Death Touch Chapter 30

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Mia

The Champion of Salica had a really nice ring to it, but Mia had no love for the woman who had given her the title. When she finally made her way up the stairs to the Gilded Keep’s living quarters, she didn’t bother to slow down for her Sara. In fact, she had leapt several extra steps in the hope that her haste would discourage her unlikely companion from following. It had worked well enough that she had lost the priestess briefly on the stairs, but as she worked on deciding which direction she would go in the intersecting hallway before her, Sara jogged to the top of the stairs.

Sara didn’t even bother to complain as she caught up, nor did she speak. She only stood there, watching as Mia chose her path. She took a right and stalked down the hallway, wary of approaching guards. She felt naked with the sore thumb walking beside her with her damned judgemental gaze. She still wore the serving uniform that she had stolen, but the stones that had been used to confine her had ripped her left sleeve down the center and tore her leggings in the center of her thigh. She couldn’t imagine replacing her attire much less convincing Sara to don something more appropriate.

An interesting thought occurred to Mia while scanning the various doors in their path. If this priestess was desperate enough for her cooperation to let her carry out her revenge in defiance of her morals, Mia realized, their freedom must be important to her. The way they were going, there would be no making it to her prey without being challenged. If they were seen, would Sara allow her to kill anyone in her way?

Yeah, let’s not get carried away.

As a shadow appeared around a corner to their left, Mia decided this would be the perfect chance to test her. If either of them were seen, someone had to die.

“Hide!” She hissed urgently.

Mia leapt up to grab one of the light posts and hoist herself closer to the ceiling. From there, she then swung over to a nearby window and hung from a high window sill to wait out the patrol. She looked down to see that Sara had not moved from where she had been standing when Mia moved to hide. What the fuck does she think she’s doing?

Sara seemed to wait for the guard to come to her. As Mia had rightfully guessed, he seemed alarmed to see an intruder. But instead of approaching her with his weapon raised, he seemed to be addressing her politely.

“Madam, I’m afraid this place is off limits to the public. Do you have legitimate business here?”

“Nope. I’m sorry,” Sara replied as she grabbed his wrist and said, “Sleep.”

You’ve gotta be kidding me! She was not, as it turned out. The guard suddenly slumped to the ground and began to snooze as if he had been tranquilized. She looked up towards Mia and shook her head. With a sigh, the assassin dropped from her perch and continued her search in silence.

Mia was sure they must have been rounding the north side of the castle when they finally found a door marked with a golden plaque bearing the name of her hated prey.

“Anthony Clark,” she whispered. “It is time for us to sing a song of death together.”

She pushed open the door and found Dr. Clark standing in front of his window, gazing out on the festivities below. He turned at creak of the door and looked at Mia and Sara with confusion.

“Miss Marle, right? One couldn’t imagine a more unlikely pair to barge into more quarters. Do you realize that we are in the company of a killer?”

Sara said nothing, which sent a clear message. She wasn’t in control of what was about to happen next. She’s really not going to get in my way!

Mia pulled out her pistol without hesitation and aimed. “Shall I take the melody?”

“Only Starlings sing the song of retribution,” Anthony said calmly. “If you pull that trigger, you’ll only become their enemy.”

Mia pulled the trigger, again without hesitation. Somehow, her shot missed his ear by an inch. She had been aiming for his chest, and she didn’t miss often.

“You’re not going to get what you came for,” Anthony said with a smirk. “I took the necessary precautions the moment Lady Dinorah gave you up. She was hoping you could handle me disposing of your traitor, but you’ve disappointed her.”

“What the hell did you do?” Mia shouted as she fired another shot, this one missing wildly.

“It’s subtle, but the way your mind interprets sensory data is being slightly altered. You can still see and hear me, but your perception is slightly off.”

“Is that so?” Mia fired two more shots, aiming to either side of the man. One of the bullets managed to graze his shoulder, causing him to let out a grunt. But he only responded by holding his hand to the wound and healing it. Fucking medical mysticism!

Upon lowering his hand. “As entertaining as this is, that really hurt and I’m not eager to repeat the experience. Fortunately, you brought another weapon for me to use against you. Miss Marle, your king commands you to shield me with your body.”

Mia glanced at the priestess to see that she had walked past her and stood between them. Her face was blank.

“Hey,” Mia said uncertainly. “I told you what would happen if you got in my way!”

“She can’t hear you,” Anthony said with a grin. “Every patient I’ve ever treated carries a trace of Compound Aegis. It’s a banned substance now, but it was used by kings and queens of the past to enforce their soldiers’ absolute loyalty. Thanks to a careful application of this chemical mixed with some of my saliva, she has no choice but to defend me!”

Mia slapped her forehead, suddenly furious with herself for not finishing the priestess off before allowing her to follow.

“Well, we’re one for one,” Mia growled lividly. “I’m feeling good about our tiebreaker.”

Electricity crackled through Mia’s fingers as she prepared to shock the priestess yet again. However, as she released her strongest bolt yet, Sara jumped out of the way. The lightning sailed over her head and into Doctor Clark’s chest. He was blasted backward into the window and cracked the glass as he collided with it before falling to the floor. He coughed and croaked as Mia walked toward his prone form.

“How?”

“How did your creepy mind control fail you?” Mia said with a grin. “Or how did I just kick your ass?”

Sara pushed herself to her feet. “I heard his voice in my head, telling me that it was important to save him, but Lady Serenity speaks in a louder voice. Of all the patients you’ve abused, you relied on the protection of someone whose calling is higher than your own life.”

Mia scoffed and chuckled as she kicked Anthony in the ribs. “That sounds good enough for me. Thanks for playing along anyway. I wasn’t sure if you were going to bring herself to stay out of my business, but you were actually a huge help!”

The former Starling unsheathed her favorite knife, picturing the act of carving out his heart, just as she had done to his brother. But before she could plunge the blade into her prey, the priestess shouted “Wait!” Fuck.

