by Ivan Kal
THE GOBLIN HORDE
TOWER OF POWER II
BY IVAN KAL
A LitRPG Adventure
Copyright © 2019 by Ivan Kal
All rights reserved.
No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.
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Table of Contents
PROLOGUE
CHAPTER ONE
CHAPTER TWO
CHAPTER THREE
INTERLUDE I
CHAPTER FOUR
CHAPTER FIVE
CHAPTER SIX
CHAPTER SEVEN
CHAPTER EIGHT
INTERLUDE II
CHAPTER NINE
CHAPTER TEN
CHAPTER ELEVEN
CHAPTER TWELVE
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
INTERLUDE III
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
INTERLUDE IV
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
CHAPTER NINETEEN
CHAPTER TWENTY
INTERLUDE V
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
EPILOGUE
Check out the map of the Valley on my website!
PROLOGUE
The man looked out of the view screen at the sights beyond his station. The view was something that few had ever had the privilege to bear witness to, and it was a view unlike any other. A massive black hole loomed close by, surrounded by violet and blue light. Energies pulsed and flashed in cascades of light and explosions all around them; and streams of color, like paint brushed on a canvas, were constantly being pulled into the darkness of the black hole. The edges of its influence were glowing, as the energies and mater that now filled this universe collided. It was a breathtaking sight.
And the man who had many names, but was currently going by Oxylus, watched with great consideration. This had been his first home once, long ago. Before his arrogance had caused it all to fall apart. Now it was his sanctuary, his hidden residence, away from the enemies who wished him dead. It was ironic, in more ways than he could count, that it was here where he had found peace, when this place was where it had all began.
A flash of light turned Oxylus’s attention from the wash of colors against the darkness, and he turned his head to see the massive black ring floating some way from his station. The surface of the ring flashed with light, and then the center of the ring was filled with its absence. A few moments later, his visitors arrived: three vessels, each hundreds of kilometers long, slowly exited the ring and set a course toward his station. Immediately three large minds reached out to him, giving their greetings and respect. Oxylus returned their greetings, allowing the beasts who were hidden beneath the hull just a glimpse of his emotions. He did not dare to allow more, as their minds reminded him too much of what he had lost.
A moment later the air next to him fluttered as space bent itself and a man stepped on the deck next to him from one of the ships still continuing forward.
“Grandfather,” the man said, and Oxylus turned around to look at the man.
He wore a long blue-and-black coat, with gray fur on his shoulders that still echoed with the power of the magic-beast that it had once belonged to, and which stretched behind him to graze the floor. Spellscripts and wards adorned his trousers and silken shirt, glowing with power. He had two short horns on his head, framing his long, midnight-colored hair. And his eyes shone golden, deeply infused with power. On his shoulder perched a red-and-white-feathered bird that was his loyal and ever-present companion.
“Ban,” Oxylus returned the greeting, then dipped his head to the phoenix, who returned the gesture with a small dip of its own. He turned back to look out of the view screen.
“What have you brought me?” Oxylus asked after a moment of silence.
“We caught a few hundred interesting specimens… But there is one that I think can be useful for our needs. We found a magical beast, in the Farsar Cluster. It is a small thing, but ferocious. It has telepathic abilities that it uses to aid it in hunting. I think that it can be a good addition to the Tower.”
Oxylus grunted. “You took a risk going there. It is close to their area of influence.”
“We’ve been careful not to make any waves. They do not pay as much attention to mortal worlds as they used to,” Ban said.
“They are searching for me, and they will not stop until they find me,” Oxylus replied with annoyance.
“We should not need to hide. They are weak, nothing compared to you or Mother. We should just fight and get it over with,” Ban told him.
“They are many. I underestimated their numbers and knowledge once, and I shall not do so again.” Oxylus’s voice turned cold as his eyes turned to look at Ban. “Worry not, grandson. They will pay for what they have done. But they are not a priority now—getting this experiment of ours to succeed is.”
Ban nodded. “Mother is teaching others again. In time, this experiment might not even be necessary.”
Oxylus grimaced and shook his head. “Your way takes too long. If I can replicate the same results without the need for so much time…”
“I understand,” Ban said.
They lapsed in the silence again, with Ban moving to stand next to him, and they both gazed at the sight before them. The three ships had moved close to the station now, and would soon dock and unload their cargo.
“How…” Oxylus started, but then faltered. He took a deep breath and then continued speaking. “How is she?”
Ban shifted uncomfortably. “She is…well. Recovering. She will come to see you, I know she will. She just…isn’t ready yet.”
