Hey guys, I have some bad news for you all. Due to my poor internet connection, I've decided to hold off on updating Heroes of Rune, or any of my stories until the new year. Please respect my decision, and have a Happy Holidays.
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Okay, I'm messing with you all. My internet may be bad right now, but it's better than no internet! Ladies and Gentlemen, welcome to the final battle of Heroes of Rune!
I can't believe that after all this time we've finally gotten to this point. It's been a long time coming. I hope you enjoy it.
Roll Story!
"Run!" Sharpslefae shouted. It was a word that she never thought she'd say in Rune. Run suggested a sense of urgency; a sense that something was nor right. If the battle was lost and they needed to get away, it was always 'fall back'; a 'retreat' at most. Those at least suggested that they were going back to a place more defensible than their current one. It suggested that the battle was not yet over; that it could still be won.
The battle today was very much over. When they realized that the Hackers could now hurt them again, players began deserting in droves. A snap decision was made between the various guilds that it was for the best that they call it quits and get everyone off. They would lose Rune, but their clan members would be safe.
First they had to log off though. To prevent players from logging out whenever a battle was going bad, their characters stayed in the game for a minute. They could then remove their headsets, but the virus was programmed to hijack all external speakers and play the noise at maximum volume in the event of a player being AFK. This meant that to avoid being hit the players had to get away from the Hackers, and stay away for at least a minute. Easier said than done when the Hackers now had complete control of Rune. Qilin and half of the remaining Coders had elected to stay behind and hold the Hackers at bay until Sharpselfae and the other half of the Coders could set up a perimeter on the walls. It was risky business and they all expected their characters to be killed, and themselves to be knocked out; but not one remaining Coder ran. "We brought this mess on Rune ourselves mam," a severely wounded knight had said when Sharpslefae suggested that he retreat with the guilds. "We dragged this war on too long, hurt too many people. It's only right that we repay them."
Sharpslefae was just finishing up checking the walls when she saw a peculiar sight. Croe was at the last remaining catapult the Hackers had placed on the walls, stacking explosives in the nest of the throwing arm. What was even more peculiar was when he finished, Croe began pushing it to aim at the top of the Keep.
"Croe!" Sharpslefae shouted as she ran towards him. "What the hell are you doing?"
"Hey Sharps!" he called out as he tied a rope around he release lever and clambered into the launching arm himself. "How's it going?"
"Croe, what is this, what are you doing here?" Sharps asked. "You're supposed to be with your friends."
"I got left behind to patch a few things up," Croe answered over the din of the fighting. "By the time I was done, everyone was running. I figured I'd use this catapult and these explosives to get up and help them."
Sharpslefae shook her head. What Croe was attempting, was seriously dangerous. If the explosion didn't kill him, running into the Keep's wall would certainly destroy his core.
"Croe," she pleaded, "Don't do this. You're a scarecrow. Explosions produce fire. You and fire don't mix."
Croe seemed to ponder this point for a moment. "Excellent point Sharps," he said before yanking on the rope and sending himself and the explosives sailing towards the Keep. A moment later, the explosives detonated, producing a fireball so massive that no one in Rune could survive. For a moment, Sharpsefae thought that she saw a smaller fireball streak off from the main explosion, but she dismissed it. Croe just killed himself.
The instant he was launched, Croe ripped open a bag of black powder with his scythe. The fire from the scythe lit the powder immediately on fire and spread the flame to the rest of the explosives. When he was certain that detonation was imminent, Croe pushed off from the explosives and sailed away. Sharps was correct in assuming that he would be killed by the fire from the explosion; he was a scarecrow after all. But Croe didn't need the fire, just the force.
And what a force it was. Croe was sent head over heels through the air, covered in soot, smoking slightly, but heading right towards the opening in the Keep's wall. He straightened out at the last moment and stumbled to a stop right in front of a webbed up Alex.
"Croe!" Alex shouted in surprise.
"Hello GN, looks like you're a little stuck," Croe said.
"We all are, get us out!" Miles yelled at him.
"Not an option." Arachnoid snarled. He shot webbing at Croe, who sliced through it easily with his scythe. He searched the room desperately. Arachnoid wasn't holding his staff, so where was it?
"I assume you're looking for this?" Arachnoid growled. He reached behind his head and grasped something, he pulled at it and the scythe flickered into view. Arachnoid leveled it at Croe and fired a bolt of electricity at him. Croe raised up his own scythe and deflected into the ceiling, creating another gaping hole in the room.
"You do remember that our scythes cancel each other out, right Arachnoid?" Croe asked.
"I remember," Arachnoid said darkly. "Let me even the odds."
The lightning turned red and the faint whine of the Hacker's virus was heard. Croe however, wasn't affected.
"All attacks that come from the scythes that are directed at a wielder of its brother scythe can be canceled out by the scythe itself," Croe recited. "This includes any damage bonuses."
Arachnoid canceled the attack and charged at Croe. Croe being smaller, was able to duck away, causing the Hacker leader to run headfirst into Alex's webbing. Realizing that he was trapped, Arachnoid snarled and released a stream of viral lighting, frying the web to a crisp and freeing Alex.
