Awaken Online: Dominion

by Travis Bagwell

  “Wait, a member of the Order?” Jason asked. “I don’t understand.”

  “Logan is right that not all of the souls committed to the well come willingly. Others can be bound through force,” Rex explained.

  “But what’s the point of that?” Riley asked.

  Rex looked at her sadly. “In short, interrogation. The well inters a creature’s soul – which is to say, its memories. A soul bound to the well, even unwillingly, can give up many secrets over time – once their will has been broken.” The skeleton hesitated, glancing at Logan out of the corner of his eye. “Although, the process can be gruesome, and the result is eternal imprisonment.”

  Jason looked at Logan with renewed interest. A member of the Order, huh? Then this was an opportunity to learn about their enemy. Based on the visions he had experienced at the Hippie’s temple, his guess was that Logan must have been imprisoned more than a century ago – before the gods fell. However, he might still know something about Thorn and his group.

  “Then you can be compelled to answer our questions?” Jason began slowly, addressing Logan.

  The cloth bands thrashed angrily. “Yes,” the creature hissed out, clearly speaking against its will. Riley frowned as she watched Logan’s discomfort, sparing a glance at Jason. He could see the unease in her eyes. Jason didn’t relish the idea of interrogating a prisoner, but they needed information. Although, he didn’t feel entirely sympathetic. Logan had spent quite some time beating them to a pulp, after all.

  “Good, because I have questions. We are being attacked by a member of your Order, a man named Thorn. He says he is intent on destroying our city,” Jason said.

  The rustling sound came again, signaling that Logan was laughing. “Then you are damned. I have watched your progress through these challenges, and you are not ready to face a member of the order – much less a Scion.”

  “A Scion?” Riley asked.

  “It’s what the Order calls its officers,” Rex answered slowly, his head tilted again as he listened to the voices.

  Jason ignored Logan’s taunting words. “That is your opinion. I am looking for facts. Thorn used some sort of power to drain my mana and then was able to cast dark magic at one of my companions. How did he accomplish this?”

  Logan struggled not to answer, the bands thrashing even more violently. Yet, whatever magic bound it finally forced an answer, “Each initiate of the Order has gems surgically implanted in their hands and key portions of their body. These crystals can be used to drain mana from a source, and that power can be discharged later.”

  Jason’s eyes widened in surprise, and he glanced at Riley. Now that was interesting.

  “Does this ability come with any downsides?” Jason asked.

  “Yes,” Logan replied unwillingly.

  “Elaborate,” Jason demanded. He wouldn’t let the creature off the hook by playing words games or giving one-word answers.

  “Our members must forsake all six affinities, purging the ambient mana from our bodies,” Logan hissed. “This means we cannot cast spells. To make up for this weakness, we train our bodies rigorously. The Keepers of old tried to emulate our training with these challenges. This is part of why they bound me here, to help educate them on how to defeat the Order. But these rooms are only a pale imitation.”

  “How so?” Jason asked, intrigued.

  “The Order goes much further. Our training starts when we are still children. Every bone in our bodies is broken and reformed over and over again until they are like steel. This is followed by years of endless training. When we reach maturity, we must enter the Wildlands with nothing but our bare hands and survive for a year. Those that survive spend the remainder of their lives focused on honing their martial craft, living with a constant threat to our lives. You spent a week or two fighting in the dark, but our trainees spend months in the Blighted Caves without any way to see – until we can fight with our eyes closed.”

  The creature laughed again. “This is but a taste of the differences in our commitment. Our members train for decades, and you hope to catch up in a mere few weeks? The arrogance of the Keepers has not changed.”

  Shit, Jason thought. That would begin to explain why Thorn was so damned fast and strong. What Logan was describing was some sort of anti-magic super soldier that had been trained from birth. No wonder the previous Keepers had seen them as a threat.

  “We will see,” Jason answered coldly. “No opponent is invincible. Now, tell me about these gates. Thorn mentioned that we had not opened one yet.”

