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Tales of Eleutheros
Chapter 43 - Book 2 (Hell Gates)

Chapter 43 - Book 2 (Hell Gates)

Daniel lifted his face toward warm water running from his luxurious hut’s shower. The hangover that now harassed his senses was far less than his last indulgence of wine, but no less irritating. He shook his head, recalling the unnecessary argument he had with Avria the night prior. The stubborn woman really knew how to push his buttons. But emotions were high, and with the not-so-subtle lubrication of alcohol on one’s senses. He wasn’t surprised at her anger.

Irritation flared within him at her words all the same. She was enduring a lot right now. Going so far as to snap at him the way she did. Why the hell did she come with me then? The thought perturbed him. She had been travelling nearly at a constant rate since the fall of Vul De Rah. He had been as well, but that was beside the point.

Releasing his flow of spiritual energy, the water subsided, and he dressed himself in his riding attire. The trip would be hard from here on out. Dense forests lay between where he was and the Volsung border. Volsung was said to be harsh terrain as well. Bare farmland and plains, where grazing spirit beasts roamed in massive herds.

He checked his reflection before he said goodbye to the last comfortable bed, he would see for at least a few weeks. Noting his complexion and hair were appropriate for his new identity he made his way out.

The door slid open, and Prince Reni was standing there, with his hand raised, about to press the plate to open the door.

“Oh.” He said, his face one of surprise. “Hello, Pol. I was… about to… well, I was wondering if you had a moment to… speak about something.”

“Oh, uh- sure.” He said, a bit taken aback by his sudden appearance. “Well, I guess you caught me. I had a bit too much wine, and well. It’s a long road ahead.” Daniel chuckled awkwardly.

“Ah~ yes, of course.” Reni grinned. “We’ve all been a bit sluggish this morning. Anyway, I have a question for you if you don’t mind. My father had a bit of an ulterior motive in sending us here. As… Tali mentioned last night. I am not quite sure of it, but I needed your opinion on the matter. You see, I was pledged to a certain princess Ambrosia before the war. Then she betrayed the Torre’ and so on. Now that things have settled, he requested that I try my hand with the newly elevated princess Avria.”

Daniel tried to hide his amusement, and nodded in understanding. He liked Reni, at least so far, based off what he knew of him. But this little prince wouldn’t stand a chance against someone like Avria.

“Yeah. You mentioned that.” Daniel chuckled

“I spoke with her again this morning…” Reni seemed to deflate, embarrassment flushing his face. “I—"

“I know it’s tough.” Daniel did his best to reassure him. She probably let him down; and not easily, he thought. “She was pretty harsh last night. Barely said a word to me either.”

“If I had known that... well.” Reni winced. “I just wanted to apologize. It is only proper that I tended to this myself.”

Daniel raised an eyebrow. “What are you apologizing to me for? You didn’t do anything.”

“I am apologizing for not connecting the pieces.” Reni cocked his head. “That you are already betrothed to her.”

Daniel’s eyes widened. “What?”

“I should have seen it last night,” Reni continued. “You both arriving together and traveling on a diplomatic mission. When she informed me this morning, I was mortified that we had overstepped.” He looked at him with the utmost sincerity in his eyes. “Again, I apologize. I would never attempt to—”

“So that’s what she said, huh?” Daniel’s irritation started to boil over, his human way of speaking bleeding through just a bit. She screams at me last night when I dared to bring up the small moment we shared. Then turns around and uses me as a shield to deflect a suiter she doesn’t want? Hell no.

“Don’t worry about it, Reni.” Daniel reassured the prince. “No harm was done. Now if you would please excuse me. I need to get back to Turak and the rest of the party.” With a stiff nod, Daniel strode forward, his mind set on clearing the air.

Reni looked puzzled at that, but bowed his head. “Thank you, Prince Pol’medus. I wish you all the best on your journey.”

Just outside of the main royal camp, the Rexunii elite warriors were nearly finished breaking down their tents and loading their gear into the stone carriage. A bit to the side was Avria, who was loading her Cro’kan with her own gear and supplies.

“Morning.” Daniel said gruffly, doing his best to contain his growing irritation.

Her yellow eyes flashed as they met his, and she responded shortly. “Morning.” Before turning back to continue her task.

Daniel took a calming breath, thinking about how he would approach it. An angry confrontation would no doubt cause more problems than he or anyone here needed. With a flash of determination, he decided that a stoic humor would probably be the best way to ease into it.

“So, when’s the date?” He asked, no hint of humor in his voice.

