After a day's walk, the group stumbled upon another small town. They quickly found a small house that they could stay in for the night. It was significantly smaller than the large inn that was owned and run by Lani, but it was also much bigger than the prison cells they had just been staying in for several days.
As Ob set to lay down for the night with a pillow and small blanket, he checked all his notifications.
Monster Defeated: Maroon Goblin Troop x 47
Reward: 8000 gold pieces (amulet in effect)
Reward: Goblin tooth x25
Reward: Bronze sword x3
Whoa, that was nothing for all those goblins, Ob thought.
Monster Defeated: Maroon Hobgoblin x5
Reward: 15000 gold pieces (amulet in effect)
Reward: Hobgoblin hat
Reward: Hobgoblin mace
Reward: Hobgoblin tunic
Enemy Defeated: Lord Grinly, Prince of the Maroon Goblins
Reward: 45000 gold pieces (amulet in effect)
Reward: Goblin Crown
Reward: L Explixer x5
Reward: Royal Goblin Tunic
Level up: Skill - Dragon's Breath
This skill is now level 23
Level up: Skill - Dragon's Hide
This skill is now level 10
Level up: Power - Draconian Ally
This power is now level 16
Level up: Skill - Stalker
This skill is now level 11
Level up: Skill - Light Bolt
This skill is now level 17
Level up: Power - Slayer
This power is now level 14
Ob Jones is now level 10
Status: Ob Jones.
Race: Celestine
Level: Bronze Tier - Lvl 10
Progress to Silver Level - 40%
Natural Power - Draconian Ally lvl. 16
Skill: Dragon's Breath lvl. 23
Skill: Dragon's Hide lvl. 10
Nurtured Power - Slayer lvl. 14
Skill: Stalker lvl. 11
Skill: Light Bolt lvl. 17
Federation Power - Undecided lvl. 0
Skill: Empty
Skill: Empty
Aura manipulation lvl. 5
Soul manipulation lvl. 6
You have 57 attribute coins. Would you like to distribute now?
Vitality: 210
Speed: 148
Strength: 167 (+5 Bonus)
Manna: 510/510 (+5 Bonus)
Integrity: 250/250
Ob thought long and hard about what he should spend his coins on. Everything proved helpful as he was getting stronger. He thought about the battle, how he had just run out of manna. He decided to put 40 coins into manna and the rest into integrity.
Vitality: 210
Speed: 148
Strength: 167 (+5 Bonus)
Manna: 550/550 (+5 Bonus)
Integrity: 267/267
Abigail sat next to Ob to drop off some food that she and Vincent had just gotten from a local vendor. He sat up and went into his inventory to fetch the gold pieces they had earned during their battles.
"Here," he said, pulling out a bag, "it's 23k gold pieces for each of you. We'll find a trades hall in Andohull and we will split the money from the loot."
Abigail and Vincent shared a look, "Ob, those rewards are from all your kills alone. We do not have an ability that allows us to collect spoils or rewards. You should not share them with us."
Ob waved her off, "That's nonsense; we're a party, ain't we, and we share everything amongst ourselves."
"That is a very generous Ob, truly. Thank you. I will use this to repair my clothing." She looked down at her battered tunic. She was wearing a simple tunic she had as a spare in her bag.
"I also have this bag from the prince we can look at," Ob said, pulling it out to examine the contents.
Lord Grinly's Sack
You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.
They all grimaced at the name.
Bondable Item
Bag
This is a bag belonging to Lord Grinly; it cannot be opened without permission or by the person who has killed Lord Grinly. You have permission to open this bag. Open? Yes/No?
Yes.
Item: Great Goblin Sword
Bondable Weapon
Legendary
A sword was given to royalty in the goblin kingdom. It is a strong, long sword that can deal lethal fire damage. The sword has magic potential and can serve as a conduit to any magic that is inputted into it.
The sword was stunning. Ob held it up; the pommel was a small circle with intricate designs that looked like the designs the maroon goblin troops were wearing, and the handle that was attached to the pommel was made from a wood Ob had never seen before. The grip was about 10 inches long. It had dark brown leather straps wrapped around the wood, with one strand of gold. The guard had two small points going out sideways; above the point, the metal would curve up into a crescent moon shape with two more sharp points. The guard itself was no larger than a few inches wide or tall. The metal was Damascus steel with the same designs in it. The middle of the guard had an amber gemstone. The blade was incredible. The blade was 25 inches long. It had a slight curve to it that showed it was only for slashing in one direction and stabbing. The sharp edge of the sword was made from the same Damascus steel as the guard. However, these designs glowed amber orange, signifying magical imbuement; the edge ran all along the blade to the point. The base of the sword was orange and looked like there was a fire trapped inside the blade; it would take up most of the area until it met the edge.
"That is a beautiful weapon," Vincent said slowly; he loved how that sword looked. "The power is amazing. I can feel it."
"It is indeed a beautiful weapon. You are very blessed to have gotten that Ob. Congratulations." Abigail said, staring at the fantastic weapon.
"So you like it?" Ob asked, looking at Abigail.
"Very much so, yes."
