ã€ŠEchoes of Ruinã€‹


 Chp 1: Afflicted

    Prologue:

    This is a story about many things. One man¡¯s betrayal, the price of greed, and the despair of fighting to save your own humanity. Most of all I believe this story is about how the reckless actions I took ended up in worst, best case scenario. Not everything went right. We all have our ups and downs, but this ride is a bit different from most because I am not the Hero of this story.

    Chapter 1:

    I awoke next to Mira an hour before my shift was about to start. I watched her for a few minutes before I started packing up to leave. I loved everything about her. I loved her golden, almost white, shoulder length hair, her face without a single imperfection, her fierce blue eyes, her personality, and she also had a nice body too. Next to my almost shaggy looking appearance she was an angel. She stood about five feet four and probably weighed less than, one hundred-sixty pounds, but she didn¡¯t eat like it.

    I had known Mira for over seven years and we had never gotten into an argument while we were together. Mira was far too nice to me to argue even if she knew I was in the wrong. For that she was far too good for a soldier like me. I¡¯m sure it made her happy just being with me, but I wished she would ask for more. I never felt I was doing enough.

    I got up from the bed gently and felt around for the lamp on the oak table next to my side of the bed. The ornamental lamp was a gift from my mother. My parents both moved across the country when I was young so I didn¡¯t remember them well. The silver lamp was cold against my hand since it had burned out many hours ago. It was a cold morning because it was nearing november. I picked up the lamp and felt around the table for matches. Once I found the box I lit the match and relit the candle.

    The room was now illuminated enough I could see. Over next to my dresser to the bottom left lay my armour, folded, and my silver short sword which was sheathed. It was a special blade that I bought from a shop. It was very heavy and durable, which was odd considering it was a shortsword. However as much as I had used it, I¡¯ve never had to sharpen it. I picked up both my armour and my sheath in my right arm. After grabbing them I walked into the kitchen and set them on the old ash table. It was in need of polishing. Refurbishing the table might cost a lot though because the surface was splintered and uneven.

    I glanced up at all the dishes that Mira had made through her time working in ceramics. They all lay neatly in the cabinet and unfortunately were rarely used. Most of them were ornamental and all of the ones we owned had intricate hearts carved out in the center.

    Thinking of the dishes reminded me I was hungry. I wouldn¡¯t have time to make breakfast though. I still had to go trim my hair. I walked into the restroom and took the razor off of its place next to the ivory soap bar and basin. I looked in the mirror which had been recently cleaned by Mira.

    I looked skinny in the mirror, but I was close to about one-hundred-eighty pounds even and stood six-foot three. My hair had to be tied back in a ponytail, because my sideburns had grown to the base of my chin and the rest of my hair had grown to my shoulders. I took the razor and started cutting my sideburns and bangs unevenly till they were about four inches. Once I finished cutting my hair, I grabbed the red clothed wrapped scissors, from a metal chest at the base of our bed.

    Although I had cut my hair I still needed it to be trimmed. However, I wasn¡¯t really that great with scissors. As I returned to the kitchen I found Mira in a plain yellow dress preparing my lunch. I looked over at her and said ¡°Honey can you trim my hair, or are you going to be busy with lunch?¡±

    I made careful movements around the table as to not spoil Lunch for myself. I had never liked seeing what she would cook for me before I ate it because it only made me hungrier. Mira turned to me and smiled. ¡°Darling, sit in the chair at the table and I¡¯ll trim your hair for you.¡± I do as told while handing her the scissors in the process. ¡°Shaggy?¡± Mira asked me.

    ¡°Yeah, just try and keep it straight if you can.¡± I responded. She snipped my hair for a few minutes and I watched the black strands fall to the ground. She finished up and said excitedly ¡°Check for yourself I think you¡¯ll like it.¡±

    I headed to the bathroom. My hair was neatly trimmed and it came just a tad bit above the eyebrow. It was cut a little shaggy and unevenly like I had asked. It would grow out and look better I thought. I took a glimpse at myself in the mirror before I decided to head back. I had always been fascinated by my emerald green eyes, because they didn¡¯t match my hair. Now that my hair was shorter it complimented my soul patch, and looked a lot more natural. I then glanced at the scar on my forehead. My scar came down from the back of my right jaw and stopped just under my right eye. It had been covered up by my hair, but it was now visible.

    I stepped out of the bathroom and left for the kitchen. I put on my olive green banded leather armour. Over top of this I covered myself in my ragged, black linen, cloak. I then slipped my sheath strap through my leather belt buckle and tightly fastened it. By this point Mira had finished my lunch, and in addition had already packed my bag. ¡°I¡¯ll be back later Mira.¡± I told her.

    ¡°Have fun Ruthven¡± she said smiling innocently.

    Upon leaving my house I walked through the cramped neighborhood alley¡¯s and headed down to the marketplace. All that was left was to head by Henry¡¯s store and grab my daily potions. The ones I didn¡¯t use would be stored. I had decided I would buy fresh ones each day so Henry could make enough money to keep his shop running. As I walked into town the stand owners were setting up, but I didn¡¯t see the old man I liked to buy from.

    I walked into the Daily Brew which was a nice victorian style shop with shelves on all the walls and a couple tables up front for window shopping. Henry had went all out, even having polished redwood flooring and a tightly wound rug in front of the counter. ¡°Ruthven I¡¯ve already got your potions up here.¡± Henry called back to me.

    ¡°I wanted to check out your new potions before I finish up. You aren¡¯t trying to run me out of your store are you?¡± I joked.

    ¡°Yeah you¡¯re a bore.¡± Henry retorted sarcastically. ¡°I do have this new potion though. Wanna take it for a test run?¡± Henry asked leaning forward eagerly. I could never see his eyes though because it was always covered with his hazelnut colored hair. The other weird thing about Henry was he always looked like a child, never seeming to age. He was rather scrawny for being seventy years old or so. At least that¡¯s how old he claimed he was.

    ¡°I don¡¯t have a choice in this matter do I?¡± I said with a sigh.

    ¡°Nope. It¡¯ll get you out of a jiffy though if you drink it though.¡± Henry replied grinning wildly.

    ¡°Alright then.¡± I went up front and paid thirty-five for a healing potion and forty-five pecunia for the fortification potion. Henry then slipped his extra potion which was a blood red color, into my satchel. I adjusted the potions position over to the left so they didn¡¯t touch Mira¡¯s Lunch just in case a spill happened.

    ¡°Have a nice day Henry. Good luck in your endeavors.¡± I said.

    ¡°You too. I think you¡¯ll need it.¡± Henry responded.

    As I walked the cobblestone road to the front gate the stands were almost finished getting set up, but the old man was still nowhere around. I headed outside and began my morning patrol of the outer wall. I wouldn¡¯t have to meet up with Captain or do any group training today. I just had to explore the wall.

    Although it was difficult life being a soldier I always had Mira to look forward to. I smiled at the thought and looked up towards the walls of Carlisle. The brimstone walls were over seventy feet in height, which made it virtually impenetrable. The demons that plagued us had trouble scaling it since the wall was perfectly straight, and was so well made it was difficult to keep a grip. Carlisle was a small country, but it had one of the best army forces I had ever seen. The soldiers were trained to fight tooth and nail. They were resilient, strong, and trained not to give up a fight unless told otherwise.

    I stopped gawking up at the wall and continued walking the outside of the city. As I came around to the front gate I decided to take my break. I couldn¡¯t eat Mira¡¯s Lunch yet, although I wanted to because it was still morning. I walked into the marketplace thinking ahead of things Mira or I might need back at the house. I could only afford a five minute break to look through the marketplace though.

    As I looked around I admired the Carlisle Castle which towered over the rest of the city and neighboring forest. It was almost three times as high as the wall which I thought was crazy. I saw the flag with a lion¡¯s head symbolising our country¡¯s pride which reminded me of my job as a soldier. It was even further more important I did a good job since I was the Vice Commander.

    I decided to check through the shops to see if they have anything worth buying as I was limited on time. I came across a vendor I liked buying from and like usual she pulled away from the counter at the sight of me. Most of the shopkeepers were afraid of the Carlisle soldiers because many of them were violent and took out their anger on the citizens. I personally tried to keep a good reputation, but even the stand owners occasionally spat at me.

    As I was looking around I finally spotted the old man by his white hair and greying goatee. I wanted to get along with him. He had unfortunate encounters with the soldiers and didn¡¯t trust them too much, but never minded doing business with me. He was rather frail looking so I couldn¡¯t imagine him being able to fight back. He however, had a different look in his dull grey eyes like that of a trained killer. I have only seen it a couple times from mercenaries of the Rumen provinces out south.

    I looked around to see if his food was fresh. Of course as always it was. He always somehow got the freshest food. I wish I knew his name or the name of his shop so I could track him down. However, the shopkeeper didn¡¯t speak much and the sign was in some other language I didn¡¯t understand. Everytime the market opened shop the stands were moved, so I never knew where his shop was at. As I was looking through his selection when I started noticing people were glaring at me. I ignored them and continued with my selection.

    The stand was u-shaped in order of food type with fruits on the left followed by bread, cheese, and then confections, and spices. I looked through and saw a couple fresh red apples and some honey in a jar. I lifted the lid to check the honey and it¡¯s just the right consistency. As I peered into the jar to look at the honey the shopkeeper seemed to be mad at me for touching without asking. ¡°Sorry about that sir. I was just curious¡± I said politely to him while rubbing the back of my head with a nervous grin.

    He simply nodded his head as if to ¡°Carry on.¡±

    Mira used a lot of honey so I thought I might want to buy a small jar of it. Although I didn¡¯t have time to get it right now because I needed to get back to work. The apples costed around twenty pecunia and the honey costed fifty seven pecunia. I decided to throw in an extra five pecunia because I would like to get along better with the shopkeeper as a regular.

    I pointed at the three apples and the smaller container of honey and then slid eighty-two pecunia across the table. ¡°I can¡¯t pick these up right now. Would you mind keeping them here until I come back later?¡±

    The man smiled at me and nodded. ¡°Alright well see you later then. I¡¯ll probably be back around dusk.¡± I walked away and started to head out on patrol again. As I started heading out a child ran out in front of me and tripped on my foot. I bent down to help the kid back up, but his mother came by and snatched him away from me. ¡°I¡¯ve got him¡± She said almost shrieking.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry ma¡¯am I should¡¯ve watched where I was walking. Sorry about the inconvenience.¡± I said forcing a smile.

    Right before I exited the gate to return back to patrol I heard Marcus a couple of stands away from the front entrance arguing with one of the stand owners. Marcus was always out to cause trouble. Over top of the other lady he looked ominous like he was some kind of thug. His hair jet black hair only added to the effect he was giving off. If he weren¡¯t a soldier though, with his thin frame a lot of people would have probably beat the shit out of him.

    The lady he was arguing was older about mid-life with white hair and was standing hunched over holding a cane for support. I walked over to him and asked the stand owner ¡°What¡¯s going on here ma''am?¡± The lady looked intimidated and immediately shut up. ¡°Lady I¡¯m not here to start anything. I want to know who is at fault for the dispute and get it quickly dissolved.¡± I said slumping my shoulders with a sigh.

    ¡°He came over here in a fowl mood and started complaining about how he should get a discount, but these are the lowest I can drop the prices.¡± The lady told me speaking in a shrill almost scratchy voice.

    ¡°Marcus stop being a hard ass and so loose with your money. Then you might be able to afford it.. Besides you are in the quality goods segment of the market. Everything here is more expensive than normal.¡± I explained calmly. I looked at prices and they were rather low for what she was selling. He really did have no reason to complain.

    ¡°Ruthven, the Captain gave me less than usual.¡± Marcus said matter-of-factly.

    ¡°Marcus why would the Captain do that? It wouldn¡¯t have anything to do with you frequently screwing around or causing trouble would it?¡± I said indignantly.

    ¡°Of course not.¡± Marcus looked away from me. ¡°I wasn¡¯t screwing around.¡±

    ¡°Marcus head to the South Wall and resume watch on the wall.¡± Marcus turned around and slowly started walking in the direction I told him. He was purposely dragging his leg to slow himself down. I pulled back my foot and kicked him in the ass and said ¡°Marcus hurry up.¡± Raising my voice. Marcus sped up and took off down an alley. It¡¯s always been a pain dealing with Marcus ever since I was promoted to Defense Squadrons second in command. Marcus always had a problem with it and constantly was causing trouble for me.

    I looked back to the lady and said ¡° I apologize for his behavior he seems to have had a stick up his ass.¡± I smiled at her sincerely and then politely slide my leg back and bowed to show my sincerity. After that I headed back to go on patrol. The woman didn¡¯t say anything, but she did stare at me until I left.

    ¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­.

    The day passed fairly uneventfully. As I was making my last round I noticed the front gate which was currently shut, had been shut, without anyone ringing the bell. This was already odd considering that I hadn¡¯t seen anything on patrol. I jogged up to the gate and almost lost my footing because the grass was uneven. Once I reached the gate I called out to the guards on the other side and asked what¡¯s going on. I recognized Fram on the other side. He must have changed positions. Fram was a skinny ginger with pale white skin. He didn¡¯t seem all that strong, but he was. However, Fram was a complete coward and I hated dealing with him. Even worse I oversaw his whole unit so evading him was impossible.

    Fram was my friend back when we were sixteen. Fram and I trained and sparred a lot, but we grew apart when our jobs started to differ. I was adventurous and wanted to explore the outside world and guard Carlisle. He wanted to stay safe inside the walls as a wall monitor. His job paled in comparison to mine. He walked along the top of the walls and noted anything he saw. When he wasn¡¯t doing that he was supposed to make sure there was no discord in the city which he seemed to fail at doing. Whereas I kept the city safe on patrols and commanded a smaller unit of people who would listen to my word and die for me if I so asked because I had saved many of them in the past.

    Although I had a lot of control over the military forces of the city, we all had to listen to Captain Gen, who was one of the Eight Holy Knights that had direct orders to protect the King. Each was assigned their own role in the City to oversee and Gen was responsible for the Military because of quick wit and his ability to influence our soldiers.Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

    Fram looked up and saw me after I called out to the guards. Fram said to me ¡°Ruthven, we closed the gate because of a potential demon sighting over in the north west edge of the city. It didn¡¯t actually come near the city, but it was spotted and they think it might have been calling reinforcements. That¡¯s why the bell wasn¡¯t rung.¡± He finished reporting.

    This made sense to me, but I didn¡¯t understand why the demon didn¡¯t attack. Unless of course it was by itself. I wasn¡¯t given any ranking to identify the demon so it could even have been a small imp. I told Fram ¡°I¡¯ll check it out.¡±

    ¡°Do you want any support? It may take a minute or two, but I¡¯m sure I could get one of my buddies to do it.¡± Fram asks.

    ¡°Fram I¡¯m not about to take help from a subordinate. Thanks for the suggestion, but seeing as how we don¡¯t know what it is I¡¯ll go ahead and scout while you prepare for an attack.¡± I pull out a smoke bomb and show it to Fram to make sure he can see it. ¡°I¡¯ll use this to run if things get to deadly. So don¡¯t worry about me alright?¡±

    Fram looks down and says ¡°Ruthven, you can¡¯t do everything by yourself or one day you¡¯ll end up hurting yourself and others.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, yeah, whatever Fram. I¡¯m supposed to be some caring person, but if I got emotional I would be a bad soldier wouldn¡¯t I?¡± I mocked. I follow up by telling him ¡°Fram I¡¯ll be back in twenty minutes or so. If I¡¯m not feel free to move in.¡± I turned my back and started walking away from the front gates.

    Fram calls out to me ¡°Ruthven, come back in one piece alright.¡±

    Without turning around I continue and yell over my shoulder ¡°Tell Captain Gen I left my station.¡± As I walked away I thought about how much I hate Fram. While he never actually betrayed me it almost disgusted me he joined the Inner Guard after we had both agreed to join the Defense Squadron. I couldn¡¯t stand talking to him. The worst part was every time he saw me he would just pick up where we left off like we were still great pals.

    I started jogging over in the direction the demon was spotted with my hand on the scabbard. As I entered the forest I slowed down to a walk and tried to keep a low profile. I tried avoiding the evergreen¡¯s branches and the extra brushes in front of me. As I got further in it became impossible to avoid the brush and leaves on the ground.

    Each crunch felt as though it echoed forever. I wanted to stop moving, but I couldn¡¯t. I felt a little weaker and I knew I had entered the demon¡¯s miasma. This would be a tough battle. Only the strong demons had big miasma fields and further more could drain you of your strength. The only way to get rid of the miasma was to kill the demon. Right now was when the real battle started.

    I stopped moving so I could listen for it. My senses were already screwed up and disoriented. The sound resonated sounded from all directions. However as I listened I noticed a pattern. First the noise came forward towards me then it backed away. It moved to another side and shuffled a little bit and then I started hearing it next to me. After that I hear it from behind running and then it restarted.

    I tried containing my laughter, but failed. The more I thought about the demons lack of control the more I laughed. This demon was so stupid that it didn¡¯t even know how to properly use illusion magic. There were many useful ways to use it, but it had failed every one of them. I already knew it was going to circle around from behind so I pretended not to notice so that I could bait it in.

    It followed behind about seven meters or so because It was unsure how to approach after my outburst. I heard it scuttle forward. It got closer and closer towards me. Finally it was about two meters behind me and about ready to lunge. I pulled my sword and purposely tripped so that it could have an opening of attack. Of course the demon fell for it and lunged at me. I turned my sword in its direction and watched as it impaled itself.

    It howled with pain and pulled itself back off the sword. The demon was about four feet tall with sharp teeth and claws that measured about three inches. It had orangish skin and seemed to have small horns protruding from it¡¯s head. Nothing to be afraid of especially not after it was injured.

    It turned to run realizing it was outmatched and the illusion dropped. As it turned to run away it tripped on a tree root that was sticking out and I remorselessly shoved my sword through it again and watched it burst into ash and ethereal powder.

    After this excursion I figured I should probably report back to Captain Gen. I continued thinking about it when suddenly my thoughts were interrupted by an abrupt crack to my lower spine and I went flying into a nearby tree. Upon impact my shoulder popped out of place and my arm broke because of how I hit it and I stumbled inevitably falling on the ground. My back burned and I knew my spine must¡¯ve been moved from the impact.

    I looked back over on my shoulder to see what had hit me and saw a red demon holding an iron club. I couldn¡¯t really move in my current predicament because my spine was out of place and my sword arm was currently broken and dislocated. I had potions, but none of them would work unless Henry had give an extra healing potion.

    The demon stood about eight feet in height and seemed to be almost one hundred percent muscle. It didn¡¯t armour however it did have cloths wrapped around it. In my current predicament I was probably going to die.

    Mira I¡¯ll see you later. How many times had I said that to her? Even if I meant it I also realized the more you say something the more it loses meaning. Every time she told me she loved me it meant less and less. Eventually I got her to mutually agree it would be unspoken and we¡¯d both just accept it.

    I had potions in my bag, but they probably couldn¡¯t fix this. Unless of course Henry¡¯s special concoction was another healing potion. I pulled them out as the demon lumbering over to me certain of my defeat. With my good arm I pulled all my potions out at once and drank them. I always carry three potions with me: One healing potion, one fortification potion and a random potion that Henry would make for me.

    Henry was a genius potion maker and never ceased to impress. He had come up with crazy concoctions and the random potion I got from him always pulled me out of fights alive. It''s almost like he knew what I¡¯d be up against. I remember one time in his shop he gave me a potion he had finished brewing right when I walked in. I gave him the usual greeting.

    ¡°Henry, how¡¯s the potion coming along?¡±I asked nonchalantly.

    ¡°It actually just finished. I¡¯d like you to take it with you.¡±

    ¡°Henry you¡¯ll never make a profit on these things if you keep giving them to me you know.¡± He was crazy to give me free potions all the time. It did keep me coming though.

    ¡°Ruthven you frequently buy from me you¡¯re practically one of my only customers. It¡¯ll help you on your next mission for sure!¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know what crazy things go on in your head, but thanks. You have gotten me out of many jams.¡±

    ¡°Of course and you¡¯ll keep supplying me with money to save you in the future.¡± Henry chuckled. ¡±Alright serious talk though Ruthven, do not drink the potion. If you are in danger drop it on the ground.¡±

    ¡°Yeah,...I¡¯ll remember that. Well I¡¯ve gotta go. Talk with you later Henry.¡±

    We had been sent over to the Southern Border when a Goliath demon attacked us. A third of our men were killed and were losing ground. I remembered I had the potion and dropped it on the ground and our whole group of soldiers were safely warped away.

    I got back to The Daily Brew Henry¡¯s shop and found him relaxed on the seat with his feet kicked up on the table. When I walked in Henry gave me a crazy grin and asked ¡°How did it work? Did it totally save your life? Please tell me all the details.¡±

    ¡°Yeah it warped us back to Carlisle. How did you even think of this? This was some high scale stuff. I may need to keep one with me in the future.¡± I said with a sigh.

    ¡°Thanks for being my guinea pig. If it worked that means i can start selling it after a few minor adaptations. I really give you these potions so that you can test them out for me. I typically test them before I give them to you, but every so often I don¡¯t.¡±

    ¡°Henry was the one you tested good?¡± I tried to mask it, but I was afraid.

    ¡°Nope, you may have even been warped via body part. You could have ended up all over the place literally.¡± Henry said with a straight face.

    ¡°You¡¯re kidding me!¡± I almost fell over.

    ¡°You caught me Ruthven. I make sure they all work out before I distribute them to you. I can¡¯t risk my only customer.¡± Henry slaps his knee and starts laughing. ¡°I can¡¯t believe you bought that though.