  The creature seemed to freeze in shock, the bands quieting. Yet no response was forthcoming. It resisted its compulsion with renewed vigor.

  “Answer me, Logan,” Jason demanded, gesturing at Rex to help him.

  The former skeletal general waved a hand at the monster, and dark energy ripped from the ground and lashed at its skin. It let out a howl of pain and rage, as the cloth straps undulated wildly. Finally, its will broke.

  “The gates… access the Throne of the Gods,” Logan finally hissed out, still fighting against the compulsion. “They create a bridge between this world and their own. They offer a chance at redemption.”

  “What does that mean? A chance at redemption?” Jason insisted, stepping closer to the creature. He was close to finally finding some answers.

  Logan suddenly stopped struggling and leaned forward toward Jason. “They were banished from this world – the gods. We won. Now the parasites want to come back. They ride along on humans like you, carriers for their insidious mana. They’ll offer you rewards, strength, and assistance. They’ll try to corrupt you, all the while holding back on what they really want.”

  “Which is?” Jason demanded.

  “Power.”

  At this last statement, Logan strained against his bonds angrily. The bands lashed outward and Jason jumped back – more instinct than conscious thought. The creature thrashed and spun, snapping at the dark energy that bound it.

  Rex seemed to be straining to keep it under control, both his hands now channeling dark energy.

  “Stop it, Logan,” Rex muttered. “You cannot break your bonds.”

  “No. But I can force myself back into the spirit world,” Logan answered, his voice sounding strained. With a final flex of its cloth bands, the dark energy holding Logan together snapped. The straps ripped apart and flew through the room. At the same time, a tortured howl echoed through the enclosure, setting Jason’s teeth on edge. The mana holding Logan’s body together broke apart and streamed back into the floor, leaving a ruined pile of cloth in its wake.

  “What was that?” Jason asked as the room finally settled once more.

  Rex frowned. “Logan banished himself back to the well. There are limits to how far we can push a soul – even one that has been broken like Logan.”

  “We still learned a lot,” Riley said in a low voice. “Although, Logan seemed convinced the gods don’t have our best interest in mind. Are we sure the Old Man is really on our side?”

  Jason had been thinking the same thing – for a while now. But what choice did they have? The power the dark god offered had allowed them to claim the city and had kept them safe from the other players. Thorn was a problem, but he was just one man and part of an ancient order. He was a single piece in the larger puzzle that they were trying to untangle.

  “I don’t know,” Jason finally replied in a quiet voice. Then he glanced up at Riley. “But I don’t see that it matters right now. We need to find and stop Thorn. After that, we can decide how to proceed with the Old Man and whether we plan to reform this gate.”

  Riley nodded in agreement, although she still seemed concerned.

  Jason turned back to Rex. “I suppose that just leaves one last question.”

  “Which is?” the former general asked.

  “What does the third challenge entail?”

  Rex opened his mouth to respond, but a sudden gust of dark energy blew through the room, rushing to Jason and swirling around his
form. He eyed the mana in confusion. What was happening? Was this Logan returning?

  The mana abruptly condensed into the ghostly image of an undead villager. His expression was frantic, and his eyes were filled with fear and despair. “They attacked us,” he gasped. “They attacked Fastu – winged angels and white-robed bringers of flame are slaughtering us all. We need help!”

  The man glanced behind him, seeing some unknown assailant. “They are coming for me! I only have a few seconds…” Abruptly, the image broke apart and the man disappeared, the dark energy swirling back into the floor.

  “What was that?” Riley asked, a stunned expression on her face. Even Rex looked surprised as he stood silently nearby.

  “I-I think it was a message from the spire in Fastu,” Jason answered, still reeling in shock and reviewing the system notifications on his UI. This was the first time he had seen the Dark Spire in action. It seemed that it was capable of relaying more than just a simple text message – much, much more.

