There were several options available, but most of the branches were either too twisted or too large or small to function as a viable weapon. After a few seconds, however, he did find a branch that was a good size and weight. It bent a little at one end but was of a similar size to a baseball bat or would be once he broke off the smaller section of the branch.
The sound of movement caught his attention, and Ollie moved around to the side of the tree and peered out into the park. He saw a group of dark figures scurrying along the grass and heading directly toward him. From a distance, they looked like sausage dogs or oversized rats.
>> NEW QUEST: Ratkin Raid.
Survive the initial wave of Goblin Ratkin and prove your worth as a novice contestant! If you survive this wave of combatants, you will then need to make your way to the closest obelisk to receive your reward.
QUEST REWARD: Soul Ledger Token
TIME LIMIT: 15 Minutes
Ollie grunted. “Alright, I guess I’m gonna be killing a bunch of rats then?”
[Nero] Not rats, precisely. The Ratkin are goblins who have, for some reason or other, changed their physical appearance, mannerisms, and culture to align more closely with rats. Not the creatures that exist on this planet with the same name, of course, but a similar species which are found in many of the native goblin worlds.
Ollie bent down and picked up the branch, then started pulling off smaller branches.
“Space goblins that are pretending to be rats?”
[Nero] Goblins that are attempting to emulate many of the qualities associated with rats or, more specifically, Rattus Omnifilthia, the Filth Rat, as they are commonly known throughout the dominion. These are distinct from Goggle-rats and other species of Rattus that can frequently be found throughout the Dominion. Filth Rats are known to be the hardiest and fiercest examples of the species.
Ollie jammed the end of the makeshift club into the ground and pressed his foot against the point near the top where the branch twisted to the left. He grimaced as he put all of his weight against the branch, hoping to snap off the four feet of unneeded wood from the top of the club. The branch strained as he gritted his teeth.
>> THE FILTH RAT
TYPE: Vermin (Apex Variant)
RARITY: Uncommon / High Threat
PRIMARY HABITAT: Goblin waste-worlds, sewer biomes, junk forges, and Dominion refuse conduits.
DESCRIPTION: The Filth Rat (Rattus omnifilthia) is widely regarded as the hardiest and most dangerous rodent species in the Dominion. Evolved from standard goblin vermin strains, the Filth Rat thrives in conditions that would kill most life forms—chemical sludge, mana-contaminated runoff, and industrial debris fields are its natural domain.
These rats are large, broad-backed, and covered in overlapping plates of grime, dried oil, and metallic residue that harden over time into a makeshift carapace. Their eyes are black and reflective, their teeth stained green from corrosion, and their tails end in coarse, whip-like strands used for balance and close-quarters striking. A mature Filth Rat can chew through armored wiring, vending conduits, and low-tier plating with ease.
The branch snapped, and Ollie felt a stab of pain shoot through the sole of his foot. He cursed, hopping back and catching sight of the approaching enemy as he dismissed the rat description. It looked like there were six or seven enemies approaching, chewing up the ground and closing the distance at a disturbing pace.
“Alright,” he said, bending down and picking up the club, “what can I expect from these weird little bastards? What kind of attacks do they do? Are there any weak points I should know about?”
[Nero] I am unaware of specific weak points; however, a System description will give you some idea as to their offensive and defensive capabilities. Please note that as you have yet to choose a class, this description will be somewhat more generic than the information you will be able to gather after you have purchased a class.
Ollie stepped a little distance away from the trunk of the tree, swinging the branch back and forth and feeling its comforting weight in his hand. It wasn’t the best weapon in the universe, but a good club could do some decent damage under most circumstances, and it was harder to miss with something like this in his hands.
>> NON PLAYER CAPITALIST: The Goblin Ratkin
TYPE: Mutant Humanoid (Sub-Goblin Caste)
RARITY: Uncommon / Low-Tier Enemy
PRIMARY HABITAT: Goblin warrens, waste channels, underhive settlements, and derelict manufactories.
DESCRIPTION: The Goblin Ratkin represent one of the more grotesque examples of cultural imitation within the goblin evolutionary chain. Obsessed with the resilience and ferocity of the Filth Rat (Rattus Omnifilthia), certain low-born goblins adopt the vermin’s habits, postures, and physical traits in a desperate attempt to survive longer in Dominion arenas.
