The Dragon's Wrath: Shadows in the Flame

by Brent Roth

  Shaking my head as I tried to think things through, I couldn’t recruit any new troops until the first minute into Saturday, assuming no one else bids on my draftees. If someone wanted to start a bidding war against me then I would have to wait until the end of Sunday, when it ticked over to Monday. That was a day or three days late.

  I needed troops by Friday.

  “So um, the army is coming?” asked Emily.

  “Yup, about two-hundred supposedly,” I answered. “FWB isn’t that big so it’s a collective or coalition of supporters from the forums, those in the North that want to rid the world of this child-killer… well, now they’ve probably toned that down to child-traumatizer and the man who seeks to oppress them and strip them of their freedoms.”

  Shrugging my eyebrows as I tried to think up a counterplan, there wasn’t much left to do. My town was established and fortified… the only thing left that I could implement were traps… traps could and would be added.

  After that, I would have to find their position and see if I could attack them at their camp, raid them as they traveled. Start a fight before it reached our shores. If I could delay or slow them down, whittle their numbers or decrease their morale, it would help.

  “And this all started because of me…” she said with her mood quickly changing.

  “It’s not your fault Em,” said Valerie.

  “Look, I’m over who or why or what started it,” I claimed, regardless if I actually truly believed it deep down. “If you girls don’t want to get involved, I’d suggest heading out at least before Friday night. In truth, you probably don’t want to be here when they arrive, it’s going to get messy.”

  “Well I do feel guilty about being involved in this,” mumbled Emily as she scratched the back of her head. “I would like to help if I can, if you’ll have me.”

  “Em…” said Valerie quietly while looking at her friend.

  “I’m going to need all the help I can get honestly,” I said without any airs.

  “I want to help,” she repeated. “Anyway I can.”

  “Ah… it looks as if I’ll be at your service as well then,” chimed in Valerie with some hesitation showing on her face. She didn’t like me that much and it was fairly obvious.

  “I won’t force you or ask anything serious of you,” I quickly explained. “Most of the heavy lifting will be done by me or my crew but a spare heal and an extra hand if things get rough is more than welcome… in fact, it’s desperately needed.”

  “How can we help?” asked Emily.

  “For now… nothing,” I said as my mind began to race. “I’ll take care of everything from here on out. You said you wanted to find out who was responsible for this right? Now that it’s come down to this, whatever the result of this upcoming battle, that guy or girl needs to pay for all of the trouble they’ve caused me. Find out who is behind it if you can with your insider knowledge and I’ll take care of the rest.”

  “That’s more like it!” shouted Emily with applause. “I knew from your video that you weren’t one to shy away from a fight, he’s made us both look the fool and we’ve fought and nearly ruined a friendship because of it. I want him to suffer for his manipulation.”

  “Him, you say,” I questioned with a grin.

  “Damn right, if it’s anyone it’s that walking plague that ruins every meeting,” she exclaimed with open hands as if she couldn’t stand even mentioning it. “Ugh! I hate him!”

  “I call him Mr. Sardonic,” I let out with a laugh following shortly after.

  “He may be a bigger ass than you,” mumbled Valerie as she looked in my direction.

  “I’m no boy scout,” I said with a shrug. “Well, thanks, for coming all the way up here, I realize it’s an arduous journey.”

  “You’ll be paying me back in raw oysters, son,” said Emily with a smirk.

  “Cheaper than lobster I guess,” I mumbled under my breath.

  “You have lobster?” she immediately asked.

  “Hm?” I replied, pretending not to have heard her.

  “You have lobster too?” she asked again.

  “What’s that?” I questioned, not understanding her.

  “You said oysters were cheaper than lobster,” she quickly explained. “So you’ve got lobster here, right?”

  “No.”

  She wasn’t supposed to hear that.

  Chapter 105: Setting a Trap

  (Tuesday, January 25th Game Day / Wednesday, May 12th Real Day)

  Surveying the land in front of Dragon’s Breach, I couldn’t help but wonder if there were any quick fixes that could be made to hinder the oncoming army. If I had the time I would install wolf pits across the field. Caesar called them lilies, others called them tiger pits and I’m sure there were hundreds of other names for a concealed pit with stakes at the bottom. I didn’t have the time to dig anymore holes or to conceal them.

  There was plenty of wooden stakes that could be used though… so my first idea was to fill the moat with them, withdrawing the log bridge so as to force them to cross the moat would kill off a few of them instantly. If they grew scared, it could even serve to halt their advance for a time as they would be forced to prepare equipment.

  The worst thing would be if they kept at range and bombarded the city with arrows and magic… well, not really. My buildings were all partially below ground and had dirt piled up against their exterior walls specifically for this reason. It helped with heat retention and it kept the building largely fireproof.

  Even the roofs had soil packed on top, with snow covering it as well. Hardly any wood was exposed, save for the inn that was on the far side of the town. My buildings would be safe from the threat of fire. My towers could be damaged though.

  I needed a psychological threat as well.

  Imposing walls, towers, a moat with spikes, and casters and archers defending the town were good but not enough. What I wanted was a rampaging beast that could be let loose… one that didn’t share my name or likeness.