“You don’t have to do this!” Sara said desperately. “We could learn a lot more about Operation Lighthouse if you let him live!”

Mia scoffed and shook her head. “You might want to wait outside. Something tells me you aren’t going to want to see the next part.”

But just then, she was interrupted yet again, this time by a score of guards who were apparently alerted by the sounds of her gunshots. FUCK! They swarmed into the room with their hands flailing in desperation and shouting for her to stop. Well, her only escape might be the window now, but they couldn’t do anything to stop her from finishing him off at least. But a final voice suddenly interjected.

“Halt!” A commanding female voice rang from the hall outside.

“Goddamnit! Will you people just shut the hell up so I can kill this piece of shit, already?”

But the new voice sounded familiar. She looked up from her prey, who looked so pathetic cowering beneath her, and glanced toward the door. There stood Queen Penelope, the monarch she had last attempted to kill. She swept into the room gracefully, her hand raised in a warding gesture.

“We meet again, young Starling. How appropriate that it should once again be on the crossroads of fate,” the Queen said with a gentle smile.

“Why are you trying to stop me?” Mia raged. “You told me to kill him!”

“Not even the wisest of rulers are immune to a change of heart,” Penelope said with a sad shake of his head. “My fear of my brother’s schemes and my anger at his crimes against our family combined pale in comparison to my love for him and my fear of losing the rest of my family. He will be confined to the castle dungeon until I can see repentance in him. That is, if you can be persuaded to share my mercy.”

Mia glared at Anthony with a look of pure loathing. “And if I don’t?”

“Then you will be imprisoned for the murders of my entire family, and rightfully so,” the Queen said boldly. She’s not the slightest bit scared of me!

Mia snarled and gave the hated prince another kick. The guards started towards her to intervene, but the queen held up her hand. “Why should he get to live with the blood of a better man on his hands?”

“You have to forgive him,” Sara said firmly. “Remember that evil is a choice we make every day. “

Mia stared at the ground, her eyes stinging with the promise of tears. She blinked the sensation away and shook her head.

“Fine,” she growled. “I apparently have better things to do anyway.”

The room breathed a collective sigh of relief as the Queen approached Mia and the guards rushed to check on Anthony. “You have made a choice worthy of Salica’s favor. Thank you for your mercy.”

Mia sighed and looked over to Sara. “I’m starting to get the feeling there’s a reason for that.”

Just then, the priestess stepped forward boldly and said, “Your Highness! My name is Sara Marle, and I am the Champion of Serenity. I was wondering if I could--”

Penelope raised her hand once more to cut Sara off. I wonder if she’ll teach me to do that someday. “I’ve heard of you from Matron Selena and I’m well aware of what you need. The answer is no.”

That seemed to deflate the priestess, but she managed to respond. “But this is--”

Penelope warded her into silence once more and said, “My gratitude towards you for helping to save my brother extends only so far as to pardon your new companion and my unconditional support of your mission is not necessary. If I am to believe that your group are the champions who will save Resta, you must earn the spear.”

She gestured toward out the window toward the RGT tent. “If the Gods’ champions cannot win a simple tournament, how could I trust you with a piece of the Storm of Mercy?”

Sara gasped as she followed her gaze to the tent. “I understand, Your Highness! The Salamanders will win the Royal Boon!”

Penelope smiled and said, “I will be in attendance for the final. I hope to see your friends there. You must be concerned with how they are doing. You’re dismissed.”

Sara grabbed Mia’s arm and said, “Let’s get down there! I can’t wait for you to meet the others!”

***

“Desmond is down and Reynolds dashes back into cover! The newcomer’s speed was just no match for the Bladed Gazelle and Blackstone can’t get a clean shot! If the Salamanders want to make it to the finals, they need to put somebody down now!”

Mia had followed Sara into the RGT stands quite reluctantly. Loud noise tended to make her anxious, which she supposed was an occupational hazard until very recently. The crowd was quite anxious with the outcome of this match. The two men she had supposed were her new comrades were pinned down behind a boulder on the edge of the ring. One of them was armed with a sweet-looking rifle and taking potshots against an opponent on the far side of the ring while the other was blasting at a volley of flying ice shards with jets of fire that he weaved with his hands.

The tournament’s female commentator chose then to chime in. “This is the most pressure Team Salamander has felt so far in this tournament! If they don’t take down Reynolds, they’ll never get a clear view of the Bolton twins, but their combined frosty onslaught has Midas vexed! Matches like these are why the RGT exists!”

“Amul dala barriane!” the spellwarrior shouted, which caused a wall of black flames to sprout from the ground in front of him. Just then, he and the other man darted out from behind their boulder and began running in opposite directions.

“And Midas and Blackstone seem to have thrown caution to the wind and abandoned their only cover. What could Team Salamander be thinking?” the male commentator shouted hysterically.

“They must be out of tricks!” The female commentator said. “Midas’ Black Fire Wall will protect him from Mark Bolton’s attacks, but he’s giving his sister Nikki a clean shot now!”

Just then, the only one of their the opposing Team Mia has managed to see so far darted out of his cover to go after the man she had worked out was Blackstone with the gun. But upon seeing his opponent coming, the champion stopped in his tracks. The other man was suddenly engulfed by a blast of flames from the spellwarrior. At that moment, a bolt of icy blue light sailed toward his back. He sprawled to the ground with a grunt, but his partner had turned toward the source of the spell and fired his rifle. An inky splotch appeared in the air near the edge of the pit, then a woman seemed to materialize before falling to the ground.

“Incredible! Team Salamander scores a double knockout with a dual distraction!” the male commentator roared excitedly. “Reynolds and Nikki Bolton are down and just like that, this match has turned over to a 2-1 lead for Team Salamander!”

