Realm of the Mad God: Novel

Chapter IV

In the early afternoon, the group arrived out of the forest and into the Eoryun Highlands, a vast and mountainous stretch of land that expanded all the way to the far western reaches of the Realm; to the south, nearby the ocean, was Dale's Port. The monsters that roamed these highlands were numerous and prolific; here dwelt some of the stronger monsters of the Realm, such as the widely-feared Lesser Gods and their abundant minions - the Undead Dwarfs or the Night Elves, for example. In large groups they traveled, and were a bane to many travelers who wandered the highlands unwary of the danger that they faced.

The party arrived into the Highlands near the top of a hill; there was a path nearby, the old Lanise Road, which came out from Dale's Port and led north towards the Blue Wood. For now, obviously, the party would only need to take this road south in order to reach the town.

"How far are we away from Dale's Port?" Aaron asked as they left the forest.

"We'll probably get there by tomorrow. This road actually stretches pretty far; it goes down the side of a mountain and passes through the southern steppes until it reaches the ocean. We may have to fight a few tough enemies along the way; the Highlands are home to some of the more powerful monsters of this Realm."

"That doesn't sound good," Claire replied. "I'm tired of having to battle so many of Oryx's minions."

"Welcome to life inside the Realm," Kira said with a sad smile.

Well, if I ever had a conscience that pitied monsters, it's definitely gone now, Claire thought, reflecting upon how she had been slightly reluctant about killing creatures on her first day inside this Realm.

They began heading down Lanise Road, and the day remained quite uneventful throughout the afternoon. However, at evening time, they met trouble when they saw that the path led into some woods, which were known to contain many of the highland's monster-infested ruins.

The skies were beginning to darken, leaving the woods almost pitch black under the veil of the forest trees. Claire began to hear noises in the distance that sounded like footsteps; and at times there was a rustle of leaves on the ground, or the snap of a twig, or the shaking of some branches. We're definitely being followed, Claire thought, though our pursuers don't seem to be very subtle about it.

"I hope we leave this forest soon," Claire whispered. "I think we're being followed by monsters again."

"Let's keep on our watch, then," Kira replied. "This highlands is filled with monsters, especially in places such as forests. I just hope that it's not some Lesser Gods that we have to deal with."

That wasn't very reassuring, Claire thought. I better be prepared to deal with whatever's pursuing us, then.

The road suddenly led to a clearing in the middle of the forest: a meadow of sorts, located beside a hill whereupon a tall and ancient structure had been built. They looked like the old ruins of some large tower, which must have once been inhabited by humans; either that, or it was home to Oryx's minions.

"Hey!" Aaron yelled as he spun around to suddenly see a strange, golem-like enemy rushing towards him. The creature was brown in colour and had an egg-shaped body, with small hands and legs and two tiny black eyes.

"An Earth Golem," Kira whispered. She quickly thrust her staff at the creature and sent a blast of magic towards it, incinerating the golem into dust.

"There's more coming out from that tower over there," Claire exclaimed. She saw a white, mummy-like golem (possibly made out of paper), a blue glass golem, and a red fire golem charging towards them from the nearby ruins. "Damn! Luck's just never on our side, is it?"