    ¡°Real funny Henry¡± I turned around to leave the store.

    ¡°Ruthven it was just a joke come on.¡±

    I opened the door and walked out and hear him yell ¡°Ruthven come on dude don¡¯t leave me.¡±

    Back in the real world my wounds were aching and for some reason that always reminded me of Henry. As I chugged the potions down I felt all my bodily problems fixed and start to feel a lot stronger. I no longer felt any pain. I would have to thank Henry again after this. I stood back up on my feet and pointed my sword at the Demon.

    I cracked my neck and looked it right in the eyes. ¡°I need to be honest with you. I feel a little pissed off you just took an open swing at me while I wasn¡¯t looking. However, you made one fatal mistake, and that was not killing me.¡± I said mocking it

    The demon pondered what I had said for a few moments and made a confused face. It then got pissed off after it realized I was mocking it. It charged at me, slamming its club down aiming straight for my skull. I side stepped it and threw a dagger into its lower rib.

    It swung the iron club to the left at me. I couldn¡¯t dodge it without sustaining a worse injury so I put my arm up to defend it. Fortification would stop the blow, but my arm would still get fractured. It hit my arm and I felt pain course up my arm like lighting. While his club was resting on my arm I stabbed forward through his stomach and started forcing the sword up. With his open hand he punched me in chest and I slid backward.

    Even though my arm hurt like hell I had to accept something. I was enjoying this fight. My left arm was definitely in a bad shape, but I would still be able to fight him. With the injury I just gave him I was certain to win this. My sword was still in his stomach so if I could just get to it I¡¯d be able to win the fight. Fortification still lasted three minutes. So I had until then to beat him. I pulled out two of my knives in my right hand and got ready to throw them at him.

    He released miasma around me. The area was covered in purple smoke. Suddenly he grew bigger and looked more ominous. He was twelve feet in height. His horns now protruded two feet instead of one. He was far more muscular and his club had spikes on it. I of course knew this was a mere illusion.

    It was then that I came to a realization. There was an illusion caster beforehand. If he was the one that used the illusions, there might be more enemies, that I needed to watch out for. I needed to make my escape. I ran outside his miasmas range and threw down the smoke bomb so he couldn¡¯t see me.

    He rushed forward trying to grab for me and missed me grabbing my item bag. As soon as he grabbed it I threw both my knives into his left arm. Mira¡¯s Lunch was in that bag and I would be damned if anything happened to it. I wasn¡¯t in a situation to run either. He was clearly faster than I was.

    ¡°I pissed you off a little and now you won¡¯t let me go? Well I¡¯ll make you a wager then. I¡¯m going to come out of this fight on top.¡± I told him confidently. The demon started roaring and rushed at me.

    I followed suit and charged right back in him with two daggers in my hand. He swung down at me aiming for my shoulder with the club. I rolled under his attack, and stabbed my dagger into his hip, then proceeding to twist the blade. He writhed in pain and smashed his club against my ribs. I spit up some blood and reached for my sword shoving it up further up through his body. Once again he smashed his club into me. This time the club struck me in my thigh.

    I felt my left leg buckling under my weight, but I would not let this demon live. It probably wouldn¡¯t survive its injury, but if it called reinforcements Carlisle might be in danger. Especially if the reinforcements were as strong as him. I continued forcing it up through his lungs fighting the muscle resistance. The demon sprayed blood from his mouth and slumped on his knees further impaling himself on my sword. It coughed up a bit of blood before finally succumbing and exploding into ash and ethereal powder. My knives dropped to the ground and I picked them up.

    Before I could do anymore my leg gave out and I fell sideways onto the ground. The blood from my rib injury started making its way up into my lungs and I started choking on it. The bitter taste consumed my mouth and I started trying to cough it up.

    Before I choked on my own blood I wanted to see what Mira had cooked for me, so I could imagine the taste. I opened it to see my favorite tied in the leather pouch. Two sandwiches with pork and Mira¡¯s Secret Sauce. Then there was a slice of french bread that must have been imported and my favorite pomen berries. A shame it would go to waste, but I couldn¡¯t eat it. It was becoming hard enough to breathe as it was. I put the sack off to my side.

    My body started becoming cold from blood loss. I was continually spitting it up after all. As I lay on my back I looked to the sky and noticed how lovely it was. The light seemed almost more beautiful now that I was dying. My head was getting fuzzy and I couldn¡¯t really focus on all that much anymore.

    I heard footsteps coming closer to me which snapped me back to reality. I looked around for the figure and saw him approaching me from my left. The man was covered in a dark red cloak and shadows surrounded him. He had dark brown hair and I could see that he had a dark aura. He looked down at me and pulled out a book.

    I felt something dreadful coming from my right side. It was a figure coming towards me about twenty four meters away. I couldn¡¯t make out anything about them except for the fact they were wearing a black cloak and carrying a sword. It must¡¯ve been death coming for me.

    The man to my left spoke to me. ¡°You have a choice to make.¡±

    I looked up at the man and asked ¡°What do you mean.¡±

    ¡°Simple do you want to live or die? If you want to live you must accept my curse. You may not end up being same person afterward though. The curse will take root in your body as soon as I give it to you. If you are ok with dying however, she will be here soon enough to collect you.¡± He said pointing at the cloaked figure approaching me.

    I looked to my left and the cloaked figure was a little over eighteen meters away. I wanted to live clearly for Mira, but what was the curse? I didn¡¯t have much time to decide, but I didn¡¯t like the prospect of dying that much. ¡°What will the curse do to me?¡± I asked.

    The man laughed. ¡°It will give you permanent immortality with a few conditions. You¡¯ll gain immense power and aptitude, however, you will lose a portion of your humanity and a bit of other side effects come with it as well.¡±

    ¡°What are the side effects?¡± I looked over to my left to see that the cloaked figure was less than ten meters away.

    ¡°I would tell you, but I don¡¯t think you have the time for me to fully explain it. Will you accept it or not?¡± He asked me with a grim look on his face.

    The figure was less than five meters. I looked back to the man and said ¡°Yes, I accept.¡±

    ¡°Good that saves me quite the trouble.¡± He bent down and burned a mark onto my right hand. I saw the figure to my left swing the sword at me, but they vanished before it hit me. The mark on my hand was a symbol much like the ouroboros, but instead of a dragon it was two snakes and through the center of both was a spear which formed an x-shape. Outside of the symbol was the number one in the position where the one would be on the clock tower. One spear became bigger than the other and spun to face where twelve would be on a clock and the other faced the one.

    ¡°What is your name sir?¡± I asked confused as to who he might be.

    He said ¡°I¡¯m Inferos God of Calamity and Chaos. I have to go find more specimens to give my blessing to Ruthven. I¡¯m glad you accepted, but I have to go now. I¡¯ll see you later.¡±

    ¡°Wai--¡± He left before I finished and disappeared. As soon as the curse had appeared the blood stopped flowing into my lungs, but my other injuries weren¡¯t healed. Somehow I knew focusing on them would heal them. I started concentrating on all of the parts on my body which hurt and slowly I felt them mending.

    They were still damaged, but it would work well enough if I could fix my leg too. I focus on healing it. My leg has recovered enough I could use it. This had intrigued me since I had never been able to self heal before. I wondered what else he gave me. I started rushing back to Carlisle. When I emerged from the forest I saw three small groups of demons heading to attack the front gates and another group scaling the walls from the side I was facing. I needed to get rid of these guys. I couldn¡¯t chance Mira getting hurt.

    I wondered who Inferos really was, but I didn¡¯t have time to think about it. Carlisle was most likely being attacked. I ran as fast as I could with my injured leg slowing me down. Once I hit the edge of the forest I saw a two small groups of demons at the main gates and another three attempting to scale the wall.

    I¡¯m was not capable of doing anything about the demons on top of the wall, but I could fight the demons at the front. I ran towards the group of demons and pulled out my sword ready to engage in combat. I saw two knights from my unit doing a good job of keeping them back since the gate has been ripped open. All total there were five small orange imps, one gargoyle and two hell blazers. As I was approaching them from the back I decided to go after the hell blazers first as they used fire magic and were capable of collateral damage and long range fighting.

    I shoved my sword through its back as it was sucking in air to belch out fire. I slide the blade up with ease and cut it in half. I then cut off one of the imps heads and sliced down another two. The hellblazer turned fire on me and I evaded causing it to set fire to the gargoyle. ¡°Ruthven as pissed as I am you left on your own I¡¯ll reprimand you later. Track down the demons that just got in through the North West Wall and subjugate them.¡± I looked over to see Captain Gen there. ¡°Hurry I¡¯ll deal with these demons upfront.¡± I nodded and ran past him heading down the main street towards the less populated areas.

    Captain was a remarkable person. He was medium build all muscle knight with a passion for dishing out punishments. He could easily keep our squad in shape and all though he was a bit of a hard ass he was not a bad guy. He had blonde hair that was always combed back and dark blue eyes. I should say eye though because he lost one in a fight with a goliath. He had to wear an eyepatch which only furthered his intimidation. He always proudly wore his silver chainmail which was given to him by the King of Carlisle.

    I didn¡¯t want to get yelled at any more from him so I needed to just find these demons. One of them was a hellblazer the other two were gargoyles. It was fortunate though they sent the lesser versions to attack and nothing truly dangerous. As I made my way to the back end where all the housing was I heard a scream from my left down an alleyway about thirty yards away. I ran down the alley way to see a women being attacked by a gargoyle. I couldn¡¯t stop it from killing her from here so I threw three of my knives into its back. It howled and turns around.

    I ran up and jumped off the wall cutting it down the chest. I then buried my sword in it and continued my search after helping the lady up. As I was running away I heard her yell ¡°Thank you sir.¡±

    ¡°No problem, just doing my job¡± I replied which made me grin. I pulled my knives out of the gargoyle. Up ahead I saw a flash of fire coming from down another alley. Upon entering the alley I threw my sword at the hellblazer hitting it in the leg. It pulled the sword out and tossed it to the side.

    It got ready to shoot a fireball. I was prepared to dodge, but I noticed a kid behind me. He looked frightened.¡±Kid don¡¯t worry you¡¯re safe.Just find some place you can hide, while I clean up the streets ok?¡± I said with a smile to show him everything was taken care of. The kid understood and then backed of and ran down the alleyway. It was a bad idea to disarm myself, but hellblazers were weak as far as physical strength went. I would be able to overpower it if I could get close.

    The Hellblazer fired its shot at me. Since the child was no longer there I rolled to the side, but took a partial burn from the explosion on my arm. It stung to move my arm, but I needed to kill it.

    I pulled a knife out and threw it at the hellblazer. It dodged my attack and prepared another fireball. I once again threw another knife. This time I threw it a little off course to lead it. It moved right into the path of the blade and erupted in flames as the blade sunk into its throat. I picked up my knives and sword off the ground. I looked around and began hunting the last gargoyle.

    I looked around for it in the nearby area, but it was nowhere in sight. As I was running through the cobblestone streets I noticed blood in front of Henry¡¯s Shop. I ran in to find the place was destroyed. The shelves were all knocked over and potions were spilled all over the ground. In the middle of the mess I saw the melted figure of the gargoyle which laid on the floor underneath one of the shelves.

    I looked around for Henry to see him propped up against a wall with his hand covering an abdominal wound. I saw Henry up against a wall holding a wound shut. I rushed to his side. He looked up at me and said ¡°Ruthven you look like hell.¡± With a laugh. His hazelnut hair was covering his eyes again like always.

    I responded to him by saying ¡°You don¡¯t look any better yourself.¡± Henry chuckled.

    ¡°There¡¯s a potion over there on the wall probably the last healing potion. My wound is pretty severe, but you can have it.¡±

    ¡°No, Henry you need it more than I do. I have mere burns and a broken arm you could bleed out and die.¡±

    ¡°Then what the hell are you waiting for.¡±He said feeble kicking my leg. ¡°Looks like you saved me this time.¡± He laughed with a pained expression.

    ¡°You saved yourself. You killed the gargoyle afterall¡± I said while I retrieved the potion.

    I hand the potion to him. His wounds soon healed and he looked vibrant. ¡°I¡¯ll stop by here later for a potion I¡¯ve still got some work to do.¡±

    As I walked out of the shop I started feeling weak. My adrenaline had stopped flowing and my wounds were catching up. I walked out a couple alleys away from him and then out of nowhere the pain from all my injuries started to repeat over and over like a current going through my body. I continued walking using the wall as a support until my vision started getting hazy and I passed out.

 Chp 2: Consequences Part I

    Chapter 2: Consequences Part I

    I awoke to a pain in my abdomen from where I had been kicked. Captain Gen stood over me. ¡°Ruthven get off the ground. You are not a dog so don¡¯t sleep in the street.¡± Gen said to me sternly.

    ¡°Apologies Captain.¡± I replied promptly. I quickly stood up and looked around the area. Captain Gen and I were the only ones in the alleyway. It was night time so everyone was probably sleeping. ¡°I apologize for the inconvenience Captain.¡± I said sincerely.

    ¡°I¡¯ll give you your punishment tomorrow when you start duty. Until then I advise you to go home to your wife. Oh, and stop by the Armoury tomorrow for new equipment. We just updated the Armoury.¡± Captain Gen informed me.

    I quickly nodded and replied ¡°Thank you Captain.¡± with a curt bow.

    ¡°I¡¯ll be taking my leave now. Don¡¯t be late tomorrow.¡± He said with a hint of animosity.¡± He turned around and made his way down the alleyway. I wondered what he was mad about. Perhaps he had been looking for me for awhile and only just now found me.

    At least three hours had passed since the town had been attacked. The demons had all been taken care of and Mira was probably worried sick about me. I needed to hurry home. I couldn¡¯t believe I had passed out from my injuries. They had been mostly healed before I went into combat. Perhaps regenerating had drained me ? I would have to test it out in the future.

    I ran through the northwest housing district,, weaving through different alleyways to get to my house. My house was north east of the marketplace and almost directly east of where I currently was. Running at full speed for the whole time I could probably get there in about twenty minutes. As I took off I was running fairly fast and felt I could go even faster, so I did. As I looked around the walls were nothing but a blur to me. I could only tell what color they were. Was I imagining things?

    I continued running and one of the stall owners who was late taking down their stall came out from an alley further ahead to my right. They were towing one of the stall wagons which were all made from birchwood and neatly polished and trimmed. The average size of one was about eight feet in height, five feet in width and stretched about ten feet in length. Its wheels were about three feet tall which made the wagon look bigger than it actually was.

    I didn¡¯t want to wait for them to come past since every second counted so I decided to try jumping over it. I jumped up with ease onto the outer railing connecting the front and back wheels of the stall wagon and flipped over it. I then braced myself for the impact of the ground. Instead of landing on my feet like I was expecting, I had landed on my face because of my momentum. The impact left me paralyzed on the ground laying on my stomach.

    As I lifted my head, my face felt warm, and I realized that I had earned a bloody nose and also acquired a busted my lip from the impact. Luckily however, I had not lost any teeth. My blood trickled down my face onto the ground in steady streams. It had been a painful blow to the face, but it was not worthy of a tear. Especially not since I could heal it. As I focused on healing my face, I heard a man¡¯s voice behind me.

    ¡°Are you ok?¡± the voice asked with serious concern. I glanced back quickly to see the standowner and whipped my head back around.

    I slowly raised myself off the ground to my knees. I wiped away the blood from my face and without turning around I said ¡°Yeah, I just have a few scrapes.¡± Before the man could ask anymore I took off down the street and cut through an alley so I could lose him.

    As I took off I found it easy to dash through the alleyways as they all were fairly clean. I passed through the area where the Daily Brew was and saw a silvery smoke coming from the chimney. Henry must¡¯ve already been working to restore his potion stock. When it came to potions, he was a madman about making sure everything was always stocked up, in case a customer came in. I couldn¡¯t honestly say I had ever seen a time when his store wasn¡¯t entirely filled with potions from wall to wall. I would have to check in with him tomorrow before my shift to see if he needed any help.

    As I was running I felt full of energy. I felt like I could do anything. I truly felt powerful. This curse from what I could tell had no negative side effects other than being immortal. It would be painful if I truly were immortal because then I would have to watch Mira die. That would be heart wrenching and painful, but if there were a way to reverse it after she died I could still join her in the after life. There were no time for negative thoughts like that. Mira was waiting for me to get home and I was almost there.

    I made the turn before getting to the house and slowed down to a walk so nothing would seem off if Mira happened to be waiting outside for me. As I made the last round onto our street I felt a single pulse come from my right hand. I looked down at my right hand to see that on the clock there was now a two that had appeared and the smaller hand had moved closer towards it. I didn¡¯t know what that had meant, but it didn¡¯t seem right to me.

    I couldn¡¯t do anything about it however so I decided to ignore it. I walked down the street and stopped right outside our house. It was a bit different from other houses in the near area. Most houses were made of wood on the outside and had stone put on the inside because that kept insulation well. Typically they had been painted a cream color on the outside.

    Our house stood out however as it was painted yellow. Our house had a different layout than the other houses as well. The stone was on the outside because Mira didn¡¯t like the idea that the wood would change shape and degrade as the years went on. The stone would also degrade, but she hadn¡¯t just been thinking of the appearance when she made this choice. Having wood on the outside of the house meant that it would need to be shaved once it started swelling or it would become increasingly difficult to shut the doors or windows. The stone wouldn¡¯t deteriorate as quick as wood either and the wood would look more aesthetic on the inside. Some houses had wood flooring, but even though the wood helped the look, the stone wall still made the houses look bland.

    I walked up the steps of our house and pushed open the wooden door slowly. I slipped in and gently shut the door behind me. The kitchen was illuminated by a lantern and a few candles. Mira had probably been waiting there for me. I walked into the kitchen and saw her sitting in the chair furthest from the entrance. She looked up at me and said ¡°Ruthven, you can¡¯t keep coming in late like this. You know that it worries me.¡± Mira finished with a sad look.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry babe. I got injured from battle and kinda passed out.¡± I said with a bit of a grimace.

    ¡°You look perfectly fine to me.¡± She told me pointing at my chest.

    I looked down to see that I had no injuries. ¡°Henry must have healed my injuries then while I was asleep.¡± I said nonchalantly.

    ¡°You sure you aren¡¯t tired from your day?¡± Mira asked concerned for my health.

    ¡°I think I may have had a long day. Why don¡¯t we get some sleep.¡± I suggested.

    ¡°Ruthven, if something is troubling you then you should tell me.¡± Mira told me.

    I couldn¡¯t however just tell her about the events from today. Especially not the part where I was cursed. I looked ??down to my right hand in guilt. She couldn¡¯t see it in the dark, but I wouldn¡¯t be able to hide it forever. ¡°Nothing is wrong. If you want to stay up for a bit you can. However,I¡¯m going to go get some sleep. I¡¯ve got to report to the captain in the morning.¡± I said with a sigh.

    I turned around and headed up the stairs to our bedroom. I pulled off my armour and gear. I folded it and laid it next to the dresser. I opened my dresser and put on a pair of trousers although I couldn¡¯t distinctly see the color. I then turned around and hopped into bed and pulled the sheets over top of me. Before I fell asleep I heard Mira¡¯s footsteps coming up the stairs to come to bed. I closed my eyes and fell asleep. After all I was going to have rough day tomorrow.

    When I awoke in the morning Mira was not in bed. She was probably downstairs making food for breakfast. Although I was concerned for her I couldn¡¯t afford any delays. Captain always wanted me to be punctual. I left my banded armour and put on a thin, black cotton, shirt I had pulled from my dresser. I quickly gathered everything else I would need before I headed down to the kitchen.

    I pulled out the Lunch from yesterday and ate it since I was starving. As soon as I had finished it I immediately felt like throwing up. The food was good, but perhaps I wasn''t ready to eat that much. It was quite possible my stomach had shrunken. I fought back the urge to throw up for a minute before it went away and I resumed my activities.

    I pulled on my cloak and wrapped the sword sheath in the inner fold of the cloak. I quickly stepped into the bathroom to comb my hair. My hair wasn¡¯t a mess so I didn¡¯t need to. As I looked in the mirror My eyes once again darted to the scar under my eye. It was hard not to stare at it considering it spread across the entire right side of my face. It ruined my handsome looks. I couldn¡¯t afford to spend time staring at myself like a narcissist. I needed to go check down stairs for Mira and the leave for duty.

    As I looked down stairs Mira was nowhere to be found. As I entered the kitchen I discovered a note on the table from Mira: Ruthven, I am going to head into the town to get food for later tonight. I plan to make a nice diner for us so try and get home early if you can. Also you were supposed to buy apples yesterday. I can¡¯t believe you forgot them silly. --Love Mira. I had completely forgotten to stop by the stock market and grab what I had bought yesterday. I just hoped that the old man would remember what I had bought when I came for them later in the day.

    Mira had packed lunch for me, and left it in a brown paper bag, on the marble counter in the kitchen. There was no use bringing a lunch today though, because I wouldn¡¯t be able to eat it. Captain Gen only allowed eating on breaks and I had the feeling he wouldn¡¯t be giving me one today. I needed to hurry out the door to The Daily Brew to check on Henry¡¯s condition and then go to the Armoury for equipment. Although I had left out an hour early, it would probably take most of the hour I had to do my daily tasks. I just hoped I wouldn¡¯t be late meeting up with Captain Gen.

    I grabbed my bag from upstairs and then set out for The Daily Brew. The streets were fairly busy since some of the stands had been destroyed and a couple buildings had sustained external damage. I hadn¡¯t seen what had actually happened in the front of the Carlisle, but it was probably minimal damage. I doubt the demons caused much damage before they died, but I¡¯m sure the hell blazers hit a building or two by accident. I had to hurry over and get the potions from Henry, so I could head back to the Armoury and change into my new gear. If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it.

