As Atticus and Shadow walked down the long passage they could see no other monsters, as though Floki never expected Hati and Skoll to fall in battle, So they decided to eat as they walked, Taking turns as they snacked on bread and goat meat and took drinks of water.
Soon they arrived at the final room. Inside was a large armor covered wolf, equal in size to Fenrir, chained low to the ground inside of an arcane circle as Floki was chanting something. Atticus didn't want to wait and see what it was so he took off running at full speed.
He did not use his shouts as usual as he wanted to conserve his mana, his rage climbing rapidly as his anger began to flood through his veins at the sight of the one responsible for the disgusting scene below, That of wolf pups being forcibly aged.
He felt his blood boiling hotter than ever as he slammed into the man, sending him flying and causing the circle of runes to go dark, the spell stopped for now.
Floki slammed against the wall and showed Atticus something confusing. His level was only 1 and his HP was only at 150, he wasn't even a boss monster. It was at that time that Floki began laughing maniacally.
“You’re too late warrior, My creation is complete!” As these words left his mouth Atticus heard a low growl behind him and the sound of chains snapping and a whimper from Shadow.
“M..Master she's hurting...” Atticus turned to look at the massive wolf and smiled softly as he looked at Shadow.”It's ok buddy, I won't hurt her any more than I need to, Watch Floki, if he moves or speaks then rip his throat out...”
With a loud bark, Shadow moved closer to Floki and watched him intently while growling. Atticus, on the other hand, put his battleaxe away and took out his hunting knife, He was going to keep his promise and not hurt the wolf anymore than he had to.
Seeing Atticus moving towards her Lilim growled and lunged, slamming her paws down on his shoulders expecting him to fall. But he had come a long way from his fight with Fenrir and stood firm.
As she snapped at him he threw his left arm up and gave her something to chew on as he began cutting at the straps on her armor, Smiling as the strips gave way with ease before the sharpened blade.
But soon Atticus heard the sound of howling coming from the path he had just come from, He soon saw a pack of armored battle wolves running into the room. He let out a frustrated yell as he kicked Lilim away and drew his axe.
He was going to have to hurt them quite a bit but there was nothing he could do about it. He charged them and activated his Enrage, kicking the wolves and swinging his axe as precisely as he could.
He was aiming solely for the straps on their armor but he was constantly taking damage, while low since these wolves were only level 1 and were meant to be cannon fodder for this fight, The sheer number of the wolves kept driving his health lower and lower.
He soon lost the use of his left arm as a wolf bit it and pulled hard, dislocating it. But at the same time, he was slowly making progress with the wolves, the armor began falling off of them and they ran as fast as they could out of the room.
But as he got down to the last five wolves he felt a weight on his back as Lilim pounced on him, snapping down on his right shoulder. Atticus howled in pain as he rolled and slammed the wolf's head against the ground.
She held on tight but he soon let go of his axe and chugged a health potion, swinging his axe again while using the side of it to stun the lesser wolves as he rolled and bit Lilim violently on the throat, breaking the skin and causing her to yelp, letting go of his shoulder as he pinned her down.
He was cutting the last of her straps off of her armor as Shadow backed the last wolves into a corner along with Floki. It was as Lilim shook her armor off and whimpered, rolling on her back before Atticus that something changed.
Floki saw what Atticus was doing and the very thought of it enraged him, so he went with his final plan of desperation. Using his staff and the wolves as a shield from shadow he began casting a spell.
When Atticus caught on it was too late, the spell was complete and before their eyes Flokis body merged with that of the five wolves, The result was a twisted abomination that no longer looked human nor beast, its form constantly shifting between the two.
Floki now stood on par with Hati and Skoll, his body covered in bits of steel plate armor from the wolves, his hands shaped into claws of steel, his eyes filled with madness like a rabid dog.
“You shall not stop me! I will discover the secret of the ulfheðnar!” Floki roared as he charged Atticus, bashing Shadow to the side of the room, not killing him but he could feel the pain his companion was in and it enraged him ever more.
