Out from the void, through the stars, came a dark form. When it came close to Wren it took a more definite shape and gained color. The Wavemaster had returned to fight. Gripping the hilt of the Corpseblade tightly, Wren looked over to him with a smirk. “Tell me this… Where’s my friend that you mentioned? I’ve yet to see anyone else here but us.”

A burst of laughter came from the Wavemaster, a sick, twisted laugh, “There was never any ‘friend’, Blademaster. It was a ploy to get you out here all the swifter. Now I can finish you off myself. In this area, if you die, your character data will be erased! And then you wont be able to hassle me anymore.”

“Why do you want me dead anyway? I never did understand that. And what about those Gott Statues?” Wren began to stand up, more interested in answers than a fight at this point.

“Because its fun. You got involved in my plot, and so I shall drag you around on a leash until I’m sick of it and then I’ll kill you. And you just got boring very quickly… I thought I told you I wasn’t going to answer your questions about the Gott Statues. Not now.”

The Wavemaster gripped his wand and took a swing at Wren horizontally from his left to his right. With one quick stroke, Wren parried the attack, and their weapons clashed together, each pushing against the other.

Wren placed his left hand on the back of his Corpseblade and began to push with his whole body, throwing the Wavemaster off balance. Then, with one quick slash, he cut into the hacker’s arm. He fell against the passing stars and stood up again, when he showed his arm, the wound was gone.

“Heh… You don’t think that I’d give just my toys that ability, did you?”

Wren stared upon his opponent in sheer terror, wondering how he was ever going to be able to win this fight. With a malicious smirk the Wavemaster leapt forward with an overhead slash with his wand at Wren’s head. Once again their weapons clashed, and then Wren pushed the Wavemaster back. They stood still for a moment, staring at one another. Then Wren lunged forward at the Wavemaster in a thrust with his Corpseblade, the Wavemaster, however, skillfully rolled beneath it and slammed the head of his wand into Wren’s back.

With a painstaking jerk of his whole body, his eyes dialated and his mouth fell open. Wren screamed out in pain before falling to his hands and knees. Everything seemed clear, a dream of sorts, for a few painless moments he didn’t think he was really there. That is, until the Wavemaster slammed the rod into Wren’s head, forcing Wren to the ground.

“That’ll teach you! Stupid Blademaster! Now… to finish things.” The Wavemaster hopped back and began to chant, a golden rune forming in the void beneath his feet, and a sister-rune beneath Wren’s body.

GiRai…

The runes slowly became wider and larger as Wren tried to stand, focusing on the rim of the golden rune spinning swiftly beneath his body as he forced himself to a standing posture. The rune began spinning exponentially faster, quickly becoming a circle of golden light.

A smirk crossed the Wavemaster’s lips as the incantation became near complete. Now… to finish him off. Several thoughts surged through the Wavemaster’s mind suddenly, throwing him into a sense of confusion and disorientation. It was like a migrane, but instead of pain, they were thoughts. The Wavemaster faltered back, clenching his fists, gritting his teeth, and clamping his eyes shut with all his might, trying to fight back these thoughts in his head.

The runes shattered and the spell was stopped.

Why can’t I do it? He’s right there in front of me. I have him in the palm of my hand. I must do it! I must! This stupid Blademaster has been a thorn in my side since the beginning! And if I don’t pull the thorn out soon, it will embed itself in my skin and never vanish! Why can I not kill him!?

The Wavemaster’s thoughts were shattered suddenly when the butt of the Corpseblade in Wren’s hand shattered the hacker’s nose, sending him flying back into the flurry of stars, which quickly faded further into the background. When the Wavemaster stood up, he resumed his stance, a thin trail of blood sliding down his forehead and to the left side of his nose. It stopped at the corner of his mouth and followed his lips to the lowest point in the Wavemaster’s sickly smile.

“Once again I overestimated you, Wren. You’re proving to be a worthy adversary… as well as a stubborn stick that never breaks. But we’ll see how much tension you can take before the mighty stick turns to a twig and shatters like glass. We’ll see.”

Wren looked at the Wavemaster, confused, “What are you talking about? Your metaphors are cryptic and irritating. Let’s fight!” With a swift push off of an invisible ground, Wren leapt at the Wavemaster with the Corpseblade held off to his left. With a powerful two-handed slash, he cut across the Wavemaster’s torso. Or, he would have, if the Wavemaster hadn’t raised his wand vertically in both hands to block the blow. The Wavemaster then lifted his foot and kicked Wren back a few feet. This didn’t stop Wren, however. He dashed at the Wavemaster yet another time.

