The Lessons Learnt From Defeat

"Every defeat hides within it a lesson."

"But it is up to the defeated to learn that lesson."

"Some blame others, refusing to take any responsibility for their decisions and the consequences they have wrought upon themselves."

"As a result, in many cases, the lesson meant to be learnt is lost."

"Such is common in the political arena where responsibility can lead to the loss of power even if the truth was that those others were blameless, a habit driven by political necessity as it is always easier to blame others for causing your problems rather than examining inwards."

"Some, however, still learn the lesson and realise their mistake, but due to external circumstances, cannot make this apparent to those around."

"The trappings of power not allowing them to speak aloud their mistake and the consequences it brought else those that follow said leader start to doubt them, their judgement and even their place among them."

"Either way, what is important is to always learn from your failures, your defeats, even your humiliations."

"For failure to learn from your mistakes dooms you to make them again and suffer similar or, at times, worse consequences."

"A reason why history and learning from it is so important.

 Jørgen Lund, Creator of House Braxel in Dynasties Online and, goes by the player name Plunderer Outlaw.

….

Braxel Brent was busy reading reports in his cabin as the sun began to set, its light streaming through the window and onto the desk. Pieces of parchment were strewn about on the table as he read the casualty report once, twice, thrice before outwardly sighing, laying the report back down on his wooden desk, and closing his eyes in contemplation.

He had lost a lot today.

Men, friends, ships, money and, to a certain extent, even his freedom, but it was still far better than the worst outcome, which was his character's death and the eradication of the dynasty he had spent nearly a month and a half meticulously cultivating.

His many recent successes against smaller merchant convoys and the fact that he had two master fighters under his command made him arrogant.

Unbelievably arrogant.

He had thought himself so clever, so capable, and confident, so sure that attacking a new company's first merchant fleet would lead to nothing but lucrative plunder in addition to a large payment from that company's rivals.

So arrogant that he forgot just how big the world of Dynasties Online was, basking in his own power so much that he forgot the fact that he was still just a tiny fish in a vast ocean. Despite being a shark among players, as far as the powerful NPCs were concerned, he was nothing more than an ant that they could squish should they deign to do so or ignore as was their wont.

A stark reality that had now been viciously slapped back into him by the dean of defeat alongside a much-needed wake-up call.

Because he was only an inch away from losing it all, all his men, all his ships, all his money, and likely losing his one chance actually to climb the social ladder for once, for defeat means having to wait 3 months in real life, which was one and a half years in-game time, before starting over from scratch with a dynasty that did not have the luxury of going through the Dynasty History System.

The resulting difference in dynasty strength between one that went through this system and one that did not players have found to be cataclysmically wide.

Only those who went through the Dynasty History System had a chance to become nobles from the beginning or men of power, wealth and influence, giving them a crucial early game advantage which, if used well, could set them up for years to come.

Only those wise enough to create a character and dynasty before the servers started and who had the foresight to see James Larant's intentions or were unemployed and desperate would get these vital early-game advantages.

Advantages which were deliberately put there when the majority of players were desperate or poor, giving them a leg up and a chance to compete in this new virtual second world before all the influential big shots arrived once they realised the opportunities that the game presented or were forced into it due to circumstance.

As for those poor souls who were sceptical and missed this one-in-a-lifetime opportunity?

This train to a potential future of tremendous wealth.

Well, they would receive nothing.

No advantage, no compensation and no last chance for redemption like in those novels where protagonists go back in time to fix their stupid mistakes.

All they could do was curse their short-sightedness.

And wish that they were on the train before it left the station. 

In Braxels' arrogance, he forgets that there is nothing unique in having the service of a master fighter.

These powerhouses that players see as being akin to more god than man were quite common amongst the truly powerful in the game.

Among those Dynasties that fight for power, a conflict between master fighters is almost guaranteed and even seen as an afterthought when compared to the deadly clashes between grandmasters, even if it happens away from the public eye.

