King of the Mountain

Chapter 67: Cementing New Alliances

It was similar to what happened with Edward and the Hidden Valley village back on Earth when I rescued them from the Biltmore Estates dungeon. The twist here was that the majority of the citizens here had not met each other and were drawn from the high levels of the dwarven race across a large multitude of planets. Their task was to survive and win 10 rounds against the Gobbos in the caverns. At the end of each round everyone would respawn. If they did not manage 10 wins before the Gobbos they would be tied eternally to the cave system and would not be able to leave. If they did win they would become a new safe area in the zone.

The caverns would change each round so maps were useless from round to round. So far the Dwarves had won eight of the needed ten rounds but the Gobbos had won seven rounds. They were always outnumbered and depending on their starting point they could have less resources to draw upon. Two of their wins had been with help from players outside of the dungeon, but three of their losses had been from players outside of their dungeon also. The two forces were very well matched.

They had some of their rounds go on for over twenty years. Every time someone from outside joined in though it changed the balance of power. This usually meant that things were sped up and that victory or defeat would happen within 6 months. The reason they had welcomed us so easily is that they were on the downhill slope of this round. It was almost impossible to win after the other group gained more than 70% of the caverns and resources that they generated. They had been at 30% when we arrived and had since extended their reach back to 45% of the caverns. We had reversed what was going to be a loss for them bringing them closer to freedom.

I found this all fascinating. It seems that they had been battling for over 150 years now. I realized that there may be other places outside of the main safe areas that I had been told about. Or at least areas that were struggling to become safe areas. If I was able to help the dwarves win not only this round but stuck around and helped them for the final round it would pretty much guarantee me the goodwill of the entire town. This would mean that I would have a safe place to retreat too if I ever ended up in trouble in the later zones.

I let my companions know that we were going to stay not only for this round but the next one and help our new allies out. We would see if we could not only win, but help them win in a much shorter amount of time. However, if it took years, I honestly think that the benefits outweighed the drawbacks at this point. I would rather be safe and level up and have a place to retreat than just speed through and potentially make mistakes and endanger myself and the others. With my extended lifespan I needed to get used to looking at the extended picture. Now that the Earth was relatively safe I did not have to rush around. I was functionally immortal as long as I did not get killed to many times. Ten years helping out a group who could be long term friends did not seem that long when you viewed it over the potentially hundreds if not thousands of years of goodwill and friendship that it could inspire.

I asked Gondor if I could speak to Thane Stoneheart. He told me that after our patrols this week we could schedule some time to talk to him on our day off. Now that my group had a short term goal, the patrols became more important and less monotonous. We were not just doing this for ourselves, but to help out those people we had started to get to know. The rest of the week flew by and soon enough it was time to meet with Thane Stoneheart.

“Greetings Thane Stoneheart. I have a proposal I would like you and the council to consider. I think it might benefit both of us greatly.”

“You have been very helpful these last few weeks and have turned the tide of battle. Please speak up and let us know your proposal.”

“First of all I would like to say we should continue on as we are. If it is working, there is no need to fix a winning strategy. Second, I would like to propose a trade. It is my understanding that at the end of this battle your fallen will respawn and your town will randomly be placed into another section of the caverns and you will have to start another and hopefully final battle against the Gobbos. Is this correct?”

“That is correct Sir Anderson.”

“Well then I propose that when you reach around 90% to 95% of completion on this round you start to defend only. The reason for this will be the gathering of resources. I understand that you cannot bring resources from one round to the other, however there is no restriction on me bringing you resources.”

I could see Thane Stoneheart’s eyes light up.

“That is true, we have traded with others in the past.”

“Well then what I propose is that I will trade for a majority of whatever supplies you most desperately need at the beginning of each round. Once you have built up enough of whatever it is and I have stored it in my inventory we finish this round and then I exit and re-enter. I drop off the supplies and we perform a blitzkrieg on the Gobbos and destroy them in record time, because you will not need to wait and build up those resources.”

“How can we give such trust to an individual Sir Anderson?”

“That is the beauty of this arrangement Thane. I do not want personal items. Just basic stuff that would help you like supplies of bolts for crossbows, armor, food supplies, etc.. All of this would disappear anyway at the end of the round so there is no loss for you. However, when I return to you, and I will return, you will have a distinct advantage on the Gobbos and will be able to blitzkrieg and smash them in record time. This will help me by setting a dungeon record and earning your good will and a place I can rest and recuperate. The benefits to you are obvious. Too sweeten the deal I will even tell you about one of my trump cards that I will use when I come back and how I earned it.”

“If you can do what you say Sir Anderson I will grant you the title friend of the dwarves and you will have a permanent place in our town. We will build and set aside a house for you and yours and give you preferential pricing and treatment.”

