Blade Walker:: Chronicles of StormShadow, #1

By Markham Alastair

Baguel is forced into a virtual game to save his kidnapped wife. He must learn the world and game mechanics quickly if he wants to succeed and see his wife again but with evil lurking around every town and city, can he muster the strength and knowledge to be the best. 

• Language: English
• Publisher: Markham Alastair
• Release date: Apr 30, 2021
• ISBN: 9798201273491

Book preview

1

Tristan! Tristan! Naomi screamed for her husband.

Naomi! Tristan screamed, but his wife couldn’t hear him. Naomi!

Tristan gave up, and started pacing across his room.

Tristan scanned his surroundings. Two red lights pulsed near the eyes of two cameras. They followed him around the room. Four white walls enclosed him, and cold concrete met his naked feet.

A voice crackled from an overhead speaker. You know what you have to do, Tristan. That is, if you ever want to escape this room and see your wife alive again.

What do you want from me? Tristan yelled at the speaker on the ceiling.

We’ve already been over this, Tristan, the voice sneered. All you need to do is beat the virtual reality game StormShadow. Then, and only then, will you and your wife escape these chambers.

I’ve never even heard of this game! Tristan howled. Why me?

Enough! The overhead speaker cracked with distortion. Do you accept the terms and conditions, or not?

Lights clicked on in the room as the white walls that surrounded him became clear, almost like they disappeared. Tristan’s eyes got big as he fell to the concrete floor at the sight he saw. Naomi was blindfolded and bound with rope on her wrists and ankles. Tears wet her cheeks as she opened her mouth to scream but Tristan couldn’t hear her. Blood started to stain the rope as her skin was rubbing raw.

Tears welled in Tristan’s eyes as he screamed at the ceiling. What choice do I have? Don’t you dare hurt her!

You’ve chosen wisely, Tristan, the voice said, calmer now. You had also left me with no choice. You are in no position to threaten me.

What are you talking about? Tristan wanted to coax an answer out of the voice, any answer.

The voice only laughed as the room went black.

Tristan awoke in a sweat. The first rays of sunlight were creeping through an open window in his room. Another morning at Deadman’s Tavern, where he’d been staying every night for the past week. He rubbed the last sleep out of his eyes, and swung his feet off the bed.

A week at Deadman’s Tavern, a week stuck in StormShadow, and a week of dreaming the same dream. He’d conquered the basics of the game’s mechanics, but he wasn’t much of a gamer to begin with. He kept wondering, every day, why him? Why had they chosen him to be transported to this virtual world?

Won’t find any answers staying in this room all day, Tristan thought to himself.

Tristan slipped on his hood and gear, and headed downstairs. He didn’t have much in the way of clothing or armor. A hooded black sleeveless cotton shirt and black linen pants hung loosely over his brown boots. The hood covered most of his face, save his blue eyes.  

Tristan rested his hand on the short sword which hung from a roped belt that was woven around his waist as he descended the stairs to the dining area of Deadman’s Tavern. Two elves at a table nodded at his presence.

Hey Baguel! The young bartender waved to him. Going to do some more exploring today?

Tristan didn’t respond right away, and remembered that he’d picked the name Baguel for his character at the start of the game. The name was a play on his father’s name, Gabeul, and it helped Tristan keep a part of his sanity back home. He didn’t know how long he was going to be trapped in StormShadow and any reminder of his home that he could keep, especially his wife and father, would help him escape this world.

The memories came flooding back to Tristan but one memory Tristan kept close to his heart at all times. He was five years old, holding his father’s hand and walking down the street, when a skinny man wearing a black hood rushed at them. His father pulled him behind him as he fended off the hooded man.

His father won the fight but the knife that the man was holding punctured the man’s gut and his father applied pressure to the wound until help could arrive. That memory stuck with Tristan because his father showed him that he needed to be nicer than the world was to him.

He smiled at the memory but the scraping of chairs on the floor brought him back to his current reality as Baguel waved back. I think that’d be wise, Rachel. I can’t beat this game if I don’t level up.

Good luck out there Baguel. Rachel smiled at him, and went back to her work. Tristan couldn’t help but notice that she looked so real. She wore ankle high brown boots and a black dress that hovered just above her boots. Her flaming red hair was wound tight in a short bun and her blue eyes twinkled in the tavern lighting.

The more Baguel thought about it, the more everything around him looked real. He’d been too busy learning the fundamentals of survival to really take it all in. The deep red oak beams that held the Deadman’s Tavern in place felt nicked and worn to the touch. The breakfast and cold water Rachel served him could have come from his favorite diner.

