So...I would have gotten this out sooner, but after writing a bit, I decided that I didn't like the direction things were taking. I had to do a rewrite, and am currently working on chapter 24, which should be out soon. I'll note I've not been on the 1 chapter per 3 days thing I was hoping I'd make, but it can get harder the further in I go. I also have expanded content because I originally was intent on writing in a novel format, where a story arc needed to wrap up around the 100-120k word count range...but this is an online novel, and I realized I don't really care about running long as long as what I'm writing adds to the plot. This is a bit hard for me since it's my first novel, but here's to the learning process. As always, if you spot problems let me know so I can fix things.
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Mother's description of the previous two weeks was somewhat lacking. The correspondence from the Duke of Flavia's court was to let me know that my territory had been expanded...significantly. Shortly after I tumbled into my magic coma, there had been a coup in one of the major territories to the north, bordering Cathris, and the Elven kingdoms. The coup had apparently turned into a clusterfuck, resulting in not only the death of one Duke Alamon Caprice and his family, but also the five groups of other noble families who had participated in the coup against the Duke. Rumors were that the entire debacle was orchestrated by the nation of Qual, with whom the Empire was currently at war.
Following the attack so called 'strategic assets' had been damaged by enemy forces during a sudden invasion. Imperial troops then responded along the border, to retake ground. They succeeded, however the Duchy's troops were almost eradicated in the coup leaving Caprice severely weakened. As troops were pulled from other fronts, the Imperial court issued orders to Duke Chevas of Flavia for the territories to be redistributed. According to my butler, none of that was surprising, because the Duke was a beloved great nephew of the Emperor.
Along with the orders from the duke's court, I also received a map with the new territorial lines drawn. I had been eating breakfast when I saw the map, and had almost choked. It turned out that the entirety of the Empire was quite a bit larger than I had first imagined. The landmass was about the size of Africa, and shaped a bit like a horseshoe with an ocean below it. The size of my territory had gone from a few hundred square miles, to something the size and shape of California. To complicate matters further, part of my new northern borders were split between the south eastern border of Qual and the southern border of the Elven Kingdoms. This meant, among other things, that I was now responsible for fielding support troops and defenses along the border.
“HOW THE FUCK!” I yelled staring at the map, while everyone around the breakfast table just looked at me.
Mother flinched and cleared her throat. “Language Faith.” she said staring at me. “And I'm sure it had to do with your association with the Marquis Lebonne. You share a border with Cathis now...” she said.
I was a relative unknown, but I also didn't have any real roots to cause complications for other factions. Mother was right. My association with the Marquis would ensure military forces could be fielded easily without further draining imperial coffers, and if they ever needed to reduce the territory they would be censoring a relative unknown, instead of the Marquis.
“Hold on...if my territories were enlarged this much, what about the Marquis?” I asked with a frown, glancing at the rest of the map.
“It appears they've only been slightly enlarged. If I had to make a bet, it would be because he's likely in line to take the Duchy. Your territories are large, but they might be adjusted later as necessary. Don't be too concerned right now Faith. We're not exactly limited in funds.” Mother said to me with a grin. “Realistically manpower is probably going to become a big concern soon.” she said, before continuing her breakfast.
“I know it takes time to train new soldiers, but I imagine with enough funds it'd only be a matter of months.” I said, glancing from the map back at my mother.
“Unfortunately, no. The last few years have been devastating along most of the empire. The war with Qual isn't the only conflict with which the empire is engaged. Towns are picked clean of those capable of fighting. Boys as young as twelve have been pulled from their homes to fight. Girls as young as sixteen, though if towns lack funds to pay for new 'taxes', they might find themselves sold into slavery” Mother said, causing my jaw to drop.
“How is that possible? You can't conscript every man in a nation. Someone has to till the fields, and do other jobs to support infrastructure.” I saw glancing at the other women around the table.
