Chapter 20 – Alpha Guardian

“I hate mornings.” I curse as I walk about my base. Like most gamers, I’m not a morning person. It’s just not compatible with our gamer genes, you know. The same genes that allow us to stay up all night and stay skinny even though we eat nothing but energy drinks and potato crisps.

Life’s been good to us. For the most part at least.

I yawn.

I have a lot of things to do today… I wish I could have slept in. Ah well. I start off the day by summoning my daily batch of fresh goblins. I suppose I have to focus more on the production side of things since I lost so many of my workers yesterday. It doesn’t take long before my tribe has six new inhabitants.

As I look them over, I count one [Breeder], one [Fisherman], one [Blacksmith] and three [Leatherworker]s.

Yep, I just finished making my [Leatherworker’s Hut], and it looks fine as hell!

Well, okay. As fine as a shoddy hovel can be, I suppose. But, no matter! I’m finally able to gear up my goblins properly.

I know I said earlier that I would focus more on offence rather than defence in this game. It does seem like I’m working against myself, doesn’t it? So far, I’ve sort of been going against my own strategy by heavily investing in armor this early. But, in my defence, I’d be damned if the game didn’t force me. What matters in this game is skill levels, and I have had to start grinding them as early as possible. There will come a point where I will need the armor. Badly. And, I’d rather be prepared.

This morning, I had to make the tough decision - if I would spawn more leatherworkers, or more food production crew. I landed on focusing more heavily on the leatherworkers. After raiding Qargon, I find myself with a healthy stockpile of food, as well as the herd of pigs which will keep us well fed and on our feet for a while. I do need a few more hunters and foragers; but, it’s too risky recruiting more as long as those damn wolves infest my forest.

More resource gatherers can wait a day.

But, these damn wolves. I’m not sure if their arrival was random or not; but, they couldn’t have arrived at a worse time. Most of my troops were away from my base when they struck. It’s a damn miracle I didn’t lose more goblins. Regardless, they are a threat; and, I need to eliminate them as soon as possible. Less potential threats are always a benefit.

I know I have to clear them out; and, I know I have to do it fast. The problem is, I have no clue how strong they are, or how many of them there are. There could be a dozen wolves, or there could be a hundred. How many soldiers should I bring? I also can’t leave my base undefended.

I order Wrex to start rounding up my troops. While I’m waiting, I bring up my buildings tab to peruse my next building options. I quickly narrow it down to my three most viable options.

Altar

Basic religious building. Grants 5 Morale

Allows for basic rituals to be performed.

20 Stone, 4 Pinewood, 1 Pelt, 10 Skull

Barracks

Basic military building. Grants 10% increase to Melee Mastery level acquisition.

Allows for basic military units to be trained.

80 Pinewood, 20 Stone, 50 Grass, 5 Pelt

Bowyer’s Hut

Basic production building.

Allows for ranged weaponry to be produced.

60 Pinewood, 20 Grass

It’s some tough choices really. All of them have great merits.

The mysterious option is by far the Altar. Gut has been hinting at this building more strongly than a woman hints about how you can correct whatever mistake you made at any point in your lifespan. But, does that mean it’s the correct choice though? The information granted says very little; but, I can’t shake the feeling it’s one of the most important options in the long term. Ominous sounding things like rituals always are.

But, then again. I have sort of devoted myself to grinding levels for my units. The barracks will definitely speed up my leveling. However, I also need to start producing ranged units as soon as possible. My fight with Qargon is proof of that. I’m not sure if I can afford to postpone the utility that ranged units will bring me on the battlefield.

So really. It’s tough to decide.

I need to break down my options. As much as I’d love to try out the [Altar], I’m not sure if it’s worth it. It could grant me some amazing boost; but, it would most likely be a short term benefit. I don’t have too big of a stockpile of skulls. At one point or another, I will run out.

The barracks is a great long term option with no downsides whatsoever. The only thing that keeps me back from choosing it is that I still don’t have a large military force to most effectively benefit from the increase to leveling. It would help, sure, but I just don’t have that many troops at the moment.

