood, watching, just as the last bits of the spire crumbled apart and fell onto the city streets below. All the noise around me was suddenly drowned beneath an earth shattering boom, as the entire upper section of the wall followed suit. 

Where moments before the giant spire had stood was now a gargantuan gaping crack splitting the wall. Which left a mountain of debris and rubble to form a somewhat climbable path across and into the city behind it. Dust rose and slowly started to engulf the top of the wall, leaving me to cough for breath as I narrowed my eyes in an attempt to still see anything clearly. 

'Seriously?'

I was left with no other choice but to move on and out of this cloud, preferable towards where the last remaining tower stood, through which I would be able to reach different areas across this battlefield. My death was ensured were I to fight this bound to be lost battle without the possibility to retreat. The amount of incomming enemies leaving me with no hope as to whether we would be able to hold back their ranks for long with what few knights had survived. 

'We have to all gather at that tower and defend it with our lives, only then will there be a possibility for us to hold our grounds.'

Suddenly a clattering sound came from the other side of the battlement and I realized that the enemy had reached us and by the looks of it their ladders had, too.

Adrenaling flooded my brain and I could feel the blood rushing through my body at a crazy pace, my heart going upsolutely nuts. 

'Let the games begin.' I thought. My sword already unsheated and resting in my right hand. 'And may I not have survived this carnage just to find a disgraceful death along the way. Let this be a battle I can brag to Alice about.'