Chapter 3: Chapter Three: The Fortress of Don-Castor
"We need to hold out for just a while longer!" shouted Captain Ivi desperately, her piercing eyes locking onto Nostrus'. "I know, but there's just too many of em' Cap!" The small Dwarf shouted back in a gruff voice, his Battleax swinging around wildly, causing a zombies head to go flying. "Dammit, where's Veda when we need him?" Ivi shot a glare in his direction causing him to flinch away slightly. "You know he's in the middle of something right now, plus, we should be more than strong enough to take out this boss." "I'm heeeere" a flamboyant male voice shouted from down the long castle corridor. "Took you long enough Evander." the small dwarf exclaimed, grunting as he swung his ax, another zombie falling at his feet. "Alright, the boss room is just up ahead, we can regroup with Brenam and Arnes there. This should be easy for us, lets get moving." Captain Ivi thrust her spear through the final zombies' chest, the three taking off down the dark corridor.
One Month Earlier:
"Yawwwwwnn", Arnes stretched his arms in the air, feeling very well rested. It had been a while since he and Brenam had been able to sleep in actual beds. About 3 weeks had passed since this death game began, and the two had been traveling non-stop. Luckily, they had come across a cozy looking inn the night before. Deciding to stay there for the night, as to not push themselves too hard. "Hey Crow, how'd you sleep?" Brenam was sat at a round table in the corner of their room, holding a thick piece of chicken in his scaly green hand. Arnes stood smiling "great! Hows the chicken?" He stooped down, picking up the book that lay by the bedside. The title read "Artifacts of the Golden Keep" in golden lettering, the pages bound in brown leather. It appeared to be some sort of in-game guide book and Arnes had been working his way through it.
"About as good as the bed felt," Brenam said laughing. "What are ya' trying to find in that book anyways?" the Lizardman asked, tossing the bone of the chicken leg he had just finished into a near by waste bin. "You've been at it for a couple of days now." "There is this secret artifact that I'm trying to find. Once we get it we should be able to take on the first Raid Boss with relative ease, and move on to the new region of the map."
"What might this mystical item be?" Brenam asked curiously. "The crown of Wrerian." Arnes stated, a glint in his eye. This caused Brenams' mouth to fall open, his eyes growing to the size of the plate currently in front of him. "Are you kidding me?! That crown is one of the most heavily guarded artifacts in the whole game. It's not like we can just walk up and take it." he said disgruntled. This garnered a smile from Arnes. "Actually Brenam, that's exactly what we are going to do." Brenam, not fully understanding how they were to accomplish such a feat, threw his plate of chicken in the trash shaking his head in doubt. Arnes and Brenam grabbed their gear swiftly, needing to leave at sunrise to get to their destination at nightfall. The two checked out of the inn and started walking down a dirt path towards a massive wall in the distance.
The Fortress of Don-Castor was the oldest and second-largest city in Irradu. The dark, dwarven spires inside the walls stretched up, piercing the night sky. "How is going to Don-Castor going to help us?" Brenam asked, swinging his ax around like a sign spinner. Arnes looked back as Brenam dropped the ax, nearly cutting his foot off. He stifled his laughter as he explained "There is a rogue that I've been hearing a lot about recently. She lives in Don-Castor, and she's going to help us steal the crown. The only problem is, how are we going to find her." Brenam looked at him in slight dismay. "This is going to be interesting" he mumbled under his breath, continuing to follow Arnes into the city.
The two adventurers walked through the massive fortress gates, which looked as though they would take an army to move by hand. Two statues of Dwarven kings stood, towering high above them on either side. "We need to head to a local tavern known as Black Bull. She frequents there, so I think if we wait around long enough she's bound to show up." Arnes muttered more to himself than Brenam, getting slightly nervous, racking his brain for a way to convince her to join them. With that, the two adventurers walked into the Black Bull. It was a smelly, tattered place in the Ghettos' of Don-Castor. The floor was covered in stains that looked to be beer, or something more unpleasant. They sat at a table and began to talk about the plan. "Alright, so our goal is to sneak in and take the crown. Nothing more, nothing less. It should be a quick and easy snatch and grab." Arnes said while drawing a map, "rather intricately" Brenam thought, of the castle on a discarded napkin. "Sounds a little too easy, compared to how we got that shield of yours," Brenam said skeptically, his eyes focused intently on what Arnes was doing. As the two continued talking, a Dark Elf silently watched them from the corner of the room, the palm of her hand resting on her dagger, her feet propped up on the table, looking almost relaxed to anyone with an untrained eye. "So that's the plan, does everything make sense?" Arnes asked sitting back, clearly satisfied with his work. "It definitely looks doable," Brenam said, some of his skepticism seeping away as he realized how much thought Arnes had put into this operation. However he was still on edge, considering how dangerous this was, Arnes didn't blame him. They finished their drinks before taking one last look around. Arnes didn't notice the Elf sitting quietly in the corner and decided it was best to turn in for the night, slightly bummed at not having found their mark. The two went to the Innkeep and asked for a room. Golden coins swapped hands, and they went upstairs and disappeared into one of the bedrooms. The elf stood from her chair, her hand remaining on her dagger as she walked up the stairs after them. She moved quietly down the hallway, her feet gliding deftly across the wooden floors, avoiding every squeak, before pressing her ear to the door in a practiced manor. "So who is this rogue anyways?" A deep voice asked from the other side of the door. "Her name is Adrea, she's the most wanted thief in Don-Castor and Wrerian and I think her skills are going to help the most." a younger sounding voice said. This caused the Elf's ears to perk up in interest. She needed a good job, she was currently in debt to a dangerous man. She continued listening as they spilled their entire plan for robbing a crown from a king. This excited her greatly, a crown could fetch enough money to pay off her debts, and then some. She decided it was time to make her entrance, opening the door gracefully and sweeping into the room before either man could do anything. "So you need me to go with you on a suicide mission?" Adrea asked smiling in amusement at their startled faces. Arnes' startled look quickly grew into a satisfied smile "I knew we would find you here, so.. are you in?" This garnered a laugh from the Elf "pretty sure I found you." Her tone then turned serious on a dime "How much money are we talking?" she asked, a sly smile on her face. Arnes walked up to her, whispering in her ear, her eyes growing wide in awe. "That's impossible, there's no way you have that much." "Not yet," Arnes said, his smug smile still wide on his face. Her shock turned into a smirk. This was going to be a profitable arrangement for them both.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone