With the first of the new torches in his left hand and his battle axe in his right Atticus took the first foot into the den, with him at the front and with Sasha hiding out of the fires light so she could use Sneak Attack he moved cautiously, listening for the click of claws on stone or metal rustling. As they both entered the cave a series of messages crossed their eyes.
Your party has discovered a Dungeon!
Your party has gained 50 fame!
You may sell the information about the dungeon to the Information Brokers Guild after you complete it.
You have discovered Black Rock Mines: A former mine that ran dry long ago and has since been taken over by a pack of wolves, More recently a mad enchanter had begun experimenting on the wolves using enchanted armor to enslave them and mass produce them.
The monsters inside of the dungeon have a higher chance of dropping uncommon and above materials for the next 24 real life hours.
The boss of the dungeon Floki will finish a spell to fully capture and control the mind of Lilim the female Alpha in 24 in game hours. Should this happen Black Rock Hold will be over run with armored battle wolves.
Failure to clear the dungeon within this time will result in the death of hundreds,This is unacceptable and you will lose any fame you have, gain 1000 Infamy and you will be exiled from the Human Race, causing you to respawn in a random location upon death.
Good luck adventurers!
Seeing this Atticus dropped his head and sighed, Wishing he had an armor piercing attack to make this speed up but he knew that he could skin the wolves later. So he decided he would focus on clearing the place out until they got to a safe spot.
He soon came to a point where the path opened up into a large room with three separate paths, It had an opening that let the moon in revealing a small spring. But in the middle of the room was a pack of five armored wolves. Atticus took a deep breath and decided to check his newest skill before he proceeded.
Skill Name:Skill Rank:Skill Level:Skill Experience:RoarBeginner114%You have learned to pour Mana into your battle cry, The result is an amplified sound akin to a bears roar.On use you pull the attention of all enemies within 20 meters to you for 30 seconds as they perceive you as a higher threat. Cost 50 ManaWhen used indoors or inside of cave systems the sound is amplified, Increase range by 20 yardsWhen used in combination with Bloodlust your roar fills the area with an aura of dread, Increases the chance of an enemy being affected by fear by 50%. Cost 50 Mana.
Seeing this Atticus turned back towards Sasha and motioned for her to cover her ears, Waiting a second Atticus threw the torch into the center of the room as he began his charge. He then let out the loudest shout he could as he activated Roar, Pouring 100 mana into it immediately to activate both of its abilities.
He held his battle axe with both hands close to the base of the haft, like a baseball bat as he decided to try something new. As he swung his axe at the first wolf he poured the last 50 mana he had into it and the result was devastating.
Throughout the cave, a gruesome series of snaps, yelps, and whimpers resounded as Atticus sent the first wolf flying across the room with its entire right side broken by the axe. As his axe made contact with the wolf he got a series of messages as he saw that the wolves inside the dungeon were on the same level as outside but they now had far more hp as evident of the wolf's Hp bar that was now above its head.
Through experimenting with Mana you have discovered how to strengthen your attack resulting in a new combat skill. Overpower.
Skill Name:Skill Rank:Skill Level:Skill Experience:OverpowerBeginner11%You have learned to pour Mana into your attacks, The result is an amplified damage that ignores armor . Cost 25 mana
As he saw the massive damage he wanted to cheer but he had to start swinging his axe to fend off the other four wolves who got very angry with him, Apparently the last wolf was a female and these were all males.
He was scratched a few times as he beat them back a bit but he kept moving to make it so they hit his armor rather than his flesh. Atticus moved around as much as he could while letting Sasha's arrows strike out from the darkness, a few times she came as close as scratching his cheek with an arrow and dealing 5 damage to him!
“More damage, please! Almost dead here!” Atticus began running full speed now with three wolves still on him with only a sliver of hp remaining Sasha sent him a message as if she spoke she would reveal her hiding spot.”Shut up and sit still you big baby!”
He watched his mana bar the whole time he was running and waited until it was back up enough to use overpower, Atticus then spun around and hit the three wolves with his axe and knocked them aside.”GO to hell! two more attacks and I'm screwed!”
Atticus was panting raggedly as he began fighting the now crippled wolves normally now that their speed was reduced, It took almost ten minutes for them to kill the wolves due to Atticus having to run until his health and mana were back up enough that he could risk stopping, Due to the constant moving Sasha's attacks were not able to strike vitals and as such did much less damage than before.