Refreshments finished, Baguel rushed back upstairs to the black metal chest at the foot of his bed and opened it. He retrieved three flasks, two Potions of Healing and a Flask of Water. He watched as the items disappeared as he picked them up. He should double check the game menu one more time.

Inventory. Baguel said the word and a list of items showed up in the middle of the room as they projected over his HUD.

Magic. A list of magic skills he was equipped with popped up on his HUD. Still empty.

Abilities. Also empty.

Equip. His only weapon, Short Sword, equipped to his hands. He still had a slot left to equip either a shield or weapon to his other hand. There were empty armor slots for his head torso, legs, feet, and arms, as well as two accessory slots.

Leaving his room, Baguel caught himself in a mirror hanging over a wooden dresser. The game rendered his exact features as in the real world. His pale face was moist with sweat and his dark brown hair stood up on end in a messy look. His lean build was on full display in his cotton shirt.

Baguel took a deep breath. It was time to play the game. The sooner he beat StormShadow the sooner he would see his wife again and be out of this virtual reality.

2

In front of the Deadman’s Tavern was an open field. Behind it was the edge of Hangman’s Woods.

Baguel felt the wind on his face as he walked toward Hangman’s Woods. Baguel slid his hand across a nearby tree. The rough ridged bark drew blood from his fingertips as Baguel shook his head. Even the trees felt like they did in the real world as the wind blew leaves through the air. The smell of dirt and crushed leaves entered his nostrils as he wandered deeper into Hangman’s Woods. He didn’t have to wander far before he came across a wild boar. The boar saw Baguel before he could sneak behind it.

Weapon! Baguel yelled as the boar lowered its head, its long, white, sharp tusks bearing down on him. Baguel swung his short sword, just before the boar struck him. The swing of his blade caused the boar to stumble. Blood dripped from an open wound on its chest.

Worry and fear crept through Baguel as he anticipated another attack. He had never been a fighter. Baguel hadn’t even gotten into a fist fight. His father taught him that kindness is the answer to the world’s problems and that he had to be different than the world. So while the world was fighting, Baguel was being kind to everyone that he met.

Now he was thrust into a world where the only way to win was to level up and the only way to level up was to get experience points and the only way to get experience points was by fighting. Baguel had no choice but to push the fear and worry aside and focus on the task at hand. It was the first step to finding his wife and being reunited with her.

The boar reared around to attack again. Baguel sprung forward, cutting off the boar’s momentum. He brought his sword down on the boar’s head like an ice pick, and the animal collapsed in a heap, its blood pooling around it.

Baguel checked his health points and was relieved to see it was still full. His experience bar rose. Words popped up on his HUD.

BATTLE WON!

EXP: +15

EXP: 15/30

LOOT FOUND:

BOAR MEAT

+40 GOLD

My first battle won. Baguel whispered as he scanned the woods for another boar. Maybe after defeating a couple more I can level up.

The thought of leveling up made Baguel excited. Each level brought him one step closer to his wife. He searched for another boar. Five hundred feet to his left, he spotted another one grazing on tree roots.

Weapon. He whispered this time, as he crept closer.

A twig snapped under his weight. The boar turned around and lowered its head to attack. Baguel cursed as he readied himself.

Baguel sidestepped the boar’s charge and swung, but his strike barely scratched the boar’s fur. The boar retaliated with a second thrust, too quick for Baguel to dodge. He felt a tusk penetrate his thigh.

The pain was real. Baguel screamed as he watched as blood spew out of the wound that now marred his leg. The orange health bar on his HUD blinked and went down.

He quickly scrolled through his inventory menu until he found a Potion of Healing and quickly drank it. He’d gotten cocky. He’d have to make his attacks count if he hoped to come out on top of this fight.

Baguel waited for the boar to attack. The boar rushed him, and this time Baguel’s blade dove into the boar’s hind quarters.

Baguel rocked his blade back and forth as he heard tendons snap and blood spurted out of the boar. Too focused on bleeding the boar, Baguel was oblivious to the boar’s thrashing tusks as it swung them around and jabbed one into Baguel’s ankle.

His health points flashed and sunk further. Again the pain shot through his body as his grip on his short sword was lost momentarily.

Baguel gritted his teeth and scurried to recover his grip. Hilt in hand, he gave one final thrust into the boar’s hind quarters. He saw his blade exit from the boar’s stomach, and the animal finally fell. Panting and trying to catch his breath, Baguel saw his HUD flash