Avria finished strapping down a satchel full of parchment and maps, then turned to him with a stern eyebrow raised. “What date?”

“Our wedding, date.” Daniel mirrored her expression, one of irritation.

“Our what?” She snapped, “What are you talking about?”

“Oh, I was just informed by our gracious host.” Daniel looked up in mock speculation. “That he was recently, or, very recently, rather. Denied the proposed joining of your two houses. Due to the fact that the great and powerful Princess Avria of house Regios was already betrothed to a member of house Krat.” He looked at her in mock surprise. “And imagine my shock, when I learned that it was ME.” His eyes narrowed, all semblance of humor now gone. “Mind explaining it to me?”

Avria was fuming, but she unexpectedly deflated a bit, and turned back to finish the last of her packing. “Are you finished yet?” She said, her back to him.

“No.” Daniel shot back. “What gives you the right to say that shit to me last night, then turn around and use me as a shield. Pol of house Krat doesn’t even exist, Avria. What the fuck—”

Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

“I had to think of something, you—” She caught herself from calling him something foul. She took a moment to calm down, then glared at him. “Joining with the Baa’Yega would be a fantastic political move for my father. They are second only to the Torre’ in wealth, and are looking to find their way into the new High King’s good graces.”

“And?” Daniel crossed his arms.

“And, what?” She scowled.

“And, why would that be a bad thing? Shouldn’t you be pushing for it?”

“I don’t want to.” She said, simply. “There is far too much for me to do at this current time. Besides…” she paused for a moment, “I don’t like him.”

“Ok.” Daniel scoffed. “Are you sure it isn’t because of something else?”

“What are you talking about now?” She growled.

“You know what I’m talking about.” Daniel pressed, determined to get this nonsense resolved.

“I told you, to forget about it.”

“Stop being defensive about it and just tell me, Avria.” Daniel leaned forward. “You’re always direct, but you keep dancing around this issue.”

“Because I know what happened, Daniel.” She shot back, suddenly self-conscious.

Daniel blinked, “know about what?”

Avria shook her head, cursing under her breath. “Nasha told me what happened between you and Katrina. About how she was coerced by some unseen force into your bed.”

Daniel winced in confusion. “And? What does that have to do with anything. Katrina and I aren’t together.”

“It doesn’t matter, anyway.” Avria huffed, “and this conversation has about run its course.”

“Oh, sure.” Daniel snapped. Then turned and stormed off toward his Cro’kan.

He spent the next ten minutes or so stewing in his irritation while he packed his equipment for the trip. The situation with Katrina was tiresome to say the least. First, she pushes him away, granted, not without good reason. But gossips to someone else about it, also pretty normal, he guessed. His anger at the situation started to wane the more he thought about it. Katrina was in a difficult position. Her mind had been invaded, her actions manipulated for some reason or another. Why would Dio’Mar want Katrina to sleep with me? He thought. The fact that she succeeded was also disturbing.

Then a thought hit him. Robert… She did it because of Robert? The two of them had been mending slightly. Knowledge of something like that would certainly cause some issues between them all. Not like there weren’t plenty of those to begin with.

“Are you well?” Turak’s gruff voice called from behind, tearing Daniel from his introspection.

“Fine.” He said sharply. “I just want to get back on the road. Sitting around drives me crazy.”

“I agree.” Turak leaned into his vision, his scarred face one of amusement. “Though I am curious what’s going on with you and our new Princess.”

Daniel groaned. “The last thing I want to talk about is her right now.” He finished tying down the last of his gear and turned to face him. “I don’t do well with drama. It’s just the way I am. Give me a mission and a weapon. An impossible task, even. I’d take that any day over drama. Especially with women.”

Turak chuckled. “You and I agree on that. I have made it clear to Alektor that I preferred a life without the bonds that come with marriage. But, alas, I too am being forced to partake.”

Daniel gave him a stern look. “You mean with Illya.”

“The very same.”

“I know you hate Lokkon, Turak.” Daniel felt a great deal of unease when it came to this revelation. Though he had dismissed her advances toward him in the beginning. He had a soft spot for the former Lokkadonian Krya. “But she’s innocent, and deserves to be treated well.”

Turak was silent for a moment, his eyes narrowing. “I would not betray the trust of my High King and friend. She has nothing to fear from me.”