When they were done Atticus collapsed on the ground and began draining waterskins to cool off, his body burning hot from the constant movement but he forced himself to sit up. He started a small fire using the torch and some small logs he brought, Putting out the torch for now as he began skinning the wolves after prying the bent and battered armor off of them, saving Sasha's arrows.
The worst part was the fact that the damn beasts were only worth 100 EXP each! Atticus almost died ten times and all he got was 500 EXP and the same common leathers and meats as usual. All of the wolf armors were ruined and common quality, he didn't even get the bonus to endurance as he had the last two times he had a tough fight. Annoyed he decided to take a break and cook some food for the two as he waited for his health and mana to fully restore.
“Alright, new plan. No more Roars, ill stick to just using Overpower until I can get some more points into Mana!”He began eating a hot sandwich made of bread, wolf meat, and some cheese Sasha bought earlier that day
As he said this Sahsa started laughing a bit.”But it was so fun to see you running around like a rodeo clown!” After a moment though she calmed down and looked over at him.”But tell me Atticus, How is it that you keep unlocking skills so quickly?”
Atticus tilted his head to the side as he thought about it.”I just do, Maybe you won't understand since you don't have pain turned on but when you are fighting with your body on the line you push past your limits. Both Roar and Overpower were gained when I poured mana into my attacks or skills I already had. I have no doubt if you poured mana into your bow and arrow you could boost the damage by a lot more since you have those nasty little bodkin points..”
Sasha looked at him with a confused gaze.”How do you add mana to your attacks?” It was then that Atticus remembered that she had no abilities that used Mana.
“Think of it as focusing solely on the arrow itself, Don't think of what's around you as I will have it under control, But as you draw the arrow picture...”He stopped for a moment to think of the feeling of Mana rushing from his body and nodded.”Ice water running down your arm and wrapping around the arrow!”
He smiled a bit as he then stood up, dusting himself off as he stretched. His wounds and mana were fully healed and restored so he felt as good as new, Wishing that he had some kind of support class with him. He then thought of Lilim, the woman from The starting room, remembering she was wearing an odd looking robe that looked like something a shaman or druid would wear.
He shook his head at the thought as he doubted he would see the woman again. He took up his axe and torch again as he waited for Sasha to stand up. He then walked over to the entrance they came in from and slammed his axe down on the ground. making a single mark. Planning on doing this with the other passages to mark which ones they had already been down.
He then went to the far left passage and marked it as well before he began walking down it. As they walked he began hearing whimpers and whines from what sounded like wolves but also humans. He dropped low as he put out the torch, seeing a light up ahead in the next room.
When he got up to the edge of the room what he saw horrified him. It was indeed humans and wolves he heard, But the horrors inside were beyond what he had expected. Bent over in a circle in the center of the room was a group of five Elven women, Beautiful beings with Ghastly pale skin and long blonde hair like that of honey, Bright green eyes and enchanting faces.
But their faces were twisted in pain and their hair matted down while they were being mounted and raped not by wolves but by Wolfmen. which is the best he could put it, The wolves had been altered so they were walking on two feet, wearing armored plate and having a long sword on their belts. There were five of them again but these wolves seemed bigger, slower than the ones before.
Atticus raised his hand to Sasha and gave the command and she wasted not a second as she knocked two arrows and tried what Atticus had said, Pouring mana into the arrows as she released them. The result was horrifying as each arrow slammed through the skull of a wolf and passed through and into another’s head. Killing four in one go.
As this happened though Atticus did not wait and charged the last beast who was now drawing his sword and charging towards the massive man. The two were of equal size and height. As the two got close Atticus swung his axe and the beast swung his sword. But Atticus was not aiming for the body this time, but for the hands holding the weapon.
As he swung his axe he activated Overpower and slammed into the beastman's leading arm, shattering it through the plate which caused the sword to go flying and result in a horrible discovery. This thing was level six and had had a shocking amount of strength, This he found out as he was soon struck roughly in the stomach. It was not a claw as he had expected but an open palm. This wolf used fucking martial arts!
Atticus coughed up some blood as the impact shook his body.”Damn, this thing hits like a truck!”Atticus swung his axe again but now he was planning something. He began to charge the axe with mana as he bull rushed the wolfman, As he did one of those deadly palms went whizzing by his head.
