The siege began at exactly 2:00 PM.
Marcus heard it before he saw it—war horns echoing across the valley. Low. Guttural. Wrong.
Every player in Eternal Dominion received the notification simultaneously.
[WORLD EVENT: THE GOBLIN SIEGE]
[DEFEND YOUR SETTLEMENTS OR FACE DESTRUCTION]
[REWARDS SCALE WITH CONTRIBUTION]
[EVENT DURATION: 6 HOURS]
Millbrook's alarm bells started ringing. NPCs screamed. Players rushed to the walls.
Marcus stood at the eastern gate with his team and watched the chaos unfold.
"It's really happening," Mercy whispered. "Look at them all."
Hundreds of players scrambling. Forming defensive lines. Ethan's voice carried over proximity chat, rallying Crimson Vanguard members to the southern wall.
"Hold the line! Protect the civilians! We're HEROES today!"
The crowd cheered.
Marcus turned away. "Let's go."
"You don't want to watch?" Isabella asked.
"I've seen this play before. Ethan gets his moment. We get results." Marcus started walking north, away from town. "Come on."
His team followed.
Behind them, the first wave of goblins crashed against Millbrook's walls.
The real fight was elsewhere.
The goblin fortress sat three miles northeast of town.
Crude stone walls. Watchtowers made of logs and bones. Smoke rising from forges and cooking fires. The place looked like it had been carved out of the earth by something angry.
[BLOODFANG FORTRESS]
[RECOMMENDED PLAYERS: 20-25]
[CURRENT DEFENDERS: 147 GOBLINS, 1 GOBLIN WARLORD]
[WARNING: ELITE ZONE]
They crouched in the tree line, studying the fortress.
"Jesus," IronHide muttered. "That's a lot of goblins."
"Most will leave when the siege starts," Marcus said. "They'll march on Millbrook with the main force. We wait for the fortress to empty, then we strike."
"And if it doesn't empty?"
"Then we improvise."
Shadowstrike was counting sentries. "Twelve guards on the walls. Two at the gate. Patrol routes look... random."
"They're not random. They're drunk." Marcus pointed to a group of goblins passing a barrel around. "See that? They think they're winning. They're celebrating early."
Isabella pulled up her spell list. "How long do we wait?"
"Twenty minutes. Give the siege time to pull defenders away."
They waited.
Marcus used the time to review the plan in his head. Memorized patrol gaps. Calculated cooldown timings. Ran through contingencies.
At 2:23, the fortress doors burst open.
A massive goblin—eight feet tall, covered in scars—emerged carrying a war banner. Behind him, a hundred goblins poured out in ragged formation.
[GOBLIN WARBAND DEPARTING]
They marched south. Toward Millbrook. Toward the glory and violence.
Leaving the fortress defended by forty-seven goblins and one very important boss.
"Now?" IronHide asked.
"Now." Marcus drew his sword. "Shadowstrike, north wall. Find the weak point in the patrol. Isabella, stay back until we breach. Mercy, stick to IronHide like glue. I'll take point."
"What happened to 'we work together'?" Mercy said.
"We are working together. I'm just working slightly ahead."
Marcus activated [Void Step].
The world blurred. He materialized on top of the north wall between two sentries. Before they could react, his blade was already moving.
[BACKSTAB - CRITICAL HIT! -734 HP]
[GOBLIN SENTRY DEFEATED]
The second sentry turned. Opened its mouth to shout.
Shadowstrike's dagger punched through its throat from behind.
[GOBLIN SENTRY DEFEATED]
"Clear," Shadowstrike said.
The rest of the team scaled the wall using a rope IronHide had brought. Smart. Prepared.
They dropped into the fortress courtyard.
Thirty goblins between them and the inner keep.
"This is the part where we die, right?" Mercy said.
"This is the part where we kill everything that moves." Marcus marked targets on the minimap. "Pull pattern alpha. IronHide, you're up."
The dwarf grinned. Charged forward. Slammed his shield into the ground.
[WAR STOMP]
The sound was like thunder. Every goblin within twenty feet stumbled. Confused. Disoriented.
"Light them up!"
Isabella's frost spells hit first. Ice spreading across goblin armor, slowing them. Shadowstrike weaved through the pack, daggers finding gaps between ribs. Marcus carved through the front line with brutal efficiency.
Fifteen seconds. Twelve goblins dead.
The rest rallied. Formed up. Started fighting smart.