  “Hm, maybe it could share my likeness,” I whispered while staring at the dire wolf pelt hanging on a rack. “I wonder if it’s possible… it worked on the frost troll, right?”

  “What did?” asked Kate as she leaned against the wall.

  “Do you think you can out heal a wolf?” I asked.

  “A wolf… or a dire wolf?” she replied while tracing my eyes to the dire wolf pelt, only partially realizing my plan.

  “I think it’s worth a try,” I said more to myself as Kate frowned.

  “Can you inform the troops to start filling the moat with wooden spikes,” I asked her calmly. “After that, join me at the south gate, we’re going for a little stroll.”

  As she nodded and left, I began to pack the necessary items for the job as I grabbed bundles of rope and my mountain climbing gear to serve as improvised tools. Tossing them all inside my enchanted bag, the only thing left was to build a structure inside the walls. That could be delegated though. My next order of business was to speak with Ellieby, as the ship should have arrived by now. I had a slim hope that she could help in some way.

  Opening my friend’s list, I selected her name and initiated a video call.

  “Hey guy, your ship just pulled in,” she answered right off the bat. “Kind of short on pelts though, couldn’t find enough?”

  “Ah about that,” I said with my voice trailing off slightly. “Some things came up, not sure if you follow the current affairs or forums much.”

  “Nope not at all,” she replied immediately.

  “Ah, well, I lost a ship in a sea battle, lost some time fighting a war… you know, basic stuff,” I mumbled with a carefree shrug. “Put me a little behind.”

  “Sounds fun!” she said while clearly not paying much attention, preoccupied with the pelts currently being unloaded from the longship. “Will the next shipment be okay?”

  “Yeah about that,” I said with some hesitation as her attention was elsewhere and it made me wonder if I should call
back. “You seem a little busy, should I call another time?”

  “Hm? What makes you say that?” she questioned.

  “Never mind,” I stated with some annoyance. “The next shipment won’t be coming as of right now, I’m not sure any shipment will be coming for a while actually.”

  “What?” she practically spat out.

  “I’ve got a potential issue here,” I explained. “And well, there’s a chance I won’t have anything left in two days. To hunt, gather, or send to you.”

  “You’re not making sense,” she said.

  “I’ve got about two-hundred people headed towards my location with the intent of destroying and killing everything belonging or related to me,” I said clearly so she could understand, even if she wasn’t paying attention. “They’ll be here Friday and if I can’t defend successfully, then there won’t be anything left here. No NPCs, no town, no hunting, no pelts.”

  “Oh, how’d you manage to piss off that many people?” she asked with little to no interest showing on her face. “So no shipments for a while huh.”

  It was fairly clear to me that she wasn’t interested in helping but I figured it wouldn’t hurt to ask, the least it would do is show me where her priorities lie. When it came to friends both online and in real life, there were a lot of different types. There were those who would get into trouble with you and then help you to get out of it, then there were those who wanted nothing to do with it, hoping to stay clear of the trouble.

  Worse yet, there were the fair weather friends that only hung around when the going was good and they could leach off of you… those types weren’t really friends at all. In a time of need, one could easily find out which type of friends one had.

  The main problem was… it wasn’t in my nature to ask for help.

  “Yeah, no shipments for a while,” I finally replied with my interest in acquiring her help almost entirely gone. “I’m not sure I’ll be able to defeat that many players with so few in number on my side, so if you’re interested and available, could use the extra hands. Don’t really need you to fight, just an able body.”

  “Uhh PvP?” she asked with a pained expression.

  “Yeah,” I stated calmly. “Could use an extra hand to help set some things up, no need for actual fighting though, if it’s not your thing. Would take maybe two days of your time.”

  “Um, going to have to pass sorry,” she said rather quickly without appearing to have given it any time for thought. “We’re not a PvP guild and we don’t want to get drawn into any conflicts with other players. Sorry, let me know when the next shipment can resume and I’ll see if I can find a temporary supply for now.”

  “All right, tell my ship to leave as soon as possible, if you would.”

  “Sure, soon as they’re done unloading,” she replied.

  Ending the call there, I was a bit disappointed with her response. It was a fair enough point to not want to get involved in another guild or player’s issues when it could negatively impact your own, but I didn’t ask her guild to join. I wasn’t planning to ask much of her, as I wasn’t going to ask Valerie or Emily to help much either.

  The most… would be to help set up traps and then to escort the non-combatant NPCs out into the estuary where they could hide during the duration of the battle. No one would know they were there, their involvement would be negligible but it would give me peace of mind. She declined instantly without thinking about it for a second.

  She was a trade partner and that was it.

  This is why I trusted NPCs more than those on my friend’s list. NPCs didn’t have motives and they simply wanted to live their lives in relative peace. I offered them food and shelter, they provided me with their services.

  A plain and simple relationship.

  Well there were genuinely good people on my friend’s list too. If it weren’t for Alan contacting Ethan and Barik, I would have been hit by surprise. I owed them one for that. It was the best head’s up I could have asked for. It was a shame that they were so far away.