Scratching his face with the claws as he dodged to the side and spun suddenly, Slamming the axe into the beast's back which resulted in a satisfying Crunch. The wolfman dropped to the ground with the axe sticking out of his back as Atticus turned to the Elf women, Shaking his head at the sight of them, their bellies swollen with bastard children forced upon them by the wolfmen.
He took out his hunting knife and cut loose their bonds, As they flinched and whimpered when he got close he could tell they would be scared for awhile. As such he looted the bodies of the wolfmen, staying as far away from the women as he could and letting Sasha tend to them as he kept watch for any surprise attacks.
Luckily these wolfmen gave them 300 EXP each so it was well worth the trouble if they could repeat the fight again. But Atticus then realized that while he did high damage he was very much vulnerable for a melee style player. But it could not be helped if he focused too much on one stat now it would get far harder later.
He looked over the Wolfmen armors, seeing that only one had the steel armor and the rest had leather but each had strange new runes on it so he didn't bother trying to put it on as he wanted to know what the runes did but not to the extent of wearing the armor himself. As he didn't want to loose bag space so he only took the steel armor and proceed to scout to the room, It was a dead end and was as Sasha learned where the beasts would breed their captives, A twisted breakroom of sorts.
But hidden in the back of the room next to some destroyed boxes was a small cage, inside it was what looked to be an elf child, she looked to be four foot eleven inches, thin as to be expected but she had brilliant blue eyes compared to the usual green. He stepped back and broke the lock on the cage.
As he opened the cage the girl crawled out and leapt up and into his arms, clinging to him, trembling with fear at what she had seen. Atticus was going to make her get down but hearing her sobbing he just let her stay, as he walked he removed his cloak and wrapped it around the girl, making a crude dress."It's ok little one..."
Atticus looked back over his shoulder.”Sasha get them up and let's take them to the first room where the springs were, we’ll let them bathe and eat while I use the leftover leather to at least make them something to cover up with...”
She nodded and eased the women calmly up from their kneeling positions and she kept them close while letting Atticus go ahead to scout the way. It was clear for now so he began setting up the tent, He would have the five elven women hide in this with Sasha guarding them as he continued ahead.
They didn't have time to wait for them to regain their courage, or to take them back to the village as they now only had 20 hours remaining, Not knowing how much of the dungeon was left they couldn't afford to make the five hour hike back to the village and back.
And he couldn't let Sasha take the five women and the child with her alone into the woods at night. The male users alone would likely be unable to hold themselves back, Hell the only reason Atticus could hold back was that he had just seen them being raped and it didn't seem right to do that to them, even if they were willing he would probably not be able to do it.
So as Sasha came into the first cavern with the women he had finished setting up the relatively large tent, having room to fit them all if they cuddled up tight. The elf child was playing in the springs, happy to wash the dirt and grime from her body He then walked towards the two paths they had not explored and sat down, starting the crafting on the simple tops and skirts.
As he finished the last pair and distributed them and the food and water he heard a howl from the far right path, followed by the clicking of claws on stone, He put away his tools and grabbed his Axe and stood in a small notch between the pathways.
After a few seconds a wolf that was almost ten feet long and four foot high charged out, As he saw its head Attics swung the axe down and hit its spine, activating Overpower at the same time and was met with something horrible. Despite having used all of his strength and Overpower, And that the damn thing had no armor on its back did not break!
At the same time, he saw the monsters nameplate which sent a shiver down his spine. An ornate golden nameplate that had skulls on either end, etched with the rune he knew to be death
Level 10 Fenrir <4954/5000>
You have engaged the first boss Fenrir, A monstrous wolf created through using dark magics by sacrificing the children of elven women born from twisted beings made from man and wolf.
As he saw this he knew he could not kill it alone.”SASHA!” As he screamed out he swung the axe again right in time to catch the massive wolf's paws and teeth with the haft, feeling the wood cracking and bowing as his own body was forced down, dropping to a knee as he began to sweat.
He felt something he had only felt once before when he had been paralyzed. Absolute terror, And the fear of death. He had hoped that he would be strong enough with the amazing amount of bonus stats and skills he had gotten but this thing was just overkill!
He realized as he sat there, holding the beast off that it had to have a fear-inducing ability as he had never felt fear in the game, not even from the five wolves that nearly tore him apart. But as he leaned to the side and the beast slammed down on the ground, cracking the stone below him he ran, Getting away from the wall just as three of the mana filled arrows came flying past him and slamming into the beast's chest.