Just then, a woman appeared on the opposite end of the pit with her hands raised in surrender. The crowd let out a chorus of boos as the female commentator shouted, “And Mark yields! That never looks good in this event, but it looks like he knew where this was headed! Team Salamander advances to the final for the first time!”

Sara nudged Mia and smiled. “What do you think?”

“They’d have to trust each other a hell of a lot to pull off something like that,” Mia said with a shrug. “If we weren’t on the same side now, I wouldn’t go near either of them.”

Sara nodded as Midas rushed over to revive his fallen teammate. “Watching them fight after everything you and I just went through makes me feel much more confident. When this all started, I was worried this quest wasn’t real, but now that we’re finally all together, I can see a group that the gods can all be proud of.”

Mia scoffed. “Yeah, okay. I never thought I’d be told that the gods are proud of me.”

Sara shook her head and smiled. “But you have proved that you are worthy of that pride when you spared Doctor Clark. Your path was put in front of you by the Gods and you have taken the right turn even when it would have been easier to make the wrong one.”

Mia shrugged and said, “I was worried that if I went through with it, I’d never be able to get your nagging voice out of my head.”

Sara gave Mia a side-hug and said, “Tell yourself whatever you want. You are on the right side of destiny now, and that’s what matters.”

Mia gagged slightly at the sweetness of her new apparent friend. She’s going to take some getting used to.

Next Chapter

The Day of Tranquility

Every year, sometime in the opening week of the month of Amora, flocks of doves can be seen flying over Resta, particularly close to its three borders. The best place to see these birds is from the Towers of Tranquility, which are garrisoned by some of Resta's finest soldiers at the start of every year. The sight of these doves signals the Day of Tranquility, a Restan national holiday which forbids any aggression. The only exceptions to this tradition are the Honor Guard in these Towers, who carry the duty of protecting Resta from anyone who would abuse this holiday's call for nonviolence. From the towers of Lakewatch, Highland, and Northcoast, the honor guard is positioned to squash any violation of this annual rite whether they come from across or within their borders.

The spirit of this national observance is arguably both Chaotic and Serene, but the actual events that inspired it have fallen by the wayside in the eyes of history. But ask any of the most informed followers of The Doctrine of Shadows and they will tell you of the first human to openly worship Serenity. Her name was Abigail Marle and she was a child living in western Necros in the dawn of the Second Age. With the border to elven lands so close by, she met many elves who would cheerfully profess their love of Serenity to her. Over time, these discussions began to inspire and influence her own view of the world. At the time, Serenity was seen as an elven god and her devotion to the Doctrine of Tranquility an act of heresy against her own creators. Because of this, Abigail suffered deeply for her beliefs at the hands of her eastland peers. Despite this, she held firmly to these beliefs in the face of ridicule and disdain until she was of an age to travel. At the age of 16, she set out for Terris in the hope of finding religious fellowship among the elves.

But her hopes were dashed before she could even cross the border. As she began to circle Lake Whitetree, she came across a band of elven wanderers. Driven to desperation by Serenity's recent retribution, the elves mugged her and left her for dead near the lake. She survived this beating, bruised and dejected. Once she limped back to civilization, she heard a rumor pointing to another hope: a commune had formed in Eastern Coronos that advocated for the acceptance of the Serenity's Doctrine. Still hurting from her experience at Lake Whitetree, she set off for Coronos in earnest.

But when she found where this commune had been located, she found the place littered with horse tracks and the splintered debris of a devastated camp. She looked to the north and wept for the unfortunate seekers of peace who once lived here. Whether they were slaughtered, dragged into Pyris as slaves, or dragged back into Coronosian society, it all meant the same to her. The Doctrine of Tranquility had no place in this world. Utterly defeated, she decided to return home, but stopped in Foldo in time to hear one more inspiring rumor. In the south, the Council Republic of Eris had been overturned and its citizens were forming a nation of absolute freedom to replace it.

This was Abigail's longest journey yet, but for the hope of basking in the glow of Tranquility among friends, no destination was too far. So, she crossed all of modern-day Resta on foot in the hopes of reaching the newly instituted nation of Galeon. But as she entered Necros' southern highlands, she found her path buried in an impassable rockslide. It was at this point that she slumped to the ground and beat her fists against the road in frustration as she wept. She was content to wither away on the spot, but she was discovered by other travelers not long after she had fallen asleep, her face sticky with dried tears.

The travelers took her to their home village of Solan and nursed her back to health. These people, brave adventurers all, listened to her story in earnest and was moved by her pain. In her drive to see her beliefs validated, they saw strength worthy of any Chaotic and in her turmoil, they saw nothing but exhaustion. It was for this reason that these Chaotic adventurers took Abigail under their protection, promising that although they couldn't share her beliefs, she was entitled to her dream. As she traveled with this band, she was given safer opportunities to share the Doctrine of Tranquility with the people she met. It was through this advocacy and the support of her Chaotic friends that she was able to convince the Blackstone Monastery to adopt the Doctrine of Tranquility as one of its principles. As the lands of Necros and Coronos became one, this essentially endorsed Serene worship as one of the founding principles of Resta.

Shortly after the realization of this dream, Abigail was stricken with a sudden illness that claimed her life. She was buried in the Temple graveyard of her home village, which would eventually be redubbed Amora, the Sacred City of Serenity. But that was many years later, and at the time, her companions felt that she had not been honored enough. So they gathered as many people as possible among their acquaintances and the people Abigail had inspired to build three towers in her honor. These Towers of Tranquility were built in each of the three places that Abigail believed her dream to have died. Lake Whitetree, the place in which she was hurt by the elves she sought to join, was where Lakewatch Tower was built. They built Northcoast Tower on the ruins of the devastated Serene commune in northeastern Resta, and Highland Tower was erected by the road into Galeon with the very stones that blocked Abigail from crossing.