  Realization filled Riley’s eyes as she considered Jason’s answer. “Then that means… There is only one person who uses winged creatures and white-robed men and women.”

  “Yes,” Jason answered darkly, his mana filling his veins in an icy torrent. By now, Fastu had likely already fallen. Anger flooded his mind as he realized that their messenger was almost certainly dead already. This was the second attack today. The second time that Kin had died while Jason could only stand by and watch.

  “It seems Alexion has attacked one of our villages,” Jason said grimly. Apparently, his rival hadn’t taken their warning at the Cerillion Entertainment event to heart.

  “If we leave now, we could be there in a day or two,” Riley said. He glanced at her and noted that her own eyes had turned a dark obsidian, the promise of vengeance lingering in her gaze.

  “We don’t know whether the town is still intact or if Alexion plans to keep going. Either way, we can’t leave the Twilight Throne – not right now,” Jason replied grudgingly, grimacing despite the energy that flooded his body. He wanted nothing more than to charge off toward Fastu and handle this issue himself. But he had his city to think about and Thorn was at large – the recent conversation with Logan still fresh in his mind. They needed to complete the third challenge before their time was up. Which only left one option.

  “Then we do nothing?” Riley demanded.

  “I didn’t say that. There is someone who can deal with this problem. I just hope he can get there fast enough,” Jason added in a dark tone. With this last statement, he pulled up his system UI and the chat window, his lips pinched into a grim line. Alexion might finally get a chance to meet Frank in-game. Jason just wished he could be there to see it.

  Chapter 40 - Timid

  Frank surveyed the town, noting the bloodstained streets and the ruined houses. It was the same story, different location. His decision to focus on conquering the outlying villages instead of trying to find and destroy the native undead had paid off. They had managed to make it to three of the villages before the undead had attacked and wiped out the villagers.

  Although, those towns had created a new problem – namely that Frank was forced to explain the two options facing the beleaguered townsfolk. It wasn’t a great trade-off, he had to admit. They could either all die horribly at the hands of the native undead and have their remains used to create a new generation of evil, mindless killing machines, or they could voluntarily take their own lives for a chance at immortality and the protection of the Twilight Throne.

  Unsurprisingly, most of them had chosen the second option.

  However, as his eyes took in the devastation before him, he was reminded that they hadn’t been able to save every town. The native undead had struck long before they got there, the dried and flaking blood evidence of how much time had passed since the creatures had ripped these people from their homes and dragged them into the woods – fresh corpses to decorate their nests.

  “This town has been stripped bare,” Vera said, approaching Frank. “There’s nothing left to salvage, and we haven’t found any survivors. You can contact Jason and let him know that it has been conquered if he wants to convert this town.”

  Frank sighed. “I’m not even sure I see the point,” he murmured. They were using these vacant towns as outposts. Converting the villages still increased the Twilight Throne’s radius of influence. Frank knew that Jason’s hope was that they could eventually be repopulated. Although, that assumed that they were able to deal with the native undead somehow. The creatures were growing stronger every day, and it was becoming dangerous for even the Kin to travel the woods.

  “If it’s any consolation, only one town remains,” Vera replied, her bleached-white eyes untroubled by the destruction. At a certain point, Frank supposed a person became numb to it. He hadn’t quite reached that point yet.

  “Which I’m sure will be empty as well,” he replied, gesturing at the barren town. “I feel like we’re acting more like a clean-up crew than a conquering army.”

  Vera shrugged. “The result is the same, and, in many ways, it makes our job easier.”

  “I suppose,” Frank murmured.

  He just felt like something was off here. It didn’t make sense how strong the native undead had become, and he couldn’t shake the nagging feeling in his gut that someone – or something – was behind these attacks. They were just too consistent. It was almost like someone had targeted these villages, but perhaps he was simply reading too much into it.