Their weapons clashed yet again as the Blademaster found himself pushing all his weight and the weight of his Corpseblade down upon the Wavemaster and his wand, who were fighting with all they had to parry the blow that otherwise would have been crushing.

“Don’t think that you will win, hacker!” Wren suddenly hooked the Wavemaster’s wand with the crossbar of his corpseblade, then kicked his foot up at the Wavemaster’s right foot. At the same time, sending his body backwards and towards the floor, he spun the Wavemaster and his body over his, and threw him across the area. When he rolled to his feet, he found the Wavemaster a good set of paces away, lying on the ground trying to force himself up to his feet again. “It’s over now… Now you’ll die as all your toys have before you!” Wren yelled out as he rose his Corpseblade overhead and charged at the defenseless hacker lying on the ground.

Little did Wren know that there was no such thing as a ‘defenseless’ hacker. When he called out the phrase “Vak Slash!” and begun to swing his blade down upon his prone foe, his body froze in place. Right there in mid-air. “Wha—What’s going on?! I can’t move!” The Wavemaster stood up slowly, chuckling to himself. Once standing, his glare met the gaze of the Blademaster. Dusting himself off, just for effect, the Wavemaster knelt down and picked up his wand. Then, rising back to his feet again he stared into the eyes of his prey. “Now, now… dear Wren. Are you really that simplistic? Did you honestly think that I’d let such a thing happen to me without some precaution? You seem to forget that I’m God in this realm. There is nothing that I cannot control, or do.”

Wren gasped, unable to do anything else. Without warning, his body felt weightless as he was dropped to the floor, able to move again. “Then… why are we fighting? I mean… Why do I even bother? You’re going to kill me in the end, right?”

“Nevermind that right now, Blademaster. Stand up and fight me. We’ll see what happens when that moment arrives.” The Wavemaster stared down at Wren who was slowly coming to his feet, the tip of his Corpseblade dragging across the ‘ground’, before being lifted up into the air once again, supported by the left and right hands of the weary Blademaster. “Fine… I’ll keep playing your game. Even though it means I’ll die. You may kill me, but my friends will still come. You know them…” With a smirk, Wren thought he had the upper hand.

The Wavemaster lashed out unexpectedly at Wren, throwing his wand out at the player. Oddly, but to no surprise, the wand flew like an arrow at Wren’s body. He barely had a chance to evade it. But the wand just spun around in its charge and flew right back at him. Wren was once again forced to roll away from the onslaught of this possessed wand. It circled around for a third pass. This time, Wren was ready, and he slashed out at the wand, throwing it back at the Wavemaster who had released it. However, the offcourse projectile ceased to move within inches of the Wavemaster’s character. “Hmm… not too stupid afterall,” the Wavemaster nodded in approval.

“Vak Slash!” Wren made a valiant and long-shot move, jumping out at the Wavemaster with his Corpseblade. Once again, the weapon stopped within inches of the Wavemaster’s body. In retaliation, the Wavemaster waved his arm out infront of him dramatically, throwing Wren several feet. Then, suddenly, a dungeon wall appeared, and Wren slammed into it with unrelenting speed before stopping and skidding to the ‘ground’ of the void that surrounds them. Slowly the wall faded away, and Wren’s body lost its support and he toppled over. “Silly… silly Blademaster. It is slowly becoming a bore to play with you. I almost don’t know why I bother.”

In a blind fury Wren leapt up, his vision had doubled and begun to blur from the unsightly meeting with that wall. His body wavered and he nearly dropped his sword. Then, he leapt out at the Wavemaster again, rushing towards him blindly. The Wavemaster, taking this much more lightly than any player would, simply sidestepped the Blademaster and smacked him hard in the back with the head of his wand as his body passed by.

The blast from the wand sent Wren toppling forward once again, he nearly fell to the ‘ground’. But managed to stay composed. Reaching into the back of his mind he looked for a last hope.

There’s not much I can do… I mean, he’s got me outclassed in every way I can think of. If I try and attack him directly, he simply freezes me and then does whatever he wants. There has to be a way, though. I mean, he’s only human. Nobody’s perfect. Think! Come on!

Then it came to him. Wren smiled coyly as he had realized what he can do. With the events that had recently occurred, he had forgotten about the new armor he got. Slipping his hand up into the air, and turning back to face the Wavemaster, Wren began to taunt the player.