    I was supposed to be punished today by Captain for leaving my post yesterday, but I couldn¡¯t hide my excitement about my new gear. I wondered what it would be. It had been three years since we had gotten anything new, and the last time they just upgraded our armour. With three years development surely they had gotten some new weapons or at least some side gear.

    I walked down the alleyway to main street as that was the only way to get to The Daily Brew. As I grew closer I saw a sea of people flooding through the streets to get to the main gate. It would be a pain to try and get past them, but I had no choice. I walked in and it truly felt like I was slowly being consumed by the ocean. The further I wade in the harder it was to control where I was going. I had no choice, but to start pushing for the left side of the street.

    I started pushing through the crowd to cross main street and I ended up further down the street than I had intended. However, I was now on the side of the street that I needed to be on. I slipped into an alley and ran in the direction of the Daily Brew. Once I reached the wooden door to the store, I shoved it open and ran to the counter so I could purchase the potions I normally bought. That would leave me three hundred pecunia between two days which would easily be able to cover my expenses. Henry already had the potions up front, but today didn¡¯t have anything special for me. That wasn¡¯t a concern of mine though.

    ¡°Ruthven, you appear to be in a rush is something the matter?¡± Henry asked casually.

    ¡°Long day ahead of me or something like that.¡± I responded while shoving the potions into my bag.

    ¡°You didn¡¯t get on Gen¡¯s bad side again did you?¡± Henry said jokingly.

    ¡°Actually---¡±

    ¡°Ruthven, you can¡¯t keep getting in trouble. You know Mira doesn¡¯t like you away from the house much.¡± Henry said cutting me off.

    ¡°It¡¯s not like I have a choice really. Duty calls as they say.¡± I said putting the last potion in the bag.

    ¡°Try and keep under the radar for bit.¡± Henry said with a smile.

    ¡°I¡¯ll try.¡± I said solemnly as I grabbed my bag off the counter and slung it around my shoulder.

    Henry watched me pull the bag off the counter and then saw the mark on my hand. ¡°I didn¡¯t take you for the kind that likes tattoos.¡± Henry said in jest.

    ¡°I don¡¯t. It¡¯s a long story, but do you mind if I tell you later?¡± I asked grimacing.

    ¡°Please do. I am a bit busy right now anyways.¡± He said pointing back at the half empty shelves. I nodded my head in response and started to head out of his store. ¡°Ruthven I left you a present in the Armoury. I think it¡¯ll be of use to you and your endeavors.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll be delighted to pick it up.¡± I said as I opened the door and walked out.

    As I exited I started thinking about the quickest path to the Armoury. Main street ran straight through the city and up to Carlisle Castle. There were two side roads, but they would probably also be crowded as people were busy rebuilding. Luckily it had been a small group of demons that attacked and not a whole horde. The front gates had been completely trashed and would need to be fixed. The defense squadron were probably already sent out front after picking up their new gear. I didn¡¯t want to keep them waiting.

    I hadn¡¯t thought about it before, but how was the front gate even get destroyed? How did the demons even get close to the gate? None of it made sense. The imps weren¡¯t nearly strong enough to bend the steel gates. The gargoyles could have done it, but it would have taken too much time, unless the gate had already been weakened. The hell blazers could expend a lot energy to charge a powerful shot, but they would have been shot before that had happened. If they were working together the Hellblazers could have weakened the structure while the gargoyles bent it open. That scenario was unlikely though because demons didn¡¯t typically work together.

    I didn¡¯t recall the alert bell ringing either which meant that the soldiers out front must not have seen it until right before it was about to happen. They probably didn¡¯t even have time to ring the bells so decided to get the civilians out from the front area. Fram was supposed to be on duty at that time so he should have rang it. Even if he were bust there should have been at least one other person on duty at that time as well.

    Was Fram the cause of the incident yesterday? He hadn¡¯t rang the bell earlier in the day either when a supposed demon sighting had occurred. I couldn¡¯t confirm he was the cause of this mess, but I definitely should report it to Captain Gen. I¡¯m sure he would be able to sort this out. It¡¯s probably better if I let him anyways before I accused anyone of it. I only had one more task left before I could report in: The Armoury.

    The Armoury was to the west of the Marketplace, at the end of the business district and laid almost right against the wall. If I stuck to the alleyways I could probably get there in a couple minutes. I started sprinting for the Main Abbey where business took place. It was unsurprising to find that the Abbey was also busy. There were many people ahead of me in the street so I decided to take a shortcut.

    It was easy to get lost in the Main Abbey because all of the buildings were alike. They were all primarily made of bricks and most of them were painted similar colors. It wouldn¡¯t be uncommon to find six similar looking buildings in the Main Abbey just because they had all pretty much been built with the same design. The alleyways were no better. Most of the back alleys just went in a circle so it was also easy to get lost in there as well. The only things that really separated the buildings as far as looks went were window placement and signs.

    The only building in here that was easy to make out from the rest was the Armoury. It was four stories in height and instead of being painted red or yellow like the rest was coloured grey. It also had a large metal sign over top that was engraved with a single word in large print: Armoury. Needless to say even if you were new to the district it was the easiest building to find.

    As I slipped through the back alley I looked around to find the best exit point that would get me to the Armoury the quickest. Once I had found it I slipped back into the crowd and made my way under the Metal sign into the Armoury.

    The Armoury was the only building in this district that didn¡¯t actually have doors. When it was time to close up they simply slid heavy metal slabs together and locked them into the walls. Nobody could force their way in. Unfortunately that also required someone to sleep on the inside to open it in the morning. I couldn¡¯t imagine staying the night in here despite the fact it had lodging places on the third and fourth floor for the simple reason I couldn¡¯t see Mira. They must take turns doing it.

    I walked in and looked at all the steel shelves, which were completely lined with goods. It was honestly an impressive amount of equipment. I had been here several times just to look for new gear to buy. Although the room had no real form of illumination the reflection of light off the many pieces of gear did a good job of lighting the way.

    They had many custom made pieces of armour laying on shelves for adventurers and then had weapons opposite of them. They had everything from metal bracers and shields to shortswords. They even had a detailed variety of long range projectiles like bows and arrows against the side walls. Further back in the store rested the secondary pieces of gear like add ons and other items like smoke bombs or lockpicks if you could use it..

    In the very back of the store was where goods for soldiers were typically kept. This was my objective however it didn¡¯t stop me from staring at the new to almost ancient pieces of gear. I hustled to the back room while remaining cautious as to not knock over anything. Once I reached the back room which was illuminated by many candles I saw that the room had been mostly emptied.

    A man stood in there wearing a nice suit and bow tie with a checklist. He was a bald portly fellow with a brown french styled mustache and a monocle over his right eye. I hadn¡¯t seen his face around here before, however I did recognize him from somewhere. ¡°Vice Commander Ruthven correct?¡± The man asked me trying to be straightforward.

    ¡°That is correct.¡± I replied. The man didn¡¯t strike me as the type to deal in the Armoury business. He didn¡¯t look very experienced in it either. Then again I didn¡¯t have much room to talk as I had no experience in Armoury either. Although he was an interesting fellow I didn¡¯t care much to ask the man for his name. If he was important he would have told me it after all.

    ¡°Your gear is a little different from the rest of your squad. It is a good thing you showed up last. Wouldn¡¯t want the new recruits to get jealous now would we.He said without much of a change in expression.

    ¡°Well what is my new gear?¡± I asked the man trying to hold back my excitement

    ¡°First we have a new armour set for you that also has your ranking displayed he said as He pulled out the armour from underneath a cloth and pointed at the shoulder. The armour was another light armour set. It was a hard black armour set that wrapped firmly around the chest and even covered the back side well. ¡°This armour was also interwoven with steel threads. It¡¯ll be a little heavier than you are use to, but it will work more efficiently.¡± he explained.

    I looked at the armour and was fascinated with the Vice Commander Badge that had been firmly sewn on the right shoulder of the armour. The right arm also had a place where a small shield could be set for parrying blows. Next he pulled out a ragged cloak. It was fairly close to what I was currently wearing. It was a little thicker as it had been double layered, and had the Carlisle Symbol on the back, which was a lion¡¯s head. The cloak was intentionally made to look ragged, based off of my personal preference. He shoved both the cloak and armour across the able to me.

    ¡°These are your replacement armour pieces. As for your new gear I have a new item and two excess pieces of gear. The new item is an explosion orb.¡± He said as he pulled it out from under the cloth.

    ¡°I hope it will be as interesting as the armour.¡± I said taking another look over it.

    ¡°It should suit your tastes.¡± He said holding the orb up for me to see. The orb was red in color and appeared to be filled with gunpowder. ¡°This will explode upon impact of an object. It is designed so that once the glass shatters the magic energy from the inside with create a small fire which will result in an explosion. When using it you should stand a minimum of five meters away as the glass will still be able to hit from there.¡± He explained.

    I nodded my head and asked ¡°What are the two new gear pieces then?¡±

    ¡°The first will be attached to your wrist. It is supposed to be used for climbing although I¡¯m sure you can find other ?uses for it.¡± He said as he pulled out two devices. They looked like a pronged spear head attached to bracers,and there was one for each arm. They were probably three inches in width and about six inches long. The gauntlet itself was a greyish blue in color and although it didn¡¯t have much of a gleam to it had other interesting features. The gauntlet was smaller than the normal ones were and almost seemed to have been made specifically for me. The fingers of the gauntlet were well rounded and also seemed slender enough to avoid being an encumbrance.

    ¡°They can be thrown or shot depending on preference. It can travel pretty far without falling in elevation as it isn¡¯t that heavy. If you shoot it you will have to wait at least ten seconds before you can fire again. It charges up using air pressure to fire it out. It also has a reach of thirty meters roughly and since it is made of iron threads and a bit of cable it won¡¯t break very easily or fray.¡± He said putting them back down on the table.

    ¡°If you want to shoot simply squeeze the thumb on the gauntlet. If you want to pull the cable back to you make a fist and whip your hand back. If you want to cling to whatever you shot at press the center of the gauntlet down with one finger. That is pretty much all you need to learn about it right now.¡± He then removed the cloth and pulled out a shield. It was a small red buckler shield meant for parrying. It was probably intended for use attached on my armour set considering the the arm piece had a slot for the shield to rest on.

    ¡°This was a gift from your friend Henry. He told me that you would need it, and to focus on blocking attacks more than parrying them.¡±

    ¡°Classical Henry.¡± I said without surprise. ¡°I¡¯ll get out of here so you can have the place to yourself. I¡¯m already in trouble with Captain.¡± I said with a nervous laughter.

    I picked up the orb and slipped it into my pouch. I grabbed the new armour along with the cloak, neatly folding them and placed them under my arms. I grabbed the bracers and held them in my other arm. After I had grabbed all of my gear I headed out to the barracks to change. The Barracks were located next to the wall to the left of the gate for emergency response. It wouldn¡¯t be very crowded by the barracks, but it would be troublesome to meet Captain Gen outside of the gate.

    I wasn¡¯t very far from the barracks. I could actually see it from the Armoury. I had about five minutes to get dressed and get to Captain. I was running later than expected. The Barracks looked like a prison from the outside. It had bars where the windows were. It even had a fence surrounding the perimeter. However it didn¡¯t have any holding cells for prisoners. The outside of the building was comprised of grey stones that had been sealed in place via paste and the occasional Metal Bar with nails to hold it in place. No matter how many times I looked at it, It still reminded me of a prison.

    I walked up to guards post at the Barracks. The guard looked up at me and asked ¡°Vice Commander Ruthven, what is your business here?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m simply here to change gear. You can feel free to address me as Ruthven if you want.¡± I said with a bit of a smirk.

    ¡°Understood. Ruthven make sure to check out alright?¡± The guard said to me.

    ¡°Roger that.¡± I walked past him and into the barracks to change. Once I pushed open the door I immediately started running to the changing room. It should be two hallways down and the first left. I doubt it has changed in a week¡¯s time, but I can¡¯t ever be sure with this place. I jog down to the changing room and quickly set my bag down and discard my old gear. I put on my black, hard leather, armour along with my new cloak and my bracers. I tie my sheath through my belt buckle on one side and my item bag on the other side.

    Once I have my gear on I decide to check myself out in the changing room mirror. The black leather armour and the cloak compliment each other and I look fitting to be a Vice Commander. The gauntlets look nice as well. They don¡¯t initially show where the hooks on the gauntlet is so I could easily use it to my advantage. I look at the gauntlets for the individual buttons. I see the one in the center of the palm for hooking in, but the rest are nowhere to be seen. Perhaps it is a magical item that reads movements. The shield doesn¡¯t look bad on me either although it isn¡¯t really noticeable as it looks like an attachment to the armour.

    I head out of the barracks and tell the guard ¡°I¡¯m officially checking out. I¡¯ve gotta go.¡± I wave my hand and leave.

    ¡°See you later Ruthven.¡± The guard called back to me.

    I¡¯ve now got to find a way to get to the captain quickly. The front gate is completely crowded and I don¡¯t have enough time to run around the side. I¡¯m down to about a minute to get to him. I remembered I have the gauntlets. I aim for the top of the wall and squeeze my thumb to grapple up. I then press the center button to fasten it. I zipped up to the top of the wall and effortlessly pulled myself up. I then unhooked my grapple from the wall and fastened it into the the outside of the wall. I press the fasten button and then take a couple hops down the wall and reach the bottom. I unfasten it and walk over to see Captain Gen holding his pocket watch in his left hand.

    ¡°Twelve more seconds and you would have been late.¡± Captain Gen said with a small frown clicking the pocket watch shut.

    ¡°Apologies for the delay Captain.¡± I said with a salute and then proceeded to bow.

 Chp 3: Consequences Part II

    Chapter 3: Consequences Part II

    ¡°Ruthven I want a full report on what happened outside of the wall before I issue your punishment.¡± Captain Gen said sternly.

    ¡°Pardon me for asking, but I want you to tell me what Fram told you before I start. That makes it easy to fill in the gaps.¡± I explained

    ¡°Fram informed me you were leaving your station. That was all he said to me.¡± Captain Gen told me.

    ¡°Devils in the details huh?¡± I joked. ¡°Well when I was on patrol and about to make my last round I saw the gate had been closed. I checked with the front gate because the bell hadn¡¯t been rung. Fram informed me that there had been a demon sighting over in the Northwest part of the forest and that he hadn¡¯t rung the bell because it hadn¡¯t advanced any further. I of course assumed that to be the case and told him I would check it out. I told him to tell you I was leaving my station.¡±

    ¡°Since I didn¡¯t know what was going on I figured it¡¯d be best to leave all of our defenses at the wall and go by myself. When I entered the forest I engaged in combat with an imp and killed it and then was confronted by a Greater Oni. I fought it off and killed it and then ran back to the castle as I figured it would be under attack.¡± I explained to Captain Gen.

    ¡°Since you broke protocol I have to punish you or I¡¯d be setting a bad example as captain. However, in the same position I would have done the same thing so I¡¯ll lighten the punishment. Your punishment is going to be three laps around the wall and a scolding. Alternatively if you don¡¯t want to do all three laps I have another suggestion for when you finish the second lap. Also just to make sure everyone knows you¡¯ve been punished, I¡¯ve ordered every unit to line up along the top of the wall to watch you run in about five minutes. Once you see the first person on the top of the wall you may start running. Every time you complete a lap I¡¯ll reward you.¡± Captain Gen said with a cold smile on his face.

    If there was one thing Captain Gen loved above all else it was giving out punishments. This punishment didn¡¯t seem like it, but it was cruel. One lap around the wall was roughly six miles. Running eighteen miles would be harder than hell for a normal soldier. I was not even sure more than one percent of them could even do it. I probably couldn¡¯t even do it even with a break each lap. During punishments like this walking was permitted for a minute every time you passed the front gate and your total time around the gate was graded by Captain Gen.

    This would already be a very difficult challenge, but if he had tasks at the front gate as well this would be increasingly difficult. I didn¡¯t have enough time to grab water or any food either. This would exhaust me. Unless my curse actually paid off. Maybe it could help me out. I don¡¯t know if regenerating would help me, but I know running faster would. However, I couldn¡¯t run that fast with everyone watching. It was bad enough that one stand owner saw me running as fast as I was last night. I kept watch on the wall to see when the first person would show up so I could take off.

    Once a minute had passed I saw the first person on the wall. I grabbed my gear and removed it. The grappling bracers were difficult to take off since they snapped on and tightly clamped. I had to mess with them for a few moments before I figured out how to take them off. I then tossed my sheathe to the side and gently set down my bag. I started jogging along the side of the front wall. As I was jogging the top of the wall slowly filled with people until there were people entirely filling the top. I focused on my breathing so that I could use my energy conservatively. I breathed in through the nose and out through the mouth slowly. Even though it was helping me avoid getting winded my nostrils were on fire from the constant intake.

    I rounded the second and third corners without much problem. As I was running along the west wall I started to get tired. After I finished my first lap I was going to use my regenerative powers to heal myself so I could do the next lap. Due to the heat I was drenched in sweat and beads were collecting under my chin which I wiped away on the spot. The first lap was already taking a toll on me and I wasn¡¯t prepared for the second yet. Especially not on a mostly empty stomach.

    When I rounded the fourth wall I noticed a table with a large quantity of food and water. As I ran by the gate I heard Captain Gen call out ¡°Ruthven nice job. You finished your first lap. Come over here and eat before you head out again or you won¡¯t be able to finish the race. You have five minutes.¡± Captain Gen said that same sadistic smile. Honestly it made me wonder if he had poisoned the food. I didn¡¯t think he would have poisoned it, but who could say for sure.

    I started controlling my ragged breathing so I could properly eat. My throat was dry and cracked and I needed water badly. I chugged one of the glasses of water before I started on the main course. It took me two minutes before I was able to even eat without winding myself. They had set out a large home cooked meal. I saw something too familiar to mistake. It was my favorite pork sandwiches, along with seared green beans which were seasoned with garlic butter and salt.

    There was a whole loaf of fresh baked bread and raspberries off to the side. As far as drinks went there were only three glasses of water which was good because I wouldn¡¯t be able to keep anything except water down. I quickly ate enough to fill myself, but not enough to make myself uncomfortable. After I finished I once again had the urge to puke which I held back. I drank more water to try and settle my stomach

    ¡°Thirty Seconds¡± Gen said looking at his pocket watch.

    ¡°Did Mira make all this for me?¡± I asked him.

    ¡°She may have.¡± Captain Gen said to me still glancing at his pocket watch.

    ¡°What was my time for my first lap?¡± I asked while I got ready to finish my last glass of water.

    ¡°Forty eight minutes and sixteen seconds.¡± Captain Gen replied with a confused look on his face. ¡°Times up get going Ruthven.¡± He said without a shred of remorse.

    I got up from the table and started running again. Since I had already healed myself I was in a good enough shape to heal myself already. I didn¡¯t actually say anything to Captain Gen about my lap around the wall, but I was surprised I got forty eight minutes. It typically took me an hour and twenty minutes to do a lap. This curse has only been helping me so far. Inferos did mention there were negative side effects, but I had yet to see them.

    As I ran around the first corner I remembered several things that bothered me. I originally writ off the massive amount of people in the street, but now that I¡¯m thinking about it there shouldn¡¯t have been that many people. It does take a lot of people to repair the gates because of how heavy they are, but it doesn¡¯t take anywhere near hundreds of people. They were all probably busy grabbing snacks to watch me run. Captain Gen did say they there would be people watching.

    What was even weirder was that none of them had said a word. I looked up at them as I was running trying to look for Mira. It was pointless trying to find her in that crowd though because all off the people on the top of the wall formed a shadow that blocked out the sun. I truthfully couldn¡¯t make out any of the figures on the top of the wall. Regardless she was probably up there somewhere watching me. So were the rest of my unit.

    As I rounded the second corner I started to taste a heavy amount of blood in my mouth. Did my body fatigue quicker after I used my regenerative abilities? That would be problematic if it were the case since almost no soldier can endure this kind of punishment. When I rounded the third corner I decided I would use my one minute walk. During this time I decided to use my regeneration. After the minute passed I felt a lot better because I had not only regained my breathe, but I had completely healed my tired muscles and sore lungs. A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

    I could only manage a jog for the last two turns because my body was now covered in sweat and I was super dehydrated. I felt nauseous. Even if could do the third lap I¡¯m fairly sure that I¡¯d end up collapsing from fatigue. My stomach now also hurt because the food had repeatedly smacked against the walls of my stomach from all the time I had been running. After I made it around the fourth wall and finished my second lap I heard everyone start cheering. I looked up at the wall in awe. The cheering made me feel great and I felt like it might actually be possible to finish the last lap.

    I heard several people start calling my name out. I even heard a group farther down the wall start chanting my name. I smiled through my pain because even though I had just ran twelve miles, I felt great.

    ¡°Fifty eight minutes and twenty four seconds¡± Captain Gen said clicking his pocket watch shut. The sound of the crowd faded into the background as I focused on Captain Gen.

    ¡°What¡¯s the surprise this time?¡± I said panting. He probably had something to make this last lap hell for me. The food was helpful, but it was honestly a double edged sword. It gave me the energy to run, but also gave me another reason to slow down.

    ¡°What do you think the surprise is?¡± Captain Gen asked nonchalantly.

    ¡°To be truthful I don¡¯t know. I was half expecting the food to be poisoned honestly.¡± I told him.

    ¡°Quite honest aren¡¯t you?¡± He chuckled. ¡°I wouldn¡¯t poison your food Ruthven that¡¯s cruel.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, and me running eighteen miles almost non stop is not.¡± I said sarcastically.

