Surface- Crecents Plains Region

Free City Alliance- Athesas

Alliance Council Chamber

"What is the meaning of this? Why was I not informed of this meeting? Being a founding member of the Free City Alliance means that it is mandatory that I be informed of any Council meeting." Lord Greyson cried out as he entered the chamber.

Lord James Devinshire smiled at him, "Thank you for coming here, Lord Greyson. We were about to summon you as representative of Uldon to answer for your cities actions."

"What actions are those Lord Devinshire?" Lord Greyson.

"Why your cities unilateral decision to support the invasion of another foreign power." Lord Devinshire stated.

Lord Greyson nervously looked around, not even his long-term allies looked at him. His city had overstepped and he knew it and there was no going back now. "Very well, you have not offered any justification or reasoning of why your city did this without informing the Free City Alliance, therefore your city will suffer the consequences. As of today, the City of Uldon is no longer a member of the Free City Alliance. You have one hour to depart the city, Lord Greyson." Lord Devinshire. A pair of guards came up and grabbed him, dragging him out of the chamber.

Surface- Thunderous Hills Region

Free Lands- Blue River

Kalthas Bridge

Jacob watched as the corpses that had been looted were separated from the rest. They would all eventually be transported back to the City of Eternal Night. Of the 6,000 soldiers and mercenaries they had faced, the Legionnaires had managed to kill near 5,000 of them and capture nearly 600 more. On overwhelming victory only because they had managed to surprise them. Without that edge, the body count would have been far higher than the 278 dead and twice that critically wounded.

"How are you doing my King?" Nadal asked as he approached the ring of Dawn Guard.

"Better than all their dead. Have our cavalry returned?" Jacob asked the Drow as he continued to watch as they piled bodies in stacks of 50 before burning them to the bone. Then the bones would be transferred to carts for transport back to the City of Eternal Night.

"Yes my king, all cavalry patrols have returned, no sightings of enemy troops have been reported. We have a picket of Scouts and Rangers a half a mile out, if any are found, we will know almost immediately." Nadal stated.

Jacob nodded, "Good, did all the wounded get clear? I don't want anyone straining themselves and ending up hurting worse than they already are."

The Drow smiled for the first time EVER. "Yes my king, all the injured have been sent to Ineford or the capitol. When they recover fully, then they will go back to their units." Nadal reported.

"Good, did we pull all the corpses from the river? I am a man of my word and..." Jacob was interrupted by the General.

"Sir, you fought a battle and been helping clean up for the last 12 hours. Go home, take a bath, eat, then sleep. All your guildmates have gone home, you sent your wife home hours ago, your War Party is gone as well. It's obvious you are exhausted, go home Sir." Nadal implored him.

Jacob shook his head and almost stumbled because of it. "No!! I will not leave my soldiers here outside the Empires borders without me. Once we are done here, you have my word General I will go home as well."

Surface- Valley of Origins Region

Empire of Night- City of Eternal Night

Palace of Night- Master Suite

Jacob came awake screaming, the last thing he remembered of the dream was the mercenaries of the Slavers Union tearing him apart. "Relax love, relax. You are here with me, safe. All your soldiers are home and safe, relax." Cathrine gently hugged him and cooed in his ear.

"Sorry, I am just...bad dreams. I thought the battles would be bad enough, but the cleanup was worse. Some of those so-called 'soldiers' were hardly even old enough to bed a woman. They should never have been there at the battlefield.' Jacob told her. She pulled him into a tighter hug. 'What happened, the last thing I remember was looting and cleaning up the dead bodies."

Cathrine frowned and studied him, "Well let's see, you spent 14 hours working on the clean up after the battle before you finally collapsed in exhaustion. The Dawn Guard dragged you back here even though you woke up halfway to the portal and almost started fighting them swearing that you had to help your people. General Nadal managed to convince you that all the work was done and all the troops were back home. That was about 10 hours ago, you were brought back here to the palace, I bathed you and got you into bed. Nadal came back about 6 hours with the last of the troops, he up here and personally reported to me that everyone alive or dead had been pulled out of there. All your people are home husband." She reported and Jacob nodded, his body was still exhausted and a myriad of Alerts and De-Buffs were waiting for him but he needed sleep. Five hours later Jacob managed to drag himself from oblivion of sleep. It was 2 hours before sunset, but Miss Dotts would be up already and he was in desperate need of food, blood, and drink.