Ratkin crawl on all fours, their spines warped or deliberately broken to enhance “authentic posture.” They glue or fix enlarged metal prosthetic teeth to their jaws, change the shape of their ears, and mat their skin with oil, waste, and soot to achieve the “sacred filth” aesthetic of their rodent idols.
>> BASIC ATTACK
Gnash and Grab: The Ratkin lunges forward on all fours, biting and clawing wildly with its fused metal teeth and dirty claws.
>> BASIC DEFENSE
Filth Cower: When threatened or overwhelmed, the Ratkin hunches low, covering its face and smearing itself with muck or debris. The thick grime forms a temporary barrier while it emits a foul stench to deter pursuit.
Ollie braced himself for the coming attack, trying to judge how to swing his club to do the most damage and moving back toward the tree a little. The Ratkin were coming fast but hadn't split apart, and it didn't look like they were going to circle around him.
That was good. If they came at him all at once, one after the other, and he could use the large tree trunk to block off one side of their attack, Ollie reasoned that he might be able to keep them more or less in one place. That would make killing the enemies much easier to accomplish. But given that there was nothing on his left side, he would also have plenty of room to run if he needed to find space.
>> QUEST UPDATE: Ratkin Raid.
TIME LEFT: 14 minutes 59 seconds.
He took a deep breath as the closest enemy came into view, running on four legs, two glinting metal teeth protruding from the top of its jaw and curving downward like two oversized tusks, dark eyes looking out from behind metal whiskers jutting out to either side of a flat, wide nose.
Ollie thought he could still see traces of the goblin beneath these affectations, but the creature’s green skin seemed to have been covered with fur or painted dark brown instead of the vivid green he had anticipated. The goblin’s ears had also been reshaped, pulled in to the side of the head either by some kind of surgery or a mechanical device that changed the long pointy ears he would have expected into something round and hugging close to the side of the creature’s head.
He pulled back the club and held it two-handed, swinging with all his might at the moment the first of the Ratkin came within range. The blow connected with a solid thunk, dense wood cracking against the Ratkin’s head and sending a jolt of pain up Ollie’s arm as the goblin veered to its left, one of the tusks dislodged and spearing out into the air while bright green blood sprayed from the creature’s head.
There was no time to prepare a second swing before the second and third Ratkin were on him, so Ollie dodged aside as they charged by, using the momentum of his first swing to carry him to the left and then spinning around and swinging the club a second time. His next swing connected with the third wave of oncoming Ratkin, hitting a pair of the creatures at the same time, with bone-rattling force.
“Krackas naak!” one of them screeched, its face bloody as it continued forward, swiping a dirty metal claw at Ollie’s body.
He ducked back, narrowly avoiding a serious wound as the long claws raked the air and cut into the dirt where he had been. Already his plan of using the sycamore tree to hem the enemy in had proven completely ineffective, and he was having to quickly adapt to his new circumstances.
The problem was, the little goblins moved too quickly, scrambling across the ground on all fours—like rats, he supposed. While each of the enemies he’d struck seemed badly wounded—particularly the first Ratkin he’d hit—they were able to recover quickly, and there were still three of the creatures that Ollie hadn’t hit yet.
They charged all at once, snapping with their jaws, metal teeth extended menacingly. That forced Ollie to swing his club left and right in front of them, keeping the group at bay as he backed away and gave himself a little space.
Just need to survive for the next fifteen minutes, Ollie reminded himself, realizing that this might not be such an easy task given how heavy the makeshift club was. If he had a lighter weapon, it would have been a lot easier, but it didn’t look like that was going to be an option. The Ratkin attacked with their teeth and claws that seemed to be fused to their hands, so he couldn’t just steal a weapon or two from them and start fighting.
He was still considering this fact when one of the goblins jumped onto the back of another Ratkin and launched itself toward Ollie, claws outstretched and mouth wide open. Ollie caught sight of the demonic red tint to the creature’s dark eyes as it came within range, and he swung the branch with a grunt of effort.
