:: Kai ::

I was on my knee’s in the middle of an empty graveyard…I couldn’t do anything….I couldn’t do anything…

That single sentence reverberated through my head over and over again as I stared blankly at the wall of the dome.

The skeletons attacked us to quickly and before I knew it two of the girls had disappeared.

I…I tried to fight back, but even after the skeletons were cut or dismembered they would simply reassemble and attack us.

Phoebe didn’t last long under the onslaught. Not even five minutes later and she had been pulled underground by the skeleton horde.

I didn’t know how to fight them…how to make them stay dead. I didn’t know if the girls were even still alive or if they had been kidnapped.

The worst part came after Phoebe was taken. The skeletons simply left me alone like I wasn’t worth their time.

They took from me and then they left me alive….not even giving me the dignity of a fight to the death.

The feelings in my head and heart were clashing together like two whirlpools swirling in different directions.

My head was telling me that I should retreat and leave the dungeon that the girls were probably already dead, but my heart was telling me to press on. To go find whatever being had the audacity to mock me and rip it apart.

I clutched the Swift Iron Rapier tightly. The blade was starting to feel a bit more brittle after so much use.

‘The heart wants what the heart wants.’ I thought as a bitter smile appeared on my face.

“Here I stand, helpless and left for dead.” I started to sing as I pushed myself off of the ground.

“I won’t last long, in a world so wrong…trembling, crawling across my skin…say goodbye, as I dance with the devil tonight.”

I focused on the lines of the song that reflected my true emotion. Pumping a huge amount of pure mana into my words as a I sang.

I needed something to give me courage…I needed more power…more….more…

All the muscles in my body tightened at the same time and my blood started pulsing wildly.

My veins pressed against the skin, as I was barely able to contain the immense surge of power coursing through me.

New Subset Skill: Song of the Berserker

I breathed in through my nose and out through my mouth…my breath was like steam as it exited me body.

Forcibly activating my Willpower I boosted the strength in my legs and pressed my right leg into the ground.

The earth below me shook for a second, but then started to crumble…

The graveyard literally caved in on itself as I fell through the floor. What lied below me was nothing but pure darkness.

For a moment I thought that I was going to fall into an endless pit, but my feet with collided with a heavy surface and it forced me into a crouching position.

Fall Damage. -40 HP

I was annoyed by the damage to my legs, but for some reason I couldn’t feel the pain from the fall at all. Smiling I looked around the large underground room I managed to break myself into.

What a way…what a way….what a way to enter my realm today. But stay…But stay you will not.

The words were spoken directly into my head again. I knew he had some sort of telepathic ability. My best guess that it was some advanced form of sensory or illusion magic, since all Thaks came from the Cherubim race.

My eyes drifted over to the large stone chair that sat by the edge of the room. Behind the chair was three chained prisoners. It was Hilda, Phoebe, and Shiroe…

I felt my anger start to spike and my heartbeat picked up in speed again, which provided me with another surge in power.

“I WILL DESTROY YOU FOR THIS!” I screamed at the top of my lungs. The Song of the Berserker seemed to be amplifying my mental state.

HAHAHAHA…Young Thak….how courteous you are….to provide me with a spar.

A veil of darkness dissipated around the stone chair and a dark figure stood up. The man was tall and he was clad in heavy plate armor from head to toe…well should to toe. He seemed to be missing his head, which would explain why he talked telepathically.

The dark figure reached out into the air and summoned a long sharp blade from nothing.

I knew that this was going to be an incredibly challenging fight, but for some reason the more I looked forward to the fight the less worried I became. My thoughts became less and less clear, until all I could think about was killing whatever was in front of me.

Grei’Thak the Headless (Elite Boss-M) Lvl 45

Normally the thought of fighting a boss monster at least twice my level would have scared me shitless, but I was hungry…delirious and smiling.