“Hey! Guess what? I’ve found a way that I can beat you! Prepare to meet your end!” Wren laughed as he began to chant, two runes appearing and began to spin, one beneath Wren and the other beneath the Wavemaster, who was rather surprised to see his opponent actually using his brain for once.

“Now… prepare to suffer!” Wren shouted out, over-dramatically, and very foolishly.

Miu…

Miu…

The runes began to spin very quickly, and small orbs of light gathered at the tip of Wren’s finger, forming a single orb of yellow light that shined quietly upon Wren’s face in the vastness of the void, wreathed with shimmering beams of light as the stars passed by. “What does he think he’s up to…?” The Wavemaster stood confidently and watched Wren as he was well aware of the golden rune beneath his feet.

…Lei!!

The runes exploded, and the orb of yellow light shattered. A heartbeat after the spell was cast, there was a flash of light and suddenly Wren found himself under the charm of the Wavemaster. His mind was still his own, but he could not control his body. “Wha—What happened? You should be the one who’s charmed! Not me! I don’t get it? What happened!?” The Wavemaster simply stood there and laughed, directing the helpless Blademaster around the void as he pleased. Wren felt stupid for trying such a trick.

“Well, you see, silly Blademaster, once again I’ve gotten the better of you. For you once again failed to realize, once again, that I am the God of this realm, and therefore I control everything. There is no possible way for you to win in this situation. However, it is mildly entertaining to see you squirm like bait on a fishhook. Please continue doing so if you like. Either way I don’t mind.” A thin smile crossed the Wavemaster’s lips as he used the charm control he had over the Blademaster to force him into a blind charge at the Wavemaster. At the last moment a wall formed up, and Wren slammed into it face-first. When the wall faded, the Wavemaster found Wren lying down, barely able to move. So, out of kindness he removed the charm spell.

“Let that be a lesson to you. Don’t try such stupid things like that, they only turn around and hurt you.” The Wavemaster began to laugh at his opponent’s plight. Wren slowly clenched his hand into a tightly knit fist, reaching over to his Corpseblade and sliding his fingers around it without unraveling his fist too far.

The Wavemaster continued to laugh, oblivious to the movements of his supposedly defeated foe. However, he failed to see Wren get into a knelt position with the Corpseblade in both hands, a decent sized trail of blood trickling down his face and another down his arm to his knuckles. Taking a sudden inhalation of breath, Wren jumped the five paces out at the Wavemaster. Hearing the inhale, the Wavemaster shrunk back in surprise as the sound of “Vak Slash!” rung through the void, and was swallowed up into nothingness, and the powerful blade passed through the Wavemaster’s torso. At the chilling touch of the steel, the Wavemaster fell backwards.

Infuriated at being caught unaware, the Wavemaster’s wound began to heal quickly, and he stood back up. “I’m going to do to you what I should have done long ago. Now… You will suffer far more than I would have liked you to. However, you’ve dug your own grave and now I will show you to it.”

With a quick leap, the healed up hacker grasped his wand and jabbed its butt into Wren’s torso. In response Wren doubled over, coughing. Then, the Wavemaster tilted the butt upwards into the air with great speed, knocking Wren in the face, and sending him sprawling backwards. After a powerful leap, the Wavemaster was in the air, and he fell upon Wren, jamming the head of his wand into Wren’s chest. The Blademaster was unable to stop his opponent from executing these maneuvers, either he was frozen in fear, or the Wavemaster had him unknowingly in a sort of trance-like state where he couldn’t move his body. Either way, Wren was helpless.

Regaining his composure, the Wavemaster stood up and held his wand overhead and began to chant. The familiar golden runes appeared beneath Wren and his foe, spinning at the same speeds but in opposite directions. A thin and quiet word escaped the Wavemaster’s lips as the runes spun faster and faster, and became brighter and brighter.

GiRai…

A series of yellow wisps of light gathered at the orb on the head of the Wavemaster’s wand, and formed a single yellow orb of energy above the head of the staff. With a single motion and a shout, the orb shattered into millions of light fragments, and the runes exploded upwards, the Wavemaster’s did nothing, but Wren’s encompassed him.

…Kruz!!!

Myriad of lightning bolts converged on Wren’s prone body. Shocking and shattering his mangled form. Sending waves of electricity and unbearable pain surging through his body like an adrenaline rush. Wren convulged helplessly on the ground as bolt after bolt of lightning fell upon him from the reaches of the void. Soon, it was over, and Wren’s body was left lying motionless on the floor, thin trails of smoke rising up from his head and body. He was barely breathing, and he couldn’t move anything but his right wrist.

