Guild Wars 2

LANDS OF CHAOS

It has been 21 days since the Gates of Madness opened and its soldiers spilled onto our lands. 21 days since the Henge of Denravi Kingdom unleashed its warriors upon us. 21 days since our soldiers have fought and died for their friends, families, homes, and country. This month long war has been harsh, unforgiving, and yet even in this chaos I have come to respect our foes and I have learned some valuable strategies from them.

My name is Acium and I will tell you the tale of this 21 day war, but first I wish to tell you a little about myself. I started as a frontline soldier for my country and have worked hard to gain the trust and loyalty of the people I now command on the battlefield. I have made many friends along the way, and have even met some people that are quite special to me. I have my brother and my cousin who have fought beside me. My friends Bllade, Prosecute, Lycia, Milan, Rhaina, and many, many more that I see out there every day giving their lives for Darkhaven. Also to my friends who have left Darkhaven to start anew in a different land. You helped me more then you know. If not for you I do not believe I would be where I am today without you. Even though you left us here you are still my friends and I hope to see you again. Now that I have shared a little about myself I will now share our story.

Day 1: The Opening of the Gate

As I made my rounds of the tower to check the upkeep of the siege, the moral of the guards, and to, in all honesty, stretch my legs, it dawned on me that, if I was to be honest, this tower duty was really boring. It has been months since our last enemy sighting to the south where the great Gate of Madness lies. The gate has not been open since I have been stationed here in Blue Briar but, of course, you get one report of an ‘unusual’ looking man and your put on full alert. Staying on full alert for four months can break a man, make them paranoid at any sound and can make you see things that aren’t there.

As I made it to the top of the gate the wind started to pick up and the sky started to darken. It was unusual for this time of year, especially from the direction it was coming from. “Sir? What’s going on?” said a startled voice from behind. “I’m not sure Elenteal. But I don’t like it. Go rouse all the guards. Man the siege.”I said in a gruff voice. Something wasn’t right about this wind. It wasn’t just cold, it was ominous. Like it was pulling at your insides and making you want to go in the other direction. In the back of the tower the Dolyaks began to misbehave in there stables. Something definitely wasn’t right. “Chogan go calm the Doly…” I was cut off when a high pitched creek filled the air followed by a loud boom. “Sir… The gate, i-its opening…” said a scared guardsman.

As we sat there watching this Gate that had lied dormant for years began to move. “Elenteal! Get over here!” I yelled over the loud cracking of the Gate. “Sir?!” said Elenteal as he came running up. I wasn’t taking any chances in this. If what I feared was about to happen then I wanted High Command to know about it. “Run to Dreaming Bay! Let them know what’s coming!” I yelled as loud as I could above this noise. “But sir! What’s happening!?” he said with an obvious scared voice. “Their coming Elenteal… and were going to need everything to stop them…” I said it so quietly that even I couldn’t hear it. But thankfully Elenteal could read lips and instantly knew what he had to do. He jumped over the side of the wall and ran to Bluevale Refuge to warn them of the coming danger, and from there he would head to Dreaming Bay to let Wulf know of the coming danger. We would need him for this if we are to hold. Even though I sent him it would still take them an hour or so to muster everyone for a proper defense force.

“Alright listen up! I want my LTs in the Lords Room for a briefing right now! Everyone else keep a loo…” I had been screaming at my men when silence fell over the valley. The Gate had stopped. Was it time already? This is too soon… “INCOMING!!!” yelled a guardsman. I looked south to see a hail of boulders being hurled at us… Dear Gods there’s so many… “Take cover!!!” I screamed at the top of my lungs. Boom! One after another they struck the small fortified tower. It felt like the earth its self was trying to flee from this assault. The ground heaved and the walls shook. My men on the walls were sent flying backwards as boulders struck and exploded. Think Acium…think, I need to think… “Got it! Elementalists on me!” I yelled as I ran up to the top of the walls. Looking back, I couldn’t help but smile as four men ran behind me with grim looks on their faces. They were scared, just like me. But also like me, they were dead set on defending this tower.

As we reached the spot where the boulders were hitting I scanned for more incoming. None yet, good. “Alright listen up; when the boulders are coming down on us I want you to use your magic to deflect them. I’m not a magician so I don’t know what you would use for that but I trust you to find out what to do. Got it?” I looked each of them in the eye as I told them what to do. They would get the job done, that I was certain of. “Sir, look out!” yelled one of them as he jumped into me, knocking me down. Instantly he held up his two daggers and flung waves of fire at the arrows, incinerating them on the spot. “Whoa… Thanks Yung.” We shared a brief smile as another stepped up and pointed with his staff. “Here they come sir… Don’t worry, command the others. We will be here.” He smiled at me, as did the others. “I know you will.” I stood up and smiled as well. I couldn’t be blessed with better soldiers I thought as I ran back to the guard shack at the bottom of the tower.