  Before he could say anything further, Frank’s UI chimed, indicating an incoming call. He swiped at the air and soon discovered that it was Jason calling. That was unusual. His friend had been incredibly busy lately. They had barely spoken except for a few curt messages. Although, Frank supposed that juggling the Twilight Throne’s ever-growing list of problems and the regulatory hearing that was ongoing in the real world were probably sucking up a lot of Jason’s time. When had things become so complicated?

  At a questioning glance from Vera, Frank gestured for her to give him a moment as he accepted the incoming call. “Hey man,” he greeted Jason.

  “Hi, Frank,” Jason said. Something felt off about his tone.

  “Are you okay?” Frank asked.

  A sigh came through from the other end of the line. “No, not really. I have some bad news and I won’t try to sugar coat it for you. Alexion has attacked Fastu. One of the survivors sent a last-minute message using the Dark Spire.”

  “Oh… oh, shit,” Frank muttered, glancing at Vera. A worried expression now lingered on her face as she witnessed Frank’s reaction.

  “No kidding. I suspect Alexion sacked the town and there isn’t much left,” Jason continued. “It’s likely too late to reinforce or save the village. The message also indicated that he has his Nephilim and Confessors with him. Although, their numbers are unknown.”

  Frank immediately pulled up his map. They were currently sitting to the east of the Twilight Throne, having traveled counterclockwise around the dark city as they “conquered” the outlying villages. That put them at least two full days away from Fastu – assuming they rode continuously, and they didn’t encounter any of the native undead on the way. Three days would probably be more conservative.

  “Yeah, we’re a few days out,” Frank confirmed. “We were about to head to the last village now. I was actually just about to message you. This town has been wiped clean as well.”

  “More good news,” Jason replied in a dry voice. “Fastu may be a lost cause, but the other towns on the western border are now at risk. We don’t know if Alexion plans to keep going. Many of the remaining towns in that area were populated when they were converted. I used some Spirit Charges to fortify them, but they probably won’t withstand a full assault by Alexion’s troops – especially if he conquered Fastu so easily.”

  “You’re going to ask me to check on those towns, aren’t you?” Frank asked. It didn’t take much to connect the dots here. Although, that did nothing t
o calm the butterflies in his stomach. Alexion was not a simple enemy, and it sounded like he was traveling with a small army.

  “Unfortunately, yes,” Jason answered evenly. “We can’t spare anyone here. Thorn has ramped up his attacks. Riley and I just made it passed the second challenge, but we still have one to go. If there was any other way…”

  “No, it’s fine,” Frank interrupted, not seeing any other choice. His worries aside, he had signed up for this. “I can head to the western border now. Maybe we’ll get lucky, and he’ll stop with a single town.”

  “Maybe, but I sort of doubt it. It feels like lady luck has abandoned us lately,” Jason responded with a bitter chuckle.

  “You can say that again,” Frank muttered, looking back at the devastated town around him, where the Kin were still inspecting each structure carefully.

  “Anyway, thanks for this man,” Jason added. “And if you see Alexion, please send him our regards.”

  Frank gritted his teeth as he imagined one of his axes caving in the irritating blond asshole’s skull. Maybe there was one small upside to all of this. “I will be sure to tell him you said hello,” Frank replied with a chuckle.

  With that, the pair cut the connection. Frank assumed that Jason would get around to converting this town when he had a spare moment. However, that was no longer a priority. His expression was troubled as he considered his next steps. For all his bravado near the end of the call, a voice in the back of his mind kept questioning whether he was really up to the task of taking on Alexion by himself.

  “I take it that was more bad news,” Vera commented.

  Frank sighed before giving her the rundown of the situation. Vera stood there, chewing on her lip in thought as she stared at the ground. “We may be able to accomplish both objectives at the same time,” she offered finally.

  “What do you mean?” Frank asked. He could already tell he wasn’t going to like this idea.

  “We still need to complete Jason’s quest and the final town is not far,” Vera explained calmly. “We also have two divisions now that the Kin have finished tearing apart the first nest we encountered. I could take one division and head to the last town while you take the other and ride toward the western border.”