From the Beginning

by Benjamin Haynes

  “No way in Hell am I trusting an imp to deliver us to his damned Chief!” Terrance argued loudly.

  Before Erchik could argue back Dante spoke up “He has not betrayed us once, and with what we have heard the imps are just as miserable as the humans because of Targith. I do trust him and honestly see no other way around this problem without the aid of an imp. To tell you the truth my only other idea was to fight our way in but you’ll die permanently and I would probably be spawn camped once they realized I was an Adventurer.”

  Huffing and shaking his head Terrance gave in and with crossed arms announced “I do not like this plan… But I have to agree that it is probably the safest way in.”

  Erchik smiled happy to finally be able to help them as he laid out the plan in detail “You will stow your weapons in your inventory and I will tie off your hand” as Terrance went to debate this Dante quieted him with a raised hand “Loosely tie off your hands and lead you through town. No one should bother us until we reach the gates and then only to question me a little on your capture before escorting us into the main chamber. Chief Targith will likely excuse the guards not seeing either of you as a threat without your weapons and once the guards step out I’ll bolt the door and you two can take care of the Chief.”

  Pondering a few moments seeing a few faults in the assumptions but seeing even fewer options Dante stowed his weapons in his inventory and taking the rope he had initially used to tie up Erchik allowed the imp to tie off his hands. It was not loose enough that it might fall off but was also not tight enough that Dante could not escape should he need to move quickly.

  Approaching Erchik, Terrance pointed a finger at him and with a scowl said “If you betray us I will hunt you in this life or the next imp.” Before offering up his hands to also be tied up nodding acceptance once Erchik was done.

  Thirty minutes of walking with Erchik leading and Dante and Terrance following acting like they were scared captives the group made it safely through the wandering imp parties and into the town. Dante was shocked by what he saw. The once active and thriving town of Darrin looked like a horrible mess of refuse and slavery. As the imps pushed around the human slaves forcing them to do every form of manual labor imaginable. Most of the humans kept their eyes down though a few chanced a glance at the trio as they made their way through the throngs of imps and humans alike.

  “Keep your heads down and don’t speak” Someone whispered to Dante as they were passing through a crowd. “If they think you look like a fighter they will feed you to the exp arena.” Not giving further details before leaving without another word as Dante looked around for the owner of the voice not seeing anyone who seemed to stand out. All he could do was shrug and nod in assent before continuing his guise of the captive while Erchik lead the two humans further and further into the town.

  It all seemed to run rather smoothly until they got to the gate and were stopped as Erchik had predicted. The guards though were in no mood to follow the plan it seemed.

  “You no see Chief. He busy. Leave slaves and go weak one.” The first guard barked and the second guard just stood there looking menacingly at Erchik.

  “Will not,” Erchik stood tall slipping easily back into his old speaking habits “Chief gets first pick of slaves.”

  Not liking Erchiks tone the second guard stepped forward grunting “You leave now or you leave in body bin. You choose now!”

  Panic written on his face Erchik looked first from Terrance who bristled in quiet anger to Dante who simply nodded to do as they were told. Seeing the nod, Erchik did as was suggested handing the leads to the first guard who had an outstretched hand, then Erchik hesitantly walked away with his head hanging low and looking back repeatedly as Dante and Terrance were lead to the castle rather heavy handedly.

  Terrance grumbled but didn't speak while Dante took the abuse quietly having settled on taking a bit of vengeance before leaving once they were through with Targith. He’d explored this castle back when it was a game and if the dungeons were where they would be taken he already knew how to get to Targith even before they were tossed into a cell with the door slammed and locked behind them.

  Annoyed at their luck both Dante and Terrance shook off their ties and looked around the cell. Others were in there with them, these people either covered in nothing but dirt or at best with bits of fabric draped over them that looked to be made of nothing more than old trade sacks.

  “Knew that little rat couldn’t be trusted.” Terrance said hotly as he eyed each prisoner as if one might pose a threat at any moment.

  “Actually this may make it even easier for us.” Dante said while inspecting the walls around the cell for the loose stone.

  Hand thrown in the air in frustration Terrance shouted “You are completely fucking mad!”

  Causing the other six other people in the cell to shake in fear before an old man spoke up in a hushed tone “Please keep your voice down, or we will all get whipped.” Begging as a young boy near the back huddled up to the wall and began to quietly sob.

  “Yes, Terrance shut up please while I look for something.” Not bothering to look at his friend as he said this Dante continued to scan to walls for the specific spot he’d been trying to locate.

  Grime and dirt were now covering the walls so it was harder to tell but with a probing hand Dante was finally able to locate the otherwise unnoticeable loose stone brick. Scraping away at the gunk that had gotten caked in the space around the stone he took his time and worked it out before calling Terrance over and speaking in a hushed tone.

  “Plan has changed a bit, but we will make it work. I’ll be triggering a fake wall hidden in this cell to open up and there will be a passage that leads up to the main chamber.” Stopping as the old man from before walked over.