Ob put the sword back in its sheath and gave it to his friend. "You need a weapon." That is all Ob said and watched his friend's eyes grow wide.
"I could not have agreed more with that decision." Vincent said, beaming at his girlfriend; he looked towards Ob and gave an appreciative nod, "Now we all have legendary weapons!"
Abigail pulled the sword out and held it like she was going to attack. She looked at it, and the sword started to glow teal green. The color of her aura. The glowing grew more and more intense until it reached its peak. It stopped, and the blade had slightly transformed. It was no longer the color of fire being trapped in the blade; it looked like a teal-green windstorm was trapped. Silver clouds would be in motion, covering a teal-green sky. She stared at it, tears forming in her eyes. It was beautiful. She had never seen something like this before. To her, the sword told a story of the storm that was brewing inside of her constantly and how she felt trapped. She wanted to release that storm from time to time; well, now she had the opportunity. She said something in her mother tongue, and then runes appeared on the blade, "Mystery: The Captured Storm that is what I named it, in elf. Thank you, Ob, I owe you big time."
"You owe me nothing."
He continued to look inside the bag. That was the only thing of real importance that was worth anything. There were some keys, a book, and a pair of boots. Ob ate his food slowly and quietly for the rest of the night. He told them that he was going to get some sleep. He had been drained from the events of the last few days. He needed to rest. He was still feeling out his new body and new race. After saying goodnight, Ob fell asleep.
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Vincent and Abigail went outside together and went to a small inn that served hot food. They hadn't shared a meal together since becoming a couple. As they waited for their food to arrive, they began conversing, "How did you see me?" Abigail asked.
"I was thinking of the time when I knew.." Vincent said, pausing; he took a deep breath. He had never told her he loved her. He had never really told anyone besides his mom, and that was a rare occasion. "When I knew I loved you," he said, regaining his resolve. "I was thinking of that day, and then I felt some manna surge, and next thing I knew, I was looking at you in your prison cell. That's when I whispered your name, and you turned to look at me.”
Abigail paused; she couldn't believe what she had just heard, "I was thinking the same thing the day I knew that I loved you, I mean. As that memory ended, I, too, felt that manna surge but did not see you; I only heard you and felt your presence." How could this be? How could simply thinking about each other create a surge of manna that would allow them to see each other?
"Abigail, don't think about it too much," he said, chuckling, "I am glad we found you and that you are safe. I love you."
"Okay, Okay," she dropped the train of thought to focus on her lover, "I love you as well." Their food arrived, and they began engaging in small talk about their lives together and their time in prison. This is nice, she thought to herself, it is nice to slow down. I have not been able to do that in what seems like forever. I am content.
Vincent dropped his head, “dammit” he muttered. Abigail knew not to look around. She looked at her boyfriend quizzically.
“Oi! Vincent and the elf” a booming voice cheered. Burley footsteps made their way to the young couple. “Ahh young love, aye luv it!”
“Hey, Moris…” Vincent said.
“Oi, laddy, I won’t be ruinin yer date. Just wanted to say ello!” The big man laughed. “Lookatcha y’all both grown big and strong, near silver, very gude very gude.”
“Hello, Moris,” Abigail said respectfully. “What brings you here?”
“You twos remember that damn Draconian and it’s pet?” Moris spat. They nodded. “Well words gone out that he’s ere, fur the night. I told that normal laddy to leave. He ain’t listen, so now I’m gunna turn im in for some big gold.” Moris said that with pride. The alpha werewolf intended to capture this Draconian. Maybe now, the Lady would give him the time of day and let him join her operation.
“I assume you have some people after him now?” Vincent said calmly.
“Aye,” Moris said. “Another coincidence eh?” He said eyeing the two up and down.
“Yep,” Vincent said calmly. “We’re on our way to Andohull and had a run in with some maroon goblins. Set us back a couple weeks. We left shortly after the last time we saw you,” Abigail was amazed at the lie Vincent just crafted. Mixed with mostly truth he added just enough detail of the truth but not too much to be specific. Well done, Vin. She thought.
“Ugh maroon goblins…” he shivered. “Annoyin little beasties. Glad yer safe, they do a number to their captives. Anyway, I’ll let y’all continue yer date. Take care ya twos.” The Alpha wolf got up and headed toward the door. Something was different about the two, they seemed more hostile than before. Moris chopped it up to them being upset he interrupted their date. That made him laugh young love, he thought, it’ll get ya in ta some trouble there. They prolly just upset about the date, nothin more.
“Happy hunting,” Vincent waved. “We gotta somehow get to Ob.”
“He knows where to find us, we must get out of the town. Set up camp. Anywhere that is not here.” Abigail got up to get moving. She paused, “thanks for the lovely date, my love.” She kissed him.
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Ob’s eyes shot open from his dream. He could hear whispers. They weren’t the whispers of Abigail and Vincent. Someone was coming after him.
“Shhh I think it is this way. The Innkeeper said it was this room.” one of the voices said. Ob didn’t want to push out his senses to feel how many people there were. He guessed that there were at least three. Thugs for hire, Ob thought. What’s the play, Ob what’s the play? He jumped into the shadows with his cloak. For the time being, he would hide in the shadows.