Lilim jumped in front of him and tried to stop Floki only to be met with the same brutal blow, flying across the room only to slam into the wall. As he watched the two wolves being beaten by this monstrosity Atticus’ rage reached a new limit and he let out a fierce roar.
He began to charge Floki with his blood boiling and raging through his veins, spurring on his every movement as his vision went dark, His senses heightened to an all-time high as his bond with Shadow boosted his senses.
The two clashed in the center of the room and a loud impact could be heard as steel hit steel. Atticus had swung his axe with all his mIght as Floki had swung his claws, the two forces were equal in power and caused a severe recoil, sending them both back five feet.
But the two did not stop, They clashed, again and again, trading blows as Flokis claws carved into Atticus’ body and Atticus’ axe tore chunks of Flokis flesh and muscle from the bone, The two had lost all reason,
Focusing solely on trading blows with one another in their rage, Atticus soon had large patches of his flesh torn away, his left arm missing, his left eye gouged out with a long jagged wound running down to his jaw line.
Floki was missing his right arm, right eye, all of the steel plates had been carved from his body leaving only the steel claws now. With every hit the two beasts, attack speed began to grow, their rage driving them to greater heights,
But as Atticus reached 10% he felt a rush of adrenaline shove him past the limits of what his ability should have allowed. With a howl he began slamming his axe harder and faster against Flokis body, the steel claws soon denting and bending, quickly becoming useless.
Floki's legs were soon missing massive chunks of muscle and tendons, making him fall to his knees, In his Enraged state he began to move faster as well, soon knocking Atticus’ axe across the room.
But this did not stop Atticus as he felt his bond with Shadow growing with every rage fuelled attack, His canine teeth
grew longer and sharper, his nails grew into claws and soon he lunged at Floki. Clawing and tearing into the massive beasts flesh with a greedy hunger.
He began to eat the beast alive, swallowing large chunks of flesh and blood as he tore Flokis throat out. Soon Atticus’ body was covered in blood and chunks of flesh but he continued to tear into Flokis body. Howling savagely as he soon made his way to his still beating heart.
With one final slam down with his clawed hands, Atticus shattered Flokis ribcage, tearing it open he lunged down and devoured his still beating heart. Howling loud enough that it reverberated through the halls of the den and those hunting in the woods could hear, And what they heard was a beast who had just devoured his kill.
He was panting raggedly and shaking violently as floki's body vanished. He received many messages but he could not see them as his body came down from its primal high.
Spoiler :
Your madness has deepened, resulting in a new title and skill!
Your savage methods of dispatching your foe has brought you closer to becoming a beast! Your nails and fangs shall permanently be that of a wolf! + 10 Attack
You have killed Floki and stopped his madness! The village of Duskhaven in Black Rock Hold will rejoice!
For being the first to clear the dungeon you have gained a level!
Level up!
Level up!
Level up!
You have reached Level 10!
For killing the final boss of the dungeon without help from other players or NPC allies you have gained the best items the boss has to offer
Atticus sat there panting for a good ten minutes, Even as Shadow came over to him and began licking his face while whimpering he was lost in the flood of exhaustion as his rage left his body.
After he regained his senses Atticus decided the first thing he should do was to check his status and update it, petting Shadow as he dragged his axe back to him.
Atticus drank a health potion as he noticed how damaged his body was, almost dropping the potion as his hand was shaking so badly. As his body forced itself to regenerate most of its muscle and flesh Atticus’ body was soon covered in many scars.
He forced himself to his feet and opened Flokis chest, The loot made him grin widely.
Spoiler :
[tr]
Beginners Rune Smithing ManualType:SkillbookDurability:IndestructibleQuality:RareRequires Beginner Blacksmithing to and Leatherworking to learn.Teaches the user to etch runes of power into their weapons and armor.
Alphas Footpads.Type:BootsDurability:1500/150Quality:RareDefense:20A pair of boots made from the hide of the last alpha of Blackrock Hold..Requires 30 Dexterity to wear.+10 Charisma+2% Frost ResistRun with the pack: Increases the Movement Speed of yourself, your party, allies, and pets by 25% for 1 minute. Cost 100 Mana.Your footsteps make no sound even when running.
