Tower unleashed a litrpg.., p.1
Tower Unleashed: A LitRPG Adventure (Realm Grinder Book 2), page 1
TOWER UNLEASHED
©2023 WOLFE LOCKE
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CONTENTS
Also In Realm Grinder
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Chapter 37
Chapter 38
Chapter 39
Chapter 40
Chapter 41
Chapter 42
Chapter 43
Chapter 44
Chapter 45
Chapter 46
Chapter 47
Chapter 48
Chapter 49
Chapter 50
Chapter 51
Chapter 52
Chapter 53
Chapter 54
Chapter 55
Chapter 56
Chapter 57
Chapter 58
Chapter 59
Chapter 60
Thank you for reading Tower Reborn
Groups
LitRPG
ALSO IN REALM GRINDER
Tower Reborn
Tower Unleashed
Tower Domination
CHAPTER 1
[Now Entering: Town Hall]
[Floor 0: Quarry]
[Power: D]
[Will: D]
[Skill: E++]
[Level: 47]
Fire crackled and blazed across the bottom of an immense pit, a quarter-mile wide at least. No… More than fire. Rivers of magma churned and blazed, erupting upward into wonderful and terrible fountains. Below the magma, something moved, churning the burning liquid into a slurry. Its head appeared now and again, followed by glimpses of the rest of its body. It was a serpentine sort of creature, like a dragon without wings. Its eyes glowed like rubies, its scales lit up with an internal fire hotter than anything John Mavren had ever seen.
He stood on the brink of the pit, spear in his hand, as he gazed down at the monster. Off to his left rose the impossibly tall edifice of the Tower, rising high into the smoky clouds of that day. Below the Tower, spreading across the land, was the ever-growing city of Beggar’s End. The walls were lined with civilians and warriors alike, all staring out at their impending doom.
“We have to kill it now!” Enora shouted from beside him.
“I know!” John took a deep breath. “I just… I don’t know how!”
Slowly, Enora reached out and took his hand. “Let me.”
“No.” John shook his head. “You’ll die.”
“We all have to die sometime.”
“Not like…”
“You’ve given your own life for the cause, time and time again. Let me have this.”
John drew a deep, shuddering breath. “I…”
“John, you’re not strong enough. I am. Don’t take this from me.”
John sighed. “I can’t… I can’t bear to lose you.”
“You think all those people over there can stand to lose their loved ones?”
To that, John had no answer. Enora stood on her tiptoes and kissed him on the cheek… Then rushed forward, leaping headlong into the pit. John rushed to the edge, watching her gleaming armor shrink… And then vanish… Into the flames of the pit below. There was a crash of light, a flash of fire, and a great explosion that tossed John back from the pit.
When he landed, he groaned and rose to his feet. The ground around him was blackened, the walls of the Tower charred. Beggar’s End spread across even more land than before, though it now lay in crumbling, blackened ruins. Skeletons, their bones gnawed by small monsters, lay scattered like twigs after a storm. The sky was as red as the oceans of blood spilled in the war to save the world. Over it all stood a hulking form, blocking out the sun in its enormity. The form shifted, changed, but it was always there. One moment a giant, the next a dragon, the next a falcon. Only one thing stayed the same. The eyes were locked on John, ripping into his very soul.
“You could have stopped this.” The voice resonated through him. “You could have saved all these people.”
“I’ve tried.” John pleaded. “I’ve fought for so long… For so many years… I’ve died…”
A dark voice laughed, and the great beast shifted into the form of a red-skinned, six-armed monstrosity carrying a great scythe. Two arms were human, but the other four were long and spindly, like that of a spider. The blade gleamed in the bloody sunlight, and the monster snarled down at him.
“Then you’ll die again! And you’ll continue to die until you get it right!”
The creature leapt forward, slashing the blade through John’s chest. He tried to block it with his spear but was too late and felt his body strike the ground an instant later. A skull, charred and blackened, rolled up to him. The few strands of hair still clinging to it told him that it belonged to Enora. A moment later, a skull wearing a cap belonging to the Spellbooks landed next to him as well… Followed by more skulls. Some wore helmets, some were bare. All were recognizable. He screamed, loud and long, even as the last of his life drained away and he was left dead in the dirt.
