The doors to the elevator opened; they stood on top of catwalks.
“Turn on lights,” Dave said out loud. “It’s got a limited computer interface that recognizes me as the commander of this ship.”
Dave was talking, but Ela-Dorn wasn’t paying much attention. She moved to the edge of the catwalk, her mouth open as the lights came on row by row. Stacked on top of one another was portal after portal. It was a massive storage facility of some of the most advanced technology on Emerilia.
Dave gave her some time and opened his character sheet. He put in twenty stat points into his Intelligence attribute, ten into his Agility, so he didn’t start falling all over the place, and five to his Vitality.
It was a rush as he moved around, getting used to the changes. Bit by bit, add it all together and then see what happens. Hopefully, the Demons are worth lots of EXP to kill. And the quest will give us a nice EXP bounty. He hadn’t been watching his levels before, but now that he was focused on them, he was acutely aware how few quests he had completed.
He looked to his character sheet as Ela-Dorn wandered through the catwalks, looking down at the various items littering the seeder’s warehouse-sized storage facilities.
Character Sheet
Name:
David Grahslagg
Gender:
Male
Level:
23
Class:
Dwarven Master Smith, Friend of the Grey God, Bleeder, Librarian, Aleph Engineer, Weapons Master
Race:
Human/Dwarf
Alignment:
Chaotic Neutral
Unspent points: 501
Health:
18,800
Regen:
6.14 /s
Mana:
3,980
Regen:
15.75 /s
Stamina:
2,480
Regen:
12.70 /s
Vitality:
188
Endurance:
307
Intelligence:
398
Willpower:
315
Strength:
248
Agility:
254
Level 124
You have reached level 124; you have 501 stat points to use.
Quest: Survival of the Fittest
Together, the races of Demon and Beast Kin have worked together, making a foothold in Devil’s Crater. The Dark Lord, who sends his Demon Horde, hardened by a long journey and countless fights, sends them unknowingly into your home.
He wishes to use it to grow his forces stronger. Show him your newfound strength. Rise from the history books that you were cast into and LIVE!
Requirements: Defeat the Demon Horde
Failure: Death
Rewards: 1,000,000 gold to the Devil’s Crater Treasury
Quest: Dwarven Master Smith Level 3
You must craft 10 weapons of S quality with your Smithing Art (Currently 3/10)
Rewards: Unlock Level 4 quest
Increase to stat gain
Quest: Friend of the Grey God Level 4
Complete the Quest: Survival of the Fittest
Rewards: Unlock Level 5 Quest
Increase to stats
Quest: Bleeder Level 3
Complete the Quest: Survival of the Fittest
Rewards: Unlock Level 4 Quest
Increase to stats
(???)
Quest: Librarian Level 3
Conduct research that allows you to understand how to create your own teleport pad.
Rewards: Unlock Level 4 Quest
Increase to stats
Quest: Weapons Master Level 2
Kill one hundred enemies with every weapon type.
One handed and shield: 13/100
Two handed: 41/100
Dual wield: 46/100
Archery: 0/100
Rewards: Unlock Level 3 Quest
Increase to stats
Quest: Aleph Engineer Level 4
Help build 1 Aleph facility
Rewards: Unlock Level 5 Quest
Increase to stats
Increased access to Aleph College Knowledge
Thankfully, with my classes, I can keep gaining stats as long as I keep up with all the quests that it gives me. Making seven S quality weapons is going to be hard, but I could use the coin to back up the smithy and it would also show that we’re not just any smithy.
Dave had found that with his higher Intelligence, he would frequently start thinking of his future and the plans he formed. Time didn’t seem as rigid for him. Though, once getting stuck into his mental fugue state, he came out more tired. Before he fell in anymore, he shook his head to clear it.
Ela-Dorn was looking over a collection of portals just lying in wait, four stories of them stacked and ready.
“Quite the sight.” Dave leaned on the banister beside her. “Huh, I guess Anna’s training to get me over my fear of heights kind of worked.”
“And we can take one of these?” Ela-Dorn asked.
“Yes, though I have a favor to ask.”
“What?” Ela-Dorn looked to Dave, anxious that Dave would take the portal away from her.
“Any information that you gain from these things, I want to know about it. I have plans for the future and these are a big part of it. I’m going to need to know a hell of a lot about them in the future to do what I want to.” Dave’s usually playful tone turned serious as he looked to Ela-Dorn.
“We’re allies and I hope that we can become friends. I will share anything that I learn with you,” Ela-Dorn promised.
“Thank you. Also, the first thing I’m at least going to try to play around with is dialing multiple, different locations. You’ve got it with the teleport pads, but these portals are hooked one-to-one with another. I want to see if we can’t change that.” Dave’s smile returned.
“You’ve just learned part of how teleport pads work and now you want to not only bring portals online, but modify them?”
“Remember, got to think big!”
Ela-Dorn shook her head and looked over the facility. “How the hell am I going to be able to get one of these out of here?”
“Well, that is the first hurdle. I have no idea.”