[tr]
Fine Rune Smithing setType:ToolsDurability:IndestructibleQuality:RareA set of very well made steel engraving tools for Rune Smithing.
When he saw the skill book and tools his eyes light up, the thought of upgrading his weapons and armor greatly appealed to him as he could then sell them for far more money depending on what runes he could put on them.
The boots were great as well but the book was his favorite of all. He took the usual gold and health potions before he gave one to Lilim and one to Shadow. Petting them both and changing into his new boots before he stood up.”Let's go home...”
With that said they began the long walk back to Duskhaven, Not even thinking about the blood coating his body as he walked through town he was met with looks of fear from the users, After all, a blood-soaked, battle-scarred, one armed giant of a man walked into their town with two massive wolves following behind him, the smaller of the two carrying what they could only assume was his arm in his jaws. and carrying a giant battle axe in his one hand.
All the while the NPCs around him cheered and howled out their joy at his return with the Alpha under his control. He stopped by the well and bathed, stripping naked as usual as he began to scrub himself and his armor.
Once that was done he drank nearly three buckets of water before his thirst went down. He then got dressed. As he sat in the noon sun half naked and guzzling down ice cold water Lucian, Liliana, and the other elves came out to greet him.
In as loud a voice as he could manage Lucian looked down at Atticus“Thane Atticus Shadowsgrove! What is your report on the Den!”
Atticus tossed the bucket aside and stood up, slamming his right hand to the tattoo over his heart as he roared out his response.”The Den is clear!, The rouge Runesmith Floki is dead!”
As his voice thundered out across the village the villages all began cheering louder, The users looking on in awe as the savage man known unofficially as The Cain of RO was being heralded as a hero, Most not understanding that in the old days one's honor was forged in blood, not just good deeds.
Lucian grinned and nodded resolutely.”As a reward for your great deed to my hold, i hereby revoke all villainous deeds from your past! And I award you with the highest honor i can give. I hereby invite you to the order of the Úlfhéðnar! The Wolf Skinned Berserkers!”
Quest Complete!
At the mere word Berserker, all the users knew what frightening things a berserker was. And the villagers roared their approval, After all, Berserkers were owed the highest respect of warriors.
Lucian Frost, Jarl of Black Rock Hold, And Leader of the Úlfhéðnar has invited you to his order. Do you wish to change your class to that of a Úlfhéðnar (Unique Berserker variant) Y/N?
Atticus gladly accepted, dropping down to one knee”It would be an honor to learn from you, Jarl Frost!” As he said this a blood red light shone down on him, and the two wolves behind him howled in an eerie, bone-chilling+
6 way, alternating their howls to make a haunting song.
Within seconds wolves flooded out of the forests and all gathered around him and joined in the chilling song. Feeling his link mates joy he himself joined in with a howl of his own. Hearing the almost ghostly song the villagers dropped to a knee and the fear status was applied to every user in the area that heard the song, getting a message at the same time.
The world has witnessed the birth of a Úlfhéðnar, A Warrior clad in wolf skins. For 24 hours all wolves will be 100% stronger, Travel in larger packs, And give 50% more loot and EXP
It was then that he received a new window.
You have become a Úlfhéðnar! Check the Class window for information on your new class and abilities.
This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.
Atticus gladly did so.
Spoiler :
ÚlfhéðnarThrough your brutal battles you have become one with the wolf, You are one with the pack, An Alpha. All will fall in line behind you or be met with the fangs of you and your pack.Effects+ 30 to Str, Dex, End, Cha.
+200 Rage
Your skill Overpower has been empowered and has become Savage Blow, now ignoring all armor, having a 25% chance to inflict Bleeding, The damage has turned to darkness
You have gained the skill Pack Master, Allowing a mental link with your pets, your party members pets, and all Druids in animal form in your party,
Your Beast Mastery skill has been changed. your pets, your party members pets, and all Druids in animal form in your party now gain 30% of your stats rather than 20%
Your skill Roar has been renamed to Howl and has gained a new ability, Alpha's Command Now increases Health, Attack Speed, And Damage done by your pets, your party members pets, and all Druids in animal form in your party by 25%
When you die you will no longer lose a level, However, you and your pets must now gain twice as much EXP as others.