“Then Thane Stoneheart it shall be done. I will continue with Gondor’s patrols until such time as we go on the defense. Then I will store and return any items or supplies that you give me. By the way I will also pay a premium for the communication crystal that drops from the Gobbo boss. I would like to be able to contact my family and let them know that I will be staying longer than I had originally planned.”

I left the meeting with high hopes. If this works out it will mean that I have a secure base with backup on a world where everyone else has to fight and take care of themselves. Just having a safe place to teleport back to whenever I needed would be a huge advantage for me. Walter and the dragons were excited to know that we would have a safe place to rest. Knowing that in the future that we would have a place where we would not need to set a strict watch was a great thing. We of course would still set a few alarms and such but just having a place to relax will allow us to recharge and progress faster and smoother than would otherwise be possible. Even in a safe area you still have to watch out for player on player violence. With an entire town protecting us though, the odds of any Great Game participant messing with us while we are in town is negligible.

The next month was a continuation of what had happened before. We steadily increased the distance the patrols went out gaining back more and more of the caverns. The surprise came at the end of the month. We had reached the 60% tipping point in favor of the dwarves. Instead of being joyous the dwarves looked grim.

“Gondor, what seems to be the problem. I thought that once you owned 60% it was almost given that you would win the round. Why is everyone looking so resolute?”

“Ah we forgot to tell you lad. Yes, it is almost guaranteed as a win at this point, but when the Gobbos reach this low they go into a frenzy and send out several of their larger cousins the trolls and ogres. 95% of the time we beat them back, but they always manage to inflict large casualties while we do it. We know that we are going to win the round, but it is never pleasant to see friends or family die even if you know that they will respawn.”

“Maybe we can do something about this. Does the frenzied attack always follow a straight line from their base to yours?”

“Aye it does, what are you thinking?”

“Well is there a cavern along that path that the town is willing to lose permanently this round. One that we could still get around by another path?”

“Aye, I can think of a couple.”

“Well I have several magic traps in my inventory that will do a number on these Gobbos. I have not used them because of the potential and almost certainty of collapsing tunnels or caverns from the explosions. However, if this is a one-time frenzy and we can trap them then is giving up that cavern worth it to you?”

“It is to me, but I must check with the Thane. I will be back quickly, prepare what you need so we can leave immediately if he gives the ok.”

I have never seen a dwarf move that fast. Must keep straight face, do not giggle at the sight of small legs moving so fast it looks like a cartoon. Luckily Gondor was soon out of sight and the temptation to laugh which surely would have hurt some feelings passed. I waited patiently for the answer to come back. I was pretty sure we would go with my plan just to limit casualties.

Soon enough we heard Gondor yelling.

“Alpha patrol form up we have a special mission!”

This must be it.

“Mark, Thane Stoneheart has given permission for you to sacrifice one cavern to your traps. He said that if we are going to lose a cavern then he wants to feel the ground shake from where he is.”

I just smiled.

“One ground shaking time is coming up. How much time do I have to set the traps?”

“The Gobbos usually take between 24 and 48 hours before they rush out in their frenzy. So you have at least 12 hours and maybe more than a day.”

“Oh that is plenty of time. Come friend, let me show you what a quadelementalist with too much time on his hands can do.”

Over the next 24 hours I created a death trap that was like no other. I daisy chained all the traps together. The first to go off would be about ¾ of the way into the cavern in order to make sure the maximum amount of Gobbos had entered. That would be the lightning landmines and they would set off sets of lightning runes and traps all over the cavern. I even covered the ceiling. Once the lightning went off they would set the ice spike traps off after a 2 second delay. Then a two second delay for fire traps, and finally a two second delay for stone spike traps. I had over 500 traps each filled with 1,000 mana ready to recreate the landscape.

While I was doing this I had Walter reinforce the tunnel we would be in as much as possible and create a 5 foot thick stone bunker for the entire patrol to hide in. Gondor actually started laughing and asking if I was maybe overestimating what would happen. He got quiet when my entire group just looked at him and said that no, if anything we might want to move further back and watch for falling debris. He still did not look completely convinced, but did not make any more jokes. Soon enough, I was done and it was just a matter of waiting. This was the part I hated. Gondor asked.

“Do I need to send a scout out?”

“Do you want them to die? They will not be able to run away fast enough to get into shelter.”

I could see Gondor finally start to realize the seriousness of what was about to happen. After about a four hour wait we could hear Gobbos chanting and coming our way in rush. The sound alone let us know they were getting close. I looked over at Gondor and whispered.

“A scout to know when they were close huh?”