Epilogue: Head Of The Serpent
Lezar looked over the Demon Horde as it progressed. They were highly resistant to most diseases and poison, but that didn’t mean that they were unaffected by it.
The Demon Horde was slow, most of them dealing with cramps and stomach flus that they had seemed to catch over the last couple of weeks.
Lezar smiled as the afternoon turned to night. Among the Demon Horde were his own DCA soldiers. It had been easy for them to get into the camp.
The Demon Horde didn’t care who walked beside them; they just weighed whether it was worth stabbing them for what they had or not. The Demon Horde was growing in strength, due to their uncaring murder of one another to take another’s belongings and food or to eat them.
“Tonight’s the night.” Krenua stood beside Lezar.
“That it is,” Lezar said. “I am surprised that it has taken the horde so long to start making leaders. If either of the plans are pulled off, then it will be the beginning of the end.”
“It does feel good to have a purpose once again. When seeing the Demon Horde, I can understand why the trust that we’ve built up within the Devil’s Crater Army is so useful. Without it, we wouldn’t be much better than the rabble down there,” Krenua said, a look of disgust on his face.
Lezar grunted in agreement, taking one more look at the advancing horde. Some were trying out their ability at flying, but it took time to understand how to do it properly. It also made beginner fliers vulnerable. It was easy to throw a rock at a new flier and bring them to the ground, stunned and weakened for another attack. Only the strongest Demons, those who had grouped together, or were just plain stupid, tried out flying.
“Without their a
erial abilities, we’re going to be able to bleed them on the ground. Their loss of mobility is going to be essential for completing this. Make sure that you target the winged ones first.”
“There are only a third of them with wings, most of them with wounded wings. You can see the winged ones starting to group together as we had within our own horde when we crossed these plains. You and your brothers were the first of us to learn how to not only fly, but to fight while flying,” Krenua said.
“Exactly. Wings give them mobility and advantages. Tonight, we’ll take out the leaders among the Demon Horde. The more chaos within their ranks, the longer it will take them to reach Devil’s Crater and the more we can bleed them.” Lezar’s stony features turned into a cold, pleased smile.
“I’ll head down to the rest of the groups waiting. It will feel good to cut these ingrates down a bit.” Krenua looked over the two million-strong Demon Horde. His heart beat fast, a mix of excitement of battle and the fear of death that followed it.
“Good luck, Krenua. Bring me their heads.” Lezar held out his arm.
Krenua braced forearms with the general. “We’ll sow the ground with their blood,” Krenua promised.
Lezar nodded.
Krenua headed down the hill that they were using to watch the slowing Demon Horde getting ready to make camp for the night. Krenua jogged through the forest, his footfalls light as he made nearly no sound in his movements.
It was only through his mini map that he was able to find the Demons assigned to the mission, every Demon from Lezar’s brigade.
They had traded their service clothes for rags in most places. For this mission, the Beast Kin were held back, as a very last resort. For this to go off without a hitch, the Demon Horde would have to think that their leadership was killed from within.
Krenua waited, looking over his interface, checking the linked scouts that were updating the map constantly with where the Demon Horde’s people were.
The Demons who had already inserted themselves into the Demon Horde camp also ran updates on certain high-value targets.
Dusk turned into night. Demons tried to hunt food down. Brawls started between the hungriest. With no meat to be found, the Demon Horde was not averse to killing their own and cooking them for sustenance.
Still, the DCA waited; the night came and the biggest fights came and went. Darkness descended as the Demon Horde started to fall asleep. The night’s air smelled metallic, telling of the victims who had already fallen.
“Go,” Lezar said over the brigade-wide channel.
The Devil’s Crater Army started to stand up in groups, heading into the Demon Horde’s camp. They looked like hunters who were just coming in late. There were around fifteen thousand of the DCA soldiers who were part of the operation. Facing over two million other Demons, it was hard to figure out that they were part of the same group.
Krenua waited for his group’s turn. They moved forward, relaxed and muttering among themselves as they got closer to the camp.
“Hope that there’s some damn meat to be had in the camp,” Krenua said as they walked.
“Well, if there isn’t, then we’ll have to make some of our own,” another said with a bloodthirsty smile.
“Look at these idiots—more scared of one another than of the creatures that should be in this area.” Ilia shook her head.
The camp seemed to be formed into a sort of arena: Demons around the outside, with the interior empty except for those brawling. The Demon groups had their backs to the forest, watching their fellows they thought of as a larger threat than the natural beasts.
Krenua shook his head, agreeing with Ilia’s observation.
“Easier for us,” Krenua said, as they moved toward the marked targets. “Spread out, so we don’t look like a group.”
They moved apart. A Demon made a pass at Ilia, slapping her ass. Her sword took off their arm; their leering smile turned into a howl of pain before she slit their throat. He made choking noises, causing three other Demons to draw their crude stone weapons and move up to help.
Their faces showed looks of shock at the saw blades suddenly emerging from the Demons’ chests.
The DCA left the dying Demons.
