Damon's Ascension-Chapter 59: Kumasi Fort Instance

Of course, this was all speculation, though this wasn’t Damon’s fault. In reality, the young man had conducted extensive research on the various stats multiple times, yet information on Providence remained frustratingly scarce.

The only concrete reference to it lay in the legendary battle between Alexander and Roushin, where even the almighty Dragon King had been unable to harm so much as a single hair on the Turtle King’s head, an outcome which could only be explained through the interference of an invisible force, or put simply, ’luck.’

Damon put away the Golden Stool and finished his dinner, heading back to his room to rest.

......

Today was the day of the auction, set to take place in approximately 12 hours. Until then, he wanted to try the final instance located in Ghana within this period of time, being the Kumasi Fort instance.

As for the history behind this one... heh.

The famous siege of Kumasi Fort, which was a bitter lesson in stubbornness for the locals here at the time.

Before diving into this, one thing must be absolutely set straight.

Even though this was a siege from the natives towards the invading British, this wasn’t a grand tale of heroism where the good guys fought bravely and won.

No, this one was the type of tale where you started rooting for the underdogs only to slowly realize that maybe, just maybe, they should’ve picked a different fight.

The year was 1900.

The British had been steadily tightening their grip on the Gold Coast (Pre-Independence Ghana), like a python slowly squeezing the life out of its prey.

The Ashanti, once the undisputed powerhouse of the region, had diminished to a mere shadow of their former glory, licking their wounds from the last war they had lost, which Damon had incidentally been a part of just yesterday.

And yet, as if history hadn’t taught them enough painful lessons, they somehow convinced themselves that this time would be different.

Enter Sir Frederick Hodgson, a man who, depending on whom you asked, was either foolishly arrogant or simply terrible at reading the room.

He strolled into Kumasi and, with the full confidence of a man who had an empire backing him, demanded the Golden Stool - the very item Damon now wielded - as if it were some common piece of furniture.

Now, this wasn’t just an insult; it was practically a declaration of war. It was the equivalent of marching into the United States and demanding the original Declaration of Independence or walking into Britain and claiming the Crown Jewels.

Naturally, the locals were not too happy about that.

The Ashanti rose up, led by none other than Yaa Asantewaa, a woman who had more backbone than most of the so-called warriors around her. She was, in many ways, the African Jeanne d’Arc, a valiant woman filled with grit.

With the kind of speech that makes men rethink their cowardice, she rallied what fighters she could and launched a full-scale rebellion.

And so began the Siege of Kumasi Fort. A battle that, in hindsight, was less about victory and more about proving a point.

The Ashanti trapped Hodgson and his troops inside the fort, cutting off supplies and forcing the British to sit in their own filth for months.

It was brilliant... for about five minutes.

See, while it was nice to watch the British squirm, the Ashanti were running on sheer determination, and last time we checked, determination doesn’t stop bullets.

The British held out, barely, yet it was long enough for reinforcements to come marching in like clockwork, because, surprise surprise, a global empire tended to have unlimited backup.

What followed was inevitable. Kumasi was torched (again), Yaa Asantewaa was captured, and the Ashanti’s last real attempt at independence ended with a resounding "better luck next time."

So what did we learn? That bravery without strategy was just suicide? That maybe, just maybe, fighting an empire without proper weapons was a bad idea? Or that, in the grand scheme of things, history rarely favored the defiant when the defiant were under-equipped?

Either way, Yaa Asantewaa went down as a legend, while the British continued their colonial business as usual.

The Ashanti would eventually regain some form of control, but the real damage had already been done. The empire was broken. The dream of true independence? Postponed for another fifty-seven years.

And Hodgson? He walked away with his life, a job well done in the eyes of his superiors, and the smug satisfaction of knowing that, once again, history had sided with the people who had the better guns.

Yaa Asantewaa’s legend was deeply ingrained in Ghanaian history, known by every citizen and celebrated with endless praise, much like how the French revered Jeanne d’Arc as a symbol of courage and resistance.