~

Avria seethed with frustration at Daniel’s blatant disregard for protocol, decorum, and, most gratingly, her own feelings on the matter. Still so immature and foolish, she thought bitterly. The mission was paramount, yet this childish dynamic between her and Daniel had cost them precious time. She growled internally, her disappointment in herself and these troublesome emotions palpable. She had allowed someone to interfere with her performance. Daniel, the night prior, had claimed he was not her weakness but a strength, yet how could something not be a weakness if it chipped away at your resolve?

She navigated through the ranks of Rexunii warriors, now fully armored and prepared for their departure. Spotting Turak and Daniel conversing, she approached them with purpose, her steps echoing her irritation.

"We should get underway; the warriors are ready," Avria announced, her voice tinged with anger. "The long trek through Baa'Yega's wilderness will do us some good."

"You and Daniel seem to have something against rest and relaxation," Turak observed with a dismissive wave of his hand. "Our warriors needed this downtime."

"It's not the point, Turak," Avria retorted, her sigh heavy with impatience. "The faster we get there, the sooner we can begin our true mission."

“I see your point, Avria.” Turak smiled, looking at Daniel who grumbled something under his breath and mounted his Cro’kan.

“Is this going to be a problem?” He raised an eyebrow at her.

“What?” She and Daniel asked at the same time.

Turak shook his head, mounting his own Cro’kan and giving the signal to move out. “Forget it.”

After some less than enthusiastic goodbyes to the royal siblings. Avria and the rest of their party found themselves back on the road. Their next destination, the territory of Sabree. The home of Princess Ambrosia and her family. The Sabree’s betrayal against Lokkon and Vul De Rah was one of the more surprising events of the attack on the city. Before the war, Sabree and Rexun were bitter rivals; and had been for nearly a century. How Alektor managed to secure their loyalty was a mystery to her. And a testament to how savvy a ruler he truly was.

Several hours into their trek, a commotion stirred from the rear of the column, breaking the steady rhythm of their march. Avria, Daniel, and Turak turned simultaneously, spotting one of their warriors racing forward on his Cro'kan, his urgency palpable.

"My Lord, Spirit-Sent!" the warrior shouted, his mount skidding to a halt. "Urgent word from our spies! The Espi-Dunam sect within Exous has been wiped out."

"What!?" Daniel's face registered shock. "What happened?"

"They hadn't seen any activity from their base in days," the warrior continued, catching his breath. "They investigated further and found the entire convent slaughtered. They've been dead for nearly seven days, if our observations are accurate."

"Seven days..." Avria echoed, disbelief coloring her voice.

"Fuck!" Daniel cursed.

"That is troubling news," Turak said, his gaze shifting to Avria. "We must maintain our course to Sabree; we are expected there. But this changes our mission's scope."

"Yeah, I'll say," Daniel muttered, then his eyes widened in realization. "It's like when Oros and I found their temple here in Baa'Yega. Everyone was dead... You think?" He looked at Avria. "It might be the humans."

"Would these humans have that level of power?" Turak asked, skeptical. "You, Katrina, and Reku have all been trained by Dae elite. But there were over a hundred cultists reported there. Even elite warriors would struggle to kill them all. Some were said to be highly trained warriors of Exous."

"Humans are powerful," Avria countered, her brow furrowed in thought. "Who's to say they don't possess abilities like Daniel, Robert, or Katrina?"

"Send word back to them," Daniel instructed the warrior. "Tell them to investigate further, see if they can ascertain who's behind it. Maybe one of the clans in Exous wiped them out."

"Yes, my Lord," the warrior bowed, turning his Cro'kan around to relay the message.

"Daniel," Avria's voice was laced with warning. "These humans might be very dangerous. We should proceed with caution."

"Caution?" A voice echoed from ahead, chilling the air around them.

Avria, Daniel, and Turak looked forward but saw nothing. The silence that followed was unsettling.

"Did you all hear that?" Turak asked, his eyes scanning the road intently.

Daniel's expression shifted, a sign he had seen something. "What is it, Daniel?" Avria asked.

"We've got company," he said, his gaze narrowing.

"No point in hiding ourselves from you, then," the voice declared, and with a subtle disturbance in the air, four figures materialized before them, shrouded in black cloaks, their faces hidden by deep hoods.

"To arms!" Turak bellowed, and the Rexunii warriors swiftly dismounted, forming a defensive circle around their leaders.

"State your business!" Avria commanded, her voice ringing with authority. "I am Princess Avria of House Regios, with Prince Pol'medus of House Krat, and Lord Turak of House Skotos. We are on a diplomatic mission to Exous. Identify yourselves or be eliminated!"

"They're humans..." Daniel murmured, his eyes locked on the enigmatic group.