“Heh… now it’s the end for you.” Came the voice of the Wavemaster to Wren’s burning ears.

Quickly, and without a word, the Wavemaster thrust the head of his wand out in a downward motion upon Wren’s head, knocking him unconscious. Wren’s vision blurred and faded away, the last thing he could see was the millions of stars flashing by all around him, and even those began to blur and fade away as his eyes closed and he lost all consciousness.

The Wavemaster had defeated him…

(( OOC Note: It’s not done yet. =P ))

All that was there was darkness, all around him. The silence permeated Wren’s mind. Am I dead? What’s going on…? The last thing I remember… The Wavemaster! I was in this void fighting him…

GiRai Rom!

…!! That’s right! He shocked me, nearly all my HP was sapped away, too… But… I don’t remember anything after that.

Then, a voice slowly became audible… It was the voice of the Wavemaster. At first Wren couldn’t make out what was being said, but slowly words started to form, and then everything became clear to Wren.

Hello again, little Blademaster. Are you enjoying your sleep? I haven’t killed you… oh, not yet. There are still things left to do. However, now that you’re out of the way, things will be just a bit less interesting. But I’m sure I can find a way to alter that to my liking. As for you, I can’t just leave you lying unconscious here in this dungeon. Someone may find you here. A moderator may stumble upon you, or an Admin, perhaps. Or worse, another player may slip in and find you. So, I’m just going to let you go. However, I want you to always remember our fight. Remember, how you were powerless to defeat me. How you couldn’t even mark my character’s data.

So far, I’ve gotten rid of two Gott Statues. However, there are several more to destroy before the foundation of The World becomes unstable. And I shall go from area to area, field to field, dungeon to dungeon, destroying the Gott Statues and leaving an altered field in my wake. Once I’ve destroyed enough Gott Statues, The World will begin to crumble. When that happens I shall step in and become a pillar of stability for The World. With that stability and newfound power, I shall become a God of not just this field, but all of The World.

You, dear Wren, you will play a part in this plot. Though I shall set you free, you shant be rid of me yet. I will hound you, haunt you, never will I leave you to rest. You will come to me, and witness with your own eyes my destructive powers as I become just that much more unstoppable with every Gott I destroy. And then, when all is said and done and the whole field is corrupted, the administrators will come. And that is when they will find you, unable to Gate Out. Once it happens enough, they’ll figure your story of a Wavemaster is a fraud and they will delete your characters. For that joyous event, I will be there. In the streets of Mac Anu I will stand among the other players under the façade of a Heavy Axeman or Long Arm. I will be there; I will see your destruction at the hands of the very people you’re so stupidly trying to protect. Or… it seems like you’re trying to protect them anyway. You and your friends…

Once again… Fear not. You are not dead yet. There is still much to do and many things to be said. I will return soon with more to tell. You will just wait here in the darkness and silence of my void. Rest easy, my friend… Wren, the Blademaster.

Wren’s mind lies motionless, and in silence. The shadows around him creep closer, engulfing his sanity and rational. All that’s left are his memories. Lying still as the dead, flashes of what once was enters Wren’s subconscious mind.


“That has to be the lights of the dungeon!” Quickly Asura rushes forward to get to the Gott before the others.
“Wait, Asura… No!” The Magic Portal that stands before Asura opens…


The Scorpion Tank breaks through the wall, sending giant shards of stone in all directions. In fear and utter surprise, Wren staggers back and begins to run towards the stairs once again. “What the heck!? What is that thing doing here!?”


When they had reached the bottom of the stairs the two found themselves in a small room with a door facing Southward. Upon the floor was a blue carpet. Wren came to stand before the door, not crossing its threshold.

"Well... here we go. The first step on what very well may be the last journey we take to find this Wavemaster. It's been good working with you, Adaron. Let us hope that this is not our burial ground." Wren smiles, stepping slowly through the doorway into a long hallway with a Portal at its far end.



Letting his head lean back as far as his neck would allow, Wren stared up at the sapphire blue sky, the sun poised high and shining bright upon the Aqua Capital. He closed his eyes and began to think…


"I don't want to choose..."


The bursting light of the opening portal reilluminated the room, torches and all. There before the two stood a Hell Doberman.


