Fiction

Chapter I: Lost in a Deciduous Forest “I think we’re lost.” Aria turned to Lizzie when she heard her speak. Lizzie was standing in the middle of the forest clearing, hands on the map, with a facial expression that looked like she ate something bad. Aria sighed, went down from the knoll, and rushed to her best friend’s side. “Well, of course, we are,” Aria replied, taking the map from Lizzie’s hand. “Ever since we decided to go off the trail, we are already heading to nowhere.” Aria surveyed the environment around her. Everywhere she looked, there were only deciduous trees, shrubbery, and foliage. There were even no animals or insects around. Most of the trees had already shed their leaves to the ground, while the others that still had some were now brown and orange. She looked up and saw the tree branches blocking her view of the sky. It looked like bony fingers, stretching to the heavens as if it was seeking help. A gentle breeze blew past her. She observed how some of the withered leaves scattered to the wind. That’s when she heard a crow cawing. She looked up and saw it flying overhead. Somehow, even if it was a not-so-friendly animal, seeing another thing alive in that place brought her some relief. She felt strange. She wasn’t scared of the forest at all, but there was something about it that made her feel weird.  “But I was sure the castle is here!” Lizzie replied, exasperated. She looked around the woods. “Well, supposed to be here.” Aria sighed again and gave Lizzie the map back. “Liz. There’s no castle here, except for the abandoned one we saw in the distance earlier. Maybe that’s the one we’re looking for?” “No. I’m sure that’s not the one,” said Lizzie. She took the map again from Aria’s hands and perused it once more. She pointed to a castle drawn at the center of the paper. “See? It’s supposed to be where we are.” “Yet we seem to be standing on it, aren’t we?” said Aria. “Or at least it should be nearby. See? There’s the river here, the big willow tree, the giant rock—everything seems to be correct, except for the castle one. It may be gone a long time ago. Or it may never have existed.” “How could it be? I’ve taken this map from a history book,” said Lizzie. Aria wants to laugh at the seriousness of her friend’s face. She even looked as if she was waiting for something to come out of the paper. Lizzie turned to her. “What?” “You stole that page from a book in the library, didn’t you?” said Aria. “Not stealing. Borrowing it,” said Lizzie, folding the paper gingerly and putting it into her pocket. “Besides, this page was already torn when I got it. I just figured I should bring this for our trip and find this mysterious castle while we’re here.” “Why do you want to find the castle anyway?” Aria smiled and teased Lizzie. “Looking for a prince to marry?” Lizzie jokingly slams Aria’s arm, causing her to wince. “That’s not it!” she said. Then she pursed her lips and shrugged. “Well, if there’s a prince here free for the taking, I’d probably take him. And hey! Didn’t you agree to come with me here because you said we might find a buried treasure somewhere in the castle?” “Yes and no,” said Aria. “Liz, I don’t want to leave Frankfurt alone. You easily get lost, so I had to accompany you, you know.” “That’s mean!” “Seriously, Liz. The other day, you said you could find us the candy shop where the kind old lady on the plane got her chocolates from. We didn’t find ourselves in the candy shop, did we? Instead, we found ourselves in a red light district. And were nearly harassed.” “Don’t remind me of that.” “I was just saying maybe we should stop searching for the castle. We should head back now,” said Aria. She waved her hand to the direction of the hills, where the last glowing embers of the sun give the sky an orange hue. “It’s nearly sundown.” Lizzie heaved a big sigh. “I guess you’re right. So I think I won’t be able to find a prince for myself now.” Aria patted her friend’s back. “Don’t worry. I wasn’t also able to find my gold, so we’re even.” For the first time in hours, Lizzie laughed and then jerked her head to the side. “Let’s go.” Lizzie had been Aria’s friend for years. Exploring places was their favorite hobby. When they were younger, they would always wander around the city, discovering new places and going to areas where none of them had ever set foot before. They frequently encounter trouble, though. One time they were taken to the police because they sneaked inside a private property. Lizzie suggested the place might be abandoned, and no one had been there for years. Aria picked the lock so they could get inside. How would they know there was a roving guard that evening? Just as they entered the door, the night guard shone its flashlight on the door at the right time and discovered them. To the police station, they went and spent the night while they were waiting for their parents to pick them up. Of course, their parents have numerously reprimanded them for going to places that might be dangerous. They were grounded several times, too; the longest was when they were arrested. But they couldn’t stop their daughters with their favorite hobby. Well, Aria and Lizzie promised they would never get into the same or even bigger trouble next time. Until now. Aria and Lizzie walked in that forest, the soles of their shoes crushing the dried leaves beneath it. The map was in Aria’s hands now as she asked for it from Lizzie to amuse herself. She looked at it intensely and then suddenly stopped. “What’s wrong?”