I couldn’t hold back any longer and I charged at the large dark creature. I put all my strength behind my rapier as I plunged it towards his chest.

The rapier shattered upon impact with the bosses’ heavy metal armor. I didn’t even have the time to be surprised as the boss smashed the flat end of his long sword into my chest and sent me flying into the wall.

Broken Ribs. -79 HP

A feeble man…a weakling Thak…beat me you shall not

Grei’Thak spoke his words directly into my mind and I could hear the amusement in his voice and it was like he was laughing in my face.

“No blade…I’ll just pummel you!” I screamed as I broke myself out of the wall.

I charged at him again, but this time I only had my fists as weapons. I put all my strength into my fist as I struck the side of his armor.

I managed to make an imprint of my fist in the side of his armor, but the boss didn’t seem to take any interior damage.

He struck his blade in a downward arc this time and I narrowly managed to avoid losing my left arm.

The process of killing this boss started to become tedious very quickly. Grei’Thak had a lot of power behind his strikes, but he was unable to match my speed.

I had learned not to take any more of his attacks after being flung across the room.

I punched and kicked his armor over and over…but the only thing I managed to do was shave off its durability bit by bit. The boss was taking no actual damage.

My heart was pumping faster and faster in order to keep up with the amount of stamina I was burning through.

“Aaaaaahhhhhh!” I was starting to lose my mind to the madness. I slammed my fist into the same spot in his armor again and again until the bones in my hand started to break away.

I was so caught up in trying to break his armor that I didn’t notice the giant hulking long sword come down across my chest…

My blood splattered on the ground as he sent me staggering about three feet backwards.

Blood Loss. -74 HP and -12 HP every minute until blood loss is stopped

The bones in my right arm were all almost completely useless as they were sticking out of the skin in multiple different places.

“NO!” I yelled mindlessly.

‘I need more power…more strength…more speed…more…more…’ I thought to myself in broken sentences.

“SPEED…STRENGTH….POWER.” I yelled the words like a mantra over and over again.

I could feel the mana in my body spread out and support my bulging muscles as well as strengthen my bones and blood flow.

Kicking off the ground again I charge straight for the headless Thak.

New Subset Skill: Empower

The battle came…the battle went…now you are spent….and your life is MINE!

The Headless Thak raised his long sword above his head. He held the blade tightly with both of his hands as he prepared to split me in half.

It was like the battle was moving in slow motion. I was swinging my fist towards him getting closer inch by inch and he was driving his blade down towards men.

Seconds…minutes…hours…

I couldn’t tell how much time had passed before our weapons clashed.

GREIIII’THHHAAAKKK

His telepathic voice echoed through my head, but I was too caught up in the fight to be effected by his battle cry.

His steel blade met with my iron fists. The result was instantaneous. His large steel blade was blown out of his hands; unfortunately my left arm went along with it.

Dismembered Limb. -100 HP and -15 HP every minute until blood loss is stopped.

I was starting to be able to feel the pain, because of the immense amount of damage my body had sustained.

I put all the pain I had sustained…all the grief I had felt…everything until my voice.

“KAAAAAIIIII’TTHHHHHAAAAAKKKKKK!”

I slammed my broken right fist into the side of his armor for the millionth time. This time was different. This time I could feel the metal tearing apart.

Pushing more force into my blow I managed to punch a hole into the side of his armor. I felt almost no resistance the minute I broke through his armor…all I felt was soft bloody flesh.

I wrapped my hands around it and tore it out of the armor and in my hands was a beating black heart.

You…no…this can’t be….my heart…

The large headless suit of armor fell to its knee’s in front of me. A sense of satisfaction filled my wounded body, but it was short-lived as I started to succumb to the pain of my injuries.

I soon found myself on my knee’s alongside the headless Thak.

You…boy…have slain me….The Headless Thak….but wary should you be….I am the weakest….of the seven

Opening my mouth I tried to ask him what he meant, but the only thing that came out vomit mixed with blood.