    ¡°Is it eighteen miles or do you want to make it twelve?¡± He said trying to drop a hint.

    ¡°You¡¯re honestly going to let me skip the last six miles?¡± I asked in amazement.

    ¡°If you agree to do a fight I¡¯ll let you skip the last lap.¡± Captain Gen said.

    ¡°Who would I be fighting?¡± I asked trying to hide my concern.

    ¡°You¡¯ll be fighting Marcus. If you beat him you can reprimand him however you see fit, but if you lose you would be giving up your title as the Vice Commander. You know that if you lose a duel versus anyone below your rank you must give up your title to them.¡± Captain Gen said.

    ¡°You expect me to fight in this state?¡± I asked him with disbelief.

    ¡°You are the Vice Commander for a reason. If you can pull this off you will strengthen your grip on the Defense Squadron. It is honestly not a bad trade off is it? Besides Marcus should be easy to defeat for you.¡±

    ¡°Honestly Captain this is bullshit, but I¡¯ll do it. However, if this ever happens again you can find yourself another Vice Commander. It should be easy for you.¡± I mocked. ¡°Tell Marcus to get his ass out here.¡± I said trying not to lose my cool. Captain Gen made a gesture and lots of people started filing out of the kingdom to watch the fight.

    Marcus probably goaded the Captain into letting him fight me, because he thinks If I am worn down he can become the new Vice Commander. However, he had something coming if he thought he¡¯d win a fight against me. I knew Marcus was strong, but if he chose to fight me with swords he would have already lost.

    After a few minutes I finally spotted Marcus. He slowly made his way over to me. I used the last bit of energy I had to regenerate. I was not going to be able to last in a long battle. However, I didn¡¯t plan on giving this fight up if it costed me my life. Marcus was now within talking distance.

    ¡°Marcus I don¡¯t know what the hell you are thinking, but I would strongly advise you to leave here before you humiliate yourself.¡± I told him.

    ¡°Are you looking down on me?¡± Marcus asked angrily.

    ¡°I recognize your strength Marcus, but I don¡¯t plan on losing this fight even if I die.¡± I told him. ¡°Could you really say your resolve is the same? If not, do yourself a favor and leave.¡±

    ¡°Like hell I will. I finally have a chance to shut you up.¡± Marcus said callously with a glare. He made a look at me like I were some stray dog that had just pissed on his boots.

    ¡°Marcus are we fighting with fists or swords? ¡± I asked.

    ¡°Sword fight.¡± He responded abruptly.

    ¡°Very well.¡± I said. This would be an easy victory for me. I walked over and picked up sword and strapped the sheathe through my belt.

    ¡°Captain tell us when to start.¡± I slowly drew my short sword from its sheath. Marcus pulled the broadsword that he always used. Even though I was using a shortsword which was only about four feet in length he was at a disadvantage. I was more skilled at sword fighting than he was and my blade was also weighted so it wouldn¡¯t be easily knocked away by a heavier weapon. To top it off if Marcus tried doing an overhead attack his sword would be broken because it had a nick in it around the tip from repeatedly hitting objects like trees and rocks during training.

    Captain Gen waited for the crowd to get settled. They were surrounding us entirely, and were roughly eighty feet away from where we were fighting, to give us enough room. Captain Gen pulled out his golden embroidered pocket watch and waited till the second hand hit the twelve and it started a new minute. He then shouted ¡°Fight.¡±

    Marcus rushed directly at me and swung the sword diagonally up from the left. With my right hand I quickly guided the blade up against my forearm and the glanced the broadsword off of my arm. I followed up by turning and slicing in a counterclockwise direction. Marcus was barely fast enough to block it and stumbled backwards. Marcus regained his footing at slashed horizontally at waist level. I blocked the attack by switching the blade position so that his broadsword contacted my blade right above the pommel. Which caused the blade to slide downward and stick into the ground.

    Marcus recognized that he needed the sword out of the ground so he stepped on my foot and shoulder checked me. I fell backwards from the force. I leaned back while falling and placed my palms on the ground so I could use the momentum from me falling to flip backwards and land upright. Marcus pulled his blade out of the ground and then ran forward to do an overhead attack on me hoping for a fatal blow. I took this opportunity to attack the nick of his blade and broke his sword.

    ¡°You bastard.¡± Marcus Yelled at me. ¡°You took advantage of me.

    ¡°No, Marcus you never paid attention to your own weakness. If you had your blade wouldn¡¯t have ever been in that sorry state. I know your strengths and weaknesses Marcus because I trained you.¡±

    I ran forward and flipped the blade around once again to do a slash downward across his chest. Marcus fell backward trying to dodge my attack as he could no longer use his weapon. Once he fell onto the ground I pulled the sword up and pointed it at his throat.

    ¡°Marcus do you accept defeat?¡± I asked him blatantly.

    ¡°I can beat you in a fist fight.¡± Marcus said trying to deny his loss.

    ¡°This is your last chance.¡± I said pissed that he was too stubborn to accept his defeat.

    I threw my sword to the side and raised my fists. Marcus stood up yelling ¡°Die!¡± as he swung at me with the broadsword. I caught the blade between my hands and kicked him in the stomach. I ripped the sword away and tossed it to my left. Marcus decided to dive for my sword and I firmly planted the top of my foot in his gut. This caused him to flip over my leg and land on his back. I picked him up by his collar and punched him as hard as I could in the face. Blood trickled down from his nose from the impact.

    Marcus started crying and says ¡°I¡¯m sorry Ruthven don¡¯t hurt me anymore. I¡¯ll do whatever you sa-.¡± Before he could finish his sentence I punched him in the face again. My knuckle scraped across his teeth and it cut me, but as it did several of his teeth were knocked out. I felt my right hand pulse. My curse was going to activate, but I wasn¡¯t even concerned. I was angry beyond belief. I couldn¡¯t focus on the curse. The only thing I could think of was beating the hell out of Marcus and enjoying it. I let go of his collar and with all of my strength I slammed him in the jaw with a right hook. I followed up with a uppercut from my left hand. Marcus¡¯s body went limp and he was about to fall onto the ground.

    I grabbed him by one of the straps on his leather armour and pulled him upright. Then placed my hands on his back and shoved my knee into his gut. After that I dropped him with an elbow to the back. When he hit the ground I lost sight of what I was doing and I was no longer in control. People watched in horror as I ruthlessly beat his face to a pulp. On the final hit I heard a wet crunch.  A couple seconds later I felt someone yank me back and my senses returned to reality. I looked down at Marcus to see his whole face was bloody and his skull was smashed in. He laid there in the grass amongst his own blood and for a couple more seconds his body twitched while he continued breathing raspily.

    Captain Gen was the one who had pulled me away and he yelled at me ¡°Ruthven learn some damn control. You damn near killed the kid.¡± He said angrily. Someone came up to check on Marcus¡¯s condition.

    The female who had been checking him looked up and said to Captain Gen ¡°Actually sir he is dead.¡±

    At that moment my blood froze over at the thought of what I had done. The people who had been watching the fight stared at me with fear and disappointment. I didn¡¯t want to be there any longer staring at Marcus. I turned around and started walking away from the scene. People moved away from me to create a path. I heard people whispering about me and saying I looked like a monster. Each time someone said something about me it stung, but I couldn¡¯t face reality after what I had just done. I had killed Marcus. I couldn¡¯t stay here any longer.

    When I finally broke free of the crowd it started raining. The water soaked into my hair quickly and then started permeating into my skin. As the rain water rolled down my arm and the blood slipped off my gloves, each drop that hit the ground made me cringe. As I walked away from Marcus I knew I had done something that was unfixable. However, in the midst of that battle I realized something. Even though I had killed Marcus it felt good beating him down. That thought alone scared me. Was I a monster now because of this curse? Would it get worse? What did the clock mean? These thoughts plagued me as I left.

    ¡°Ruthven.¡± the Captain Gen called out to me from behind. I didn¡¯t elicit a response and instead kept walking. Captain Gen continued yelling at me, but none of his words got through because I honestly wasn¡¯t even listening. I was actually scared. What if I did become a monster. There¡¯s no way Mira could stay with me. I could not face her after what I had done to Marcus. Although he did try to kill me I should have punished him some other way or let him serve jail time. Instead I had killed him. There was now blood on my hands and there was no way to cleanse it.

    I walked down Main Street and continued homeward. Once I reached my house I walked up the steps, opened the door and gently shut it behind me. Mira had wasn''t home yet thankfully. I could not face her after what I did. I would probably be arrested for killing him by the end of tonight. I was exhausted and right now I didn¡¯t want to think about Marcus. I headed upstairs and after taking my cloak and armour off I pulled my shirt off and went to bed.

 Chp 4: Consequences Part III (End)

    Chapter 4: Consequences Part III

    I awoke to see MIra standing over top of the bed shaking me awake while fighting back tears. It was night time, but it was not close to the midnight hour yet. I sat up in the bed. I didn¡¯t know what to say to her. I honestly had not idea what to say or where to even begin. I could tell her about the curse I received, but I¡¯m not even sure she would understand. Mira didn¡¯t say anything either. She stood to the side of the bed in the same yellow dress from yesterday. She crumpled to the floor and started sobbing.

    ¡°Are they here for me?¡± I asked Mira sullenly.

    ¡°No, they haven¡¯t come for you yet.¡± Mira sobbed.

    ¡°I¡¯m not even sure where to begin Mira. What happened to Marcus back there that wasn¡¯t me. Its kinda complicated, but there¡¯s a few things I haven¡¯t told you yet. I didn¡¯t want you to panic.¡± I said quietly.

    ¡°What do you mean?¡± She said looking up at me.

    ¡°Well technically I¡¯m already supposed to be dead.¡± I said showing her the mark on my hand.  I almost died to a demon sometime yesterday before the city was attacked. I was given the option of living if I accepted a curse. I wasn¡¯t given particulars about it. I was only told It would save me. I didn¡¯t want to die. I wanted to live my life with you.¡± I explained.

    ¡°Do you know anything about the curse?¡± Mira asked.

    ¡°I wish I did. All that I really know is it is supposed to make me immortal and it has a few negative side effects. One of which you saw today. I killed Marcus today because I lost control.¡± As I finished the sentence I felt like crying. It was hard to resist the urge. I wasn¡¯t sad that I killed Marcus. I was sad that I ruined Mira¡¯s life. All she wanted was to be with me. I couldn¡¯t even keep the only promise I made her. I would be arrested and probably tortured for what I had done. I would also probably spend the rest of my life in prison.

    ¡°I see.¡± Mira said devoid of hope.

    ¡°Mira I¡¯m sorry.¡± I told her as the rush of emotions consumed me and I began to cry. She didn¡¯t say anything in response. She just sat there and stared. I reached over to hug her. She didn¡¯t hug back she just limply sat there.

    ¡°Ruthven this isn¡¯t real is it? Were supposed to be together forever. I¡¯m dreaming and I¡¯m going to wake up soon right?¡± She asked staring at me in denial. A tear fell from her eye and I wiped it away.

    ¡°I¡¯m afraid this is it Mira. I wish I didn¡¯t have to go. I wish I could stay here forever with you, but I messed it up and now I¡¯ve got to atone.¡± I told her. Right then I heard a knock at the door. I walked over and put on a shirt and my gear as well as my cloak. As I turned and started walking towards the door each step made my heart fall even more. I reached the door and I didn¡¯t want to move anymore. If I stepped past this door way it would be like this was all a dream and I never spent time with Mira. This illusion would all just disappear. Mira got up and hugged me around the waist tightly

    ¡°Ruthven don¡¯t go.¡± Mira pleaded. She buried her head into my back and I could feel the warm tears soaking into the back of my cloak. I didn¡¯t want to forget about her, but If I didn¡¯t I wouldn¡¯t be able to live knowing I had screwed up her life. ¡°Ruthven we can run away together. I can wait outside the wall for you in the south part of the forest. You can escape and we can run away from all of this a live elsewhere.¡± Mira said trying to convince me.

    I wasn¡¯t sure it was anywhere near logical. I was not even sure I could actually escape from prison. I didn¡¯t put much more thought into it. If Mira wanted it to be that way I would try to make it happen. ¡°Are you sure you want to live the rest of your life that way?¡± I asked Mira.

    ¡°If it means we can stay together than yes.¡± Mira said squeezing me even tighter.

    ¡°I¡¯ll try to make a break for it tonight if I can. If I don¡¯t meet you by twelve tonight assume its not happening and promise me you¡¯ll give up ok?¡±

    ¡°Thank you.¡± Mira said shakily. She let go of me and I walked down stairs to hear another knock on the door. I walked toward the door and opened it up. Captain Gen stood out front along with four other soldiers.

    ¡°Ruthven, you realize you have commited a crime right?¡± Captain Gen said.

    ¡°Yes sir.¡± I said looking him in the eyes. I was terrified of my fate, but If I really could escape and live with Mira maybe it wouldn¡¯t be so bad.

    ¡°Your sentence will be given today by the King.¡± Captain Gen said without a flicker of change in his face. ¡°Follow me. We are headed up to Carlisle Castle right now.¡± He told me.

    I merely nodded my head and followed along behind him. Although it was night time there were many people lined the streets watching me. I saw a few familiar faces. I saw Henry who hadn¡¯t been there and only heard rumours. His mouth was just open blankly staring at me. I saw the Old Man who I often bought from. I saw the faces of all of the soldiers I had trained. Many of them looked like they wanted to speak out as if to say I may not be at fault or maybe Marcus deserved his fate. However, none of them spoke they just stared. Everytime my eyes met one of theirs they merely looked away with a pained expression.

    As we got to the stone steps at the base of the castle, and began the ascent, every step I went up seemed to only further ensure my fate. The stairway to the castle started with a split and both stairways intertwined to create the single path up to the castle. When we reached the single stairway headed up to the castle the aged steps seemed fragile almost as if they might crumble under my feet. We finished our ascent and stopped right in front of the large, oak doors of the castle. Beyond that door I would be judged for my crime which sent a shiver down my spine. I had always been so proud of the majestic castle, but now that pride had turned to fear and terror. This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

    ¡°Tie his hands up. We can¡¯t risk anyone else¡¯s life.¡± Captain Gen said to the soldiers behind me.

    They pulled my arms behind my back and began tying the ropes. I didn¡¯t resist. I couldn¡¯t resist. I felt powerless. I needed to escape. If I didn¡¯t try now would I be able to later? I didn¡¯t have much hope in escape, but if I believed it could happen then an opportunity would present itself and I would know. Now was not the time to escape. Captain Gen had probably ordered soldiers to remain throughout the city in preparation I would escape. The best time to escape would be when everyone thought I had already been caught. I would plan my escape after my punishment had been settled.

    They pushed me forward as the wooden doors swung open. The castle¡¯s interior was revealed to me. The main entrance was mostly empty. There was a single red velvet rug that went up to the King¡¯s throne. The rest of the stone room was empty except for the banners that hung from the ceilings and the various doors to the left and right of the walkway. We walked down the long red rug to where the King sat above us and one soldier pushed me on my knees. The rest of them all bowed on one knee as well and kept their heads down.

    ¡°Vice Commander Ruthven I don¡¯t believe we have ever met. I didn¡¯t think we¡¯d have to meet either. At least not under these circumstances. Your crime was killing Marcus Friar today during a punishment exercise. Is that correct?¡± The king asked me.

    ¡°Yes, your majesty.¡± I replied trying to at least remain respectful despite my situation.

    ¡°I am aware that he did try to kill you at some point by attacking you while you were unarmed right?¡±

    ¡°Yes, your majesty.¡± I once again replied.

    ¡°Under these circumstances it is normal for you to be arrested and have your title stripped. Typically you would also be imprisoned for a minimum of ten years if you were found guilty. I¡¯m sure you are already aware of all of this.¡± The king said with a chuckle.

    ¡°What are your plans for me your majesty?¡± I asked quietly.

    ¡°You will be stripped of your rank and imprisoned for five years. I¡¯m cutting down on your penalty because of the circumstances.¡± The king said. ¡°Take him away to the cells tonight and torture him to see if you can any more information out of him.¡±

    ¡°Yes, your majesty.¡± Captain Gen said. He ripped me up off the floor by my arms. He guided me towards a room to the right of the throne. As we entered the hallways it was dark because the torches were spaced farther apart and interrupted any natural light that would be coming from the barred windows at the top of the outside walls. We went down a series of corridors and then we started heading down the stairs to the dungeon. Captain Gen opened the dark metal door leading into the dungeon and dragged me inside.

    Captain Gen turned around and said ¡°You guys head back up. I¡¯ll join you in a few minutes.¡± He guided me towards the last cell on the end. I couldn¡¯t see any of the other prisoners because it was too dark. The general atmosphere of this place was perfect for prisoners. It smelled so bad you constantly felt like puking. It was so dark that your own mind would drive you crazy and to top it off it was moist which meant the mold in here after a while would get in your lungs and you¡¯d die from the infection. I reached this conclusion because although it was dark I didn¡¯t even heard a shuffle from the cells. They had probably all already died and been taken away.

    Once we reached the cell on the end Captain Gen opened the door he kicked me in and I landed on my face. He then kicked me in the stomach hard enough to wind me. He let out a breath trying to calm his nerves but he couldn''t take it. He turned to his left and hit the wall with a full force punch. ¡°God dammit. Ruthven I can¡¯t believe you. You fucked everything up. You were supposed to be the perfect soldier and eventually take my place. Why did you screw it up?¡± Captain Gen asked furiously.

    ¡°Captain I lost control.¡± I said wheezing.

    ¡°No shit you lost control. What the hell happened back there? That wasn¡¯t the perfect soldier I was training. Did your morals go out the damn window?¡± Captain said fuming.

    ¡°It¡¯s a long story, but you honestly wouldn¡¯t understand.¡± I said as I rolled over on my back and sat up.

    ¡°You are completely right Ruthven. I have no idea why the hell you would ruin your future. You didn¡¯t just screw yourself over you screwed me over. It was harder than hell to find a Second in Command like you.¡±

    ¡°Shut the hell up! I shouted. You were willing to lose your second in command earlier today when told me to fight Marcus.¡± I said infuriated.

    He fell silent for a few moments. ¡°I knew you¡¯d win the fight.¡± Captain Gen stated.

    ¡°What if I didn¡¯t? What would you have done?¡± I said while I stood up. I got in his face and said ¡°You would have been screwed over. Nobody can fill that role except for me.¡± I said brusquely.

    ¡°There were many candidates for it. You only got the position out of luck.¡± He said looking away.

    ¡°You weren¡¯t saying that a minute ago.¡± I retorted. ¡°If I recall correctly you said it was harder than hell to find a good candidate.

    ¡°Well it doesn¡¯t matter now. You screwed up everything.¡±

    ¡°Yeah whatever. You don¡¯t give a shit. Get out of the cell and lock the door.¡± I scoffed.

    Captain Gen punches me in the jaw. ¡°I don¡¯t give a shit? I practically raised you Ruthven. Your piece of shit parents left you and you had no family.¡± I didn¡¯t respond to this. He was completely right. At age twelve he took me under his wing and trained me. I had never felt connected to Captain Gen in a familial sense, but he was definitely someone I admired.

    ¡°If you wanna talk then lets do it at a later date. I want time to think.¡± I told him.

    ¡°I¡¯ll talk to you later then. There will be people down here to torture you in a half hour or so. I don¡¯t have a choice in that matter.¡± Captain Gen explained to me.

    ¡°Thanks for the heads up Dad.¡± I mocked.

    ¡°Tsk.¡± Captain Gen walked out of the cell and locked it. He was pissed, but he walked away without another word.

    It was problematic that I would be locked in here. I didn¡¯t particularly want to be tortured either. I looked around for any possible way out. The walls looked loose enough to break, but since I was underground there was a possibility the walls connected to upstairs and that the floor would collapse. If that did happen I would end up getting trapped and with my hands bound from behind I wasn¡¯t ready for that. If I could just get my hands free I could get out of here. I looked around for things inside the cell, but the only things in here were a pair of chains connected to the wall and the bed which was bolted to the floor. Truthfully I could probably just use the door cell. I gripped the rope and started moving it up and down along the metal door frame to produce friction. After five minutes straight the rope ripped and my hands were free.

    I pulled the remainder of the rope off and got ready to shoulder check the wall. Before I could start moving I heard a familiar voice outside of my cell. ¡°I wouldn¡¯t do that if I were you.¡± The voice said. I turned to see Inferos standing outside the cell. ¡°The wall looks loose like you could break it right?¡± Inferos asked me.

    ¡°Yeah.¡± I said.

    ¡°Take a gander about what¡¯s behind the wall.¡± Inferos said.

    ¡°They dug a hole behind it didn¡¯t they?¡± I asked.

    ¡°Yes. They dug a very deep hole behind the wall. It allows prisoners to choose their fate. If they want to escape then the only way out is through death.¡± Inferos explained.

    ¡°What are you doing here?¡± I asked.

    ¡°I¡¯m here to check up on you. Do you still want to escape?¡± Inferos asked me.

    ¡°Yes I need to go see Mira.¡± I told him.

    ¡°Well you have a very simple choice then.¡± He said while dropping a bag on the floor in front of the cell. ¡°In this bag is all of your gear and the key to your cell. I will give these to you for free. However, making the escape is on you.¡± He slid the bag up next to the cell with his foot. ¡°You have five minutes to get out of here before they return. If you really want to escape now is your only chance. If you make it out I¡¯ll explain how your curse works. With that I¡¯m going to bid you adieu.¡± Inferos said. He stepped back into the shadows and disappeared.

