RuneScape:Wiki Post/Fan fiction/Reckoning

Reckoning
Zale Dunning wasn't exactly the luckiest person who ever lived. He probably had the worst luck of anyone in Avvarocka, though by no fault of his own. He rose early, unsuspecting of what he was in for that day. He put on his boots, grabbed his money bag, and slipped a dagger into an unnoticeable pouch on his belt. The dagger wasn't much use for combat, but more like a charm for good luck. Not that it gave him any, to be honest. He exited his dilapidated house in the slums of Varrock. Someday, he'd finish the repairs it needed. He walked out of his house, down the path, unsuccessful trying not to make eye contact with any of Straven's thugs.

"You a problem, guv?" said the larger one.

"No, no sir." Zale responded.

"Alright, show me some money to prove it!" demanded the smaller thief.

Zale didn't want a fight, and so he handed both of them the few gold coins that he had been saving some for his mediocre meals. The criminals walked off, and put them out of his mind. He had to start looking for work, his first stop was at Aubury's Rune Shop.

"Zale! Well, it has been awhile." said Aubury upon Zale's entrance.

"Aubury, I'll cut to the chase. My house is in worse shape than you can imagine, I haven't had a good meal in who knows how long, I owe Straven a fair amount of money from his last scheme, and I need work. Please tell me you have a job for me." asked Zale.

"Well, Zale, I do have a task for you. However, you may not want to complete it. I have had several requests for more runes in the city of Taverley. Their reason's were unclear. You may find word in one of the inns, but I still need to deliver the runes. Here, take this parcel to Sanfew. He will know where to deliver the runes."

Zale took the parcel, not really bothered by he nature of the shipment. "Thank you, Aubury. I won't let you down." Zale left the shop, heading for Falador. Upon arriving in Falador, he stopped in the Rising Sun Inn and asked for a pin of beer. On the other side, a man who probably had too much to drink, was yelling his head off about how "The goblins are on the move! They destroyed my home!" Zale, uninterested, drained his glass, and returned it to the Barmaid. He started out again, toward Taverley.

After a pleasant trip through the country side, he arrived at the massive gates of Taverly, to find them ajar, look past them, he was met by a sight he was unprepared for...

The magical city of Taverley was different, not a druid was in sight and all the doors and windows were shuttered. The only living thing to be seen was a druid on the ground lying outside a building, the wound was bleeding very badly, and the blood was pooling at his side. Zale quickly ran to the druid's side.

"What happened?!" demanded Zale.

"Wh-why have you returned? Why didn't you leave with the others?" the man's voice was no more than a whisper.

"Where's Sanfew??"

"H-He l-left. W-w-with the others." He was making a visible effort to speak. "Y-you should l-leave..."

And with these last, faltering words, he breathed his last. Zale looked up, and saw something short running away. He had been to Taverley before, and knew where Sanfew's house was. Zale ran, glimpsing the large building close ahead. He entered the house, which was ruined inside. Potions and herbs lay all over the floor, trampled. furniture lay upturned. He climbed up the ladder. The room was empty, except... Zale turned around, and saw a hunch-backed goblin rooting through Sanfew's belongings for something of value.

Zale quickly withdrew his dagger, and the goblin turned just as Zale ran him through with the dagger. The goblin squealed very, very loudly, then fell limp. The strike had broken the point off The small dagger, the remaining blade was stained by the beast's greenish blood. Zale replaced the ruined dagger in its sheath, and left the creature lying in a pool of blood, dying. He sprinted from the house, knowing the shriek would have been heard. He soon found Gaius' shop, and shattered the glass in a sword case on the wall. As the glass shattered, Zale noticed that he hadn't heard the glass break or the tinkle as it hit the floor. All he could hear was the pounding of his heart, Zale ready to faint, but a surge of adrenaline kept him strong. As he left the sword shop, He realised he had forgotten the rune package back at Sanfew's house and that he didn't care.

Zale armed himself with some armour scavenged from the shop, and ran from building to building. Though most were empty, he found several druids, lying dead, many with wounds too gruesome to be described. As Zale passed the Tatherly gate, he felt an urge to run, he had nearly no combat experience, and knew that he would most likely die if he stayed, but a part of him wouldn't let him go, and allow the goblins to continue their rampage. Soon after these thoughts entered his mind, he saw a glimpse of several druids running away from a building, one carrying package. Two stopped and turned, waiting resolutely, as the third with the package continued running. A mob of goblins swarmed from an alley, each carrying razor edged, wickedly curved bladed that looked sharp enough to pierce the hide of a dragon. The two unarmed druids defiantly stood their ground, as the goblins swarmed them. After a brief struggle, the two Druids lay dead, and the goblins started running down the escapee.

Quickly Zale ran after the sprinting goblins, soon after he saw they had cornered the third druid, a young woman carrying an infant wrapped in cloths. Know that the goblins were about to kill her, Zale charged wildly, furiously swinging his blade at the nearest goblin, decapitating it in a single, fluid stroke. The goblins turned to face the unexpected attacker, ferally snarling, and attacked.

Zale fought bravely, but he was simply not experienced enough hold his own against the horde and was soon cornered with the female druid, while the goblins approached menacingly. Zale knew he could not hold back the horde, so in a desperate attempt to enable the woman to escape, he jumped at the goblins yelling at the woman to escape while the creatures were distracted. He swung his blade left and right, cleaving a small hole in the ranks of the green beasts. After a while, the many cuts the goblin had dealt him began to sap his strength. After a particularly ferociousness attack, Zale felt his legs give out and soon after was overwhelmed by the goblin hord.

Due to Zale's heroic efforts, The woman and the baby escaped, but unfortunately, when the Knight of Falador arrived at Taverly to clear out the goblins, all that was found of Zale Dunning was a pile of dead goblins, and a small ruined dagger in its sheath, laying on the ground. Words of his deeds soon reached those in Misthalin, and he is considered something of a hero among the people of Avvarocka.