Book 2: Chapter 17: Patch 3.0: Opening Ceremony

There is nothing more that Fenrir wants right now than to charge over to Nell, somehow break through thirty of Ull’s armed and experienced guards, and free Nell from the man that is dragging her back into captivity.

But he knows that is impossible.

This may be a game, but it isn’t the kind where a hero can just recklessly charge through a crowd of enemies and somehow survive.

Each and every one of those guards is likely stronger than him, and there’s also the fact that they’re all heavily armored and armed. Fenrir has nothing but some boots, pants, and a shirt on.

“That’s that missing girl… she was on your ship?” the dark elf asks.

She looks at Fenrir and sees clenched fists and gritted teeth. His tail is raised still behind his form.

Fenrir catches Cassiel and Serra in the corner of his vision. Cassiel is keeping Serra held back behind some crates further up on the docks, hiding themselves from the guards’ eyes.

Bonekraka, Corwin, Oleander, and Tabitha are tied by their wrists and ankles, sitting on the ground next to each other, surrounded by some of the city’s own guards at the front of the pier.

At least everybody is… everybody – where’s—

“I told you to stay down!” the man dragging Nell shouts before using his free leg to try and kick the rocky hound latching onto his other leg off.

It hurts the man more than it hurts Rock, but another one of the guards comes up with a heavy hammer and swings it into Rock’s side.

Chips of Rock’s body get shattered off from the side of her body as she’s sent skidding back across the wooden pier, almost falling into the water, but digging her claws into the pier to stop herself from falling off.

“That poor thing… but why was that girl on your ship?” the dark elf asks, looking at Fenrir.

He isn’t there.

She looks back to where the guards are gathered just in time to catch Fenrir trying to push his way through them.

“Let me through!” he shouts, his voice full of rage as he desperately tries clawing his way through the men. “Don’t you fucking tou—”

An armored fist slams into Fenrir’s chest. He can hear something crack as the air gets knocked out of him.

But he refuses to let this stop him.

Fenrir glares at his attacker and snarls. His snarl is just as guttural as that of a feral wolf’s, and it is accompanied by furrowed brows and hate-fueled eyes in addition to bared fangs ready to sink into the guard’s flesh.

Even though the guard knows he’s most likely stronger, he still takes a step back from Fenrir’s intimidation.

But he doesn’t step back far enough.

Fenrir breaks free from the men who just grabbed onto him and swipes his right hand at the guard’s face!

Sharpened claws protruding from the tips of Fenrir’s fingers shred the guard’s face. Fenrir can’t see just the result of his attack that well, but anybody with traumatic content enabled can.

Fenrir knows that there is no way he can win this, or even hope of accomplishing anything, without fully giving into his feral instincts.

The wolf rampages through the guards on the pier.

Rock looks ready to join him when he catches a glimpse of her through the many guards, but the look in his eyes demands that she stays back. She doesn’t want to, and she whines to show it, but she obeys by limping back onto The Shoebill.

“The fuck is your problem?!” one of the guards shouts at Fenrir.

Fenrir turns his attention to the man shouting and is about to lunge at him when he feels something embed itself into his back.

He turns his head just enough to see a steel axe head sticking into his back.

He falls to his knees when it’s pulled out.

Even with only fifty percent of pain enabled, he wants to double over in pain. This is the worst pain he has felt in-game thus far.

Feeling it completely pulls him out of his feral rampage.

His vision is almost entirely black now.

He looks down at his hands. They’re covered in blood, and all he sees are regular fingers when he could have sworn he had claws just a moment ago.

Looking over the rest of himself, he can see several places where he was slashed and stabbed going by the fact that blood is running out of him in those places.

Three of the nearby guards he can see have been mutilated either at their faces or necks.

Fenrir spits out whatever he can feel between his teeth. Looking down at it, he sees that it’s an elongated ear.

He can’t even remember being this injured nor attacking any guards other than the first one whose face he clawed.

“A woman’s beard, a mountain’s roots – Gleipnir, bind the fen-dweller once more,” a man says from behind Fenrir. The moment the incantation is over, Fenrir feels something thin yet impossibly strong tie around his wrists and ankles. His first instinct is to try and break free from the binds.

He can’t even begin to pull them apart.

“Two verses? This prick isn’t even worth one. Why don’t we just kill him?” another guard asks.

“Because I would rather meet the one to steal away my prize,” Ull says, walking through the crowd that makes space for him.

Fenrir turns around and sees Ull standing above him.

“Oh, I figured you would try something the moment I saw you. Hunters and wolves just don’t tend to get along very well,” Ull says, staring down into Fenrir’s eyes.

“What sort of hunter goes after innocent girls?” Fenrir asks and then spits out blood onto the pier.

Ull snaps his fingers. “You, heal him,” he orders a guard.