A goblin shaman raised a staff. Green energy swirled around it.
"Healer!" Marcus shouted.
But Shadowstrike was already moving. Appeared behind the shaman like smoke. Both daggers plunged into its back.
[ASSASSINATION - CRITICAL HIT! -1,247 HP]
[GOBLIN SHAMAN DEFEATED]
The tide turned.
Without healing, without coordination, the goblins fell apart.
Three minutes later, the courtyard was silent.
Thirty corpses. Zero friendly casualties.
Marcus checked his soul counter.
[SOULS COLLECTED: 97/100]
Almost there.
"That was..." Mercy stared at the carnage. "Holy shit. That was intense."
"That was the easy part." Marcus pointed to the keep's entrance. A massive iron door. Locked. "The boss is in there. And he's not going to be friendly."
IronHide walked up to the door. Studied it. "No way we're breaking this down quietly."
"We're not trying to be quiet." Marcus turned to Isabella. "Can you blast it?"
"I can try." She raised her staff. Frost gathered at its tip. More than Marcus had seen her use before. The air temperature dropped.
"On three. One... two..."
The door exploded inward.
Not from Isabella's spell.
From something hitting it from the other side.
A figure emerged from the smoke and debris.
[KRAZAK THE BLOODIED - LEVEL 25 GOBLIN WARLORD]
[HP: 15,000/15,000]
[ELITE BOSS]
He was massive. Nine feet tall. Muscles like corded steel. Armor made from the bones of previous challengers. In each hand, a cleaver the size of a door.
His eyes—yellow, feral—fixed on Marcus.
When he spoke, his voice was like gravel grinding.
"You killed my warriors."
"Yes."
"You desecrate my fortress."
"Yes."
"Good." Krazak smiled. His teeth were filed to points. "I was getting bored."
He charged.
The first swing would've taken Marcus's head off.
He dove left. The cleaver hit stone. Sparks flew.
[VOID STEP]
Marcus blinked behind Krazak. Slashed at the exposed back.
His sword bounced off the bone armor.
[ATTACK BLOCKED - 0 DAMAGE]
"Shit."
Krazak spun. Impossibly fast for something so big. Both cleavers came around in a horizontal sweep.
Marcus dropped flat. Felt the wind from the blades passing overhead.
"Joint strikes!" Isabella's voice cut through the chaos. "Aim for the joints!"
She was right. The armor covered Krazak's torso, but his elbows, knees, neck—those were exposed.
Marcus rolled to his feet. "IronHide, get his attention!"
The dwarf was already moving. Shield raised. He crashed into Krazak's side like a battering ram.
The boss barely moved.
But he did turn.
"TINY THING." Krazak raised a cleaver. "YOU DIE FIRST."
"Oh hell no—" IronHide raised his shield.
The cleaver came down.
The impact drove IronHide to one knee. His health bar dropped thirty percent from a single hit.
"MERCY!" IronHide shouted.
Golden light washed over him.
[HEALING WORD - +450 HP]
His health bar refilled.
"I got you!" Mercy was already casting again. "Just don't die!"
"GREAT ADVICE. VERY HELPFUL."
Marcus used the distraction. Activated [Dark Blade]. His sword ignited with shadow flame.
He went for the knee.
The blade punched through the joint. Krazak roared. Stumbled.
[CRITICAL HIT! -1,834 HP]
Shadowstrike hit the other knee from behind.
[CRITICAL HIT! -1,654 HP]
Krazak collapsed forward. Off balance.
"NOW!" Marcus screamed.
Isabella's ice spell hit Krazak's exposed neck. The frost spread, cracking through the vulnerable spot.
[FROZEN FURY - CRITICAL HIT! -2,103 HP]
The boss's health dropped to seventy percent.
Then he stood back up.
"ENOUGH."
Krazak planted both cleavers in the ground. Red energy pulsed from him in waves.
[BLOODRAGE ACTIVATED]
[KRAZAK'S DAMAGE INCREASED BY 50%]
[KRAZAK'S ARMOR INCREASED BY 30%]
"Are you kidding me?" Mercy's voice pitched high. "He has a SECOND PHASE?"
"They always have a second phase." Marcus backed up. "Spread out! Don't stack!"
Krazak pulled his cleavers free. Charged Isabella.
She froze. Panic. Target fixation.
Marcus's brain went cold and clear.
Time slowed. Options crystallized.
He could save her. Use Void Step. Intercept.