But again they were met with poor results as each arrow had only done 90 damage each, dropping Fenrir to <4664/5000> He panted raggedly, exhausted already from being forced down by the beast but he forced himself to continue, He charged the beast and went to swing his axe noticing it was now looking at Sasha and trying to run towards her
He swung the ax with both hands but let go with his left, this caused the ax to launch out until his hand hit the pommel, increasing his range while not affecting the speed or power. At the same time, he roared enough that he felt his throat go hoarse, while not putting Fear on the beast it made it turn back to him just in time to take the massive axe to the left eye.
Seeing his damage was low despite the attack blinding the beast he felt weak, as weak as he did in the real world. As this thought raced through his mind he felt like he was literally hit by a truck as Fenrir howled in pain and swiped him across the chest with a massive paw, ripping through the leather and down into his flesh as he was flung across the room, slamming into the wall.
His vision wavered as the leather chest piece fell from his body, his ribs having cracked during the impact. he had never felt this much pain in his life, even when he had fallen down a long flight of stairs.
But as his health dropped down to 80 he felt something in his body change. He felt a deep hatred towards the beast that had done this to him, that had made him feel so weak, so helpless. Even as it thought him broken and began running at Sasha who had been frantically pelting it with arrows he felt, even more, hatred that it did not even see him as worthy enough to deal a final blow.
As he stood up he drank a health potion and restored his health to full and let out another roar. Pouring all of his hatred and bloodlust into it until it sounded more like a beast than that of a man. He noticed in the back of his mind all of the women, including Sasha, flinched as he did.
Fenrir stopped dead in its tracks and spun around and charged Atticus. By the look in its eyes, it felt a hatred as well, Hatred that this, weak being had managed to startle it for a moment. With this the two began to charge at each other at a breakneck speed.
Atticus had his axe resting on his left shoulder with his left arm in the middle of the haft, his right gripping it low as he planned on using the speed of Fenrir to counter attack it, the force of his axe being sprung off of his arm would help increase the speed.
As they for close enough Fenrir lunged with its maw wide open, Atticus swung the axe down but had misjudged the beasts speed. Thanks to this error Fenrir's teeth snapped shut on his left shoulder, biting through the bone and slinging him, ripping the limb off and sending him flying into the center of the room near the fire from earlier.
Atticus howled in pain, his mind going deeper into its hate fueled state. He downed the second health potion but noticed the bleeding had not stopped, so he grabbed a burning log and shoved it against the bleeding stump, cauterizing the wound.
[You have hurt yourself with fire!, Bleed status removed. -25 hp]
Atticus then stood up and grabbed his axe and charged Fenrir once more. This time, he had his axe over his right shoulder and was relying on a single point of brute force. The beast spit out the arm which had the left pauldron still attached to it and charged the man expecting the same result.
The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.
As Atticus charged Sasha shot out three more arrows, These slamming into Fenrir’s side and right eye, blinding it fully at the perfect time. Seeing its health had dropped to <2500/5000>
Atticus decided to go all out draining his mana, forcing out more than what was needed to use Overpower.
As the pain from the arrow in its eye became too much Fenrir’s attack missed and Atticus howled as he swung his axe down into its neck. At the same time as he did this, however, his axe exploded, the durability having worn out and was rendered worthless.
You have killed Fenrir!
You and your party have prevailed against a foe twice your level, +15 to all stats.
You have gained 10000 EXP!
Level UP!
Level UP!
Level Up!
Quest Update, You have thrown a wrench into Flokis plans by killing Fenrir! Quest deadline has been extended by 72 hours.
Seeing these windows Atticus’ mind went blank as he dropped to his knees, passing out for awhile. When he next awoke Atticus was greeted with the sight of the adorable elven child straddling him, holding him tight as to keep him warm while he slept. He looked down a bit and noticed his left arm indeed gone and had only a burnt stump in its place
He used his right arm to tap the elf girl.”Would you kindly let me up?”
As he spoke with a hoarse voice the girl pouted but got up off of her saviour and helped him sit up
As he sat up and looked to see that where the massive wolf had been was a chest, unopened.”How long was i out?” It was at this time he was tackled by Sasha who began crying. Clearly having been afraid as he had been out for three hours and was barely breathing. A few times they thought he had died. Even though it was a game it felt so real that Sasha had forgotten he would respawn.