    I reached my hand forward into the duffle bag and felt around for the key. The bag for being only about two feet in length and maybe a foot in height was rather deep. It must have been some sort of bag of holding. These items were supposed to be rare. Although as a god he probably could get his hand on one with ease. After I grabbed the key I slid the bag further away from the door so it wouldn¡¯t set off the explosion orb. I then unlocked the door and kicked it open. With that single act I felt freer in my life that I had ever felt.

 Chp 5: Letting Go

    Chapter 5: Letting Go

    As I finished putting on my gear to get out I thought about how I would make my escape. Truthfully I wanted to slip away quietly and not get caught. Of course if I did, I still had a way out, I thought looking down at my gauntlets. I wrapped my cloak around my body and then thought I should leave a parting gift. I ripped my second in command badge off of my armour and then pinned it to a wall using one of my knives. That would be sufficient enough. I walked over and opened the doors to begin my ascent.

    As I walked up the stairs, I made sure to keep my footsteps light because of the echo. I kept my back flat against the inner wall as I ascended to make sure that I wouldn¡¯t be seen if anyone did come down. When I reached the the top of the stairs I pressed my ear against the door to see if I could hear anything. I listened for a few seconds and upon hearing no sound I swiftly opened the door and shut it behind me. Now that I had left the dungeon I needed to figure out how to escape.

    I could throw the explosive orb down the hall and make my escape from the back end. However, that would alert everyone I was leaving. Although it was not like I could just walk out the front door. They always tightened security on the first three nights when a new prisoner was sent into the dungeon to prevent any escape. All of the exits would be blocked by many soldiers. If possible I wanted to escape without taking anyone else¡¯s life. I could use my bracelets to scale the wall most likely, but I would still get caught. Under that circumstance it would be best that nobody finds out I¡¯ve escaped until I¡¯m ready to make my exit.

    I made my way to the front entrance of the castle remembering the path that had been taken to the chambers. When I got to where the door of the front entrance was I found myself greeted by a wall instead. The only way out now would be to blow up the outer wall of the castle. That would ensure that the troops not only knew I was attempting escape, but they¡¯d know my position the second that I used it. I of course could also simply wait for the soldiers to come for me. They would have to enter somewhere and while they were in here it would be simple to escape. I didn¡¯t want to draw a lot of attention immediately so I decided waiting on the soldiers was the best course of action.

    I waited many minutes for the soldiers to come right next to the wall where the door originally was. The wall turned and the door was revealed. I heard the soldiers approaching the door and got behind it. There were four of them. The first three headed down the hallway and the fourth straggling behind was in charge of shutting the door because he had the key. As he closed the door he saw me and yelled for help. I grabbed the key from his hands and kicked him in the side which caused him to go flying a couple feet down the hallway. I then closed the door and locked it behind me. As I slipped the key into my pocket I heard a voice.

    ¡°Security was tightened because we figured you¡¯d try to escape. We¡¯ve got you surrounded Ruthven.¡± Captain Gen said without remorse. ¡°I wasn¡¯t expecting you to escape as soon as you did, but never the less I was prepared for it to happen. I do however wonder how you got your gear back.¡± He said trying to discern how I got it.

    ¡°A friend dropped it off.¡± I said turning around. I was greeted by at least fifty soldiers with drawn weapons approaching me as Captain Gen sat back and watched. ¡°I¡¯m amazed that you aren¡¯t even going to attempt apprehending me yourself. You just want the grunts to do the dirty work don¡¯t you?¡± I jeered at him. He didn¡¯t respond to this statement, but his brow wrinkled and he blew out a very heavy sigh.

    ¡°Soldiers, capture him and take him back to the cell. If he fights back you are allowed to use force to get him. If he kills anyone here use lethal force and kill him. Make sure he does not escape under any circumstances! Captain Gen yelled out at the soldiers. They kept their weapons ahead of them and slowly started approaching me. I would have to find a way out of here. I could take on fifteen soldiers by myself, but anymore than that and I would end up getting caught. I saw the front entrance had a large glass window pane to let light in on the king, who currently happened to be absent from his throne. That would be the quickest way out, but they¡¯d still end up being right behind me.

    I ran towards them and then jumped up and grappled to the window pane. I looked back with a smug expression. I couldn¡¯t help it. I was starting to enjoy my escape. I looked down at the Captain and said ¡°Well I¡¯ll have time to play around in the future. I should probably make my escape now. Later.¡± I said as I shattered the window with a kick. I jumped out the window and looked for another tall building I could grapple to. The clock tower was tall enough to grapple up to, but it was out of my current range. I would have to get closer.

    I turned around in mid air and threw one of my grappling hooks into the wall. When I reached about halfway down the wall I slowed my descent and ran the rest of the way down. Once I reached the ground the large doors to the castle behind me swung open and the soldiers rushed out.

    I ran down the steps of the Carlisle Castle with all of the soldiers in hot pursuit. When I made it to the base of the castle I saw soldiers emerging from the alleyways to stop me from going any further down the street. Instead of stopping I grappled up the top of one of the nearby buildings. Once I got up on top of it I realized it would be hard to move around on the roof freely if they pursued me up here which they did. Around five soldiers grappled up to the top of the roof and they immediately started trying to surround me. I pulled out my sword and charged at one of them. Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator.

    The soldier directly in front of me swung from the left horizontally to keep me from deflecting his slash. I blocked the hit and then did a leg sweep to knock him off his feet. He landed on his back and nearly rolled off the roof trying to regain his balance. While this was happening I decided to grapple over to the next building and start running away. Ahead of me the soldiers grappled onto the buildings in front of me to prevent me from getting any further on the roof tops. If I went to street level however, I was done for. While I decided my next course of action the soldiers that were pursuing me from behind were rapidly catching up. I had no choice, but to fight the soldiers.

    I grappled forward onto the next building ahead of me and ran forward towards the soldiers. The first one got ready to attack me while the others moved around my sides. As I ran towards the first soldier the others started to attack. The first attack was a diagonal slash aimed downward at my leg. I jumped up and kicked the owner of the sword in chest. He flew backwards and slid off the roof. The next soldier ran at me and brought his sword up from below the waist trying to slice my throat. I moved just out of range to dodge it and then shoved my sword through his sternum. The next soldier approaching me came from my right side and did a cut at my head. I simply moved the already impaled soldier into the way of the attack and then shoved them both backwards.

    The fourth soldier came at me and stabbed down at me. I rolled out of the way in the nick of time and then stepped on his blade. I punched him in the gut and then dropped him by slamming him in the back of the head. He would be stunned for some time so I wouldn¡¯t have to fight him for a bit. The last soldier started backing up because he knew he stood no chance. I was not about to let him off the hook, however.

    I ran at the last soldier and grappled directly behind him. Once I hit my mark I flipped the sword and ran it through his back. I then pulled up on the blade and his body slumped on my sword as he coughed up blood.I pulled the sword out him and roundhouse kicked him in the back. This resulted in his body flying forward a couple of feet and then ragdolling as he hit the roof.

    I walked over to the guy I had knocked down and shoved my sword through his dead friend on top of him and pierced his heart. As I turned around an arrow pierced my shoulder and completely destroyed the ligaments in my sword arm. I didn¡¯t want to get hit again so I pulled up my left arm and aimed for the next building. Mid grapple another arrow hits me in the thigh, and I accidentally squeezed my left hand trying to cope with the pain. The hook returns to me and I miss the roof. I smacked into the alley wall and fall two stories.

    When I had hit the ground I landed on my ribs and heard a few of them crack. During this process my sword fell out of my hand and clattered to the ground sliding away from me. I pushed myself up using my left arm and both my legs. The pain pulsed through my body and my blood felt like it was on fire. I got to my feet and shoved the arrow in my shoulder all the way through and pulled it out of my arm. I did the same with my leg and then focused on trying to heal it. I stumbled over and picked up my sword with my left hand and continued heading through the alleyway.

    When I reached the end of it where it met back up with one of the side streets I heard the soldiers behind me closing in. I couldn¡¯t risk grappling up to the roof because I might get shot again. I was already in a pretty bad state until I could heal. This reminded me I still had Henry¡¯s potion from earlier. I pulled out the potion and drank half of it. That would be able to heal my current wounds.

    The soldiers were running after me now through the alleyway. The ones behind me were catching up and the others were making their way to me. I didn¡¯t have time to fight any of them. If I did right now I would definitely be caught. I ran forward through the alleyway directly ahead of me. Two soldiers came out from an alley further ahead to my left. I decided to avoid them and go down the path they came from. I ran up part of the alleywall and angled a shot behind them. Once I passed them I continued running. I was fairly close to the Business District right now. That meant I was close enough to escape from here.

    I couldn¡¯t risk grapple up to the clock tower right now like I wanted so I would instead have to grapple directly up to the wall and try to scale the wall. Once I entered the Business District I jumped up and grappled up to the wall. The archers took aim at me, but I luckily got off the wall in time.The soldiers following me grappled up as well. I hooked into part of the wall and did a dive off the wall. Once I got as far as I could down the wall safely I ran down the rest of the way. I pulled the hook back to me quickly and then started taking off towards where I told Mira to meet me. Before I got more than twenty feet I felt another arrow pierce my leg. I tried to keep moving, but it was difficult. The next arrow hit me through the sternum and I started coughing up blood. I fell to the ground in a pool of my own blood. I was going to die right here. I heard the soldiers that had followed me closing in.

    The soldiers surrounded around me pulled out their swords and got ready to stab me in the back to finish the job. Before this happened everything around me froze and I heard Inferos¡¯s voice. ¡°Ruthven you have everything you need to escape. You just need to let loose.¡± He said laughing. ¡°You accepted my curse because you wanted to live didn¡¯t you? You broke your chains. You are free from the life of a mortal. You no longer have to worry about staying alive for your dearly beloved because nothing can permanently kill you. You will always revive by moonlight because that¡¯s when you¡¯re the strongest.¡± Inferos explained. ¡°What are you waiting for Ruthven? A written invitation? Let loose and destroy them. Show them your newly acquired power.¡±

    I felt my hand pulse and looked down at the clock. It was now two O¡¯clock. Before anything happened the first sword pierced me, and then the second, and the third. Before I felt anything else my body went numb and I passed out. A few moments later I reawoke and my body was burning with a black flame. Although it appeared to be burning it was not directly affecting me. All of my wounds were closed. My right hand started pulsing and I felt a need for bloodshed.

    The flames disappeared as my wounds closed. I felt something deep down clawing its way out. I felt my blood pulse and could feel the power coursing through it. The soldiers all started backing up with fear. It made me feel powerful. I wanted to crush them under my hand for inflicting pain on me. I cracked my neck and walked forward. At that point in time my vision went black and all of my built up tension was gone. Whatever had been inside me found its way to the surface and I didn''t even resist it. I didn¡¯t feel anything and as I sat in the darkness, the only thing I heard over my own thinking, was the screams of those around me.

 Chp 6: The Curse

    Chapter 6: The Curse

    As I sat in the dark I eventually tuned out the screams of the soldiers and anyone else I was probably killing. The mark on my hand had changed from a black color to glowing red and pulsed every couple of seconds. It was too dim however, to produce enough light to see. I couldn¡¯t see anything in my own surroundings. It was all pitch black and although it felt like there was some kind of platform underneath me, I knew it wasn¡¯t real. I wondered what was happening in the real world what I was doing.

    The darkness felt eerie and was too still for my own personal liking. I also felt as if I were being watched. I figured I was probably somehow trapped in a state of mind. It wouldn¡¯t be bad stuck here if it were for a short period of time. Although I needed to get out to see Mira. She would probably be worried by now I wasn¡¯t going to show. I needed to find her before she decided to leave or was found by someone else. I didn¡¯t like the idea of that all too much.

    ¡°Your probably curious about what¡¯s going on. Do you want to take a peek?¡± I heard a deep, raspy voice ask.

    ¡°Huh, who are you?¡± I asked a bit fearful. It may have been my mind, but It didn¡¯t mean I couldn¡¯t be creeped out.

    ¡°Don¡¯t be scared of me. We both come from the same place.¡± The voice said with a melancholic sigh.

    ¡°Who are you?¡± I asked again regaining my composure. ¡°Show yourself.¡± I demanded.

    ¡°Do you really want to know who I am? Are you certain you can handle the truth?¡± The voice asked raising its tone from a normal tone to an aggressive one.

    ¡°What do you mean?¡± I asked confused by the voice¡¯s tone.

    ¡°Why do you think your surrounded in darkness right now?¡± It asked me. I thought to myself about it. The reason I was probably surrounded was because I wasn¡¯t supposed to see.

    I responded ¡°Is it because I¡¯m not supposed to see?¡±

    ¡°No, but it is rather close to that answer.¡± The voice replied.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± I said a bit defeated.

    ¡°The answer is that you can¡¯t see because you don¡¯t want to. Your mind is blocking out all the horrific things your doing right now so you don¡¯t go insane. The voice explained. ¡°Do you recall killing the soldiers today?¡±

    ¡°Yes, I do.¡±

    ¡°Did you feel even a hint of remorse about it?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not something I would normally do, but no I didn¡¯t.¡± I said.

    ¡°Why do you think that was?¡±

    ¡°I have no Idea.¡±

    ¡°The answer is me. You didn¡¯t feel any remorse because although you were in control I was taking care of everything behind the scenes. Do you want to take a look at what¡¯s going on right now?¡± The voice asked me excitedly as if it were a kid who had just found candy.

    ¡°Yes.¡± I responded quickly without much thought.

    ¡°Brace yourself.¡± The voice said with a deep chuckle. A set of drapes appeared and I saw a dark figure appear. The figure pulled the right drape away and I saw into the real world. One of my eyes were distorted and the vision was hard to see through clearly. The other was perfectly intact. ¡°Your left eye was just recently destroyed by a dagger and is currently regenerating. You¡¯ll have to give it some time.¡± The voice explained nonchalantly.

    Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site.

    As I looked through the right eye I saw Carlisle¡¯s west wall had been partially destroyed and along the walls there were dead bodies and blood stains lining the west wall. I was currently outside of the city looking back at it from the tree line. Between me and the wall were around a hundred or more dead soldiers and the occasional guts of one. Further into the city there was a raging fire and a couple destroyed buildings. ¡°What happened?¡± I asked bewildered at the sight I was taking in.

    ¡°This is your power Ruthven. All of this destruction you caused.¡± It said with a heavy laughter.

    ¡°I didn¡¯t. I couldn¡¯t have done this.¡± I said in denial. ¡®There¡¯s no way I would have attacked Carlisle. I would have tried to escape without further casualties.¡±

    ¡°You did this. It¡¯s your fault so accept it. You didn¡¯t adhere to your curse¡¯s rules and you lost control.¡± It told me coldly. ¡°I¡¯m not sure if Inferos told you, but you now have to consume blood every three days. If you don¡¯t that clock will tick further forward. Every time it hits another mark you lose more of your humanity and each time you will cause more damage. You will grow in power and ability every time it ticks up a notch, but your curse will gain more control. Every time you lose a piece of yourself it gains more control over your actions. Every time you die you will come back a little bit stronger than you died.¡± It explained.

    ¡°What happened here should be a reminder to not lose control.¡± The voice said again.

    ¡°How do you know all of this?¡± I asked him.

    ¡°Experience.¡± He subtly replied. ¡°I¡¯ve been through this before. It won¡¯t be my first and it probably won¡¯t be my last either.¡±

    The figure closed the drapes and walked towards me. He got right up next to me and lit a match. The match was used to light a candle in a lantern and then the figure put it down. The figure put his hand on the lantern and said ¡°Brighten.¡± The darkness was heavily illuminated by the lantern¡¯s light. When I looked at the figure I realized he was me.

    ¡°Surprised aren¡¯t you?¡± He asked laughing casually.

    ¡°You¡¯re me?!¡± I asked with amazement.

    ¡°I am not you, but we are one and the same. You are the conscious part of Ruthven and I am the subconscious part. We are different and yet we are the same in a sense.¡± He told me.

    ¡°Who is in control of my body right now?¡± I asked him.

    ¡°You already know the answer Ruthven. Based off of what I told you. Just think about it.¡± It couldn¡¯t be my subconscious because he wouldn¡¯t harm people if he truly felt how I did. That only left two people. Somehow Inferos was controlling me; or alternatively it was the curse. The latter seemed more plausible, but didn¡¯t really make all that much sense.

    ¡°I lost to the curse. So the curse must be in control right now right?¡± I asked him expectantly.

    ¡°Yes, the curse is sentient.¡± He replied. He pointed behind me at a door. The door was red and wooden door. I had a bad feeling about it. I knew I was safe on this side of the door, but I didn¡¯t want to pass it. ¡°Beyond that door is the curse. Until you master it you will keep losing control even if you consume blood. You will always be fighting it. Whether you are awake or asleep you¡¯ll have to fight it. Eventually every so often the urge will become too strong and you¡¯ll lose control. If that''s not the case you¡¯ll grow weak from having to constantly fight it off and it¡¯ll win. I mean as of now it already owns a sixth of your soul. Truthfully you shouldn¡¯t even attempt going in there yet. It is far too dangerous right now and the risks are high.¡±

    ¡°Why? I thought you said it was important to master it.¡±

    ¡°It is. However, everytime you fail you forfeit a piece of your humanity and then I will have to get you back out. You aren¡¯t ready to face it yet so don¡¯t rush towards death.¡± He told me. ¡°You have a lot to learn. Like the fact you aren¡¯t the only cursed one.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not?¡± I asked him confused.

    ¡°There are many like you out there. Inferos does take advantage of people¡¯s situations to force them into accepting his gift. You¡¯ll meet one of them sooner or later. The cursed ones are merely Inferos¡¯s puppets of chaos and disorder. If you lose complete control and forfeit all of your humanity then you no longer can stay human and will turn into a monster.¡±

    ¡°Then I should definitely get control over my ability.¡± I said.

    ¡°You¡¯ll get control through that red door. I wouldn¡¯t advise going right now however.

    ¡°What will I have to do in order to beat it?¡± I ask.

    ¡°You should know the answer.¡± He replied dismissively. I¡¯m afraid that out time is at an end. I¡¯ll see you around next time. Let¡¯s not meet again on the same terms.¡± He said as he picked up the lantern and blew it out. I heard his footsteps walk away and when he was at the distance just before his footsteps no longer echoed he yelled back ¡°Remember if you want to confront your curse you need to consume blood every three days and focus on not losing control. If you ever forget that I¡¯ll leave you to figure things out on your own.¡± After he said that I heard nothing and I knew I was alone again.

    The darkness faded and I could see the surroundings around me. It was sometime during the night and I was leaning on a tree propping myself up with my left arm. My armour and cloak were tattered from injuries I had taken and now loosely hung around my body. My body ached and I felt weak. Somewhere in my abdomen I felt a heavy wound. I looked down to see a spear tip broken off in my gut. I reached down and pulled it out. I grimaced in pain and tried not to make any noise in the process so I could avoid giving my position away if I was being pursued.

    Once the spear tip was removed I focused on healing it which sapped the rest of my strength. I slid down the tree and sat at the base of it. I had a pretty good idea of what happened while I was out of control, but I had no idea where I was or were Mira was. I told here I¡¯d be meeting her outside some point, but I had no idea where she was or for that matter where I was.

    I was too tired to move so I just looked up. I wanted to view the moon, but the leaves from the tree were blocking out all the light. That reminded me of what Inferos had told me. He said I would be strongest during the full moon. Perhaps if I could get in the moonlight I would be restored. Even if that were true, I was going to need a few minutes, to recover enough strength, to walk out, from the shade the tree cast out. Which happened to be around fifteen feet or so.

    I thought in silence about all the things my subconscious said. Most of it made sense to me, but the information was still a bit much to take in. I didn¡¯t have time to think about this right now though because right now the first thing I needed to think of was Mira. I hadn¡¯t decided whether the curse was a mistake or not yet. However, it had taken away a lot of things about my life. So far it was mostly negative. I looked down at the clock on my hand. Vines had now grown around the clock and they spread part of the way up my forearm.

    I was still weak, but I got to my feet and stumbled over into the moonlight and basked in its radiance. As I did the moon restored my energy and I felt strong again. Stronger than before and with every passing second I felt stronger. I needed to find mira. I set off in the direction I was facing so I could attempt finding her.

 Chapter 7 Acquired

    Chapter 7: Acquired

    I walked through the woods at a brusque pace. I was trying to keep a low profile, but I was also very concerned about finding Mira. If I couldn¡¯t find her I would probably lose my will to even live. She meant the world to me. As I continued looking for her and quietly calling out for her I stopped caring about being quiet. I could handle anything that came at me so there was no point keeping a low profile. I started running through the forest quickly checking the area as I went. I was over where she should be.

    I was within a half mile of her location at least, but that was still a lot of ground to check. As fast as I could move it would still take ten minutes or so before I found a fix on her position. I yelled out into the forest calling for her. My ears were sharp so I listened for a reply after the initial echo. I heard nothing. Had she already left? I did tell her that if I didn¡¯t get to her by midnight to leave. Was it midnight? I couldn¡¯t tell what time it was. I didn¡¯t feel like it had passed midnight so she should be here somewhere.

    I scoured the forest around where she should be. I went through twice, checking thoroughly the second time, but no matter how much I searched I couldn¡¯t find her. I checked everywhere for her. I checked under rocks, up in the trees; I even checked the stream thoroughly to see if she had somehow ended up in the creek. I felt hopeless and fell to my knees. Had she really already left? Perhaps she went back into town or someone found her and brought her back. It was a plausible idea.

    ¡°Do you want to check the city?¡± I heard my subconscious ask quietly.

    ¡°Can you help me?¡± I asked him desperately.

