AVARICE ONLINE: KEL'VAN RED HAND

by Titus Nettles

  “This…is a pretty good enchant my friend,” he commented. “And ya say this is for protection against attacks?”

  “It could be used to bash your opponents if they get too close, but yeah., its main use is for protection.”

  “This will definitely do its purpose. I must ask, though, why is it so shiny?”

  “Hmm?” Kel’Van got up from his seat and stood next to the kneeling orc. He didn’t even notice that detail while he was working on it nor when he was done. He knew why the shield was shining, though.

  ” It looks like that because of the way granite looks. That was the stone substance I was thinking of when I was enchanting the shield.”

  “Never heard of it,” replied Longtooth. “I guess this is supposed to be a pretty hard stone eh?”

  “The hardest stone period next to diamond.”

  “Well, I tell ya what, when the end of the week comes, you’re going to be the one who enchants the equipment. It’ll give ya some motivation to reach level 5.”

  “Wait…you’re not going to enchant them?” Kel’Van was reasonably upset with this news. He wanted to have the best quality gear available for his team, and here was Longtooth saying he had to provide tha himself.

  “No, because you can’t afford it, nor do ya got the material needed to do it,” he said matter-of-factly.

  Just then, Kel’Van remembered he did have some elemental crystals from the fight they had with Ter’Abran. He quickly searched his inventory and immediately pulled the obsidian colored stones into Longtooth’s face.

  “Well I’ll be…” Longtooth started. He carefully palmed the crystals in his hands and examined them for almost a full minute before placing them back into Kel’Van’s palm. “Ya listen here, Red-hand. Ya put these crystals back in your inventory, and ya forget about them. Pretend they not even there until you reach level 50. Hell, I wouldn’t touch them till I reached 100. In all my years I’ve never seen these before. Using them now would be unforgivable and wasteful as putting a dress on me. Ya hear me Ulgo?”

  Kel’Van nodded his agreement. Bitter that Longtooth was not only correct but upset at not realizing this himself. Any noob would know not to waste purple level material on a low-level item unless they had stores of it to make. He shouldn’t have needed the old orc to tell him this. Especially when he could craft without needing said item.

  “Anyways, ya got two hours before we lock this place up…so whatever you got left to make ya need ta get to it.” Ulgo Longtooth grinned and saw himself out of the room.

  Kel’Van did have two items he needed to make and thought he had just enough time to make them before setting out for his own home to meet up with his group.

  Especially for Belar.

  The most immediate problem with losing the armor they had was the enchants. Even without the health and stamina bonuses, Fer’shad still could mitigate damage with his shield. Voresh could still fight his foes from a distance with his sword. Kel’Van had his flame spells to fight at a farther range and his gear was still viable. Belar’s attacks needed her to be up close and within arms reach to be effective. The loss of her armor meant 80 Health points was now gone from her stats, making her that much more vulnerable in close quarters. She didn't even have a healing spell to mitigate the damage as Kel’Van had. If he was unable to replace the enchants she lost, how can he make her less exposed in battle?

  Kel’Van got up from his chair and began pacing around his desk. He turned the problem in his mind over and over again. As he scratched his chin, he stopped in his tracks.

  “Maybe I’m am going about this all wrong.”

  He was thinking defensibly with Belar’s predicament. Concentrating too much on recovering what was lost instead of thinking about what could be gained. How can she be improved is where his thinking needed to go. What did he know about Belar’s way of fighting?

  “Close the distance, stun your opponent, and then brutally incapacitate,” is what he told her to do when she fought, and she did just that. Kel’Van began looking back on her battles. Breaking the bones of several Holmgren, gouging the eyes of Ter’Abran, even biting the neck of a patrol with her teeth…or tusks if he was to be accurate.

  “That orc was far past brutal. She was bordering on feral with the way she-“

  And there it is was…

  The answer was sitting right in front of his face the whole time. Kel’Van picked some bone shards about the size of his palm and began whittling away at them with a smile.

  Two hours later, he packed his belongings and equipment and readied himself for the trip back home.

