It would have been easier to give up. That way was easy. There might even be less pain then, but that wasn't guaranteed. But Terran couldn’t let the Lady win. Even if he’d lost the book, his girlfriend, and was going to lose the very settlement that he’d worked so hard to create. Even if he only had his fingernails, he would fight to the end.
The Exalt pulled him across the piles of bodies. It felt like getting pulled over thick ash. As he looked down upon them, he realized he had one last chance. Terran looted the bodies as he was yanked forward, struggling only enough to collect more handfuls of the shadow shards. As he got closer to the Exalt, he noticed a gaping mouth, like a sucking pit, at the center of the sphere. Terran no longer struggled, but kept his hands around the mass of shadow shards he’d collected and at the last moment, hopped to his feet, lunging forward to throw the converted shards into the mouth of the Exalt of Shadow.
“JOIN OR—”
The Exalt managed to get half of its bleating call out before the shadow shards exploded in its mouth. The ball of night expanded briefly before tearing into a million shreds of darkness, quickly dissipating to smoke.
You have killed the Exalt of Shadow!
You are now level 19!
Chapter Twenty-Seven
The hordes of shadows screamed as if they were being burned alive. Terran threw himself onto the ground with his hands over his ears. The cacophony nearly drove him mad, but then it was over, and when he looked up, the room was empty except for him and his friends. They leaned against the wall as if they’d just tumbled down a mountain, covered in blood, breathing heavily.
A whole host of notifications had scrolled past, but he was too tired to bother with them. He hobbled over to the others, briefly glancing over his shoulder almost expecting to see Chanterelle again, before nodding.
“A close one,” he said.
Heavenly Death leaned on her spear, blood dripping across her ice-blue skin in numerous places. But despite the visible damage, her gaze was unbroken.
“You fought well. You all did,” said Heavenly Death. “I am honored to have battled with you.”
“I as well,” said Terran, inclining his head.
“I would prefer a few more easier fights,” said Luna with one eye partially closed.
Zara leaned on her axe and grinned. “Gets the blood flowing. Ready for an ale and a roll in the hay.”
“Hopefully after a shower,” said Terran.
“You’re no fun,” said Zara.
Heavenly Death held the spear to her chest in a salute. “I must return to the Arena. It is difficult to maintain my presence outside its walls.” She let her gaze linger on Zara. “You are always welcome to visit.”
After she left, Terran raised an eyebrow towards the redheaded berserker. “I think that was an offer.”
Zara crossed her arms. “Like you’re going to give me the time to enjoy it.” She glanced up at the destroyed balcony. “Speaking of...what happened between you and...uhm, Chanterelle?”
“She made me an offer. I refused again,” said Terran. “She’s persistent.”
“Do you think that’s the Lady or her doing?” asked Zara.
Terran paused. “I...I hadn’t thought of that. I don’t know.” He looked around at the destruction. “Let’s loot what we can, get back to the Golden Kumquat. Despite our success with stopping the Exalt, we still didn’t get what we came to Dagrath for.”
Luna sat on her haunches cleaning her face, while Terran and Zara collected materials from the temple. They managed to find twenty-seven shadow shards, a chest of valuables that looked like items taken from the people converted to shadows, and a pair of bracers that improved attack speed, which he gave to Zara. The Exalt of Shadow had a pristine shadow cloth on its corpse. He was sure someone at the settlement could turn it into a useful item.
They searched the rest of the temple, hoping to find survivors, but the basement level had been cleared out. Afterwards, they headed back to the Golden Kumquat. The doors were barred upon arrival.
“Della!” he called out. “It’s okay, you can open up. It’s safe now.”
The golden-haired tavern owner threw her arms around him, sobbing tearfully in his shoulder.
“I was so frightened while you were gone. What would Isabella and I have done if you hadn’t survived?”
He kissed her forehead gently. “Survived we did. The shadows and Estabario are both gone. We can rest.” He led them inside. “In fact, after a long night of battle, would you rustle us up something while I talk with my friends?”