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The beauty of the club was that it was almost impossible to miss. Dense wood cracked into the flying Ratkin’s head with such force that it cracked bone and knocked the creature’s false tusks right out of its mouth, a small harness accompanying the long metal teeth as they flew off.
Unfortunately, while the blow had hit the goblin hard and done a considerable amount of damage, it hadn’t arrested the creature’s trajectory, and the Ratkin went flying toward Ollie, claws still jutting threateningly. He turned away too late as the claws sank into his flesh, stabbing deep as he pulled back and grabbed the goblin with one hand.
Ollie wrenched the goblin free, finding it remarkably light, and tossed it up into the air as blood ran from the wound he had sustained. He swung the club in an upward trajectory, connecting with the creature and sending its crumpled, bloody corpse through the air in a long, steady arc.
>> ACHIEVEMENT: Rat mash!
Congratulations! You just hit a Goblin Ratkin so hard that its brains were turned to mush inside its little rat head. You might be interested to know that the creature’s last thoughts, in the second before it lost consciousness, were of a lost love named Grettkin Scratchass, with whom the fellow had lost contact some years ago. You might also be interested to know that Grettkin is currently living on a goblin world far in the outer reaches of the Dominion, selling crude paintings of High Baron Tongsly Belch in order to support her seventy-three children.
ACHIEVEMENT REWARD: 2 Belch Bucks!
KILL REWARD: 5 Belch Bucks!
Ollie dismissed the notification, turning and swinging the club again as the remaining Ratkin all attacked at once. His blow connected with three sets of claws and two Ratkin heads, blunting the attack but failing to stop one of the creatures from lunging forward and very nearly taking a chunk out of his right calf.
Fortunately, Ollie pulled back just in time to avoid the injury and followed up by kicking the Ratkin with his bare foot. The kick hurt like hell but, judging by the way the Ratkin squeaked and the distance it traveled, the blow had done a lot more harm to the goblin than it had to Ollie.
As he continued to swing and kick at the enemy, a vile stench rose from the Ratkin that was so potent it brought tears to Ollie’s eyes. He backed away again, trying to distance himself from both the raking claws and the horrific smell that accompanied the creatures, trying not to retch as the fight continued.
Each time his club connected with one of the creatures, a smear of grease and black grime was left behind, and another swell of trash-fire scent was released, biting at Ollie’s senses as he tried to recover. The creatures weren’t particularly effective fighters, mostly because their claws and teeth had been affixed to their bodies with a range of dubious methods, meaning that they lacked the efficiency of animals that had actually been born with large teeth and long claws.
Still, the various cuts and scratches across his body already suggested to Ollie that, if he let them get too close, the damage would quickly stack up. He quickly found that he was some distance from both the obelisk and the tree now. That gave him plenty of room to move, but it also meant he had no cover and no way to break up the attacks continually coming at him other than by swinging his club or kicking out at the Ratkin creatures.
He decided to change that as a pair of the creatures lunged forward, claws flexed and dripping with what looked like black tar. He swiped the club through the air, driving them back and, instead of backing away himself, leaped forward over the top of the pair and ran directly toward the obelisk.
The move took the enemy so much by surprise that they were temporarily flummoxed, raking out with their claws as he ran through their midst and only managing to swipe at each other. This started a mini frenzy of attacking within the goblin ranks themselves. The creatures bit and hissed and swiped and spat at one another and, as he ran toward the obelisk, it seemed to Ollie that this was a regular occurrence with the group. He supposed, if they really were modeling themselves on rats, infighting like this would be fairly normal. Then again, nothing about this day had been normal, and Ollie couldn't be more thrilled about that fact.
As he reached the obelisk, Ollie spun around and hefted his makeshift weapon with both hands. The enemy had recovered from their infighting and was now scurrying toward him on all fours, a pack of rabid rat things the size of dogs.
Instead of rushing out to meet them, Ollie stood just beside and behind the obelisk, intent on using it to keep them at bay and perhaps even allow him to pick them off one by one. It was a technique he'd used many times before in different games while fighting with Pete against hordes of zombies or trolls or any other kind of swarming enemy. He would have preferred to have a legitimate choke point to work with, but the obelisk would just have to do.