    ¡°No, you have to help yourself. I am only here to give you advice and direct you. Outside of that you have to make all the choices yourself. Do you want to go into the city?¡± He once again asked me.

    ¡°Yes, can you give me directions?¡± I asked sullenly.

    ¡°Turn around and head diagonally left in a straight line. You¡¯ll be at the entrance in about five minutes walking.¡±

    ¡°Thanks.¡± I said. I started running in the direction he told me. I shortly saw the entrance to the castle and started heading to it. The entrance was a complete wreck. The newly replaced gate was ripped to pieces and the remainder of it was just slag laying on the ground. The front walls had several large cracks in them and further in I could see fire raising up from somewhere in the middle of the city.

    ¡°Do you need a disguise? Or do you want to just walk in like normal?¡±

    ¡°A disguise would help.¡± I replied.

    ¡°Alright make it yourself then.¡± He told me.

    ¡°How do I do that?¡± I asked.

    ¡°Imagine shadows enveloping you and then wrap it around your body into a shape. That will provide you a cloak at the very least. As far as hiding your face I don¡¯t think you¡¯ll need to worry. Right now everyone is too busy dealing with your mess.¡± My subconscious told me.

    I did as instructed and shadows wrapped around me to form a dark set of clothes and a cloak. I headed into the city and headed directly for my house to see if Mira might be there. As I walked through the market it was hard to keep walking. There was so much smoke built up from all the stands and buildings burning it was hard to breathe. The smell was hard to take. I could smell burning flesh and it wasn¡¯t a pleasant smell. This concerned me even more because Mira might be in danger. As hard as it was to keep moving I decided it would be better to not make much racket. As I approached the street which my house rested on I was relieved to see it entirely untouched by both the fire and the destruction. I hustled over to the house and pushed the door open and quickly closed it behind me. Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions.

    ¡°Mira!¡±  I yelled out. ¡°Mira!¡± I called out again. Where would she be? I told her to wait in the forest. She¡¯s smart enough to go somewhere safe, but I didn¡¯t have a back up plan as to where to meet so she could be anywhere. ¡°Mira!¡± I called out one last time. I decided to check upstairs in our room first. As I headed up the stairs I heard a sound from somewhere downstairs. I headed back down stairs and listened for the sound again. I heard another sound come from the bathroom. I slowly walked towards the bathroom. As I got just outside of the bathroom I stopped and listened for the noise again. A couple seconds later I heard it again and entered the bathroom.

    The bathroom was dark so I couldn¡¯t see much, but as my eyes adjusted I peered around the room. There was nothing in there from what I could tell. I heard another noise in the bathtub. I looked over the side of the tub and there was nothing, but darkness. I looked closer to try and see if I could make anything out, but I couldn¡¯t. Something must be messing with my head I thought to myself as I pulled back from the tub. As I headed out of the bathroom door I heard a raspy voice come from behind me ¡°Ruthven.¡± It said.

    I turned around to find the rest of the bathroom was not pitch black. I couldn¡¯t see anything. ¡°Ruthven, why would you choose to leave me?¡± I heard a girl¡¯s voice say.

    ¡°Mira? Mira is that you?¡± I asked fearful.

    ¡°Ruthven, your supposed to be mine.¡± The voice said again from the shadows.

    ¡°Who are you?¡± I asked as I backed up. At this point in time I was fearful of whatever was in the bathroom and wanted to try and get away. The door behind me slammed shut as if aware of my plan.

    ¡°Ruthven you belong to me. It¡¯s your time to be with me. Will you come with me peacefully or will I have to come for you?¡± The voice said.

    ¡°Who the hell are you?¡± I asked as I slid backward down the wall in fear. Once I hit the ground I was unable to move. I was paralyzed in place. A figure started moving in the shadows. I heard a scraping noise across the floor and then I saw a torch light up on the wall and I was now in a hallway. Torches started lighting the area and I saw a grey carpet roll out to me. When the last torch was lit I could see at the end of the hallway someone sitting in a chair. I slowly walked towards the person in the chair. As I got closer I could make out the figures details.

    It was a girl that sat in the chair. She had blonde hair that I could recognize from anywhere. The girl sitting in the chair was Mira. I started running towards her, but as I did the hallway got longer and longer. Behind the chair I saw a red door. It slowly started creaking open. I ran faster towards Mira, but no matter how far I ran I never got closer. Once the door was fully open I saw the carpet pull the chair back into the darkness. The carpet started moving and yanked towards the door. I fell backwards and landed on my ass as I watched the rest of the carpet get pulled back behind the red door. The door then abruptly slammed shut and I found myself in the darkness once again.

    ¡°You¡¯d do anything for Mira wouldn¡¯t you Ruthven?¡± The voice asked me.

    ¡°Yes.¡± I said too quickly.

    ¡°You know where she is Ruthven. You know what you have to do. Of course if we meet again on these terms it won¡¯t be fun. Ruthven I am giving you three months to come get her. After that I¡¯ll kill her and I¡¯ll come after you next. Don¡¯t let me down.¡± The voice said calmly.

    The room returned to normal and the bathroom door opened by itself. I was shaken. Had the curse really taken her? It was hard to tell for sure, but sitting around wasn¡¯t going to help. I had to get out of town and ensure my escape. I opened the front door to my house and jumped up to the top of the house. I ran across the top of the roof and jumped towards the outer wall.

    ¡°Do you need your gear?¡±

    ¡°I really need to give you a name. I can¡¯t keep calling you subconscious.¡± I tell him.

    ¡°What do you want to name me then?¡± He asked me.

    ¡°No clue. I think you should pick it out yourself.¡±

    ¡°My name is Ruth then.¡± He told me.

    ¡°Ruth, I need my gear. Just get me movement gear right now.¡±

    ¡°Coming right up¡±  In front of me I see a portal open up and my bracers appear. I grab them and the portal disappears. I quickly slide them on and grapple up to the outer wall. I jump off the wall and land on the ground. Once I hit the ground I run towards the forest. If Mira really was taken I¡¯m going to have trouble locating her. I just need a place to hold out for now. Once Carlisle makes repairs I¡¯ll be the target of their own personal affection.

    ¡°Ruth, where do you think would make a good hideout?¡±

    ¡°You have the same answers as me. Personally deep in the forest won¡¯t work. They will search it thoroughly. I¡¯d either find some place that is near a town or a city that''s abandoned or a cave that is uninhabitable.¡±

    ¡°Yeah that makes sense. I guess we should find that shortly.¡±

    ¡°Would you like a map of the area?¡± Ruth asks me quizzically.

    ¡°Of course I would.¡± As soon as I answered another black portal opened up to supply me with a map. Before I opened the map I made sure to enter the forest. I walked five minutes or so into the forest and then sat down and opened the map.

    ¡°Would you like you exact location?¡±

    ¡°You can help me with basically any geographic information I need, but you can¡¯t help me figure out my personal problems. What exactly are your limits.¡±

    ¡°I will not answer that at this time. Yes, or no?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡± A black marker appears on the edge of the forest near Carlisle.

    ¡°About five miles from here is a Cave you can live in, but if you are willing to travel forty miles there is an abandoned castle you camp in.¡±

    ¡°How long will it take to get there?¡±

    ¡°At a normal pace it¡¯ll take around three days, if you keep moving and don¡¯t take many stops you could get there by the end of the day. That is assuming you don¡¯t run into any trouble.¡±

    ¡°Well shit.¡±

 Chapter 8 Playing the Victim (Finished Version)

    Chapter 8: Playing the Victim

    The map indicated I should head up towards Densle which was a city approximately forty miles south of where Carlisle was. It was located in the same province as Carlisle which was Straton. Straton was an empire founded only about two hundred years ago. It was a holy empire and while not that big was a rather powerful province. Nobody messed with the Straton Empire for many reasons. During the original creation there was a holy war between the main city and an occult following called Creosote. Both of them lost the war, but Straton had far fewer casualties. Since then it has developed three powerhouse cities that haven¡¯t lost a battle in over eighty years. The three cities were Carlisle, Straton City, and Cera which was barricaded off from the world.

    I started running full speed through the forest in the direction of Densle. As I ran the moon¡¯s light kept healing me and so I never lost pace. I ran for what seemed like ever with trees zooming by me and the wind rushing against my face. Up ahead about four hundred feet I saw a road. I slowed to a stop and pulled the map out to check where I was. The road I was on if followed directly lead straight to Densle. As I put the map away the moon¡¯s light was covered by clouds. I continued running down the road for about three miles until I came upon a house off to the right of the road. It was a large two story black and brown house with a balcony on the second story. I had traveled this road a few times on escort missions and I vaguely remembered this road, but I didn¡¯t recall the house.

    I slowly walked towards the house. As I walked up the front steps to the door I heard a creak in the floorboards from inside the house. Before I reached to knock for the door I pulled a dagger from my coat and slid it down my sleeve, still hidden inside the overcoat. I knocked on the door abruptly three times. The door creaked open and there was a blonde haired guy that stood in the doorway looking at me groggily. ¡°Yes?¡± He asked slowly yawning.

    ¡°I¡¯d like to spend the night here. I can pay money if needed.¡± I said as an offer.

    ¡°Sure. How much you paying?¡± The man said a wide smile crossing his face.

    ¡°Thirty.¡± I replied with disinterest.

    ¡°Deal. Is it just for tonight?¡± He asked looking me over.

    ¡°Yeah.¡±

    ¡°Alright follow me upstairs.¡± He turned around and walked away into the darkness. I followed him trying not to stumble as the room was more than dim. Once I found my way to the stairs behind him, I grabbed onto the railing and carefully walked up the stairs. Once he got upstairs he waited for me to catch up before he showed me to my room. The hall was dark, but at the end of the hallway was a glass window. There were six doors in the hall and mine was the second one on the right side. He opened my door to show me in and then left for downstairs. I walked into the room and looked around.

    The bed was fairly large and looked rather comfy. It was covered with a red linen cloth and had large feather pillows. There was a bookshelf to my immediate left with ten or so books on it along with a few antique pottery pieces. Further ahead was a painting of the house during the day time from an far out perspective. Against the bed on the opposing side was a wooden cabinet and next to it sat an unlit porcelain lamp. I walked into the room and put my bag next to the cabinet and jumped directly in bed with all my gear still on which resulted in a loud ¡°clunk¡± as it hit the wall.

    I listened for any noises to see if anyone had gotten up. Outside I heard a light gallop from a horse and following this I heard footsteps in the hallway. This seemed odd as the only time people left the house during night was when one of two thing happened. The first is that there is an intruder and you leave to signal the alarm. The second was a covert operation people aren¡¯t supposed to know about. This already had me on edge, but I didn¡¯t feel now of times I should be so dismissive.

    Out in the hall the footsteps moved closer towards my room. The door was still open as well and I wanted privacy so I decided to close it. As I turned away from the door I heard a slight knock on the door and turned around to reach for the knob. My gut told me something was wrong so when I grabbed hold of the handle I made sure to be on the left side of the door. As I grabbed for the door a sword went through it where I would have been standing and then a man kicked the door down. I hopped back away from the door and dived over the bed to grab my bag. The wall to the outside seemed pretty thin so with full strength I tried to run through it. I managed to crack it, but I didn¡¯t actually go through it.

    The soldier decided to take this opportunity to give the alert and I heard another four feet come into the room. Once again I rammed the wall this time going through it as they charged me. As I fell out of the house I turned around and grappled quickly up to the roof and then booked it to the backside of the house. I jumped off the backside and then proceeded to head into the forest. I pulled my map out to look at it, but it was too dark to see anything. I put the map away and then from the edge of the forest tried to sneak back onto the main path. The soldiers came outside of the house and then took off to the right side where the barn was and got up on horses. They each had a sword and a torch and all wore masks.

    Two of them headed towards the road two of them went off into the forest and the last guy stayed next to the house. He of course would be my first target. The two that entered the forest were about eighty feet away at most. I snuck to the edge of the forest while they rode around to check to see where I might have been. Both of them progressed a little bit further into the forest to try and see if I had ran. Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation.

    I grappled up to the top of the roof and looked around silently for the one that had remained behind. He was closer towards the road than he was the house which would make for a difficult target. I waited for him to get a little closer to the forestry and then I grappled to the top of a tree nearby him. I shot the grapple through his chest and pulled him up to the top. Since the grapple pierced his lungs he made no noise when he died. I then tied his body with the grapple to the top of the tree. However, his horse let out a whinny and started to run off towards the main road. I grappled back up to the top of the roof and layed down to make myself less visible since the others would probably be coming back.

    As expected a few moments later I heard all of them galloping back to where the house was. One of the soldiers from the main road saw the man¡¯s body and started approaching it. He called the rest over to see the body as well. I didn¡¯t much like the idea of rushing them, but it would prove to be a better game plan than wasting time to secretly take them out. I was pressed for time as of right now. As soon as I arrived they probably sent an alert to the other areas. That was probably the horse rider I heard earlier.

    I didn¡¯t have much time to waste. On horseback getting to Carlisle or any other town wouldn¡¯t take more than eight minutes or so. I wouldn¡¯t have much time to leave and since I also don¡¯t know which direction to leave in it¡¯s a high probability I would be ambushed either wait. I jumped down from the roof and quickly ran up behind them. I had enough time to land at least one sneak attack before they saw me. With my speed if I was careful I would also be able to take the other three out fairly easy.

    I jumped up on the back of the horse and slid my sword through the guys throat. I then lunged for the other guy. He managed to move his horse just enough to evade, but he wasn¡¯t quick enough to dodge my second attack leaving my sword through his gut. The last guy turned his horse around and started to run away. I pulled two daggers and threw both. The first on landed in the horse¡¯s back left hip and the second sunk into the lower back of the rider. The horse bucked him off and tried to continue running, but the dagger¡¯s placement made it hard for the horse to move either. The guy on the ground tried to crawl to the horse, but I made sure he wasn¡¯t going anywhere. I pulled my third dagger out and stabbed him in the throat.

    I needed to drink his blood to offset my curse¡¯s timer, but blood looked so disgusting. How could I even drink it? I could at least give it a shot, but the idea did make me rather queasy. I leaned down over him and drained his blood into an empty potion bottle henry made for me. It was about half full with his blood. I stared at the bottle in disbelief for a few more moments and then said ¡°Fuck it, bottoms up.¡±

    I slowly poured it into my mouth. It tasted like metal and after a sip it started to upset my stomach. My stomach didn¡¯t want to accept it. I walked over into the brush to try and puke, but the blood wouldn¡¯t come back up. Instead it felt like it was absorbed into my body. My stomach once again was empty and my stomach was no longer upset. I put the cap on the bottle and put it away. As my hand was about to reach the bag my arm stopped. I felt the urge to consume the rest of it. Suddenly my appetite had reawakened.

    My arm pulled upwards towards my mouth and my hunger was clawing at my stomach, almost as if it was in dire need of the blood. I opened the cap and smelled the blood. It was irresistible. It smelled like one of the delicacies MIra always made for me. I wanted just one little taste of it and I would put it back. I could resist drinking all off it I thought to myself. I put my lips up to the container and took a sip. Flavor filled my mouth and I wanted more. I wanted all of it.

    I needed to stop drinking it. I tried to pull my hand away from my face, but that only made the urge to drink stronger. Finally I gave in and chugged the rest of it. When it hit my stomach it no longer felt uncomfortable. It made me feel whole again. It seeped into my body and I felt a lot stronger than I did before hand. I capped the potion and put it back into my bag. Once it was out of sight I returned to normal. I still thought blood was disgusting, but my cardinal urges did take over so It couldn¡¯t be helped.

    I grappled up to the tree to grab my other gauntlet where the body hung and then I started running down the main path towards Densle. I ran for about thirty minutes longer before I decided to take a break. I should probably sleep for tomorrow I thought to myself. I jumped up and climbed the nearest tree to me all the way to the top and found a perfect place to lay down. I wasn¡¯t particularly exhausted, but I didn¡¯t know the limits of my body quite yet and now wasn¡¯t the best time to test it. I sat up in the tree for about fifteen minutes before I fell asleep.

    I awoke at around midday. I pulled the map out to check it. I was about half way to Densle so if I ran for a few hours today I could make it to the castle by nightfall easily. I climbed down the tree and looked around for any immediate sign of danger. There were several tracks from horses passing by. If I continued up the road there was a large chance I¡¯d end up running into the group that had passed me during the night. I would have to cut off into the forest to get to Densle. I couldn¡¯t risk getting caught during that time.

    I veered off into the forest about a half mile in and then started heading back in the direction of Densle. As I was walking I started to notice several displaced tree branches. I checked down in the mud for any kind of tracks. If horses had gone through here I couldn¡¯t risk following them under the chance that I might get caught. If even one rider found me I could easily have a squadron on my back.

    ¡°Ruthven, it appears I have some urgent matters at hand to take care of.¡± Ruth said suddenly.

    ¡°Did something come up?¡± I asked him with a hint of worry.

    ¡°Nothing you should worry about right now. Get to the castle and make haste. I can¡¯t be your guide forever.¡±

    ¡°Alright then.¡± I replied compliantly.

    As I was walking I heard horses from the main path coming back down the trail. I was far enough Into the forest I wouldn¡¯t be seen, but that didn¡¯t stop me from worrying. As they were passing I kept my head low and crouched down to see where they were going. They continued heading in the direction of the house I had passed earlier. If this really were the case I would be in danger if I didn¡¯t find a hiding place soon. Once again I resumed my mission for the castle. I decided to keep low profile and not alert a lot of birds I would start walking instead of running through the forest.

    I must¡¯ve walked in one direction for several hours without finding any kind of civilization except for the occasional log cabin which I avoided. The sky darkened as the day went on and kept covering more and more of the sky in dark grey clouds. If it started raining I¡¯d leave a trail behind me. I needed to find cover soon so so I pulled out my map again. As I looked around the map for wherever the locator might be I discovered there wasn¡¯t one. The map no longer told me where I was.

    ¡°Ruth, what the hell is going on?¡± No answer. ¡°Ruth what¡¯s going on with my map?¡± Once again no answer. ¡°Are you fucking kidding me right now?¡± I asked out loud.

    This was bullshit. If I got lost right now I would probably be found by the soldiers due to the tracks left behind by the rain. I needed to head off and hide, but I had no idea where I was. I put the map away and looked around for any nearby shelter. I looked for a few minutes and found no place to hide. As I thought about my next course of action the rain started to fall and once it hit the ground my chest sunk. I would surely get caught if I didn¡¯t find that abandoned castle I thought to myself as I looked up at the sky.

 Chapter 9: Friends in Strange Places

    Chapter 9: Friends in Strange Places

    The rain fell softly against my face as I looked up into the sky. There wasn¡¯t much to look at in the vast sky. As my eyes returned to the ground I refocused on my task. I needed a spot to hide out. That reminded me of something Ruth told me earlier. Ruth said nearby the castle there was also a cave to hide out in. It shouldn¡¯t be too far from where I was either. If I could quickly survey the area I could avoid getting caught. I had about forty minutes or so before the soldiers searching for me returned to check out this area. If I couldn¡¯t find the cave by then I¡¯d just have to risk getting caught to find the castle.

    I started looking through the area. Caves are typically in uneven terrain or near hills. That was something I had once read in a book. If it were true the only hilly area around Densle was actually pretty close to the graveyard in the city. Densle was only a few miles ahead of me. I got on the main path and threw over my cloak. If the soldiers came by looking for me I could easily lose them in the forest. I only didn¡¯t want to get caught because if my location was given out I¡¯d have a lot more trouble to deal with. It was already bad that I had killed someone and been seen doing it, but I only furthered the damage to my irreplaceable reputation when I escaped from prison and when I turned into a monster. That¡¯s not even getting into the damage to Carlisle and me putting the King¡¯s life in danger by causing an uproar.

    I jogged down the main road towards Densle. I could get there in about forty minutes which would be right about the time the search party would get back. I would have to figure out something to do about the soldiers before I got there. The soldiers would be housed in the inn so that wasn¡¯t really an option. I couldn¡¯t be housed anywhere either because they undoubtedly had wanted posters already. I would have to keep my cloak on the whole time. Alternatively if I managed to get to the cave on the outskirts of the cemetery without getting caught I wouldn¡¯t be found easily.

    Forty minutes had passed and I was now about three minutes from the front gate of Densle. Densle was apparently only a temporary fort that had been built, but after the war ended it got turned into a town for people to live in. Directly behind Densle was the cemetery. I could honestly just walk around the side of the wall and reach it. I walked along the side of the wall until I found the cemetery. The cemetery was connected to Densle by a barred metal fence that went all the way around the cemetery. The fence was about eleven feet in height which wouldn¡¯t be too hard to climb if I ever needed to go in there.

    As I looked around the cemetery I saw a hooded figure kneeling in front of a decorated grave. A honorable soldier must¡¯ve died here. The figure hadn¡¯t noticed me so I decided to walk off.  I didn¡¯t know exactly where the cave was, but I was certain I¡¯d find it. When the cave was listed on the map it showed it being directly behind the cemetery so I decided to head in that direction. I looked up at the gloomy sky, soaked to the bone by rain. The sky was always bland and gloomy during rain and when you looked at it, it was almost as if the weather affected your mood. Looking up at the sky as cloudy as it was seemed so close to my fate: uncertain, but not happy.

    While I was walking a nostalgic memory resurfaced from when me and Mira used to be younger. I was around thirteen and I was training to be a soldier in the army. It was about midday and I was practicing swinging the sword while Mira sat about twenty feet away from me, on the fence around the rancher¡¯s field. Mira asked me ¡°Ruthven, why do you want to become a soldier?¡±

    I responded with ¡°I want to be strong enough to protect everyone. Plus I can travel if I reach a high enough position. I¡¯ve always wanted to explore the world.¡± I said smiling at her with a big grin.