So began this yearly tradition of absolute tranquility, protected by the hands of brave warriors who sympathize with the long-forgotten desire of the first Serene cleric. The reflection of this sentiment with the feelings between Chaos and Serenity blesses this day with a powerful magic. Followers of Chaos who remain devoted to protecting the law of this holy day find themselves empowered with the strength to hold off dozens of people single-handed. Meanwhile, those who make it through the day in complete observance of this law are said to be more lucky in the spring season.

It Comes For Those Who Don't Run Part 10

Back to the Beginning

Previous

It lurches closer...

When Aennin got back to his apartment, he was relieved to find that no one had yet discovered the tragedy which had recently happened there. Determinedly avoiding looking at his mother, he wrote a scribbled down a note of distress and loaded it into a tube, which he dropped into the mail chute behind the kitchen counter. He then went upstairs to wait until a city patrolman arrived in response to his message. 

When she arrived, Aennin spent the next hour recounting the events leading to his distress call. He decided that the best thing he could do was tell a version of the truth, but with some of the events reordered. He told her that he had spent the morning in Trinity Square before returning to find his mother dead on the floor. He worried that someone might have seen him entering his apartment earlier, but Landah had advised him on his way out of the pub that that anyone who had seen anything would know better than to contradict him. It wasn't in the interest of Landah or his boss to mislead him at this point, so he decided to trust Katim's reputation to smooth over the holes in his story.

By the time the patrolman left, satisfied with the details he had given her, Aennin was close to cracking. He hadn't looked at Anera once the whole time, but he was tempted to in that moment. As he weighed the pros and cons at taking even the slightest peek, Kana threw open the door and rushed into the room. Aennin could tell it was her when she let out a wailing sob. He supposed his experience with their mother's death was vastly different. He was still mostly numb with shock, but Kana had probably come here knowing full what she would find. He wasn't thrilled with the prospect of talking to her, but he knew he had to do so. 

When Aennin got downstairs, he found Kana sitting in Anera's favorite chair, her face flooded with tears. 

"Hey," he mumbled carefully. "I talked to the patrolman already. We're just waiting for someone to come and... pick her up."

"I'll wait with her," Kana responded through gritted teeth. "I don't start work until tonight, but he wants you back as soon as possible."

"If you need to talk--"

"Just go!" Kana snapped. "There's a reason you're not supposed to fuck with Katim. You don't want to keep him waiting."

"He gave me until nightfall," Aennin said with a hard stare. "Also, he killed our mother.

 He can damn well wait!"

Kana shook her head and sighed. "It's better if he doesn't. And none of that attitude when you get there! I don't want either of us to wind up like..."

Kana gestured sadly to Anera and squeezed out some fresh tears. Aennin shed a few of his own. But there was no time to cry. Kana had been very clear on the point that he should return to the pub with haste. So, he wiped his eyes and turned to leave. 

"I'm going to get us out of this," Aennin said while standing in front of the door. 

"The only way out is through."

Although Aennin had conceded the point that he should leave immediately, he didn't see the need to run this time. He trudged to Katim's in a moody silence, ignoring the murmurs of passerby who seemed to be commenting on the way he was carrying himself. Let them stare, he thought. He had only lost everything he thought he could lose. He faced an uncertain future which seemed to demand that he give up more. His morals, quite possibly. His freedom, certainly. All things considered, he was acting quite naturally.

When Aennin finally walked into the pub, he found Katim sitting at the bar next to Landah, joking and laughing about something. He managed to sidle up to them in silence and take the seat next to them. Katim jumped when he noticed and whooped gleefully.

"We should make you start wearing bells in here," he said while ruffling Aennin's hair. "How did it go?"

"They're never going to find out who killed her," Aennin replied stiffly.

"Even if they do, they won't do anything about it," Katim said with a roll of his eyes. "But if they find out you lied, you'll probably be in trouble. I hope for your sake that you're right."

Aennin didn't respond, and Katim would break the ensuing silence by saying, "Anyway, it's time to put you to work. We're going to start off with something nice and easy." He pulled a brass tube out of his pocket and set it down on the bar. "You are going to take this to Trinity Commerce down the street and deliver this to an employee there by the name of Anayel. You can look at it if you want, but if she doesn't get it, I think you understand that I will know."

Aennin took the tube in hand and nodded. "Yes, sir."

"Cut that 'sir' shit!" Katim said with a chuckle. "We're not fancy people here. Just get this document to Anayel. Hurry up!"

Aennin flitted out of the pub and onto the street. On his way to the pub, he had a thought. If Katim would explicitly give him his consent to read the document, then he probably expected him to. He slowed to a walk and twisted open the tube to pull out the paper within. He unfurled the document and read it with a knot in his stomach. He was holding a contract, signed by his father, that transferred ownership of Morrin and Son's Finest Clocks to Katim. If he delivered his message, the shop would be gone forever.

But there was no question as to what could be done. Not even he or Morrin would say the shop is worth his life now. With trembling hands, he replaced the contract in the tube, closed it, and sprinted for Trinity Commerce with the speed that Katim had so coveted. When he arrived and found Anayel, the man took the tube without a word and waved him off dismissively. It could have crushed him to see such a dismissive response to literally handing his dream over to a stranger, but after the day he had, he felt like nothing could possibly hurt him again.

Next

Kartal Marle, the Adjutant of Salica

Art by Volt

Kartal Marle was born in Karatal, the easternmost city in Resta and the largest port in all of Mortanis, to an elven immigrant named Ilia. For the longest time, he and his mother lived alone, relatively isolated from the dangerous mobs of the city. This was until Ilia fell to sickness and left Kartal in the care of her one-time benefactor, Victor Brom. However, his new guardian would turn out to be the leader of one of the city's many gangs, The Blades. He treated his new charge with casual neglect at best, and torturous abuse at worst. It was through this upbringing that Kartal learned quickly how to survive among criminals, but he still desperately hated everyone around him. 