Atticus was about to groan seeing he now had to work twice as hard as the others but was stopped as Liliana walked over to him and stroked his scarred cheek lovingly, leaning down and kissing him passionately, much to the dismay of the elves and the shock of the users as they saw the lovely queen of the elves gladly kissing the savage they all feared would attack them when they left the village.
Seeing that Liliana was clearly fine with a public display of affection he kissed her back, pulling her close and letting his hands rest on her tight rear, this earned him a great deal of hate from the users and the elves, enough so that his Bloodlust marked fifty-six enemies on his mental map.
But after a long minute, Liliana pulled her lips from his and smiled."Thane Shadowsgrove, I Liliana Ironwood wish to formally thank you for saving and avenging myself and the founding members of the Ironwood Druids and our Initiate Lilim. I will grant you four rewards for this feat. First, I will mend your wounds, Second I will allow you to keep Lilim as your loyal pet and companion."
He was confused as she said this until Lilim walked into his vision and changed into the familiar form of the elven woman who helped him during his account set up, though now instead of her robe she was wearing a scant leather top and shorts like the stereotypical Fantasy armor one would expect a druid female to wear.
He then got a message stating she was now his pet. He was about to speak but Liliana put a finger to his lips which silenced him right away.
"Third I shall leave one of the elders here to train those who wish to become druids. And Fourth. I offer you this blade." She held up a blade the same size as his current hunting knife, This blade, however, is made of a brilliant silver, the edge glimmering to a degree that the sharpness alone scared him. Etched into the stag horn handle was the same tattoo on his arm, though slightly different.
She gave a sly smirk before she dropped down to her knees and kissed his neck, Making a show of licking and kissing every scar on his body which made them vanish slowly, leaving the one where Fenrir tore off his arm, and the slashes across his back from where Skoll killed him.
She then pressed his arm into place as she licked along the wound, healing the arm though this time while it hurt greatly he didn't pass out, instead his rage maxed out at 500.
When she was done she kissed him again, This time as she pulled away the stag's skull tattoo on his left arm glowed with a bright green light, becoming surrounded with thorns which ended with a bramble crown on top of the skull, now matching that of the symbol on his new hunting knifes handle. At the same time, she smiled and whispered softly."Mine..."
Atticus was a bit dazed at her claiming him as her own but soon he got a message telling him about his new title, and a message saying that she was his lover now, but he decided to ignore it for now."I thank you for your generosity my queen..."
With the ceremony done Lucian coughed a bit and Liliana all but skipped happily back to her original spot as she grinned happily. Lucian sighed and smiled."I hereby declare that for the next week there shall be a feast in honor of our thane's glory!"
With that there was a roar of approval as the villagers began to run about, bringing the tables and chairs from their homes as the smith began to set up a large fire pit which Atticus moved to assist him with, At the same time the women of the village began gathering food from the storehouse to begin cooking once the fire pit was done.
As they finished building the pit Atticus took out the pick axe and held it out to the old smith."I believe this belongs to you my friend.."
Quest Complete!
The old smith actually broke into tears as he clutched the pick, for a long while Atticus waited a bit awkwardly until the old man collected himself. He then leads Atticus to his shop and pulled out a small crate, inside was everything he needed to become a blacksmith."True to our agreement my friend here is the skill books and equipment I promised you, Thank you again for returning my family pick to me..."
Atticus nodded but he soon remembered something."Before i forget I found what seemed to be traces of iron in one of the back pathways if the Den. Perhaps I can convince Lucian to send some guards to patrol the den and allow us to mine there to get more materials?"
Hearing this the old smith perked up."I always knew there was still a vein in that old mine, Tell Lucian to send me down there with a team of five guards and I will confirm that there is still worth in that mine.."
He didn't get a quest window but Atticus nodded firmly as he left the smithy for now and decided to go rest in the tavern while the feast was being set up.
