by G L Rathweg
“Sorry about your crew you cross between a Shang Tsung and the old bad guy from Big Trouble in China looking mother fucker. I took out all your underlings and they are either dead and mother fucking ash or unconscious. You’ve lost.” I said, gesturing around to the roomful of downed demons and the remains of his lieutenant.
“Stupid boy. You think this is the end? This is just the beginning.” Wiman snarled, standing up from his throne and gesturing.
A wall of fire appeared from five feet in front of him from the ground to ceiling blocking him from view and burning so intensely I shrunk back for a second.
“Hiro!” Tiffany cried, from over at the couch which was just a few feet from the wall of fire.
I hurried over and quickly freed her and my grandma giving both a quick hug and then pulling them back from the wall of burning fire and back towards the elevator doorway. A minute later it burned itself out and the ground and ceiling where it had been was a smoking burnt line of char on both surfaces. Already, I could see that Wiman was gone so I turned to my grandma and Tiffany.
“You two wait here, I’ll be right back. Freak you stay with them.” I instructed.
I took off my track jacket and went to put it around my grandma who brushed me off and pointed to Tiffany.
“I’m fine Hiro.” My grandma said, with a wink and a smile towards Tiffany.
I did as she said. Tiffany gave me a smile as I put my jacket around her.
“Hurry up and go get that asshat.” She said, with a grim smile.
I grinned back and turned around then headed to the throne area. A hidden door sat open behind the throne and I gingerly made my way through it and down the corridor. A dozen feet in and I could hear screeching. I hurried my pace and turned a corner and saw the exit. The screeching was coming from there and I slowed up a bit as I came to the doorway.
Outside was a huge dragon hovering in the air about fifty feet up and away with Wiman on astride his back. I stood just outside the doorway with Dangun appearing by my side. We both stared up at the massive and intimidating magical beast. I didn’t freeze in terror however, having been around the Kaiju in the Spirit Realm, but I was still scared. The thing was terrifying, all dark red and sinuous with big bat like wings and razor-sharp longsword sized teeth. It felt like I was looking at death incarnate.
“We will meet again Dangun. Next time, you will not escape with just imprisonment for eternity. Next time, I will destroy your soul forever.” Wiman yelled, from the back of the massive dragon.
“Yes, we will Wiman. You won’t get away again.” Dangun yelled back, raising his fist and shaking it at his hated enemy.
“Goodbye for now old friend.” Wiman yelled, then the dragon opened its huge mouth and a fireball began to grow in it.
“Run!” Dangun yelled at me.
I didn’t even hesitate and turned hauling ass back in the tunnel, the roar of the growing fireball becoming louder and louder then quiet. I didn’t stop running but turned the corner and looked back as I kept moving and saw that the quiet was the fireball being launched and I watched in horror. It hit the doorway and exploded. The rush of fire hit me, lifting me from the ground and launching me out the hidden doorway and back into the throne room.
I flew through the air a smoking and slightly crisp human projectile then hit the ground and rolled to a battered stop at the feet of my grandma, Tiffany, and Freak. Tiffany immediately bent to my side and I coughed and caught my breath but gave her a real smile.
“He got away.” I said, giving her an apologetic shrug, which hurt like hell after getting burnt and tossed by that fireball.
“It’s ok. You’re safe and that’s all that matters. Let’s go home.” Tiffany said, helping me to my feet and letting me use her as support, which was funny enough because it was how all this started.
“That’s an incredibly good idea dear. Come on let’s go to my house.” My grandma said, getting up and leading the way to the elevator then stopping at the broken open portal. “Looks like we’re taking the stairs. Where exactly are they?”
Tiffany and I shared a grin.
“Where’d Nick go by the way?” I asked, looking around knowing that I’d missed something.
EPILOGUE – TRACK 22 – JUKEBOX HERO
SIX MONTHS LATER… SOME SHIT HOLE BAR IN THE MIDDLE OF NOWHERE…
“God damn fucking son of a bitch!” Nick roared, slamming his empty glass on the dirty bar top.
The hot but tired looking redheaded bartender gave him a look but didn’t say anything. She knew the type and this guy and his friends all looked like the kind of asshole who didn’t give two fucks about hitting a woman. The guy and his crew had shown up a couple months back and ran all the regulars out. Now, the place was basically theirs and to top it off they were really shitty tippers.
The woman was going to quit soon she just needed a couple more shifts to make the last of the money she needed and then she was gone. These thoughts ran through her mind as the man complained and was basically just a shit human being.
“Get me another drink bitch.” Nick called, the bartender held her tongue and did as he asked.
As she was going to pour the drink Nick grabbed her by the wrist and yanked her arm pulling her close to him. So close that she could feel his hot stinky booze breath.
“Quit acting so high and mighty bitch. I don’t need your attitude. You got it?” He hissed, squeezing the girl’s wrist so hard it hurt, but that wasn’t the worst of it.