Kartal's escape from this life would come with a spellwarrior raid on The Blades' hideout, spearheaded by two cousins by the names of Karian Maloran and Ruby Midas. For reasons best known to himself, the latter would take Kartal to live with his brother Kaleth instead of arresting him. From that moment, Kartal began a reluctant life on Crescent Island with a new family. He was particularly taken with Kaleth's daughter, Adamora, who introduced him to the rigors of the Restan clergy. When he reached adulthood, he set out to Blackstone Monastery to train as a templar, promising to return with the strength to protect her from her curse.

As a fully realized templar, Kartal would finally confront Victor Brom when his cronies kidnapped Ada, forcing him into a rage. But before Kartal could deal the final blow to his longtime guardian and enemy, Victor revealed that he was the one who fathered him. The shock of this revelation sent Kartal spiraling into an emotional crisis that led to him isolating himself from everyone he cared about. This self-imposed exile came to an abrupt end when he ran into Adamora by chance near Lakewatch Tower, one of Resta's Towers of Tranquility. But something was different. Adaling, the witch spirit who possessed her body had freed herself from her host's control. Distraught with this failure, Kartal re-devoted himself to Adamora's protection.

Kartal is known as the Key Keeper for his role in leading the Holy Key Knights during the Archknight Rebellion, towards the end of the Second Age. While the Archknight and his friends searched for the relics they would need to defeat Geos, Kartal led his templars around the world in search of six keys that bound the Gods to their long imprisonment. Upon his turning these keys over to the Archknight so he could turn them, the deities returned to Comalan and provided his relics with the power he would need to win the war. Once the Archknight claimed victory, Resta's new king rewarded the Holy Key Knights with a new order. As the Goodwill Company, Kartal and his followers continue to travel the world, helping people on behalf of the Kingdom of Resta.

During his time at the Blackstone Monastery, Kartal has trained in a mixture of martial and magical skills, all of which lean toward his dual faith. As a templar anointed in the traditions of both Chaos and Salica, he specializes in powerful destructive spells and those that make use of his empathy. He is also a master storm mage, showing expertise in every spell in the discipline, which is a rare quality.

Kartal's emotionally tumultuous life has created a powerful warrior, but has left him emotionally unstable as a result. Although he rarely shows it, even his best day is a struggle. Despite this, his legacy will always be one of selfless devotion to his family, the Gods, and to the innocent.

The Magister's Rage Part 12

Read from the Beginning!

Back to Part 11

As we made our way back to Resta, I spoke with Takaa at length about his brother, probing him specifically about the origin of his magical propensities. As it turned out, Flinbek had once been ostracized by his village for harboring a foreigner who was known to practice magic. Takaa recalled his detail with some irony since having done the same thing with me. But while Flinbek's guest hid among the Ravagers, she had repaid his hospitality with some lessons in her craft. When these private lessons were discovered by their parents, the witch had been driven out of the village, never to be seen again. Takaa had assumed that she had died in the wilderness like most foreigners do, but I wasn't so convinced. To my mind, there was no way a witch of enough knowledge and skill to teach Flinbek soul magic in such a short time could have perished so easily.  I believed that a magic user of this caliber could have easily made her way back to Mortanis, so there was still a chance that she could be found. So, I asked Takaa her name.

And he told me her name was Adaling.

Hindsight struck me heavily upon hearing that name. Adaling was a counterpart to Garanda, a spirit of a long-deceased witch that had been inflicted upon my dear cousin Adamora just as the Demon Knight once plagued me. It had been many years since I had given the Dread Witch much thought because I had always heard that Adamora had been far more successful than I at resisting our curse. As a Serene priestess, she had learned far sooner than I of the pacifying spell that I once used to repress the evil that I carried. To discover then that Adaling had acted on her own after all was both a reminder of my shameful neglect towards a similarly suffering family member and a crushing symbol of the fate that awaits me. Even in the caring hands of Serenity, we would never truly be safe from our demons.

Upon landing in Karatal, I left Takaa to explore the relative technological marvels of the port city's industrial region and turned back toward the coast for a new destination. I flew east to Crescent Isle, a private island belonging to my extended family located close to the coast. It was there that I hoped to find Adamora, but by then the house was occupied only by my uncle Kaleth. He explained to me that his daughter had left the island for an pilgrimage to the Towers of Tranquility five years previously and failed to check in. The last person to have seen her was Kaleth's former ward, now a templar named Kartal Marle. 

Finding Kartal was a simple matter since the Archknight Rebellion's conclusion. The Archknight Rebellion describes the various events that led to the Gods' renewal and the ascension of the current Restan King, Kyle Baldus. However, this term fails to account for the simple fact that the movement was driven by multiple groups. Such is how I came to learn, only after the fact, that Kartal had performed a critical role in releasing the Gods from their exile. Such a legendary feat had earned him a lot of attention and he was rewarded for his victory with a unique command as head of the Goodwill Company. This army, instituted by King Baldus, exists to thank Resta's allies for their roles in saving our country by lending their support abroad. While I do not approve of their interventionist mission, the Goodwill Company's existence signaled my old friend's location wherever they marched.

I would find Kartal in the western sea, sailing for Midania on a diplomatic mission. Having heard of my exploits not only at Hem Academy, but with my blood coven, he was far from pleased to see me. I could understand his reservations in speaking with me, but I lacked the luxury of time spent warming him to me again, so I asked my questions anyway. Through his deflections, I could tell that he knew something about Adamora's location, but he could not trust me with a single answer. Perhaps he worried that I was seeking Adaling at Garanda's bidding. Whatever his reasons, I could tell he had no intention of being helpful.

This was a troublesome position to find myself in because there was no clear path to the information I required. Reasoning for his trust would be difficult because he was known to be stubborn. There was also no hope of forcing an answer from him because he was too intelligent to be manipulated and notoriously powerful. He had trained for his entire adult life to help protect others from Adaling and, as far as he was concerned, this responsibility required him to become Garanda's equal as well. I was not up to testing my power against his at that point, especially since we were on a ship surrounded by his subordinates.