But that would put him in Krazak's range. Out of position. Potentially dead.
Or he could trust her to handle it.
"ISABELLA! ICE WALL!"
His voice snapped her out of it. She raised her staff on instinct.
A wall of ice erupted between her and Krazak.
The boss hit it at full speed. The wall shattered, but it bought her two seconds.
Two seconds was enough.
She rolled left. Came up casting. A frost bolt hit Krazak's face.
[BLINDED - 3 SECONDS]
"Holy shit, I'm alive!" Isabella was laughing. Hysterical relief. "I'm alive!"
"Stay that way!" Marcus was already moving. "Shadowstrike, hamstring! IronHide, bash when I say!"
The coordination was beautiful.
Shadowstrike's daggers severed tendons. Krazak stumbled. IronHide's shield bash hit his chin. The boss's head snapped back.
[STUNNED - 4 SECONDS]
Marcus jumped. Used IronHide's shield as a launching pad. Flew up. His sword found Krazak's exposed neck.
[EXECUTION STRIKE - CRITICAL HIT! -3,847 HP]
He landed. Rolled. Came up ready.
Krazak was at forty percent health.
Still dangerous.
Still fighting.
The next three minutes were chaos.
Trading blows. Kiting damage. Mercy burning through mana like water. IronHide's health dropping and rising in terrifying spikes.
At twenty percent health, Krazak triggered his final phase.
[BERSERKER FURY]
[KRAZAK IGNORES 75% OF INCOMING DAMAGE]
[KRAZAK ATTACKS 3X FASTER]
"IMMUNITY PHASE!" Marcus dodged a cleaver by inches. "SURVIVE! JUST SURVIVE!"
It lasted thirty seconds.
Felt like hours.
IronHide went down. Health hit zero.
"NO!" Mercy's desperate heal landed a second too late.
[IRONHIDE HAS FALLEN]
Four became three.
Shadowstrike took a cleaver to the ribs. Flew twenty feet. Didn't get up.
[SHADOWSTRIKE HAS FALLEN]
Three became two.
Marcus and Isabella.
Krazak at fifteen percent health.
Mercy out of mana.
"We can't—" Isabella started.
"YES WE CAN." Marcus's voice was iron. "Isabella, frost. Mercy, run. I'll finish this."
"You can't solo a raid boss!"
"WATCH ME."
He activated every cooldown. Every skill. Everything.
[DARK BLADE]
[VOID STEP]
[SHADOW STRIKE]
[VENDETTA CODEX TRIGGERED: SOUL DRAIN ENHANCED]
The world turned black and red.
Marcus became a shadow. Flickering. Untouchable.
His blade found Krazak's wounds. Exploited every weakness. Every opening.
Five percent health.
Three percent.
One percent.
Krazak's cleaver caught him. A glancing blow. But it was enough.
Marcus's health dropped to fourteen percent.
One more hit would kill him.
The boss raised both cleavers for a final strike.
Marcus didn't dodge.
He stepped forward. Inside Krazak's guard. Too close for the cleavers to reach.
Drove his sword up through the chin. Through the brain. Through everything.
[FINAL STRIKE - CRITICAL HIT! -4,329 HP]
[KRAZAK THE BLOODIED DEFEATED]
The boss collapsed.
Dissolved into light.
Silence.
Marcus stood there. Sword still raised. Heart hammering.
Then:
[WORLD FIRST: BLOODFANG FORTRESS CLEARED]
[CONGRATULATIONS TO: GHOST, FROSTQUEEN, MERCY, IRONHIDE, SHADOWSTRIKE]
[LEGENDARY ACHIEVEMENT UNLOCKED]
[+15,000 EXP TO ALL PARTY MEMBERS]
[LEVEL UP! LEVEL UP! LEVEL UP!]
The notifications kept coming.
Loot materialized. Glowing. Legendary-tier items.
But Marcus wasn't looking at the loot.
He was looking at his team.
IronHide and Shadowstrike were respawning at the fortress entrance. Their penalty for dying was XP loss. Painful but survivable.
Isabella stared at him. "You're insane. You know that?"
"I'm effective. There's a difference."
Mercy collapsed to the ground. "I need a drink. Several drinks. Is there alcohol in this game?"
"There's a tavern in Millbrook." Marcus finally lowered his sword. "We can celebrate after we loot."
The loot was absurd.