As it would do no good for everyone to know all the trump cards a noble house has and how good the master and grandmasters under their command were.

After all, which noble house did not have a master fighter?

One look and you would find that many do have one, with only a few of the lowest-ranking nobility struggling to find one in their service. Fewer noble houses have two, but he had vastly overestimated his military strength and paid a heavy price for his arrogance.

One master fighter was bedridden due to his wounds, unable to be of use for at least a few months, while another was shivering, wet after an hour or so clinging onto a floating wooden plank from his destroyed ship.

'At least he will be available within a day.'

Braxel thought, finding a small silver lining on this otherwise bleak day.

He would never again sail recklessly against anyone anymore or take on mysterious requests that seemed to pay well without having a complete picture of what storm he would be sailing his crew into.

This was all to prevent suffering once again from a storm of steel and mail, for he had suffered through one storm like that already, and it was not one that he was eager to repeat as he nearly lost everything to it.

It also didn't help that not even their backer had any idea of the true strength behind their quarry, which, in the end, proved fatal.

A strength that was far higher than he had expected; even if they lucked out by incapacitating one of his master fighters with their ballista, he didn't think the presence of one more master fighter would have allowed him to win if the ease of Ryman's defeat was anything to go by.

In fact, he would probably have lost one or both master fighters if both were committed to the battle instead of having one wounded and one cold and wet.

Thinking about it, despite the losses he had suffered, Braxel had come out of this engagement rather well off, considering that he was captured because if he were captured by anyone else, he would probably have no choice but to face the noose sooner or later.

Not a charming prospect, to be sure.

Instead, he was alive, albeit two ships shorter with what little remained of his crew. Instead of facing the headsmen axe, he managed to make a deal that would be very profitable for him in the long run while also increasing his influence and giving him a justification to destroy or assimilate any rivel that decides to attack his new ally.

Braxel was well aware of the massive profits that overseas trade in a medieval-esque world could create, and getting 10% of that enormous pie was more than enough for him to be satisfied, especially as he only needed to use his influence amongst the pirates to prevent the merchant convoys from being attacked.

Though whether to use force or not to persuade his fellow pirates to let Delron's merchant convoys through was entirely up to him, giving him a remarkable, surprising freedom in how he went about his work despite practically being forced to accept the young mercenary captain's terms.

If only he had not been forced to agree to do those three favours with no questions asked for 'Delron' or the power backing him in the future, then Braxel would have considered this endeavour a success rather than the crushing defeat it actually was.

Not that Braxel believed in the slightest that 'Captain Delron' was the troublesome young man's real name, as only a fool would not realise who held all the power not only on that ship but amongst that mysterious new company too. 

But no matter how uncomfortable Braxel felt about how the deal he had with the young captain came about, he was nowhere near stupid foolish enough to break his part of the deal.

Not until he had more power anyway, though he highly doubted he would ever have the power to go against Delron or the shadow controlling him and the company he works for behind the scenes.

In fact, in the short term and maybe even throughout the lifetime of this first character of Plunder Outlaws, he may keep to this agreement due to the massive benefits he could gain from it.

And that was only for one reason.

Because of the emergence of a grandmaster-level tactic that managed to corner Ryman within 2 minutes and would have led to his death if the martial master he faced wasn't seemingly under orders to spare him if he could.

Or at least to give him a minute or two to bleed out before going on a one-way trip to the underworld.

The sudden appearance of that grandmaster-level tactic clearly indicated one thing.

The power behind this merchant fleet had to be on the level of a nation for them to be able to employ the service of such a figure, for only powerful nations are known to have any, not that he doubted that some are hidden behind the scenes unknown to the world at large and even some of its most powerful and influential players.

After all, saying you are a grandmaster strategist without having powerful enough backing is just asking for yourself to be killed.

It would be like putting a 'kill me' sign on your back due to how feared they were throughout the world, for they were entities that could dictate the fate of nations and everyone in them, and no king would feel comfortable with such entities as wild cards.

