Into the Light (Axe Druid Book 1)

by Christopher Johns

  Oh, well that’s some bull. Can’t be overly picky, though, can we? I suppose that it might be unlocked later like in certain game tutorials that lock abilities until they’re most useful. Moving on—time to see what’s in the box.

  As I was turning to look back at the chest, I noticed a small blip pulsing in the bottom right corner of my vision, and when I focused on it, an opaque screen sprang into existence before me.

  ERROR!

  You have not yet unlocked the desired skill or ability that you are attempting to use. Further attempts are futile until you meet the required criteria.

  Criteria unknown at this time.

  I huffed a bit, but I guess I could be happy that my suspicions had been confirmed rather than simply going through an area blind. I’d done that before, and it had never been all that pretty. Knowing prerequisites were important, and it always helped to be conscious of them. Still, I could focus on that later. I looked toward the foot of the bed and rubbed my greedy mitts together as I stepped toward the chest.

  I opened the chest, and some clothes were inside. A well-made, crème-colored tunic, brown breeches, and a black belt. Luckily, I had woken up with some small clothes on—basically, this world’s version of boxers. My breeches even had a slit in the rear for my tail to fit comfortably through. I wagged it in appreciation. Gods, I will never get tired of that. I dressed and saw that the clothes provided no armor, but they covered me; that’s what mattered, for now.

  Next, I pulled out a large axe, a sturdy, wooden handle with leather bound around it for grip and the chopping portion of the thing about half the size of my head. It reminded me of the axe I used to chop wood for my uncle when I was a kid.

  Beginner’s Axe

  +2 to attacks with this weapon

  Also can be used to chop trees

  Weight: 10 Lbs

  A gift to the traveler from the Gods. Use it wisely.

  If the item descriptions were like this, the items alone would be worth collecting. I opened my menu to see if there was an equipment tab—which there was. I opened it up and equipped the Beginner’s Axe. The axe shifted from my hand to my belt and hung there within easy reach. When I walked a bit, the haft bobbed and thumped my leg, but it wasn’t uncomfortable. I practiced bending and moving in different ways to see if there was any discomfort or lack in range of motion; there didn’t seem to be.

  After that, I found a coin about the size of my palm at the bottom next to some boots that I put on. They felt great like they were crafted just for me. When I picked up the coin, the status screen popped up on its own.

  Token of Radiance

  Quest Item: Bring the token to your class trainer for beginner level training. Warning: All magic and combat abilities locked until training begins.

  QUEST ALERT: ALL ABOARD THE NEWB TRAIN: Find your trainer to begin your walk in this world.

  Reward: Class Training, 10 Experience points, 5 coppers

  Huh, class training? Okay. Maybe that was why I couldn’t shift? I thought to myself and shrugged. Again, things were making sense; it was just taking me longer than normal to understand. No wonder I got murdered in my sleep regularly. If I always acted like this, I’d be easy pickings. Not in this dream, though.

  I checked the bottom of the chest and pulled out what had to be a sack of coins. It disappeared when I put it into my inventory. Five hundred gold had found its way into the funds portion of my inventory. Now, if this played like a normal game, there would be a ratio: a certain number of copper coins per silver, a certain number of silver to a gold coin, and so on.

  If my suspicions were right, it was probably one hundred to the next coin. So, a hundred coppers to the silver and the same to gold.

  If that was the case, daddy struck gold, boys and girls. No pun intended.

  That was some serious cash to toss at a noob, even one with prior gaming experience. This must have been pretty serious. Then again, these were gifts from the gods themselves. They could probably afford to toss some chump change to someone who is needy and greedy like me.

  But if they needed us to be so strong, why not just give travelers the best gear? I’m sure there’s a reason.

  I reached back into the box, sweeping my hand back and forth in case I missed anything—empty. I looked myself over in the mirror. The black fur of my body seemed to work well with the crème color of the tunic tucked into the brown breeches. The boots were black and matched my belt. I practiced my smile again and opened the door of the room.