Alert...

De-Buff Malnourished: Coordination and Accuracy are reduced by 50%, Skills/Abilities have an 80% chance of not activating (Duration until you consume Food, Effects will increase with time)

De-Buff Thirst: Health regeneration decreased by 90% (Duration until you consume Blood, Effects will increase with time)

De-Buff Dehydrated: Resource Regeneration decreased by 90% (Duration until you consume water, Effects will increase with time)

De-Buff Unwashed: Due to lack of bathing habits, Charisma has been decreased by 50% and sales from stores have been increased by 25% (Duration, until you bathe, effects will increase with time)

Alert...

Jacob hobbled over to the door despite the aches and pains, the Heart Guards took his request and told him to go relax and that they would send in the food as soon as it arrived. Jacob nodded and thanked them.

Real World- Greater New York Conglomerate

Blackrock HQ

Mark was sweating, everything had been planned dow too a T, yet one battle might have thrown their whole time table out the window. "He will see you know."

Mark smiled at the secretary and thanked her as he headed into the CEOs office. The man was waiting and staring at Mark as he entered. "Thank you for coming so quickly, Mark. I am sure you have been busy."

"Yes sir, the forums have exploded with questions concerning the Empire of Night and specifically the Immortals that are already part of that faction. So we have been doing a lot of damage control and basic Q&A, but nothing that will spoil anything for the expansion." Mark stated.

"How did we not see this coming?" The CEO asked.

Mark winced, "The local A.I. governing the city of Uldon sent out a general call to arms for any Immortals. Paid them each 10 Gold to increase the number of invaders, to give them experience, and to make it more 'fun' for them. So when Jacob ambushed the invaders, those Immortals got an eyeful of what his army was capable and what Immortal Vampires could do. Those that were smart recorded the whole battle from start until they died. None of the Immortals survived and only a few hundred of the Locals managed to escape, Since then they have posted the battle on social media, the Forums, and a couple of mainstreams are also highlighting the Battle of Blue River."

The CEO nodded, "What do you think we should do about that?"

Mark frowned, "Get ahead of it, launch Jacobs stream now. I know we planned on doing it a week before the launch of the patch, but I think launching his stream now will help us and him both short and long term."

The CEO smiled, "Agreed. That is exactly what the PR guys said I just wanted to know if you would support it. Ok, get on the line with him and let him know we are launching his stream. I know he is busy running an empire, but he needs to stay ahead of it so we can continue to give the masses what they want. Explain to him, it means more money for him. Now once his three month long terms immersion is over we have agreed to put him in the Black Spire here in New York. For security purposes and because we want him to be able to work as much as he can unimpeded by the public, competitors, and other problems."

Suddenly the phone rang and the CEO immediately took the call. Mark ignored it for the most part but project Lazerous has mentioned again which did catch Marks attention. It was a big secret project even more important and secret then the Rise of the Vampire scenario had caused.

"Sorry about that, so everything is on track in-game? The Sparks of Chaos have been introduced, have any Immortals grabbed one up and jumped on that bandwagon yet?" The CEO asked.

Mark shook his head, "No, most Immortals that encounter them try to destroy the Sparks of Chaos or put it away for a rainy day. Others are trying to contain them, Jacob has already given some key players information about them and the fourth Primordial. Can I ask, how exactly is he supposed to conquer the Dark Lands?"

The CEO smiled, "Where there is a will, there is a way. It will probably turn into a race to beat the clock, but I got faith in the boy, he has survived and thrived this long. Now get out of here and let the 'king' know about us releasing his stream early."

Surface- Valley of Origins Region

Empire of Night- City of Eternal Night

Palace of Night- Master Suite

Jacob relaxed as he read through the various reports, he still had some Alerts from the battle and he had to read the after-action report as well, but he was putting that off while he caught up on everything that had piled up while they were in the field. "Your majesty, you sent for me?" Nadal reported as he stepped next too him.

Cathrine mumbled and stirred but a few soft words and Jacob running his hand up and down her arm got her to settle back into a deeper sleep. "Sorry, she has been dealing with me for the last day and the fallout from the battle. She needs her rest now. Yes, how are the Black Blades?"

Nadal frowned, "Relatively intact, only two dozen lightly wounded among them. No deaths surprisingly considering it was a standup fight and not a hit and run engagement. They will be fully recovered within the next 24 hours."