    ¡°Promise me if you ever decide to leave for real you¡¯ll take me with you. I don¡¯t want to be away from you.¡± Mira said with a bit of concern.

    ¡°I promise you.¡± I said while giving her a thumbs up.

    I snapped back to reality. Things weren¡¯t the same as they were back then. I was no longer with Mira and I had protected nobody. I only made things worse. It made me wonder if my death would have been more meaningful. The thought gave me a cold chill. It made me think of that cold voice I heard in the bathroom. I decided to stop thinking about that at the moment. I pulled my eyes up from the ground and started earnestly looking for the cave.

    I was about two minutes into the forest when I spotted the entrance to the cave. It was about eight hundred feet from where I stood. I quickly bolted over to it eager to get out of the rain as I was already soaked. The entrance of the cave was only about twenty feet wide. It wasn¡¯t a very large cave, but it would keep me out of the rain and that was all that mattered. Unlike most caves that go down and in this one seemed like it was man made because it went straight back into the hill. I walked to the back and layed my bag down. It was too dark to really see anything in here so I decided I would just sit down. I had my lantern, but I had no matches on hand to light them with. I would just have to sit in here the dark until the rain stopped.

    Someone would be out here sooner rather than later to look around for me. It would be a matter of time and then I would once again have to kill someone. I didn¡¯t much like that idea, but I didn¡¯t have much of a choice. I was being hunted right now and considering how many I killed it was probably for my head. I had turned into a monster anyways so there was no way they didn¡¯t want to kill me. I sat in the dark for several hours until I drifted off to the sound of the rain.

    When I awoke several hours later the rain was still ongoing. It was now dark outside and that meant I would be staying the night here. Although light was a bad thing I really wanted a match for this lantern. I wanted to look at the map to see if I could now get directions to the abandoned castle. Sitting here in the dark wasn¡¯t ideal at least not for me anyway. The smell while it didn¡¯t bother me wasn¡¯t the greatest either. It smelled like some kind of game animal. Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.

    After another hour passed the rain finally stopped which meant I could leave. However it was still dark out. It would be several more hours before I finally got the chance to leave here. As time went on my desire for a light source grew stronger. Another hour passed and then I heard Ruth¡¯s voice.

    ¡°You were calling for me earlier?¡± he asked nonchalantly.

    ¡°No thanks to you I am currently lost right now.¡± I replied with a hint of anger.

    ¡°You can blame me for getting you lost, but I was the one who gave you the suggestion to go to the castle in the first place. Without my help you¡¯d have to fend for yourself because you¡¯d have no guide.¡± Ruth said unapologetically.

    ¡°Look can you just give me directions to the castle?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯d advise you wait until daylight before you move out. It¡¯s not wise to move at dark unless there is no other option.¡±

    ¡°Can you at least re mark the map for me? That marker you placed disappeared.¡± I asked trying to be considerate.

    ¡°Oh, my bad sorry about that. I had to deal with some urgent matters. I¡¯ll remark it for you. Wait here till its light enough you can see and then head out.¡±

    ¡°As you command, sire¡± I said sarcastically. Ruth stopped speaking after I said that.

    It would be annoying waiting for enough light to move out, but I had no other option. I hated to admit it, but Ruth knew what he was talking about. So I sat there for hours bored out of my mind until finally I saw a small, dim ray of light peak into the cave.

    As soon as I saw it I walked to the front of the cave and pulled out my map. The marker indicating my current location was now back and I could see my destination as well. The castle was located in the Forgotten Kingdom apparently. That hadn¡¯t been listed on my map beforehand. The Forgotten Kingdom was an interesting place and I had always wanted to explore it. This chance made me even more excited to see the place.

    The Forgotten Kingdom was something of a fable I had always heard about. Everyone always said it was a real place, but nobody ever searched for it which I always found to be confusing. During the Holy War between the Occult and the Holy Empire Straton there was a third party organization that was unnamed assisting in the war. The Forgotten Kingdom was where they stayed. Nobody ever visited because it was so heavily populated in monsters more likely than not you¡¯d end up losing your life trying to get in. Nobody listed it on the map in hopes that no poor fool would ever venture off and get themselves killed. The legend would never get back to the people if the storyteller always died and so eventually people forgot where it was all together.

    The castle according to the map was located about twenty miles away and the province around it was five miles wide in every direction. It would take me half a day to get to the forgotten kingdom and then I would have to slay my way through monsters which sounded fun. Who was I kidding? I was still being hunted down. I wouldn¡¯t have time for fun. Now that I knew where the castle was It would be best if I headed out. I rolled the map back up and put it back in the bag. I had the area memorized I wouldn¡¯t need to use it again.

    I ran out of the area at full speed with full confidence I wouldn¡¯t get lost again. The run felt great I couldn¡¯t deny it. As much as I was concerned about being caught and captured again I didn¡¯t feel like anything could go wrong. The idea of living in the Forgotten Kingdom was also enticing. As I ran several times I found myself slipping and falling into the mud so I decided despite the time difference It would probably be best if I walked. While I walked I listened around for any noises indicating I was being followed. There were none.

    I let my guard down and casually started strolling through the forest. Listening to the songs of the various birds and other animals that happened to be scampering about. I never had time to do this on patrol because I always had to be vigilant. It felt so much better to just let go and let nature''s song play. I kept tuned in as I was walking until I heard the fluttering of birds quickly taking off half mile away. The noise of the birds taking off got closer. Something was coming. Birds don¡¯t take off that quickly unless there is a predator or something that the birds view as a danger. I had an ominous feeling about it.

    I grabbed my sword and pulled it out. I looked in the direction of the noise and waited. As it got closer I could hear the quick movements. Suddenly a large wolf came bounding into the area. It stood about eight feet in height. I didn¡¯t really want to get into a fight with it. I didn¡¯t much like killing things. Most dogs and wolves weren¡¯t smart enough to understand the human language. This one as it approached instead of lunging for me stopped and slowly started circling me. It was sizing me up. Most wolves would have immediately lunged at me. This one was definitely a little bit more intelligent. I decided as risky as it was I would put my sword away.

    There was no chance of the wolf permanently killing me. It would hurt quite a bit, but the moon would still be out tonight and I would revive. ¡°Look I don¡¯t really want to kill you. I¡¯d appreciate it if you didn¡¯t attack me.¡± I said to the wolf in a calm tone. The wolf seemed to understand this. It stretched its paws down slightly and then playfully bounced forward. I smiled at it. The wolf got closer and started sniffing me. Its nose must¡¯ve picked up the scent of human blood because it pulled back.

    I turned around and started walking away from the wolf. It followed behind me and put its large paw on my shoulder as if to hold me back. ¡°I¡¯m not good company to hang out with. I¡¯m a monster so let me go.¡± I said lifting its paw of my shoulder. I continued walking forward and it put its paw on me again. Once again I lifted it off and continued walking. It gently swiped at me and knocked me over. I got up and slammed my hand into a tree. The outer part of the tree cracked and the bark fell off. ¡°See I¡¯m a monster.¡± I said.

    The wolf gave a little yiand nodded its head. ¡°Fine you can come along. Don¡¯t expect anything from me though.¡± I said to it. The wolf howled in agreement and followed along in pursuit. We walked for several minutes and then I heard voices. The wolf lowered itself and layed down to try and make itself less visible. It certainly was smart for sure, but it was not a normal one. I crouched behind a tree and listened for the voices the got closer to us. The voices came from directly ahead. There were five of them all male in the same cloaks as last night. I drew my sword and waited for them.

    Once they spotted me the yelled ¡°There he is!¡± I guess my search party finally caught up to me. I ran towards them at full speed. I threw a knife into the first ones neck and then shoved my sword through one of them. I dashed behind the next one and kicked the back of his leg. He fell to one knee and them I grabbed his neck in a reverse headlock and snapped it backwards. I pulled my sword out of the guy I killed and slashed the next guy twice across the chest before I ran it through him. The last guy started to run. I saw a spear that had been dropped by one of the soldiers. I picked it up and threw it through the last guys back pinning him to a tree in the process.

    I wiped the blood off of me and my gear and looked back at the wolf for its reaction. The wolf was no longer there. Instead I heard a voice behind a tree. It was a female speaking. ¡°You really are a monster aren¡¯t you.¡± She said.

    ¡°Who are you I asked?¡± Ruthven.

    ¡°Let¡¯s talk about you first.¡±

 Chapter 10: The Forgotten Kingdom (Finalized)

    Inferos: I''m sure you''re all wondering how the power levels scale out in this book aren''t you? Well I figured I would impart some information for you. From now on I''ll be keeping track of everyone''s Power Level so you don''t have to. I''m just going to abbreviate that as PL for short. Aside from giving you updates on how every ones power level pans out I''ll have small discussions with you all at the beginning of every chapter here on. Try to bear with me please. So without further adue I''ll show you how to calculate power level''s (Aside from any additional training any characters do.)

    An average human has a power level between 5-100. 5 would be someone who never works out, and is still growing. 25 is somebody who works, but isn''t rather athletic, 50 would be someone who is considered elite, and 100 would max human peak which isn''t usually attained.

    Stats: Strength/Magic/Endurance/Speed/Constitution

    An Average human Strength is about 12, Magic is 2, Endurance is around 9 , Speed is around 8, and Constitution is about 6. That totals out to be 37. The average citizen who does basic manual labor is about 28. 37 would equal to a new recruit in the Defense Squadron.

    Ruthven''s base attributes without the curse are:

    Strength: 20, Magic 6, Endurance, 17, Speed 15, Constitution 12 Which totals out to 70.

    His curse give him +5 strength, +2 Magic, +4 Endurance, +6 speed, +6 Constitution or 23 PL every time he dies. Additionally every piece of humanity he loses his stats multiply by the number listed on the clock. His stats with the curse at level 1/12 were trippled meaning his average PL was 210. His current power level after dying once and losing another fragment of his humanity is 233*2= 466PL. When Vivian''s Power''s are revealed I''ll list her power level.

    That''s All for this week. Have fun and may chaos bless your life. Don''t forget to tune in this friday for the rest of the chapter. Inferos out.

    Chapter 10: The Forgotten Kingdom

    ¡°Who are you?¡± I asked again with impatience.

    ¡°I can¡¯t answer that question until you tell me about yourself. You clearly aren¡¯t human. So what are you? ¡± The girl behind the tree asked.

    ¡°I don¡¯t see a reason why I should tell you.¡± I said with a hint of discontent.

    ¡°Well what you say depends on whether were going to be traveling partners or bitter enemies.¡± I hear shuffling behind the tree and then I see the large wolf walk out from behind the tree again. It walks behind another tree and disappears. Once again I heard the girl¡¯s voice. ¡°So now that you know my little secret what¡¯s yours?¡± She asked.

    ¡°You¡¯re a wolf?¡± I asked honestly shocked.

    ¡°No, I¡¯m a blood beast. There are a lot differences in the circumstances. I¡¯d be willing to bet you are a blood beast as well.¡± She said nonchalantly.

    ¡°What¡¯s a blood beast?¡± I asked confused.

    ¡°Cursed beings who must consume blood every few days otherwise they lose a fragment of their humanity and turn into monsters temporarily. If they lose all of their humanity they become monsters for permanent. We are immortal. We cannot be killed by normal means and we will always revive at moonlight unless we are killed by our curse¡¯s rules.¡±

    ¡°I have to consume blood as well. I¡¯m not exactly sure how everything works yet, but I do turn into a beast of some kind if I don¡¯t drink blood.¡±

    ¡°Then as I suggested you are a blood beast as well. When did you last drink?¡± She asked me warily.

    ¡°I drank yesterday at night time.¡± I replied quickly.

    ¡°Don¡¯t ever forget to drink.¡± She said in a dire tone. ¡°Alright I¡¯m done.¡± She walked out from behind the tree. Her hair was a crimson, reddish, violet color. She looked to be about twenty years old or so. She wore a dark green leather armour, with metal threaded through the cloth, along with a black furred cloak around her. Her eyes were a dark tinted reddish brown like the color of rust, and her gaze was piercing.

    ¡°I guess we should cut to the introductions then shouldn¡¯t we? My name is Ruthven. I was the Vice Commander in the general army of Carlisle.¡± I explained to her warily.

    ¡°Your a long way from home, how did that happen?¡±

    ¡°Why don¡¯t you tell me about yourself first. I¡¯ve answered a question of yours it¡¯s only fair your return the favor.¡±

    ¡°Very well. My name is Vivian. I was one of the main guards in the Holy Empire, Straton.¡±

    ¡°Your farther from home than I am.¡± I joked.

    ¡°I don¡¯t really want to talk about my past right now, so It¡¯s not fair of me to ask for yours.¡± She said as she looked to the right with a pained expression.

    ¡°Understandable. Well I do want to know your intentions, but I think I¡¯m ok with the idea of traveling with you.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m just kind of a wanderer. I don¡¯t really have a home. I was stopping here to visit family.¡±

    ¡°You have family here?¡±

    ¡°Not alive.¡±This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

    ¡°Ah¡± I said rubbing the back of my neck from guilt.

    ¡°What¡¯s the matter?¡± She asked curiously.

    ¡°I feel bad for asking about the family.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it. It¡¯s not really a bother.¡± Vivian said calmly.

    ¡°Well, since you told me your plans I¡¯ll reveal mine. I was planning on traveling to the Forgotten Kingdom and living there. Now that I¡¯m a monster it seems like the only place I can go anyways.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s still a dangerous area for us even despite out curse. We should be careful. I don¡¯t think it¡¯s wise to stay in there for large periods of time unless you have some ridiculous strength to back it.¡± Vivian said looking very concerned. ¡°Are you sure you want to go into there?¡±

    ¡°Yes. If I¡¯m surrounded by only monsters even if I get killed and become a monster I won¡¯t do any harm. That and if I can get control of the area assuming the monsters there are intelligent I could even build a small army to protect the area.¡±

    ¡°And you are certain this is going to work?¡±

    ¡°Look the plans still in the works, but I¡¯m fairly certain it¡¯s a good idea.¡± I said trying to hide my enthusiasm for exploring the Forgotten Kingdom.

    ¡®Well while I disagree with your idea, I don¡¯t really have anything else to do with my time. I think joining you at least for a while might be pretty fun.¡±

    ¡°Your joining because you think it¡¯s going to be fun?¡±

    ¡°Why not. I mean the worst case scenario is we die. Even if we do die our curse will bring us back on the full moon.¡±

    ¡°Yeah I guess your right.¡± I said with a slight smile.

    I continued walking through the forest and Vivian followed along behind me. She was a rather interesting individual. I wondered what kind of travel partner she¡¯d make for. Considering she was only joining me because it seemed interesting gave me the impression she was pretty relaxed about her lifestyle. Although based off of how she reacted when I brought up the past I¡¯d say she still has trauma of some sorts. It wasn¡¯t really my place to press her for that kind of info so I¡¯d best keep my number of questions mild.

    ¡° So is this going to be a quiet trip? I don¡¯t know about you, but that seems like a bore.¡± Vivian remarked from behind me.

    ¡°If you want to talk so bad start speaking.¡± I said a little coldly.

    ¡°You¡¯re not much of a talker are you?¡± Vivian asked coyly.

    ¡°As I just said if you want to speak so bad start talking.¡± I replied again.

    ¡°Your a bit rough around the edges. I guess I¡¯ll keep quiet for now.¡± She said mumbling under her breath.

    ¡°I could say the same of you.¡±

    After that we didn¡¯t talk for awhile. Instead of talking with her I chose to listen to nature, what I had been doing before she arrived. The song of nature was soothing. It wasn¡¯t a feeling I could explain well and it certainly wasn¡¯t something I was used to. Perhaps the curse had given me a new appreciation of nature. That seemed a bit far fetched, but I wouldn¡¯t doubt if that had happened. Another change I noticed was that recently I started snapping out. It was like an urge to let anger out. Anger wasn¡¯t something that usually bothered me.

    Thinking back though I didn¡¯t honestly know why I had killed Marcus. I simply lost control and I beat him to death. He didn¡¯t deserve that and I knew it. However once you¡¯ve killed someone, you only have one option. You have to accept you did it and move on. Although I felt guilt about Marcus though I wasn¡¯t affected that much by his death. That definitely was the curses doing.

    I continued walking lost in thought for a few more minutes. As i was walking downhill I stepped on a twig which made a loud cracking noise and that jolted me back to reality. I looked around in the trees and then up towards the canopy. The sun shone brightly down on me although I could not feel its warmth.

    I glanced behind me to check and see if Vivian was still following along behind. She was about twelve feet back following me at my pace.

    ¡°Need something?¡± She asked with a grin.

    ¡°No I was simply checking to see if my traveling partner had gotten lost.¡± I joked.

    ¡°So why are we headed out here again? I know you plan to live in the Kingdom and all, but how do you plan to do that? It¡¯s surrounded by monsters who would kill us in a heartbeat.¡±

    ¡°I like to look at it like an adventure not a death trap. Besides I have as many chances to over take this place as I¡¯d like considering my circumstances and all.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re odd, but I can¡¯t really argue that exploring the Forgotten Kingdom seems like fun.¡±

    ¡°If anyone¡¯s the odd one it¡¯s you. I¡¯m going in here to accomplish something and despite the fact you clearly are worried about us dying in here you are the one who wanted to tag along in the first place.¡±

    ¡°Well dying several times takes the thrill out of it. I¡¯m not concerned, but you seem foolhardy for trying to have a go at a mad man¡¯s plan.¡±

    ¡°I do have an objective actually.¡±

    ¡°Do you mind me asking what that is?¡±

    I hadn¡¯t at this point in the story actually mentioned my reason for wanting to go into the Forgotten Kingdom. There were several reasons really. First off I was a monster and so I couldn¡¯t kill people if turned into a monster there. Secondly I had always wanted to find the Forgotten City and explore it. The third however was actually the most important reason. Ruth had told me I would need to get strong and what better place to get strong in than the most dangerous place in the country? Besides I had infinite retries and I could still get blood in there.

    I pulled out the map. I knew the area like the back of my hand because when I got it back I extensively studied it, but I wanted to check how close we were to actually getting to the Forgotten Kingdom.

    ¡°Ruth do you have a way to guide us without me having to pull out the damn map every five seconds?¡±

    ¡°Who are you talking to?¡± Vivian asked.

    ¡°Shut up for a second will you?¡± I said snapping at Vivian.

    ¡°Fine child I¡¯ll guide you. Follow the light.¡± Ruth said to me in a mocking tone.

    ¡°Don¡¯t give me lip.¡± I retorted at Ruth.

    ¡°I¡¯m not giving you lip. What the hell is your problem?¡± Vivian asked me in a callous tone.

    A light ball appeared in front of me and keep a couple paces ahead to guide me.

    ¡°Ruth you rock!¡± I said with enthusiasm.

    ¡°Did you seriously just call me Ruth?¡± Vivian asked me shocked. ¡°Your losing your mind.¡±

    ¡°You wouldn¡¯t understand, but I wasn¡¯t actually talking to you.¡± I said looking at her.

    ¡°Who the hell were you talking to then?¡± She asked

    ¡°He¡¯s supposed to be my spirit guide or something like that.¡± I lied.

    ¡°Oh yeah and I suppose I also am best friends with the tooth fairy too then aren¡¯t I.¡± Vivian said coyly.

    ¡°Alright I¡¯m going to set up camp right here.¡± I said setting down my gear.

    ¡°Why are we stopping?¡± Vivian asked confused.

    ¡°We can keep moving when you stop being such a bitch. Until then I think I¡¯d like to take a little nap.¡±

    ¡°Your a terrible traveling partner.¡± Vivian said looking away. She got up and started walking off.

    ¡°I could say the same thing to you.¡± I replied. I sat down on the ground and started rifling through my bag while I waited for Vivian to get back. As I leaned against the tree I looked up at the sky. It was around midday and the sky was bright as all hell. I¡¯d have to apologize to Vivian when she got back. I didn¡¯t mean to snap at her, but the curse already had partial control. While she was away I started thinking about all the things I could explore when I got to the Forgotten Kingdom.

    Vivian showed back up about ten minutes later. She gave me a death glare.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know why I¡¯m even going along with you, but you better avoid giving me shit the rest of this trip.¡±

    ¡°Sorry I snapped. I lost my anger.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll talk with you when we get there. I¡¯m a little pissed still.¡± Vivian said with a large scowl.

    ¡°I can agree to that.¡±

    I followed the light from Ruth for several hours. After awhile the light finally stopped and by this point it was night fall.

    ¡°You¡¯re here¡± Ruth exclaimed.

    I pulled the map out to check and sure enough we were there. We were in the territory of the Forgotten Kingdom and I was excited.

    ¡°Are we here?¡± Vivian asked standing next to me.

    ¡°Yes.¡± I replied with a wide grin on my face. From here on out this journey was going to get really interesting.

 Chapter 11: The Forgotten Kingdom Part II

    Chapter 11 The Forgotten Kingdom Part II

    Inferos: Hello fans did you miss me? I certainly missed you. I wonder what chaotic things have happened in your alls lives. It must be absolutely dreadful huh? Well enough about you this is my segment to talk. I plan to make the fullest of it.

    Today we will be talking about Blood Beasts and how they function. I¡¯ve got to treat all of the readers like idiots since this hasn¡¯t yet been explained. Blood Beasts are a curse I¡¯ve plagued humanity with since the dawn of time. Every individual Blood Beast is different, but they all must follow the same general rules. Every three days the cursed one must abide by the curses rule and consume blood. Every person who is a Blood Beast will have their blood possessed by a demon of sorts I¡¯ve instilled in them. Each Blood Beast is different, but all share a common goal: World Domination. Each is their own little cinnamon bun that will act as a harbinger of chaos and destruction in my name.

