Chapter Nine – Learning From Experience

Held in a sleeper hold, the boy soon passed out and Jon let him fall gently to the ground. The hooded figures passed them calmly and Jon was grateful for that.

He weighed his options and saw that there was no point forcing his way inside the house and it was unlikely he would be given an invitation.

He could climb the window and make his way down but another way appealed to him more.

Looking back at the figures he took his knife in his hand and began to slowly sneak after them.

The only light on the street came from the night sky and the men seemed calm and didn't even bother looking back.

The leather boots he wore were made for stalking pray through woods so walking on a brick road, Jon made no noise. His sneak mastery kicked in and took care of loose pebbles and shaky bricks by getting rid of them completely or silencing any sounds they made.

A smile appeared on Jon's face as he began stalking his pray. It grew bigger as he got closer and when he was right behind them, ready to strike the smile became a grin.

One of them dared to threaten Jon the night before and even though at the time he let him go, being offered a chance to get payback he was ecstatic.

Jon knew for sure one of them was a mage so he was free to concentrate on the other.

They were both of the same build and height and with their hoods and dark clocks it was impossible to differentiate between them.

To increase his chances he pulled out three arrows from his inventory and held them firmly in his free hand. He synchronized his steps with theirs and stepped in with his left leg between them.

-''Silent Strike!'-

Sneak Mastery Levels Up

Critical Hit

At the same moment his leg hit the ground the knife penetrated the neck of the right man. Not wasting time on reading the popup massage, as soon as he felt the hilt of the blade touch the skin he turned his attention to the other target.

Pulling out the knife in a downward motion he aimed for where the spleen should be under the cloak.

-'Speed Stab!'-

The blade entered the flesh twice in repetition, however before losing the momentum of his swing he spun fast to the right, using his left leg as a pivot.

With his right leg he tripped the right man and as his spin continued he REPLACEed the three arrows into the hip of the left man. Lowering himself closer to the ground as he spun he completed a full spin and dropped his knife arm fast at the right man who fell to the ground.

-'Speed Stab!'-

He struck the chest twice, aiming for the heart but only puncturing a lung. The moment this was done he pushed back hard against the ground and rolled back. The left man was screaming in pain while the right man lay on his back making choking sounds.

Jon rose into a crouching stance and observed the situation while out of reach. He got lucky.

He guessed the mage was on the right and when he saw the daggers tied to the left man's legs he knew he guessed correctly.

He was clutching at the arrows sticking out of his leg and even in the weak starlight the numerous knives were visible through the gap in the hood.

-'Seven,'-

There were probably more than that but seven were all he saw.

Jon rushed forward before the man could regain his composure and stabbed him again.

He swung for another stab but he noticed movement in his peripheral vision and leaned back instinctively.

One of the arrows, held firmly in the man's hand, cut the air next to his head, missing only barely his nose. Continuing the motion Jon dropped, leaned back and jumped up while lowering his free hand to the ground, he managed to twist his body into a hand stand and kick the man in the chin with his heel.

He let go of the arrow and before it hit the ground Jon dashed next to him and cut open his shin. He didn't fall down though. Instead he grabbed two of his daggers and jumped at Jon with one leg.

The dagger aimed at his face was diverted using the flat of Jon's small knife, but the second dagger made a diagonal slash, that began on Jon's shoulder and ended at his elbow.

Jon jumped back and with two good legs he managed to easily keep his distance from the limping man.

Chanting fast he healed the bleeding gash and getting the heal spell ready for another use he slowly moved towards the man again.

He knew he had an advantage and there was no need to rush. Taking out a sword from his inventory he used the longer reach to slowly cut away at the man while dodging the double daggers.

The man saw he was overpowered and decided on a desperate attack. He grabbed the sword under his armpit and pushed forward aiming a dagger at Jon's eye. Jon was expecting an attack of the sorts and simple let go of the swords hilt and grabbed the man's extended arm.

With little force he leveraged the elbow against its natural angle, creating a loud cracking sound and a fresh cry of pain.

A quick slash of his knife ended the fight and the man fell to the ground next to the now motionless body of his friend.

He disappeared after a moment, turning grey and leaving a dagger behind.

Putting on the cloak and hood of the dead Npc, Jon used the clasp at the top to cover his face, leaving only a small gap for him to see through.

