Artificial Emotion: The second life.

Chapter 8: Raid preparation.

Three months had past since Anders imprisonment of the player-base, the overall death toll at first was stagnant in the thousands. However as word spread of Thaddeus' actions and unbreaking willpower players began to adapt to their new home, as time past the Black Widows guild became more and more accepting of his triggering anger after Hinatana and Melikra explained his situation. Some wondered how could a young man who appeared as lost and alone strive onward in the face of death, to that the answer was he'd rather die trying to save the girl he loves then bow down to a tyrant.

One evening whilst lying on the rooftop of the Widow headquarters staring blankly at the moon, his mind pondered on what was going on in the real world with his parents, the people he went to school with and elsewhere in the world. "Amy, where are you?" he uttered to himself aloud closing his eyes with a sigh, a sudden banshee like screech of help drew caused his eyes to dart open with whilst frantically sitting up, "Who or what was that?" he questioned scanning around him in an almost orb like fashion.

"Peter... where are you... help please.." screeched throughout the air around him, the voice barely audible followed by echoing teary cries and screams of pain. The voice finally fading leaving Thaddeus in a frozen shock of answers to a question he had been repeating mentally 'I hope she's alright', now knowing his girlfriend was alive if not safe Thaddeus stood up heading into the headquarters towards the forge-works part. Quite a few of the Widows stood idle observing him as he pounded the hammer to anvil with impacting fury and anger painted on his facial expression with each smashing ting.

"You know who you are and what's locked inside, don't fight it. Use it now more then every for her, use it one last time...." he spoke to himself with each strike then dipping the metal into water sizzling on contact as it simmered lifting it back to the anvil. "Wrath maybe a sin, lust maybe a sin. But it's silver-line is will and love, Amy means the world to you, so show this world that fact" he added continuing to forge his item. Some of the Widows stood shocked, others envious upon hearing his deep words. He kept working in the forge overnight emerging at dawn wearing the item he had spent the past night creating, a long chain-mail trenchcoat without sleeves the bottom half mainly consisting of weaved nylon with it's most standing out feature being a large white tarantula on the back.

"You spent all night making that?" Melikra asked with a look of confusion plastered on her face, Hinatana's face on the other hand seemed impressed at his handy work.

"Well, it's some armor. Still wearing rags but now it's overlayed with something personal" he answered jokingly as he shook his arms and rolled his shoulders getting used to the metallic coat, "Now reason I spent the whole night making this was to make a plan. Gather the whole guild I'd like to share it with as many we can" he added changing his tone to a more serious one.

The main hall of the headquarters now packed with Black Widow guild members from newest to veterans the crescent moon table where the officers sat in their associated chairs, time past as Thaddeus explained his plan. "My plan is to raid the Kings Fortress, or in other words I'm going after Richard Anders" being a sentence that creating an mass of whispering gossips, the guild officers simply taking glances at one other handing documents back and forth which to Thaddeus presumed they were discussing with.

"The games permanent death system is still in effect, you want us to risk our entire guild just so you can exact revenge?" the guilds second-in-command asked rather bluntly with a stern stare in her eye, hearing this Thaddeus simply stood in silence before removing his eye-mask revealing the black void eyes only colored by the bright yellow code. Having now showed this to more people who originally knew to begin with his stare became even more piercing add drop dead seriousness to his previous statement.

"So you'd willingly bow down to him after trapping you in his world? You'd willingly be his puppets of amusement, that maybe your choice but it ain't mine" he stated tightening his hand to the point his eye-mask broke from cracking under pressure, "I'll go alone if I must" were his last words as he began to make his exit.

"Thaddeus wait..." the guild leader said only to be cut off by a loud slamming door, outside the headquarters Thaddeus stared blankly at his hands then proceeding on his way out the fort and into the wilderness. Wandering throughout a misty forest he came to a complete stop hearing a sudden snapping twig, gazing around he found the origin as tall heavily armored knights phased in from the mists surrounding him entirely.

Looking left, right, behind then returning to front counting the amount he was up against total being around ten. "So, Anders sent you lot to dispose of me. Very well then, I was starting to feel out of practice" Thaddeus grinned as he drew the wooden scimitar readying himself to fight as a split moment later a blitz of attacks erupted with loud clashing of blades ringing out. Five minutes after the battle started it was over as the knights bodies littered around Thaddeus' feet, he himself was pretty beat up as blood had stained his clothing and the fatigued barely being able to stand up right. Hour upon hour he dragged his feet one in front of the other finally reaching the mountain base of which Anders citadel resided. "Half... way... there..." he uttered with heavy breath pauses as he spoke before collapsing onto his back, "dammit... too tired to move.." his gaze glanced up at the top of the massive structure before him closing his eyes to rest.

Waking up several hours later Thaddeus' eyes were filled with encampments of numerous guilds, siege weaponry and flying banner baring different insignia's. Heaving himself up into a steady walk, his passing by making few gaze at him as he went dragging the wooden blade behind in his limped arm. At last reaching the Black Widows encampment he found Melikra and Hinatana both of whom turned to face him releaved he's still alive with a smile, he collapsed again closed eyes with steady breathing. "Rest easy now, we'll wait for you to be ready" Hinatana said as her and Melikra picked him up carrying him to a bed proceeding to their duties afterward as the stage was being set for the siege.

When he woke up again it night had already set in, getting off the bed and strolling around the encampments overhearing the odd remark regarding him ranging from nicknames the player-base had given him, 'Solo-raider, Sinadin, White Tarantula' all cropping up once or twice as he came to a small hilltop sitting on a large boulder scanning the large gates ahead of him, "knocking those down may take a while" he thought out loud.

"Thaddeus, everything's ready to go. Are you ready?" Hinatana asked him walking up beside him, his response being a simple nod after looking at her as the two proceeded to the front-lines where mass formations of troops going from melee at front and rangers behind and behind them. Taking a quick glance at the time on his user interface Thaddeus gave off an amusing hmm, "Something the matter?" Hinatana asked shortly afterward.

"It's my birthday, or it would be" he answered folding his arms keeping himself fixed on the ticking second of the clock, "This birthday gift however will be stalled for a week but it's worth the wait" he added looking at Hinatana and Melikra "You may wanna cover your ears for this next part". The clock struck 12:30 as a single word was shouted out loud as possible from his mouth then repeated along the lines, 'Fire! Fire! FIRE!' the whole front-lines silence broke in a roaring series of siege cannons firing and projectiles screaming towards the gates. "God made the world in seven days, we'll destroy Anders in the exact same time" Thaddeus stated remaining in place with arms crossed closing his eyes knowing his goal was so close he couldn't risk failure now.