by Dean Henegar
“Any idea what could have done that Private? I’ve never seen anything like it. The wound looks fresh, but the body is all dried out. Even the flesh is missing,” I asked.
“Sir, I’m not really sure, but maybe some kind of spider? But there’s no web, and they’re known for sucking the fluids but not necessarily eating the flesh out of their victims,” Tremble postulated.
“Contact!” One of the soldiers shouted. Turning toward the sound I saw what appeared to be a large wolf like creature barrel into the soldiers shield and take him to the ground. The soldier on the ground was able to cover his upper body and protect himself while his companions drew and thrust their weapons into the beast. The wolf creature seemed unaffected by the wounds and continued to paw at the soldier on the ground trying to move the shield that was covering and protecting his head and upper body. The soldier on the ground strained to hold the shield over his head, but the wolf was too strong. The shield slowly moved down uncovering first the forehead, then the eyes of the soldier.
Instead of lunging at the soldier with its teeth, something more horrible occurred. The beast opened its jaws wider than should have been possible. It looked like a snake unhinging its jaws to swallow its prey. Instead of striking, or trying to devour its victim, the wolf convulsed several times, still ignoring the men stabbing into its flesh. Long, wooden roots shot from the wolf’s mouth and stabbed into the soldier’s eyes. As the soldier opened his mouth to scream, more tendrils shot into his mouth and down his throat. The wolf’s flanks began to ripple, almost like a bellows, and a liquid could be seen flowing from the roots into the soldier. The soldier convulsed once more and lay still in death. The soldiers fighting the wolf creature changed tactics, they stopped stabbing and started chopping with their short blades. This change of tactic worked, as the wolf proved to be vulnerable to chopping. The skin covering the creature parted under the blows to reveal a slick mess of roots and bulbous fruit like structures wrapped around the skeleton of a wolf. A few more slashes of the short swords finished the creature. The fluid in the bulbs and from the severed stems giving off the same foul odor we had smelt while hacking at the forest. The sounds of combat faded, and the men looked about seeking more foes. Noticing the men strung out all over the forest, I knew we needed to get organized because I feared this wolf thing was only the beginning.
“I don’t think this is over men. form a circle and keep an eye on your sector. Don’t tell Sergeant Brooks I said this…make sure you chop at them if they come at us again.” The men quickly formed a circle. A few chuckled at the Sergeant Brooks reference. The sergeant had drilled the men hard to thrust at their opponent, often giving punishing exercise to any who forgot. This foe was one of the few exceptions to the rule. The forest was eerily quiet, no sounds of insects or animals were heard. I thought that it was likely the forest had killed or taken over the bodies of any of the natural inhabitants of the area, resolving to myself that this threat would end today. The sounds of rustling could be heard in the undergrowth as what I assumed was the rest of the wolf pack began its attack. The three other wolves all came from different directions, but the men were prepared this time and used their shields to cover as much of themselves as possible. As the wolves focused on one soldier the others next to him would unleash a flurry of chopping blows from their swords upon the wolves, hacking easily through the tattered flesh and bundles of roots that made up these abominations. We had only one injury as a man was too slow to shield himself after he made a chop at a wolf. The wolf shot one of the mouth roots through his upper arm. The wound was painful but not serious, as the root went completely through the flesh of the bicep and did not have a chance to pump any of the foul fluid into the wound. As the wolf fell I tried to focus on its corpse to see if I could find any information on it and was rewarded with a prompt.
Spore Taint Creature (Wolf): Unknown *Note: The quest “Cleansing of the Foul Forest” needs to be completed by any player in Limitless Lands before information on the creature type becomes available…you wouldn’t want an unfair advantage, would you? *
Great…the AI Clio is now sarcastic, but I do understand that the description of the creature shouldn’t give away unknown info. The interesting thing is it appears this quest is the first of its kind in the game, and we’re facing a completely unknown enemy.
I checked on our wounded man who was a private named Eckter. The medic had bandaged his arm and the soldier seemed not too worse for wear. Eckter noticed me approach and tried to salute but the wound in his right arm kept him from completing the salute.
“Stand down, soldier. No need to try and salute if you’re wounded in battle…also never salute an officer when in the field. We don’t want to let enemies know where our leaders are now do we?” I said. The soldier stammered out a yes, sir while looking conspicuously at my plumed helmet. He had a point. I was still operating under the rules of a modern military, worried about snipers, while this was a more ancient army vibe. Without radios and instant communication, seeing where the people were who gave you orders was important. “On second thought, Private Eckter, disregard that order,” I added
There was nothing to be done for our fallen soldier as the foul concoction that the Spore Taint had pumped into him had dissolved the soldier completely during the time of our short battle. The fluid dissolved all organic material including the leather armor and cotton clothing worn by the soldier. All that remained were the few metal buckles and the soldier’s sword. While I was examining our fallen private, Tremble approached and let me know that he still had the halflings trail and that we were ready to move at my command.
