The Achievement Junkie

Maynard had effectively drawn out the other two goblin captains and was in the middle of a 4 v. 1. He had consumed a few potions and elixirs already, so he was beginning to feel the side effects of consuming too many too soon. His muscles and skin that were constantly being healed grew sorer from each potion. Forcing himself through the pain and discomfort, Maynard continued his stand.

The goblin captains were at a loss when facing the obstinate samurai. They were giving it their all but were still unable to kill him. In the meantime, a couple of captains were near the point of fatigue from injuries and keeping up with the crazy ronin that seemed to be addicted to potions and elixirs.

"Master, how much longer?" Brunar shouted amidst the incoming goblin reinforcements.

The two young samurai were lucky to not need too many skills for the lower leveled guards, but anyone would grow tired after constantly hacking through muscle and bone with no end. Their countless hours of training and practice allowed them to hold strong in the face of over two dozen goblins. However, they were exhausted and would soon be desperate in front of the incoming reinforcements without using skills.

"Just wait! I'm sure—" yelled Maynard.

Suddenly, a fiery flash swept over part of the city, strong enough to be seen over the wall. The warm, red light washed over the battlefield for three seconds, warming the hearts of the samurais and sending chills down the goblins' spines.

At first, all they saw was a pillar of flame, but terror clutched at the goblins' heartstrings when a fox pounced into the air. The fox was made of living flames and was three times the size of any goblin. Even its eyes were made up of black hell flames.

Everyone present felt a primal sense of fear take them over. The goblins froze, their instincts telling them to run.

Brunar and Troni had already seen Bowser transform, but they weren't ready to see such growth in the strength and size of the transformation. It took Brunar a second to shake his nerves and smile at the appearance of this powerful ally.

Troni was like the goblins, showing genuine fear. He wasn't afraid of Bowser as Jack's beast companion, but he struggled to accept having such a fearsome beast as an ally and not an enemy like in legend.

Maynard felt a tinge of fear, but it wasn't enough to keep him from using this distraction to his benefit. Whilst the captains flinched at the sight of a Hell-flame Fox, Maynard used "Sudden death" in succession with "Blood thrust."

Before the weakly guarded captain could retaliate, the blood-red glow of Maynard's blades passed through its gut. The captain stiffened and fell hard on the ground as Maynard removed his katana.

Suddenly, Maynard disappeared once again. Returning to their senses, another captain managed to block one katana while the other penetrated cleanly through its waist, from right to left. Avoiding death, the captain shrunk back away from its killer.

Not waiting for Maynard to attack again, the remaining two captains charged Maynard while the other did its best to tighten the leather armor around its torso in hopes to slow the blood flow.

"That all ya got?" laughed Maynard. "No more holding back!"

Brunar had already sliced a goblin guard's throat by the time Maynard shouted his latest order. Yelling as he finally began to activate his skills, Brunar yelled with each swing of his katana. "It's. About. Time!"

Troni refocused himself and did the same as Brunar, launching skill after skill into the now frightened reinforcements.

*****

"Man, how many rooms are there in the inner palace?" Rydel spoke to himself within the confines of a small dark room. He had exhausted his daily uses of "Predator sense" and was forced to hide and search the old-fashioned way. "What's that?"

Rydel heard low thumps from the other side of the door. The thumps grew louder each time, until they sounded like they were deep, heavy footprints that shook the door as they passed by. It soon grew quieter as the footsteps passed in the direction Rydel had come from.

'Hey Maynard, they were inside…' thought Rydel, doing his best to remain calm and steady his heartbeat.

'That's what I was afraid of,' replied Maynard.

'What are you talking about?' asked Jack.

Rydel explained, 'The trolls, they were inside the palace. One just walked past where I was hiding and it probably about to exit the palace.'

'How many are there?' asked Jack, wanting to plan accordingly.

'I have no clue kid, but I'm guessing there's more than one,' answered Rydel.

'Be careful, try not to get tangled with one before you accomplish your part of the mission captain,' stated Jack.

'You don't have to tell me twice,' said Rydel.

'Hey Maynard, get ready to face a troll or two. You should be faring better against the goblins now, so hurry and finish them so you three and face the trolls.' Jack laid out an impromptu plan.

'Ya got it,' replied Maynard, accepting the idea immediately.

'Good luck,' said Jack.

'Happy hunting,' both Rydel and Maynard responded in unison.

Rydel took a few deep breaths and put his ear to the stone wall. He wasn't able to use "Predator sense" anymore but his perception and hearing were good enough to hear if any towering footsteps were approaching him.

Not finding anything near him, he bolted into the hallway and dashed further into the inner palace.

*****

Jack was well hidden in the shadows of the outskirts of the outer palace, waiting for a good moment to enter. Unlike Rydel who heavily outweighed the average guard, Jack was under-leveled and was forced to use only stealth.

He was starting to grow impatient until Rydel warned them about the trolls. As soon as Jack heard that, he knew when he would have a chance to enter.

A few minutes passed before Jack saw the big doors burst open. The palace entrance was swung open explosively, actually damaging the hinges of the door and rendering them unable to fully close without repair.

Jack didn't act immediately, he was busy examining the large, monstrous frame that had kicked open the door. The creature had purple-blue skin and was tall, yet stout. It wore a thick loincloth and had little fat to hide its rippling muscles. With a short face and a fat nose, the trolls sniffed the air.

Holding his breath and remaining still, Jack waited for the troll to step away from the door. It had a gib smile on its face when it saw the flame pillar in the distance of the city. Eager to find out what was happening, the troll entered the city in search of the Hell-flame Fox it had heard o much about.

'Bowser, time to switch locations. You've got a troll heading your way. Don't fight him, just keep him busy and distracted.' Jack's telepathic tone showed some worry along with trust in Bowser's abilities.

Just then, the pillar of fire disappeared and startled everyone unaware of Jack's plan. 'Okay, Bowser distract troll.'

'Good boy. Let me know if you need help.'

'Yup, yup.'

Jack neared the opened door and found two goblin guards smashed into the wall by the wooden doors. Aware that they were dead in the first place, Jack hurried inside and hid in the first room he could find. 'Captain, I'm in. Any tips?'

'Get to the inner palace. If you head left of the entrance, you'll reach another large door leading to the inner palace after passing seven rooms,' answered Rydel.

'I went right, the left was swarming with guards,' clarified Jack.

'Well, that's not too bad kid. I went left and left a trail so right is probably less crowded now. But you'll still need to get to this side of the inner palace. I just passed a dark stairwell that further down, almost like a dungeon. If I had to guess, that's where they're keeping any prisoners,' explained Rydel.

'Looks like I better hurry. Thanks, Captain.'

'Stay alive kid and let me know if anything happens.'

Before Jack exited what looked to be a bedroom shared by a few guards, Jack retrieved a single vial filled with a clear liquid. He retrieved his sword and a small knife, dripping the Light-tailed Lizard neurotoxin across the blade. Jack then stored them and the empty vial, letting him resume his invisibility.

Cautiously sneaking out of the room, Jack made his way into the hall. He crept past a few guards as he stayed near the wall. There wasn't much difficulty to reach the massive door towards the inner palace but opening it and sneaking inside was different than just making it that far.

Noticing that there also seven doors before reaching the door to the right, Jack guessed that the palace design was mostly symmetrical. Jack wouldn't bet that a second entrance to the dungeon was on this side of the palace, but it gave him an idea as to how far he was from the dungeon entrance Rydel had mentioned.