Before continuing he undressed the Npc, putting everything in his inventory.

The door opened, spilling light into the dark street once again. There were a few windows that had candles light shining through them, most likely people were woken up by the fight, however none dared to look outside.

A man around Jon's age stood inside the lit room. He wore an apron and had a very dirty towel in his hands.

"I hoped you'd come back," he said while cleaning his hands on the towel.

Jon didn't answer or move but the man didn't seem bothered by it.

"Where's the other one? I'd have liked to see his reactions…" His eyes looked over Jon's shoulder.

When he was certain there was no one else but Jon, he stepped back inside.

"Close the door behind you."

"You came at the right time. I've just finished the preparation and I'll be starting the main act in a moment."

They walked into another room hidden behind curtains. Unlike the other room, this one was dim and only two candles lit it from the middle of the room. A small corridor separated the rooms and blocked Jon's view of the room.

"Stand at the corner, it will take a while. Today I'm planning to go deep."

The entire room came into view finally and it made Jon stop in his tracks. He was used to blood before and had experienced brutality of all kinds and in different places but never this methodical.

"Try not to bump into anything."

The floor was covered with blood that was slowly dripping down holes along the walls, while dangled from the ceiling were hundreds of strings.

Leaning against the walls were five wooden tables and to each was strapped a person. Both female and male, they all had open stomachs and all of their or inner organs were tied to the wires. With an almost unnoticeable movement, they swung back and forth. Covering the whole span of the room it looked as if the room itself was alive. The rest of the bodies had parts of their body stripped naked from flesh, right down to the bone. The skin, muscle and blood vessels were still connected to the corresponding body part of each body; they were simply spread out neatly, nailed to the wood.

"Beautiful, isn't it?"

He was standing next to another wooden table at hip height. On it lay another body, female: Jon guessed it was the woman's daughter. They both had the same light brown hair.

The man was looking around as well, marveling his own work. In his hand was a metal scalp and spread on a floating fabric next to him were dozens of different metal instruments.

Jon looked at the dead bodies again and saw now that the stripping of the flesh was done with a surgical precision.

One of the bodies had all off its skin peeled of and hung next to it like a suit of meat.

There was a strong smell of iron in the room.

"Are you an adventurer?" he asked and Jon answered with a nod.

"I thought so; they don't program things like this into Npc's. That's why the other one bailed." He was hovering his hand over the naked woman.

"You see," he licked his lips when he touched her stomach, "I've always been fascinated by the human body. It's truly a marvelous achievement of nature." He was massaging her body, touching her as if she were a fruit and he wasn't sure if it was ripe enough.

"But when I tried to satisfy my curiosity I ended up in a juvenile prison camp. From there it was impossible to peruse my interests so I studied hard and became a med student."

His eyes began to shine when he came upon a scar on her forearm.

"I think I'll start from here," he said in a whisper to her. It was then that Jon noticed she was conscious. She was immobilized and gagged but wide awake and aware of everything around her.

"Unfortunately they don't let you do any real surgery until your fifth year and that is just moronic."

Unfortunately for him, Jon had his knife drawn under the cloak and was slowly moving closer.

"Luckily I heard my classmates discuss about how they had butchered some bandits not long ago and it piqued my curiosity. After asking around I learnt about this game and how realistic it is." His eyes rolled up and an expression of extreme pleasure appeared on his face as his scalpel made the first cut into the girl's hand.

"I was surprised when the game rewarded me for successful surgery." He was looking at the blood that slowly began to drop down her arm onto the table. He dipped his finger in it and after eyeing it put the tip in his mouth and sighed in pleasure.

"It gave me the anatomy skill and when I got annoyed from their continuous struggling I was presented with the immobilization skill." He turned to Jon, not even bothered at how close he was to him.

"You see… the way I see it…hmm…" he smeared blood on his lips as if it were lipstick, "the game doesn't care how you play the game. It knows the difference between right and wrong, but it doesn't really understand it. Its main purpose is help players enjoy their game. If I want to explore the limits and possibilities of the human anatomy it will create situations it analyzed and decided I would enjoy. I've met people who even I think are sickening but the game's A.I. doesn't discriminate."

"I'd like to see your heart beating," he whispered in her ear, "and hear you scream as I fondle it…"

He closed his eyes and his brow wrinkled in concentration.