RUINS OF AZGARDIA is an RPG game that focuses on the player’s adventure as they try to recapture the capital of the empire, Azgardia, from the demons. The player can choose from seven classes: Mage, Fighter, Merchant, Priest, Ranger, Slayer, and Mechanic. He can form a party with several other players (up to five) as they go on quests and fight monsters in the dungeons of Azgardia. Mage Mages are users of magic and mana. Despite not being able to wield heavy weapons and sport armors, mages can deal incredibly destructive spells against their enemies. They carry wands, quarterstaffs, and various magical objects with them that let them cast spells. There are various subclasses of mages, ranging from warlocks to sorcerers. Fighter Fierce and strong, fighters are masters of martial and defensive arts. They are the ones their party can depend on for defense and offense. There’s a reason why fighters mostly act as the leaders of their group: they’re pretty stubborn, honest, and determined individuals. Fighters are generally divided into three subclasses: weapon wielders, martial artists, and tanks. Merchant Merchants make the world go round by their abilities in handling money and connecting with other people. They are a versatile class, with some being knowledgeable in the arts of magic while others are capable of combat. The greatest advantage a merchant has is their connection with other classes. They can easily form alliances with mages, fighters, and others as they have the knack to influence and convince people. Priest Bound to a sacred oath, priests go out to the world to inspire, lead, and heal people. They are mostly good-aligned individuals who have a mission to drive away evil by using divine magic lent to them by a higher being. The priest class can be divided into three: monks, clerics, and paladins. Monks and paladins wield both magic and weapons, whereas clerics can only cast spells that are already powerful on their own. Ranger Masters of long-ranged combats, no one can escape the eagle eyes of the rangers. They may be not adept at hand-to-hand combat, but they’re unmatched when it comes to wielding guns, longbows, and crossbows. Rangers are generally divided into two subclasses, which are gunslingers and bowmasters.  Slayer Slayers belong to the shadows, emerging from the darkness to kill their prey. They are predators tasked to slay their targets. Some slayers are assassins who belong to a secret underground order; while others are simply rogue thieves whose bloodlust cannot be contained. Slayers are also experts in using a wide variety of weapons and can kill anyone with poison. Mechanic Mechanics rely on their wits and knowledge of technology to combat their foes. They are genius inventors, prodigies in the art of artillery creation, and masters of various crafts. Mechanics can create bombs out of simple materials and craft cannons that can obliterate a horde of monsters in a matter of seconds. With their proficiency in weapon creation, they are in close contact with fighters and slayers.

That year, the world as we know it, ended abruptly. It happened all so sudden. Monsters of all manners appeared out of nowhere and attacked everyone else. There were goblins, orcs, merpeople, birdmen, but most of all, there were demons. They were the ones who unleashed the monsters to attack towns and cities. It destroyed everything. Countless people died. We thought the world was over. But humanity decided to stand up. Some cities and countries were able to defend themselves. They were able to protect what’s left of their population and territory. Slowly, little by little, humanity was able to restart civilization and restored it to something akin to the Industrial Revolution era, but with magic and science combined. We call these places ‘realms’: places protected by magical barriers where people live in peace. However, beyond these realms, monsters still wander freely around. It comprises the 75% of the world’s total area, including the waters. We call these places ‘ruins’: highly dangerous places where all manners of creatures live. Including demons. Why the world ended, I didn’t know for sure. It was done by the demons. But it wasn’t their fault in the first place. It was mine. I put an end to the world, and I am fated to do it again.