Which leaves the [Bowyer’s Hut]. Ranged units. The key to my offensive oriented strategy. I’m still beating myself up over the fact that I haven’t built it yet. It should have been one of my first buildings. If I had half the sense I was supposed to have, I would have built this building even before I made the [Blacksmith] or the [Carpenter’s Hut]. Certainly before I made the [Leatherworker’s Hut]. That was actually pretty stupid of me. I just keep getting distracted all the time.

…

Shit. I’m not sure if I can bring myself to postpone that building even further. I’m going to do something crazy here and disregard my gut feeling. The [Altar] can wait a day or two.

I order my builders to start making the [Bowyer’s Hut].

Huh?

I’m not sure if I saw correctly; but, I could have sworn Gut just gave me an outraged look when I gave the order.

…

I must be seeing things.

Wrex returns with all my soldier in tow. Seeing all my battle hardened troops makes me grin with pride. It’s not as if we have fought much; but, we fought intensely. We are all veterans in some odd way. And, they are mine. My subordinates. Damn. If I had known leading groups of others was this much fun, I would never have bothered becoming the Solo Butcher.

Before me stands eight [Fighter]s, six [Warrior]s, one [Scout] and two [Mage]s.

…

I could have sworn I had more? Huh… I really need to start spawning more soldiers. This is scarily few units. Even worse so that six of the [Fighter]s are fresh spawns. I have already assigned three of them to become [Fire Mage]s, one to become a [Blood Mage] and two more to become [Scout]s. This leaves my [Warrior]s in short supply to hold up the front; but, I have to do this. I should be reasonably safe at the moment. I need specialised units; and, I should try to get them as fast as possible.

I make a mental note to spawn at least three new [Fighter]s every day. It’s not too good to get hung up on overproduction, as tempting as it may be.

This is a problem though. If I assume there are a dozen wolves, I still come up short if I have to divide my forces. I’m not going to leave my base undefended; and, I sure as hell can’t go after them with a small force. I’ve made too many stupid risks lately. Dumb risks. I have to stop doing that shit.

But, I still need to clear out this threat as soon as possible. Inaction is only going to cost me in the long run.

From Gut’s report, the wolves’ den is only about an hour away. I could go there, wipe them out and be back before lunchtime. But, what if the wolves attack my base while I’m gone? What if it’s another player?

Okay, it’s probably not another player. Most nearby players are dead. But, then again, everyone should have gotten the global announcement that I’m currently in the lead. Shouldn’t I be a priority target for sabotage? I know I would have sabotaged the shit out of someone else if they were close by and in the lead. Players usually tend to group up against the strongest threats. I could be seeing attacks coming from all directions at any moment now.

Which is why I need to deal with these wolves as soon as possible - before their scouts arrive.

With my mind set, I decide to bring both Gut and Wrex, my six [Warrior]s, my [Scout] and the two senior [Fighter]s. Leaving the two new [Mage]s and the six fresh [Fighter]s back at base to protect my workers.

Ooh, and I also decide to bring the good old [Hauler]. Because why not? He was helpful the last time. Why not again? It’s not as if he is much use back at base anyway.

Hmm… Wait a moment. Why not strike more birds with the same stone?

I quickly have Wrex round up all my [Hunter]s, [Forager]s, my [Gatherer] and my [Herbalist]. There’s no reason they can’t do their work while in safe proximity to my main fighting force is there? It also makes sure my defenders have less to worry about.

If I could pat myself on my shoulder, I would have.

Stocked up on supplies, we head out into the forest. I’m not terribly excited to go on another long hike; but, my winning instinct drives me forward.

The hour it takes for us to reach the general area of the wolves’ den goes by swiftly. Okay, I lie. It was excruciatingly boring; but, we got here. The trip was miles better than the travel to Qargon’s base though. My new leather armor kept my body safe from all the sharp branches and itchy foliage. It was also nice to not have the constant fear of my loincloth falling off every other minute.