[WARLORD'S RAGE] - Legendary Two-Handed Axe
[FROSTWEAVER'S EMBRACE] - Legendary Mage Staff
[SHADOWSTEP BOOTS] - Legendary Armor
[TITANSHIELD] - Legendary Shield
[MERCY'S GRACE] - Legendary Healing Trinket
One legendary item per person.
Plus gold. Rare crafting materials. A title: [Fortress Breaker].
And the real prize:
[WORLD FIRST BUFF: SIEGE MASTER]
[+15% DAMAGE TO FORTIFICATIONS]
[+10% RESISTANCE DURING SIEGES]
[DURATION: PERMANENT]
"Holy shit," IronHide said when he respawned and saw the loot. "We actually did it."
"Of course we did." Marcus distributed the items. Made sure everyone got what fit their class. "Questions?"
"Yeah," Shadowstrike said. "What now?"
"Now we head back to Millbrook." Marcus checked the time. The siege event still had four hours remaining. "And we see if anyone noticed."
They noticed.
The moment Marcus's team entered Millbrook, the notifications started.
[SYSTEM ANNOUNCEMENT: BLOODFANG FORTRESS HAS FALLEN]
[THE GOBLIN SIEGE INTENSIFIES]
The siege changed.
Goblins at the walls became more aggressive. Frenzied. Their warlord was dead. This was revenge.
Players at the walls started dying. Respawning. Dying again.
Chaos.
Marcus and his team moved through the streets. Players stared. Pointed. Whispered.
"That's Ghost."
"They cleared the fortress. The actual fortress."
"Five people. How is that even possible?"
Marcus ignored them. Kept walking toward the town center where Ethan had set up command.
Crimson Vanguard's war room was a commandeered tavern. Guards at the door. Organized chaos inside.
Ethan stood at a table covered in maps. Shouting orders. Looking every bit the hero general.
He saw Marcus enter.
Their eyes met.
Everything stopped.
"Ghost." Ethan's voice was carefully controlled. Friendly. But something cold flickered beneath it. "Congratulations on your fortress clear. Impressive work."
The room was watching. Waiting.
Marcus could've ignored him. Could've walked away.
But Ethan had made this public.
So Marcus would too.
"Thanks." Marcus's voice carried. "Your defense is looking rough. Need help?"
Ethan's smile tightened. "We're handling it. Casualties are expected in war."
"Expected. Sure." Marcus gestured to the map. "But also preventable. Your southern flank is exposed. You're stacking too many defenders on the east wall. Goblins are exploiting the gap."
"We have a strategy—"
"Your strategy is losing. I can see it from here."
The room went silent.
Ethan's face hardened. "We can't all abandon our responsibilities to chase personal glory."
"Personal glory?" Marcus laughed. It wasn't a nice sound. "I just killed a hundred goblins and their boss. Permanently removed them from the siege. How many have you killed while defending?"
"We're protecting civilians—"
"You're protecting NPCs. Code. You want to protect something that matters? Stop the siege at its source. That's what I did."
Ethan stepped around the table. Closer. The friendly mask slipping. "You know what I think, Ghost? I think you saw an opportunity to make yourself look good while the rest of us did the real work."
"I think you're mad I did something you couldn't." Marcus didn't back down. Didn't blink. "And I think everyone here knows it."
The tension could've been cut with a knife.
Then Bladestorm—Blake—stepped between them. "Hey. We're all on the same side here. Fighting each other doesn't help."
"You're right." Ethan's smile returned. Practiced. Perfect. "I apologize, Ghost. Tensions are high. I'm sure you understand."
"Sure."
"Maybe when this is over, we can talk. Compare strategies. Learn from each other."
Marcus almost laughed again. Ethan was good. Really good. Turned the confrontation into a peace offering. Made himself look reasonable.
In front of witnesses.
Smart.
"Maybe," Marcus said. Gave nothing. "Good luck with your defense."
He turned to leave.
"Ghost." Ethan's voice stopped him. "One more thing. Mercy. I heard she left our guild to join you."
"She made a choice."
"I respect that. I do. But poaching members? That's not how professional guilds operate."
"I didn't poach anyone. I offered an alternative. She chose."
"Of course." Ethan's voice stayed friendly. But his eyes were cold. "Just wanted to make sure we're being professional. Wouldn't want any misunderstandings between our organizations."
Translation: Stay away from my people.
Marcus smiled. "I'm always professional. You'll find I'm very good at respecting boundaries."
Translation: Make me.
