The next day, Lanek pulled himself out of bed, noticing that the sun was high in the sky. He wanted to be angry at himself for wasting so much of the day, but couldn’t bring himself to feel that way. His body had needed the sleep and his mind and body felt much better than they had in days. He leaned over to pet Sanguineus and Kazuma before heading into his office and finding Caelis waiting for him.
“Uh, how long have you been here?”
Caelis looked up at him, smiling at his visibly improved condition. “A few hours. I came back to ensure that no one bothered you after I helped get everyone settled.”
“Ah, I see. Did you have any trouble getting people settled in?”
“Not really. I tried to get Talwarg and Nerek to take some of the rooms up here, but they declined. Nerek wanted somewhere close to the meditation chambers and library, so he and the rest of the shamans have taken up residence in the quarters that used to belong to the scribes. Well, the shamans did. Nerek found the chief librarian’s quarters and claimed them.”
“I’m guessing it’s a nice room?”
“Oh, yes. It’s pretty much identical to yours, minus the fireplace.”
“So am I alone on this floor?”
“No, Ograch took the room closest to the tower while Liv and Ivan have settled into the rooms on either side of this one.”
“Where did Talwarg end up?”
“Talwarg found a room connected to the rear of the training hall. Apparently, it was connected to that room you assumed was a meeting room for the trainers of the order. The only difference between that room and Nerek’s is that it doesn’t have a private office, just a bedroom and bathroom. Considering Talwarg’s position, I don’t think anyone will argue if he turns that meeting hall into his private space.”
“Interesting choice.”
“Well, he said that he wanted to be near the training area to keep his skills sharp. I think he is also planning on taking on the role of trainer now that he doesn’t have to spend every second trying to find a secure home for his people.”
“Sounds like things are going smoothly.”
“They are, Liv left this morning with all of the remaining hobgoblins to start carrying the materials from the blacksmith’s cellar.”
“Good.” Lanek said as he sat at his desk and pulled out a piece of dried meat for his breakfast. “Since we have a bit of free time, can we talk Caelis?”
Caelis appeared a bit surprised by his request. “Of course we can. Do you have something on your mind?”
“Yeah, I’m just a bit worried about this whole situation.” Lanek proceeded to fill Caelis in on the events of the past few days, including his conversations with Invidros, Wurgoth, and Harad. He described his new titles and revealed the name of his new race, watching as Caelis’ face went from shock to thoughtful.
“That’s… a lot to take in.” she said, finally.
“I know. Frankly, I’m scared. I’m no one special, I was just living my life back home one day at a time. I wasn’t in charge of anything, I wasn’t a leader. Hell, I was barely able to take care of myself. Now, I’ve got literal demigods and higher powers taking an interest in me and entrusting their people to me. Why? Why am I so deserving of their attention? Why do they think I can do anything to help their people?”
“I have some theories, but before I share them, I think Nerek should be part of this conversation. He would have better insights into Wurgoth’s thinking and he’s been communing with him all night.” With that, Caelis disappeared for a few minutes before returning to Lanek’s office.
“He says he will be here shortly. In the meantime, let me start by addressing at least one of the higher powers that you have dealt with, the Void. To the Void, you were special simply because you were ignorant. In this world, you would be hard-pressed to find anyone sane to even consider working with or for the Void. When they discovered your presence, they simply jumped on the chance to play off of your ignorance. By using you and giving you [Soul Shackle], I imagine that they were planning on having you weaken the veil between worlds enough that they could come through. There really wouldn’t be a better time for them to invade if the rest of the world is as ruined as this region is. Also, I wouldn’t be surprised if there are other people out there with similar skills doing the Void’s bidding.”
If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it's taken without the author's consent. Report it.
“Like people from other worlds?”
“Possibly. But they could have found people desperate enough to serve them in exchange for promises of survival.” Before she could continue, a knock sounded at the door.
“Come in.” Lanek called, nodding in welcome to Nerek.
“Hello, Lanek. You appear to be doing much better. Caelis said you had concerns and questions?”
Lanek nodded before repeating what he had shared with Caelis and her theories about the Void. Nerek listened intently before lapsing into a few minutes of silence, gathering his thoughts.
