by James Archer
“Calm down,” Harper said. “This isn’t going to be easy.”
“Nothing in life that’s worth it is easy,” I said. “We’ve got this.”
The rest of the evening, we went over strategies and tactics for the battle. In all the situations we ran through, the odds of us winning were very small. All I needed was a chance to win. That was enough to get me motivated and keep me that way. I slept without checking in on the real world that night because I needed to be at my best in the arena the next day.
* * * * *
As we stood in the corner by two walls a hundred feet high the next morning, I kept telling myself we’d win the battle and be allowed to keep the dino sword. While still not activated completely, Harper had given it some buffs, including a double damage modifier. The buffs would help give me a bit of an edge over the higher level characters.
“Remember,” Morgana said. “Get them to fight each other.”
“Get ready to battle!” a voice boomed from beyond the wall.
The cheers of over a hundred thousand people were barely contained by the thick, brick enclosure surrounding the vast arena.
“I’m going incognito,” Newton said as he slipped on his hood.
“Go get ‘em,” I said.
“I will,” he said, his voice trailing away.
“He’s really changed since he got the news about his cancer,” Harper said.
“Makes sense, but I wish someone would confirm or deny the rumors about the system message,” I said. “Why haven’t they given us any information about it?”
“Keep your head in the battle,” Morgana said. “We need to kick ass today.”
I glanced over at the first loot box a few feet away. After that one, we’d come across another about a third of a mile to the center of the arena. The last one would help us become powerful enough to beat both the others. Gristle was famous for loving three-way battles in their massive arena. I wondered what the first loot box would give us.
“My extra mana will help today,” Harper said. “We need force multipliers.”
“Exactly.” I nodded my head. “We need good combos to defeat them.”
“Battle start!” the announcer yelled.
The thunderous applause continued non-stop on the other side of the wall as we rushed to the first loot box. Morgana tapped it with her hand, activating a game screen.
<< Loot Box Found! >>
<< +25% To Hit for all melee attacks for 4 minutes >>
“Fuck, that’s sucks,” I said.
A magic orb flew down to catch my expression. The crowd jeered on the other side of the wall. I kept walking toward the next loot box, Harper and Morgana at my sides. The battle would end up going into the history books of Dino World. I would be legendary if I pulled off a victory.
“Look alive!” Morgana shouted as we jogged toward the second loot bot.
“Wizard at twelve o’clock a hundred feet up!” Harper yelled.
I stopped and turned to the sky. A man in red robes with an insane curly mustache laughed like a maniac as he levitated.
“Lightning bolt!” Harper shouted.
Her words became reality as a ball of lightning soared through the sky, hitting the red wizard. As he fell to the ground, I ran toward the area he might hit. He hit the grass hard and moaned, curling up into a ball. I kicked my emotions to the curb and jumped up right before reaching him. Coming down, I stuck my sword through his skull, killing him instantly.
<< Arena kill! >>
<< Full health restore! >>
<< Full mana restore! >>
“Idiot!” Harper yelled. “I needed to restore my mana. That spell isn’t fucking cheap!”
“Sorry, I got caught up in the moment,” I said.
I failed to tell her I hadn’t even needed to heal my health or mana yet.
“You’re fine, but every little thing helps.” Harper leaned in and kissed me on the cheek. “Let’s get to that next loot box.”
“Come on!” Morgana shouted, already running ahead.
As we reached the second loot box, I saw King Gregor’s two tanks coming in hot and heavy. Morgana reached the wooden crate first and tapped the top. Another notification popped up.
<< Loot Box Found! >>
<< +250% Damage for all melee and magic attacks for 8 minutes >>
“Fuck yeah!” I shouted, stopping and turning to face the warriors charging us. “Save your mana for now. Morgana and I can handle these dumb-fucks.”
I ran forward, dino sword raised high into the air. The priest tank slowed down while the warrior rushed forward, war hammer above his head.
“Die in the name of King Gregor!” he shouted.
I dodged to the side then took off for the priest. Morgana followed up, taking on the warrior while I pressed closer to the spell casting tank.
“Revorium mustket!” he chanted then clapped his hands.
An invisible force hit me in the chest, knocking the air out of my lungs. I plunged to the ground, rolling around and trying not to get hit. The tanky priest swung a steel mace at my legs a few times but missed. I scrambled to my feet and swung the dino sword like a baseball bat. The blade connected with his armored left arm.
“Fucking hell,” he whimpered behind his full helmet.
I ran around him. While more heavily armored, he couldn’t maneuver as well.
“Over here, fuck face,” I taunted then poked him in the back with my blade.
“Fucking fight me!” he shouted in an enraged tone.
The priest swiveled around with his mace out. It hit my right bicep, knocking me to the ground again. He followed up with another direct hit to my guy. My health drained quickly as I scooted backward to get away from him. He kept coming forward, hitting me over and over again.
“Chant on this, fatso!” Harper cried out behind me.
The priest stopped, suddenly not making any sounds. I got to my feet and took a few steps back. Harper smiled.
“Silence cone,” she said.