  “Home.” He thought it odd that he was actually getting used to this place being that. Home. He quietly filtered through his inventory and began putting away the last of his items for his team.

  CHAPTER 33

  “Ahhh, our great leader has returned,” smiled Voresh.

  It was fitting that the first person Kel’Van saw was the light-hearted orc. He was setting down bowls, plates, and an assortment of eating utensils in the main hall. Belar was just coming from the stairs with her hair clasped in a towel. Both her hands ruffling the top of her head, with a plain shirt and grey pajama type pants on, it was obvious she had just finished bathing. As she reached the bottom of the stairs, her grin greeted Kel’Van warmly.

  “I hope you enjoyed your first day at work captain,” she said as she deftly pulled a chair out before she sat down.

  “I got things done; what happened with you?”

  Belar sighed as she leaned back. “I was bartering between stores, merchants, and different buyers all day. I swear when the sun set at noon, I wanted to club all of them in the head,” she growled.

  “But I bet your contracting skill leveled nicely didn’t it? Kel’Van smirked.

  “I didn’t say it wasn’t profitable, just that it was aggravating,” she grinned back.

  Fer’shad walked in carrying a large black pot simmering with the smell of fish and vegetables. He put the large container in the center of the table, took off what looked comically like gigantic grandma mittens, and quietly pulled up a seat at the table. He had his hair done up in a ponytail with a smile that lit up his face.

  “I take it your day went a lot better than Belar’s?” grinned Kel’Van.

  “I would think so captain, while we didn’t get much in the work of game, there was plenty of different fish to be caught on the way back. Much of which is steaming in this pot,” said Fer’shad, clearly pleased with himself.

  “An excellent assortment of different types of fish tonight thanks to our large friend’s efforts here today,” remarked Voresh as he placed sweet bread and some other bread wrapped food upon each one’s plate. Fer’shad puffed up his chest and widened his smile at the praise he was getting.

  “I too, enjoyed my day at work. Many spices and meals were taught today, and I even bought some of them home,” said Voresh as he patted the breaded morsel next to the sweet bread. “It’s full of vegetables and some savory smoked meat in the center…very tasty.”

  Voresh then dipped a large wooden ladle and scooping the soup with bits of different colored fish and animal meats into each bowl in front of them. As he pulled his chair and sat down, all three of them grabbed hands as if on cue. Kel’Van seated at the head, where hands on either side of him were waiting to clasp his hands in their own as if it was Sunday dinner.

  “Oookaayyy,” whispered Kel’Van as he put his hands in theirs. The others were still staring at him as if he forgot something. “What am I missing here?” The others looked at each other and then back at Kel’Van.

  “Didn’t you pray to Gaea when you ate today captain?” Belar asked quietly.

  Kel’Van drew a blank. He tried to picture the last time any food touched his lips. It took him a couple of moments to realize he hadn’t eaten anything since before the meeting this morning. The man hadn’t eaten all day! No wonder his stomach was growling.

  “I haven’t eaten all day,” he answered.

>   “Every time orcs eat, we are supposed to pray to Gaea. Since you are the highest-ranking, you are supposed to lead it.” Fer’shad said solemnly.

  “Every day?!”

  Voresh tried to cover his smile with a cough.

  “I think I’ll let Belar do the honors.”

  “As you wish captain,” Belar answered. “Great Gaea, we have gathered here in our humble home to honor the bounty set before us. We graciously thank you for the gift of our valley and only ask that you grant us the strength to protect it from harm. With these gifts that you bestowed on us, we will one day honor the pledge we took before entering our paradise. Claim all for the glory of Gaea and the Ulgo”.

  Then they all opened their eyes and began to eat.

  Kel’Van was lost in the seriousness of the situation. He gathered that the Ulgo worshipped Gaea, that was pretty evident. He just did not know the extent of it. If Gaea was so intrinsic in the everyday workings of the Ulgo, he definitely saw trouble ahead for himself. 10 years of war had changed his views on religion. What god would allow the things he’s seen people do to each other.