“Uhm, I need a bath before I’m doing anything,” said Zara, picking dried blood off her armor.
“Good point. Baths first, then food and discussion,” said Terran.
Zara snapped her fingers. “Don’t forget ale.”
“All you want, you deserve it,” said Terran.
The bath was glorious. Terran didn’t want to get out, but then the smell of roast chicken stuffed with cheese and crispy bacon dragged him out of the magically heated tub. While he was waiting for his friends, Terran opened his character sheet, checking notifications first before leveling.
[You have increased the skill Earth Sense]
Skill: Earth Sense 10 (END)
You make rocks tremble by the way you touch them.
[You have increased the skill Battle Song]
Skill: Battle Song 25 (CHA)
Who knew that a capella could be so cool?
[You have increased the skill Bardic Endurance.]
Skill: Bardic Endurance 17 (CHA)
Women everywhere will swoon.
[You have increased the skill Leadership]
Skill: Leadership 8 (CHA)
The legend grows...
The last few fights had really taxed his mana, so putting another point in Intelligence made sense, along with Charisma to increase the power of his bardic abilities.
Character: Terran
Level: 19
Class: Earthen Mage
Crystal Bard
Subrace: Rock Leaf Elf
Champion of the Mother Tree
HP: 627
Mana: 560
Stamina: 1,430
Strength: 7
Intelligence: 17
Endurance: 21
Cunning: 6
Agility: 6
Charisma: 18
He noted that both his Rock Wall and Rock Shards spells had changed.
Rock Shards - Spell (END)
Mana - 35
Create a stone item that explodes into pieces upon impact. Damage increased based on Earth Sense skill. Can modify other elemental materials with high enough skill.
Rock Wall - Spell (END)
Mana - Variable
Duration - 1 hour
Create stone structure. Size and durability based on Earth Sense skill.
Terran was pleased by the changes. The last item was the additional Champion’s Path point, but like the others he’d placed, he was going to wait until he had more information on what he needed to improve.
Zara threw herself down in the seat across from Terran, grabbed a hunk of chicken off his plate, and shoved it in her mouth. “Mmmm...so good.” Isabella appeared with a mug of ale that had been intended for him, but Zara intercepted it, poured it down her throat in one smooth motion, and let loose a wall-rattling belch.
“That hit the spot,” she said, eyes rolled back as she leaned against the wall. “Izzy, be a dear, and fetch me about eight more of those, along with whatever he’s eating.”
The tavern keeper’s daughter disappeared, leaving the two of them. Zara glanced beneath the table. “Where’s Luna?”
“Hunting rats,” said Terran. “She said she’d catch up later, after we decide what to do.”
Zara let her hands fall onto the table with a thump. “I’m so sorry, Terran. I just remembered. We came all this way to get that book and it got burnt up in an explosion.” She screwed up her face. “Add insult to injury, your ex-girlfriend stabbed yo
u in the gut.”
“It’s okay,” said Terran. “I have one more idea. It’s a long shot, but we might as well try before we return to the settlement, and it might be a chance for you to get that roll in the hay.”
Zara snatched another piece of the chicken, tossed it in her mouth. “The Ice Princess of Death?”
“She’s an Offworlder like us, or was anyway, not sure how that works, but she’s been around for many cycles. Maybe she knows where the place of power is, or the one that she used to Ascend,” said Terran.
“It’s worth a shot,” said Zara with a shrug. “When are we going?”
“Tonight, if you don’t mind,” he said.
Zara sighed as Isabella returned with a plate of chicken. “I guess I’m taking these to go.”
“You’re leaving already?” asked Della, who’d appeared with a tray of ale. “I was hoping…”
Zara chugged a fresh ale and grabbed the roast chicken by the leg, joining Terran as he moved towards the door.
“We’ll be back later,” said Terran.
Outside the Golden Kumquat, he turned to his friend. “Not gonna bring your axe?”
