1 Prince Jafaneim's Gambit

In 2012, Damien's father bought him a laptop for his 8th birthday, and instructed him to use it for schoolwork.

His father went away for business for a few days. In that time, Damien discovered a game called "Lorecraft", and quickly became hooked. When his father returned, he found Damien hadn't left the house in days. In a fit of anger, he hurled the laptop off the balcony of their fifth floor apartment, and Damien could hear the sound of the LCD screen shattering as it hit the sidewalk below. Thus ending Damien's gaming career - or so his father had hoped.

In 2024, a fierce battle was raging along the Coast of Tulips. What was once a beautiful sea of flowers had been trampled into the dirt by the marching of two armies, thousands strong on each side. It was the culmination of a great war between the Human Alliance and the Coalition of Beasts. The victor would rule unchallenged in the world of Lore, and their king crowned the winner.

Scattered alongside the corpses of rotting tulips were the bodies of thousands of humans, their armor rent asunder by wolverine claws, their limps chewed to pieces by the bear fangs, and their remains trampled underneath the hooves of centaurs. The once colorful field of flowers had been washed red by a sea of blood from fallen warriors. The remaining Human forces had rallied by the beach in a Phalanx formation - a dense line of spears pointed forward, with another line of spearmen ready to replace them if they fell. The deadly wall had successfully deterred the Beasts from pushing forward. However, their backs were to the great Luminous Ocean, and the waves were lapping at their boots.

Prince Jafaneim - the leader of the Human Alliance - breathed a weary sigh as he surveyed the carnage from atop his steed. If not for the impassable ocean, he feared his forces would be in a full rout. Yet the big cur had still yet to show his ugly face. The Prince and his retinue of the Alliance's finest cavalry men were crouched within a dense thicket of bushes, out of view of the Coalition's scouts. Jafaneim shuffled his feet impatiently. His enemy was playing this match more safely than expected.

Then a black mass of fur and claws broke from the Beast's forces, and descended upon the Human vanguard, leaping over their spears in one great bound and sending bodies flying as it landed. The soldiers tried to fight back, but the massive beast broke their weapons like toothpicks and tossed them into the ocean. One brave soul stabbed the Beast in the back, but the monstrosity quickly pulled the spear out and threw it back with tremendous force, ripping clean through the warrior's abdomen and impaling another Human behind him.

"There you are, King of Beasts." Prince Jafaneim whispered. "Now, let's see how well you've trained that Special Ability of yours."

Right on cue, the twelve-foot tall Wolverine arched his head back, took a deep breath, and unreleased his Howl of Pain. A shrieking sound that forced Prince Jafaneim and his retinue to plug their ears, while the human soldiers around the King of Beasts doubled over in pain, dropping their weapons and begging for mercy. Like a ripple in a pond, this effect was replicated across the entire Human army.

Sensing their opening, the army of beasts charged forward. The Phalanx formation had been broken, and the Human forces were on the verge of being completely wiped out. In that moment, Prince Jafaneim and his retinue charged forward, breaking from the thicket of bushes at the top of the hill. Their lances gleamed in the sunlight, and were pointed straight at their enemy: The King of Beasts.

Though his VR headset was mostly soundproof, Damien could still make out excited screams from the crowd, followed by the chatter of the commentators.

"That's a bold strategy. Let's see if it pays off. Although, we are talking about Prince Jafaneim essentially challenging the greatest unit in single combat... to single combat." A lanky man wearing a sharply tailored gray suit said, his voice booming from the speakers in Madison Square Garden.

The battle raged in a holographic display on the arena floor. The audience watched as the in-game camera followed the key players through the battle - The King of Beasts, as he tore through human soldiers like paper, and Prince Jafaneim, as he bravely charged down the hill towards his foe. An overlay across the battle displayed key statistics - such as the two thousand units remaining in the Human Army, compared to the seven thousand remaining for the Coalition of Beasts. It also displayed the combat power of the two Champions who were about the clash. Prince Jafaneim, with a lowly combat power of 500, versus the King of Beasts at 25,000.

Floating in the air above the projection of the battle were holographic displays of three sharply dressed men, providing commentary on the events as they unfolded. These commentators were famous members of the Lorecraft community, beloved voices that were renowned for their expertise on the game.

"I have to agree with you, Bounty. It is certainly a strange move." Another commentator - a taller, bearded man replied. "Throughout the past few months, Prince Jafaneim has never participated in a battle. Damien has used him mostly as an administrator, overseeing the economy and managing the country. He has allocated most of Prince Jafaneim's ability points to making him a better ruler, not a better fighter."

