Chapter One -Part Two

The battle hardened veteran stared at him, an unmistakable glint in his one good eye.

"So you like to hit things really hard eh. Just hitting it till the problem goes away is fine but if you could harness your inner rage into strength would you? If that sounds like what your after then I think I could help set you on the correct blood soaked path. What do you say my boy?"

Thinking this could be the hint he was looking for Jon was about to answer when he noticed the Giant leering Hannya mask behind the instructor, it was floating menacingly above Granny Kang. Who cooed with a sweet voice, that didn't match the black aura she was emitting.

"Darling husband of mine a word if you will."

-:You have been Hit by a strong >. You are now affected by >

You are Paralyzed by fear: 30 seconds remain

Movement speed reduced by 60% for 10 minutes

Attack power reduced by 90% for 10 minutes

Defence power reduced by 120% for 10 minutes:-

Beads of sweat formed on the instructors brow and rolled down his face as he turned to face his wife. She dragged him off to one edge of the Arena like a school boy about to be scolded while Ogre waited for the effects to pass.

All he could do was stand there like a statue and watch the timer tick down. He spared a worried glance to the scarred instructor only to see him being berated by his wife who after a few moments of heated debate threw her arms up in frustration and stormed off. The instructor stomped back sulking.

By now the > had worn off.

"About what you said before sir I would like to accept your offer."

This brought a smile back to the instructors face, if only breifly before the mood darkened again

"Sorry the missus said I can't"

He paused, taking time to consider his words carefully before continuing.

"...but if you can prove yourself to her then am sure I could teach you what I know."

The fearsome glint was back in his eye.

"And how do I do that?" Ogre asked, a little worried by the sudden change in the Training Hall Demon.

"Oh that's the easy part. Follow me."

Was the nonchalant response he got from the instructor who assumed an aloof air of superiority as he turned and headed out of the arena with Ogre in tow.

They walked through the town for a few moments, Jon taking in all the sights and smells as he hadn't left the Arena in all his time spent online, before arriving at the edge of the village. There was a steep drop into the jungle below. The Barbarian Rock plateau had two levels to it.

From the outside it looked like one flat mesa but that was because you couldn't see the inner basin from Lasalle soil. In fact the whole plateau was ringed by a thick strip of land, on which the village sat, before it dropped off steeply into the jungle basin below. At the centre of which beat the magma heart of the long dormant volcano.

Jon was wondering what came next when he saw the instructors wide grin.

"now.....SURVIVE!"

Said the instructor playfully as he jabbed one muscular leg into Ogres stomach and lightly kicked him off the ground and over the edge.

"....IS......THIS............SPARTAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH???"

Ogre screamed in confusion as he fell through the air.

**Ting**

-: You have been forced to accept a Quest.

Rite of Passage.

Once young Barbarian children reach a certain age they undergo Agoge to prove themselves in the eyes of their kin, their clan and their ancestors. They would be cast into the jungle below and only those that survived were allowed to return. Their names were recorded before they were thrown down into the jungle and only after the trial ended for that season would they be mourned.

To pass one must bring back proof of having conquered a Jungle Beast and Ascend the steep slope to return to the Village.

Difficulty: F

Reward:

Dependent upon whether or not the High Shaman is suitable impressed by your achievement:-

The box dismissed it's self as several branches rushed up towards him breaking his fall.

He lay there dazed on his new bed of broken branches for what seemed like hours, contemplating.

Even if he did survive and returned to the village if Granny Kang deemed his trophy unworthy then it would have been a futile exercise. Plus he didnt have a weapon and his beginner gear would not stand up against even dull claws.

It had been tattered beyond recognition in just the fall alone.

Ogre stood up, stripped and made what he had into a lioncloth, at least his diginity would be preserved even if his life couldn't. When he had his bearings he walked over to the small waterfall that cascaded down the sheer rock wall and washed his face. Once the last traces of the ordeal were scrubbed away he glanced skyward.

A small round thing was poking over the edge of the descent. It was then that a small curved shape began waving by the round object. Suddenly both disappeared. Jon could almost hear the instructor saying "good at least he didn't die" before turning to leave.

**********

The dense Jungle was dark and uninviting as Ogre pushed his way through it. He was following the river looking for suitable shelter or food when the first ambush occurred.

Three brightly coloured frogs the size of small dogs appeared on his path and without warning began lashing their tongues at him. The one on his left was black and yellow, the one of his right was green and purple, while a red and blue one assualted him from teh front. If real world logic applied then their vibrant markings would be indications of extreme toxicity and danger.