Most little girls grew up with stars in their eyes, dreaming of becoming just like her, a fearless warrior, a leader, a legend in her own right. Her legend was so strong that she was one of the heroes that Damon could summon through the Golden Stool to fight for him for a day.

Being about to enter the instance that was her crowning achievement, Damon was eager for a front-row seat to witness the legend firsthand. After all, much like with Jeanne d’Arc, there were always disgruntled men and skeptical scholars who questioned just how much truth lay in the idea of a mere woman spearheading such a historic resistance and how much of it was simply myth woven into legend.

Damon did not really care whether her bravery was overexaggerated or underexaggerated, he just wanted to see for himself. This was probably one of the few times he was actually looking forward to experiencing history, because it was one of the few times they were the attackers and not the defenders.

Soon, he arrived at the bustling Kumasi Fort, which was formerly a tourist attraction but was now completely occupied as a hub of adventurers hoping to grow their power in order to stand out in galactic society.

Damon had never been to Kumasi Fort before, so he took his time walking around.

The place was smaller than he expected, not like the towering fortress that one might assume given the name and the story behind it, but rather a squat, sturdy block of stone, built to last.

The walls were thick and rough, their red paint bearing the scars of history, pockmarked from bullets and the wear of time.

The British had built it at the time for simple lodging and fortification against the savage natives, but it had long since become something else in the aftermath of Yaa Asantewaa’s siege.

Stepping in, the courtyard was choked with people, some vendors on the side selling snacks and refreshments while people sat around on benches, chatting in a lively manner about their experiences in the instance.

It was hard to imagine this place once held desperate soldiers, trapped, starving, waiting for death or salvation. Hard to imagine the gunfire, the shouts, the blood soaking into the dirt.

Damon let out a slow breath.

The instance had no limit on the number of entrants, so people came and went from it rather quickly, and Damon soon entered amidst chatter from people who obviously recognized him, surprised that he did not use his execute privileges to cut the line to clear the area.

When Damon noticed his surroundings, he was speechless to find that he was wearing a simple combat uniform that was likely stolen from a British officer and redesigned. In his hands was a matchlock rifle along with an aged flintlock pistol at his waist and a cutlass strapped to the other side.

Looking behind, he saw that he was followed by nearly 50 men who were dressed similarly to him, though their combat uniform was the basic redcoat that the average British soldier wore, overlaid with African print.

They all held matchlocks with tense expressions, and a single cutlass at their waists, with none possessing a flintlock like he did. Among them, the closest one to Damon was the one with the burliest body and radiated the most menacing intent.

[Essence Augmented Reality (Earth) - Kumasi Fort Instance 1]

[Duration: 7 days.]

[Details: The British and the Ashanti Empire are at a boiling point, and the Siege of Kumasi Fort has begun. Frederick Hodgson, the British governor, has demanded the sacred Golden Stool, and in retaliation, the Ashanti, led by the fierce Queen Yaa Asantewaa, have barricaded the fort, trapping British forces inside.

As the Obetse, you were sent to assist the Ashanti and slaughter the British along with the Ga clan’s best warriors, staging a breakaway for the various clans that have been forcibly colonized.]

[Objective(s):

a. Ensure that Yaa Asantewaa survives the siege and is not captured.

b. Break through the fort and claim it.

c. Ensure that at least half of the sieging Ashanti forces survive the encounter.

d. Destroy the British reinforcements before they can assist Sir Hodgson.]

Damon raised an eyebrow, smiling slightly. Not only was his instance different from others as usual, but the difficulty had been significantly amped up compared to what he had faced in Pra River despite that one being harder.

Clearly, his objectives had not only been adjusted given his unique entanglement with the Universe Will, but also because of his increased power thanks to the possession of the Golden Stool as well as his enhancement thanks to the Silver Eclipse skill.