I looked at my remaining men, so few had survived, I started with 50 and now I only have 24 men left. 26 men dead on the first barrage, such a deadly enemy. “Alright listen up; I want the Rangers on the walls covering the Eles. Engineers I want those cannons operational and if you can, set up some mortar sites and man them. The rest of you come with me. Were going on a scouting party.” As I told my men what to do they began to shuffle around. All that was left for me was six people. Let’s hope we don’t get ambushed out there.

As we stepped outside the towers I felt my body tense and my senses heighten. I gripped my sword as I took off towards the small lodging area in the far south, Victors Lodge. As we rounded the cliff and found ourselves at the edge of the river I noticed that all the Skelk in the area had disappeared. Even the great Wurg that roamed this side of the mountain had vanished. This was already turning out to be bad.

I halted my men on the sand bar next to the river, Victors Lodge was on fire. As we look on at the fire I notice the bodies of its residents strewn about on the other side of the river. They had tried to flee to Blue Briar but didn’t make it… Anger filled my body as I looked on. “How could anyone find any honor in this? They was unarmed and no threat.” I said sadly.”

As I turned to look at my men I noticed ten soldiers behind us. Where had they come from? “Behind us!” I yelled as I unsheathed my sword. The men in the back turned quickly to meet the enemy who, out of nowhere, vanished. “Sir I know this spell, it’s called Shadow Refuge. They are still he…” he fell silent as an arrow lodged its self in his chest and he fell backwards, instantly the enemy reappeared all around us. I lunged at one of the enemies, a huge Norn with a giant sword that sounded like a chainsaw. I fought with all my strength against this giant of a man. His swings were powerful but wild, there was no method to his swing and he was already breathing hard. I parried a downward thrust and let it slip off my weapon and into the dirt to where it jabbed deep into it.

I then jumped up and kneed this warrior in the face, knocking him backwards. Now was my chance! I leaped forward and caught him in the side with a swing of my sword. As he dropped to one knee I swung around with my blade and rounded up behind him, I brought the sword down and cut his head clean off. My foe had fallen, now for the others.

I look up and noticed two of my men dead, one bleeding heavily but still fighting, and the other three fighting on. As for the enemy, only one of them lay dead and that was my opponent. “These guys were strong” I thought as I ran to help my bleeding ally. I got to his side just as one of his opponents came up from behind him. I pulled out my Focus and sent a blast of light at the enemy and knocked him back, sending him rolling to the side. I then jumped in front of the next and parried his blade to the side and jabbed my left fist into his stomach and sent another blast straight into him at point blank range. He flew backwards and landed on his neck. A loud crack filled the air and he lay still. The other assailant had gotten back up and was almost on me before I realized it; luckily my ally had jumped in and had pierced the enemy in the back. His blade went clean threw to the other side. “Thanks for the help Commander. Now…I think I’ll just… Sit down for a minute…” he said as he dropped to one knee and fell face first into the dirt. He was breathing and would survive.

I turned my attention elsewhere. Chogan, a stocky man was fighting off two enemies at once and doing well. “He doesn’t need me.” I thought. I looked at the other two who had paired up and were now fighting against five opponents. “That’s where I’m needed.” I thought as I ran towards them. Instantly two peeled off and ran at me and all I could think was “Bring it on.” as I switched to my great sword. I picked up speed and swung my sword in a half circle as I slid in the dirt trying to stop myself. My sword glowed and flung out two spectral swords that embedded themselves into the two oncoming enemies. They stopped in shock and wondered why there wasn’t any pain – at least that was the look they had. I smiled crookedly at their faces and jabbed my sword into the air. Instantly their bodies were flung my direction, landing hard in the dirt at my feet. I brought my sword down with such force that the air its self split. Boom! My sword struck the ground between the two and exploded with power that flung their bodies violently to each side.

As I recovered from putting more force behind that strike then I intended too, I looked at the two assailants. One lay dead with and arm twisted violently to the side, while the other struggled back to her feet. “You’re pretty strong to survive that.” I said as I switched back to my single handed sword and focus and smiled at her. She looked up at me and just stared. She radiated pure hatred as we looked into each other’s eyes. “You’re pretty kitteny if you think that an attack as…weak as that would have killed me” she said as she struggled to stand. As she straightened and pointed her sword in my direction she coughed up blood, again falling to her knees.

