Who the fuck was this undead. Was he a lich? Some long lost wizard of Aeor. Am I dreaming? No probably not. What about the others? Were they okay? They seem to still be sleeping. Should I wake them?

“Now take a moment and relax. Everything is okay. Your friends will not be hurt. This is just a conversation for the two of us,” the undead said.

“I don’t think I will remain calm but I would rather let you speak than for you to hurt them,” I said.

“Good. I am happy we can be reasonable and relaxed people. It makes business so much easier when all parties are paying attention,” he said.

“What business will be conducting today then?” I ask.

“The trade of souls. Word is spreading about you Edsom. In the circles where the powerful move the world and shape the future, from behind the divine gate they watch a demigod that has access to the mortal plane. That's you, a young being of great power with his own divine realm that is hidden on this side of the divine gate. You are a nightmare and a dream come true. The desire of many and a target for others,” he said.

I had already suspected what he said to be true. I didn’t know the Soul Dream was on this side of the divine gate though. That was big. It meant it should be safe from any god or otherwise that wanted to fuck with it. The divine gate prevented anyone too powerful from entering the mortal plane. It wasn’t a wall but more like a strainer that let smaller things through and stopped large powers.

“You said you trade in souls. That means you want the souls I have collected. Who do you work for?” I ask.

“I work with beings who hold contracts sacred. Anything we discuss here won’t make it beyond these walls except for those I answer to. I can’t stop you from telling people but you need not be afraid,” he said.

I figured as much. The beings who liked contracts were the Lawful Evil kind. Devils and all who lived in the Nine Hells. He is a warlock or a pactbinder then. He obviously had great magical abilities and connections to infernal powers.

“Alright let's talk then,” I said.

“Excellent. The deals we can make are many. We can also make deals for souls you haven’t collected yet. Your realm is special in that almost everything that you've slain gets brought there. I can even feel the elemental energies you collected the other day. You have so much potential,” he said.

“I like the flattery but what are you offering? I am not accepting anything that would collar me or my abilities. Physical goods and information only,” I said. There was no way in any of the Nine Hells that I would accept any power they would give. I can obtain that myself.

“Shrewd business sense but I understand. You are destined for greatness and will need to stand on your own. I can offer magical items, lessons on the proper application of magic, or information on people and locations where you might find interesting abilities,” he said.

All things I want. There is so much I don’t know about this world. The locations of relics that I can give the Formation or the Nein. I could do a lot with their power and all it would take is me killing a bunch of animals and people. I already collect their souls so why not trade away the ones I don’t need?

“I will consider it. I don’t wish to deal in souls at the moment. There is still much I need to do on my own. Relying on you would be a crutch and impede my growth. We can revisit this discussion at a later date,” I said.

“Of course. There is no rush right now. I am sure you will change your mind eventually. If you need help simply call out my name, Mynarc Furdahl,” he said and his body disappeared into the shadows.

I breathed out. He said he wasn’t going to attack me but I could feel death’s scythe on my neck the entire time. Would he have killed me if I said something he didn’t like? The others were still sleeping. He must have cast a spell that made it so they couldn’t wake up or didn’t hear us. Folin is still dead asleep drooling. Maybe I should end this journey early. Tell them they should go home. That Aeor was too dangerous.

“Ehh ugh. Murnin Edsoom,” Zenix said as she rose from her bed roll.

"Morning Zen," I said. Best not to worry them.

Everyone woke up and we got to work on trying to get out of the cavern. Our ropes were still tied to the platforms above us. I flew out of the cave with more rope and held it for everyone to climb up. Soon we were back in the open cold tundra.

"So where are we going?" I asked.

"Back to Bysaes Tyl. We know you want to help us get something out of this adventure but you will just have to owe us one Edsom. Abaxis still has things he needs to do and we could use the vacation," Devin said.

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I guess that's fair. It would be better if I killed some things myself after all. I could head to Uthodurn after this and hunt the Greater Nightmare. That sounds good. There is also the lava river and the occasional fire elementals that stray from it. More of those would be good.

"Alright let's get me buckled up then," I said and pulled out the flying equipment for my Roc form. With the tents ready, Abaxis cast his telepathic bond. He would keep casting it every now and then since it only lasted an hour. From here to Bysaes Tyl it is 500 miles. I can fly about 30 miles per hour so the trip will be 17 to 20 hours long. It depends on how often we need to stop.

……….

“They have made the first move. We need to contact him.”