He walked out.
His team followed.
Outside, Isabella let out a breath. "That was intense."
"That was posturing." Marcus kept walking. "Ethan needed to assert dominance in front of his guild. Let him have it."
"You basically called him incompetent."
"I stated facts." Marcus pulled up his interface. Friend requests. Messages. Guild invitations. Hundreds of them. "The siege isn't over. We have four hours. Let's use them."
"Use them how?" Mercy asked.
Marcus pointed to the east wall where the goblin forces were heaviest. Where Crimson Vanguard's defense was crumbling.
"We finish what they started."
The next four hours were a blur.
Marcus's team hit the siege from the outside. Flanked the goblin forces. Cut through their ranks like a scalpel.
Every kill added to Marcus's soul count.
[SOULS COLLECTED: 100/100]
[SOUL DRAIN COMPLETE]
[PERMANENT BONUS: +20 TO ALL STATS]
The power surge was intoxicating.
By the time the siege ended at 8 PM, Marcus was level 28.
His team had contributed to forty percent of the total goblin kills.
The system notification made it official:
[SIEGE SUCCESSFULLY DEFENDED]
[MVP: GHOST]
[TOP CONTRIBUTORS: GHOST, FROSTQUEEN, SHADOWSTRIKE, IRONHIDE, MERCY]
[CRIMSON VANGUARD: HEROIC DEFENSE]
Ethan got his accolade.
But Marcus got the numbers.
And everyone who looked at the kill count knew who'd actually won.
Marcus logged out at 10 PM.
His hands were shaking from adrenaline.
His phone showed fifty-three missed calls.
Sarah Chen. David Park. Unknown numbers.
One text from Lily: You ok? Saw you on some gaming stream. You looked scary lol
He smiled despite the exhaustion.
Texted back: I'm good. Just working.
His laptop showed the forums exploding.
"GHOST CARRIES THE ENTIRE SIEGE"
"CRIMSON VANGUARD VS GHOST - WHO REALLY WON?"
"FORTRESS CLEAR WITH 5 PLAYERS - HOW?"
And one thread that made him pause:
"Crusader (Ethan Cross) responds to Ghost drama"
He opened it.
Ethan's post was perfectly crafted. Diplomatic. Gracious.
"Mad respect to Ghost and his team for the fortress clear. Different strategies, same goal: protecting our world. At Crimson Vanguard, we believe in community over competition. But there's room for all playstyles. GG, Ghost. Let's grab a beer sometime and swap war stories. 🍺"
Three thousand upvotes.
Comments praising his maturity.
Marcus stared at it.
Ethan was controlling the narrative. Making himself look magnanimous. Making Marcus look like the aggressive loner.
Smart play.
Marcus closed the laptop without responding.
Responding was what Ethan wanted.
Engagement. Drama. Visibility.
Let him have the forum wars.
Marcus would have the results.
He fell into bed. Passed out immediately.
Dreamed of Krazak's yellow eyes.
Woke up at 6 AM to his phone ringing.
David Park.
"Marcus. We need to talk."
"What's wrong?"
"Nothing's wrong. Everything's right. You broke the internet last night. Trending on Twitter. Gaming news sites. YouTube highlights. Even CNN ran a segment about the fortress clear."
Marcus sat up. "CNN?"
"Neural-link gaming's a big story. You just became its poster child." David's voice was excited. Manic. "Get in the office. Now. We're renegotiating your contract."
"I'm already at quarter percent—"
"Half percent. Plus cash bonuses. Plus equity in the gaming division. Marcus, you're about to be very rich."
Marcus stood. Walked to the window. Looked out at the city waking up.
"When do you need me?"
"Now. I have Starbucks holding an offer. RedBull wants in. HyperGear—Ethan's sponsor—is panicking because you just made them look bad."
"I'll be there in an hour."
He hung up.
Checked the forums one more time.
New post from Crusader:
"Apparently Ghost is too cool to respond. That's fine. When you're ready to have a real conversation instead of stealing the spotlight, you know where to find me."
The passive aggression was almost impressive.
Marcus typed a response.
Then deleted it.
Typed another.
Deleted that too.
Finally, he posted:
Ghost:"Actions speak louder than words. See you in-game."
Short. Clean. Final.
He closed the laptop.
Time to go get paid.
Time to turn stolen glory into actual power.
And time to watch Ethan realize that the ghost in his rearview mirror wasn't fading.
It was getting closer.