When the first two Ratkin came at him, Ollie stepped back and swung the club as hard as he could manage, aiming to crush them against the side of the obelisk, multiplying the force of his attack. It was a simpler technique, and on this occasion, it worked incredibly well, crashing both enemies together with brutal force and leaving a smear of green blood against the obelisk as one of the Ratkin was killed outright and the other was sent crumpling to the ground, its metallic teeth twisted at an odd angle, its head bloodied, and one eye having popped out of its skull.
>> KILL REWARD: 5 Belch Bucks
Before Ollie could step in and finish the second wounded Ratkin, three more attacked in unison, forcing him to stagger backward, swinging the club as they hissed and clawed at the air. He moved around the obelisk, keeping the remaining Ratkin at a distance with both the club and the sheer edge of the metallic shard and waiting for a chance to strike.
>> QUEST UPDATE: Ratkin Raid.
TIME LEFT: 14 minutes 12 seconds.
Ollie considered the quest reminder as he jabbed out at the trio, driving back the closest Ratkin before stepping back a few paces. Fourteen minutes would be an eternity with these little bastards swiping and biting at his body. Already the club was getting much harder to wield as his muscles began to strain and the weight of the weapon slowed his attacks.
Ollie’s breath was also laboring, and he was drowning in sweat. He made his money tapping keys on a keyboard every day, not swinging huge chunks of wood around and trying to avoid being torn to shreds by giant rats. That fact was beginning to tell, and he knew he was going to have to finish this fight quickly before things got worse.
He could run, of course, but given that he’d already expended most of his available energy with the sprint to reach the obelisk and the consequent fight, he didn’t fancy his chances of outrunning the Ratkin goblins. The idea of charging through the streets, bare feet slapping against asphalt and concrete, was also unappealing.
There was another aspect to Ollie’s character, which meant that retreat wasn’t an option, however. He’d always been incredibly stubborn when it came to backing down on anything he wanted. It had been that way ever since he was a child, something his mother in particular lamented on a near-daily basis.
Mostly, though, that stubbornness manifested itself in gaming. While others would shout in frustration at the monitor or rage-quit a game entirely when they faced an impossibly difficult enemy, Ollie would simply grit his teeth and grind it out, spending vast amounts of time and his own energy until he prevailed.
It wasn’t that he was a completionist, necessarily. Ollie wasn’t the sort of guy who had to collect every achievement, max out every skill, or complete every single side quest in a game. But if he came up against an enemy, he expected to defeat it. If he couldn’t defeat that enemy, then he would grind his way to victory, no matter the cost.
So, while Pete tended to be a little more reasonable when it came to late-night gaming sessions, Ollie would push and push until he’d achieved his goal, regardless of the consequences to his real-world job, his health, vital deadlines, or anything else.
Stubborn. Obsessive. Single-minded. They were all different ways of saying essentially the same thing. When Ollie set his mind to something, it was going to get done.
And his mind was now set on killing these bastard Ratkin before he ran out of stamina and made an error he couldn’t recover from.
Decision now made, he shifted tack and went on the offensive. The sudden change in direction took the trio of Ratkin utterly by surprise as he used the club like a battering ram, aiming for the middle goblin and battering the creature as he charged forward without warning.
The end of the tree branch thudded wetly against the Ratkin’s face, green blood splattering as Ollie ran forward. He lifted the startled and bloodied goblin off the ground, finding that it was now stuck to the end of the club as he spun around and swung the club at the other Ratkin enemies, bending low and twisting with as much force as he could manage.
The hapless Ratkin who was stuck to the end of the club flew free the moment the branch made contact with the other two goblins. The little figure slapped against the edge of the obelisk, leaving a smear of bright green blood and music as it slid downward.
Those goblins that had been struck by Ollie’s swing of the heavy club were smashed together. The hardest hit suffered a brutal strike that dislodged its fake teeth, shattered the creature’s jaw, and sent its skull crashing into its companion. The knocking of heads made a comically hollow sound as they fell backward.
Without missing a beat, Ollie lunged forward, striking out at the goblin that had been bullied into the side of the obelisk and trying to crush it like squashing a fly against a window. He thrust the end of the club into the back of the Ratkin and heard a disconcerting popping sound as blood and gore sprayed left and right from the impact point.