Instead, I resolved to follow his ship to Midania while I thought of another plan. For any other troublesome gatekeeper to the information I needed, I would have considered employing some magic to bewitch them into talking with me. But Kartal was a seasoned templar anointed in the traditions of Chaos and was thus trained to resist my spells. The one advantage I had over him was my intellect and the only way to exploit this advantage was gradually. Fortunately, my familiarity with his childhood has supplied me with knowledge of a specific weakness of his. Under threat of revealing his secret, which I shall respectfully conceal in my writing, I convinced him to let me join his expedition.

Upon landing on Midania, the Goodwill Company faced an unforeseen problem: the sai'mul did not immediately welcome their presence. There is no wonder why this was so to my mind. Resta was in a state of rebuilding after a long imperialistic regime that attempted to force an alternate religion on everyone had destroyed its reputation. It was clear to me at this point that the Goodwill Company's foundation was a mistake, but if I wanted Kartal's cooperation, I couldn't allow him to fail this mission. So, I took to the streets and began to talk to the sai'mul, approaching every one with an open mind, full of curiosity. Aside from being of benefit to my own goals, I was eager to embrace this opportunity to hear stories from new perspectives.

Upon interacting with the people of Midania, one common desire which I could assist with was increasingly clear. This was an island that was inhabited by lost souls of many different breeds, including masterful warriors, powerful wizards, and wistful dreamers. Though, this was the most socially diverse society I had ever encountered, they all seemed to share a cruel reality devoid of wonder since they were walled off from conventional magic. So it was that I found a way to help the Goodwill Company ingratiate themselves with the common people of Midania. I rounded up a group of former wizards and offered to teach them some new skills that did not require a divine activation. Most of those I had asked were suspicious when they discovered soul magic among my offerings, which I later learned was antithetical to Salican culture, but were eager to learn what I knew of the arcane and of blood magic.

I was reluctant to teach the sai'mul blood magic and tried to excuse myself from that particular proposition by expressing uncertainty that someone without a living blood stream could even learn it. The locals were persistent in at least determining if my suspicions about this handicap were true, so I relented and tested one of them in a simple technique: siphoning blood. As it turned out, sai'mul were perfectly capable of using blood magic, but not with their own blood. I offered them some of the blood that I had taken from Victory Trail not only out of desperation for the next step in my search but out of curiosity. They accepted my gift gratefully and I learned that an undead body can't degrade blood that has been used in blood magic. In exchange for bringing just a bit of magic to their island, I found allies who were willing to vouch for the Goodwill Company on my behalf.

Kartal was shocked when the elders of the island, the precursors of their national congress, summoned him. When he returned, he had come back with word of the Goodwill Company's first mission which was to rout pirates in the north sea. While his crew prepared to set sail, Kartal took me aside and told me he was aware that I had something to do with this change in his fortune before questioning me as to how. His curiosity brought back some semblance of the rapport we had as children, which provided an opportunity for me to tell him my story. When I finished, Kartal apologized for hindering me in the belief that his sworn responsibility should have extended to stopping Garanda as well.

He then told me what I needed to know, that Adamora had run away to the Marble Desert in southern Tanis to isolate herself from others. She had taken on the pseudonym Telandra Dawnstrike and chose to wander the sands in secret. The urgency with which I thought of Flinbek required haste, so I said goodbye to Kartal and his Goodwill Company before flying back west once more, bound for Tanis.

Continue to Part 13

Phoenix Blade Chapter 4

Start from the Beginning

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Business was fantastic in the capitol, that's for sure. Whether I was milking the bourgeoisie of their riches with trinkets or inflated security consultations, every day felt like a successful one. I had made a name for myself in the next forty years to the point that I found myself inundated with requests on a daily basis. I often faced some difficult decisions among the people who competed for my time. But this didn't always mean I was financially secure. I had unfortunately acquired a bit of a dangerous gambling habit that left me broke between jobs. When my wallet was lean, I would be forced to ignore the people who really needed me in favor of the clients who paid better. This is how the first step to my defining achievement came to be.

...

I would have taken all of the jobs I was given if I could, but the fact that I couldn't never became more clear than during the Archknight Rebellion. Seth Ryan, one of the Mages of Destiny, came to me one night after the store closed and tried to hire me to rescue a group of refugees that Templars had plucked from Katrine, but he wasn't offering much. On the other hand, I was already making plans to complete a commission piece for a wealthy client. I was to embed some rubies into a leather collar for her pet.

...

Yes, I had figured what she meant, considering the size she requested. The problem was, I was no leatherworker, so I would have to commission someone else to make the collar, then attach the stones. Rents were due the next week and I couldn't dig up two chips to rub together. So, I'm sure you can imagine which job I chose to focus on.

...

Well, I can tell you I never heard the end of it. Some girl from Katrine who had grown sweet on one of the refugees stormed into my shop when she heard I would be making the collar instead of helping her friends. Her name was Moruay Rainwalker and she was the daughter of an ambassador of Katrine. I would have thrown her out of the shop, but in the course of her ranting to me about how many more people could have made the collar than helped with the refugees' plight, she revealed something useful. She herself was a leatherworker who was more than capable of taking the job. It was then that the solution to this dilemma clicked. Maybe if I had a little more help, there wouldn't be any reason I couldn't do both. Why take her abuse, I told her, when we could help each other?

...

So I gave her some money for supplies and lent her my shop to complete my commission while promising to look into the refugee crisis. As it turned out, templars under Royal Command, had raided the island following a tip that the Mages of Destiny had been seen there. There had been a minor skirmish with an offshoot group called the Holy Key Knights who were forerunners of the Goodwill Company. That caused the templars to lose their shit and arrest a shit ton of people. Locals, refugees, Key Knights and, unfortunately, the Second Archknight were rounded up and held in a prison ark anchored a mile off the coast of Karatal. This made the source of the Mage's desperation clear. I had previously told him that I couldn't be bothered to save his brother.

