The remarkable tower climbers. Shivaun’s evil. The wrong coin’s evil. Not that coin. Killword blues.

He breathed out and wasn’t surprised to see his breath hanging there like a fog. “Shivaun, it is not fair. You know about my misdeeds from the history books. Your transgressions remain a mystery.”

The banshee didn’t turn. Nonetheless, her frozen words appeared on the wall. And they will remain a mystery.

“I would’ve spared Hearthhome. As you might know if you are schooled in the subject, it was not of any strategic importance. And yet, Keyneth Kinkaid, the famed champion, insisted we raze it to the ground. Which he did, against my orders. I went there, as soon as I heard, and we fought, the two of us, the only time we ever did, until, well, until much later in his life he killed me. Back there, back at Hearthhome, I slashed him in the face with my Black Blades spell. He used that dang sword of his to return the favor. Ever after, we had the matching scars. In the end, I would take the blame for the whole affair. I was not evil there, Shivaun. I did my best to stop the evil. And I failed. I did other things, though, of which I am ashamed of.”

Saying all of that felt good. He knew, at some point, he would have to confess his sins against his father, perhaps his greatest crime, but then, being at the top of an evil empire, everything that happened was his responsibility in the end. There had been other war crimes than Hearthhome, but that was the one that had caught the imagination of the people. That was his legacy.

It had started the revolution against him. It had led to the Yaniri Armada sailing into the port, and in the end, it might’ve drove Kenny to kill him. No, Kenny simply wanted the Deux Coin. It was the lust for power. Tale as old as time.

Shivaun turned. The trunk appeared in front of her, wrapped in chains.

We came here. After the Tower. We made it to Stranded Soul level, above the Water Level, high, so very high. We only had three more levels to get the Deux Coin Spire. But as luck would have it, we found a Deux Coin outside the tower, or Tam did, throwing dice. It was in the alley out in the back alley of this very restaurant. There was someone there, who didn’t know he had it. Tam was sensitive to magic, you see. He knew it wasn’t an ordinary coin.

Sal held up a hand. “Wait. You found a Deux Coin in the city itself and not in the tower?”

The ghost nodded and didn’t say more.

Sal, though, couldn’t help but put the pieces together. “You turned on each other. Tam might’ve won it, but you all wanted, didn’t you?”

Sparkling tears tracked down the banshee’s face. Her words were equally sad. They promised it to me. I was the highest-level sorceress. Tam was new to us, and he could cast defensive spells, sure, but he had very few offensive spells. He wanted to keep it. We met here. We had one coin, but we were so high, and we had the Ascended Soul Key. Only three more floor to get to the top.

Sal knew them by name. “Ascended Soul. Cursed Soul. Blessed Soul. And then, the Deux Coin Spire.”

I was just going to cast a simple spell, to take it from Tam, but then, Erryn drew her sword, and Wulfgar roared, and then, we slew each other. I was the last to fall. I thought I had won. I held the coin, victorious. But Silas had stabbed me with his poison needle. I hadn’t felt it. Before I knew it, I was dead, and I was angry, so angry, that I would never rest. I wanted…I wanted what you have, Salvanguish. I wanted a second life, where I didn’t let my own greed and self-importance blind me. It seems, strangely enough, that I have found it.

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

Sal walked up to the chest, and saw that though it was chained shut, the lock was open. He easily undid the chains, and then, he opened the chest. It felt real enough. The chains were cold. The wood had been polished, and it was smooth to the touch.

Opening the lid, he saw there was only thing inside.

It was a Deux Coin, but it wasn’t his. A second coin floating around the city? That seemed to be the case. But what had happened to it?

Then, the coin disappeared. As did the trunk and the chains.

They’d never been there to begin with. This was leftover magic, probably from when Shivaun was alive.

He approached and held out a hand.

She took it, gently, as her eyes filled with tears, and he felt the energy passing again between them. Her wands were icy cold, unnaturally so, and he wasn’t sure if he was giving her any comfort or not. He didn’t let go, and he resisted the urge to wince at how cold her skin was. It was like holding onto ice.

“I know the power of the Deux Coins. I had a coin of my own remember. And Kenny killed me to get mine. Only, the gods had other ideas. It seemed they put my coin at the top of the spire. But what happened to the second coin?”

Shivaun shook her head.

Something had been bothering Sal for a long time. He titled his head. “You could have told Fabrizio about me, about my past sins, and yet, you did not reveal my secret. Why?”

The banshee lowered her chin as her face darkened, until her eyes were lost in shadows and even her nose and chin disappeared into an ink. Then her eyes lit up with a glow. I wanted to give you a chance. Truly, I did not think you would seize the opportunity to change. How many do?

Sal felt the lump in his throat. “We do, Shivaun. You and I.”

When the governor came, when you had to deal with the Braggadorios and the fearsome church lady, I feared you would stray from your righteous path. But you have not. I had my doubts about your sincerity, and some linger still, but most of my fears have been laid to rest.

It took a bit for the icy words to form, but with every letter, Sal felt relief. If this ghostly fiend could believe in him, maybe he could believe in himself. She still had her doubts about him, clearly, but he had his own doubts about his strange fate.

Sal found himself laughing a little. “No, my interactions with my potential enemies have surprised me, I must admit. It is an odd turn of events that the governor is less of a threat than the Pontra, at least so far, and has proven to be generous. Without the deed to this establishment, I would not have been able to open our doors. And verily, the temperaments of the Braggadorios have been so very surprising. So far I have encountered a dancer and a poet. What other mysteries await me with these peculiar gangsters?”

A quizzical look of amusement curled Shivaun’s lips. Perhaps there is a lesson there for us. That even hardened criminals are still human, if that be their particular species.

Sal was about to respond when a second later, he was given a message that was far colder than the frozen words on the wall.

<<<>>>

Warning! Karmic Gauge reduced by 50%. Morgan Stramm used the Killword Scroll on Elivs Saddiq, a father and husband. He wasn’t the best guy, which is how got crossways with Otto. You know how that goes. Even if he was an iffy fellow, his wife is now a widow and his kids are orphans.

Current Karmic Gauge: 49% (You’re Back to Yellow, but it’s a greenish sort of yellow)

<<<>>>

It wasn’t fair. He couldn’t increase his power, and yet, he could lose a fortune in Karma points easily from the actions of others. How could he have known?

But that was just it. He did know that such a scroll was powerful, too powerful, to have fallen into the wrong hands. He should’ve taken it and destroyed it. Intuitively, he’d known that, but he also knew he’d have been tempted to use it. He thought he’d evaded all responsibility. That wasn’t the case.

Shivaun saw the look of horror and disappointment on his face.

What is the matter? Her words popped squeaked on the wall.

Sal swallowed hard. “I have to get that sword back.”

It was only a matter of time before the Butter King’s brigands used it to murder someone, and if they did, and if Sal lost another fifty points, he would find himself dead and back in the Abyssmuck, being tortured for all eternity.