“And… Check.” Enora pushed her queen forward until it was only three spaces away from John’s king. “Your move.”
John nodded and surveyed the board. He had never been particularly good at chess, that much was obvious from how early in the game Enora had managed to corner him. He had been using his two knights to try and pinch her king (a tactic that she informed him over and over was a terrible idea), but those were being threatened by her bishops after he blundered into a trap.
“Ahh…” He stroked his chin. “I…”
He reached down and moved the king to the left. Enora slid her queen sideways and trapped him once more. “Check again.”
“Hmm.” He thought for a moment more, then grinned. With a flourish, he slid his queen in between his king and Enora’s queen. He grinned in triumph… And a moment later, Enora had taken his queen anyhow. He fought hard and desperately, but within just a few minutes, the last of his pieces had fallen to Enora’s war machine, and he was left in checkmate.
“Good game.” Enora rose and shook his hand as he sighed and looked down at the ruined board.
“Easy for you to say.” He muttered. “You walked all over me.”
“You shouldn’t have sacrificed your queen.” Enora shrugged. “You were in the perfect position to use your horses to trap me.”
“I thought you said I couldn’t use the knights!” John protested.
“I didn’t say you couldn’t use them, I said you shouldn’t. As it turned out, I was wrong, but you missed the opportunity.”
John looked at her for a moment longer, then shrugged. “Well…”
He sighed and looked down at the ground, and Enora put her hand on his arm. “You okay?”
“Yeah.” John shook himself. Ever since defeating the Crystal Dragon, he had been plagued by dreams. They changed every night, but they were always similar enough. People he knew dying, himself being struck down. “Yeah, I’m fine.” He took a deep breath. “Let’s get to the ce
Enora nodded, and the two of them walked out of the small conference room and began ambling through the halls of the Town Hall, one of the central focal points for the town of Quarry, floor zero of the infamous Tower that now dominated the world. Dozens of other people milled about them, mostly Guildmasters or other important people who had been invited to the crowning of the new government. John chuckled as he took it all in. It seemed like the government of the Tower and Beggar’s End changed just about every year or so, as people struggled to figure out how to live in the new world. Enora had managed to hold sway as the dictator for longer than anyone else had done, which in his mind was quite an accomplishment, but now, she was stepping aside. It was time for new management, and he was happy enough about that.
They soon entered the council chambers, where Enora had once held her government. The modern tables had been cleared away and replaced with an imperial senate-style arrangement of chairs (albeit easy chairs, purchased from the furniture store down the street). Alara stood at the center of the room, with a solemn look as everyone filed in. Seating charts had been arranged previously, and John and Enora took their positions off to the side as the last of the people filed in, and the ceremony began.
“Good people of the Tower,” Alara spoke softly but firmly. “We’ve won a great victory over the Crystal Dragon, but I think I speak for everyone here when I say that the work is far from over. More monsters, deadlier monsters, will arise. As such, and in the interest of the stability of the Tower, I have decided, reluctantly, to accept leadership.”
“The crown will now be conferred.” Nimara rose from her seat and stepped forward, her armor gleaming in the light. She held a crown set with jewels, which she slowly placed on Alara’s head. “The Empire now defers command to you, my lady.”
Nimara then turned and walked back to her seat. Enora’s last act as dictator and guildmaster of the Shield-Maidens had been to combine the Shield-Maidens with the Army, forming a new guild called the Empire. Both had been powerful guilds in their own right, and together, they looked to serve as the single strongest force that the Tower had to offer. As Nimara sat down, Paul, next to her, rose and moved to stand before Alara.
“The Spellbooks now defer command to you, my lady.”
That had been another development from the earlier week. Due to his involvement in the battle (and Fraus’s exposure as a Deathmask), Paul had been installed as the guildmaster of the Spellbooks. It had been a decision welcomed by all, that was for certain.