  Belar looked up from her plate and tentatively sneaked a peek at Fer’shad. He in turn, gave an “I don’t know” look back at her. She put her utensil down and cleared her throat.

  “Captain, I mean no disrespect when I ask this but…” she then hesitated before saying anything else.

  Kel’Van sighed. He did not want to get into a discussion about religion, but it seems it was about to happen anyway. As hungry as he was, he motioned for Belar to continue.

  “Go ahead, ask your question.”

  Belar pursed her lips and pushed forward

  “Captain…It seems you have no reverence for Gaea. The way you said Gaea would look inside you and determine your truth was right. The gifts that were given to us prove this,” stammered Belar. “But yet, you do not seem moved by this at all.”

  Kel’Van sighed while he put a spoon full of meat into his mouth.” Damn, this is good,” he thought before he looked at Belar. “I understand that this is very wonderous for you to personally meet Gaea in this fashion. It was actually my first time meeting her up close as well.” He put his utensil down and made sure he had her full attention. “But I think you have forgotten that this is not the first time I received a class. I do not share your wonderment because I am used to it.”

  She stared at Kel’Van only briefly before she turned her compatriots. They all shared the same look, and Kel’Van’s heart sunk a little as he watched them. He had inadvertently reminded them that he was not exactly like they were. It’s like that when you are continually fighting off others and depending on each other for survival. You kind of forget that maybe the person you depend your life on is of another race or religion, because at the time, it really didn’t matter. The fact that you had each other’s back is what mattered. The bond he had with his people in the military was like that. Now he had put up a reminder, just like society did when he became civilian, that he wasn’t exactly like the rest of them.

  “Sometimes we forget that, captain. But I for one, am glad that you aren’t, for we would have died in the depths without you,” Fer’shad said with genuine inflection.

  “I’ll tell you what matters,” Voresh stated as he stuffed one of the meat-filled bread things in his mouth. “These breadkins. They are delicious!”

  Both Fer’shad and Belar bit into the meat like pastries. The red juice from the steamed meat ran down the corner of their mouths in driblets. Kel’Van pushed the plate with the “breadkin” away from him as he now realized why he was so repulsed by it.

  “Hey Voresh,” smiled Kel’Van “Do you remember when I said I would tell you what a burrito was in the spider den?”

  “Yes,” he said with a mouth full of the breadkin and stained red lips. He began licking the spilled juices of the dough-wrapped food from his fingers.

  “It looks almost exactly like what you’re eating right now,” the same smile never leaving his face.

  At first, no one got it. Then Belar’s face turned from green to a light yellowish tint. Her cheeks flared out, and a hand went to her mouth as she ran up the stairs full speed. Fer’shad, who was chewing his food and was preparing to take another bite, dropped the breadkin back on his plate. His eyes got a blank stare as chunks of his chewed sandwich began to plop out of his mouth and onto the table. Voresh’s eyes got wide as he momentarily froze in the middle of chewing his food. He looked left, then right, then shrugged his shoulders and began biting into what was left of his breadkin, while spilling excess juice out the side of his mouth. This turned out to be too much for Fer’shad as he dry heaved, then ran up the stairs after Belar.

  Kel’Van shaking his head, could only look on in amusement at Voresh’s cast-iron stomach. As the swordsman finished his breadkin, he pointed a finger to Kel’Van’s plate.

  “You going to eat that captain?”

  “Naw playa…You go ahead and enjoy that.”

  Voresh happily scooped the breadkin off his plate and slowly enjoyed it, oblivious to the loud retching being heard upstairs.

  After Belar and Fer’shad cleaned themselves up, they met in the “basement” of sorts, located underneath the house. It was just big enough to be a backyard. Inside were wooden “dummies” shaped like stickmen for targets. Kel’Van aptly named it the war room. They stood opposite of the pit in a semi-circle, looking at their stats and abilities after Kel’Van initiated them all into a party.

