Chapter 58 Show Him To Me.
With the enchanted silver throwing spikes acquired and now equipped with magical swords, Isaac and Lenna left their old weapons with Stan for some much needed maintenance. “What in all hells did ye fight with dis poor blade?” Stan asked in horror at looking at Lenna’s already enchanted sword. She had tried to take as good care of it as she could but some impacts were simply too much for any steel blade to handle no matter how much they were reinforced with magic.
“A millennia old drider.” Lenna replied simply. That was the enemy that had actually managed to damage the blade. It had held up wonderfully against everything else she had thrown it at but clashing blade to blade with Shaeo had proven to be too much for the poor sword.
Stan looked up and searched her face for any sign of deceit or jest and saw none of either. He shook his head and looked back down at the blade with a frown. “I can fix it, mostly.” He replied after a long moment of thought.
Lenna nodded in appreciation and to give him the go ahead to work on it. “Thank you.” She said.
Stan just shook his head again. “Only mostly though. Some o’ its still gonna be serrated but I can get most o’ its dents out.
“What about this one?” Isaac asked with a wince and handed Stan his own sword.
Stan was silent for a long moment with only shock and horror on his face. “Dis your trainin’ sword laddie?” He asked hopefully.
Isaac’s expression was grim as he shook his head. “No.” He replied sadly.
“I’tis now.” Stan replied and handed him back the sword. “There’s no point in tryin’ta fix it. Either I melt ‘er down or she’s a trainin’ sword now.”
Isaac winced. “It served me well.” Isaac told no one in particular. “Just lay it to rest and melt it down.” Isaac said with a heavy heart. That sword had been with him through many life or death situations and had always survived whatever hell he put it through. His new sword was identical in almost every way to the old one. The new one was, however, in perfect condition and magically hardened and sharpened.
Stan nodded and kept the sword. “Five gold ta fix the Lady’s sword. I’ll have ‘er done by tomorrow evening.” He told them. Isaac paid him and the pair left their swords with Stan. One to be fixed and the other to be laid to rest.
The following day the duo continued to clear out jumping-spiders. That evening they retrieved Lenna’s old sword and she switched back to using that one. Isaac kept his old, now enchanted, longsword in his Inventory for emergencies. He still had his old shortsword as backup if he ever truly needed it but mostly he just assumed that if he needed a second sword he would just make one out of shadows and use that instead.
The day after that something… interesting, happened while the pair were walking out of the Celestial Dawn after breakfast. “Spiders again?” Isaac asked Lenna while they walked out onto the street. Lenna’s reply was cut off by something both familiar and strange. A black void opened up in front of Isaac in mid air. It was like a portal made of darkness or a wall mirror looking back at the void. Isaac tilted his head questioningly at it. “What?” He said aloud. Lenna turned her head to ask him a question but was cut off again. This time by something emerging from the window into nothingness.
Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.
A black cloaked figure floated out of the void portal which then vanished without flourish. A lifeless skull could be seen from under the hood and two skeletal hands. One held an old oil lantern that looked to have been hand forged out of crude iron with tarnished bronze fittings. In the other hand a farmer’s mowing scythe that looked just as old as the lantern with an old wooden handle that looked worn from ages of use and the blade looked dull with flecks of rust on it. The figure hovered there in the air a few inches off the ground. No feet could be seen as the being was not confined to walking like mortals or most demigods.
“The Reaper?” Isaac said questioningly. “I didn’t think it was my time yet.” He told the being before him casually with a frown.
The skeletal body seemed to jolt and then became slightly animated and shifted in the air to face its empty eye sockets at Isaac. “It is not.” The Reaper said in a voice that seemed like its pitch was chosen simply because it lay in the middle of the average male vocal spectrum. The words were also spoken with at least four times as much air as necessary. The skeletal jaw didn’t move but it was clear where the voice had come from. “I am here for another reason.” The fact that there were no respiratory organs meant that the excessive use of air was deliberate and also conjured. The Reaper made no motion while speaking like he wasn’t even trying to act like a mortal despite his roll and form.
“Oh?” Isaac asked casually. Lenna looked back and forth between them like the odd woman out.
“Do not use my name.” The Reaper told Isaac. “Your and my names are being used in concert. Make clear their false conjecture.” He spoke in his same monotone voice with far too much air.
Isaac looked at him with some confusion. “Are you also The Boatman?” Isaac asked.
“Yes.” The Reaper replied.
Isaac nodded. “I haven’t used that in a long time. Why come to me now?”
“That has no connection to now.” The Reaper explained. “Mortals are assuming a connection. Your power is similar to mine.”
“Ah.” Isaac replied. It all made sense now. Isaac’s death flames had the unintended effect of reminding people of their own mortality. Something that very much felt like what one would assume the presence of The Reaper would feel like. The fact that The Reaper just appeared from a portal of the darkest of shadows didn’t help either. They really were far too similar. “I’ll correct them as best as I can. I don’t want people thinking I am your cleric-”
“Warlock or avatar.” The Reaper corrected.
“Even worse.” Isaac commented and wrinkled his nose. “But there isn’t much I can do really.” Isaac shrugged. “Unless you want me to scream it from the rooftops or something.”
The Reaper was silent for a long moment. Long enough that Isaac had started to wonder if he was still there. “Would you?” He eventually asked.
Isaac chuckled. “Would I get anything out of it?” He wasn’t about to take a hit like that to his reputation without some kind of recompense.
Somehow, even without eyes nor flesh, The Reaper seemed to give off a feeling of having narrowed his eyes at Isaac in annoyance. “You will not be given a boon for something so minor.” He replied in the same tone that hadn’t changed from the beginning of their conversation.
Isaac shrugged. “It was worth a shot.” Isaac’s face brightened a bit as he realized something. “While you are here, can you answer a question for me?” Isaac asked.
“Perhaps.” The Reaper replied after a short delay. The monotone response seemed to give off an air of caution.
“Does Kahtesh still have a soul or part of one inside of him?” Isaac asked.
Another short silence later The Reaper replied: “Show him to me.” Isaac nodded and summoned Kahtesh. The Reaper’s eyeless gaze shifted to the bone dragon and he moved his lantern closer to the other animated skeleton. “Interesting.” The Reaper spoke.
“Oh?” Isaac asked.
“The old soul is long gone.” The Reaper explained. “A new, shadow of a soul, exists inside.” The Reaper turned back towards Isaac. “It only exists while you power it. It is not real but it does exist.”
Isaac nodded eventually. He wasn’t sure if he completely understood the implications of the revelation he had just received but he could always mull it over later. “Thank you.” Isaac told The Reaper.
“You can thank me by stopping the rumors.” The Reaper replied and then turned around. The black void opened back up and The Reaper drifted through it. A moment later the void closed in on itself and was gone as if it had never been there.
‘Now I know how it feels to have someone stronger than you show up and then vanish without a trace a moment later.’ Isaac grumbled internally to himself with a sigh. “Well, now what?” Isaac said aloud.