As Paul sat down, a man wearing bright-orange armor rose and walked over before Alara.
“The Hirax Guild now defers command to you, my lady.”
On it went.
“The Wolfbears now defer command to you, my lady.”
“The Watchers now defer command to you, my lady.”
Perhaps the most surprising twist came at the very end, when a lone man in shabby, black rags walked over to kneel before Alara.
“The Deathmasks, at least those of us who still swear allegiance to myself, now defer command to you, my lady.”
“Arise,” Alara ordered, and everyone in the chamber stood up as the Deathmask ambled back to his seat. “I accept all command that has been given to me. Rest assured that I do not take this command lightly, nor will I interfere in personal guild matters that do not have grave importance. You are all still free to run your own guilds as you wish, I ask only that you respond to the call when I call for your services in defense of the Tower and of Beggar’s End.” She paused for a moment, then continued. “I recognize that some may have personal grievances with other guilds or warriors. Therefore, I hereby pardon all former offenses, up to and including murder.” There was a shocked gasp from the crowd, and Alara raised her hand. “There are too many external threats to bother quarreling about past problems. That said, I also hereby enact and promulgate this order: Anyone who interferes with another warrior to the detriment of the Tower, including offenses as small as stealing valuable weapons, up to, of course, murder, will be dealt with swiftly and mercilessly. If you threaten the safety of our civilians, I will not waste time locking you up. Do I make myself clear?”
There was a stunned silence. That hadn’t been on the program. Heads nodded slowly, and Alara softened. “Good. I make this threat, not to terrify, but to encourage. We don’t know when the next threat will arise, but I am certain it will be sooner than any of us are prepared to handle. You all know your duties. You all know your stations. March forth, and make this world a safer place.”
With that, she turned and marched from the room. As she did so, a number of white-armored guards, led by Logan, fell in step around her. The new Praetorian Guild, as they were called. John understood the need to have them, but he also had a strong suspicion that Logan and Alara had cooked up the idea so they could spend more time together.
John glanced at Enora, who smiled and nodded. As the different guildmasters broke formation and started mingling with one another, talking about the events of the day, John and Enora made their way out and into the halls. A handful of younger warriors gaped at him, but none came close, and that was fine enough by him. Ever since the battle, people had been flocking to him to get autographs, shake his hand… It had become quite exhausting, and had led him to spend the vast majority of his time in the Town Hall, where people at least had to be entering on official business.
“What now?” Enora glanced at him as they neared the meeting room he had been using as his chambers. “Back to Tower-climbing?”
“That’s all I can do.” John puffed out his cheeks. “You?”
“You already know my plans.” Enora drew her sword and made a few practice stabs. “I’m coming for you, John Mavren. I’m not that many floors below you—”
“At least ten.”
“And you need someone to help you on those higher levels.”
John snorted. “I’d be fine.”
“You practically kidnapped a Deathmask and made her come along with you because you were desperate for someone to keep you alive.”
John paused, then held up a finger. “That’s fair.”
Enora reached out and put a hand on his arm. “I know I’ve pushed you away, but… I see now why you did what you did. Without your effort, without your sacrifices, we never would have beaten the Crystal Dragon. I’m going to become a Tower-climber, and I’m going to help you. We both know you need it, and…” She shrugged. “I just have an odd feeling that the world might need it.”
John puffed out his cheeks. The dream returned in all its force as Enora plummeted into the burning lake of fire.
“Yeah. I have that odd feeling, too.”
“Great. In that case, don’t go any higher. Beef yourself up on the lower levels while I catch up, and then come and help me once I start hitting the harder levels.”
“I’ll do that.” John puffed out his cheeks, then groaned. “Oh… Bleh.”
“Bleh?” Enora raised an eyebrow.
“I just remembered something.” John sighed. “I kinda skipped past Floor 24 since I was in a rush, but promised the floor curator that I would come back and finish it. I don’t know what he might do if I don’t, and I don’t want to find out.”
“In that case, you’d better get moving, and so should I.” Enora flashed a small smile. “I’m heading up to Floor 15 right now. Any hints you can give me?”