  “Do not do this unless you wish for us all to die young man.” The elderly man spoke with fearful eyes.

  Offering a friendly smile Dante turned to him and waved him closer to where Terrance and him huddled “I will not die anytime soon I can promise you that old timer. I can also guarantee that I will not leave this castle before defeating Targith and setting everyone free.”

  Body shaking the old man fell backwards onto his rear looking up at the men shocked “Mad is right! None save for the Adventurers of old can defeat a legendary beast!”

  Knowing that he would not get anywhere otherwise Dante turned on his title Legendary Slayer which caused many gasps as others in the cell looked up at the commotion. Speaking just loud enough for everyone to hear “My word is my bond and as you can see I can handle myself just fine. Though I did die once while dealing with the last…” He cut off what he was saying as he realized the can of worms he just opened by admitting what he was to these people.

  Murmurs of ‘Adventurer’ and ‘They have returned’ started to erupt from the people in the cell.

  Standing to gather their attention and switching off the title again Dante addressed them all firmly “We need create a distraction down here while I head up to defeat Targith.”

  Everyone went silent at this and once he was sure he had all their attention he continued to speak “There is a hidden door in this cell that leads to the main chambers where I should be able to find Targith. To make sure I can fight him without interference I myself,” he then pointed to Terrance “and my friend here will give you any extra gear and weapons we have if anyone is willing to distract the guards and hold their attention down here.”

  Several men and women stepped forward as he finished his little speech. While he unloaded his loot to the five people including the old man he turned to Terrance who was doing the same “Stay with them and keep them safe. I will deal with Targith myself while you keep these people alive. Yourself too of course.” Adding a friendly smile though Terrance seemed to want to argue decided that Dante was right and kept silent.

  Once everyone who was going to play the part of the distraction was in some way geared up Dante slipped his hand into the crevice he’d pried the stone f
rom and triggered the hidden door. Scraping rather loudly on the floor as it swung open Dante ran in and closed it behind him hearing the guards coming to see about the noise just before he was sunk into silence and darkness.

  Dante Alexander: Knight Mage

  Level: 26.19

  Attack Power:114

  Defense Power:236

  Health:1327/1327

  Mana:526/526

  Stamina:418/418

  Attack Speed +5

  Casting Speed +4

  Critical Hit +4

  Movement Speed +4

  Gear:

  Main Hand

  +14 Blade of Chaos

  Off Hand

  +14 Short Sword of Chaos

  Helm

  +14 Hidden Circlet of Chaos

  Armor

  +18 Leather Breastplate of Chaos

  Gloves

  +14 Leather Gloves of Chaos

  Shoes

  +14 Leather Shoes of Chaos

  L Earring slot Empty

  R Earring slot Empty

  L Ring slot Ring of Attack +1 to attack speed

  R Ring slot Empty

  Necklace slot Empty

  Belt slot Empty

  Skills:

  Basic Attack

  Swift Strike

  Cascading Blades

  Scatter Blades

  Chaotic Shield

  Hidden Power

  Cycle of Fate

  Chaos Hold

  Shadows of Chaos

  Intertwined Fates

  Chaos Dash

  Plight of Chaos

  Chaotic Blast

  Chaotic Subterfuge

  Companions:

  Terrance Walsh: Warrior

  Level:22.64

  Attack Power:102

  Defense Power:242

  Health:1562/1562

  Stamina:733/733

  Attack Speed +2

  Casting Speed +1

  Critical Hit +4

  Movement Speed +4

  Chapter Fourteen

  Breathing slowly to relax his nerves Dante pulled out his swords which began to glow with magic casting eerie purple shadows on the walls. Though worried about his friend and the people he left to play distraction he knew the best thing he could do was to work quickly on his part. Steeling himself a moment more Dante ran through the passage as it slowly ascended at an incline.

  He’d gotten lost only briefly while making his way through the winding tunnels but it did not take him long before he found his way to the worn wooden door he was looking for. On the other side he could hear booming laughter as someone spoke in a deep guttural tone that was only slightly muffled by the old walls.

  “Bring more meat slave!” The voice shouted.

  Waiting only a few moments after the sound of a large door closing Dante slightly opened the door and peeked his head out and was both amused and horrified with what he saw. Directly in front of him was the back of a throne of bones ranging from animal to human. Most were still pink seeming to have not been cleaned well and all around the base of the throne were human slaves both living and the remains of others who seemed to have displeased the chief in one way or another.

  Anger boiling Dante triggered his Shadows of Chaos ability and after quietly slipping out of the hidden entrance and closing the door as quietly as possible he moved around the throne unseen. Not too surprisingly the front of the throne was even worse than the side with more human slaves in various stages of harm, distress, and agony displayed for Targith’s amusement.