“He needs to be chained and locked away. His plane can not be allowed to exist. It creates a weakness in the divine gate.”

“Calm yourself Allhammer. He has the heart to resist their forces.”

“You only support him so that he could be your avatar. So that he can stand against your sister.”

“Hmm.”

“I like him. He has shown me respect and respect for the wilds. He provides all who live in his realm a good afterlife too.” “And should we be allowing that? It is a violation of the natural order of life and death my love.”

“Then we should ask the Matron what she thinks.”

“He is disrupting the threads of fate. As he walks new futures are left behind with every step. I would say he can’t be allowed to continue, but the world faces many more dangerous beings. He is a necessary risk.”

“And there you have it. The Matron has given her approval. We should guide him to Vasselheim.”

………..

Grissen 3rd of Fessuran

“LAND! SWEET BEAUTIFUL LAND!” Lupine screamed as she slammed onto the ground.

“I am never flying again. Portals only.” Carmilla said.

“Oh come on. It wasn’t that bad. We didn’t even get chased by a dragon,” I said. Lupine, Carmilla, and Folin just stared at me. I probably should not jinx it.

“Thank you for the flight home, Edsom. You must be tired. Come spend the night at my home,” Abaxis said.

“Thank you, Abaxis. I will do just that,” I said.

I spent the evening with Abaxis’s extended family. They asked us a lot of questions about Eiselcross and Aeor. I ended up showing off the two new forms and they conducted lots of tests on their abilities. I spent the night and the next day helping them understand the creatures. I was given gold as a reward for this. I asked them not to share these findings with the Cerberus Assembly if they could. There was some history there I could tell. Amra called Ludinuis a traitor—the reason why was unclear.

Both of the hunters had a magical energy that flowed through them. The Absorber’s magic was adaptable. I could feel magic around me and draw it into myself. When I did this I started to feel full. I could now do some kind of magical photosynthesis. The Nullifier was the opposite of the Absorber. Its energy felt hostile to all magic. Like the energy inside of it was antimagic itself. Counterspelling a person’s spell was hard. I had to overpower the energy used to create the spell and force it to stop forming what it was creating. It wasn’t impossible to use the Nullifier’s abilities with other magical abilities but it was difficult. I had to fight hard to keep antimagic from canceling all the other effects I had running on myself.

I got some practice with fire magic as well. That came easy for some reason. Creating fire, shooting it from my hand, enveloping my entire body in it. All the while I seem to be immune to fire. My body seems to naturally be immune to it now. If this is how all the elements are I need to get more. I now really want a storm elemental.

……………

Cothsen 5th of Fessuran

“I hate goodbyes,” Zenix said with tears streaming down her face.

“We will meet again. Next time we can fight a dragon. Maybe a couple of dragons if you feel up for it,” I said.

“Maybe a demon lord,” Zenix said and gave me a big hug.

“You take care Edsom,” Carmilla said.

“Go kill some big powerful shit,” Lupine said.

“Don’t die,” Folin said.

“Be safe. Take only the risks you know about. You might heal but you are not immortal yet,” Devin said.

“Thank you all. I will meet you all again I promise,” I said.

“One last thing. I got this from my grandmother’s study. It’s a book on the application of your sorcerous magic. I believe it will help you learn how to use your powers better,” Abaxis said.

“Does she know I have this?” I asked.

“I will deal with that,” Abaxis said.

“Thank you. See you all some other time,” I said and transformed into the Roc. I flew above the canopy of the Pearlbow Wilderness and into the cold air of northern Wildemount. Uthodurn was another 500 miles away.

The Diarchy was my choice to find a hunter to search for the Nightmare. I had a few other options, like Shadycreek Run. I didn’t want to go there because it was a fucking cesspool. Darktow had the charm of being a community of pirates who lived by a code. The Run was just a place you went to get robbed and stabbed in the back. There was also the problem of slavery that existed. Many of the families kidnapped people from across Wildemount and sold them into slavery. These auctions happened in the Run. I don’t think I would be able to not kill a bunch of slavers if I went there. I had other priorities right now.

There was a smaller settlement that lived on the southeastern side of the Greying Wildlands. Boriftkrah was a town of mostly Orcs and Half-Orcs. They are followers of the Stormlord and seem to be good people. I am sure they might have warriors that would help me, but I like the idea of Uthodurn more. I will be at the Dwarven and Elven city in 20ish hours so I pass the time enjoying the scenery around me.