The girl screamed with force.

"No one can hear you dear. I had them soundproof the room with magic." Her screams continued, and when she started to beg him to stop and let her go his mood just seemed to improve.

She still couldn't move but hearing her suffer gave him pleasure.

Gently he touched the edge of a razor to her skin and pushed little by little until it penetrated. The blade started to move downwards and made a three centimeter gash when it stopped suddenly.

Screams of pain mixed together and turned into a roar. The man was grasping the stump of his arm. His palm was left behind holding the scalpel and blood spurted around the room.

"You…you... how dare you? I've paid good money for her! She is mine! I'll make sure they fire you for this! This isn't ov…" Jon's knife cut his throat and only gasping sounds escaped it.

He kicked him back and made him stumble to a wooden board. Thrusting hard he penetrated his palm and impaled the knife in the wood, pinning the man to one place. The man struggled to get free but with only a stump for a hand he couldn't free the knife.

Jon watched him bleed to death as he squirmed and pulled to no avail. It was eerily quiet when he turned grey and disappeared.

The immobilization on the girl went away together with him but she wasn't moving. After healing her arm, Jon dressed her in the black cloak he wore and slung her over his shoulder.

Before leaving the room he kicked the two candles next to the table and waited for the wood to catch fire. Satisfied that the fire would spread he left the house.

When he lifted the little boy under his armpit tongues of fire could be seen through the windows and the door of the house. The street became brighter and brighter as the whole house caught fire.

He walked back to the restaurant, the fire dancing behind him while his elongated shadow danced before him.

Quest Update Notice

You have saved the woman's daughter.

Return her to the mother to finish the quest.

It's weird how only these small scattering clouds, that looked more like cotton than clouds, reached so high. Big, beautiful clouds, ones you can lie on the grass and look at for hours, sailed slowly under the edge of the plateau.

The sun began to rise a couple of hours ago but the streets of Dragon Town were still in twilight. It would take a few more hours before the rays of the sun reached this high.

Even though it was called Dragon Town, it was more of an impenetrable citadel than a town.

High in the mountains, on a flat plateau with a steep downward fall on all sides, the only way to enter was through a draw bridge, or by air if you were one of the lucky ones. Armies could camp outside for years and not even step one foot inside.

And with a dozen dragons at their disposal, the town would never run out of food and water so a siege was pointless.

With endless free space on all sides but the north, the plateau which started as a couple of big halls in the ground and a shack was now a thriving town on the verge of becoming a city.

During the thousand year war of the new gods against the old, only dragons were able to tip the scales and bring an end to the fighting. Since then the dragons' might in battle was something lusted for by any warlord or king.

A few madmen managed to steal a couple of eggs and raise the hatchlings into fearsome dragons who dominated the battleground. Impressed by their deeds, the king gave them a small piece of land high in the mountains and told them to breed him an army of these beasts.

More than a hundred years later, people had gathered and families settled around the dragon pits, thus Dragon Town was formed. However, the promise had been forgotten and the dragon riders were forced to rely on donations from wealthy men. Now, every time a female laid eggs they were culled, and only the strongest of the litter was kept alive.

When he grew up a little, the small dragon had a metal stake thrust through the back of his skull. This metal pike allowed a rider to control his dragon with small pulls and pushes, as if the dragon were nothing more than a horse.

It sounds cruel, but in the days of the first domesticated dragons, three metal stakes were used instead of one.

That was the only option they could find, they had to have a guarantee that no dragon went on a rampage and ate everyone. They were not pets, they were considered nothing more than work beasts.

An enormous man exited his house. With a body like a trunk of a hundred year old tree, he was covered with muscles and steel. A simple round helmet on his hands that served a simple purpose of protecting and not decoration and a chain mail that dropped down to his hips, he straightened and stretched under the morning sun.

"Ratsha is awake!"

"Is it true he once pulled back a dragon by its tail?"

The kids who were role-playing as warriors and mages ran up to Ratsha and began to storm him as if he were a castle. After playing with them for a while Ratsha clasped a sword to his belt and put his hand through the rings of his shield.

The sword was simple looking, but having been made by dwarves, it had proved its worth in countless encounters and after years of fighting it still hadn't lost its edge. The shield had a wooden base but was covered with metal sheets.