As this was a game he wasnt sure if that applied until the two on his flanks began spitting globs of poison at him while he was being pressured from the front. He just managed to evade them but the ground where the mucus balls landed sizzled and smoked.

'Not a good idea to get hit by that and I can't keep dodging everything.'

He was beginning to panic.

Sensing his fear the three flicked out their tongues binding his neck, his right arm and squeezing his chest. When he tried to resist they tensed their elongated muscles and pulled him around like a puppet on strings.

"No I'm not ...going....out .....li..like this."

With one last defiant surge he used his left hand to grab hold of the nearest tree and with great willpower he used his right hand to snatch up all the tongues while he endured their tightening. With a scarlet face he closed his fist tighter cutting off power to the end of the sticky leashes.

After a few seconds they loosened slightly as their owners tried to squirm free. He ripped himself free of them and stared coldly at the brightly coloured amphibians.

"RRRAAAAGGHHHHRRR!!!" he roared swinging the three frogs, in a flail like manner, straight into the thick trunk of an ancient jungle tree.

Pained croaks and ribbits of agony escaped their slimly lips. What they heard next froze their cold blood solid.

"We're not done yet."

A calm voice whispered coldly.

Ogre grabbed the tongues this time with both hands and swung them with his full strength into every nearby trunk. Over and over again the vibrant colours blurred through the air only to splatter against solid wood.

When they finally exploded into grey smoke and experience the forest floor was covered in a dense layer of fresh wood chips and several trees were pox marked with deep bloody impact craters. Ogre picked up the few copper they dropped and the single small vial

-: You have acquire: Arrow-head Frog Antidote(weak)

A weak antidote made to combat the poison of low level Arrow-head Frogs. Not effective against higher level poisons:-

He stored it in his inventory and checked the system messages that he had ignored during the attack.

The majority were talking about the damage he'd taken, he was surprised to find his health had plummeted to around 30%. A few were about his movement speed being reduced by their > skill but the most surprising of all. Were the last two. They were level up notifications.

He hadn't realised that the three Arrow-head frogs were level 5 and as he had defeated them at level one he had gained enough exp to level up to three. Without sparing another moment he opened up his character window and dumped the ten new points straight into strength.

There was no hesitation in his choice at all.

He took a breath and quickly reviewed his battle.

'So they lash and bind with their tongues. They can spit deadly poison and am pretty sure their skin will be poisonous to touch so I definitely need to find a weapon before i run into another group of them or something stronger.'

He healed up and left the battle field continuing to follow the river down stream.

Eventually he came to a small clearing on his side of the stream which had now widened into a river. He was making his way cautiously across it when something cracked under his foot. He looked down to see his size nine had gone through the ribcage of some skeleton.

A little shocked he let out a small yelp as he fell on to his ass.

The motion caused the skeletons remains to jump up and dance a little jig in the air before scattering back on the earth below. He slowly reached out to touch the skull when.

**ting**

-:You have discovered Field of the Fallen.

A small clearing in the dense jungle basin where many generations of eager Barbarian youngsters come to do battle with deadly foes. + 5 fame: Fame increased by +5:-

He closed the message and looked around. It was true he could see the remains of many people, several of which had young plants and saplings growing through exposed holes or gaping fractures. Overcome by a strange urge Ogre collected the bones together and buried them in a quick grave he had hand dug in the soft earth.

After covered it over he clasped his hands together in prayer but it occured to him that he didnt know quite what to say.

He wasnt a religious person but he knew that at times like these you had to say something so he racked his brain for any possible solution. After ten minutes all he could think of were two phrases. 'Vaya Con Dios' was one; it had been the catch phrase of the renegade hero, in an action flick from the 80's he'd seen once. Who would say the line then blow people away with his AK.

The other was 'Amida Buddha' which his favorite martial arts films always included just after the hero had preformed his Heart Destruction Fist and the enemy lay hemoraging on the floor.

Neither seemed right so he clapped his hands together again and shut his eyes.

"Good night. Rest well."

-: You have laid to rest the souls of the Fallen. No grudge will be carried on when you loot their stuff:-

He was a little surprised by the frankness of the message.

After that he sifted through what remained in the field; obtaining some new leather armour and a couple of small pouches. No useable weapon though, the remnants of rusty blades he mounted upright to serve as grave markers.

Without a second thought he logged off for the evening.

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