The footsteps grew louder, there was a jiggling at the door. With a click, five men in full plate armor burst into their room. “He ain’t here!” one of them spat.
“That information was false,” another one said. Just as Ob started to believe that he was free, one more human walked in. This one’s aura was strong and hostile. He was the leader.
“Not so fast,” the leader said. His voice was hollow and sounded like a stereotypical mustache-twirling villain. The man’s eyes started to glow lime green, he began searching around the room.
Ob took a deep breath, his heart was racing. He did not want to fight again. With every second that the leader looked at a different corner of the room, his heart started beating harder. Ob was convinced they would hear his heart before seeing him. “Come out, come out, wherever you are.” the man teased. With a steeling breath, Ob jumped out of the shadows right behind the man, with Hades in hand he cut the leg off of the leader. “Boo,” Ob said. He put Hades to the neck of the leader, “who sent you?” He hissed.
“Screw you Draconian,” the leader spat. “I’ll never talk. Don’t just stand there, you imbiciles GET HIM!” the other four men leaped into action. Ob kicked the leader hard in the back causing the leader to land hard on his stomach. The men were wielding swords and shields. They approached Ob slowly and carefully. Ob, not wanting to deal with this for too long, jumped into the shadows. He reappeared in front of the leader again. Ob grabbed the man by the hair, “you’re going to bleed out, if you don’t start talking,” Ob said.
“Then I’ll die by your hands, you filth,” the leader spat in Ob’s face. Disgusted, Ob wiped the spit off and took a deep breath. He had no idea why these men came after him. He had no idea how they even knew he was there. His patience was running thin, still horrified that he killed the Succubus he was not going through that again. Ob jumped back into the shadows. He rose up behind one of the men, put his arm around the man, and started to squeeze. The other men whirled on Ob and started swinging thankfully they missed. The first guy was now unconscious. Ob ran up the side wall and Roundhouse kicked another man in the temple, he was knocked out cold.
Two down, two to go Ob thought. Ob activated stalker and went back into the shadows, he reached out with just his arm out of the shadows, to trip one of the men. As that man was falling Ob jumped out of the shadows with a mean uppercut. The man’s head snapped backward, he crashed to the floor hard. “Just you and me now,” Ob said to the final attacker. The man lunged with his sword, Ob dodged to the side. While the man’s sword was out past his body, Ob karate chopped the arm. He felt bone crush as he chopped, and the man screamed in pain. He dropped the sword, Ob picked it up. He walked over to the man, now cradling his arm on the ground, and struck him with the pommel of the sword. Knocking him out cold.
Ob walked up to the leader and used the dragon’s breath to cauterize the wound. He wrapped it up with a shirt from one of the passed-out men. Ob then began tying up the men. He stripped them of their armor and grabbed their weapons and loot. Ob was starting to hit a wall, his stamina was at an all-time low. He would look at the loot later. Ob once again, jumped into the shadows. He had to find Abigail and Vincent. This town was no longer safe for them. As Ob went to find Abigail and Vincent, he picked up Abigail’s aura. He followed it, jumping out of the shadows. “Ob!” was all he heard, before passing out.
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"Hello," a voice asked after being woken up by his phone ringing.
“Hello, yes is this Mr. Oscar-Blane Jones?" a woman's voice said on the other side of the phone.
"Yes, ma'am. This is him, how may I help you."
"Oscar, I am sorry to tell you but your application has been denied. Although your scores were excellent, we could not get past the family interview. It appears there have been some negative things that you have done according to your family. I am sorry, have a nice day." The woman hung up.
"These folks are really making it hard for me to like them, Ob thought; at this point, I would have rather stayed in foster care than be with them." Ob had applied to work for his local government in a position as a Public Relations Representative for the local city board. He earned both his undergraduate and master's degrees in communication/publications. This job was going to be a big stepping stone in his career. After they told him that he had to do a family interview, his hopes of getting the job plummeted. He was not expecting to get the job at that point.
Disappointed in that call, Ob got out of bed and went to his usual coffee spot to clear his head. He was not a person who drank anything besides water or his veggie supplement drinks. He just loved the ambiance of the coffee shop.
He walked into the shop, which was a small coffee shop. The interior design was that of a cozy cabin in the woods, with low ambient lights, a fireplace, and comfortable seating all throughout the shop. All the tables were natural wood, which gave a real homey and comfortable vibe. Ob approached the worker at the cash register to place his order. He had never seen this woman before; Ob was blown away; she was beautiful. She was tall, only a couple of inches shorter than Ob. The thing he noticed the most were her eyes. They were light purple, like lavendar; he couldn't take his eyes off of them. She smiled and asked what she could do for her. Her smile was gentle and pure.
Ob finally gathered himself, "Hi, sorry. Your eyes are amazing. I bet you hear that alot." He said awkwardly, chuckling to himself, "Sorry, Evelyn, I'm Ob, could I get hot water and some lemon?"
Eveyln chuckled, "No worries, coming right up Ob! Please call me Eve."