Liam and the others walked out of the teleportation building that was located in a town called Vorrath in a territory called Elvar. Liam wasn’t sure what race owned the Elvar territory, but that was really the last thing on his mind. He still had a lot of what had happened earlier that morning on his mind.
From his run in with Jude and Kala to the hooded people that were clearly Necromancers. His new understanding on his heightened senses to the way he could utilize them in a fight thanks to his Battle Zen. And lastly that strange familiar power he had sensed. If he had to be honest that power had his mind working on overdrive. He really wanted to know why it had felt so familiar. However, since he had nowhere to start he decided to put it away for now and work on the other issues.
The parts on the heightened senses and what his Battle Zen had shown him could be discussed with Uncle Naro. He looked both surprised and pleased when he had brought it up and since it was something that was a Beast-kin related thing he was the best choice to help him understand it more. That just left the whole thing with Jude and Kala.
Since leaving the Tutorial Area, he hadn’t had much time to think more about all of what had happened. He hadn’t given much thought about the fight or those involved. He also didn’t get the chance to talk with them since they had split the moment they had the chance to and had left him to deal with Adva, Phorge, and Nalia. So any chance of figuring out anything they knew or if what he had heard they say right before his mind went chaotic was really true went right with them. And the only thing he had gotten from Eri about it was…
He paused at that. He hadn’t really talked to Eri about all of this. She had only talked about herself and what he would gain from being er Champion. She hadn’t really told him anything besides that. She had mentioned her sister in passing here and there, but nothing else. He would need to set some time to have a nice talk with her about getting more information on what’s going on.
He didn’t really know why but it kind of annoyed him that he was clueless about things that seemed important .It was one thing for him to not have proper information due to circumstances, but it was another for Jude to have it while he was in the dark. For example, Jude had acted like he knew he was on the same island as he was. It must have been tied to what he had felt when he was making his way towards what he now knew was Kala.
However, that wasn’t the end of it. Jude had called him his rival and his natural opposite. During that time Liam had played along like he knew what he was talking about just so he could get more information out of the man. There was so much Jude had said that Liam understood that there was more going on than he originally understood.
Eri had mentioned he needed to be careful when using his Discord abilities but really didn’t explain fully why. He had just thought it was in the same boat as Lunar and Shadow Magic. That it was rare and shouldn’t be made public, so people didn’t swarm him. However, after his run in with, Lolita the Hex and Decay magic wielder, and that short talk with Uncle Naro where he brought up Lost Fields, he was starting to think there was more going on than he was given. A lot more.
However, what he was going to focus on was the fact that there were others like him.. like Jude… like Aranis and Inyis. How many more there were though, albeit, was the question now. Also, were they all able to handle their powers or were they having a hard time like Kala and Lolita? Did Jude know the answers?
Liam let out a sigh. He didn’t want to admit it, but he needed to see Jude again and see what he knew. What he could get out of the annoying man though was left to him and how well his mood was. Maybe he would be willing if he gave him a fight like he wanted?
“Are you alright?” Mercer suddenly asked quietly, pulling Liam out of his thoughts.
Liam looked at him just to see the others staring at him with looks of concern written over their faces. He didn’t realize they were staring at him. They were standing off to the side of the building waiting for Uncle Naro to come out. He looked at each of them. He would need to update Artem, Ariyana, and Gimmel with what had happened and then voice his concerns to them all. He would also need to talk to their Matron Goddess to fill in what they didn’t know. Before he could do that they needed to separate from Uncle Naro and find a secure and secluded place to have this talk.
“We’ll talk later,” Liam said, keeping it short as he nodded his head towards Uncle Naro who was walking out of the building and looking for them.
After he noticed them off to the side, the bear of a man walked up to them and announced, “This is the place where we are supposed to meet up with my friend. However, we will not be heading over to where her ship is just yet.”
“Is everything alright?” Ariyana asked, curious as to why.
“Yes and no. She left a message for me here to meet up with her where she is staying at, but it looks like she isn’t ready to leave just yet,” Uncle Naro stated. “She has asked me to meet up with her so she could inform me of what is going on. I figured you guys can go look over the town, get some rest, or do whatever you want while I go take care of that.”
“How long do you think it will take?” Mercer questioned. “Should we meet you somewhere at a specific time?”
“There is an inn close by the sea called the Silver Fin Lodge,” Uncle Naro started. “I say let’s meet there in a couple of hours. If I am not there then just wait till I arrive.”
Everyone nodded their understanding. “Good,” Uncle Naro started back up. “Then go have some fun.”
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Liam and the others spent around twenty minutes trying to figure out a nice place to talk. After coming to a decision that the town wasn’t a good idea, they made their way towards the forest outside of the town.
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Roman used his special Earth Magic to see if he could sense anyone close by every now and then. After they had finally reached a place where he couldn’t feel any vibrations of people or creatures making their way towards them they finally stopped. It was a small clearing amongst the trees and bushes.
They each got settled in by making seats or sitting on the ground. Artem asked Liam if he could use his Mobile Crafter to make an outdoor kitchen so he could make something to drink and some snacks as they talked. It didn’t take Liam long to do that. His version of the outdoor kitchen was smaller and a lot cruder than Uncle Naro’s, but it still had the necessary things Artem needed.
Before they started their discussion Liam asked Eri, Eri, do you see or sense anyone close by?
[No one is around. You are free to talk about the things you want to. – Eri.]
Liam thanked her before letting out a sigh. The others understood he was about to start and got quiet. After they stopped talking and gave him their full attention, Liam started talking. He informed the three that weren’t with them, so they were up to speed before updating everyone on what happened after they had left.