She was wearing a tank top and tan breeches, with her red hair in a ponytail. She looked like she was heading for a workout. To his surprise, two decently sized blades appeared in her hands.
“I always have weapons,” said Zara with a smirk. “But I can always go back if you think we’ll need them.”
“Strangely, no,” said Terran.
On the way to the Arena, the few townsfolk awake this late stopped and pointed at them, but most of them were leaving the bars, and kept moving the opposite way.
“If this doesn’t work out, you know we could always stay in town for a while and trade on your good name for free ale,” said Zara.
“You’re forgetting the bet,” said Terran.
“Oh, hells, I am. What are you planning with that?”
He tapped on his temple. “I have ideas.”
The magelights surrounding the Arena had been dimmed. Terran felt a little nervous, especially when he saw a robed figure at the main archway. When they got closer, he recognized the man who had led him out.
“Follow me,” he said, nodding. “She’s waiting for you.”
The first time he’d seen the man, he’d just thought he liked the robes, but now Terran saw him for what he was, a priest, and Heavenly Death was his god. It was upon this second look that Terran noticed the man’s scars and ropy muscles. He’d probably once been a gladiator.
The priest led them to a set of massive double doors painted with scenes of battle. The center piece was Heavenly Death meeting a charge of armored mammoths mounted by ice giants. The conclusion of the battle was not suggested by the painting, only the impact and conflict. The doors opened, and when they waited for the priest to enter, he waved them on.
The interior wasn’t what Terran expected, not that he had a picture of what a nearly immortal being would do for comfort, but he’d thought it would be more ostentatious. A field of white rock was spread out, raked into swirls and waves surrounding islands of larger rocks or neatly trimmed bushes inside the cathedral-like space. Their host sat at the centermost stone, cross-legged with her eyes closed. She looked like an iceflower displayed on a gray plate. Her pale blue skin and serene expression were the antithesis of her persona in the Arena, though Terran supposed they were one and the same, since she maintained an emotionless demeanor in battle.
“Your task is not yet finished in the city,” said Heavenly Death, her eyes drifting open. “That is why you’ve come to me.”
“No and yes. The whole thing went kinda sideways at Estabario’s.” He paused, frowning slightly. “What may I call you? Heavenly Death seems like your stage name, and it doesn’t exactly roll off the tongue.”
The demigod seemed like the type of person who was rarely surprised, but this question brought her eyes up. She turned her head.
“I had a name once.” Her lips came to a point. “Camina.”
“May I call you Camina?” he asked.
She nodded once. “It is probably appropriate for what you intend to ask me.”
“You know about the book?” he asked, surprised.
“The book, only because of your efforts in Dagrath. Before you arrived, I’d never heard of this Places of Power,” said Camina.
“It’s destroyed now, which is why I needed to talk to you.” He swallowed, unsure how to speak to her. He wasn’t sure if the past or how she came to be might be taboo. “You’re an Offworlder like us, or were, I’m not sure how it works, but you came from where we did, the ship. The Reliant.”
Her head came up as if she recognized the name, but hadn’t heard it in a long time.
“I...I remember steel hallways, eternal night. Nothing else.”
Zara chuckled. “Still an accurate description.”
“Back at Gneiss Glen, the Mother Tree is dying. She was an Offworlder like us, and like you, she Ascended. Andelain is her name,” said Terran.
“I have not truly Ascended. I am caught in a half-life between, which is why I must stay within the confines of the Arena, feeding on the fumes of battle.” Camina wrinkled her forehead. “I know that name. But it has been so long since I’ve ventured from this place. Centuries. Maybe longer, I don’t know. I may have known her, or of her, the memories are dim, like fireflies on the horizon.”
“It is not her that I’m hoping you remember, but the place that you became Heavenly Death, the demigod that haunts this Arena,” said Terran.
“Haunts,” said Camina wistfully. “Your words cut cleanly. I am the ghost that never leaves. I am stuck in this place like the undead. Murderous and fell.” Terran shared a glance with Zara as their host stared into her ice-blue hands. “You want to know if I became Heavenly Death in a place of power. You must return there to fix Andelain, to repair your Mother Tree.”