We formed back into two columns and continued after the trail of the halflings. The forest once again was eerily silent, and the men were on edge with their eyes darting in every direction, looking for foes. The gruesome death of their comrade influenced them, as seeing a man cut down in battle was one thing. Seeing him dissolved into goo from a wolf, plant monster was something else entirely. After a half mile, our scout, Private Tremble held up a fist signaling us to stop. He motioned me forward and I moved as quietly as I could over to where he was crouched…which wasn’t very quiet unfortunately, stealth still wasn’t my strong suit. I knelt next to Tremble and observed the horror show that was in the clearing in front of me.
The twisted trees and shrubs had pulled back to form an eerily exact circle about one hundred feet in diameter. A large cauldron made of the corrupted forest wood had been placed in the center and on the ground about twenty feet from the cauldron were the three halflings bound tightly in vines and roots. The halflings struggled weakly against their bonds while three of the spore taint wolves stood guard. A figure covered in a large cloak was at the cauldron chanting and stirring it with her hands, while next to the figure, a large bear stood watch, which was identified as a spore taint bear with a system prompt telling me no further info was available until the quest was completed.
“Did you think I could not hear you stomping about, you plant-killers and life-stealers? Your foul presence has disrupted my glorious creation since you set foot within the woods. You seek me harm even as your comrades chop and kill my children near that scar on the earth you call a road? Do you know how hard it is to craft my children? Only predators are suitable for conversion and there were precious few of those here.” The figure at the cauldron turned as she spoke to us, at the same time pulling down the hood of her cloak. A cloak I now realized was made from a sheet of leaves held together by moss and fungus growths. The creature before us looked to be a human female made entirely of the tainted wood and fungus that surrounded us. It had no expression on its face and the eyes were just hollow spaces in her wooden skull that wept the same rotting green/red fluid we had found when hacking open the trees. I tried to focus on the creature and was rewarded with some information.
Spore Taint Dryad: Some tragedy has corrupted these once beautiful forest creatures. A curse of hatred for all non-plant life has taken root and they now seek to cover th
e entire lands in their taint. They transform all creatures under their control into the foul fertilizer that spreads across their forest, transforming the predators of the lands into spore taint creatures to guard their putrid ever-growing realms.
She turned and faced exactly in the direction I was in and continued her rant, her voice projecting somehow without ever opening her mouth.
“I thought humanoids were predators too are you not? Then why is it so hard to convert you to my servants? I was trying to be delicate to my subjects here since they were so few…” The woman indicated the halflings tied on the ground, “but if you are going to kindly keep supplying me with raw materials, I believe I can be a bit more aggressive in my approach. At a gesture from the dryad, the bear moved over to the halflings and grabbed Quimby in its jaws, trotting back to the cauldron.
“Stop! Let them go…now.” I stood up to confront the dryad. No reason to be stealthy if she could sense our presence already. While I was talking to her I gave hand signals for the soldier to move up. I could hear them spread out, one squad to either side of me.
“Let them go…well that seems a wonderful idea.” The dryad’s mouth couldn’t move but I somehow sensed a smile behind her face. “I can do hand signals too human.” With that she made an exaggerated signal and the bear dropped Quimby into the cauldron. He hit with a splash and I could make out the look of terror on his face as his bound form slowly slipped beneath the foul contents of the cauldron.
“Kill her and her beasts!” I ordered as I drew my sword. The men charged forward, forgoing any javelin throws as they would be useless against creatures that could only be harmed by chopping them to pieces. The Dryad hung back sending the bear and wolves to defend her. The men had all come to like the fun-loving halflings, and their fury at seeing Quimby killed spurred them on.
Fury: Your soldiers have been afflicted with rage at the death of an innocent companion they cared for. Bonus to damage for the next 60 seconds of this fight. Orders have a chance to be ignored while under the effects of fury.
The men collided with the spore tainted creatures. Easily bowling over the wolves, several men began to hack at each tainted creature. With the effect of fury on them the blows hit harder than normal. Pulped wood and tainted fluid began to fly from the wolves. The wolves tried to shoot roots from their mouths at the soldiers, but the sight of their jaws opening wide gave away the attack which allowed their targets to get shields up in time to block.
It was a different story with the bear. Its huge mass knocked over the first three soldiers that ran into it. The bear didn’t waste any time as its jaws opened and roots shot from its mouth into one of the soldiers on the ground. The bear then used its huge paws to hold down the other two soldiers that had been knocked over, the claws on each paw extending into sharp roots that burrowed into the soldier’s bodies. The bear’s body then convulsed as it began to pump fluid into the 3 soldiers. The soldiers had time for a short scream of pain before they began to dissolve. The other men were not idle while their fellows died. The rest of the squad began to hack at the bear. It was vulnerable while it convulsed to pump fluid. I also rushed over and began to chop at the bear’s flank, severing the rotting skin and cutting through the roots and pods beneath it. The bear died quickly under our combined blows, but it was too late to save its three victims as they slowly dissolved into the forest floor.