"Doctor and Bounty agreeing on something, that's a first." The third commentator said. "Perhaps today will the day of many firsts. This round of Lorecraft has lasted four months, and in that time, the King Of Beasts has never been defeated in battle. Perhaps Prince Jafaneim will give the King his first taste of embarrassment?"

The massive Wolverine turned to see the enemy cavalry charging toward him, and grinned - a ghastly expression that showed off the beast's jagged fangs. "This one's mine." He said with a growl, and the entire Beast army stopped in their tracks. He drew one arm behind his back, and produced a scythe that was taller than any man, sharpened to a gleam under the sunlight.

The roar of the crowd became deafening. The number of people gathered to watch the final battle in the four month long round of Lorecraft - with two of the region's most famous players in contention for the crown - had broken records. Not only for Lorecraft, or even eSports, but for Madison Square Garden itself. The army of fans was overflowing, and spilled out into the street, watching the game on big monitors mounted outside the stadium.

Lorecraft was a medieval fantasy game, where players managed every aspect of a fantasy Kingdom with the goal of conquering the world. A single game of Lorecraft often spanned several months, and professional matches were watched by millions worldwide. Spectators tuned in every day to see new battle lines drawn, alliances forged and broken, rebellions rise, and natural disasters strike.

Damien's opponent was OST Jake, considered one of the world's best Lorecraft players. He was famed for his mastery of in-game combat, and for being exceptionally skilled with the Beasts, having earned multiple championship with his fast-paced, conquest focused play-style. He was the captain of OST, a team whose faces and logo were known the world over.

"Coach, is he throwing the game away? We've got to stop him." A college aged man in a white jacket with "Team Azure" emblazoned on the back said. He was speaking to an older man whose gaze was fixated on the screen. They were sitting in the back room of the stadium, watching the match play out on a small TV screen. "We have to win this. Our team is on the verge of being eliminated from the professional circuit. You've gotta tell him that this is suicide. Everyone knows Prince Jafaneim can't beat the King of Beasts in single combat."

The older man sported a cap with the same logo that was on the player's jacket - a light blue feather. The coach was a man who looked to be in his late thirties. His face wore a somber expression. "Have you seen those comments on the internet?" He finally said. "They've begun calling Damien the 'Demon Jester."

Tobias looked at his coach in bewilderment. "Yea, I've seen the comments. And?"

The coach removed his cap, taking a long look at the logo emblazoned across it. "Just watch and see."

Prince Jafaneim lowered his lance, centering it on his target as he bore down the hill with increasing speed. Around him were the sounds of pounding hooves on the dirt, crushing the tulip bulbs and scattering their petals to the wind. His men closed in around him, creating a tight formation shaped like a spear aimed at the King of Beasts, with their Prince at the center. Every muscle in the Prince's body was screaming, his biceps tightening under the heavy weight of the lance, his legs gripping his mount to maintain his balance. Meanwhile, Damien Greene - the professional Lorecraft player known as the "Demon Jester" - was lying down in his Dive Pod, a tinted Virtual Reality helmet over his head, and a cacophony of wires strung all over his body.

For most pro gamers, it would be a dream to play on this stage. It was the regional championships for the United States - the winning team would go on to represent their country at the World Finals. A ten million dollar cash prize and the fate of their eSports team would be a heavy burden for most.

But Damien Greene did not live in the present. As his Avatar - Prince Jafaneim, the king of the Human Alliance, who reigned over a million humans and commanded the second most powerful army in Lore - rushed towards battle, Damien was thinking of his father. He was wondering if the old man was sitting in the crowd, watching him. Deep down, he knew the answer was no, as he had never shown up for a single game.

"I think I know your answer, but BoA, tell me - how would you rate this matchup in terms of their Special Abilities?" The commentator named Bounty asked with a smirk.

"Well Bounty, it's really not a fair comparison. Prince Jafaneim's ability is administrative in nature, whereas the King of Beasts has a very powerful combat ability." BoA responded apprehensively. "For those of you new to the game that are just tuning in - every player receives a randomly generated special ability at the beginning of the match."

"Yes, and as you've seen, the King of Beasts has a very powerful ability that's helped him win many battles." BoA added. "The Howl of Pain - a sound-based ability combat ability. When the King of Beasts howls, all his enemies keel over in pain."

"On the other hand, Prince Jafaneim's ability is more subtle. He has the power to recruit a special archer unit, which the internet has dubbed 'Magic Archers'." The tall, bearded commentator named Doctor said. "These archers can shoot extraordinarily far, giving Prince Jafaneim a strategic advantage in ranged battles."