He sat down on his bed and took out all of the tools and books he had so far and began reading them, The blacksmithing manual told him a few small details he didn't already know from the books he read in the real world but it didn't give him the skill he needed.
He then read the mining manual which taught him all about mining from what ores look like when still in the stone, to signs of dangers such as poison gas and the signs of a potential cave-in.
The Rune Smithing book was what he was truly excited to read, It taught him how to engrave the runes as well as a few starter runes, the rest had to be discovered through the world in libraries or in dungeons. His starting runes were Life(Health) Invigoration (HP Regen) Discipline (Int) Fury(Str) Longevity(End) And Speed(Dex)
With the knowledge he needed he returned to the smithy and asked for permission to use the forge and furnace as he didn't want to wait for the coals to reach the right heat. With a very happy old man's blessing, Atticus went to work, melting down all of the steel armor and weapons he got from the armored wolves and wolfmen, as well as the players who attacked him so often.
Near five hours later Atticus had 140 steel bars, having taken a break to find Rena and take the armor she had been carrying for him.He kept one of the pieces of wolf armor and decided to study it, learning the fertility and growth rate runes, While not wanting to use them he figured it would be best to have them, He then studied the design of the last set of wolf armor before took a break as the feast was now in full swing.
He and the villagers, and users partied non-stop for a week, Atticus took short breaks to work the forge but he didn't sleep and never stopped drinking. This lead to a funny combination as he found his End and Str rose by one after every two hours of work in the smithy due to the intense labor and heat.
He also told Lily and Alice about his class, having agreed to keep his class a secret from Samantha for a while to surprise her, Sasha, however, was still pouting even after he told her the only loot that dropped was for beast users. It was through this conversation that he realized Lucian still owed him a weapon!
He stumbled off to find the Jarl who was half drunk like himself but was grinning."I was wondering when you would show up..." He stood up and put an arm around Atticus' shoulder and lead him to the storeroom in the back."You see Atticus, while we Úlfhéðnar are Warriors like the rest we have an overwhelming strength when we are in battle, this allows us to do something unique which is to use two great weapons at once... "
He soon brought Atticus before a large suit of thick black iron armor with an old silver wolf pelt over it. In the suit of armors grasp were two massive battle axes. And laying in front of the suit was a smaller battleaxe closer to the size of his Grim Chopper, And a book laying on top of it.
Lucian handed him the book which vanished instantly as it taught him its skill."The book you just used held the skill Jotuns Grip, It allows us to wield two great weapons with no penalties to damage though for now your attacks will be slower than normal until you become more adept at it...Or you could use it as I some of the stranger men have, choosing to wield monstrous weapons only monsters would consider to wield."
He then motioned to two blades Both were black steel battle axes which had a wolf motif like the tattoo on his chest engraved on the blade in blood red though one was monstrous in size, something one would expect to see in a minotaurs hands. "Take your pick Atticus, it is your life after all."
Atticus decided to grab the larger of the axes just feeling that one weapon was more suited to his style. Lucain sighed and nodded seeing Atticus would be one of the darker of his order"This is Fury, It is a battleaxe passed from one Úlfhéðnar to the next when we have decided upon our successor."
FuryType:Great AxeDurability:300/300Quality:RareDamage:330-350A massive axe made from black steel quenched in the blood of wolves, Passed from one Úlfhéðnar to the next as a tradition, and a right of passage.Requires Jotuns Grip to wield.This monsterous blade stands at 7'0 tall and weighs two hundred pounds, no mortal warrior would be able to wield this blade. As such it may not be stolen and will not be lost on deathAllows the user to gain 20% of the stats from one of his pets. May only be used by a Úlfhéðnar.
Atticus gladly took the weapon and gave it a swing with both hands, loving the weight and feel, but he also noticed an eerie howling sound as he swung it, Noticing small holes cut in the back of the axe that the air passes through. He looked to Lucian and bowed his head."Thank you for this honor my friend..."
