10.

Erak met the corrupted creature’s charge. His shield rose and caught the powerful blow of the pieced together sword. Metal rang and Erak grinned as his body shook from the power in the justicar’s blow. Erak punched it in the face, crushing the nose and blacking an eye. It flew back, slamming into a cage and fell to a knee.

It looked up and its mouth gaped open, fire burning free like a dragon’s breath. Heat and corruption spilled over Erak as he covered his face with the shield. Sweat blistered and steamed as he began to cook in his armor. The barrage ended as fast as it began, the billowing flames disappearing in the space between frantic heartbeats.

Erak lowered his shield and was rewarded with seeing the monster’s mouth burned and blistered, unable to stand the heat of its attack. His spearhead still jutted free from its wide torso, the beginning of the haft just visible. The justicar rose to its feet and charged and Erak met it.

He hit it across the face with the still smoldering shield, flesh burning with an audible sizzle as it was stopped in its tracks. Erak reached down with his free hand, grasping the sliver of shaft available and heaved. The spear pulled free with chunks of rotting flesh hitting the ground, cooking on the hot stone floor.

It punched him, wide fist cracking into his gullet. The pressure made his breath whoosh out of his lungs, but Erak still managed to swing the spear around to point the deadly tip back at the justicar. Erak met its swollen eyes and relieved it of the burden of life. The speartip slashed through its doughy neck, between the ill fitting gorget and breastplate, to rise higher and pierce its feverish skull.

Fire, red tinged black with an awful sulfur smell, came spilling out of its throat. The body shrank in on itself as the disjointed armor began to dwarf it as it collapsed inward. He got the notification of another level gained and smiled as he stared down at his conquered foe.

It had been a decent fight.

“That strip of ground is too hot, I have to go around. I’ll rally the remainder of the men and meet you in the next room, Lord Bloodsworn,” Nevia’s voice held an edge of admiration and fear now. She had crossed blades with the creature and had barely survived. She stared down on it now with disgust and disbelief.

Erak gave her a warrior’s salute, before turning to head into the room the justicar had been locked in. Half a dozen soldiers lay dead. Four turned into pieces and two burnt so badly they looked like charcoal.Then the original three who had disappeared in the heat, leaving nothing left but shadows stained on the black stone floors.

Nevia had lost nearly a quarter of her force in the single encounter. Erak could empathize with her. He had led warriors into battle before and had laid their shrouds upon still corpses. A great weight to bear, but one that an officer and commander had to learn to carry.

He left the dungeon and his followers behind, entering into the bullpen. It had once been a regular office, cubicles, desks, bulletin boards, and all the entrapments of a modern day building. Like the holding cells, it had been transformed into a barracks.

Long and narrow with cots bolted to the walls and trunks stashed beneath them. Three cots on each wall, none of them occupied at the moment. A single Adjudicator lay, neck twisted sideways, in the center of the room. Her baton was still on her belt. Erak could read what had happened easily enough.

This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

The corrupted monster had died too easily. An oathbreaker was a monster most foul. That it had slain its brothers in arms in the course of shattering its vows made it even worse. Erak picked up her still body and laid it on a cot, pulling a blanket over her body. She never had the chance to distinguish herself, to face the hell horde and see if her mettle was greater than theirs.

Erak left her and began to look around the room. He couldn’t abandon the rest of the group, no matter how much they had slowed him down so far. He might need their expertise in the coming trials. Nevia was a proud and brave warrior, distinguishing herself with her cool command and personal valor. Rutledge was terrifying and much too keen, her eyes piercing and seeing into the depths of things. He needed Julius to communicate to the rest of the uneducated.

Housed on the walls, between the hanging cots, were heavy lockers of stained wood. When he tugged them open, Erak was shocked to see the batons that the Adjudicators used, but changed. The thin, lightweight, flexible batons were gone. In their place were cruel and heavy rods of thick, made of the same violet metal as the Infernal Soldier's spear was.

Lawman’s Baton

Common

Erak tried to pick it up and felt his fingers brush across an invisible surface. A sense of rejection was projected at him, as if the weapon was saying he couldn’t bear it. He grabbed it anyway.

This Item is For Specific Title Holders

Lack of Cohesion Detected

Weapon degraded to Inferior

The rod wilted in his hand. The rich luster faded and he felt the weight dissolve as it became the regular baton that the Adjudicators normally carried. Erak tossed it to the ground and was disappointed when it didn’t revert back into the Lawman’s Baton. The half dozen remaining heavy rods were better than nothing and there was another cupboard on the other side of the room. If nothing else, at least the Adjudicators wouldn’t be as unarmed.

Erak continued his bored exploration, looking at more and more of the room until he remembered that he had leveled. Behind him he heard the soldiers and knew he had only a few seconds before they were here and they’d be on their way again.

Erak

Bloodsworn lvl. 7

Strength: 28

Vigor : 20

Durability: 20

Perception: 15

Processing:15

The extra burst of strength and the feeling of being more solid rushed through him. Nowhere as extreme as the first time he had moved those points around and it was a much more enjoyable experience for it.

Nevia entered behind Sergeant Constance, the young woman who had accidentally shot him, with Rutledge only trailing a foot behind Nevia. The old sage’s eyes lit up as she saw the room and she began to poke and prod quickly. The Adjudicators filed in next and most went to see the cupboards filled with weapons only they could use. There was a brief scuffle as they fought over the sticks, before someone pointed out there was a second cupboard. Only Julius checked the shroud covered body, lifting the edge of the blanket briefly before offering a soft prayer and walking over to Erak.

“Lord Bloodsworn, were there no other foes here?” Erak looked at him and shook his head, not bothering to sign.

“Professor Rutledge is scaring me. She’s always been inquisitive and pushed the boundaries. She has two reprimands in her file for her methods, but this goes beyond the pale. She had me cut open that ghoul and look for if the organs matched that of a man.” Julius kept a sharp eye on the subject of his rant. Erak stood there waiting for him to finish venting.

“I fear for what she plans. She wishes to see the effects of levels on herself. She will ask for you to let her kill something, I’m sure of it. Or me. She has run out of Teacher Assistants after all. I almost had tenure and then this happens.”

Erak signed to him and waited for Julius to collect himself. The smaller man read his words and nodded his head.

“Lord Bloodsworn says a five minute water rest and regrouping. Then we push onward!