I nodded, grinned, then closed the gap with the priest. Morgana and the other warrior kept crossing our path, but the damage bonus added up when we could actually hit them with their insane fucking armor scores. The priest regained his voice and cast another spell, buffing himself. He charged at me like a bull, knocking me over.
With one health point left, I knew I had to act. Harper screamed behind me. I struggled to my feet and lifted my sword. The priest laughed like a fucking haughty noble before charging me. I slipped to the side at the last possible moment then stuck him through the visor of his helmet. He screamed and clutched at the metal monstrosity, trying to get it off.
I used the opportunity to finish him off.
<< Arena kill! >>
<< Full health restore! >>
<< Full mana restore! >>
“I needed that!” I shouted, hoping Harper understood.
Remembering she’d screamed, I turned to check on her. Morgana had the other warrior on his knees. Harper zapped him with simple energy bolts, taking him out of the battle.
“Yeah!” Adrenaline pumped through my virtual body. “That’s what I’m talking about!”
“Settle down,” Harper said. “That’s only two of the eight, most likely their lowest level characters. We need to keep going for the middle loot box. The last buff isn’t going to last much longer.”
“Let’s go,” I said, jogging toward the center of the arena.
The last half mile went by quickly. I heard the stegosaurus and dragon roar somewhere nearby. Was it coming from the sky? Or all around? I kept running with one thing on my mind, reaching the loot box and buffing up before we got attacked again. As the central loot box came into view, I saw the stegosaurus and dragon fighting while King Gregor and Kin Jang rode the impressive creatures. This is our chance to get the biggest loot box.
“Go for it!” I shouted, running even faster.
I reached the loot box and slammed my palm down on the top, getting a splinter.
<
br /> << Loot Box Found! >>
<< Double Speed for 12 minutes >>
“Twelve! Twelve! Twelve!” the crowd chanted.
“Back to back,” I said. “Let them fight each other a minute.”
The dragon roared then shot a stream of fire at the stegosaurus, causing it to scream and screech. I grinned as King Gregor almost toppled off the back of the beast he hadn’t tamed on his own. Rented dinosaurs were usually a bitch to control.
“Where’s Newton?” Harper asked.
I glanced over and shrugged.
“He’s around somewhere.... I hope.”
Even if he’d gotten killed, we could win the battle if we focused.
“We don’t want to waste this speed much longer,” Morgana said.
Xin Jang’s two mages and tank ran from around the dragon and headed toward us.
“Look alive,” I said. “Two o’clock.”
Everyone turned to face them as they ran forward, the tank in front of the two mages. I ran around him at double speed and came back behind the spellcasters. They looked surprised when I zoomed by and slashed them both. I continued running around them, hitting every few seconds as I passed them.
They tried to cast a few times, but every time, I sliced their hands or poked a new hole into them with my dino sword. Morgana fought their tank, tearing into him with Harper’s help. I quit fucking around and finished off one of the war mages. He fell to the ground, leaking blood fast.
“You killed my brother!” the other mage shouted.
He pulled a wand from his robes and pointed it at me. Flames shot out of the tip, hitting me in the face. My hair burned, filling the surrounding air with an acrid stench.
“You fucking pyro,” I muttered as I closed in on him.
He screamed in a shrill voice, turned, and ran away. King Gregor’s stegosaurus ran toward him and bit the man, chopping him in half. Damn, I thought, stopping. The dragon dove from the sky above, clamping its jaws around the head of the dinosaur. I turned to check on Harper and Morgana. The final warrior had her on the ground.
I screamed and ran toward him. The double speed wore off just as I reached him. My blade still went through his throat, killing him instantly.
<< Arena kill! >>
<< Full health restore! >>
<< Full mana restore! >>
“I needed that kill,” Morgana said then collapsed, closing her eyes.
“Harper, we need healing!” I yelled.
She ran over as the dinosaur and dragon continued battling behind us. I watched as Harper poured a potion into Morgana’s mouth. She coughed and sat up, looking around.
“What happened?”
“You passed out,” I said. “Are you okay?”
“Better now,” she said, looking up at Harper. “Thanks.”
“Don’t mention it,” Harper said. “We’ve still got the dinosaur, the dragon, King Gregor, and Xin Jang to defeat. Are you good enough to fight?”
“Never been better. Another loot box would be nice.”
“Yeah,” I said, nodding. “Should we go back to the second one and wait for it to respawn?”
“No, look,” Harper said, pointing to the dueling beasts. “It’s almost over.”
The dragon finished ripping the head off the stegosaurus. As the immense dinosaur flopped around on the ground, King Gregor fell off. Xin Jang flew in close to finish him off.
“Fuck,” I said. “He’s going to be at full health.”
“It’s three against one, though,” Morgana said. “We’ve got a chance.”
“Don’t forget about me,” Newton said behind us.
I grinned. “Glad you’re still alive.”
“You like how I got them fighting each other?”
“Tell us about it later,” I said. “We need to finish this.”
“Here he comes,” Morgana said.