Anyway, we are on high alert and closing in on the den’s position.

The problem, however, is how quiet it is. Surprisingly quiet. I kind of expected us to have been attacked by now. We’ve seen nothing. Not even heard a single howl. My scout reports that there are plenty of fresh tracks around; and, it would be weird if our approach haven’t been noticed yet. Wolves are supposed to be excellent predators, aren’t they? They should have smelled my goblins from several kilometers away.

So… where the fuck are they!?

I hate this creepy shit.

Our group halts as one. The scout up front crawls back towards me, keeping her head low.

“The den is up ahead, C-Chief.” She whispers.

I nod. “Wrex, take the warriors up front and center. Gut, we stay right behind them.” I receive several grunts of acknowledgement.

“You stay behind with the workers.” I point to the scout. She makes a quick and nervous nod before she crawls further back.

“All right everyone. Move out!”

My entire force moves at once, quietly sprinting through the bushes and into a small open clearing. I follow suit, crossbow raised to my chin. Ready to fire at a moment’s notice.

We spread out in the clearing, weapons raised.

…

And, there’s nothing here.

I furrow my brow. “What the hell. Where is everyone?”

I receive a series of confused shrugs in response. We all thought we would be knee deep in shit, blood and teeth by now.

Looking around the clearing, I try to spot a clue as to what is going on. It’s a small thirty by thirty meter clearing surrounded by tall grass. There’s a small hill to the east where there is a small cave opening. There is a strong smell of dirty wet dog in the air, as well as several bones and half eaten carcasses on the ground. I even spot the remains of a goblin in their midst, so I’m certain we’re at the correct location.

But, where the hell are these mutts!?

The only logical place for them to be would be here. Unless of course they went to…

Oh crap!

“EVERYONE!” I yell, startling everyone nearby. “We have to get back to base! NOW!”

“What, why?” Wrex asks.

I give him a hopeless stare. “What do you… Shit. If the wolves ain’t here. Where do you think they are?” I yell at him.

He gives me a blank stare for a while before his eyes go wide. I don’t give him time to ask another dumb question as I order Gut to use his [Bloodrush] spell. A strange sensation crawls over my skin as the crimson spell lights up all my goblins in a faint red aura. I waste no time testing out this new feeling before I turn around and start sprinting.

----------

Shit, shit, shit, SHIT!

I run through the forest as quick as my short legs can carry me. I don’t bother to wait to see how far behind my goblins are. I need to get back to base. And quickly.

I had unslung my crossbow when we arrived at the clearing earlier and now it hangs loosely across my back. The hard wooden stock smacks me in between my shoulderblades for every step I take. I grit my teeth and endure the pain. I have no time to lose.

Panic builds in me and my thoughts become scrambled. Shit. How far is it? Am I going the right way? How long have I been running? I think it’s ten minutes. Is it too late? Am I too late? What if-

There’s a small rustling sound from my left. My eyes catch a glint of a gray blur from the corner of my eye. I turn my head just in time to see a large set of teeth closing in on my face.

What the-

I raise my hands to protect myself as a large force crashes into me.

I lose my footing as I’m thrown through the air, rolling around on the ground with a massive pile of fur on top of me. We come to a stop and I look around confused for a moment. Trying to piece together what the fuck just happened. I soon come face to face with a pair of large blue eyes, staring at me from a distance too close for comfort.

I yelp in shock as I raise my hands to shield my face. The large wolf charges at me, his large fangs set on piercing my throat.

My hands barely stop the impact as the wolf slams into me. His fangs snap together only an inch away from my nose, spitting saliva all over my face. I manage to hold his head away if only barely. I have no room to maneuver. His front paws dig into my leather armor, causing several long rifts to appear on my chest.

A jolt of pain travels up my body as his claws pierce the armor, drawing blood from my exposed chest beneath. My arms tremble and I can feel the breath of the wolf inching closer to my face.

“RAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGH!” A roar bellows as the wolf is ripped off of me, taking strips of my armor with it.

Wrex had charged shield first into the wolf, throwing it off me.

I gasp in pain as I struggle to breathe. Several howls pierce the air from all around us.

“AMBUSH!” Gut yells as several gray shapes emerge from the brush.

“Protect the chieftain!” Wrex yells as five of the warriors takes up position in a circle around me. My eyes swivel around the battlefield as I try to take in my surroundings.

I count a dozen gray wolves surrounding us. Wrex fights a wolf that is twice as large as the others off to the side, while Gut, the two fighters, the scout and the remaining warrior defend our non-combatants.

My goblins shout in anger at the approaching wolves, trying to deter their advance. The wolves growl angrily in return as they approach slowly, trying to find an opening to attack. We are outnumbered and out of position. Fear builds in me as I realise I ran right into a trap. My forces are split in three groupings, and we are severely outnumbered.

I find myself at the center of the fight. The smart move is to try and regroup with one of the other groups. The problem is, If I move over towards Gut and the workers, I will leave Wrex alone to be picked off by the wolves. And, if I go to assist Wrex, the wolves will pounce on Gut and the workers, killing them all off.

The logical choice-

No, do you know what? Fuck the logic.

I grab my crossbow and loose a bolt towards the neck of one of the wolves threatening Gut’s group. My shot is like a starting pistol, triggering the wolves as they all pounce at once.

Gut immediately throws a [Fire Blast] into the thickest concentration of wolves, setting three of them on fire in a firestorm of destruction. Several howls of battle comes from my warriors as they charge at the incoming wolves.

The battlefield turns into chaos at once. Teeth and claws clash with copper maces and spears as the two unyielding sides fight for their life in a fit of fury. I waste no time reloading my crossbow and taking quick shots every time I can.

I hit one of the wolves in the side. The bolt causes the wolf to yelp in surprise. The momentary distraction is all my goblins need as a warrior plunges his dagger between the wolf’s ribcage.

Off to the side, Gut throws out [Fireball]s at an uncanny speed. He cackles in glee as another wolf is set ablaze. He waste no time preparing another shot before the wolf has even hit the ground.

His manic laughter causes the nearby wolves to flinch. Two of them turn in fear at the sight of their burning packmember.

A goblin shrieks in pain as two wolves charge him from two sides.He falls over as the wolves tear into his exposed chest. I loose a bolt at one of the wolves taking a chunk out of the fallen goblin’s arm, piercing the wolf through its skull. The remaining wolf howls in pain as two of my goblins pierce its side with spears.

The battle turns in our favor. Three more wolves have fallen to the combined effort of my warriors. There are only two heavily damaged wolves left, excluding the larger alpha wolf that battles Wrex.

Wrex isn’t faring too well.

He has a large gash across his left foot, forcing him to rely more on blocking the large wolf with his shield rather than dodge. His helmet has been knocked off and his lip is swollen. Several cuts and bruises litter his body; but, the wolf fares little better. Its left fang has been chipped, and a large cut has blinded its right eye. However, it seems to have the advantage as Wrex is panting heavily, no doubt caused by his smaller frame and the heavy impacts against his shield.

I raise my crossbow and take careful aim. The wolf dances around Wrex, trying to find an opening. I loose the bolt, intending to strike its back legs. The wolf’s ear twitches at the sudden snap of my crossbow and he jumps into the air, expertly dodging my shot.

“NO!” Wrex shouts in fury. “Stay out of it! He’s mine!” He roars as he swings wide at the alpha, forcing it back further.

“Come here you filthy flea-ridden bag of scabs. I’ll take your other eye!” He roars as he steps in for a thrust with his arm extended. The wolf dodges to the side before he quickly lunges towards Wrex’s exposed side.

I hold my breath as I watch his fangs close in on Wrex. I can see a faint grin on Wrex’s face as he smashes his elbow into the side of the alpha’s head, knocking it brutally aside. Wrex goes for an overhead slash and tears open a large gash across the alpha’s back leg.