...

I know. If Moruay hadn't changed my mind, we'd be living in a different world by now to be sure. Not that I was particularly moved by his cause at the time. The Geosian Regime was terrible in plenty of ways to the truly living, but there was no better time to be a sai'mul in Resta. By the time the Second Archknight came along, we were making the decision to stay here in droves and the Geosians supported this notion because crying to Salica about how lonely we are without the gods wasn't necessarily part of their expectations for us.

...

I'm not defending them. I'm only saying that sai'mul benefited from their reign. Before they came along, we never had anything resembling a community in our own homeland. We were more connected to the people of Resta back then because the Geosians were more willing to tolerate our existence there.

...

Well, I took the job for the same reason I take most of my jobs. To me, it didn't matter that the Mages of Destiny weren't rich. I had a service that I particularly enjoyed providing and they had something to trade for it. I made their mentor, who is now our king, Kyle Baldus swear to preserve the progress that the sai'mul had made in Restan society under his enemies before signing the contract. With that, I gathered some people to steal a templar ship and sailed to this prison ark, The Sundial. 

...

Now, the people I'd gathered to help me weren't exceptional fighters by any measure, but they were good for sailing the ship and worked within our budget. I had the Mages of Destiny at my back, and they were some help, but I ended up doing a lot of the heavy lifting. While I held the attention of the prison guards, those kids did some sneaking around until they could free the Archknight. Fortunately, that fool boy decided that he wanted to spring everyone. So, we found ourselves fighting the Geosians for control of the ship. Once we had it, the Archknight pulled up its anchor and ran it aground somewhere on Resta's north shore while I returned the smaller vessel we had stolen.

...

After everything that had happened there, I had honestly forgotten about being paid. That job was one hell of an exhilarating experience. When I returned to my store, I was more interested in seeing if my other job was complete. Moruay had managed to put everything together according to my client's wishes far more quickly than I had ever pictured. She had even taken the liberty of attempting to set the stones for me. That bit was sloppily done, though. I had to fix that.

...

She was thrilled to hear that the man she was waiting to hear from was safe and considered the work she did for me to be a small price to pay for his return. They got together after the Archknight Rebellion was over and moved into the city to be with him. This left her in need of work and living close to someone who was already familiar with her skills. So, I hired my first employee in hopes of expanding my business and ensuring no one ever had to go without help again.

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The Boy Who Shouldn't Exist Part 7

First Chapter

Previous Chapter

The night following Kaleth's conversation with Atunis about his father left him miserable and restless. Trying to sleep in particular proved to be a lost cause hours after he began his attempts to do so. So consumed was he with obsession over his family and the magic that seemed all the more mysterious in their absence that he couldn't find any peace in his mind. Whenever he tried to think of anything else, the disembodied voices of his father and mother would chime in with what he imagined were their own opinions of whatever he was thinking of. Nothing he did could distract him from the void his parents had left when the sai'mul came to claim their lives.

So he lied awake in his bed the whole night, turning frequently to readjust in his discomfort. His bed creaked with every movement and each time this happened, he could hear a sigh coming from Aennin's bed. After a dozen turns, Aennin got up wordlessly and sat down at the foot of Kaleth's bed. When Kaleth sat up to look at him, the elf sighed.

"Something on your mind?" he said loudly and pointedly.

With a sigh, Kaleth sat up and shook his head. "What if my parents are both dead after all?"

Aennin sighed and shook his head. "We'd have a lot more in common, for starters."

Kaleth froze awkwardly and said, "Sorry."

"Don't worry about it," Aennin said as he tilted his head to the ceiling. "I lost them a long time ago. I've had plenty of time to process my grief."

"How do you stop feeling so empty?"

Aennin sighed ironically. "It helps when one of them isn't the sort of parent you'd miss. But ultimately, you can't live the kind of life that I have without gaining some perspective on death. We are put on this world for only two things. We live to accumulate experience, then we die to pass that experience into another world that needs it. It hurts to lose your family, but when they die, they almost never suffer, but move on to the next step of our purpose."

Kaleth thought about Aennin's words, struggling to find any meaning to them. Finally he admitted, "I don't understand."

"Hardly anyone ever does," Aennin said as he locked his fingers behind his head and leaned against the wall.  "The takeaway should be that your parents lived well, and if the Gods saw fit to take them away from you, it was because they were ready for them to be of use elsewhere. If it's any consolation, they're always going to live on in the things they did, you, and the things you'll do."

Kaleth found the mirth in him to smirk. "Somehow, I never pictured you being so religious."

Aennin nodded and slapped Kaleth's foot. "You would be too if you had a god speaking directly into your brain day in and day out."

Kaleth nodded and pulled off his blanket so he could turn his back to the wall. Sitting beside Aennin, he said, "What's it like to hear her voice?"

Aennin shook his head and said, "You don't want to know. It's not pleasant. At least not for me."

Kaleth sighed and stared into the darkness for a few more minutes. Then he said, "It doesn't really matter how you came to your conclusion about death, but it sounds like something they would have told me. Thank you."

Aennin stood up and pivoted back toward his own bed. "Don't mention it. I'm going to try to go back to sleep now. I have to be up in the morning to meet with the other Avatars so we can finally contain this violence."

"Right. Sorry to wake you. Good night."

Aennin fell asleep moments later and, so as not to wake him again, Kaleth readjusted himself gingerly. He put his head back onto his pillow and closed his eyes. Buoyed by Aennin's dark, but encouraging words, he managed to shut out the other voices in his head and focus on his newfound companion. He was still far from alright, but he was able to put his mind to rest for the moment and finally fell into sleep.