I stared at her, wondering why they had come here. I had almost thought to ask but decided asking an enemy why they attacked us would be a dumb question. So instead, I decided to end this. I planted my left foot forward and leaned heavily on my right foot, bending it slightly, as I brought my sword up level to my mouth and pointed it directly at her. What I was about to do would drain me of energy but I had to end this fight now and get back to the tower.

She took a step forward, then another, and another. I leaned back, and teleported right into her with my sword embedded in her chest. Her eyes widened as she looked at my face, they began to glaze over as she whispered three words to me that sent a shiver down my spine “Just the beginning.” I stared, my body filling with sadness and regret, as her lifekitten dy fell to the ground. But above those feelings came another, stronger, feeling: Fear.

“Ah!” screamed another enemy from behind as he fell to the ground with a huge hole in his chest. “That was Chogan’s last enemy it looked like” I thought as I watched him run across to help the other two fight the last remaining invaders. They don’t need my help at the moment. Besides, Chogan will end this.

I sat down, next to the women’s lifekitten dy, her eyes were still open. I reached over and closed them; she had seen enough blood for a day. I looked around at my fallen men, men that I have served in that tower with for awhile now. If this was just a taste of what was to come I wanted no part in it… Yet, I knew that I would have to be there. Not only just for my men, but for my country, my friends, and family. Victors Lodge will be the last town that is destroyed liked this. I will NOT let them pass Blue Briar.

“Acium! We need to get out of here!” yelled Chogan who was now standing beside me and pointing to the south. Hundreds of people in dark blue armor were standing there. Watching us. Have they been there the whole time? Why didn’t they join in to help them? Regardless of that answer we needed to get out of here, now. “Make for the tower! Quickly!” I ordered my men. As I took a step towards the tower I stopped and looked back at my fallen men. I wouldn’t make it very far if I attempted to carry them and they charged me. “I’ll be back for you when I can. I promise.” I said under my breath as I turned and ran.

As we made it back to the tower I looked up and the sun was behind the mountains in the west now. It was getting dark and no help has showed yet. Though now as I look out I see hundreds upon hundreds of camp fires to the south. If help didn’t arrive, we wouldn’t be able to hold for long. If Elenteal had been killed on his journey to the Bay then we was already dead. But, we would hold as long as possible. “Sir is Wulf coming with reinforcements?” asked Chogan. As he asked I noticed every soldier looking my way and expecting a hopeful answer, one that I couldn’t give with any certainty. “Wulf will be here for us. But for now, we hold. It seems like day one of this war has ended and we have lost many friends. Tonight we rest; I’ll rotate in with the watches as well. You guys did well today. Better than any commander could ever hope for. I will need you guys to the end. Your strength is my strength and if you fall, so to shall I, and with us this tower. Now I’m going to tell you, I will not let this tower fall without a fight. Are you with me?” I said, probably more hopeful than I should have. No smart man would stand their ground with so few, but here I was asking these men, who have fought hard today, to do just that. “Sir. We are with you to the end.” said Chogan with a ferocious smile on his face that was mirrored to all standing here now.

After looking them all in the eyes and seeing that my determination inside each and every one of them I smiled. Not a grim smile but for the first time today a truly happy smile. “Then tomorrow we fight. To the last man, to the last stone, to the top step of this tower we fight! We will hold on to Blue Briar with the ferocity of a Dragon, and when they speak of us they will know that so few stood their ground against an army of thousands!” I yelled as I unsheathed my sword which was mirrored by the others. I hold mine out in front of me and begin to talk again. “On this day brothers we fought well. Tomorrow we will see this enemy face to face, sword to sword, and we will show them that Darkhaven will not falter in the face of thousands. I will be there with you my brothers and sisters; I will bleed with you and for you. Know that tomorrow when hell breaks loose, I will be right next to you. Now, get some rest. I’ll take first watch.”

if anyone wants to be added. message me

Nice! Makes want to go in and play now. Glad its reset night!

As a player on GoM, I’m enjoying this story and can’t wait to read more. I could almost picture people I’ve seen on GoM in your descriptions. Fun stuff.

I tried to put people in as I seen them in the game. It’s been quiet some time since i’ve played against GoM though and since i was deployed after finishing chapter 2 i forgot even more. I’m currently working on chapter 3.

^.^