I turned and saw the dragon, slouched down, stalking toward us. A few hundred feet away, it leaped into the air, flying high above. We scattered, looking up and trying to guess where the damn thing might come down. I fucking hated dragons. Xin Jang cast a few lightning bolts at us as the dragon dove toward the ground.
“The loot box!” I shouted, too late to do any good.
After scattering away from the loot box, we’d given the dragon enough time to land near it. Even worse, the loot box reset a moment later. An impressive blue energy shield surrounded the entire creature. Xin Jang laughed, lifting a lance.
“Prepare to die!” he shouted.
The dragon stepped forward. Harper threw up a giant wall of briers, but the dragon simply burned it down with a single blast of its nasty breath. I gripped my dino sword, wondering if I’d live long enough to eventually enjoy its benefits.
“Concentrate on the dragon first,” I said.
As if he’d heard me, Newton shouted, “Fuck cancer!”
The dragon roared and flung back its head. Blood poured out of its wounded eye.
“What the fuck did you do?” Xin Jang yelled.
“Are you okay?” I glanced around. “Newton?”
“Over here!” he shouted. “Let’s finish this shit!”
With only one eye, the dragon had no depth perception. The weakness turned out to be beneficial as we surrounded it and attacked from all sides. Xin Jang clung to its back. I ran forward and finished off the foul beast by lopping off its damn head.
As the two pieces of the scaled, red body flopped around on the ground, Xin Jang jumped off. He screamed and ran toward Harper. Morgana intercepted him, scoring a direct hit on the dumb fucks left side. She finished him off with her sword piercing his heart.
<< Combat is Over! >>
<< Arena: No xp awarded. >>
<< You win the battle for the dino sword! >>
I dropped to my knees, my hands on the hilt of the sword with its blade buried in the ground as if I could kill the entire planet. The charging process would still take more than two weeks, but I didn’t care with things looking so much brighter.
“We have a winner!” the announcer sang.
The crowd continued cheering. A chant of Drake started. The sound of over a hundred thousand people chanting my name made an impression on me.
“We did it,” Morgana said, walking over.
“You finished him off.” I hugged her briefly before pulling back. “Are you okay?”
“Never been better,” she said. “Our kingdom starts today.”
I smiled, loving her even more. Her deception stung a bit, but she was just having fun. No one had gotten permanently hurt by her changing characters on me.
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CHAPTER 22
┕━━━━━━━━━━━━━┙
Foundation of a New Kingdom
Our team of four left the arena. The emissary, Ouber, summoned us to the throne room of King Gerald, the leader of Gristle. On the way to the most central and fortified building in the city, I saw glimpses of all the desolation outside the city walls. They had used up all their natural resources and permanently scarred the land with vast battles.
Still, Gristle was damn impressive. The hundred square miles of industrial might were highly fortified and secure. As the smallest city state in the League of Twelve — and the closest to the badlands — they had to work extra hard to gain the respect of the others.
“This city sucks,” Harper complained as we walked down the middle of a shit-stained street.
“We’ll make ours better underground,” I said.
“Yay, no sun. Can’t wait,” she said sarcastically.
Morgana chuckled. “You complain too much. Nobody likes a whiner.”
“Everybody in the badlands is going to like us,” Newton said. “Except for everyone in King Gregor’s and Xin Jang’s lands.”
“They were smart paying for resurrection,” I admitted. “We’ll get them. I’m anxious to see what Ouber wants to talk with us about. They better not go back on their word.”
<
br /> “Everyone in Gristle loves their contracts,” Morgana said.
We went through three sets of heavily guarded gates before we arrived at the imperial palace of King Gerald. Ouber met us at the door of the lavish living quarters.
“All hail the kings of the arena,” Ouber said. “Queens too.”
“Thanks,” I said. “What’s going to happen with King Gregor and Xin Jang? The dino sword’s still mine, right? Do I rule the badlands?”
Ouber smiled. “That’s up to you.”
“What do you mean?” I asked.
“Come, talk to the king,” he replied, turning and motioning for us to follow.
I glanced over at Morgana. She turned and followed Ouber deeper into the palace. I glanced around as I walked after them, wondering what kind of kingdom I could build underground. We reached a secure steel room with thousands of rounded rivets sticking up, making lines and patterns throughout the room. King Gerald, standing by the throne, turned and walked over as we came in.
“Welcome,” he said, smiling like a politician. “Congratulations.”
“Thank you,” I said. “We’re anxious to get back to the badlands and claim what’s rightfully ours.”
I noticed the king’s smile fading.
“Since King Gregor and Xin Jang both resurrected, they still technically control the two largest kingdoms in the badlands. You’re more than willing to go against them, but…”
His voice trailed off.
“We’re too new and weak,” I said, finishing his thought.
He smiled again and nodded. “Exactly. I would help, but I can’t concern myself with the dirty details of the badlands with so much else going on all over Gardonia.”
“What else is going on?” I asked.
“The same as usual,” he said.
“Oh, I thought you meant that weird system message a while back.”
I studied his face for any reaction.
“We know less than we’d like,” I said.