Kaleth woke up the next morning to the sound of Aennin shutting the door as he left. He sat up in his bed blearily for a few minutes before something occurred to him. Since he no longer thought he needed help finding his parents, he didn't really see the point to following Aennin's instructions to keep himself hidden away. Perhaps because his future was uncertain, his curiosity towards the Avatars and their plans to save the world overtook him. Compelled by this desire to know what was coming next, Kaleth threw some clothes on, locked the room and set out to find where Aennin had been.

Finding the Avatars wasn't as simple as he thought it would be. Whether they had chosen to meet somewhere secret or because the locals weren't inclined to tell him anything, he struggled to find a straight answer about their location. It would be an hour before an excited gossip had let slip that she had seen Atunis walking into a pub called The Deer's Fang. He thanked the girl and hastened to follow her instructions. Upon doing so, he found the people he was looking for grouped around the same table in a dark, secluded corner.

He crawled under one of the tables and, hidden from sight, began to think with the mind of a mouse. As he had done many times before, he then shrunk into the unimposing rodent he pictured. His transformation complete, he crept quietly across the floor to avoid making a sound. Upon reaching the underside of the nearest table to the Avatars, he looked up toward them and focused intently on listening to their conversation.

As the boy began to listen, he heard Aennin let out a pointed sigh "Time has been screwed up around Kaleth's person. That's what allowed us to cross two countries to get here before any of you. He thinks it must be because his father's still alive and I was perfectly fine with letting him believe that until things calmed down!"

"I understand, Aennin. I'm sorry," Atunis said in a tone of palpable sorrow. "I desperately want Kartal to be alive, but Lady Salica's responses to my prayers seem to imply otherwise, but..." He trailed off, his brow furrowing pensively. 

"But what?" Tir said, peering searchingly at Atunis.

"I don't think any of this is meant to be," Atunis replied softly. "I opened my eyes one moment and everything was different."

Volt banged her tankard down on the table with a hint of clumsiness. "Atunis, I know it really hurts when you lose someone you love! It really does feel like the whole world changes around you, but we're here for you!"

Aennin put his head between his arms on the table and sighed. "I think everybody at this table knows how that feels by now."

Atunis released an exasperated sigh. "No, Volt, not..." He paused for a moment to rub his temples and let his head fall forward. "I don't mean like that. I mean it quite literally."

Aennin tilted his head upward and looked into Atunis' eyes. "Explain."

Tir leaned in as Atunis took a deep breath and began speaking. "I suppose I will just tell you what I told Kaleth. I had just returned from a long journey, and was spending some time with Jemah in my apartment. I closed my eyes one moment, and when they opened once more, he was gone, and the world around me had changed. I looked outside, and the street that had been tranquil and safe just an hour before was utterly destroyed, and teeming with violent sai'mul."

Aennin lifted his eyebrows. "You're not making any sense. Are you saying they just appeared on you?"

 "Who's Jemah?" Volt asked curiously. 

Atunis sighed. "Yes, they just appeared. And Jemah is my boyfriend."

 "Boyfriend?!" Volt squeaked, scandalized. "You didn't even tell me you were seeing someone!"

Atunis leaned forward, putting his hands on the table. "Voltairine, you know him! You've met him several times!" He looked to Tir and tilted his head. "As have you. Do you remember?"

Tir shook her head, staring at the table in deep thought. "No. I don't."

Aennin shrugged and said, "I've never heard of him either, but I've never taken enough of an interest in your life to know who you're seeing."

Volt frowned at Aennin and smacked him in the chest with the back of her hand. "Ass."

 Atunis sighed, looking pleadingly at Aennin. "You see what I am trying to tell you, right?"

Aennin shook his head in exasperation. "No, not really. All you've told us is that the world somehow changed while you were seeing someone you're quite certain everyone has met. What do you suppose that means, anyway?"

"That is not the only thing that changed," Atunis replied. "Where I came from, there is no Kaleth." He furrowed his brow uncomfortably and lowered his voice.

Aennin frowned and gave Atunis a peculiar stare. "So? Why would you suppose he didn't exist in this not-at-all-delusion of yours?"

"Because Kartal did not have a son, before! Adamora died before they could ever have children!" Atunis replied. "It isn't a delusion, it's my life, Aennin!"

Aennin shrugged and sat back upright. "Well your history is definitely far off. Either you're delusional or you're from another reality."

"Well, I'm not delusional!" Atunis replied, his brow furrowing sadly. "I really did come from somewhere else! Somewhere where Resta City is perfectly intact, and Kartal is still alive! Our only hope is to bring that world back!"

Tir shifted uncomfortably as she considered the man's words. She looked at Aennin somewhat pointedly before turning back to Atunis. "Atunis...listen. This is definitely worth looking into."

Aennin  rolled his eyes. "Okay, I'll bite. Assuming what you're saying is true, maybe you should start by figuring out what else is different in this world you seem to know.

 Atunis nodded, a small pout on his lips. "Right...well, I suppose you all could help me with that, since you all seem to be familiar with this awful place."

Volt looked at Atunis searchingly from her spot at the table, where she sat with her chin resting on the rim of her tankard. "What about Gyanda? Is he still okay where you come from?"

Tir placed her hand on the table in front of Volt. "Let's not get ahead of ourselves."

Aennin nodded in agreement with Tir. "You said that Kartal's wife didn't make it this long as far as you were aware. How did she die, then?"

Atunis looked away uncomfortably, picking up his drink and fidgeting with the handle. "She...was murdered."

Aennin had a chill in his voice as he said, "So it seems. I might just be piecing this together, but you need to tell us all what you just held back."

Atunis sighed and rubbed the back of his neck. "Adamora was murdered. By...you, Aennin. You were the one who did it."

Kaleth suddenly felt sick to his stomach. They were far from done speaking, but he was far too stunned to care what else they had to say in that moment. What he heard made no sense, but it didn't stop him from picturing Aennin plunging one of his knives into his mother's torso.

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