    Blood Beasts individually have their own weaknesses, but they all have one common weakness. They can not be infected with the curse of another or they will die. Essentially if their blood mixes with another cursed one or they take up another curse they will be consumed and then die. As we all know the Blood Beast has to have a host or it¡¯s powerless. Each Blood Beast tries to consume its hosts humanity and tries to take over control.

    Alright folks that¡¯s all I have time for today. Next time we¡¯ll discuss my plans for the world. I hope chaos blesses your life. Just don¡¯t do anything rash like end your life or anything because I want to tell you all about my evil plans and we can¡¯t have you dying on us. Let¡¯s get back to Ruthven¡¯s Story shall we?

    //////

    I rolled the map back up and put it in my satchel. ¡°Let¡¯s set up camp here for tonight. We can set out in the morning. I¡¯ll take first watch.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m hoping tomorrow turns out to be eventful.¡± Vivian said picking at one of her longer nails.

    ¡°What do you mean? Of course it will be eventful.¡±

    ¡°I want to believe that this is the real deal, but many legends are just made up.¡± Vivian said skeptically.

    ¡°This one is real and I can promise you that.¡±

    ¡°If your so certain then I guess I¡¯ll have to put a little trust in it. I¡¯m going to hit the sack¡±

    Vivian pulled a bag out from under her cloak and pulled out a blanket. She put her head on the nearest tree root and covered herself. That reminded me that I had forgotten to bring my own. I hadn¡¯t put much thought into grabbing one from the house considering I was in a bit of a rush. I could be a bit absent minded at times. I wanted to make a campfire, but considering where we were, that would be an incredibly bad idea. Although we were on the boundary of the Forgotten Kingdom so that wouldn¡¯t be quite as bad. It wasn¡¯t really all that cold despite it being late november because of my cloak.

    I pulled out my sword from its sheath and looked at the blade. There was nothing bizarre about it. When I felt it against my hand it was still sharp. For the life of me I could never figure out how it stayed that way. Several times in the past I had thought perhaps it had been blessed, but when I took it to be appraised no magic was ever detected. I for one typically liked sharpening my weapons, but it never made a difference with this one because it was always sharp. The other weird thing I had mentioned previously is that this blade was also abnormally weighted. Normally short swords were sturdy and durable, but light to wield as they were made for quick attacks. This one weighed as much as a broad sword.

    When I had originally bought it as my first sword from the market it was nothing special. In fact back then I think I almost remember it being lighter. My memory is hazy of that time. I remember it was marked down and nobody claimed that it was special. The odd thing is nobody actually had been interested in it before me. Not a single person had asked about it before. In that regard I felt like the weapon was perfect for me and so I bought it. I used it daily from the age of seventeen to twenty without it ever getting dull. Whoever made this weapon was a one of a kind black smith and I hoped to meet them one day. As I finished thinking about it I put my sword back in its sheath and sat against a tree opposite to Vivian.

    Once again my mind drifted back to Mira and the red door. What lies behind the red door? I certainly wouldn¡¯t know for awhile because Ruth said I wasn¡¯t anywhere near strong enough to go past it. Where had Mira even been taken to? It was some unknown land and I couldn¡¯t even reach her in my current condition. That bothered me considerably. How could I be so weak even given this power. How could my opponent who owned only two twelfths of my soul be so significantly powerful compared to me?

    These thoughts bothered me a lot. Perhaps Ruth would be able to answer my questions. It was a one way door with Ruth. I could call him out, but ultimately it was always his choice as to whether or not he would work with me and answer. There was no harm in asking for his help although it did seem like he wanted me to figure everything out on my own.

    ¡°Ruth are you there?¡± I asked quietly trying not to disturb Vivian.

    No answer. I called out to him again.

    ¡°Ruth are you there?¡±

    A few moments later I heard his gruff voice. ¡°What do you want at this hour? Shouldn¡¯t you be sleeping?¡±

    ¡°I have to keep watch. I wanted to talk with you in that room we were in before.¡±

    ¡°Make it quick I¡¯m busy with other things at the moment.¡±

    A few moments later I was in a library that was being lit by a single lantern. It was the ornamental one that resided in my house.

    ¡°What do you need?¡± Ruth asked me while reading a book intently.

    ¡°What lies behind the red door?¡± I asked him.

    ¡°Your not ready to face what''s behind there yet so don¡¯t ask about it.¡± Ruth replied without looking up from his book.

    I walked over towards him and sat down at the table he was sitting at. ¡°What are you reading?¡± I asked looking over at the book. The book had a red binding and its pages were rather thin. The writing on the pages either wasn¡¯t legible or wasn¡¯t a language I could understand.

    ¡°Why do you ask so many questions? These things in here aren¡¯t things you can understand and yet you keep asking questions. You leave me so much work already I hardly have time for your questions. Especially not when they are beyond your comprehension.¡± Ruth said with a sigh. ¡°This book that I¡¯m reading is a list of all the things that I have to keep check of to keep you in your natural attitude. When I fall behind or somethings too difficult to take care of it translates into the real world and you have to start dealing with things you can¡¯t quite explain. From your simple actions the past two days I¡¯ve had work non stop.¡±

    ¡°So everything I do gives you more work that you have to understand and sort out?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s exactly what I just said isn¡¯t it?¡± Ruth said flipping the page. He frowned for a moment and then said ¡°Look you can clearly see I¡¯m busy. I already know your going to ask more questions. It is quite very clearly written on your face. I can¡¯t exactly leave you to your own devices or you¡¯ll self destruct so I¡¯m willing to cut a deal with you. You¡¯re going to want to keep asking me questions, but because of complex your life has become and the fact I have to keep Eribus at bay I¡¯m giving you three questions a day. Sound fair?¡±

    ¡°Ok, I think I can agree to that. Who is Eribus?¡±

    ¡°Eribus is the curse that is currently inhabiting your body. When you took on the curse from Inferos he attached himself to your blood and that¡¯s why you must feed every three days. It''s so you can sustain him.¡±

    Ruth got up and walked over towards the library shelves. He closed the book and put it back on the shelf where it belonged. He then walked to the opposite side of the shelf and grabbed a blue colored book. ¡°This one will answer your next question.¡± He said to me looking at me in the eyes. His eyes were piercing and it felt as though he was staring through my soul.

    ¡°How could you possibly know what I would ask next?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s a silly question. I¡¯m just going to ignore the fact you asked that.¡± He handed the book over to me.

    ¡°At some point tomorrow you¡¯re going to have a minor epiphany and want to ask me more questions. Instead I propose you read this and answer your own questions. As you can see I have more then my fair share of work to sort through.¡± He said pointing to shelves lined with books. He snapped his finger. ¡°Now get out.¡±

    I was back in the real world and I saw the blue book. The front was blank and when I flipped the pages open the language was illegible. Ruth was rather odd. He didn¡¯t much like answering my questions. Although based off the size of the library back there I could very well assume he had as much work as he claimed he did. Since I couldn¡¯t read the book I put it back in my satchel and leaned back against the tree. Nothing really happened while it was my turn to watch and so I figured we would be safe for the rest of the night.

    A few hours later I woke up Vivian with a small shake. She mumbled something and started drifting back to sleep. I shook her harder and she sat right up.

    ¡°My turn?¡± she asked groggily yawning.

    ¡°Yeah.¡± I said rubbing my eyes from exhaustion.

    I went back to where i was sitting and laid against the tree. As I was drifting off I saw a hooded figure looking at me. I couldn¡¯t see its face. I opened my eyes wide again and they were gone.

    ¡°Something the matter?¡± Vivian asked looking at me with concern.If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it.

    ¡°I thought I saw someone. Must be my imagination. I am a bit sleep deprived after all.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll check the area. Get some sleep.¡± She said with a smile.

    I started to drift off again. This time I didn¡¯t see the figure. I passed out against the tree a few moments later. While I was unconscious I had a dream. I was sitting on my bed back home and there was a lantern next to me. Despite how bright the lantern was I could see nothing more than five feet into the darkness. I grabbed the lantern and got up to look around. In the darkness I heard a voice. It was Mira¡¯s and she said ¡°Ruthven I¡¯m over here.¡±

    ¡°Where are you?¡± I asked trying to hide my concern.

    ¡°I¡¯m over her Ruthven.¡± I heard her say from farther in front of me. I started running forward towards where I heard her voice.

    ¡°Ruthven hurry!¡± I heard her yell at me.

    I ran as fast as I could towards the voice. I saw her sitting in the same chair and there was a red carpet rolled out the same way as before. I ran towards her as quick as I could. I got about fifteen feet from her and the carpet yanked out from underneath my feet and pulled her behind the red door. This time however the red door remained. I walked towards it and I heard beating on the other side of the door. I was now in front of the door. I reached for the door knob and turned it.

    When I opened the door all that was behind it was the same abyss I was currently surrounded by. I started to close the door and a chilling wind started flooding out. The door was halfway shut when I heard Mira¡¯s voice behind it. A burst of wind blew the door open and I heard her call out for me again. I started to walk through the doorway and then a gust of wind blew me back on my ass. A figure stood in the doorway. It was the same hooded figure I saw before i passed out.

    It walked closer towards me. As it got in closer proximity the air around me grew colder. The figure walked even closer and I was freezing. I started to shake out of fear. It had an overwhelming presence. ¡°Ruthven.¡± I heard a dry crackling voice say.

    ¡°Who are you?¡± I asked terrified.

    ¡°Ruthven why did you run away from me?¡± The figure asked me.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know what you¡¯re talking about.¡± I said now worried.

    ¡°Ruthven why did you run away from me?¡± The figure asked again.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know what you¡¯re talking about. Who are you?¡± I asked.

    ¡°Ruthven¡­ Ruthven you¡¯re supposed to be mine!¡± The figure said raising its voice.

    ¡°Who are you?!¡± I asked crawling backwards.

    ¡°Ruthven don¡¯t run from me. You¡¯re mine! You belong to me!¡± The figure said yelling in a crackling boom.

    I got up and started turning to run away. The figure was in front of me before I could even turn all the way around. It walked towards me. The figure pulled its hood back slightly. I could make out a facial structure. It got right up in my face. The hood was still covering it enough I couldn¡¯t see it well. The figure removed its hood revealing a skeletal face and it yelled ¡°You cannot escape me Ruthven. Your soul belongs to me!¡±

    I woke up and it was day time. I was shaking bad from the dream and I had cold sweats. Vivian stood over top of me with a worried look. ¡°Are you ok?¡± she asked me.

    ¡°Yeah¡­.. Just a bad dream is all.¡± I said trying to shake it off.

    ¡°Are you sure? You look a little pale.¡± Vivian said with concern.

    ¡°It¡¯s nice of you to be concerned about me, but I¡¯m fine.¡± I said giving her a wide grin. Truth be told that dream frightened me. While it did have dream physics and by that I mean didn¡¯t make any real world sense, it was far too vivid to simply just be a dream. Almost like it would happen at some point in time in the future and I was being given a warning in advance. I needed to get started we were definitely going to have a long day.

    I pulled the map out of my bag. I looked down at it to try and find our current position. The castle was about five miles from our current locale. I then looked around for any other places listed on the map in the Forgotten Kingdom of significance. I couldn¡¯t see any from the map, but it looked as though there were several towns and other cities in the nearby vicinity. Those of course were probably abandoned or if not abandoned were probably infested with monsters. As much as I wanted to set up shop in the castle, I couldn¡¯t help but feel like it would be the most monster-ridden area in the whole kingdom.

    ¡°Ruth sorry for being a pain in the ass, but could you zoom in on the other places around the kingdom? I want to go explore those areas first.¡± I said emphatically.

    ¡°Who is Ruth though seriously?¡± Vivian asked me with a worried expression.

    ¡°I¡¯ll explain in a little bit. Just let me finish this up first.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve made your map zoom in so that it only covers the Forgotten Kingdom.¡± Ruth explained. ¡°Furthermore I made note of all the places you¡¯re most likely to visit and in the order you¡¯d visit them. Now if you don¡¯t mind I have work to be doing.¡± He said sharply.

    ¡°Thanks Ruth.¡± I said looking for the new details.

    On the map there were several cities listed. There were two caves in this region, a small mountain, and a lake. Aside from the the main territorial markers there was actually a rather large cemetery listed as well. I looked around for the number one marker on the map. It was next to one of the medium sized cities.

    ¡°So who is Ruth again?¡± Vivian asked with a puzzled expression.

    ¡°Basically he is my subconscious given form. He resides in a library of sorts in my head. Apparently he handles all of my problems and what not. He sorts through the issues I have and I guess kinda catalogues them.¡±

    ¡°Sounds very complex for an imaginary friend.¡± Vivian snickered.

    ¡°Oh quite. He is rather complex isn¡¯t he.¡± I said sarcastically.

    ¡°Does he handle attitude adjustment too?¡± Vivian joked.

    ¡°I¡¯m sure he¡¯d more than happy to handle you. You¡¯re looking troublesome.¡±

    ¡°What were you asking him to do with the map?¡± Vivian asked curiously wandering towards me.

    ¡°Here¡± I offered the map over for her to see.

    Vivian stared down at the map for several moments before she said anything. ¡°This is a map of Carlisle isn¡¯t it?¡± She asked with a confused expression.

    ¡°Originally it was, but Ruth has adjusted the map for me so I can use it anywhere as a guide.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t see anything special about this map.¡± Vivian noted.

    ¡°Of course there is give me it.¡± I said extending my hand for the map.

    I looked down at the map and pointed at our current location on it. We were a few miles away from the castle¡¯s position. ¡°We are right here at the current moment.¡± I said.

    ¡°You¡¯re pointing at an alleyway.¡± Vivian said bluntly.

    ¡°Are you blind? I am clearly pointing at a forest at the outskirt of the forgotten kingdom.¡± I said raising my voice.

    ¡°You¡¯re certain?¡± Vivian asked me looking a bit worried. ¡°I¡¯m starting to think you¡¯re a bit crazy.¡±

    ¡°Whatever. I¡¯m not going to argue with you about such trivial matters. Just shut up and follow along behind me. I¡¯ll get us there soon enough.¡± I said angrily.

    ¡°You¡¯re being unreasonable. However I¡¯ll follow along behind.¡±

    ¡°I said shut it didn¡¯t I?¡± I said once again lashing out at her.

    Vivian mumbled something under her breath and followed along behind. The map had us positioned about a mile and half from the number one marker on the map. We could get there in twenty minutes easily.

    ¡°I¡¯d like to explore the other cities before we actually get to the castle. I want to know our terrain and I also think it would be easier set up house in a city rather than the castle itself. We should get there in about twenty minutes.¡± I said turning around to watch Vivian mock my words. ¡°I¡¯d heavily advise you stop that. Just because your a woman doesn¡¯t mean I won¡¯t strike you.¡± Vivian mocked me again. I reached over and flicked her in the nose and then turned around to keep walking.

    I kept my eyes fixated on the map to make sure we didn¡¯t make any wrong turns along our path. As we got closer Ruth zoomed the map in further to cover exclusively the city. I studied the map extensively looking for the best entry point. It the back part of the city there was a break in the city wall. It was rather small hole, but it could easily fit a person through. It would be the easiest way to get into the city unnoticed and I figured that it would allow us to quietly slip into the city.

    A thought popped into my head while I was thinking all of this over. How in the actual hell was Ruth able to change the way I experienced things? How could he change a map that to everyone else looks normal into a personal map that not only keeps track of me and my destination, but also changes to match my own interests. Yes it did make sense of sorts that Ruth could talk to me. He was my subconscious, but I couldn¡¯t understand how he affected reality. I didn¡¯t understand how he did it or what he was even capable of. To be entirely honest I¡¯m not even sure who he really was as a person. He may have been my subconscious, but he acted as his own entity and as far as personality went he was much different than I was. So once again the thought came to mind. Who was Ruth?

    ¡°How close are we?¡± I heard Vivian ask from a distance back.

    This snapped me back to reality. I looked down at the map to find our location in comparison to our destination. In the mile marker above it said we had roughly .9 miles left. ¡°About a mile left¡± I said without looking up.

    As I was looking down at the map I remembered what Ruth talked to me about yesterday. He said I would have an epiphany and that the book he gave me would answer it. While it would be helpful to know the answer to my current question which was: Who was Ruth? It only brought up even more questions to ask like: How can he predict the future? What does he do with all of the books? There were so many questions I wanted to ask him and yet I had the feeling knowing would only drag me further down into the abyss of wonder and questions.

    I stopped where I stood and sat down against the nearest tree. I pulled the blue book out from my bag and looked down at the front cover. I paused for a moment. If i opened this book I¡¯m certain my answer would be there, but it made me wonder how much of it I really wanted to know. I contemplated putting the book back, but before I could make up my mind Vivian spoke to me.

    ¡°What¡¯s that?¡± She asked with boundless curiosity.

    ¡°I don¡¯t want to talk about it. You wouldn¡¯t understand and you¡¯re just going to give me more flaque about it so I¡¯m not going to talk about it.¡± I said resting the book in my lap.

    ¡°Seriously what is it?¡± She asked me again trying not to laugh.

    ¡°I literally just told you I¡¯m not going to talk about it because you can¡¯t understand it. This is exactly like the map. If I open this book you probably won¡¯t see any of the text and think I¡¯m a mad man. Its called magic so you can either shut up or fuck off.¡±

    To be honest I didn¡¯t really even understand everything about Ruth or even about myself so I couldn¡¯t fathom the idea she would understand it any better than I would.

    ¡°Ok well I¡¯ll leave you to your magic book¡± She said air quoting magic.

    I decided it would open the book. Who was Ruth was the question I had in my mind at the current moment. I flipped the cover open and looked at the first page. Where the index was supposed to be there was the same symbol that was tattooed on my hand. I looked over it for a second and then turned the page. The top of the page was listed A Quick History in bold text. I started reading the passage.

    The first part was just a biography of the important events in my life. It showed when I met Mira and all the events leading up till now including my encounter with Vivian. As I continued to read I saw mention of Ruth. He was even listed by the name I called him by. However, it did also say he had another name he was called by. That certainly didn¡¯t help me any though. I continued reading towards the bottom of the page and discovered something interesting.

    Ruth was not my subconscious like he claimed he was. It said in the text that Ruth as I called him, was not actually my subconscious, but he was the better part of an entity known as Eribus. Not much was listed about Eribus aside from his age and his name. Eribus was known to be four million years old. It also said one final thing about him as a side note which is that he was forced to reside on our planet Terra for all of his life.

    That meant that at the very least our planet must be no less than four million years old. Modern science said that they figured based off of their own evolution theory that the planet was no more than two hundred thousand years old. That of course could simply not be true after reading this.

    I wanted to read more of this, but I also wanted to share my findings with Vivian. Although she might think me crazy, I certainly could not keep this information to myself. There was so many things I wanted to know and learn. I didn¡¯t know the extent of this book¡¯s knowledge, but Ruth had gifted me with something extraordinary. That made me wonder something about something a little more malevolent. If Ruth wasn¡¯t my subconscious then who was he really and why would he share that information with me?

    Regardless of these thoughts that plagued me I needed to talk with Vivian about this book. I looked up to the sky to check the time of day. It was around dusk. I would have a little bit more time to go over the book and talk with Vivian about it. Almost instinctively she started walking towards me.

    ¡°Vivian I found something interesting in the book.¡± I said with a big grin.

    ¡°Oh? What did your imaginary friend tell you this time?¡± Vivian said slyly chuckling.

    ¡°If you keep that up I¡¯d rather keep it to myself. I do sometimes wonder if you have it in you to stop being such a bitch.¡±

    That clearly struck a nerve with her because i saw her clench her jaw and look off into the shrubbery. She looked down and then said ¡°Ok what did you want me to see?¡±

    ¡°Well I¡¯m not handing the book to you, but I just read a passage I found interesting. Apparently Ruth the person I thought was my subconscious is actually not a part of me, but a part of an entity known as Eribus. Eribus lived for over four million years on this planet which means modern science is completely wrong. They think that we¡¯ve been around for two hundred years, but in this passage it says ¡°Eribus was forced to live on Terra for over four million years as his homestead.¡±

    ¡°So your fascinated by the idea modern science is wrong?¡± Vivian asked a little puzzled.

    ¡°No, I¡¯m fascinated by the fact that this book technically speaking has records dating back four million years. Is that not astounding?¡± I asked with amazement.

    ¡°That is rather interesting. You mentioned your subconscious in that passage could you reread that part for me real quick?¡± Vivian asked deep in thought.

    ¡°Ruth acted as the the better half to Eribus. The two of the them have lived side by side since birth. That¡¯s all it said about those two for the time being.¡± I said as I read it.

    ¡°You claimed that Ruth was your subconscious, but you just found out he is not. It also specifically said they lived side by side. That could very easily be translated as they lived in close proximity. If you know of Ruth¡¯s existence then why do you not know who Eribus is?¡± Vivian asked me.

    I had never really thought about it before. I had no idea who Eribus was. I also had no idea about Ruth¡¯s past. Maybe this book would answer my questions about them. What I read was a lot to take in and for the time being I didn¡¯t really want to pick the book back up. I closed it and slipped it back into my bag.

    ¡°Don¡¯t you want to know more?¡± Vivian asked me with a giddy expression.

    ¡°I want some time to think. Reading that passage only makes me have more questions and I don¡¯t think they will be soon answered.¡±

    ¡°Who gave the book and what does it do?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s just the thing Vivian. Ruth gave me the book and I have no idea what it even does.¡±