“First off,” Avery started after Liam had finished his retelling. “You’re a fucking idiot for sending us off and sticking around to do that.”
“I needed you guys to make sure Jude’s and Kala’s groups didn’t do anything fishy,” Liam responded. He knew he was stupid for doing that. He really needed to just leave. However, he did get a couple levels in the abilities he had used, so… A sudden thought popped in his mind. He looked at Mercer and asked, “What did happen to Jude’s and Kala’s groups after you left?”
Mercer shrugged. “They ran as fast as they could and lost us not too long after they left.”
Liam shook his head. Artem was the next to chime in. “So during that night on the island we entered the dungeons…that was caused by a Champion as well?”
Liam nodded. “Yeah…Lolita I think her name was. She’s apparently the natural enemy or rival of Kala. Whatever Jude meant by that.”
Gimmel raised a hand drawing in everyone’s attention. As their gazes fell upon him, he slowly lowered his hand feeling both uncomfortable and embarrassed as he said, “I know that I became a follower of Eris recently, but what is all this talk about natural enemies, rivals, and champion of Time stuff? I think I’m missing some vital information.”
“You’re not the only one,” Liam pointedly commented. “I think we need to ask the one who has those answers.” After a few seconds of silence Liam added, “Well?”
[Sigh. I didn’t say anything, not because I didn’t think it wasn’t important, but rather it was not important right now. – Eri.]
What’s that supposed to mean? Liam asked as he raised a brow.
[It means, my dear little curious cat, that I felt that the only thing you needed to know and focus on is spreading my nature and growing in strength. Anything outside of that is, or was, pointless until you do those things. – Eri.]
“Why is that though?” Gimmel suddenly asked.
Liam looked at him surprised a bit before realizing their conversation must be being projected to everyone through Eri.
[Because that is his duty as my Champion…it is also the duty of those blessed as my Apostles as well. My followers can do it as well, but it is not their duty to do so. – Eri.]
Gimmel’s eyes suddenly widened as he looked at everyone but Liam. “You guys are blessed as Apostles?”
Artem, Avery, Ariyana, Blair, Mercer, and Roman suddenly looked uncomfortable as they each nodded. They suddenly flinched as Gimmel expressed, “That is so cool! I have never met anyone who was an Apostle of a Deity before…Well, I never met a Champion before either, but that’s a whole different thing.”
Roman looked confused and asked the question they all were wondering, “Why are you so excited about that? Aren’t there tons of Apostles out there?”
“There are, but they are all high leveled individuals who don’t leave their Deity’s domain unless tasked to. Which is rare by the way. It’s the same for Champions,” Gimmel explained. His face suddenly went from excited to puzzled as he said, “But what was that whole natural enemy thing? My clan may have restricted us from having any blessings, but we’re pretty well informed about how the whole set up is. There was nothing ever mentioned about Champions having natural enemies…enemies sure. Anyone could be considered an enemy if they didn’t like a certain deity. But natural enemies?”
Gimmel looked at Liam for a moment before saying, “What that Jude guy said doesn’t ring a bell with any of the information I was taught about.”
[That is because…Well…let’s just say it’s too soon to reveal why you don’t have any information on that. As for what Jude was talking about…Liam I think you have some inkling. – Eri.]
Liam had rolled his eyes at the first part of the message. After he finished rolling his eyes, he felt the eyes of everyone on him. He froze as he slowly looked at them. He could see some sort of expectancy on their faces which made him confused. He looked back at the rest of Eri’s message and realized why they were staring at him.
His brows furrowed as he tried to think what she had meant. He thought back to when he was talking to Jude, but nothing really stood out. He was about to open his mouth and argue he didn’t know what she meant until he remembered something else. He remembered feeling a strange taunting power leading him. When he arrived to the spot where it was, Jude was standing there.
Taking a chance on the idea he said, Are you talking about that power I felt that led me to Jude?
[Bingo. You can feel a sense or presence of another champion normally when it comes to other champions. Like when you came across Lolita or Kala. However, that taunting power…the one that is mocking, challenging, egging you on to come fight…that is what he was talking about. You only feel that when you come across your opposite, your rival, your…natural enemy. – Eri.]
Liam’s brows furrowed deeply at that. So are you saying Jude is my enemy?
[Yes and no. Not your enemy like the Seven Immoral Vices or monsters would be considered. More along the lines of…someone who will always have a different view from you. Damn it. It’s hard to explain without giving away too many details. – Eri.]
Liam shook his head. He didn’t quite understand why she just couldn’t say everything. Why did she need to do all of this in a roundabout way? He just wanted answers, and he wanted them now. He was about to open his mouth and just say to her to tell him everything but was stopped as Roman swiftly stood back up and shouted, “We’ve got company coming in fast.”
Liam and the others pulled out their weapons and looked in the direction Roman had pointed at and readied themselves. They weren’t sure who was coming right for them, but they would fight them. It didn’t matter if it was a Demon-kin, a Beast-kin, or even some kind of nasty monster. They were ready.
They were ready until they saw two people emerging from the trees, flying through the air, and got a good look at them. one of them was a lanky frail looking man while the other…the other looked like a she was just entering her teenage years.
Their appearance wasn’t what caught them off guard though. It was the tears running down the girls face and the look of desperation on the male’s. They didn’t have the faces of someone who was trying to attack them. No. They had the faces of someone who was being attacked.
Almost as if to prove the point. Five well-armed and equipped people burst through the tree line and into the clearing they were all in. Each had a wild sadistic look on their faces almost like they were enjoying this hunt of theirs. Those looks were brief, however, as they noticed Liam and the others. They then turned into a more excited expression as one of them growled with excitement, “More meat to kill!”