  The hallway was a little wider than your average one, large enough for two people to walk side by side. I moved down the hallway; my room was the last door on the right-hand side. There was a wall that matched flush with mine to my right, so it wasn’t a secret room. Nothing sounded ominous in the place, and I could smell something that made my stomach gurgle and told me I needed to eat.

  I walked down the hallway, slowly but not to the point where it looked like I was afraid.

  First impressions, right, I thought sarcastically. Gotta be the big guy adventurer, Head Honcho, Chief Traveler and all that. Can’t go into the lion’s den like a dumb lamb and expect not to come out naked and bleeding—or dead. I had a sneaking suspicion that wouldn’t be the case today. I hoped.

  There were five doors on this side of the hallway. A few were ajar, but the final one was closed. I continued on into the medium sized room the hallway led to. Tables and chairs were strewn throughout. A small group of people stood at the bar chatting with the barman.

  “Ah!” The bartender, a human man who looked to have seen some years and a healthy amount of sun, smiled wider and waved me over. “We have another. One more to go, and we can truly begin.”

  He looked over to the three individuals at the bar before him and continued to wipe down the mug in his hand, his gray eyes sparkling. I could see he was a good six feet tall and would’ve had a serious set of muscles in his younger days, but he seemed good natured. His gray hair was pulled back into a ponytail, he had a small reddish-gray beard, and I could make out a single scar along the right side of his face that started at his hairline and fell to his chin.

  “Begin what?” I asked nervously as I walked over and joined the group. I’d since lost all of my first-impressions-are-everything swagger and tried to hold my now-jittery nerves in check.

  The first figure to turn my way wore a blood-red robe. He dropped the cowl, and I could see his gray skin and long, shaggy, white hair over yellow eyes, high cheekbones, and pointed ears for the first time.

  “No way, dude,” said the figure in a voice I knew all too well. My brother-from-another-mother was here. He was in my dream!

  “Erik!” I shouted and bolted over to pull him into a bear hug.

  We both laughed, and I stepped back to look him over again. He had a slight build in real life, but don’t let that fool you; he was fast and works out with a single-minded purpose every day. He’s also my go-to for a lot of the newest games and reviews. He’s the gaming guru I never knew I needed. He stayed true to himself and kept his avatar close to his real height of five-foot-six.

  “Yohsuke, fool,” he joked and strutted imperiously. “Jake and Evan are here too.”

  As he said their names, I looked over, and sure enough, the other two were standing there with huge grins.

  “Hey, Broski,” said the tall, lanky Elf who looked like he had hypothermia. I recognized his voice and mannerisms as my buddy Jake. “Long time, no see.”

  This just kept getting more and more unreal. I had just seen them earlier.

  The Elf stepped forward, and we clasped hands. His pale blue skin was wrapped in black animal fur with traces of white streaking through hanging out of tan breeches. He had a bow slung over one shoulder and a quiver at his hip. Long, black hair graced the top of his head, with the sides cleanly shaven; the color was a startling contrast between his icy blue eyes and his hair. On his other shoulder perched what could easily be more hair, but it moved and “mrowed” at me.

 
“Tmont came with me,” Jake said giving her a pat, and the little cat purred, closing her bright green eyes.

  “That’s awesome, man.” I clapped him on the shoulder, and Tmont swatted at me. I loved that cat.

  Evan stepped forward, and I pretty much started to fangirl right then. He was a Dwarf, but not just a run-of-the-mill one—Evan had chosen a Fire Dwarf as his avatar. He stood about four and a half feet tall, with a wide, stocky build under a singed, hooded cloak draped over him. The tanned skin was complemented well by the black and purple flames streaming from his chin and his head that looked like hair and a beard. He had given his avatar a scar over his left eye—it didn’t hinder his sight from what I could see—and the fiery, green eyes that stared back at me sparkled with amusement.

  The man could make an avatar, alright?

  Did I mention my tail?