Oxylus nodded his head in understanding. “The thing between your mother and I… It is a wound inflicted a long time ago. She never really forgave me for the things I did, and even after all this time it is hard for her to look at me. I know this, and I understand. But she needs to understand, too, that this is no longer about just us. It is about everything, everywhere.”
“She knows, but she is not yet back to her full strength. Once she is, I have no doubt that she will make her way here.”
They fell into a silence once more as the three vessels made connections with the station. The specimens that they had gathered were already being prepped for transport to the station, and Oxylus could feel people from the vessels walk onto his station.
“Has there been any progress?” Ban asked.
“They cleared the fourth floor on one of the Towers, while most of the others are stuck on the second or third,” Oxylus responded.
“Perhaps an adjustment is required? We could lower the difficulty,” Ban suggested.
Oxylus shook his head. “That defeats the purpose of the experiment. I ne
ed them all to struggle, to grow under that pressure in the violence. I need only the strong.”
Ban sighed. “I know.”
“Do not feel sorry for them, Ban. None of them would exist now if I hadn’t interfered. I created that world for them; I am the reason that they are alive at all. We never took a single life that would’ve otherwise flourished. Only those already dead, or soon to be.”
“I understand that, grandfather. I remember the gathering missions to fill your world. I made sure that your rules were followed. But still, don’t they have a right to an easier life?”
Oxylus snorted. “No, they have the right to a chance of one. And if they are not strong enough to reach out to take that for themselves, then they do not deserve it.”
“Perhaps,” Ban said, but Oxylus knew that his grandson was not convinced. “I should go. I need to oversee the transfer of our cargo to the World. The Guiding Force will be waiting on it.”
Oxylus grimaced. “I hate it when you call her that. It is bad enough that the people in the World address her as such. It all goes to her head.”
Ban chuckled as he walked away. “It is a suitable name nonetheless.”
Oxylus watched him leave the room, and then turned back to look through the view screen. There were so many thing on his mind lately, so many responsibilities. He did not have time to waste, however; ironic though it might be for a being that literally had all the time in existence. He could not afford to be distracted…and yet he could not help but allow one such distraction to pull his attention from the truly important matters.
Before he could change his mind, Oxylus cast his mind out of his body and deep into the heart of the station—from there, through a shining portal where the crew of the visiting vessels was already carrying in crates. Once he was through the portal to another universe, he looked for a certain person.
It took him almost no time to find him; after all, the signature was familiar to him. His target was in a forest, sitting on a cart that was being pulled by an animal. There were a few other mortals sitting close to him. Oxylus didn’t spare them more than a glance, as he was not there for them. Instead he focused on the man—boy, really. Morgan was in the process of juggling eight small apples.
Oxylus took one look at the boy’s stupid grin, and the blinking eyes of his companions and shook his head. Idiot.
CHAPTER ONE
“Hah! What do you say about that?” Morgan exclaimed as he increased the speed of his juggling yet again. The apples were almost a blur to even his eyes. Superhuman agility rocks!
“That is the most useless thing I have ever seen anyone do,” Clara told him.
Morgan frowned and turned to look at the orc woman, which led to him taking his eyes off what he was doing and then missing one of the apples, causing a chain of events which ended up with the apples falling down all around him, one even smacking him in the head.
“Damn it!” Morgan yelled out as Vestella started to laugh at him.
He turned his eyes on her and she put her hands over her face, trying to hide her expression. She’s supposed to be on my side! Some wife-slash-amri-slash…whatever she is, Morgan pouted in his head. He glanced over to the last person sitting on the cart, a Skyreach guardsman, Ereden, who looked like he was about to laugh as well.
“Ha, ha, ha,” Morgan said as he turned his eyes back to Clara. “It was supposed to be a simple demonstration of my now superior agility. It’s not like I would try to juggle some monster to death.”
“I don’t know…” Clara cast a quick glance at Ves. “From the stories I heard about you, I wouldn’t be surprised if you did try something like that. It was made clear to me that your home world had some really strange customs.”
Morgan’s mouth flopped open and he looked over to Ves, who was avoiding looking at him. “Ves? Honey? You are not going to defend me here? Like at all?”
Ves finally met his eyes but he could tell that she was barely containing herself. “Sorry, Morgan, but you must admit that at times you do act somewhat…peculiar.”
“What?” Morgan asked in a high-pitched tone. “I do not!”
Clara snorted.
“Okay,” Morgan said as he rounded on her. “When did I do something peculiar?”
“Uh…” Clara blinked slowly and then pointed at the apples at the bottom of the cart. “Not even two minutes ago?”
