Chapter 3: Warrior Bond

The dwarf was the first one to answer.

"Well, I want to join The Order, lad! I'm sick of what's happening to my kind and I want to do something about it. The names Korgoth Furyaxe!" Korgoth explained. He left out the fact that he was a murderer and outcast, it wouldn't look good to the divine knights.

"And I am Flint Gearbreaker." The dwarven engineer introduced himself.

"I want to help humans, too…my village Everdale was recently brought down by the Demon Lord's Army." Logan said sadly.

"A-And my name is Logan Sunstrider…" He added.

"My name is Gary Riker, and this is my little brother, Mercer Riker." Gary introduced himself and his brother.

"Oi, that was your village? Well, I thought you elves were superior beings that looked down on everyone, but I was wrong." Korgoth joked. Logan was too miserable to even get mad at the dwarf; he just looked down, staring at his feet. Gary noticed that the elf's eyes were red from crying earlier.

"Hey, hey, guys. Don't fight." Stella tried to calm them down. Gary walked over to the dead manticore and took out his hunting knife to collect the spikes from its tail to put them in his bag, tossing some over to Mercer.

"Uhh, what are you doing, Gary?" Stella asked him. He looked up to see the fairy, dwarf, and even the sad elf observing him intently.

"Collecting useful weapons. Unlike those honorable knights, I'm a pragmatist fighter and I use anything I can get my hands on to combat the mamono. A few months ago, I killed a wurm by flinging a poisonous smoke bomb in her face that blinded her and constricted her lungs. The wurm was distracted and I took the opportunity of shooting her through the skull." The Hero explained.

"Yeah, I had to do the running so the bitch could chase me." Mercer stated. Gary chuckled.

"Don't downplay your role, man. I wouldn't have made that shot without your Machina helping me."

"Wow, lad. You killed a high-level mamono using wits and a gun? Impressive." Korgoth grinned.

"That's so amazing, Gary!" Stella gushed.

The elf was silent, but he could see amazement flash in his eyes at how skilled these humans were.

"They may be big and powerful, but they are dumb like a sack of rocks. The wurm walked right into my trap and I delivered only one shot to take her down, where a legion of armored knights called the Silver Band got thrashed by her earlier." The Hero smiled in satisfaction.

"Why did they lose?" Korgoth asked.

Mercer answered him.

"The men were thrown around like ragdolls with a simple swipe; the wurm was too strong, tough, and massive for direct attacks, so we relied on trickery and evasive maneuvers to defeat it, not fight it head on like the knights did. Brains beat brawns."

Gary finished collecting the spikes and walked over to his horse.

"We should take them to our city, Gary."

"Yeah, let's take them all to Dresden." He dug into his bag and took out a hearthstone.

"Grab my hand." He said, placing a hand on his horse and extending his other hand to the others.

"Yay!" Stella grabbed his pinky.

"Well, alright! Finally get to see a big human settlement!" Korgoth and Flint grabbed Gary's hand. Logan walked slowly and grabbed the human's middle finger, refusing to look at the dwarves, and his gaze was still drawn to his feet.

Mercer didn't grab his brother as he had his own hearthstone ready to do.

"Hang on tight." He rubbed the green rune on the hearthstone and a green light surrounded Gary, his companions, and the horse. A couple of seconds later, the group teleported away from the abandoned town.


They appeared in the center of a beautiful park, right next to a water fountain with ivory angels in it. The park had trees, grass, and a few people sat on the benches chatting. The group marveled at the park while a few guardsmen walked up to them.

"Hero Gary Riker and Hero Mercer Riker, you have returned." A knight wearing black armor addressed him.

"Have you completed your mission?"

The brothers nodded.

"Yes, take us to the Rogue Square district." Mercer said.

The knights eyed the fairy, dwarves, and elf.

"Who are they?"

"Our companions that tagged along with us on our mission. They all want to join the Order and defeat the Demon Lord." Gary replied.

"Alright, we will escort them to the Cathedral Square. We will get your horses to the stables, move on to your destination." The knight said.

"Okay."

"Wait." Stella spoke up.

"You were on a mission? What did you do?" The curious fairy asked him. He glared at her.

"I had to dispose of a traitor. Nothing more." He walked away from the group with his brother following him while caring his bag.

The Heroes arrived at Rogue One district, a section of the city of Dresden that was busy with training knights and Heroes to fight for the Order. He walked on the stone pavement towards the main building, passing by the knights practicing their sword fighting.

"Ah, welcome back, Gary and Mercer!" A man, sitting down at a table inside the building greeted him.

"Hey, Ryan. I'm back from my mission." He smiled, giving him a handshake.

Mercer smiled and also gave him a handshake.

Ryan Hudson stood at six-two and he had blonde hair cut military style. The man had blue eyes, pale skin, and a lean muscular build. He wore a gray shirt with black pants and black boots, and he had a gray beret. He wasn't a Hero, but a high-ranking knight that trained the young men and women in the arts of sword play.

"Do you have the traitor's head?"

"Yep." Gary dug into his bag and took out the severed head of a young man to show Ryan before putting it back.