“A few mages can assist in the production of large amounts of food. The issue isn't every person in the nation, just those nearest the areas of conflict. The empire has been making heavy use of conscription. When battles involved even a handful of trained mages, the death tolls can be high. Beyond that, small towns and villages can easily have their fields and properties destroyed in an instant. Men can end up dead or conscripted, and those women not suitable for the use of the military, can easily end up enslaved shortly after. Hadn't you noticed the endless parade of slaves coming into the city?” Mother asked.
“That's insane...” I said, remembering the slave pins, populated largely by women.
“That's war, baby. It could be far far worse.” Mother said, before pulling the map and folding it up. “And that's as much of that topic as I want to discuss for the moment. You should make arrangements for a trip to Montevue.” Mother said before standing up. She walked over to me, and proceeded to pull me into a tight hug. I got the impression she was still on edge from my comma...which was understandable.
“Alright mom. I need to get out for a bit though.” I said, getting up from the table.
When I returned to my room, I felt genuinely horrified. Facts were starting to fit together like a jigsaw puzzle. I knew were in a capital, but I was suddenly realizing why I was seeing comparatively so many high humans as normal humans. The normal humans were probably drafted for the endless procession of wars. “This has to stop.” I muttered to myself, as I glanced at a set of boxes that had been left in my room. They were the outfits I hard ordered weeks ago.
“So then stop it.” A voice said across from me, causing my gaze to shift.
Faith stood in the room with me, wearing a simple white dress. “What's the point of being a goddess, if you can't change the world a little?” she asked with a smile.
“How...” I asked and then paused. “An illusion.” I said, my vision adjusting slightly to perceive them.
“Well, you absorbed a bunch of new spells...I thought I could come out and play.” Faith said grinning.
“...It's your body, Faith.” I said with a frown. “Maybe we could move me into a different shell, or...” I said, feeling slightly comforted that the young girl had managed to dredge herself up from our subconscious.
Faith glared at me, and sighed. “How many times do I have to tell you. We're the same person.” she said.
“...We're two different souls, Faith.” I responded, a bit confused.
“Yes, but we're not independent of each other...” she said and then paused. “Think of...like Chinese mythology. The thing with the hun and the po. Only we have a bunch of souls. Besides, we share the same pool of memories.” she said and then paused.
“What do you mean? I don't have your memories...” I said suddenly concerned.
Faith lightly bit her lower lip and stared at me, he arms wrapped around her chest. “I...guess I hid mine. “she said with a shrug. “I woke up staring into the abyss, and that think in the depths talked about it.” she said.
I sat down and took a deep breath. “What aren't you telling me?” I asked, glancing at the girl who walked over and took a seat on the bed adjacent from me.
“Sorry...The thing in the depths explained a bit. It said that when we died, parts of our soul were torn away. Neither of is a complete entity, it's just that you can't see the wholes if you don't know what you're looking for. “Faith said with a shrug.
“What types of things, and how many souls do we have?” I asked, tapping my fingers on the arm rest.
“About how many souls we have...I don't know. A lot? All I know is that we're different from other people. Different from other gods even. It can be difficult to make out what the thing in the abyss is saying. Between the one of us, I think it's crazy.” Faith said shrugging again. “As for what types of things...” she said, looking me directly in the eyes. “What's your name?” she asked.
I paused for a moment wanting to reply, my mind drawing a blank as it reeled.
“We kind of fill in the blanks I guess, but the information isn't there. You left a lot behind when you came back to this world.” she said, pulling her legs up to her chest. “As for why I hid my memories...I was ashamed I guess.” she said twiddling her thumbs. “You had such a wonderful life. Education, loving family, lots of friends. You got to travel a distant and amazing world, and I...I grew up in a whore house, the daughter of a prostitute.” she said. “I never saw my stats...but do you remember what you saw before you 'changed' them?” she asked.
“Yea..I remember frail health, and a cursed existence.” I said, my memory of those starting stats clear enough. “But you had blessings too: Enchanting voice and a blessing from Aphrodite. You also had Heroic strength and perseverance. You also had some aptitudes, like increased magic recovery and heroic strength.” I said, watching Faith's body language.