On his legs were plate leggings and on his feet were simple yet sturdy thick leather boots. The boots wouldn't stop an arrow or a sword, but Ratsha felt that protecting your heels was going over the top.

Ratsha climbed on his huge war horse and looked at the sky. He thought he had made peace with his decision yesterday but now doubts crept into him. The door to his house was open but he didn't mind, everything of his possessions he considered important was tied safely to the horse. He moved his eyes to the peak of the mountain; up there, was Iggeld's Valley which only a year ago was still called Wind Valley. It was the only habitable place higher than Dragon Town, but seven years ago there were only boars, deer, mountain goats and fierce almost hurricane like winds up there.

Even though Iggeld was an outsider and came with his uncle when he was still a kid, he quickly became obsessed with dragons. He would draw them, talk about them and while the rest of the children played together he would spend his time near dragon pits looking at the huge beasts underneath.

Iggeld's parents were killed in a raid. Thankfully he and his sister Yaska were fishing in the canopy at the time, and as they were still small children the raiders didn't notice them between tall canopies.

They returned with fish in their hands only to see their village in flames. Their uncle picked them up and they traveled as far north as they could to escape. He wasn't really their uncle, just a neighbor who had lost his family in the raid as well. Yaska was left with some family during their travels, and Iggeld, together with the uncle walked until they reached Dragon Town and learnt there was no place further or higher to hide in.

The uncle remarried soon after their arrival to a widow with a boy of her own. After the birth of the first baby Iggeld was ignored and by the time of the second baby he was completely forgotten.

Left to his own he spent his days around dragons. On the day twelve eggs hatched, like all the kids in town, he lay upon the edge of the pit and looked into the darkness beneath, trying to see the hatchlings. While all the kids soon got bored and went back to playing, Iggeld came back day after day until he could not only tell apart the dragons but find a favorite and even name it.

Ratsha liked the boy even then. The boy had a good personality and a solid temper. They both shared love for dragons and when he heard Iggeld went down into the pit to help a hatchling reach the teats of the mother, he was worried for him like a father.

Laying on the edge as usual, he saw his favorite one stay behind the rest of the litter, all weak and powerless. And while the rest of the hatchlings were busy sucking out the milk for the mothers teats he jumped into the basket and spun the handle fast until he reached the bottom. He then caught the little dragon in his hands and pushing the rest aside , moved the little dragon face against the back nipple where there was more milk. The little dragon felt the warm drops of milk on its bloodless lips and began to suck with all its might.

The mother raised its head in protest but still exhausted from going through birth, she ignored it and went back to sleep.

No one dared to go into a pit of a mother and her hatchlings, even the food was put into the basket and at a pull of a lever the meat dropped right in front of the mother's jaws.

But there was Iggeld, a ten year old boy, who fearlessly went down and as if it were the most common thing in the world grabbed a hatchling and forced him to eat.

Aponitza, the lead keeper hired him on the spot, glad to learn that with the use of children it was possible to begin training dragons at a much younger age. The fact that the boy worked for nothing more than bread and water was a bonus.

It backfired on him less than a year later.

When the time of the picking came, Chernish, the small dragon Iggeld saved at the time was deemed weak, and that meant he would be killed.

Iggeld, who treated Chernish as his family couldn't handle the news and stole the little dragon and they both escaped.

Having hunted boars in Wind Valley, Iggeld remembered all the caves in the rock walls that surrounded the valley. With great difficulty both of them reached the peak of the mountain in the dead of the night. Cold, tired and helpless the little boy stumbled into a cave and had survived ever since.

Left with an option of death or survival, both Iggeld and Chernish not only survived but grew up to become big and strong.

Chernish, not limited by the small pits would run all day long and fly daily unlike the town dragons that flew once a week. All the exercise and the increasing weight Iggeld forced on him made him grow up as big as the dragons of the wild. At the age of five he was already twice as big and strong as the town dragons.

At first Iggeld was considered crazy. Everyone was sure, that without a metal stake the dragon would soon devour him. But instead, Iggeld and Chernish transcended the slave-master relationship of dragon riders and became true friends. Chernish would crawl out of his skin if that would have pleased Iggeld. He regarded him as a parent and a true friend and would have torn apart an army to save Iggeld. It was a scary and funny sight, seeing a huge monster walk after Iggeld like a loyal dog.