  Grabbing my gear bag, I left the cabin and headed towards the south gate as I spotted Havardr directing some of the other warriors. Walking over to him, I flagged him down and interrupted his explanations to the troops.

  “Hey Havardr, think you guys can build a cage here by the front gate?” I asked quickly as I adjusted the bag over my shoulder.

  “How big and for what?” he questioned in turn.

  “Pound some wooden stakes into the ground… let’s say eight feet high, four feet at least into the ground,” I began to explain as I tried to imagine the creature’s size. “Keep the posts about a foot apart and the pen itself around ten feet by six feet in length. Two of those, on either side of this gate, with the narrow end facing the gate. Then set up the interior perimeter.”

  “For… what Sigurd?” he inquired with a perplexed expression.

  “Dire wolves, Havardr, dire wolves.”

  Chapter 106: Enemy Approaching

  (Tuesday, February 1st Game Day / Friday, May 14th Real Day)

  “Members of Scout Team ONE have spotted and marked the enemy position Sir,” stated a warrior as he reported from outside of the town’s walls. “Do you wish for us to make contact?”

  “No, hold off for now,” I said while motioning for Astrid and Soren. “We’ll get Gold Squadron to conduct the ambush, have the team members stand down for now. You’ll assist in the retreat, keep up the good work.”

  As Astrid and Soren made their way over, I decided to go over the details of the mission once more in my head. My newly implemented unit organization had been based on tactical proficiency with teams formed up specifically for carrying out clandestine operations. The warriors were split into two separate Scout Teams that were each commanded by a senior warrior while the offensive casters formed up the Gold and Red Squadron which filled the role of the Assault Team.

  Priests had their own detachment that I called the Medical Unit out of simplicity and they were assigned as support to the teams on a need-basis. The teams would be conducting the hit and run operations from the safety of the forests, attacking and retreating at irregular intervals to keep the advancing army off-guard.

  Fighting them head-on would lead to my destruction in quick order, so this was my counter. We wouldn’t cause much permanent damage but a large mob of players tired from a long journey may be a little agitated after receiving multiple attacks without the opportunity to retaliate. I was counting on that at the very least.

  That itchy trigger finger of theirs was what I wanted… it’s what I needed. They needed to make a mistake, to be overconfident of their overwhelming power and to charge blindly through my partially open gates and in turn… grace my new dire wolves with their presence. Two dire wolves, captured alive and now held in pens on the inner side of the gate, fenced in so that once one enters the town there is nowhere to go.

  The wooden stakes would funnel players directly into the path of the wolves, as the fenced in clearing was concealed behind the walls. An area where the wolves could play or escape through the gate, the gate which would be blocked by numerous enemy troops. The wolves of course were quite angry with us humans at the moment, so I imagined the end result would be a favorable one for me. There really wasn’t anything to lose, either way.

  “Sir Sigurd, what would you have us do?” asked Astrid as Soren stood silently nearby, with no intent to speak.

  “Ready your Squadrons, Scout Team ONE is waiting on location as support,” I stated clearly as I rested my hands on my hips. “You know the parameters, hit and run, repeat when the time is right. I’m expecting zero casualties. Continue until you’re out of resources then double back to base.”

  “Yes Sir!” shouted Astrid with a devious grin as Soren simply nodded.

  Watching as the two gathered their subordinate casters and headed out, the ten mages with four priests began their jog off into the forest in relative silence. The only thing left was to wait. The log bridge had already been
thinned by a few logs so that the narrow path could only support three bodies shoulder to shoulder instead of the previous six.

  In addition, the moat had been filled with stakes and spikes and were well concealed by the muddy bottom that obscured the depths. My temporary pet wolves had also been denied sustenance as they were locked in their wooden cages. Their temperament had been rather nasty. They were a pair too… a male and female. They were my trump card for this fight.

  “Hey Sigurd,” called out Emily as she approached carefully, treading softly around the wolf pens that partially blocked the second path through the gate. “Val and I are ready if you need us… but uh I have to ask, where did you get these two?”

  As she pointed at the wolves, I couldn’t help but let a grin escape.

  “You know how I said… that I wasn’t exactly a boy scout?” I said with a slight chuckle as I glanced out into the distance.

  “Uh sure, you said something like that,” she replied.

  “Well, let’s just say I’m a proud new owner of two young dire wolf pups,” I vaguely explained while giving her a quick wink.

  “That doesn’t explain much,” she complained with a frown as her hands were placed on her hips in counter to mine. Leaning her head slightly forward, she shook it slightly from side to side as if she was extremely disappointed with my answer.

  “A mom and dad chasing after the kidnapper who had their children,” I said with a shrug while glancing back down the river to see if the oncoming army was near. “Seems self-explanatory to me, what’s not to get?”

  “Dude that’s dark,” she said with her head almost snapping back.

  “Yeah, a bit,” I replied with another shrug, as my shoulders used a wider range of motion this time around. “It wasn’t that easy though, took a lot of wrestling, a lot of rope… and quite a few broken bones. Surprised myself actually, that I pulled it off.”

  “Pfft, like when I broke your ribs in our spar?” she teased with that silly grin of hers as she stuck her tongue out slightly.