Thorn (Xavier Lee)

Xavier and Julia go to yet another hospital. The doctor they meet suggests a new, radical treatment for the boy, a two-year long procedure during which Xavier will be undergo Cutaneous Nanite Bonding (i.e. infused with nanites that will strengthen his bones and muscles). During this two-year period, Xavier will be in a state of suspended animation, but he will be in Nova Terra while the nanites work on his body.

Going to sleep in the large tank, Xavier enters the world of Nova Terra. He is forced to choose the Titan race for his avatar due to his real-world size and strength, and thus assumes his in-game persona, Thorn. He spends much of his time exploring the town of Berum and its immediate environs. He meets an elite team led by Ouroboros and consisting of Mina, Velin, and Jorge from the super guild Ragnarok. Though in a game with fantastic people and characters, his immense stature still makes him stand out.

Ouroboros's team invites Thorn to join them as a porter, meaning his role is primarily to hold all of the valuables that drop from the mobs that the party defeats. Thorn learns much from these professional players about how the game works and on how to improve himself as a player. The team takes Thorn to a location where he can find a powerful class to acquire. The group make their way to the canyon known as Davyos's Fall where they find a corrupted temple, Hati's Ascent, originally dedicated to the wolf god, Hati. They fight through the mobs within the temple and face and defeat a manifestation of Karrandras the Betrayer, the archdevil responsible for corrupting the temple. The defeated archdevil speaks with the party after the fight, prompting Ouroboros to ask for the class that he desires to have. To complete this transaction, he and the rest of his team subdue Thorn to rob him of his Destiny points.

Left for dead, Thorn regains consciousness still in the presence of Karrandras, who attempts to corrupt Thorn and make him his champion. Instead, Thorn fights off the corruption and purifies the altar of Hati. The Great Wolf appears and destroys the archdevil's manifestation. Hati then teaches Thorn about the existence of the gods, the wolfkin, and about Thorn's potential as a player. Though his Destiny points were stolen, Thorn can still take on a class. However, he can only advance through gaining mastery and cannot use an Ancient Inheritance. Hati also offers to make Thorn the god's avatar. a person imbued with the essence of a god in order to serve as that god's representative and champion in the world. Thorn accepts and gains a title along with several abilities.

Thorn reawakens in Hati's temple, now cleansed of the corruption. After exploring the town around the temple, he makes his way back to Berum and starts to plan his next steps.

Status

 **[Lord Greymane, the Moon Wolf], [Friend of the Earth]**   |**Conditions: [None]**   |

Shortly after arriving in Berum, Thorn runs into Jorge. In a moment of rage, he hurls the Jorge into a wall, killing him instantly. Thorn is immediately arrested and finds himself in prison. While there, he runs into Oberlin, a thief who had previously attempted to steal from Thorn, ending in the thief's arrest. Thorn is allowed to be released early on parole in exchange for a favor, to solve a problem of slow production at the Embersplit mine. Thorn encounters Oberlin again at Embersplit and together they work on finding out the root behind the mines problem. They discover that players of Ragnarok are partnering with some of the mine workers to smuggle out artifacts from an underground ruin. Thorn and Oberlin thwart the guild's attempt—Thorn by throwing mine carts, and Oberlin by stealing the chests that the guild uncovered. Thorn later learns that one of these players is Angdrin, one of the leaders of Ragnarok who is in charge of the Crimson Snakes faction.

Having solved the problem at Embersplit, Thorn and Oberlin make their to Vermin after the thief convinces the titan to help him be free of the Ordo Serpentes. This entails retrieving the soul essence that the order took, but first Thorn must defeat the high priestess, Josephine, who happens to be the avatar of Salliish, the god of shadow. Thorn encounters his first avatar challenge, where he is tasked with destroying all of the statues and the main altar of snake god. After doing so, and defeating Josephine in battle, the duo retrieve Oberlin's soul. As they are leaving Vermin, Thorn receives a friend request from Josephine, which he accepts after some deliberation.

Thorn and Oberlin then return to Berum, where Thorn meets with Mina and Velin who apologize for their roles in betraying Thorn to Karrandras. Thorn accepts their apology and even offers for them to join him as he seeks to complete a quest to rid Greymane Keep of corrupted werewolves and to assume the position of Lord Greymane. He had gained the quest when, shortly after he first started playing the game, Thorn defeated a powerful werewolf by the name of Gargish, the previous Lord Greymane. The two girls readily join Thorn. The team—Thorn, Velin, Mina, and Oberlin—go back to Davyos's Fall in order to find information. Thorn runs into Angdrin again, this time defeating him and his accompanying troops. The party enters the town's library only to find it completely empty. Then Thorn remembers that he had put every book in the building into his inventory when he was last in the town.

They ascertain the location of Greymane Keep in Fang Valley. After hiring the three players, Thorn leaves for Fang Valley, finding it and its inhabitants suffering under a curse. Velin and Mina rejoin him, and together they clear out Greymane Keep of its werewolves. Thorn assumes the mantle of Lord Greymane, now responsible for all the affairs of the valley. But he must make improvements quickly as the Crimson Snakes are certainly on their way in the near future in order to take control of the valley. The new captain of the guard for the keep, a wolfkin named Del'har, leads Thorn to a village of wolfkin hidden away in the nearby mountains. He encounters Elder Havva, leader of the Temple of the Moon, and the First Disciple Gelish, along with the rest of the disciples of the temple. In order for the wolfkin to accept Thorn as Lord Greymane, he must best Gelish in a trial of combat. However, during the fight, Gelish and several other wolfkin give in to the corruption that had been seeded within them. With the help of Hati, Thorn cleanses these disciples and passes the trial. He then becomes a Disciple himself, finally acquiring a class, and joining the leadership-focused Dawn Court.

Thorn then works with Elder Thomas to make improvements on Greymane Village, and he encounters the Freemen, a group of followers of Hati who had been driven into hiding by the previous Lord Greymane. Thorn convinces the Freemen men to join him before turning to the matter of defenses. This is easily managed when Thorn uses his vast wealth to purchase a large keep built by the game system, which he names Moon Wolf Citadel. He also starts his guild, Nova Luna.

A few days later, the Crimson Snakes approach the citadel. Though outnumbered nearly five-to-one, Thorn's superior tactics had the battle going in their favor, until Ouroboros killed Angdrin and took control of the Ragnarok forces. Thorn still managed to delay the enemy, and the coming of the Society of Roses, his aunt's guild, made victory all but insured. As things were looking grim for Ragnarok, Ouroboros used an ability of his new class to force Thorn into a contract where the fate of the valley rested in the result of a one on one duel to the death between the two of them. Fighting in the most difficult fight he had faced thus far, Thorn manages to defeat Ouroboros. In reward, Thorn acquired some imperial property deeds, abilities from Ouroboros's class, and a Nobility Upgrade Token, as well as some armor.

Fang Valley becomes a part of the Human Empire. As Lord Greymane, the leader of the valley, Thorn is given the noble title of baron. The people of the valley then have a large feast to celebrate their triumph over the invading army.

Status

 **[Lord Greymane, the Moon Wolf, Baron],** \\
 **[Friend of the Earth], [Inheritor]** |**Class: [Disciple]** \\
 **Mastery: [None]** \\
 **Allegiance: [Temple of the Moon]** |