By order of Kamui, Aqua Capital Mac Anu is under Marshal Law


Without warning, Wren was roused from his thoughts by the recurring voice of the Wavemaster.

have a fine rest I take it. Where was I? Oh yes… The Gott Statues. They hold a special significance to The World. Though to you and I they are mere statues of odd creatures that stand before the charmed chest of treasure at the bottom of every dungeon. However, did you know that Gott is Germanic for God? That’s right… They are the Gods of The World. The slumbering powers that hold everything in balance. I seek to disrupt that balance and replace the Gotts with myself as a pillar.

Don’t worry, though. You won’t be around for that event. You will have been expelled from The World, along with your friends. You see, once I’m done with you, the same fate shall befall your comrades. In small groups they will be summoned forth to die in my cursed fields and dungeons. Only you, he who is gone from The World. Will know my true plot. And you won’t be able to contact your friends and inform them. I will make sure of that…

Infact, I think that pretty soon, once I’m sure that you’re out of the way, I will e-mail them a little invitation. Specially from me, to go to one of my little dungeons and play.

Now, you must be wondering: “How is it he knew my real name? And why did he think we’d met three times before, and not two?”

Well, that is simple. Dear, dear Richard. Your friend, David? He was my friend once. Until your parents started paying him to hang out with you. Now all he does is go to your place and hang out with you, you guys play this game together, among other things. I only see him in class, now. And I hate it. Even though you know he’s paid to be with you, you still hang out with him. It’s disgusting! And you shall not win again! I will crush you and make sure that you fail and fall from your high and mighty pedestal! From there, David will be my friend once again!

I will be the God of this realm. You will have nothing, no one. Everything will be mine, and you and your stupid friends will be powerless to stop it all. Now… Go off on your silly little adventures knowing all this. Soon, very soon, you will be dead. But, have fun while you can. And never forget this day, and what I have told you. You will regret it if you do…

The Wavemaster’s voice faded away with malicious laughter, and something began to happen to Wren’s body, he could feel it.

As the voice of the Wavemaster faded off, it was quickly replaced by the voice of someone else. This voice was unfamiliar to Wren entirely, and it confused him greatly. Slowly his vision came back and was blurred. Only large blots of color could be seen. Something wet and warm drew across his face, leaving a sticky and humid feeling over Wren’s face. Once his vision had returned, he found a giant nose staring him right in the face.

“What the!?” Wren slid back and staggered to his feet, finding only a Grunty and its player. The Grunty had licked him in hopes of rousing the Blademaster from his rest.

“Oh good, you’re awake. I’ve been standing here for about ten minutes wondering if you were okay. Your swords over there,” the Heavy Blade pointed to the sand adjacent to where Wren had been laying, and there embedded in the ground was indeed his Corpseblade. “Oh.. Thanks.” Wren walked over and picked it up. After dusting it off for a moment, he returned it to the scabbard on his left hip. Looking around, Wren noticed that he was standing in the middle of a desert field, the sun was beating down upon the sands. There was no dungeon to be seen in any direction, and just about all of the portals had been cleared out by the Heavy Blade.

“Heh… how’d you find me here?” Wren inquired, looking over the Heavy Blade.

“Well, you were just… lying there. There’s not much to—“

“Wait!? How did you get to this field? When did you gate in!?” Wren finally realized that there was another player on the field where the Wavemaster had taken him. “I’ve been here for about an hour, you just kind of… appeared there.”

“Thanks for waking me up.” Wren smiles kindly at the Heavy Blade, waving his right hand gently in appreciation.

“No problem, I’m gonna Gate Out now. Maybe we’ll meet again.” The Heavy Blade vanished with his Grunty after saying that, the three golden rings pulling his character back to the Root Town.

I wonder what he’s doing right now… I can’t let him beat me. But… what happens if I leave? That’s it. I have to go. I will. My friends will be fine without me for a while. Hopefully the Wavemaster leaves them alone, though… Once I’ve bettered myself in The World, I will return to them, and I will crush the Wavemaster… I hope.

Wren then noticed a shimmering treasure chest that had been concealed by the head of the Grunty. It looked very similar to a Gott Chest, but wasn’t in a dungeon. “What the…”

Suddenly a message was written in the sand:

A gift for you… Don’t delay the chase, Blademaster

-“Wavemaster”

“Hmm… We’ll meet again.” Wren leans over slowly and places his palms against the rim of the chest's top, pushing it open to see its contents.

Wren +1lv. +Safety Shoes