It’s pretty messed up that we’re kind of killing our younglings. They were made from the same base as us, though they’re pure destruction. The Dark Lord’s perfect tools: they’re dumb, strong, and loyal as long as they’re fed. Simple fact is that they’re coming to destroy my home and do that sadistic fuck’s dirty work.
“What are you doing?” a large Demon said as Krenua walked past him.
The Demon didn’t feel anything as Ilia’s blade cut out the tendons in his knee, dropping him down before she took his head off in a powerful blow.
“Killing you,” Krenua said, not feeling an ounce of guilt as he moved into the sleeping area. Other groups of DCA moved into the area also.
Krenua walked under a low-hanging tree to see three demons wrapped in their wings, sleeping around a tree. One of them looked around, her hand on her weapon.
Krenua didn’t give her time to react, putting his blade through her eye and into her skull.
She slumped to the ground. Krenua dispatched another Demon a second after; the third rustled in their sleep but didn’t rise.
Krenua made sure they would never wake from their slumber.
The rusty smell of freshly spilled blood made Krenua’s stoic expression turn into a grin similar to Lezar’s.
DCA that had been with the Horde moved on their targets. Fifty thousand Demons died in a few short hours. Not a large number compared to the mass of Demons, yet nearly every one of them had been the strongest of the Horde. Potential leaders and groups were quashed in a night, while the most aggressive ones were left alive.
“Pull back. Good work,” Lezar said. The DCA melted back into the forest.
Krenua stayed up the few hours left until morning, watching the Demon Horde camp. Before night turned into day, movement started to fill the camp. It seemed that word had been passed.
By the time that the sun had risen, the groups that were remaining, the bottom feeders and the more aggressive ones, were pulling themselves together.
Krenua watched as a battle played out in the middle of the camp. The open area in its center turned into a gladiator pit.
The Demons would probably level up but without leadership and their mistrust, it was like the first days they came to Emerilia. It was a free-for-all.
“We kill fifty thousand; they kill nearly two hundred thousand. That’s what I call a strategic advantage.” Lezar watched the scene with Krenua.
“What do we do now?” Krenua asked.
“Nightly raids; I want to fan the flames. The more time we hold them back here, the longer Efri gets with his traps. I want them disorganized, sleep deprived, and unwilling to trust one another when we hit them.” Lezar looked to Krenua.
“I’ll see to it.” Krenua nodded and looked back to the camp one more time. Once they clear Efri’s traps, then they’ll be at Devil’s Crater and the real battle will start.
***
Josh watched the interface in front of Florence disappear. For a few moments, there was nothing. Then, the drop pad’s runes lit up. There was a flash of light as the drop pad had disappeared. In its place was a teleport pad. A control terminal sat on top of it.
Everyone looked around, as if stunned by what had just happened. It didn’t seem as nearly ground-breaking as they’d thought.
Josh knew that with time, it wasn’t having the teleport pad that would change Emerilia; it was what they did through the teleport pad.
“Get the control terminal off and put it in the control room,” Florence said.
Two Stone Raiders grabbed the terminal, moving it off to the control room on one side. The entire area around the teleport pad had been made for speed and efficiency as well as defense. They wanted to be able to control what went through the teleport pad immediately.
The teleport
pad hummed with power; the Stone Raiders’ hands went to their blades.
A portal opened, showing Lucy on the other side.
“Well, it looks like it worked. Congratulations.” Lucy smiled at Florence.
“I didn’t think that it would there for a bit.” Florence laughed.
Lucy stepped from the guild hall and out into Verlun. The portal closed behind her.
“Ah, just had to ramp up the excitement!” Josh said.
“Yeah, ramping up the excitement has nearly turned me into a nervous wreck,” Lucy said dryly.
“Well, anyway, I have to get back to planning out a fight. I’ll see you ladies later,” Josh said, seeing that they were eager to catch up.
“Fine, go have fun. We’ll get your supplies sorted out.” Lucy waved Josh away like some annoying mosquito.
Josh grinned, headed for the control room where the teleport pad’s controls were. As much as he was excited by the things going on in Verlun, when he thought about the impending war that was going to happen at Devil’s Crater, he couldn’t help but feel more excited.
Fellox’s hundred grand is as good as mine! What the hell can they do that compares to an entire war between two different groups of Demons with Beast Kin thrown in? Bloody hell, it’s nerve-wracking, it’s nuts, and it’s bloody brilliant!
***
“What?” Geswald said, his pipe in his numb hands.
“From the sources that we have, we’re getting reports that the Stone Raiders have installed a teleport pad at their new headquarters in Verlun. They are starting to talk to local businesses. We believe that it was put into place a few days ago. With their standing treaties with other nations for fighting on their behalf, their network is expanding rapidly,” Pete said.
Geswald looked at the man blankly. His eyes moved around the office he sat in, but didn’t settle on anything. “What kind of monsters are they that they can buy a teleport pad? Where did they even get the drop pad from?”
Emerilia Series Box Set 2 Page 30