Alex dropped to the ground and dove for the explosives when the Arachnoid kicked the bag with several of his spider legs at once. The bag went sailing into the pedestal at the center of the room and knocked the orb off of its stand. The orb hit the floor and smashed through, taking the explosives with it.
"No!" Alex cried, but it was too late. Judging from the crashing sounds, the orb was still making its way through each floor. Alex scrambled to the hole just in time to see the orb crash through the final floor and fall towards the ground, not before crushing Axinator with its unnatural weight.
"GN!" Croe called out. He and Arachnoid were dueling it out at the opposite side of the room, hellfire verses virus enhanced lightning. Croe kept trying to edge back towards Miles and Janus, but every time he did, Arachnoid skittered around to face him. "Get them out!"
Alex nodded and sprinted over towards Miles, ducking to avoid a strand of web Arachnoid shot at him. He reached where Miles and ignited the flame edge powerup. Not surprisingly, it had been replaced by the viral aura. Alex cut into web apart, carefully choosing an area that wouldn't put Miles at risk. It was unnecessary; one cut from the viral aura and the web disintegrated, just like Alex's bindings. Miles hit the ground and ran to help Croe. Alex moved to free Janus from the floor but was stopped by Janus' hand.
"Listen," Janus said. "We should probably get out of here. I've been watching the chat, everyone's bugging out. In a few minutes, we'll be the only ones facing the Hackers."
"Then we'd better take him out now," Alex replied. He made another move to cut Janus free but was stopped once more.
"Okay look, if you're serious about not running for it, then you should know something," Janus said. "I did some research on those scythes. They're just like BA's staff. If Arachnoid gets them both, they're bound to him until they're destroyed, or he deletes his account. And together, they're way more than the four of us can handle. They've even got a one use ability that destroys them, and creates a massive explosion. If Croe can get them, it might be enough to set off the other explosives, and crash the game."
"Right, get scythe, blow up castle, save the game. Got it," Alex said. He freed Janus and the two turned just in time to see Miles get thrown into a wall. His health dropped perceptively, and he slumped down, his character stunned.
As Miles began cursing like a sailor, Alex and Janus ran to help Croe. Before they could reach him, Arachnoid caught Croe's scythe and flicked it into the ceiling, where it stuck there quivering slightly. Croe jumped up to grab it, but came up a few feet short. Before he could try again, Arachnoid kicked him into Alex and Janus. The stumbled back and fell in a tangled heap
"This ends now Croe," Arachnoid snarled. "After today, I won't have to worry about you, or any of the Coders ever again. As of this moment, you're dead."
Arachnoid moved towards the Scythe in the ceiling. Alex struggled to untangle himself from Janus and Croe, but with the two of them doing the same, it was chaos. Miles tried to stand up, but his character was still stunned for a few more seconds. It would be over in less than one.
Arachnoid's fingers brushed the scythe when a dark shape crawled from the opening in the wall latched itself onto the Hacker leader. Arachnoid howled in rage as Silent Stealth stabbed both daggers into his back and yanked him to the side. It did no damage, but still moved the Hacker away from the scythe. The Hackers crouched in a defensive pose and launched viral lighting at the thief. Silent Stealth crossed his knifes in an x and deflected the lightning into the scythe into Croe's scythe.
"You," Arachnoid hissed. "I remember you. You were the one that stole from us,"
"That I did," Silent Stealth said. "It seemed only fair since you stole from me."
"I did no such thing," Arachnoid said, swinging his scythe at Silent Stealth's head. He blocked the blow with his knives and slid down the length of the shaft and locked Arachnoid in a stalemate.
"You stole my research!" Silent Stealth shouted. "You stole it and used it to hurt innocent people! I refuse to let that happen again. Not on my watch you prick!"
Arachnoid reared back. "Doctor Helling?" he said, shocked.
"Quite right," Silent Stealth said. He used the momentary distraction to hack down at Arachnoid's hand and lop it off with a single stroke. A new hand grew back immediately, but without the scythe in his hand. Arachnoid roared in outrage and lunged for Silent Stealth, but was stopped by a thick, bulky hand around the throat. Namely, Miles' thick, bulky hand.
"This is for BA you piece of shit!" Miles yelled. He lifted Arachnoid and with one hand, tossed him out of the hole in the wall.
Alex stared in shock. He pushed a finger under his headset and rubbed his eyes to make certain he saw that right. Arachnoid was gone, dead. "Holy crap," he said. "I think we actually killed him."
Miles looked out the hole and swore. "Not for long," he barked. "He's using those stupid spider legs of his to climb up the freaking wall!"
"Then there is no time!" Silent Stealth said. He tossed the lighting scythe to Croe before reaching up and grabbing Croe's scythe and handing it to him as well. "Croe, you know what has to be done."
Croe took the scythe and looked at them in awe. "But if I use the power, I'll have to go through the quest all over again!" he pleaded.
"Then we go through it again," Janus said. "Us, as a team."
"A team," Croe murmured. He looked up at the hole where a spider leg had latched on to the edge. Miles stabbed it with his sword, and the leg retreated, only to be followed by several more.