"Good, every turncoat deserves that. Anyway, Ex-Hero Warren is in the weapon's room, I'm sure he'll be glad to see the Riker brothers serving up a cold dish of justice."

"Alright." The Hero nodded. Gary opened the door to a room with many weapons mounted on the wall, sitting on a chair made from bear fur was Warren; a man with graying hair and an eye patch, but even though old age was getting to him, he has seen Warren beat up younger men with his bare hands without batting an eye, so he wasn't to be underestimated.

He was dressed in a warm robe made from a bear's hide, and he smoked a cigar. The brothers bowed while the older man smiled at them.

"Welcome back, Hero Rikers. Did you bring the head of Knight Captain Frank?"

He took out the severed head from his bag and presented it to Warren.

"Yes, another traitor bites the dust." Gary said with satisfaction.

"Target eliminated." Mercer stated.

"Great!" Warren puffed out a ring a smoke.

"What do you like upgrade?"

"We would like to receive the legendary Slayer gear and would you transfer my brother and I over to Watergate, please." Gary stated his desire.

There was silence for a moment before Warren spoke again.

"Alright, you both have done a good job in your missions lately, and Watergate can use some help, I've got reports of the ocean mamono getting a little rowdy over there. Dresden and the area surrounding it is secured, as there are no wandering mamono in the wilderness, or a Demon Realm nearby. When would you like to depart?"

Gary stood up and pondered for a moment. There was no hurry to get to this place that Griffith said, and some additional training and better weapons will be nice for the adventure. Also, he would like to take the elf and dwarf with him to form a party, as they may be powerful Heroes, but it wouldn't hurt to have a hunting party to back them up.

It was hell just going through a mamono-controlled Bright Demon Realm town to find the bastard.

"Six months would be nice, I want the elf and dwarf train to become a Hero, so they may be fine fighters before we set out."

"Who is this elf and dwarf?"

"I brought in a group who wants to help the Order."

Warren raised an eyebrow.

"Ya did? Who else did you bring?"

"A fairy that wants to help us kill the mamono."

Warren looked even more confused.

"You found a fairy that actually gives a damn about what's happening?"

"Not just that, but an elf named Logan Sunstrider and a dwarf named Korgoth Furyaxe."

The old man's eyes brightened.

"Furyaxe? THE Furyaxe dwarf family? By the Chief God, they are legendary dwarf warriors. I thought they would have been brained washed, but to find that one is still with us is astounding. Where is this Korgoth?"

"I've sent them to the Cathedral Square." Gary replied.

"I'll send for a squire to bring him here. Anyway, I will gladly grant you your demands after both of you have shown unwavering support for Dresden and you rescued a legendary warrior from the clutches of the mamono. You two are dismissed and will begin your training with the Slayer gear for tomorrow."

"Got it." He said with a relieved sigh.

"Understood." Mercer nodded.

It's not easy traveling through mamono-controlled lands. The brothers would need to give the elf new weapons, maybe new clothes if he was interested.

-A Few Hours Later-

Logan sat on the bed of tavern, staring at the floor. The act of killing his own flesh and blood sister gnawed at his very soul; deep down, it was a mercy kill, he knew his real sister would rather jump off a cliff than get turned into a succubus elf. Her opinions of the Demon Lord was nothing but scorn and disgust, the real Lysandra would never dream of being a mamono.

However, it still depressed him greatly at killing his sister and losing his family and home.
A knock on the door sounded, snapping him out of his misery.

"It's open." He said dryly. The human Hero that saved him walked into the room and closed the door. Gary pulled up a wooden chair nearby the bed and sat in front of the sad elf.

"What happened back there? Why were there werewolves chasing you and what happened to your village?" Gary asked him. Logan gave out a deep sigh and looked up at him.

"Mamono invasion…my village and family gone…" He couldn't help but feel hot tears run down his cheeks.

Gary's fists clenched with anger and he glared, but he let out a sigh to calm himself down.

"Now you see?"

"See what, human?"

"You elves can't ignore the threat of the Demon Lord, like it or not, you are not safe from her by hiding in the woods. I too tried to ignore the threat of the Demon Lord, but I lost good men and loved ones to her."

Logan wiped his tears and nodded in agreement.

"My elder told me that I need to see humans as equal and fight for my fallen people, and he is definitely right. For decades, I've have seen you humans as inferior and pathetic, living in my village like a sheltered hermit, but you saved me from the pack of she-dogs that were planning to gang rape me." He said, sniffing while wiping his tears.

"How could I see you as inferior when I failed to kill one werewolf while your brother effortlessly dispatched the entire wolf pack with the monster machine, and you had no trouble killing that a manticore."

"Yes, the mamono are strong, but using tricks and the right weapons will bring them down; I definitely need to collect Stella's fairy dust and use it as a smoke bomb. And I would appreciate it if you drop the arrogant and haughty attitude like most elves. Do you swear that you'll help us destroy the Demon Lord?"

Logan frowned with a determined look on his face.

"Yes, I want to become a killing machine to get retribution for my people."

