Riverside Ash's P.O.V.

When I open my eyes I am still beside a river, but it is nothing like the one I remember. This river is far wider and the waters are pitch black. As I look around I see a bleak landscape around me, the ground is grey with white stones and the sky is black as night.

When I move my foot it creates a puff of grey, the ground is covered in ash. When I kick one of the stones over it turns out to be a human skull. I take a step nearer the river and multiple skeletal hands emerge and try to grab me.

As I move back from the river I start to realize where I must be, this is the underworld. I must have died. I reach up to grab Blitz but it isn't there.

"Drog?!"

"Mericel?!"

Neither answers or appears, I seem to be alone here. When I reach up to check on Ruby I find the amulet is gone as well. I can't believe I died right as I finally reached the surface!

???? says "You are alone here, but you are not dead."

I turn towards the voice to find a woman standing there, she does not suit this place at all. She has long black hair, so black that I see blue and purple shimmers in it. Her skin is pure white and perfect, and her eyes are solid black and they glow.

She is creepy and scary and at the same time she is insanely beautiful. I realize I have to look up to meet her eyes, she must be at least ten foot tall. If this is the underworld then I guess this is the goddess Mericel told me about.

"Umm, Krenocia?"

Krenocia says "Correct."

"You said I am not dead, then why am I in the underworld?"

Krenocia says "If you were dead you would be crossing the river, I brought you here so that we could talk."

"So whatever hit me didn't kill me?"

Krenocia says "No, the poisoned crossbow bolt just brought you close enough to death for me to reach you. Your body is healing as we speak."

"Crossbow bolt? That would mean humans."

The author's narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

Krenocia says "Yes, your companions are killing them."

"Okay, good. So what did you want to talk to me about?"

Krenocia says "Demons. As you guessed, the barrier protecting this continent has failed, and the demons are aware of it."

"So a demon invasion is coming?"

Krenocia says "Yes, the only reason it hasn't happened already is the demon lords are bickering over who gets to lead it."

"So what, you want me to fight the demon invasion?"

Krenocia says "Eventually yes, but before that I need you to fix a problem for me."

"Okay, what problem?"

Krenocia says "Before humans came to this continent there were other races here. We never learned their names but we will go with your names of elves and dwarves."

"What happened to them? Did the humans wipe them out?"

Krenocia says "No, they avoided the humans. The dwarves went deeper into the earth and the elves just vanished."

"If they retreated without a fight, what is the problem you want me to fix?"

Krenocia says "The races didn't have gods, they worshiped the elements. They left behind temples to the four elements that are causing the problem."

"So, you want me to find and destroy these temples?"

Krenocia says "Yes. You already know the location of the temple of wind."

"The hidden library is built on top of it, on top of the tallest mountain on the continent right?"

Krenocia says "Correct. Once you destroy that temple, create a soulscape and a messenger will bring you the location of the next."

"Okay, sounds easy enough, but I will kill the king first."

Krenocia says "That won't work. Your plan to sneak into the capitol at night and assassinate him will lead to your death."

"Why do you think it won't work?"

Krenocia says "You can sneak past the humans easily enough, but there is one next to the king who is no longer human."

"Who is it? And what is he if not human?"

Krenocia says "Spymaster Quill, and he has made a pact with a shadow demon. Every shadow in the castle is under his control."

"So, I need to kill this Quill first?"

Krenocia says "Yes, but to kill him you must kill the shadow demon and you are not yet strong enough to do so."

"Not strong enough, that seems to be a theme in this world. Okay, how much stronger do I need to get?"

Krenocia says "The shadow demon is rank seven. If you are weaker than that he will just steal your power."

"So, I have a long way to go. How will this quest help me?"

Krenocia says "My sister and I will reward you for each temple."

"Your sister?"

Krenocia says "My sister, Seronia, Goddess of Law and Order. We are the only survivors of our pantheon."

"The only survivors? What happened?"

Krenocia says "Most died in the demon war, the rest couldn't survive the drain of the temples. My sister and I are greatly weakened but we survived."

"The gods fought against the demons and lost?"

Krenocia frowns and says "Yes, we lost."

"If the gods lost how are we supposed to stop the invasion?"

Krenocia says "We lost against numbers, you will have numbers on your side."

"Are beastmen a match for demons?"

Krenocia says "Lesser demons yes, anything rank three and under a beastman should win if he has decent skills."

"Okay, good to know. So I guess I should head for the wind temple. Is there anything else before I go?"

Krenocia says "Yes, there is one more thing."

"What is it?"

Krenocia says "Once the demon invasion is over, you will die."