“Now we’re even.” Wrex laughs as he regains his position. A bloodthirsty grin plastered across his rugged face.

The alpha growls in anger as it surveys the battleground. All of his pack has already fallen. My remaining warriors have already surrounded the fighting pair, waiting for the command to strike the alpha down.

The wolf snarls as he accepts his fate. His eyes lock onto Wrex, intending to bring down his prey in an act of defiance before his end. He couldn’t run away even if he. The large gash on his leg crippling him.

He gathers his remaining strength in his back legs, making one final lunge at his opponent. Wrex bends his knees and tilts his [Steel Buckler] against his thigh, bracing for impact. He knows fully that this battle to a close.

The wolf jumps high, his paws slamming into the top of Wrex’s shield. The forceful impact causes Wrex to slightly lose his footing. He tries to regain his footing as the alpha pushes himself over the shield, striking his jaw towards Wrex’s unprotected head. His teeth find purchase on Wrex’s left ear, ripping out a good chunk of it.

Howling in pain, Wrex twists his body, causing the wolf to slam into the ground. A short yelp of pain escapes its lips. Without dropping the beat, Wrex lunges himself forwards, sliding his cutlass into the wolfs’ neck. The alpha’s body spasm once before going still.

I release a breath of relief as my goblins start cheering.

Panting heavily, Wrex slumps to the ground. A fierce grin on his face. He did it. The little bastard actually did it. I step forwards to congratulate him when a blue window appears in front of my face.

Quest Completed!

You have completed a general Minor Quest!

Objective:

Wipe out the pack of wolves

Reward:

A moderate amount of Resources

A moderate amount of Experience Points

12 Summon Points

Beast race Gained: Gray Forest Wolf

1 personalized mount: Gray Alpha Wolf

----------

Congratulations!

You are now level 7.

You have 5 unassigned attribute points.

I barely manage to read through the notification before a bright flash of light illuminates the surrounding forest. When the light clears, the area around the battle site of the alpha wolf has changed. There’s a decent pile of leather, ore and food stacked high, as well as a few pieces of copper weapons and basic leather armor.

That’s not what catches my eye though.

The fallen alpha wolf has come back to life. He stands above his own corpse, seemingly uncaring that only seconds ago he had a sword embedded in his throat. His eyes are locked onto me.

My soldiers tense up as Wrex takes a step forward, challenging the wolf.

“Back for more, dog? I’ll beat you down so bad your pups pups will feel it.” He growls at the wolf.

The wolf gives him a sideways glance and snarls in response. His eyes move back over towards me. We stare at one another for a moment before the wolf lowers his head. Another blue window appears.

Would you like to name your [Gray Alpha Wolf]?

YES/NO

Warning! Selecting NO will result in a name being chosen from a random name generator suitable to your race and previously chosen names.

Oh. My. God.

“Don’t attack it! It’s friendly!” I shout at Wrex who has already raised his cutlass to strike the wolf down.

He hesitates, but steps down. Raising his shield while not taking his eyes off the wolf in front of him.

“You can’t be serious, Chief. That bastard just tried to kill you.”

“Yeah, but he is with us now. So stand down. He won’t hurt us.”

“You can’t trust this dog, Chief. It will tear your throat out the first opportunity it gets.” He sneers at the wolf.

“I said stand down Wrex.” I say firmly.

He reluctantly lower his weapon, still staring at the wolf.

Thrilled at the de-escalation of the situation, I focus my attention back towards the wolf and the message I received. Holy shit. I get my own wolf! How cool is that? And I get to name him?

The wolf is a sight in itself to behold. It’s a large wolf, as tall as I am. Okay, perhaps it’s not a huge wolf. But for a goblin, it’s feels like a horse. His fur is matted gray, with large claws at each of his four paws. His sharp blue eyes glints of intelligence, and four large fangs protrude from a set of sharp teeth. It seems like he kept the wound over his right eye, and one of his fangs is still chipped. It gives the wolf a nice look of authenticity.