The man pulled his sunglasses that he always wore down and the bartender saw two glowing red pits instead of eyeballs and she immediately became terrified.
“I’m… I’m sorry…” The girl breathed, between gasps of pain from where the man grabbed her.
Nick was about to say something else but then the old jukebox kicked on and started blasting music. This got everyone’s attention as no one else was usually in the bar.
“Who the fuck are you and what are you doing in my bar?” Nick roared, letting go of the bartender’s hand pushing her away to the floor as he stood up, his crew standing with him.
The bartender was also staring at the man after she got up from the ground. He was wearing a bright blue Adidas jumpsuit with white stripes and had the hood up. Jukebox Hero by Foreigner was the song that had started playing and the man turned around slowly while lowering his hood.
“Hey Nick, remember me?” Hiro Jones asked, bright white Ki bursting out around him as he stalked toward Nick and his demon buddies.
THE END
WHITE SOUL
BOOK 1
See you next time in Blue Soul.
AFTERWORD
Thank you everyone for reading White Soul. I hope you all enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it. This is a special world to me and creating it and sharing it with all of you is a blessing. If you don’t mind, please leave a review on Amazon and Goodreads. The more reviews the better the book sales and the more I can write. Please check out my Patreon every little bit helps!
A special thanks to Craig, Michael, Jacob, Adam, JD, Angel, Taj, Ian, Rick n Tae, Robyn, Jose, Aaron, William, Patrick, Fabien, Dennis, Travis, my dad, my loving girlfriend, and everyone else who without their support I wouldn’t be able to do this!
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Thanks again, everyone!
See you next time on
I Am Gamer
Book 4!
Also, I have a Podcast check it out my YouTube, Facebook, and Patreon for details.
Here’s a sneak peek of
I Am Gamer IV
I AM GAMER 4
TRACK 1 –
“Are you sure Law? I mean…” Billy said, his voice trailing off at the end as he gestured in the distance.
I followed the line of his outstretched finger and squinted, then grunted and pulled out my set of newly created binoculars. Really, they were just a pair of the spyglasses I had fused together and shortened making them more functional and compact.
TRI-ELEMENT BINOCULARS
ITEM TYPE – Binoculars
DURABILITY – 25/25
CLASS – Rare
UPGRADES – Flame, Earth Strength, Water Resistance, Fire Resistance
WEIGHT – 1.0lbs
DIENSIONS – 1” x 1” by 4” x 6”
By combining the materials used in creating a spyglass and adjusting them, these binoculars use three different types of magic to help the user see over five times the distance that can be seen with the users naked eye.
I closed the window with a quickness as I already knew the information and focused on what Billy was pointing at. We were on my newest airship which was the largest and most advanced so far and the first in my plans for a dominate Airforce. It was twice as long and wide as my previous attempts. It was faster, stronger, more durable, the balloon especially, and could travel over three times the distance as the previous model before needing to refuel.
TRI-ELEMENT LONG RANGE ATTACK ZEPPELIN
VEHICLE TYPE – Forward Operating Assault Airship
NAME – The Invincible
DURABILITY – 1105/1105
CLASS – Unique
UPGRADES – Fire Resistant, Earth Strength, Earth Durability, Water Resistance
WEIGHT – 750lbs (1500lbs with gear, provisions, and crew)
WEAPONS – 4 Swivel Guns (Modified Mounted Long Rifles), 4 Short Rang Gatling Guns
DIMENSIONS – 45’ length, 12’ beam, 4’ gunnel, 8 max crew – Gondola
75ft by 50 ft – Balloon
This ship is built using Earth, Water, and Fire Magic giving it enhanced strength and lighter weight. It is powered by coal and uses magic as well to fuel the steam engine and propel and raise the craft. The vessel is less durable than normal wood and is subject to damage easily. The giant propeller and machine parts are infused with magical abilities and can operate without fuel by pouring one’s own magical energy into the engine.
I closed the window and pulled up the information on the new Gatling guns, I was particularly proud of those, that I had just created. Although, it was a pain in the butt getting and carrying enough ammo for them. I needed to create some bags of holding. My bad ass saddlebags that were a gift from Coyote were with Moon Flower and Winston. Note to self don’t forget to figure out how to make some bags of holding.
TRI-ELEMENT SHORT RANGE GATLING GUNS
WEAPON TYPE – Short Range Rapid Fire Gatling Gun
DURABILITY – 25/25
CLASS – Rare
UPGRADES – Flame, Earth Strength, Water Resistance, Fire Resistance
WEIGHT – 10.0lbs
DIENSIONS – 12” x 36” by 4” x 6”
By fusing together three elements, Earth, Wind, and Fire power is created. The Gatling gun uses them to power a firing mechanism that harnesses the centrifugal force of the spinning weapon. Once the gun’s barrel is spinning the kinetic energy adds its power to the elemental magic and helps fire the weapon. This uses the minimum amount of magical power and can fire the Gatling gun up to one hundred rounds a minute and a distance over a hundred yards.