Gondor had the good grace to look a little sheepish. Suddenly the air felt ionized and the crackling of lightning and the screams of Gobbos in pain filled the air. Next was a wave of cold that seeped into your bones, giant explosions and heat were next, finally filled with crashes of rock and then silence. The entire shelter had been shaking throughout the traps going off. I being the smart person I am, and having learned from past mistakes through many hits to the old noggin, had a large shield over my head. My kids and Walter were all looking at me with amusement and Gondor just looked confused. Walter took pity on Gondor and explained.

“Master has a tendency to go overboard when creating traps. He usually ends up in the explosion or being knocked unconscious no matter how many precautions he takes. This was why he has the shield.”

“Nonsense Walter, I never go overboard, I am just enthusiastic in my work and a shield is a very reasonable safety measure.”, I retorted as my cheeks grew warm.

My kids and Walter just laughed.

“Enough let’s go see what my traps accomplished.”

Gondor quickly had everyone in formation and we approached the area where a cavern used to be. Instead all we could see were large amounts of debris and some Gobbo blood and flesh chunks spread around.

“Sir Anderson, I am sorry I doubted your traps, they look to have finished the job quite efficiently.”

“That they do Gondor, but we better go check the alternate routes just to be safe.”

The patrol backtracked and took a side tunnel to get around the blockage I had created on the main path. In every tunnel we traversed through there was a few rocks that were scattered across the floor from the explosions. Gondor gave me a sideways glance and I just shrugged. I mean what can you say, it worked didn’t it?

After several hours of careful inspection and exploration we headed back to the dwarven town to report the success. The Thane was extremely pleased that the frenzy was conquered without any casualties. He sent us to rest while warning us that we would continue the offensive in the morning.

It took another 2 months to gain control of 95% of the caverns, but there were no surprises. Two weeks later Thane Stoneheart had me store an amazing amount of material in my inventory. It seems that he had hoped for the best and started producing the extra supplies as soon as I had proposed the idea. With everything covered we headed to the final cavern the Gobbos owned to finish the war.

This time all 5 of the 25 person patrols were marching to end the war at the Gobbos home base. Thane Stoneheart was leading the group and everyone’s spirits were high. We stopped about 400 meters from the entrance to the main Gobbo Cavern. From this distance it was easy to see that the remaining Gobbos had set up crude defenses. We would have to break through them in order to finish the round. Before Thane Stoneheart could start what I assumed would be an inspiring speech, I signaled that I would like to talk to him. He frowned a little but waved me forward.

“Forgive me for wanting to speak to you right now Thane Stoneheart. Since I believe my group and yours have become allies, I am willing to show you another of my trump cards. I believe that my companions and I can take down the defenses quite easily without the need for a sacrifice on the part of your warriors.”

“You have peaked my interest Sir Anderson, what exactly are you proposing?”

“Well my kids and I each have an alternate form besides half dragon. My children each transform into elemental dragons, and I myself transform into a Primal Elemental Dragon King. I propose that you allow us to demonstrate our power on behalf of your town. Let us take care of the defenses and follow us into the cavern in say 5 minutes to help with the cleanup.”

“I have never heard of a Primal Elemental Dragon King, but I have learned to accept the unexpected from you Sir Anderson. Is there any precautions we need to take?”

“No Thane you can just sit back and enjoy the show. Don’t forget to join in though. After the initial fear, many creatures tend to swarm and that can make things difficult.”

“Do not worry Sir Anderson we will watch your performance and protect your flanks.”

“Very good. Alright kids, I’ll go first, right down the middle, Bruce and Elvira take the left side, Azure and Esmerelda take the right side. Walter you are on defense and help out whoever needs it as usual. Let’s go.”

We moved down the tunnel about 100 meters and then I transformed and charged forward. When I was about 50 meters away from the makeshift barricades I inhaled and then let out my longest and greatest primal fire breath weapon yet. I baked the barricade moving my head back and forth making sure that everything was covered. After about two minutes, wow my breathing had really improved, I charged forward once again and crashed through what was left behind. It was not much of an impediment to me and I crashed through quite easily. Once I had made it through the barricade I just let my inner dragon rampage. I was later told it was either inspiring or quite frightening to watch, depending on the viewpoint of the person telling me about it.

With the dwarven back up the cavern was cleared in under an hour. As soon as the battle was complete I received a Great Game notice.

Dwarven Caverns Dungeon has been completed. Rewards and experience will be calculated and distributed after 12 hours of non-combat outside of the dungeon.

It was a fairly standard dungeon completion message. I informed Thane Stoneheart of the completion message and checked once again if there was anything that they wanted me to hold until the dungeon reset. With the thanks of the dwarves ringing around us, I teleported my group to the entrance of the dungeon. We quickly set up camp so we could return after 12 hours and our rewards. In the morning I checked everyone’s growth and was pleased with what I saw. The double experience for joining in on the underdog’s side, dwarves, paid off. We made some respectable gains. It was time to re-enter and solidify our treaty and safe area with the dwarves.