Holy crap, he looks awesome!

My eyes move back over to the last segment of the message. Random name generator. I’m not falling for that shit again. I still cringe every time I think about ‘Gob’. My instinct tells me to name him Scarface, but it just feels like the wrong name for a wolf. After mulling over it for a while, I decide on a proper name.

Scarfang.

…

Shut up. It sounds awesome.

The wolf - Scarfang, slowly walks towards me. Wrex steps in front of him, blocking the path.

“Not one step closer, mutt.” He warns the wolf.

“Wrex, stand down. Let him pass.” I sigh.

Scarfang snorts and moves past Wrex. Wrex scowls at him menacingly. Letting the wolf pass without incident.

I soon come face to face with Scarfang, observing him from up close. He looks menacing; but, there is something in his eyes that tells me that he means me no harm. The moment feels very tense as everyone stares at the wolf.

...

“Who’s a good boy?” I grin while I scratch him behind the ear.

The wolf looks surprised for a moment, but soon lets out a smile to my gentle touch. His tongue extends from his mouth and his tail starts wagging back and forth. He clearly enjoys it.

“Yeah, you’re a good boy.” I chuckle.

I never had a dog of my own, but I always liked them. There isn’t a creature on earth with more loyalty and genuine happiness than a dog. They aren’t like those asshole cats. Selfish little furballs that secretly plot to murder you in your sleep or ruin all your furniture.

“Seems like you made a new ally, reckless one.” Gut growls from the side.

I turn to face him, beaming with happiness.

“Perhaps he can do a better job at protecting you. Because you are clearly unfit for the task.” He grunts at me.

Oh. Right.

“Err, yeah. This didn’t go quite as planned… did it?” I smile weakly.

He glares at me. “Didn’t go as planned? Who knows with you? It seems like your plan mostly involves you nearly killing yourself every chance you get. I swear, if we weren’t here to constantly save your idiotic-.”

“That’s not completely fair.” I interrupt him. “How could I have known it would have been an ambush?”

“By using that thick head of yours. I swear, you are more dense than a dwarf. You should know better than to rush ahead without an escort. Do you really fancy yourself a grand strategist? Because I’ve seen better thinking from a halfwit gnoll.”

Okay he got me with that one. Truth be told, it seems like I suck quite a bit more at group strategies than I assumed I would. It’s far easier to plan for things when I only have myself to worry about, you know?

This game… It’s unusual. I’ve never played a game where I’m one of the most powerless units. Sure, I have some fancy skills and abilities; but, I’m nothing but just another goblin when you break down the stats. I have good aim with the crossbow, and I pride myself upon it; but, there are just too many moving pieces in this game.

It’s always been me. My strategy. My stats. My accomplishments. Do you think those skills are easily transferable to leading groups of units? No. Perhaps a little bit, if I played a classic strategy game where I control the units from a computer screen. But not here. Not when I’m a single character. There is no chance in hell for me to get a decent overview of any situation. There are too many unknowns. A lack of information.

“Yeah. I guess you are right.” I ponder. “I’ll leave my safety in your hands from here on out Gut.” I smile.

The old mage grunts in agreement.

“I’m glad you finally see sense, reckless one.” He nods. “Now that we got that cleared, I would like to offer up some recommendations on how to best escort-”

“Yeah that sounds great!” I interrupt the old mage. I grab hold of Scarfang’s neck and swing myself on top of his back. “I trust you completely on this.” I laugh as I shove my heels into Scarfang’s side. The large wolf starts running back toward the base.

“See ya back at the base!” I shout across my shoulder as I ride away on Scarfang’s back through the forest. I let the cold forest wind gently wash over my face as we quickly ride through the forest. The adrenaline still hasn’t left my body from the fight earlier, and I don’t intend to lose the effect quite yet.

We pick up speed as we hear Gut’s loud shouts and curses quickly fade in the distance.

What a great day this is!