“I don’t think we need to discuss the Void further, Caelis’ reasoning is sound. Let’s move on to a discussion about the other powers. I get the feeling that you consider the Primordials, Wurgoth, and Harad to all be some kind of all powerful being and thus feel the pressure of having some kind of holy mission placed upon your shoulders. While I do wish that the Hordefather was all powerful, he simply is not. Only the greater gods could make that claim, but Wurgoth has told me that they are gone. Not sleeping, not silent, but gone. He does not know why or how, but any chance of having them aid us is gone.”
Caelis gasped at this news. “Gone? Completely?”
“Aye. As a result, only the Primordials and demigods remain to protect this world and I’m sure you know why that’s a problem, Caelis.”
“Yes, the demigods and Primordials don’t have the reach and influence of the greater gods.”
“What do you mean?” Lanek asked.
“She means that the higher powers still in play, aside from the Void, are greatly limited in their ability to influence events. For example, demigods like Wurgoth and Harad only have awareness of those areas in which their people have a presence. Wurgoth has told me that he is only currently aware of what is happening on the eastern half of this continent thanks to the Night Arrows and some other scattered tribes. The same holds true for Harad, his influence only encompasses the small area to the north where Liv’s people reside. If not for Liv’s arrival in Caelis, Harad would not have been able to speak to you or even know of the events in this area.”
“What about the other demigods, then? Are they still around?”
“As far as Wurgoth knows, yes. Although, he suspects that some have fallen. When a demigod loses the last of their followers, they cease to be. This is also a reason that the absence of the greater gods is so baffling, even losing all of their believers wouldn’t do anything to weaken them. Additionally, it would explain why Harad threw his support behind you. The north has always been exceptionally dangerous, but it is even worse now that the kingdoms of the north no longer exist to keep the monsters, dungeons, and raiders in check. As a result, Liv’s people don’t have the numbers to defend themselves or even dream about rebuilding one of the fallen cities.”
“What do you mean as far as Wurgoth knows? Can’t he contact the other demigods?”
“He can, but only where both he and one of the other demigods have influence. Currently, the only demigods that he can speak to are his feral siblings and Harad. Until Liv came here, Harad had been isolated from any demigod that wasn’t one of the gibbering maniacs that the mutated raiders of the Frozen Sea worship. The Hordefather was in contact with several other demigods on the other side of the continent, but he can no longer reach them after the last of his followers, an orc clan, fell to the gaunts.”
“I appreciate the information, but it doesn’t answer my question. Why me? I can kind of understand why Harad picked me, he is desperate, but Wurgoth and the Primordials must have had better options?”
“After communing with the Hordefather, I can tell you that you are not unique, if that helps. Before he lost contact with the other demigods in the west, they were discussing plans to pick a champion to try and unite and rebuild. In the end, they had decided to reach beyond this world and summon people to throw their support behind. They decided on this course of action as they figured that this would be the most likely way to unite them.”
“But why? Why call for outsiders?”
Caelis joined in to answer him. “Think about it, Lanek. In order to communicate with one another, these demigods and their followers must have had overlapping fields of influence and territory. This most likely meant that there had been decades, if not centuries, of conflict and rivalry. This would make it incredibly difficult for them to get along, especially if a leader was chosen from a rival faction. In addition, the demigods couldn’t be sure that a leader from one of the tribes, cities, or whatever would treat the followers of every demigod equally. The best way to ensure fair treatment for every group would be to get an outsider, although even that option might not be foolproof. As for getting the people to follow an outsider, marking the outsider with the support of all of the demigods of that area would go a long way toward silencing any opposition.”
Nerek nodded in agreement. “According to Wurgoth, this plan was not just going to be put into action in that area, but also several others across the world. At least, that is what he was told by one of the demigods whose followers have survived by roaming the oceans and trading with pockets of survivors along the coasts. This has put that demigod in touch with several other groups of demigods that are on the brink of extinction. Upon hearing his plan, these other groups had apparently chosen to move forward with it as well.”
Lanek sat quietly at this information, overwhelmed. I’m not the only one.