He sighed and checked his quest window and was relieved to see a new time, They now had 89 hours left. He forced himself to his feet and began walking to the chest.”I'm surprised you didn't want to open it up..”
Sasha blushed a bit and looked away. At this point, the little elf who had been on top of him spoke up in a clear bell-like voice.”She tried but it would not open.”
He turned and looked at Sasha before he sighed and opened the chest. Inside were a few items but the ones that stood out were a large helmet made of a wolf's head, A massive black pelt. a large femur bone, A long length of sinew, and a leather shield with a crescent moon on the front. The rest were small health potions, gold coins, and a few large pieces of simple leather. Atticus looked over each item and sighed in relief that his suffering had not been worthless.
Fenrir's GazeType:HelmetDurability:100 /100Quality:RareResiliance:30A helmet made from the head of the monstrous wolf Fenrir While not the same as the god of lies son this imitation was a worthy foe.When wearing the helmet any “Shout” type abilities gain the new effect “Alphas Command." Increasing the parties attack and health based on your own for one minute.
Fenrir's HideType:LeatherDurability:?? / ??Quality:RareThe pelt of a massive beast with a large amount of defense, Can be made into armor by a skilled craftsman
Fenrir's FemurType:BoneDurability:?? / ??Quality:RareA mighty bone from a massive beast with a large amount of damage, Can be made into a weapon by a skilled craftsman
Fenrir's TendonType:SinewDurability:?? / ??Quality:RareOne of the tendons of a massive beast with a high speed. Can be made into a weapon by a skilled craftsman.
Shield Of The MoonType:ShieldDurability:100/ 100Quality:RareDefense:50A lightweight shield made of hardened leather and wood by the elves in worship to the moon, Emits a soft light in dark areas.
Seeing the items Atticus sighed softly and looted them, telling Sasha what they were and giving her half of the coins and potions, Keeping everything else as he told her he would have Lucien make the craftsman build their weapons. He then took out the long sword he got from the wolfman earlier and sighed seeing its stats.
Rusty Iron LongswordType:LongswordDurability:30 /100Quality:CommonAttack:10-15A simple iron longsword no doubt stolen from an old farmer.
Atticus turned to Sasha as he decided what had to be done next.”Sasha the plan has changed. We're falling back to the village where we will leave the women with Lucian and get our weapons and armor made. With my left arm gone and my axe broken we're in a tough spot.”
He retrieved his arm and the piece of armor and was greeted with a message he was glad to see.
Limbs lost may be reattached so long as they are not destroyed. Surely there is someone in the village who knows recovery magic.
He sighed as he stuffed it all into his bag before he broke down the tent and threw it in his pack as he began walking towards the village. He hated this, not even five minutes into their hike through the woods and his body was acting completely off, such as him leaning far to the right causing him to turn and sway, stumbling often. Soon enough the elf child moved beside him on his left side and wrapped an arm around him to push against, making him level out though he groaned at this, Mainly because he looked weak. But also from the fact that he was all but useless if they were to get into a fight.
Sasha voiced a complaint that she wanted to help him but he disregarded the thought as she was the only one with some combat strength left. Luckily though there were no fights to be had this evening. As they hiked Atticus decided to spend the fifteen status points he had earned into Int.
He would be needing a much larger mana pool if he was to raid the Den properly. The sun was just rising as they entered the village which caused quite a commotion. The massive man they had grown accustomed to returning with only one arm, soaked in his own blood and covered in wounds and with five all but naked elves behind him.
He stopped by the well and pulled a bucket of the ice cold water out and dumped it over his own head, he then got another to drink from before he pointed to the in and held out a small sack of coins to Sasha.”Take them and get them rooms, preferably next to our own. I'm going to go have a chat with the chief about giving me a hand…”
He regretted his choice of words as Sasha began laughing so hard that she began crying, He sighed and shoved the pouch into her hand as he walked to the great hall.
He kicked the door roughly to open it as he was greeted by the sight of a feast, and sitting around the table was not only Lucian and his wife and daughter But also four elves one female and two males, The female was wearing a very regal gown and the three men were in light chainmail armor. “...We must find her majesty at all costs, even if we must raid the mountains ourselves!”
As they saw him the three drew their blades, clearly put on guard by his high infamy. He was able to spot the leader of the group as he was wearing golden chainmail with a chest plate rather than the silver the other two.