"However, this special ability won't be much help in single combat." Bounty chimed in, and the other two casters had no response but solemn agreement.

The sound of his laptop crashing into the pavement five stories below was still etched in Damien's mind. He had cried and screamed, and his father had replied with a resounding smack to the face. "No more games." His father said firmly. "If I ever I catch you playing again, I'll throw you to the street."

But Damien had been hooked. In the years to follow, he pretended to join the basketball team, but during "practices" he snuck off to internet cafes. He played every game he could get his hands on, new and old. He hit the top of the leaderboards in League of Legends, Overwatch, and Hearthstone. One day, his father saw a school newsletter for a basketball match against a rival school, and decided to surprise his son by showing up.

When Damien came home that night, his father was waiting for him on the couch, a weary expression on his lined face. Damien immediately knew that his ruse had been unveiled, and braced himself for a lashing. Instead, his father motioned for him to sit by him on the sofa. Damien complied, still anxiously awaiting a smack across the face. His father reached under the table and produced a dusty picture frame, and passed it to Damien. After brushing off the dust, Damien could see a picture of his young father. He was wearing a wide-eyed grin and a loose-fitting jersey.

"This was ten years ago, at the Lorecraft city invitational." Damien's father said, taking a sip of whiskey. "Back then, I cared about nothing but the game. I practiced day in and day out." He set the whiskey cup down, and took a puff of his cigarette. In that moment, Damien thought he could see every single line on his father's face.

"I was happily married to your mother, but I never had any time for her. Even the night she gave birth to you, I was there for an hour or two before rushing home to play." Damien thought he heard a crack in his father's voice, followed by a dry heaving sound. "I woke up the next morning, having fallen asleep on the keyboard, with the lines from the keys etched onto my face. I looked at my phone and saw I had over thirty missed calls, with a voice message from my mother letting me know my wife had passed away from complications." The tears were streaming down his father's face now. Damien was lost for words.

"I never even got to say goodbye." His father said, between sobs. "Games are for children, son. I ran to the hospital and held you in my hands, and in that moment I realized I had to become a man."

A single bead of virtual sweat rolled down Prince Jafaneim's forehead. The midday sun beat down on his heavy chainmail armor, and caught on the tip of his steel lance, casting a glimmering light across the broken tulip field across which he charged. He was nearly upon the King of Beasts now, close enough to see grotesque snarl on his face, the dried blood of Prince Jafaneim's men on his claws. The King of Beasts relished this moment, as the last thing standing between him and a total victory over the North American championship was being served to him on a silver platter.

The massive creature reared his head back, and sucked in a deep breath.

"Here it comes!" BoA shouted, his voice booming over the arena speakers. "The Howl of Pain! The King of Beasts is aiming it directly at Prince Jafaneim."

With his free hand, the Prince of Humans snapped his fingers. In that same moment, the King of Beasts opened his jaws and unleashed his Howl of Pain. The camera panned towards Prince Jafaneim, and the audience gasped.

The Prince of Humans hadn't lost a single ounce of momentum, and slammed into the King of Beasts, burying his outstretched lance in the creature's stomach. The camera panned over to the Beasts army.

"He's done it again." The coach said with a grin. Beside him, the player called Tobias was clutching his head, his jaw agape as he watched the impossible unfold onscreen.

The bear cavalry was splayed on the ground, their paws clawing furiously at the dirt as they howled in pain. The centaurs had fallen over, moaning and clutching their ears with both hands. The wolverines were in a similar state, along with the Sphinxes and the Lycans. The entire army of the Kingdom of Beasts had been incapacitated.

"Charge! Send these beasts back from whence they came!" Prince Jafaneim roared, and the Human army sprung to life, reinvigorated by their Prince's unexpected victory. They descended on the scattered beast army with swords and spears, eager to avenge their fallen comrades.

The battlefield statistics displayed on stage quickly began to tell a different story. Within minutes, the Beast army dwindled from seven thousand, to four, to one. The audience reaction was heavily divided - one half of the stadium was lost in furious screams of adoration, while the other half watched in stunned silence.

"I can't believe my eyes, DoA." DoA said, rattling off words as quickly as they came to him. "This has never been done, ever, in the history of Lorecraft. A 500 combat power Champion taking down a Champion with 25,000 power in single combat. It's almost impossible to believe. I have absolutely no idea how, but Damien has done it, he's pulled it off, and he will soon be the North American champion of Lorecraft."

"How can it be?" The Doctor said in disbelief.

"I hate to be one to bring this up." Bounty said, shaking his head. "But perhaps the rumors circulating online about Damien have a kernel of truth to them."