"Good, that raid we have been planning, let's finish fleshing out the plan. Bring Darren into it so we can include his Rogue teams into it. The Black Blades will be the primary unit on the raid, but Darren and his people can help. I want a finale plan in the next 8 hours and I want to launch the raid within 24 hours. Sound good General? Can we do it?" Jacob asked the Drow.

The man nodded, "Easily. I will contact the Immortal Darren and get to work on the plans, my king. Will there be anything else?"

Jacob frowned and shook his head. "Nadal, thank you for keeping your head and making sure I got home. I do appreciate the effort." Jacob told the Drow who simply offered him a little smile and bowed before leaving. Odd fellow Jacob thought as he brought up the Alerts.

Alert...

Through battle and adversity, you have gained....142,327 Experience.

Alert...

Alert...

Your PK counter has increased by...2(Currently 3)

Alert...

Secret Kingdom Quest Completed: Northern Aggression

Description: Invaders from the North launched an invasion of your sovereign territory with the sole purpose to conquer and enslave. Instead of cowering behind your walls, you waited in ambush and annihilated your enemies army. (Dude, that was kinda blood-thirsty, but it was fucking EPIC!!). Not only did you destroy your enemies, but you were cognizant of your environment.

Rewards: 50,000 Kingdom Experience, Friendly status with the Niaids of the Blue River, Kingdom Effect Ambusher unlocked Spoiler: Spoiler

Ambusher: When your military forces strike from Ambush, their base attack damage is increased by 5% and the mobility of your troops is increased by 10%.

War Quest Issued: They started it, but YOU will finish it!!!

Description: Your northern neighbors have invaded your territory and killed your troops. Make an example of them by invading their cities and conquering their people.

Uldon Conquered: ---

Ordgan Conquered: ---

Rewards: 100,000 Experience per city, 1,000 Gold per city, Unknown

Kingdom Quest Issued: Imperial Expansion

Description: Due to your neighbor's actions, you can now expand northward with justification in your actions. Conquer. Build. Unite.

Uldon Conquered: ---

Ordgan Conquered: ---

Rewards: 50,000 Kingdom Experience per City, Unknown

Regional Alert...

The Fortress of Saelmere has been claimed by the...Empire of Night.

Regional Alert...

That was the fourth fortress for the Region, that left only two more for them to repair to reclaim them all. The harbor defenses were under construction, once they were completed Jacob would feel better about having the docks used and opening a water-based trade route to the west, and maybe someday to the east as well. He dismissed his thoughts when he noticed he had a message from the Devs that was hours old. Jacob immediately pulled it up. Spoiler: Spoiler Jacob/Kevin

DUDE!!!

You threw a serious beat down on those boys from Ordgan. If you have not figured it out by now, the Immortals that were a part of the invading army recorded the whole thing and have since posted it on social media, the forums, and some mainstream gaming media is even starting to pick it up.

Now because of this, Management wants to launch your streaming now, not in a couple of weeks. It will mean more exposure for you and eventually your guild. So batten down the hatches, it's about to get worse.

Finally, due to your status in-game and the contract you have with Blackrock, the CEO himself offered to put you up in the Black Spire here in New York. You have time to decide my friend, personally, I would take advantage of the offer. Don't worry about the cost, the company will take care of it."

Your friendly neighborhood Developer,

Mark Guild Officer Chat...

'So, my contact said we are famous in gaming news.' Jacob

'Yep, Shadow Daggers are surprised we took down that army alone without help.' Darren

'We might not be the biggest or most bad-assed mofos, but we are not scrubs.' Anastasia

'Just make sure people don't respond or say anything stupid. I am sure some of our guildmates are going to think about it. DON'T. Put the hammer down, if necessary call a guild meeting for everyone and I will be the bad guy.' Jacob

'Don't worry about it. We might be a lower level now, but everyone has experience with this sort of thing.' Yilme

'Just saying, put a clear line in the sand so if anyone crosses it...Now time for us to expand. 50 like we planned. Start polling everyone for names and look at people that we invited before and vetted and see if they are willing to accept this time. If its a no, we won't offer again.' Jacob

'ON IT!! Like white on rice.' Yilme

'Da, comrade General!!' Darren

Jacob chuckled as he closed the window. Morale was high in the guild between the victory against the invaders and gaining some fame, Jacob just hoped they did not get to where anyone high enough in the food chain wanted to take them down a peg or two.