Gary smiled and patted his shoulder.

"That's the spirit! Now, tell me what weapons and armor are you interested in, your Hero arsenal."

Logan thought for a moment.

"How did your brother shoot multiple pellets with that machine? I thought you need to reload black powder guns after one shot?"

Gary chuckled.

"Runic magic, a rune that you carve on your weapon to charge it with power, or endow a special ability on the weapon. That was the Rune of Ammo and that machine is called a Machina, a spirit-blessed Magitech device that unleashes a hailstorm of bullets at enemies." He explained with a smile.

"Can the rune be used with a bow and arrow?"

He shook his head.

"No, only guns and crossbows."

"I guess I can learn how to use a gun." He said somberly, clearly upset that he couldn't use his old faithful bow.

"We head out in six months to Watergate, it is a beach city and we'll take a boat to Zipangu." He told the elf.

"Why are we going to Zipangu? Aren't you going to train me here?" Logan asked curiously.

"The fairy told me that there's a large organization recruiting members to fight the Demon Lord. We'll train here in Dresden for now, but we'll move out in five years. I'm curious, but also suspicious." Gary said to him.

"Why suspicious?"

"This Griffith claims to have been my father's best friend, but my dad never left the town and he did not mention him even once. I am also suspicious of the fairy, she may not seem powerful, but it's strange how she easily found us when my brother and I did our best to cover our tracks."

"So, you're going to travel to Zipangu to meet the organization? Why go anyway? You got the resources here." He retorted.

"I spoke with Stella earlier, she says that the organization is made up of different factions pooling their resources together to make a massive assault on the Demon Lord's castle. Here in Dresden, I've been guarding most of the time and just recently I received a mission to hound and kill a traitor. I want to be there to kill the Demon Lord, instead of being stuck here." He explained.

"I see, I guess I can come along, as long as a get a high-quality set of weapons, armor, and training."

"Deal." Gary shook Logan's hand.


-6 Months Later-

Gary had to admit that the elf was taking his training very serious. For a few weeks, he was very dry and still depressed at the incident at his village, but soon turned into a determined warrior with a thirst for training and combat. He did not care that some of the more xenophobic Order folk didn't like him, his training was more important and they started to respect him after a few weeks of getting used to him.

The priest said that Logan did have a lot of magical potential in his blood, and even Logan himself claimed that his elder always told him that he would be a powerful warrior if he applied himself, but Logan wanted to live a simple life, refusing to become a soldier and preferred to be a hunter-gatherer. Unfortunately, after the attack on his village and the loss of his loved ones, Logan embraced the warrior lifestyle without hesitation.

Some of the knights were surprised at how fast he was learning; at first, it was awkward for him to use an enchanted flintlock musket rifle, but after a few weeks, he was planting pellets on small targets forty-yards away without batting an eye. True to his word, Logan became a cold war machine that was hell-bent at getting revenge on the Demon Lord.

Stella became an enchanter in the barracks, using her fairy dust to enhance the weapons and armor of Heroes and knights. Though she did not fight, her refining skills upgraded every fighter. Even a low-ranking knight that was regarded as canon fodder now had an enchanted sword that can easily cut through solid stone and a suit of armor that raises their strength and agility to superhuman levels and gives them resistance to magic.

Flint Gearbreaker became a full-fledged Magitech engineer, enjoying the benefits of working with other likeminded people like him. He refused to go with the group, but will do what he must to supply them in the war effort.

"We're leaving in a few hours, make sure you don't forget your gear." Gary said to Logan at the training field.

"I know." He slurred, shooting a pellet at a wooden target that was sixty-yards away, landing a headshot in the Dresden shooting range. After each shot, he would down a bottle of rum and this was his third bottle. Gary thought it was impressive that he was focused, calm, and landing far away headshots despite being shit-faced like any drunken dwarf at a pub.

After becoming a Hero, Logan adjusted his wardrobe. Gone was the organic leafy clothes that once adorned his body from the wilderness. He wore a black leather jacket with a golden Order badge on his right chest, a dark green t-shirt, a pair of black jeans, brown boots, a pair of brown gloves, a black beret on his head, and a brown utility belt. Logan even shaved his hair, replacing his long hair that cascaded down his back with a soldier's buzz cut.

"Before you go, you want to spare with me?" Gary asked. Logan nodded.

"Sure, I want to see how effective my gun skills are." The elf said, walking away from the shooting range and towards the sparing blocks.

The dwarf, being an already seasoned warrior, was passing the training exercise with flying colors. In fact, due to his membership in being in the dwarf clan, he already received his Heroic weapon, especially after telling the King of Dresden how he cunningly escaped his monster-infested town. Korgoth waited patiently in his room in the tavern, very eager to travel to Watergate.

His family was in Zipangu and he thought about just leaving, so he can see them. But, he needed some weapons, armor, and having traveling comrades backing him up would be very useful. He may not have liked the elf, but as a proud warrior that respects might, he cannot deny that the elf grew a thick set of armor after his training. Maybe, just maybe, Korgoth can call him a friend and comrade.