I closed the last message with a grin glancing at it a bit longer then before and then shook my head. They were so bad ass! I refocused on the target site up ahead. My binoculars showed me the bustling and burgeoning fort settlement that was placed at the mouth of the mighty Mississippi. The different Native tribes of this time had all different names for the different rivers, lakes, mountains and such but I had decided on using the modern names for ease and continuity. I made it a point to teach the people the names as well. The past just got a bump to the twenty first century.
There were dozens upon dozens of caravels and carracks, but those weren’t what caught my eye. These smaller ships all surrounded a fleet of fifteen different and massive Spanish style galleons. They dwarfed the caravels and carracks yet themselves looked small by the focus of my attention. A humongous ship was in their center. And by humongous, I mean the biggest god damn ship I had ever seen. I’m talking past of present. The thing was as big as an aircraft carrier. The theme from Star Wars sounded in my mind as I studied it and I grinned despite the situation. The thing was the super star destroyer of galleons if you will. I accessed the message that popped up in my periphery.
PORTUGUESE SUPER GALLEON WARSHIP
VEHICLE TYPE – Armada Flagship Super Galleon
NAME – Sao Joao Baptista (Botafogo)
DURABILITY – Unknown
CLASS – Ultra Unique
UPGRADES – Unknown
WEIGHT – 1000 tons
WEAPONS – 366 Bronze Cannons, Large Bronze Spur Ram
DIMENSIONS – 1000’ length, 250’ beam, 17 Masts – 6 sails each, 100,000 tons Displacement
CREW – Captain Infante Luis – Duke of Beja, First Mate Joao de Sousa Pereira – Botafogo/Spitfire, Total crew – 1600
This ship is considered the largest galleon ever built by many historians. First used in obtaining dominance of the Mediterranean Sea and then more famously in the conquest of Tunis in 1535. It is said that the massive ship used its superior size and huge bronze ram to break the chains at La Goletta that defended the port entrance of Tunis. After those were down the combination of bombardment from the ship and the landing of its attacking Christian forces allowed the conquering of the city. After that the ship was sent to the Atlantic and Caribbean, South America specifically, to pacify and conquer the area that is modern day Brazil.
Wow… the ship was massive to say the least. It was almost like looking at a floating castle, considering it was the size of a modern-day battleship. The size though was the only thing they had in common. The Botafogo, which meant Spitfire in English and what I was going to start calling it, had fifteen decks with seventy-five guns per deck on both the broadside and portside, along with fifty bow cannon and sixty-six aft cannons. Those weren’t the only armaments though I could see hundreds of smaller swivel guns places all along the decks railing. The ship was a legit floating armory and probably carried as much firepower as the largest land bastions.
The thing was way bigger than history suggested. This had to be the result of the time travel shit fucking things up. What the fuck was going to be the plan for taking this thing down? I kept studying the massive warship, which didn’t really do it justice, and couldn’t believe my eyes. The thing was amazing and when I finally studied it long enough, I sighed and thought quietly to myself for a moment.
The next question was what the hell was it doing here in the New World and at what I’d always been told was originally a French settlement. I know the timeline is all jacked up but still this was becoming a real pain in my ass. Well, no plan survives contact with the enemy, and I imagined all the different pantheons of gods and goddesses were screwing with the time continuum anyway. I mean, that’s why I was here after all. So, it made sense in a way that the ship was here besides after the Sun God anything was possible. I figured I’d be seeing all sorts of famous and infamous historical figures and ships among other things.
I shook the musings from my mind and refocused on the area around the ships and the newly developing fort, settlement, and harbor. Along with the larger ships there were hundreds of small craft ranging in size from canoes to small fishing sloops and guard pinnaces. These traveled back and forth between the armada’s vessels and the fort proper.
The fort was
a combination defensive structure with a large wooden palisade that stretched all the way around the entire fort, settlement, and across the river. The area we were at was what would become the city of New Orleans. Albeit, with some differences but we were in the general area. The mouth of the mighty Mississippi. The undertaking was massive, and it was quite the sight to behold.
Frankly, I was surprised that the people of this time would be able to build something so large and architecturally advanced. Then I saw the huge labor pool, which to my eye were the local Native Tribes pressed into slavery. Already, they had built up a huge and modern, for the times, fort with canted dirt berms and walls like the bastion forts I had already implemented. I shouldn’t have been surprised as these were Europeans, the guys had invented the things.
“What do you think?” Sage asked, coming up to my side.
I handed him the binoculars as I thought of a response. Our airship was miles away from the enemy base and I was sure they couldn’t see us, but I decided to not take any chances.
“Turn us around Dawn and head back to the flotilla.” I called, over my shoulder and then turned to Sage. “I think we need a strategy meeting, and everyone needs to be there.”
“Aye-aye, Captain.” Dawn replied, as the airship began a tight turn and headed back up the Mississippi.