"Now would be as good of a time as any Croe!" Miles yelled. Croe acknowledged him with a small nod and locked the scythe blades together. He tugged and they began to crack, splintering like ice. Lightning and hellfire burst from the ends, illuminating the room in a harsh light. Alex sent an IM to Sharps and the teams that were in charge of placing and defending explosive charges along the castle wall, and sent them a brief message.
Ginganinja: Light the fuse
A moment later, the heads shattered. Alex never saw the explosion, his character was already dead.
Sharpslefae was just beginning to evacuate the remaining Coders when Ginganinja messaged her. Confused, she looked around and saw that the demolition teams that were still alive were igniting the explosives and running to others where the other teams hadn't been so lucky. She looked up at the Keep just in time to see a very bright light.
Qilin had run into another group of Hackers when his character started lagging out. Confused, he checked his internet connection to find that it was perfectly fine. He looked up to see the Keep exploding into hundreds of blocks that stuttered through the air as the game tried to compensate. A moment later, the castle walls, slowing everything down to a snail's pace.
Jacob Del Rio had just finished his second cup of coffee and was sitting down to his job at Arcanis Interactive, when an alert came up on his tablet. The servers were being overloaded! A moment later, the fire alarm went off and distantly, he could hear the sound of sprinklers in the server room,,,
Donnie Mathews screwed his hearing aid into his ear and sat down at his laptop. It had been two and a half months since he last checked Rune's forums to see what was going on. He may have deleted BA, but that didn't mean that he wasn't going to keep an eye out on his friends. He brought up the Coder section and typed in the latest password Sharps had given to him. Expecting to see the usual reports, he was stunned to see a flurry of new different subjects. 'Fiasco at the Q&A'? 'Three disgraced Coders and a Hacker destroy the Hacker's castle'? 'Operation THUNDERBEE Round 2'? What the heck was going on here? He moved the cursor to click on several of the articles when the entire page crashed. Donnie sat back and stared at his screen in shock. "Miles, what have you gotten yourself into now?" he wondered.
Unable to access anything on Rune's servers, the Coder and Guild leaders were forced to set up on an alternate forum. Alex joined to a flurry of conversations, exhortations, and accusations.
"Did you see the size of that explosion!"
"I can't believe we pulled this off!"
"Qilin, how dare you put my men at risk! You assured us that we were now safe from the Hackers!"
"I can assure you that if I knew what the Hackers could do, I would've avoided the situation entirely."
Alex activated his microphone and turning it up to maximum, shouted two words.
"SHUT UP!"
Everyone shut up.
Alex slumped in his chair and rubbed his temples. It had been a long day.
"Ginganinja," one of the Guildmasters said, "I assume that you have a plan, now that we've crashed the game?"
"I do, Alex answered. You all were recording video, right?"
"We were," Qilin answered. "But what,"
"Good, so was I," Alex interrupted. "And I got Arachnoid on camera saying that he had plans for taking over every single online game there was, and using the virus to get what he wanted."
"No offense GN, but sending that to the Dev's won't help a bit." Axinator said. They refuse to listen.
Oh, I wasn't planning on sending it to the Dev's," Alex said with a smirk. "I was planning on sending it to every single other development team that has an online game. There's no way that they'll ignore this."
I'm trying really hard, but I can't think of anything to say after that. So instead, I'll let you all in on a bit of my private life.
Yesterday I finally told my parents that I've been writing stories since about December of 2013. It wasn't in the way I had hoped it would be; my mom and I were arguing about how I was on the computer all the time, and it kind of just came out. The entire reason I held this information back from them, was because when I first started HOR, it was right after I had decided to drop a fanfiction I had begun over on fanfiction.net. I was embarrassed that I had to do that, and I didn't want them to know about Heroes of Rune, and then be disappointed that I had dropped it, had I been forced to do that again. It eventually just became something that I didn't tell them, that I was worried how they'd react to it (my mom had earlier said that authors do not make a lot of money and struggle to make a livelyhood, when I had kind of hinted that being an author would be something I could do). I realize now that l misinterpreted what she was saying. she was not saying I shouldn't become a writer, she was just saying that they do not make a whole heck of a lot of money.
So how do I feel now that I told them this? Well, kind of naked to be honest. This is something that has been a very big part of my life for two years now, and to have it exposed to the world feels kind of wrong. I wish I had waited to tell them until after I began the scifi story I'm plotting out right now, but I guess it's for the best that I got it over with. They're proud of me for being a writer and writing over 140,000 words for two different novels, but also feel a little betrayed that I didn't tell them this earlier. I for one am still getting used to the fact that this big thing is now in the open. I guess it'll just take a bit of time to adjust. I've also given them the story To Be Human as an example of my work. It's much better written out than Heroes of Rune in my opinion, and doesn't drop the f-bomb as much as HOR does.
But anyways, thank you all for your reviews and favorites over the years, and I hope you continue to enjoy my work. It looks like the final chapter of Heroes of Rune will come out just before the new year, so I'll see you all then!
-Wrench
ns 15.158.61.45da2