Turning back to the rest of the fight, I saw the three wolves had been killed, thankfully without any further casualties on our side. That just left the dryad. She had taken cover behind the cauldron and was chanting a spell. I charged the dryad and the men followed, trying to get into range before she completed her spell. We were too far away however, and I could sense the dryad smiling through unmoving lips as she completed her spell, a glowing green orb that headed straight toward me. Just before the orb struck, I saw the dryad’s expression change from one of triumph to one of pain as a large black serrated spike erupted from her gut and 2 large pincers closed around her sawing her in half. Crunchy had joined the fight to save his companion.
Crunchy’s valiant attack was too late for me, the green orb struck me in the face. I felt a wave of pain as the orb penetrated my left eye, the orb then exploded into shards of corrupted wood.
Foul Spore Dryad’s death seed attack critically hits you. You have died. Respawn in 5 minutes.
Note: You have died during your introductory quest. Respawn will occur near the caravan. Once the introductory quest has been completed, you must bind to a valid respawn point or respawn back at your original starting location (near Amerville).
Note: Subsequent deaths within a short period will increase the respawn duration.
Note: When you die you will drop a random amount of coin as well as random non-soul bound gear. Because this death occurred during your introductory quest, no items or coin will drop.
I jerked awake back in my tent, the guard posted outside immediately rushing in to check on me. “Sir, glad you are back. Are you feeling ok?” the soldier inquired.
“I don’t appear any worse for wear…”I felt about making sure there was not a hole in my head still. “Everything’s in one piece. How long was I gone?” I inquired.
“Only about 5 minutes sir. Quimby just arrived back as well. Daegan asked to see you as soon as you were up, sir,” The soldier advised.
“Thanks. I’ll head up to the front of the caravan now.” With that, I made my way towards the front of the caravan. My respawn point must have been bound to my tent, and the tent had automatically appeared a few seconds before respawn according to the guards. As I walked, I noticed that the forest was changing. The foul trees and plants had a dried out look and were quickly dying. Reaching the front of the caravan, Daegan, Barnaby, and the halflings were deep in conversation.
“Lieutenant Raytak, glad you made it back to the land of the living. Whatever you and the halflings did is healing the forest. The corrupted plant life is dying and drying out. Barnaby here says we’ll be through the blockage momentarily. Even that stench is dissipating, thank the gods, I hope it will wash out of clothes. The caravan will head out in just a few minutes, and if you’ll excuse me I need to get these folks organized and the wagons back into motion.” With that Daegan excused himself and began barking orders to his drivers. A short time later, my soldiers and the rest of the halflings, made it back to the caravan.
“So, what happened after I died. I remember seeing Crunchy tear that dryad in two, and then nothing. Anything else I should be aware of?” I asked.
Drake replied. “I got a quest completed prompt just after the dryad died. We gathered up the wounded and headed back here. No treasure dropped except for mine and Quimby’s quest rewards.” Drake indicated his new bow. The bow looked to be a longbow to replace his starting short bow. A much better-quality bow than the one he had before. All in all, a nice upgrade for a starting quest.
“There was this. I was hesitant to pick it up as the prompt read it was soul bound to you, but the game allowed us to pick it up once we agreed to bring it back to you, here.” Drake offered a small object wrapped in a cloth.
Opening the cloth, a seed the size of a walnut was found. The seed was a sickly greenish color and the shell felt more like flesh than a seed pod. The item gave off a faint smell of corruption that reminded me of the rotting fluid the corrupted plants had leaked. Focusing on the seed I found some information on the soul bound.
Item Received: The Foul Spore/non-tradeable soulbound (unidentified)
You have completed the quest: Rescue the Halflings.
Rewards: 250 experience.
I could feel the faint pulse of life inside the seed. Something scratched at the back of my mind, trying to communicate with me when it touched my bare hand. Quickly wrapping up the seed I placed it in my pack, not sure what I could do with it…perhaps find some way to purify it? That was something I could ponder later. For now, we needed to get the caravan moving again. Barnaby announced the road was clear and the ca
ravan left the area behind. I saluted the four graves dug at the side of the road as we passed, giving honor to my four fallen soldiers.
Chapter 20
We made good time once past the forest overgrowth. The road became smoother and the caravan began to enter the foothills that led to the transition point waystation. We were finally moving at a pace that put us ahead of schedule and my attention was drawn to mile markers that had begun to appear at the side of the road showing how far it was to the transition point. The markers were simple wooden poles driven into the ground beside the highway with a number painted on it representing how many miles it was to the transition point. The markers appeared to be well-maintained, and Daegan told me that replacing the markers was the responsibility of the soldiers guarding the transition point. The good condition of the markers was a testament to whomever led the transition point garrison. When we made it to mile marker five, something unusual happened. Next to the mile marker, another pole had been driven into the ground and a large banner was strung between the mile marker and the new pole. I jogged up to the lead wagon and jumped up next to the driver to see what the makeshift sign read.