"Throw this swine out before he ruins the taste of the wine!." However, the hold guards merely shrugged at the sight of their thane, knowing not to step out of line on the orders of some prissy little elf. This angered the Elf guard captain and so he and his two fellows moved towards Atticus intent on throwing him out.
As the three elves got closer to him Atticus growled low in his throat, A guttural sound like a beast's.”You arrogant little whelps should know when to stand down” Lucian's eyes widened as he heard the growl and watched as Atticus held out his arm to a guard near by, now noticing he had only one arm.
The hold guard shoved his spear into his thane's hands and watched as the three elves who were the same height as him though much lighter were knocked out of Atticus' way. His new strength sent the guards flying, slamming them against the table where they had been seated.
He passed the spear back to the guard before he marched straight up to Lucian, dropping to a knee as he brought his right fist to his heart.”Thane Shadowsong reporting from the Den!” He took a slight pleasure in the horror on the regal elf woman's face as she heard his title and saw what he did to the three royal guard.
The three from before who were all males were humiliated at how easily they were brushed aside and they rushed to attack him. As the marks appeared in his mind he activated Roar and Bloodlust, pouring all of his mana into them”Sit your narrow asses down before I put you down again!”
As he yelled out the room became filled with the aura of hatred and dread. He saw all three of them stop in fear, sweat dripping down their faces as he noticed the same on the regal elf woman's face.
He then looked to Lucian and his family who were unfazed, Lucian smiled a bit but it was faint, just a slight tug at the corner of his lips.”What news do you bring Thane Shadowsong...”He did his best not to laugh as he said this, trying to stay serious but seeing the elves put in their place so quickly was just too fun.
Atticus stood up and pulled out the items he got from Fenrir and slammed them down on the table, along with his own left arm that still had the armor on it.”While assaulting the den as requested I made three shocking discoveries. The first is that the enchanter behind this has used dark magics to warp wolves to be able to stand and move like men, Second is that while in the den I found a group of elvish women being raped and impregnated by the wolfmen, the same fertility runes you feared were on the wolf bitches were on the ropes used to bind them, The third is of course the beast I took these remains from. A monstrous thing made by dark magic, using the babies of the elf women and the wolfmen the enchanter warped the beast to make it ten feet long and six feet tall, Its weight alone drove me to my knees, Its blows shattered my bones, and its fangs ripped my arm clear off. I finally killed it after my archer blinded it and I was able to attack its neck...”
As he spoke he noticed the elf woman stand up and was about to speak but he shot her a glare that said clearly to shut up and sit down. He was not in the mood to be interrupted right now.
“Upon killing the beast my axe shattered and I was left weaponless and with only one arm. I made the decision that with the monstrous beast dead I had gained enough time to return to the village to bring the women to safety and to re-equip myself and go back out within three days..”
He then stood up and looked over the femur, hide, helmet, and tendon on the table.”I request you order your craftsman to make me and my archer what they can from what is before you so I may resume my quest..”
As he finished speaking Lucian still looked stunned as he looked at the items before him and replayed the story over and over in his mind. With every time, he sees this young man he is reminded of himself when he was younger and the mighty Berserkers.
“It will be done for free as payment for the loss of your arm Thane Shadowsong, Now while I know you are no doubt rightfully irritated with them would you so kindly release your anger so that our guests may breathe?”
It was then that Atticus noticed that the four elves had not been breathing for a minute and he nodded, dissipating his aura which resulted in four deep gasps. The first to speak was the regal elf woman who flew from her seat. “I want this beast in chains!”
Atticus stood up and strode over to her at a shocking pace, he then grabbed the front of her dress and pulled roughly on it, causing it to rip a bit while bringing her in close to his own face.”I will tell you one more time woman. You will show me the respect I deserve. If not for me the elves I saved would be broken and mindless whores for breeding. And if you test me I will not hesitate to break you..”
She went white as a sheet and at the same time the three red marks appeared again, moving fast now. Atticus then grabbed the massive femur and spun, slamming it into the side of the leading elf which resulted in a ghastly snap which was not from the femur, He had cracked the man's right arm and ribs, sending him flying into the other two and sending them all to the floor. Upon seeing that they were all level 5 save for the captain who was level 8 he felt odd, Like they were much to weak for Royal Guards. But the thought that this was an event felt likely.