Monsters of all shapes and sizes roam the world of Esgaia. From the sprawling city of Darham to the corners of Abbaddon to Azgardia itself, players will encounter beasts that could harm and kill them. This bestiary is meant to be a guide for all adventurers who play RUINS OF AZGARDIA. Some monsters are based on real-life mythology; while others can only be found in Esgaia. Methods on defeating or escaping these monsters are also contained herein, as well as which class is the most suitable to deal with them. Aquari The Aquari is a type of monster that dwells beneath the seas and oceans. It appears as a normal coral reef at first, before it transforms into an octopus-like beast that devours its victim whole. Fortunately, aquaris are slow-moving creatures, so it may take time for them to reach their victim. The most horrifying thing about being eaten by an aquari is that they also digest their food too slowly. That means, you can see yourself slowly being digested when you are captured by it as you die the most painful death. Beast of Cataclysm Probably the most dangerous beast in the world, the Beast of Cataclysm lives in Azgardia, the pet of the demon Beelzebub himself. The beast is colossal in size and has many eyes. From its body sprout a hundred tentacles that would grab its victim. Its mouth is full of sharp, sword-like teeth that could shred its victim to pieces. The beast follows Beelzebub wherever he goes. Now that the demon is ruling Azgardia, the Beast of Cataclysm also guards the city. It has been said that when the Beelzebub finally attacks the rest of the world, it will release the beast to the world, thereby causing countless deaths and unimaginable destruction. Bludgeoner Bludgeoners inhabit the dungeons of the once-glorious city of Wisteria City. They are said to be the people of the city, who was cursed when the infernal cloud from Azgardia drifted into the vicinity. Wisteria City’s citizens were unable to escape, and in their deaths, they inhaled the smoke and were thus turned into demons by the curse of Beelzebub. Unfortunately, the only way to pass to Runnefall was to go through the cursed city of Wisteria. Here, you will encounter an army of undead people who will bludgeon you to death. Chimera Chimeras are the attempt of alchemists to create a new beast by infusing several different parts of animals together. These alchemists formerly reside in Azgardia, who have now been turned into demons themselves. Chimeras can come in different forms, the most common one is the beast created by the Royal Sorcerer-Alchemist Fraudulein, which has a lion’s body, a head of a goat protruding from its body, and a serpentine tail. Chimeras roam around Esgaia after escaping Azgardia a long time ago. Cyclops These one-eyed monstrosities reside in the island of Phabos, in the middle regions of the world. Here, they kidnap unwary sailors and eat their flesh. They are gigantic in structure and were said to be even bigger than giants. These beasts are dimwitted, though, and it is easy to outwit them. Cyclopes carry clubs and hammers with them that they would use to smash their prey to death. Dark Elf Dark elves live in Untherria, a place where sun cannot reach its inhabitants. They are elves who have fallen from grace. Like their counterparts, sun elves, dark elves or moon elves have long, pointed ears and is proficient at using magic. Untherria is run by the wickedest of dark elves, Elviron, who takes humans and dwarves as slaves. Dark elves have a long history of war with light elves, and they never patched up their differences to this day. Dragon Dragons are the probably the most well-known yet feared beasts in the whole world, and understandably so. Their might and power are legendary that no one in Esgaia has never heard of them. These colossal beasts have bat-like wings and breathe fire. There are many breeds of dragons, but the most common one is the Ambrentine Red, which can be found in the northwestern regions where they feast on large animals, and sometimes, even humans. Elves Elves, or Sun elves, live in valleys and high altitude places like hills and mountains. Sun elves worship the god of light Luxis Faeris and despise the dark elves. Long ago, the dark elves waged a war against the benevolent sun elves and denounced Luxis Faeris as their god, embracing the deity of cruelty, Nyzamreth. Elves are generally peaceful creatures, yet they can be haughty and arrogant. They are experts at using the longbow and this had been their favored weapon ever since. Giants Giants are twice or thrice bigger than the normal size of humans. They are divided into two subraces, the valley giants and mountain giants. Valley giants are sentient creatures who have their own culture and language. They are peaceful and benevolent, too, and have established a good relationship with humans and elves. Mountain giants, on the other hand, are violent, savage, and dimwitted. They eat anything they could get their hands on, including humans, elves, and even their own kin. Gnomes Gnomes are tiny creatures that live beneath the ground. They love treasure and the comfort of their home, so they rarely leave their habitation. However, they are greedy and selfish. Once a person drops money near a gnome’s house, they quickly take it and never return it. Gnomes wear colorful clothes so they are easy to spot and they can also converse in human language. Goblins Goblins are mean, little humanoids who are violent, selfish, and cruel to other races. They attack in packs and are weak on their own. They are sentient, though, and can create elaborate plans and tactics but being physically weak, they depend on their numbers to win battles. Goblins are ruled by their leaders whom they call their ‘boss’ and follow whatever it commands. Because they like to live in