Last month Whitehair and Yakun, young but accomplished dragon keepers, each chose themselves a small hatchling and went up the mountain to join Iggeld and raise their dragons in his way. People laughed about how stupidity was contagious and were sure that when Iggeld became interested in women he would surely come down. In the seven years he was absent the town had plenty of girls who grew up to become very warm women, they boasted.

They kept on laughing up until the point where another breeder left to join Iggeld.

And while Whitehair and Yakun were young and single, Shvarn left together with his wife and kids.

When Ratsha saw that, his mind was finally made up. He prepared everything he needed and said goodbye to the town.

"Ahoy! Iggeld! Come greet your friend." The giant warrior slowly moved forward on his big war horse. Even with Ratsha's massive size the horse had no trouble walking.

A vast and lush valley opened before him. He came through the only entrance and was assailed by the wind. It tried to blow him off the horse and roll him over the ledge but Ratsha just tightened his legs and straightened. Proud and fearless he didn't even blink as a small black hill fell from the sky, denting the ground and sending dust flying everywhere. His horse moved its head from side to side but stood still unlike most horses that usually ran away in panic.

There was a sound of buckles being opened, and a man slid down the black metal wall to the ground.

Ratsha jumped off his horse and grasped Iggeld in a warm embrace. They let go and looked at each other with big smiles.

"What are you doing here? And in battle gear…" Iggeld asked as he took of a thick wool cape he used to protect himself against the wind and cold of the sky.

Ratsha surprised him by going down on one knee and offering his sword to him.

"I've come to ask you permission to join your valley. I swear to help protect everyone who already lives here and all who will come. I promise to fight to my last breath to save you and the dragons. Accept me Iggeld! Don't let me go back in shame!"

Iggeld was speechless. Since he was a kid he looked up to Ratsha. He had heard stories of the warriors feats in battle and seeing him on his knee was incomprehensible to him.

"Stand up. You know very well that this is not my valley, and who the hell in his right mind would attack this godforsaken place?" He was waving his hands around and shifting from leg to leg uncomfortably. "And even if there was someone crazy enough, they would have to go through Dragon Town first and that place is built better than most forts! Trust me! Together with Chernish we traveled to the farthest edges of the kingdom and had never seen anything more protected. Right?" He lifted his hand to the monstrosity that was casting its shadow on them.

Chernish's huge head dropped over Ratsha and its hot breath hit him in the back.

Used as he was to dragons, it still sent a shiver down his spine.

"You're still young," he said in a slow and low voice, "But I have lived for enough time to learn that there is no such thing as an impenetrable fortress. Times may be peaceful now but things change, and when that change comes you better be prepared!" He lifted his sword even higher. "Now except my damn blade and let me rise already, before that beast of yours swallows me whole."

Iggeld took the sword reluctantly and hugged his friend again. Chernish feeling ignored licked them both with his large tongue.

"Let's say hello to the rest, they will be glad to have you with us."

They walked to the other side of the valley, where the wind was weaker and smoke was rising from a crack in the rock wall. Chernish followed behind, his massive head hanging over the two men. His tail moved from side to side showing his happiness at being allowed to walk with his great father and his friend as equal. He raised his head and puffed out his chest wishing for the others to see him.

Three small dragons ran up to them with their butts jumping up and down in a funny way. The two bigger ones were the size of large cats, while the third one, Shvarn's hatchling, followed behind them, half crawling half falling. His eyes had only recently opened and his legs were still weak. Shvarn's two kids ran next to them to greet Chernish.

"Go, play," said Iggeld to the huge dragon.

A moving mountain of black jumped forward, shortening the distance in one motion. His tongue flashed, as fast as lightning, and licked the boys from head to toe. They tried to avoid it but to no avail. Leaving them red and moist Chernish fell on his back carefully so as not to crush his little friends. They climbed on to his stomach, lifting the dragons on their hands, and began to jump up and down, kicking the scales on the stomach as hard as they could.

Chernish closed his eyes in pleasure. His scales were harder than steel and small vibrations from the jumps were like a massage.

"Keep an eye on them. We don't want them to fall from up there."

"We are, Iggled." The boys answered unanimously as they picked up a hatchling that strayed too far to the side.

"You do know more will arrive?"

"Let them come. This is not my valley; I'm in no position to send them away."