The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.
“No...the physical increases came with you. I had better than average intelligence and magic recovery...I was born and raised in a whore house, with a cursed existence and beauty gifted by Aphrodite. My health was frail because that asshole Brax took most of the money everyone earned, and I missed a lot of meals.” she said, pausing a while to let the silence hang. “There are things...I don't want to remember. Things I didn't want you to remember...I don't want people to see me that way, as someone who's...had things happen to her.” she said, looking me in the eyes. “Especially not you.” she said.
“You were raped.” I said, letting my words hang in the air. Faith looked uncomfortable, but didn't say anything. “You didn't tell anyone?” I asked.
“I...I didn't want Brax and the others to find out. Mom kept saying I was too young for that stuff...but if Brax found out I...” she said and paused. “I didn't want mom to see me like that either.” she said.
“Did you want me to find and kill the man who raped you?” I asked, looking at her calmly.
“I already did...it was why we were being attacked the night I died. He got drunk a few nights after that, and passed out in an alley outside. While no one was looking I slit his throat.” Faith said, a vague memory of a knife in my hand filling my mind. “Afterward his friends kept hanging around...maybe he mentioned me or mom...but they were following us.” she said. “I remember thinking it was all my fault...everything was all my fault.” she said.
“No, baby...You did nothing wrong.” Mother's voice startled me, causing my gaze to shift. Faith looked up at the door, the two of us like twin deer caught in the headlights of an oncoming car. Mother rushed to Faith's side, and threw her arms around the illusion, her arms passing through as she fell forward onto the bed.
“Sorry! I...It was just a visual illusion.” Faith said, panicked as stepped to the side. I could feel her pulling mana from me..us, and weaving a spell. As Faith's illusion of herself faded, a physical body generated by a the soul forge spell appeared beside her as a physical replica. I could sense a portion of myself connected to it, and could see a thread of Faith's essence slipping into the body. As the eyes focused, Faith wrapped her arms around mom, clenching her tight. I watched the two hugging, a frown creeping onto my face.
I quietly stood up, intending to let the two have some privacy as I headed toward the door. I didn't make it three feet before mother's arms grabbed me, pulling me into a hug with Faith and her. The footing was precarious, so we ended up falling onto the bed, but mother kept pulling us tight...it felt warm.
The three of us just laid there for several minutes before mother released us. “I'm so sorry Baby. I've made a lot of bad decisions, but I never meant for that kind of life for you.” she said, looking at Faith closely. “Nothing in the world could ever make me love you less. You'll always be my baby.” she said. I felt Faith relax some, though I could see tears in her eyes.
“And you, don't even try to walk out on us.” Mother said to me, kissing my forehead. “You're my baby too...though, calling you both Faith could get confusing.” she said with a frown.
As I watched, Faith's hair shimmered and turned Auburn. “Hope...” my 'other-self' said, burying her head in mother's shoulder again. “You can call me Hope, since it's easier than her changing names.” Hope said calmly.
I sighed, “Right. Tease the man who can't remember his name.” I said, with a roll of my eyes.
'Hope' looked me up and down, “What man?” she asked, blinking. I glared at her, and Mother giggled.
“Alright...Faith, and Hope. But babies...I might not be the best mother in the world, but I will always be there for you. Don't ever hesitate to come to me when something's wrong. I don't know if I can always help, but I will always be there for you, no matter what.” she said, stroking our heads as we sat up. “This could take some explaining to the others.” Mother said with a frown.
Hope just gave us a wide grin, “Why? I can just implant memories of us being twins.” she said sitting up. Mother looked worried, and I just frowned.
“That sounds...complicated. And doesn't that spell require sustaining?” I asked causing Mother to look at me confused.