The guard immediately heals Fenrir.

Fenrir’s vision returns to normal, and he can’t feel any more pain, but the binds around his wrists and ankles are still impossible for him to break.

“They used Gleipnir on you? How fitting. You’re already a wolf. Now you just need the name Fenrir,” Ull teases.

“I hope you believe in crazy coincidences then,” Fenrir answers.

A huge grin spreads across Ull’s lips. “No, don’t tell me – don’t tell me you actually go by Fenrir. Do you?”

“I’ve never been good at coming up with original names,” Fenrir answers. He knows that he can’t fight his way out of this, and nobody is going to be able to come and save him, so his only option right now is discourse.

“Perfect!” Ull breaks out laughing. “Just perfect! Fenrir has once again been bound by Gleipnir. This couldn’t be a more perfect use of it. For your sake, I hope that Ragnarök happens soon lest you wish to stay bound.”

“Why don’t you try sticking a hand in my mouth?” Fenrir asks.

Ull laughs even more. “You – I like you, Fenrir. You are far more amusing than most whom have tried causing me trouble in this world. How does being one of my guard dogs sound? Fenrisúlfr back home could use a brother.”

“Sorry, but I’ll have to turn that down. I’ve still got some business with Odin before I consider retiring. Plus, I’ve got a fishing tournament still.”

“Like hell ya do,” Blackstache says, now standing next to Ull. “Ya think some mangy mutt causin’ trouble for my city and a foreign guest is goin’ ta be allowed in tha tourney? Ya see here, wolfy boy, we may be pirates but we follow tha rules. Ya break the rules, yer ship gets scuttled and yer crew gets strung up.”

Fenrir previously just thought Blackstache was like a fun uncle, but now that he’s being serious, Fenrir can tell why everybody follows his rules. Any air of lightheartedness from before is gone now as the mustached pirate lord scolds him.

“My dear friend, don’t worry about his transgressions. This is my fault. You see, my toy here,” Ull beckons one of the guards forward to bring Nell up to them, “has a habit of escaping and causing trouble. Surely you have heard of the Western Serpent’s ability to seduce weaker minds, and this monster," he looks at Nell, "is a girl whom has been blessed with such ability. Apparently, I needed to assign a guard with higher Fortitude to her. I keep on assigning guards with higher and higher Fortitude, yet she continues seducing each and every one.”

“So yer tellin’ me that this mutt wasn’t actin’ o’ his own will?” Blackstache asks.

“Indeed. Beasts are not known for being very intelligent creatures, after all. It is no surprise that she was able to seduce him.”

Nell refuses to make eye contact with any of them.

Fenrir grits his teeth. He doesn’t know if Nell truly has an ability to seduce weaker minds or anything like that, but he has faith in her that she didn’t use such a thing on him even if she could have.

Even if she did, it doesn’t matter.

He promised her that he wouldn’t let her get taken away again.

“If him an' his crew were just bein’ controlled by her, then I’ll let ‘em – oi!” Blackstache stops talking when he sees Fenrir desperately biting at the silk-thin binding.

Fenrir's teeth feel like they are going to break before the binding does.

“Let him try if he so wishes. He will not be able to break through Gleipnir,” Ull reassures Blackstache.

Fenrir only stops biting at it when he hears Nell speak to him.

“My hero, I told you that freedom is impossible for me. I know you made a promise, but please, do not worry about it. I knew this would happen no matter how much I wished for it to not,” Nell says.

She sounds calm and relaxed, but when Fenrir looks up at her, he sees eyes holding back tears.

“I’m sorry,” Fenrir says. “I’m sorry for not being able to keep my promise.”

Nell is allowed to walk up to Fenrir and drop to her knees so that she can wrap her arms around his head, cradling him against her chest. “You tried your hardest, and that is all that matters.”

She leans her head down to place a kiss on the top of his head but is interrupted when Ull grabs her by her hair and lifts her up off the ground.

“Don’t get ahead of yourself, Nehalennia,” Ull orders.

Fenrir glares up at Ull.

The condescending, taunting look in Ull’s eyes makes it apparent that he doesn’t truly believe Fenrir was being controlled.

Ull is covering for Fenrir, but why?

“I look forward to seeing you participate in the tournament, Fenrir,” Ull says, dropping Nell down to instead lead her by her new metallic leash as he walks away.

“Yer lucky he wants ta see ya in the tourney,” Blackstache says before following after Ull. His words make Fenrir think that he knew it was just a cover story.

The guards are the last to leave. After they are a good distance away, the bindings around Fenrir and the four tied up near the front of the pier disappear. He would have thought marks would have been left from how tight and powerful the bindings were, but there is no evidence that the bindings were ever there.

Cassiel and Serra are running up to check on Fenrir now.

Fenrir struggles standing up at first, but once he’s up, he goes to look for Rock.