  Without hesitation Dante arranged himself just to the back right of the large beast of an imp and struck out with a barrage of attacks. Chaotic Subterfuge was quickly accompanied by Chaos Dash and Intertwined Fates with Scatter Blades, Plight of Chaos, and Cycle of Fate before Dante finished with Chaos Hold breathing heavily having spent most of his mana and stamina in that combination.

  Shock was written all over the face of the legendary beast as it was ruthlessly attacked and forced into stun after stun by its otherwise unknown enemy. Eyes burning with hatred fell on Dante as he uncorked first a stamina and then a mana potion to regenerate a bit before the stun wore off. Screaming in both fear and surprise the human slaves who could move did so, trying to get as far away as their chains would allow trying to gain as much distance from their enraged overlord and his mad assailant.

  Counting down the last second Dante was surprised by Targith’s speed as the large beast was suddenly only a breath away swinging a large club formed of tree and bone sending him flying upon impact. It was not only a solid hit from the club but as he flew back he was stunned once he struck the wall on the far end of the chamber.

  Gasping and wiping blood from his lips Dante stood as Targith slowly sauntered his way with an evil sharp toothed smile “Weak human going to make good armrest.”

  Spitting out a mouthful of blood and standing tall as the now looming Chief stood above him Dante looked up at him and spoke evenly “No one will be added to your throne today you moronic wanna be monarch. I’ll make sure that you are unable to hurt another living creature again.”

  Unable to read the prompt that appeared at that moment because it was sent away a by Chief Targith roaring and drawing his arm back for another swing Dante quickly activated Shadows of Chaos and rolled to the left as the club whooshed over his head just barely missing him. Deciding that it was best to take stock Dante looked himself over and noticed his own health was already down to eight percent before downing two large health potions bringing him up to ninety-six percent.

  Targith who was clubbing at the ground around him roaring had only lost five percent with all the damage including many criticals from Dante’s barrage. He knew that this boss would be a DPS game until he hit that last ten percent but had not expected it to be so bad. Upon further inspection he quickly realized why:

  Legendary Beast: Chief Targith

  Level: 93

  Health: 229,900/242,000

  Cursing internally Dante knew it would be a tough fight and that he would have to pace himself. Thankful though the legendary beast out leveled him by sixty-seven levels he was still able to stun him just like in the game regardless of level gap or legendary status.

  While Dante was in contemplation Targith settled down and looked around more methodically. Still occasionally swinging wildly in the offhand chance of hitting his prey Chief Targith more carefully stormed around the room now. Only a moment after it's back was to him Dante went into another barrage of attacks pacing stuns with pure dps in between and tossing in basic attacks when able in an attempt to control the flow of battle and whittle down Targith’s health.

  At eighty percent Targith managed to not be stunned by Dante’s attack and triggered an earthquake like move that made Dante stumble as it knocked him down. Before he was smashed with the incoming club though Dante rolled away and got to his feet managing to knock Targith down instead with a quick casting of Cascading Blades while gaining distance to down another set of stamina and mana potions.

  Hit after hit landed with only brief moments of close encounters as a stun or knock back would fail as Dante worked on dropping Chief Targith’s health. Though it was quickly stalled when at seventy-one percent Chief Targith seemed to trigger an ability Dante only saw triggered at ten percent remaining health. Eyes glued to the untouchable creature as its whole body began by turning a shade of dark orange causing all of Dante's attacks to become ineffective against the beast during the transformation.

  Letting out a roar as the transformation settled Chief Targith charged at Dante while in this frenzied state. Unable to fire off an attack due to the ever close monster he struggled to stay just out of the way of the swinging club as the two played cat and mouse around the room for a few minutes. Stopping halfway through a swing Targith stood perfectly still as the color faded back to his pale gray white tone, and he slumped over breathing heavily.

  Knowing that this was only a brief respite Dante went back to work cycling out his abilities doing as
much damage as possible while Chief Targith was in a weakened state and taking double damage. He’d managed to get him down quite a bit more before Targith stood back up and returned to taking only normal damage.

  As if taking this as a queue Dante activated Shadows of Chaos and inspected Chief Targith again so see how much progress had been made:

  Legendary Beast: Chief Targith

  Level:93

  Health: 154,880/242,000

  Inspired by the progress Dante went about attacking Targith relentlessly again. Taking the damage and roaring in rage Targith seemed to be taking fewer and fewer stuns and even managed to surprise Dante with a few glancing blows. At thirty-six percent health Dante was shocked and appalled as Targith turned away quickly changing a strange shade of yellow and rushing back towards his throne.

  Reaching out and grabbing a slave who screamed the whole time causing Dante’s rage to reignite as Targith bit into them and ripped off pieces of flesh laughing the whole while and regaining health with each bite. Fueled by fear of the fight lasting too much longer with dwindling supplies accompanied with unbridled anger that Targith would treat a human that way Dante struck out seemingly knocking Chief Targith out of this new state and immediately nullifying the health regeneration he had gained from devouring part of the slave.