Lucian patted his shoulder and shook his head."Don’t thank me yet boy, For you to become a true Úlfhéðnar and have access to all of our power you must complete the Rites, Grueling tests that will push you to your limits, with each test you will lose something but you will gain power beyond your imagining.., Liliana will contact you when she feels you are ready for your first rite, The Druids have always been our allies and helped us during our rites by setting the challenge and ensuring our survival...Most of the time at least.."
Atticus sighed a bit as Lucian lead him back out to the great hall and smiled."But enough with the seriousness my friend, We must keep celebrating. After all once the feast is over ill really be putting you to work!"
___________________________________________________________________________________
The world of RO changed greatly overnight, unknown to Adam his Cradle had recorded his latest session all the way up to Liliana healing his body, ending before she claimed him as her own. With this the world found out the brutality of the Úlfhéðnar for themselves, seeing his fight with Hati and Skoll, As well as his brutal slaughter of Floki.
While not showing them any of his items gained or the stats of his class only its description and how it had a clear effect on the wolves in the area. That night the forums were on fire with tales of Atticus, The Cain of RO returning to the village with two massive wolves and covered in wounds only to become a Berserker style class.
The second Unique class in the game after Dark Desires Valkyrie, But also now many players thanked him as they were able to take up the Druid class which allowed them to shapeshift into various animal forms after they studied the beasts for long periods of time.
___________________________________________________________________________________
In a small room in the Duskhaven Tavern.
"Ohhhh why did this have to happen... I know they said it was part of my job description but to be a pet, And to a savage like him no less... Can we switch places Liliana?"
In this room sat a beautiful young elf, complaining to an even more beautiful elf though she was three years younger than her.
" Oh quit complaining Lilim, he's quite nice once you get to know him,and seems like he will be very fun to serve, You should have heard how he beat the daylights out of that Ally NPC that abandoned him, she went from absolute pain to mind numbing pleasure in like three minutes!"
Liliana grinned as she told this to her older sister, The two were unique beings in RO, Players paid by the company to act as NPCs, In Liliana's case as the Queen of the Ironwoods, a level 75+ woodland area which was the capital of the elves,
While she was not keen on the staged rape she very much enjoyed her time with Atticus, loving the reactions he gave her when she teased him, and his new confidence after being forced to log out for awhile was just awesome.
Lilim and her baby sister were in a terrible accident three years ago, a drunk driver ran into their car which resulted in both girls being paralyzed completely from the neck down, so when they were approached by Rebirth Industries they leapt metaphorically at the chance to beta test the game and to be permanent residents, Their monthly fees fully taken care of as well as a large sum of in-game gold to do as they pleased.
The only conditions were that they had to play specific roles when the game went live, after helping sort new players they would be sent to one of the Human dungeons where a chain of events leading to the only two Berserker classes would be unlocked.
The best part was Lilim lost the coin toss to see who became the 'Pet' to the Úlfhéðnar, Lilim complained the whole time as Liliana was an openly submissive masochist and she argued she should have taken the role instead. But Liliana got to be the Queen of the Ironwood Elves, and so she had to watch other women be raped when the first players entered the dungeon, Though the people at Apex were shocked as they never expected her to pick her savior as her chosen lover.
"That sounds great for you! it already sucks that I got smacked across the room earlier and had like every bone in my body shattered!, That shit hurts!"Lilim groaned as she remembered the pain before Atticus gave her the potion.
"Hey quit bitching, I have to stay in the capital from now on and play a damn RTS while you get to go out on an adventure, If I had known the full details of this role I'd have let you take it... I would love to have him beat me when I act out....." A lewd look crossed Liliana's face as she bit her lip softly, shifting her legs a bit as she got wet at the thought of the abuse a misbehaving pet would get.
"God, how did I end up with a pervert like you as a sister..." Lilim cringed and shook her head as Liliana laughed softly and tackled her sister playfully and hugged her close.
"Come on you know you still love me..."Liliana grinned and cuddled up to her big sister like a kitten would when seeking attention.
Lilim smiled and held her sister close, really just glad that the two could be together after nearly two weeks in game time."How could I ever hate you...."