Doctor glared at his fellow commentator. "Let's stay away from silly rumors during the broadcast." He said.

"Look at the King of Beasts, Doctor. Look at his army. It's like they've been disabled, and no one here can think of how Damien did it." Bounty replied. "Perhaps, a virus programmed into his opponent's VR set, or-"

"That's enough of your speculation, Bounty." DoA interrupted. "Look, the victory ceremony is beginning."

The mass of wires began to automatically detach from Damien's body. With some fiddling, the lanky boy removed his VR headset, and shakily stepped outside his pod. He was greeted by a stadium of flashing lights, screaming fans, and a massive holographic projection of the character he had played - Prince Jafaneim - standing victorious over the corpse of the King of Beasts. As he walked on stage, the hologram faded, and the floor began to open. Mist poured out of the hole forming on the ground, heralding the rise of a large, diamond studded trophy. The onstage drone camera zoomed in on the cup, which was as tall as Damien. Engraved onto the plaque were the words "King of Lore, North America, 2024."

Damien heard a flurry of movement behind him, and turned to see his teammates and coach rushing on stage. They leapt onto him, trapping him in a tight embrace. "I can't believe it, you son of a bitch!" Tobias said with a laugh, grinning from ear to ear. "You had me worried there. How in the hell did you do it?"

"Great work, Damien." The coach of Team Azure said, after the rest of the team had finished with him. He beckoned towards the trophy, and the team headed over and hoisted it up together. Thousands of phone cameras clicked, immortalizing the moment.

A petite girl wearing a glittering pink dress came scurrying onto the stage, and approached Damien. "Damien! Congratulations." She said, beaming a perfect smile. "I know everyone must be dying to know: how did you disable the King of Beasts and his entire army?"

Damien looked her over. She was Lunie, a famous cosplayer and model in the Lorecraft community. He'd seen many of her outfits on Instagram. "Well Lunie, I'd love to tell you." He said with a grin. "But a good magician never shows his tricks."

She pouted in response. "Aw, come on. Can't you give us just a tiny hint?" Damien looked at the ceiling and stroked his chin, making a show of giving the idea some thought, but ultimately shook his head. "Sorry Lunie. I may have to use this trick again in the future. After all, who knows where the wind blow?"

The crowd began to chant "Tell us!" but Team Azure turned their backs, and walked off stage with the trophy in tow.

On the other side of the stage, in a dimly lit pod, OST Jake ripped the wires off his body and threw his VR helmet onto the ground. He kicked open the door of his booth, and found that all of the cameras and the attention of the crowd was turned to the departing victors. Through clenched teeth, he furiously typed a text on his phone.

"What the hell were you doing, Bounty?"

To someone observing closely, the holographic display of the famous commentator hovering the stage could be seen looking at something out of the corner of his eye.

"Sorry Jake. There was nothing to give away. I had no idea what he had hidden up his sleeve." Bounty responded.

"Useless." Jake muttered. "All that trouble, and he couldn't give me a single useful bit of information.

Professional players are typically shielded from the sounds of the crowd and the commentators by soundproof booths and headsets, but Jake's team had paid the contractors setting up the stage to loosen the sound proofing. This allowed him to hear the commentary. They had also paid Bounty to feed him useful information that he could use to his advantage. Instead, he had heard nothing but a bunch of speculative gibberish from all three of the commentators.

The rest of Jake's team joined him onstage. Jake felt a lump forming in throat as his coach approached him.

"How could you lose a lead like that?" Were the first words his coach said to him. "You had triple his forces, and a commentator feeding you information. Are you just that useless?"

Internally, Jake seethed at the rebuke, but he held his tongue.

"Now we've got to resort to plan B." His coach said, shaking his head, and walked off.

"Don't worry Jake." His teammate reached out to pat him on the shoulder, but Jake swatted it away. "We'll get that championship one way or another. Coach will think of something."

"I'm sure." Jake muttered, as he walked off stage.

Long after the match had ended, and the audience had left the stadium, Doctor and BoA were still sitting in the commentator's booth. Doctor stood by a holographic screen, watching a replay of the battle they had just witnessed.

"This is the moment right before The King of Beasts used his special ability, and then Prince Jafaneim somehow stopped him." He said, and BoA nodded. Doctor paused the replay, freezing the screen as the King of Beasts puffed out his chest, preparing to howl. He scrunched his eyebrows and buried his face in his hands.

"You're not really trying to figure this tonight, are you Doc?" Bounty poked his head back into the room. He had changed from his professional attire to a pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt.

"Filter for wind patterns" Doctor said, ignoring Bounty. The screen darkened into a dark blue, with small streams of wind highlighted in orange.