  “What the hell are you guys?” I asked incredulously. What other awesome races did I miss, or was this a ‘they’re limitless because it’s only a dream and I haven’t let my mind go to experience it fully’ kind of deal? I let that thought go and listened to my friend.

  “I’m Yohsuke, the Abomination Spell Blade,” my gray friend declared proudly. He brandished what looked to be a broken katana hilt in the air as he laughed.

  “I’m Bakoj, the Ice Elf Ranger featuring Tmont,” said Jake, striking a heroic pose that dumped his furry partner in a graceless pile on the floor. The tiny cat growled indignantly and stalked away. “Sorry, T.”

  “I would be Balmur, an Azer Rogue.” Evan ducked into a pretty sweet battle position, plucking his dual hand axes into his grasp from under his cloak.

  “And I’m Jaken Warmecht, a Fae-Orc Paladin of Radiance,” stated a proud voice behind me.

  I whirled around, and sure enough, there was a burly, six-and-a-half-foot-tall man. The guy looked the spitting image of my friend Jake, well Jaken—because that’s what his real name actually was. Except his skin was purple, and his hair was as black as midnight. He even had the goatee and mustache combo he liked to sport back home. Even though we had just been gaming together, I was glad my friend could be in this world.

  “Get over here, you hazel-eyed freak of nature!” I shouted. He complied and lifted me effortlessly off the ground. We laughed as he playfully swung me back and forth as I patted him on the back. Then I felt a sharp pain in my tail and looked down to see an angry, black ball chomping on me.

  “I’m not a feather duster, you furry ass!” I grunted as Jaken squeezed.

  “Come on, T.” The little monster’s owner grabbed her, and I pulled away as she let go.

  “This is the craziest dream I’ve ever had, bro.” Erik shook his head.

  “This is no dream, Yohsuke,” said the bartender.

  He set down his rag and the mug before taking his apron off and stepping out from behind the bar. He pointed us to a table in the middle of the room that had seemingly magically filled with food.

  “Sit and eat,” he advised. “We have much to discuss, and I don’t want to have to speak over grumbling stomachs from you all.”

  We all complied; even Tmont had his own bowl of food. While we ate, the bartender explained.

  * * *

  Essentially, the threat to his world was real. Very real, and the only reason Radiance herself wasn’t here to explain it was because she was needed to protect the barrier that kept War out. War, the great destroyer of worlds who sends minions of his army forth to weaken entire solar systems so he could enslave each planet at his leisure. Sounded pretty odd to me, pretty unreal.

  “For now, the gods of this world have kept the worst of the horde out, but they can only last so long, and some are starting to slip through,” he said at last. “With you lot here, Radiance and her siblings can keep the barrier active while you hunt down the rabble who managed to sneak through.”

  After a minute, Evan looked up from the table and said, “If this guy is some eater of worlds, what can we do?”

  It wasn’t like all of us hadn’t thought the same thing. Evan just had the courage to say what had to be said first.

  “I’m Sir Willem Dillon.” The bartender smiled and brought himself to his feet. He leaned up against the table with both hands and whispered, “I am a Paladin in service to Her Light, Radiance, and we have a plan. Follow me.”

  We all stood and marched for the back room, the Paladin leading the way with confidence in his steps. Once inside the cramped space, the older man closed the door, and a bright flash of pale blue light arced from door to wall.

  “Now, no one can hear us,” he growled. “Can never be too careful.”

  We all looked at him expectantly, and after a couple of seconds, he started from his thought by clearing his throat.

  “When he arrives at a world, the gods are too weakened from fighting the spies and vanguard to be able to push him back or crush him. So he comes in, crushes all remaining resistance, and takes over.” He chuckled slightly in spite of his apparent anger. “It’s an ingenious strategy, really, monster that he is. He mops up and then enslaves the populace to feed his war machine. Turns whole planets into members of his ever-growing army, but against Radiance and the other gods at next to full strength?”

  Realization dawned on us. If they were fit to fight, War might get his comeuppance.