“Fine, aside from then?” Morgan asked. And juggling is not peculiar!
Clara gave him a sad little smile. “Morgan, you spent half the morning trying to convince us that the stars are suns that are so far away that they look tiny.”
Morgan felt like he wanted to scream. “Oh, my, god. I still can’t believe that you think that the stars are the Great Lord’s eyes. I mean, that is the stupidest thing anyone has ever said to me. I know that Oxy is powerful and all that, but seriously?”
Just then the cart hit a bump in the road and Morgan tumbled backward and over the cart, falling to the ground. He hit the dirt and had his breath knocked out of his lungs, causing his sight to darken for a moment. Well, that hurt.
“Morgan!” Ves called out as she jumped out of the cart and rushed over to him with concern on her face. “Are you all right?”
“Fine,” Morgan managed to wheeze out.
She reached behind him and helped him stand up. Clara and Ereden walked over once they stopped the oxen pulling the cart.
“You know,” Clara started, “you shouldn’t blaspheme the Great Lord.”
Morgan narrowed his eyes at the orc but didn’t respond. Sorry, Oxy! But c’mon, you need to educate your people more! He didn’t know if this had been just a coincidence, or if Oxy was really watching, but it would probably be better not to antagonize the god that was not a god.
Morgan shook his head to dismiss the last of his dizziness; he wasn’t really hurt. His body was much sturdier now than it used to be before he arrived to this world. As they walked back to the cart, Morgan thought back on his encounter with Oxylus. At the time, Morgan could now admit, he had been somewhat in shock. He had, after all, just been hit by a car, leaving him dead back on Earth. And then there he was, in a tunnel about to follow the light—until the self-proclaimed god with a little “g” announced himself and offered him a different path.
Morgan hadn’t really known what he was getting himself into, but he had accepted the offer of a new life on a new world. Who wouldn’t? The fact that this new life came with what were basically superpowers was just an added bonus. Not that there weren’t any dangers, of course—Morgan’s first ten minutes of his second chance of life involved being almost killed by goblins. But hey, what new world didn’t come with drawbacks?
He and the rest of their small party climbed back on the cart and set off down the road. Morgan sat up front next to Ereden, who was holding the reins. He wasn’t in the mood to talk with Clara, and he was mad at Ves for not standing up for him. He had already spent the entire morning since they left their Guild Hold on Reach being picked on by Clara, and he did not enjoy the feeling at all. The fact that she was tiny as all hell and that he could probably squash her if he wanted did not help.
Instead, he turned his eyes to the road. They were on their way to visit the settlements across the valley and bring them under their Guild’s rule—and they did not have much time to get as many as possible on their side. According to Clara, the goblins had a new king, and soon enough they would rush down from their mountains and invade the valley. Without the other Guilds and their ascended, the people living here had no chance of surviving. Most of those living here were non-ascended, meaning that they couldn’t level and gain strength. The goblins were monsters that were like the ascended, however, meaning that they were far stronger than non-ascended.
They needed to expand the influence of their Guild, as well as recruit people that were willing to ascend. This valley was considered insignificant by the other Guilds which ruled the lands beyond the mountain range, which meant that most people here were left
to fend for themselves, without the help of ascended—until now. With Morgan’s Guild, Skyreach, they had a chance for a better existence. But first, they needed to survive the goblin hordes.
Morgan noticed that Ves and Clara were deep in the conversation, and Ereden was paying attention to their surroundings, making sure that they didn’t get ambushed, although that was unlikely. The Skyreach Guard, under Lucius, had patrolled this area extensively following the attack on Reach and their Guild Hold.
And so, seeing that he finally had some free time, Morgan took a deep breath and focused on his character screen. He had already leveled up after the battle with the goblins, reaching level fourteen. But he hadn’t assigned the points he had gotten, as he had been too mentally exhausted from the fight and its aftermath. He hadn’t had the presence of mind to make good choices. He couldn’t level up now, so he couldn’t enter his soul space and talk with his soul-implant-thingy that he was calling Sabila—after the game character she looked like—but he could still see and use his points.
With an effort of will he brought his screens before his eyes.
STRENGTH
13
AGILITY
24
CONSTITUTION
15
INTELLECT
20
WILL
22
WISDOM
13
CHARISMA
10
LUCK
10
2 attribute points available
SKILLS
Hand-to-Hand Combat II
Weapons I
Language-Basic
Elemental Alignment-Nature V(+one rank Guild buff)
Archery VII
Hunting II
Monster Lore III