>> ACHIEVEMENT: Splat a Rat!
Congratulations! You just squishified an adult Ratkin and reduced what was, admittedly, a somewhat lackluster life into a very pasty death. No notes!
ACHIEVEMENT REWARD: 20 Belch Bucks
KILL REWARD: 5 Belch Bucks
“King of beans!” Ollie shouted in triumph as he turned and swung the club at the two stumbling Ratkin who were yet to recover from their collision.
He hit the first goblin so hard that it was lifted into the air and sent flying limply ten feet or so off into the grass, already dead before its battered body hit the ground, bounced once, and then came to a stop.
>> KILL REWARD: 5 Belch Bucks
The final goblin was so startled by this sudden shift in fortunes that it looked left and right in confusion, unsure whether to run or attack. That moment of indecision was all Ollie needed to finish the job. With a grunt of effort, he swung the branch two-handed like a golf club, cracking the underside of the goblin’s head and snapping it backward with terminal force, taking the affixed metal tusks with it and sending them hurtling skyward.
>> KILL REWARD: 5 Belch Bucks
The kill notification appeared before the goblin had even hit the ground. But as it did so, Ollie realized that there was still one more Ratkin left, the one he’d badly wounded earlier. He walked around the base of the obelisk and found the little creature fiddling with its tusks, trying to affix the false teeth back in place. Ollie could see places where the brown paint and matted fur stuck to its body were starting to pull free and showed goblin skin beneath. There was something terribly pathetic about the display as the Ratkin arranged its teeth, caught sight of Ollie, and then hissed menacingly, its claws raised.
He felt only the slightest twinge of guilt as he swung the club for a final time, hitting the Ratkin so hard that its false teeth were sent spearing backward into its skull, instantly killing the creature as its brain was pierced and it fell backward with an absurd smile on its bloody face.
>> KILL REWARD: 5 Belch Bucks
>> QUEST COMPLETE: Ratkin Raid.
Congratulations! You have successfully survived the initial wave of Goblin Ratkin! Not only that
Not only have you survived this initial wave of combatants, but you have also successfully defeated a full pack of Ratkin before the allotted deadline. In addition to the regular quest reward, 5 Belch Bucks will be awarded for every full minute you are under the allotted time.
Reward: Soul Ledger Token
Quest Time Remaining: 13 minutes 10 seconds.
Bonus Reward: 65 Belch Bucks!
Breathing heavily, wiping sweat from his eyes with his spare hand, Ollie leaned against his blood-stained club. He looked down at the weapon, letting it drop against the ground and shaking his head.
“First thing I need to do is get myself a weapon that’s a little easier to swing.” He rolled his shoulders. “Feels like I just went ten rounds with a gorilla.”
[Nero] Indeed. A lighter weapon would be most beneficial. You performed admirably, however. Dismissing a full contingent of novice enemies so swiftly puts you in the top ten percent of current Dominion Ultrimax contestants.
He nodded, grinning and still sucking in air. “Nice.”
As he looked around at the carnage, Ollie realized that he’d sustained numerous injuries and, now that his adrenaline was beginning to wear off, the pain of those wounds began to make itself known. There were cuts and abrasions on his legs, feet, arms, and even his torso. He’d also sustained a nasty gash on his right side, just below the armpit.
“Fuck a duck!” he blurted, touching a cut on his arm and wincing in response.
A quick inspection of the wounds showed angry red cuts and scrapes, which looked like they were in danger of becoming infected if they hadn’t already.
[Nero] I would advise you to head to your nearest Tongsly Belch Vend-o-matic machine, Ollie, and acquire a medkit. Those wounds will quickly grow worse, and you are in danger of dying from the infection they will cause if you do not deal with them swiftly. First, though, you should head to the obelisk and obtain your Soul Ledger Token.
Ollie nodded, forcing sore legs to move as he made his way toward the towering edifice. “Alright. I need to grab myself a class, then a better weapon, then one of those medkits.”
He coughed, his throat suddenly very dry.
“And I still haven’t had my bloody coffee!”