"Iggeld, you really are still a boy… you're the only one who still calls this place Wind Valley. Man up, and accept your role! They will come and this place will become a village." Ratsha paused, finishing his mug of beer.

"You and Chernish have earned a small fortune in the past years, and it is time you've started putting it to use" he said, licking off the drops stuck in his beard.

"I've been thinking about it, actually. You've felt the wind outside, well believe it or not, but that is just a fraction of its original strength. I've managed to block its path, somewhat, but if we want to live here comfortably we need to build a wall against it."

Ratsha looked at Iggeld in amazement.

"Sure… let us build a wall… but make sure you add a gate and some watchtowers. That way you'll completely seal the valley from the outside world and from any attackers."

"That again? I don't want to hear about that again…"

"Oh, Iggeld, trust in me. I may not be very wise, but I've learnt enough to know that it is better to be prepared than be sorry."

Both of them refilled their mugs and sat in silence, looking at the children and dragons playing.

"That's the last of it, boys." Dragon entered the kitchen looking exhausted. The past couple of days were tiring, and the whole staff except for Jon felt on the verge of collapsing.

Hundreds of high born and big name customers came, and the average price of a dragon meal was two thousand and seven hundred gold coins.

Even in his exhausted state the thought of his newly acquired fortune brought a smile to Dragon's face.

"Come get your money!"

Each of them got one hundred gold coins. It may look very little but you need to take into account that they all received a large piece of dragon meat as well.

Everyone left but Jon. He walked up to Dragon and opened his mouth to speak but was interrupted.

"It's okay, Jon, you can go. I understand. I knew it was coming from the moment I saw your reaction to the meats' bonuses. You're not the first one of my staff to leave for that reason and probably not the last." He hugged Jon warmly.

"However you are the best out of them all, so it hurts me to see you leave. I won't stop you, and I've spoken with Burka, he will gladly accept you if you ever decide to come back."

Jon didn't show it but he was actually feeling a bit sad to leave.

They walked to the entrance where the brute joined them.

"One piece of advice though… there are countless of ways to defeat a dragon, but in all my years as a dragon slayer I've never heard of someone slaying one with a knife or a dagger. You better think of getting yourself a real weapon." He grasped Jon's hand and shook it in goodbye. "Also, if you ever want to become a dragon slayer, kill one thousand dragon type monsters and come to me. If you manage to do that I'll share with you the next step to become a mighty dragon slayer. Drakes are the weakest of the kind…"

The brute interrupted them with a cough at that point.

He extended his hand forward silently and looked Jon in the eyes. They never shared any words except for their first meeting, but Jon never felt any animosity towards him for his actions at the time. He took the hand and they shook intensely.

No more words were spoken between them and Jon turned to leave on his way.

A girl with light brown hair stood in his way.

She was staring at the ground and fidgeting slightly. He didn't recognize her with clothes on and hair covering her face at first, but when he saw her mother and little brother standing not far he figured out who she was.

Dragon and the brute whispered to each other behind him.

The little boy ran up to his sister when he saw she was taking her time. Grabbing her by her palm he tried to encourage her but she kept looking at the ground.

"She wanted to thank you for saving her," the boy said in a cheerful voice "but she's embarrassed that you've seen her naked." He jumped to the side to dodge his sister's hands. He hid behind Jon and her face lifted to look at him. As if catching fire, her face turned bright red and dropped back down as soon as their eyes met.

"Thank you," she said quietly to her feet.

Jon looked back at Dragon as if asking for help and Dragon stepped down the stairs.

"He was glad he could help. He's just a little shy so he doesn't speak much." He waved to the mother to come closer.

"You see, he's leaving today and I'll be missing a worker. How would you like to take his place?" He seemed to be speaking to the girl but was looking at the mother.

"Of course she will," said the mother in a commanding tone. "Tell the nice man you will, honey."

The young lady glanced at Jon for a moment, and turning an even deeper red color, she nodded in agreement.

"Great, great. Let us go meet the man you're going to be helping. He's a little scary… but deep inside he is just a small pussycat."

Dragon led the family inside and as he passed Jon who was standing silently he said to him.

"I guess now you have something worth returning for, eh? Let's just hope no one takes this beauty away before you do." He winked at him without even stopping.

The brute was laughing to himself as he raised his hand in farewell to Jon.