  “Okay, let’s look at the abilities we have here.” As he poured over the stats and abilities of each of his teammates, he began to understand how his group could perform in and out of a party.

  Fer’shad

  Aegis Pull: This is an ability that enrages a target to attack you for 15 seconds. The target must be within 10 feet of you for this ability to work.

  Auger Rush: This ability allows you to quickly charge your enemies within 15 feet, dealing 60 damage with your shield. 30% chance to stun target.

  Aegis Bulwark: Adds Physical and Magical Resistance by 40% for 30 seconds.

  Belar:

  Titans Punch: After executing any 3-part combo, this ability becomes available. A straight punch that deals 70 damage and a 30% chance to stun.

  Auger Kick: A flying kick ability covering 6 feet at a single target, dealing 70 damage.

  Titan kick: After executing any four-part combo, this ability becomes available. A roundhouse kick that deals 80 damage and a 30% chance to stun.

  Voresh

  Ulgo Cleave: This ability powers a sword strikes to attack multiple targets at one time. The attack deals 65 damage to each enemy in its radius.

  Dawning Star: An ability that allows you to perform a leap attack from 6 feet away. This sword attack does 80 damage to a single target.

  Rising Star: This ability is an uppercut sword strike that deals 70 damage to a single target.

  Red-hand:

  Stone skin: An ability buffs that reduces damage by 15% for 30 seconds

  Seared Flesh: an ability that enables the casters sword to inflict 30 points of damage after a strike over 10 seconds time.

  Crimson Blade a sword enhancement that increased a sword's attack power by 5% while also imbuing the blade with flame damage by +10.

  Flame Level 2 A conal fire attack the casts an arc of flame towards a target for 35 to 40 damage and adds a 10 second burn effect.

  Heal 2 Self-heal for up to 30% of total Health points

  Heatwave a 3 second cast spell that engulfs a given target area in flames for 25 to 30 damage and adds a 10 second burn effect.

  “Alright, looking at the types of skills we have, all three of you have gap closers, while only Voresh has a skill that attacks multiple enemies.”

  “But you have that fire spell that you use against multiple enemies,” Voresh pointed out.

  “I strategically use my flame spell that way, but its function is not to cleave multiple targets like yours is,” answered Kel’Van.

 
; “But I’m talking about the heatwave spell captain.”

  “Oh…point taken Voresh.”

  Voresh nodded his understanding and the captain moved on.

  “Field-captain Kelza wants us to be ready, and we will be. But to do that, we must be familiar with the new skills we have. Fer’shad, two of the three abilities you have are tank specific, but before we get started, you’re going to need tools to actually do your job.”

  Kel’Van dug into his inventory and retrieved the tower shield made of bone, which of course, he had slaved many hours over. Fer’shad took the almost orange-tinted shield in reverence. “It’s a practice one for now, +2 to defense, which only means it will stop two points of any damage you receive, but I already commissioned one for you when it’s time for us to start patrolling with Kelza.”

  “You made this today? “

  “Yes, but like I said, it’s just something that you can use now to get used to being a tank.”

  “Thank you, Kel’Van.”

  “Which leaves just you Belar.” He went back into his inventory and brung out leather gauntlets from one of the Holmgren they killed. He tossed them toward Belar.

  “Notice anything different about the gloves?’

  When she stepped forward and caught the gloves in her hands, she noticed the difference right away. They were a bit heavy, but the first thing that struck her was the claws at the end of the fingertips.

  “These gauntlets I upgraded has what you call bone knuckles to help power your punches since you can’t use metal. The bottom half or the gloves' sleeves are wrapped in dense bone to help you block attacks like you did with your original gauntlets. The biggest change of course, is the claws at the end of the tips.”

  Belar slipped the gloves on both hands. She turned to them to and fro as she thought through the different ways she could now attack. She opened and closed her fist, marveling at the bone protrusions' construction made for her knuckles and imagined crunching someone's jaw from the impact. As she opened her palms, she marveled at the long off-white 2-inch talons on all five digits. Mauling a Holmgren's face will now be all too easy...