"We all know how great the Ironforge Engine is, Doctor." Bounty remarked. "So powerful that we can analyze tiny details like the direction the in-game wind was blowing in replays. But what's the point?"

"Shut up, Bounty." BoA said. "Let him focus."

Doctor scratched his chin, and then pointed at the screen. "Who knows where the wind will blow? That's what he said." He said, and tapped the screen for the clip to continue playing.

On screen, the King of Beasts unleashed his roar, and all three commentator's eyes widened in disbelief. The strokes of red on screen abruptly changed direction just before the roar. In that precise moment, the wind had turned and blown in a completely opposite direction. It took a moment for this to sink in.

"The wind blew the King of Beasts' own Howl back into the own army? That explains why the entire army suddenly keeled over." Bounty was the first to speak. "But how?"

"That's the million dollar question, my dear BoA." Doctor said, and made a swiping motion on the screen rewinding the replay back. "Aren't you going back a bit too far?" BoA asked.

The onscreen replay was rewinding weeks at a time. When Doctor finally stopped it, it was displaying another battle entirely, one that had happened months ago.

"This is where Damien barely defeated the Elven Song. A pyrrhic victory." Bounty mused. "Perhaps after this bloody battle, he decided to turn the cheats on."

"Dammit, Bounty." BoA said angrily. "You need to cool it with that speculative claptrap. It may write headlines, but it's cost multiple players their careers." Bounty merely grinned and shrugged in response, eliciting a glare from his commentary partner.

"The main reason Our Hero won was his magic archers." Doctor said, pointing at the screen, which displayed two massive armies facing each other down across a massive schism in the ground. One army of Humans led by Prince Jafaneim, and the other an army of taller, lankier characters with pointy ears - the Elven Song, led by another pro player.

"Elves typically have the advantage when it comes to ranged units." BoA continued. "But Prince Jafaneim used the additional range from his special ability to outrange even the Elven Archers."

"Yes, the special ability to recruit Magic Archers that can shoot extra far." Doctor said, his voice trailing off. Then his expression changed to shock. "Could it be?" He zooms the screen in on the platoon of archers on Our Hero's side of the Gorge.

"Analyze wind patterns." Once again, the screen darkened, with only wisps of wind highlighted in warm colors. "Play." Doctor commanded.

The clip began to play. Right as Prince Jafaneim's archers fired a volley arrows, the screen became covered in warm colors.

Doctor fell back into his chair, while BoA and Bounty looked at him with confusion. "Unbelievable." Doctor finally said, breaking the silence. "He hid his true ability the entire time."

"What are you talking about?" Bounty snapped, and for once, BoA nodded in agreement with him.

"The Demon Jester, indeed." Doctor said with a sigh. "He had us fooled. His true ability was never to recruit 'Magic Archers'. He pretended that it was, so he could use his real ability in the final battle as a trump card."

Confusion took over Bounty's face, and he leapt from his chair, bringing his face inches from the screen. He rewound the clip, played it, then rewound it again.

"I don't understand." He said finally in defeat.

"His true ability was to briefly control the wind. He used it to give his archer's arrows additional lift when fired." Doctor explained. "And he used it in the final battle, to turn the winds against the King of Beasts right as he unreleased his Roar of Pain, turning the roar against the Beast King and his army."

"That explains why they were all writhing in pain at then." BoA said, nodding in comprehension. "But to keep up the facade for the entire four month duration of the game is pure insanity."

Doctor had been playing Lorecraft his entire life, and even deigned to become a professional player at one point. However, the feeling in his heart was now of resignation and understanding that there was an entirely different level of play, one that he was realizing he could never achieve. "The Demon Jester, indeed." He said finally.

Damien dangled the slice of pork belly over his mouth, and held a shot of soju with the other hand. With a click of Tobia's camera, the photo was uploaded with the caption "Our champion celebrating an E-Z win."

Chewing on the delicious piece of fatty meat, Damien found the picture on his feed, and scowled at Tobias. "You're awfully cocky for someone that got carried." He said.

"I just want to show off my amazing teammate." Tobias grinned in response, returning his attention to his collection of grilled meat.

With a sigh, Damien scrolled through his contact list until he reached the entry titled "dad". Tapping on the contact, he began typing up the same short message he sent every time.

"Hey dad, won another match today. Hope all is well. -Damien."

Before he could hit send, he got a message from his dad. This was a shocking event that rarely ever occurred, and Damien immediately opened it.

The text was an image of his father, bound to a chair with a gag over his mouth. There was a caption. "Come back to your house right away. Don't talk to anyone or call the police, or you can spend your life searching for his body."