Atticus looked down at the elf who was writhing in pain.”You get up, or try to attack me again and I will kill you....” Atticus was about to say more until the door to the hall was pushed open and the small elf from before walked in, now wearing a black cloth robe. “Enough! All of you! You dare to raise your hand to my saviour?”
She walked with an odd authority and he noticed that the looks on the elves faces were more in fear than before when he walked in. It was then that he heard the elf woman behind him whimper.”M..Mother!”
Atticus gave a confused look as the small elf woman who looked no older than fifteen walked up beside him, her arm going around his waist as she looked at the regally dressed elf.”B..But mother he has disrespected us and assaulted the captain!”
The small elf shook her head.”I was watching from the start....”She reached up and stroked Atticus’ left ear just above the golden ring he had for being a thane there was a small stud with a tiny emerald that he didn't even notice before now.”And I do believe it was you who showed disrespect first, If not for this man the leading members of the Druids Of The Ironwoods and myself would have been bred like cattle until the end of days. You should have known better than to judge someone by their appearance.”
She then looked down at the guard captain and shook her head even more.”And you Remi, I had higher hopes for my own guard captain but to attack a man who clearly has the advantage in strength is foolishness..” She then looked to Lucian and gave a curtsy as she smiled softly.”Hello, again little Lucian, Eleanor, Always such interesting things happening wherever your to be found it seems. First, a minotaur uprising in the mountains, Now a man no more than a boy in your years has shown me such a battle that I find myself nostalgic for when we raided Helheim’s Gates..”
Lucian and his wife Eleanor stood up and bowed deeply.”And a pleasure to see you as well Queen Liliana..” they both said in respect as they always did before they hopped over the table and hugged the little elf tightly, grinning wildly as they were reunited with their parties best Druid.
Atticus walked close to them, seeing the two elves he had not beaten on edge he sighed, too tired to deal with them.”I am sorry to interrupt your reunion but is there someone who can reattach my arm?”He mainly directed the question to Liliana as he knew that Lucian could not, nor could his wife.
Liliana looked to be in thought for a moment and smiled, while still in a very cute way it made him worry about what she was planning.”I could, but in return, I will need you to do me a favor when I ask it..”
Atticus nodded and all too hastily pulled his arm out of his bag and held it up.”Whatever you want.” All of those in the room looked at him in surprise at how there was no hesitation in his words.
Liliana looked up at him as she took his left arm from him.”You are certain that you want to agree to something without knowing what it is?”
Atticus dropped to a knee in front of her and smirked.”Unless you plan on telling me what it is and giving me a reason to decline then slap my arm back on little elf...” He heard small gasps from the four elves but Liliana merely smiled and she then did something odd, she rubbed left upper arm which caused a mark of a large stag's skull to appear, like a tattoo.
She then moved over to him and as she pressed the arm into place she nipped his ear and whispered softly so only he could hear.”I will have so much fun watching you grow...”Before he could respond Atticus blacked out, falling to the ground as the arm was now reattached, The sudden reconnection of the nerves and the feeling of pain lingering from the arms wounds overloaded his senses, But his arm was good as new albeit with a nasty scar from the wolf bite and the new tattoo he would be better than ever.
Liliana then clapped her hands and the five other women he had saved came in and picked him up, carrying him back to the inn and to his room. Liliana then turned to Lucian and smiled coldly.”Lucian, do you plan on having him walk the path you once did?”
Lucian swallowed his saliva and nodded.”Yes, I had planned on inducting him into the order should he accept. And I was hoping you would help him when the time comes for him to face the rites...”
Liliana shook her head softly but nodded.”I will help him to repay him for saving my life but I want you to know Lucian that it is cruel to force such a burden upon that boy. Especially when you yourself could no longer continue along that path..”
Lucian smiled softly.”You should have seen him a week ago Liliana, He has grown much in such a short time, He will take up my mantle and rise even higher than I ever could have dreamed. And he will thrive, despite the darkness he will find the light. His desire for power will be rewarded in the truest sense...”
Liliana sighed as she turned and left the great hall and headed towards the inn.”But at what cost Lucian? You lost the right to have children aside from Elena who was born beforehand. But what will this boy lose?”
With that the doors to the hall closed behind her as she went to speak with the other leaders of her faction, deciding to offer this boy her full support to aid him on his rapidly darkening path.