“No...” Mother said, shaking her head. “We'll just say you were separated at birth. No one would put it past Brax...especially if I said your blessings were checked at birth. The only one of the other girls who were even around when you were born was Aisha. I'll just say when we got enough status and money, that I was able to finally track her down.” Mother said, pulling me and 'Hope' close again.
“One look at her and no one will doubt it.” Mother said before standing up. “Alright, I'm going to go inform everyone...” she said, before diving back in for another hug, and making for the door.
“That spirit body won't register as a normal person.” I said after Mother left.
“I'll just use some of our DNA and use the spirit body as a support structure. It might not be our 'goddess' body, but It should at least get the same resistances Aisha did, and I can put in a few other features with soul forge.” Hope said, plopping down onto the bed. She looked like the weight of the world had left her shoulders, and I could see tears in her eyes still.
Crawling onto the bed beside her I snuggled up. “So what do you want to do now?” I asked, giving her a hug.
“Adventure!” Hope said with a smile.
“...What?” I asked confused.
Hope turned to look me in the eyes, “I finally got to join the adventurer's guild, and I haven't even gotten to do a dungeon delve, or anything.” Hope said, looking at me closely. “Your kung fu master guy won't be back for another couple of weeks, and we have to visit Montevue still...Maybe we can pick up some quests from the area.“she said.
“Is it normal for nobility to go trouncing around on guild missions?” I asked with a frown.
“Sure. Most nobility have guild cards. How else do you think such an organization could exist within the borders of a sovereign nation? The guild isn't specifically part of the Empire, but any branch in Imperial territory owes allegiance to it. It's used to help train public forces normally. At least it was before the wars with Qual and Arcadia started up.” Hope said before sitting up again, and staring at the boxes of clothes.
“Now you mostly only see people in the major cities joining. It can take months to move troops from the inner territories, to the war zones, so it's easier to just conscript people as they moved by...at least it was. Not that the imperial courts seem to give a damn. The non-nobility are like ants to them. “Hope said, a bit bitterly.
“Yea...Their stats start at two or three times higher, and they live for four to five times as long. The 'high' variations of the races are like different species.” I said.
“Hey, lets try on the armor. If it fits well, we can make copies.” Hope said happily.
“Faith..ur, Hope. Don't you want to spend time with your mother...after..” I said, my voice trailing off.
“Three weeks?” Hope asked curiously. “It just seems like a long time because a lot has happened. And two weeks of it was you in a coma.“she said pulling open a metal case at the bottom of the stack. As she opened the case, I could make out golden plates fitted under. The box itself was larger on the inside than the outside, causing a bit of confusion. As I looked over the somewhat familiar magic structure...
Spell Learned: Magic BagEffect: This spell creates an extra-dimensional space contained within the boundaries of some room or container. The area created depends on the power of the caster, and the amount of mana used.Cost: Variable
“If I could only move around in time, I could make a TARDIS.” I remarked with a smirk. There seemed to be five different suits inside. One of them was a set of ornate orichalcum plate. I was a bit startled by the additional armor, but I saw a note attached to the inside.
The natural orichalcum you gave me had some...interesting properties. The material seems to be pulling mana from the environment to replenish itself. It only took me a few ounces to make all of this. I'm not sure what distant unknown depths this was found, but I'm told by a knowledgeable friend that it wasn't just natural orichalcum, but was in fact primal orichalcum. It probably has additional benefits where enchantments are concerned, but I've been told that primal magic materials are the stuff of legends. A deal's a deal, so I won't return the material, but you can consider all future armor needs on the house. I'll let you know if I learn any more about the properties.
-Rawl
“Wonderful!” Hope said grinning, pulling out an armored suit that looked a bit form fitting. There was a thin glimmer of magic woven into a soft leather, that appeared intended to adjust to the user's body.
“I'll go with the plate mail. Two weeks...Alright, after mom introduces Hope, we'll pop down to the adventurer's guild to see if they have any missions in the Montevue area. I think we're set for weapons, and since you seem to be able to cast the spells we've learned, we should be safe.” I said with a sigh.