“Yes. That’s about right,” said Terran, hope blooming in his chest.
The demigod’s expression flattened. “Why? We should have never been allowed. Why let her persist?”
“Because we are ships on an unruly sea, caught between storms,” said Terran. “The Howling Wind plots to take over the world, fueled by the captives they took from my cohort when we arrived in these lands. We need allies, we need strength. Without the Mother Tree, I cannot grow the Autumnal Empire. She provides the roots that connect all the trees, gives them life and power. Without her, we might as well join the Lady of Shadows, but that I do not want to do either. She would be as bad as the Howling Wind, I fear.”
“I heed your words.” Heavenly Death looked right through him. “But you should not place your seeds in another’s soil. How do you know that this Andelain wishes to help you? How do you know that she’s not like the others, just with more subtle methods? I heard your conversation with the Lady’s Champion. She believes herself in the right, just like you do.”
Terran opened his mouth to rebuke her, but the words dried up on his tongue. Zara stared at him curiously.
“I...I don’t know.”
The demigod tilted her head, stark-white hair brushing against the stone. “You are wise then to admit that much. A worthy leader for your people.”
“My people,” he repeated softly, feeling the weight of that expectation upon his chest. Wanting her near-immortal gaze turned away from him, he asked, “Why did you do it?”
Her lip twitched with thought, eyes dark with memory. “I was not the first in these lands, but came to them not long after the secret of immortality had been found.”
Zara cleared her throat, interrupting Camina. “How could that even be possible? These worlds were supposed to be reset, wiped clean and restarted before each new cohort arrived.”
“The Great Eater,” said Camina, right away. “The Beast. It was placed in these lands to reset them. They made a mistake by making it real. The cleverness of the creators failed them, as the early cohorts found a way to bury the Eater, keep it from dest
roying the world, and thus the cycle of renewal was broken.”
The name of the beast put shivers down his spine. The Prophecy mentioned the “beast that eats the world.” Was the beast the Great Eater? It seemed likely, probable.
Both Camina and Zara stared at him.
“You know something,” said the demigod.
“The Prophecy,” said Terran. “It mentions the beast that eats the world.”
“Prophecy,” said Camina, mockingly. “There is no prophecy. You cannot predict the future. This prophecy is a lie sent to you to deceive.”
“Maybe. I don’t know,” said Terran. “The rules of this place are growing more complicated by the day. What do you think?”
Zara bunched up her lips. “I don’t know what you’ve seen, or felt with your connection to the Mother Tree, but as we’ve learned in Dagrath, everyone has a scam. If I didn’t have you guys, I wouldn’t trust anyone.”
Terran sighed. “You never said how you came to be. Or why.”
Camina stared into the distance. “Life is an addictive drug, it has a way of sharpening your focus. In those early years, the battle lines weren’t yet drawn. The fledgling gods were barely able to flex their power. At first, my cohort adventured in these lands, much like you expected to do, but then as the whispers of immortality tugged at our ears, we pursued that goal in earnest. Some turned away because of the price and others were thwarted by their own ambition. In the end, I believe I am the only one of my time to still exist, and mine is a half-life, a failure of my own conscience.”
The way she stared into the past, the pain on her brow, confirmed the truth that he’d learned in Grimchar’s tower. “You refused to take the souls of the Offworlders to complete your Ascension.”
She smirked. “Oh, I take the souls, but only the willing. Only those who come to my Arena and face me in mortal combat. It was my way of appeasing my heart while listening to my head.”
“You’re like the others,” said Zara, crossing her arms. “You tricked him into getting stuck in the Arena.”
Camina made a throwaway gesture. “I do not control Dagrath, or its oligarchs and intrigue. Truthfully, my influence has waned over the last century. In a way, I was pleased by your victory. Time weighs on me.” She paused. “But had I won, I would have enjoyed your soul just as any.”
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