Take it…boy…one Thak falls…another Thak rises….There can only be…one true Thak

A dark essence started to leave the giant suit of armor and the blood that was coating the black heart in my hand started to mix with my own.

I felt fear. For the first time in this fight I was truly scared. I didn’t know what was happening to me.

For defeating The Headless Thak you have gained +5 to all stats and the title: The One True Thak

Level Up +4

New Thak Skill: Telepathy

You have died. -1 Lvl and 24 hour lockout

I woke up in the blackness that separated the real world and the world of Ethaessa. I was stunned and more than a little confused.

I was barraged with a series of messages and then suddenly I was dead.

For some reason I could still feel slight pains all over my body. I guess that the pain I experienced was so intense that it carried over to the real world.

The pain I was feeling right now was a lot less than I had experienced in the game. It felt like I only had a few bruises and pulled muscles.

I quickly searched for the log out icon, but it was nowhere to be found…

“Greetings young Thak.” I heard a sweet melodic voice whisper into my ear. She was laughing like she thought my title was hilarious.

“What the…who are you?” I spun around trying to find the source of the voice, but found nothing.

“You don’t remember me and here I thought I made a good impression when you made your character. I’m heartbroken.” She spoke again. Her voice almost sounded like she was singing the words.

“Wait you’re the character creation AI?” I asked bewildered.

“Right, right. But you can call me Ethaessa.”

Chapter 22: Status

Status WindowName:KaiAlignment:NeutralLevel:26Class:BardRace:CherubGender:MaleTitlesSongscryer – The One True ThakFame:120Infamy:950-Health:550 / 550Health Regen:5.0 / SecMana:700 / 700Mana Regen:6.0 / SecStamina:800 / 800Stamina Regen:6.0 / Sec-Strength:65 (+55)Agility:65Vitality:63Intelligence:65 (+5)Wisdom:75 (+5)Endurance:83Luck:44 (+55)-Attack:10-15Defense:32 (+80)Physical ResistancesSlashing:27 (+48)Piercing:27 (+48)Crushing:32 (+48)Elemental ResistancesFire:10%Water:10%Wind:10%Earth:10%Light:10%Darkness:10%

Skills/Abilities:

Spoiler : Iron Skin: Intermediate Lvl 6 (11%)

Willpower III: Intermediate Lvl 5 (44%)

Seven Pathways Meditation: Intermediate Lvl 1 (8%)

Mana Manipulation: Intermediate Lvl 3 (55%)

Telepathy: Novice Lvl 1 (0%)

Voice Manipulation: Novice Lvl 8 (36%)

-Empower: Novice Lvl 1 (32%)

Music Mastery: Novice Lvl 7 (72%)

-Song of Renewal: Intermediate Lvl 2 (54%)

-Song of the Slumbering: Novice Lvl 6 (45%)

-Song of Sorrow: Novice Lvl 3 (26%)

-Song of the Berserker: Novice Lvl 2 (23%)

Bare-Handed Mastery: Novice Lvl 8 (61%)

Sword Mastery: Novice Lvl 7 (50%)

-Rapier Mastery: Intermediate Lvl 3 (82%)

+Rapid Thrust: Novice Lvl 7 (21%)

Illusion Magic Mastery: Novice Lvl 3 (75%)

-Disguise: Novice Lvl 6 (41%)

-Glamour: Novice Lvl 3 (17%)

-Clone: Novice Lvl 1 (0%)

Equipment:

Spoiler : Swift Iron Rapier (10-15) Atk – (0/30) Durability

Torn Leather Vest (+10) Defense (-2) Luck – (6/15) Durability

Rotten Shorts of the Idiot (+2) Defense (+5%) Odor - (5/7) Durability

Rugged Leather Boots (+7) Defense (+3) Agility – (4/12) Durability

Necklace of the Black King (+10%) Magic Resistance – (24/25) Durability