Just thinking of the potential retaliation that he could face if Braxel pissed off such a power would give him many sleepless nights in the future and send a wave of shivers throughout his body.

All just from fear of reprisals from this mysterious entity if he didn't do his job correctly or if he was up to the standards expected of him.

So Braxel will do his job properly, helped by the freedom he was given to accomplish his task as he saw fit because Delron cared not how he managed to ensure his ship's safety, just that they were safe and managed to get to their destination unscathed.

But he still needed to find out who he was working with.

Not an easy task by any means.

But one that he would need to complete if he ever wanted to have true freedom to act as he pleased, that is, allowing Braxel to rid himself of the collar placed around his neck for no matter how gaudy it may be.

It was still a bloody collar with a leash chaining him to the whims of his new master.

The power behind this company was careful, guarding their identity as if the very gods themselves would strike them down should this power, person or organisation be exposed.

So very careful that they used an alias to start it, an alias that had official papers and Nathian citizenship alongside the backing of someone in the upper echelons of Nathian society.

It was likely for this entity even to be in the upper echelons of the Nathian royal court as the power struggle between the crown prince and his brother was getting messier and messier, and both would be recruiting more talented individuals and nobles to their cause.

All of which needed a steady stream of gold to upkeep.

No, there would be no clues that were too obvious. Instead, it would be the little things that he could pick up on that would give him the leads he wanted.

First off, this power had to be a powerful noble house taking part in the power struggle within the royal, closely connected with one of the two figures, each of who have their own faction.

Second, if the iconography on the tea set was anything to go by, then the noble house had to be connected to the Pelicans one way or another.

Yes, that would be where Braxel would begin his search for answers.

Even if he turns this forced alliance into one that he wants to keep, it would be good to know the true extent of his new allies' capabilities, as for relationships like alliances to be long-lasting, both sides must benefit.

For this mysterious young man already showed he had the potential to be a more permanent ally for Braxel when he offered him enough benefits to firmly chain him to his war chariot.

A connection and chain that may well become one craved for in the future, even if not in the present.

All that was left was to find out if he had the background to match and whether he would allow their relationship to be as beneficial to them both as it is now and will be for the next few years as they grow their power.

He would then make his plans from there.

"Kesan!"

Braxel called out, and a man quickly ran in, hearing his commander's call.

"Commander?"

Kesan asked a young lad, a half Larantaine with dark violet scales and tufts of black hair, as his yellow eyes looked at Braxel with a mix of respect and deference.

"Look into every powerful noble house in The Kingdom of Nathia that has a Pelican somewhere on their banner!"

Braxel said in a commanding voice, deciding to widen his search radius just to be on the safe side of things.

For Braxel had already learnt the price of arrogance, and it was not one he ever wanted to pay again, for every defeat was nothing but a lesson learnt.

A lesson the pirate player had learnt much to his cost.

Don't be arrogant, and remember that there is always a bigger fish ready to swallow you hole.

So do your research and plan your actions carefully, make contingency after contingency, and you may just survive or even defeat the much bigger and stronger fish dining on its exquisitely tasty entrails.

Sighing once more at the casualty report detailing the losses of his most recent defeat, Braxel began working on gaining back not just what he had lost but more.

How to gain much more.

It was just a shame that all his attempts to find out anything about that mysterious young man would amount to nothing, and it would not be until a new king was nearly crowned that he would work out just who he had made a deal with.

For it was someone the world had largely forgotten about and was very good at hiding himself afraid of the assassins that would come his way should he ever be revealed before he desired to be.

 The last surviving member of a noble house the world had thought for a short time to be vanquished in the flames of Chavarian political turmoil would instead rise from the ashes harder and stronger than before.

The sole survivor of a sad tale of tragedy concealed by political necessity.

And finally….

Someone who would have an extraordinary effect on the future of Dynasties Online as a whole and be feared throughout the whole virtual world.