  “But why us, if all it takes is someone strong to beat these guys?” I shook my head a bit in disbelief. “You should have been able to wipe the map completely before it became an issue. Right?”

  “If the bastards hadn’t gone for the strongest and bravest of us first, yeah, we might have,” he said quietly. “When they arrived, our best fighters were at the fore of the battlefield. Strongest there was. A whole army. All of them wiped out because the things were working together and still coming. That’s when the gods sealed the world. There was a reckoning, oh be certain of that.”

  He paused to collect himself, as if reliving a terrible nightmare. The pain on his face visible to all.

  “The gods were swift and brutal. They tore a huge swath of the creatures apart even as their numbers began to overrun our own. We thought they had turned the tide, but then stronger ones came, as if they were waiting for that exact thing to happen.” He sniffed. “They destroyed what remained after the gods had left to focus on keeping the whole slew of War’s creatures at bay. After, they scattered to do their bloody work sowing discord and hate, killing where they could but not too much. They were perfectly content to bide their time. They raise minions of their own and send them to conquer in their name until the job is done.”

  “And now here we are to try our hand, yeah?” asked Jaken.

  The man nodded as he wiped his nose. Overcome with grief, a couple of tears fell from his eyes, but he ignored them otherwise.

  “If we fall here, there is nothing to stop him from reaching your own world,” Sir Willem Dillon said, after a moment. “With all that has been going on there, I can’t say for sure that his minions aren’t already at work, but it’s at least a chance.”

  I could see how his statement was valid, but all I could think about was my son. Young, adorable, strong, and adventurous. He got all the good looks, and I’m not even mad about it. If I was going to do anything for him, it was going to have to be this. A knot began to form in my stomach, kind of like the nervous tangle of emotions you get before doing something mildly dangerous and stupid but also possibly fun.

  I looked around the table and saw some of the same realization hit everyone. Jaken rose to his feet, a solemn but determined look on his face that I wasn’t used to seeing there.

  “I’m in,” he said. “I’m not the best when it comes to these types of games—you all know that—but I’ve got people I love back home. I’m going to fight for them.”

  We all nodded in agreement. We would fight, and we would win, or gods knew what would happen to our families.

  “Good,” the bartender said simply. “For now, we have time. We will get you training, then get you out into t
he world to gather strength and face the evil that has befallen our land.” He looked at us all steadily. “Once you do what you can, we can get you home.”

  We left the tiny room and gathered back around the table we had eaten at before. Sir Dillon told each of my friends where they might find their trainers. Turns out, he was actually Jaken’s trainer, which was more than a little convenient.

  He looked at me as my friends left. “Your trainer will be in the forest east of this village. If you open your map, you’ll see the indicator on it. There may not always be one, but if you look at your compass, the red arrow shows your direction and the green shows the direction you need to head. Match the two, and you’ll get there.”

  “What’s my trainer like?” I asked. I imagined some grizzled, old hermit, living alone in the forest close to a swamp.

  “I don’t know,” he said with a shake of his head, “but whoever it is, you belong to them for a week. Learn swiftly.”

  We both walked outside, and the whole group stood there in awe. I knew why, too; the place was beautiful. Green trees of varying types littered the surroundings, and people from all races gathered and mingled amongst stalls and shops. I didn’t see any Kitsune, but I guess we stuck to more magical lands or deeper forests near Elven colonies.

  I saw surly-looking Dwarves hawking their wares to Beast-kin—great, towering, bear-like men carrying supplies into a store off to my right, but they weren’t just bears. I saw some wolf-kin and other species of Beast-kin working and humans together, too. The town was bustling, and I couldn’t remember ever feeling such wonder in my recent adult life.

  Small children ran and played together: human, Dwarf, and Beast-kin. There was no judgement or segregation that I could see. It was beautiful.

  “See you guys later,” I said after a glance at my compass. I turned so that the red and green arrows matched, then headed off to meet my trainer.

  * * *