“You have our thanks,” a petite human lady said. She had silver hair tied up in a bun, tanned weatherbeaten skin, and wore simple homespun clothes of blue and yellow.
ARMOR MAGIC REMAINING: 31.75%
QUEST: SAVE THE GIFTED ONE
AT LONG LAST, YOU HAVE FOUND THE GIFTED ONE! QUICK, YOU MUST TAKE HER FROM THIS TOWN AND TRAVEL NORTH TO THE GLADE OF THE HEAVENS. IT IS IN THE MOUNTAINS, BUT DO NOT FEAR. IT IS NOT HIGH UP. THAT IS THE ONLY WAY FOR HER TO BE SAFE!
Nameless placed one hand on his helmeted head, and his other hand was held out to steady his balance. The message flared up suddenly and with such force that it took him by surprise. Karl and Elora came to aid him, and he gently shook them off.
“What is your name?” Nameless asked.
The lady with silver-white hair smiled. Her blue-green eyes sparkled with mirth that only she understood.
“Milandra,” she replied.
The town was mostly halfling and human, with an occasional dwarf and Ooraki. Elora, Karl, and Nameless could hear people gasp in fear as Zel animated another corpse.
“Welcome, Ghoul Two! Do not fear. Necromancy has many practical purposes. Imagine if we had several Ghouls? Your town could have been properly defended!” Zel exclaimed.
“You travel with interesting company, sir knight,” mused Milandra.
“Do you know why I am here?” Nameless inquired. The knight ignored the commotion that Zel was stirring.
Milandra shrugged and replied, “I know, but I also sense conflict. Your purpose may be clear, but your goals are not.”
Something in the way Milandra spoke caused Karl and Elora to glance up. Their eyes became wide as they understood who they were talking to. It was Zel who voiced their opinions.
“You have to be kidding. This is the Gifted one? An old lady? A commoner by the looks of it,” Zel stated as they walked over, flanked by Ghoul One and Ghoul Two.
“Zel!” Elora hissed.
Milandra smiled gently.
Karl shook his head while rubbing his temples and asked, “so, what now?”
“I don’t know,” Nameless said and then stumbled to his knees.
ARMOR MAGIC REMAINING: 31.75%
QUEST: SAVE THE GIFTED ONE
AT LONG LAST, YOU HAVE FOUND THE GIFTED ONE! QUICK, YOU MUST TAKE HER FROM THIS TOWN AND TRAVEL NORTH TO THE GLADE OF THE HEAVENS. IT IS IN THE MOUNTAINS, BUT DO NOT FEAR. IT IS NOT HIGH UP. THAT IS THE ONLY WAY FOR HER TO BE SAFE!!!!!
The message flared stronger in his mind, and Nameless cried out in pain. Milandra looked on with a gentle smile and nod of her head.
“Poor soul,” she said quietly.
“How can we help him?” Elora exclaimed as she and Karl knelt beside their friend.
“We can’t. He is one soul that has three identities. The Templar, the Black Knight, and now Nameless,” Milandra stated.
Zel’s pupilless eyes narrowed. “We never introduced ourselves.”
The silver-haired woman smiled. “No, you haven’t.”
The remaining Rolling Hills inhabitants kept a watchful distance from their windows and along the sides of buildings where they could flee or fire slings, if necessary.
“I do not like being out in the open,” Elora said as she glanced around.
“Agreed, we should go inside somewhere,” Karl added.
“Of course, follow me.” The silver-haired lady turned and led them through the streets.
Milandra lived in a simple home on the first floor of a building. It was located on a corner of a nondescript street.
“Plain, everything is plain,” Zel snorted.
“What did you expect?” Milandra asked as she started to boil water for tea over her fireplace.
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“More than this,” answered the necromancer.
At this point, Nameless could not walk without the aid of Elora and Karl. The message flared brighter in his mind, and his friends gently sat him in a chair.
Milandra studied Zel and said, “You are an interesting one indeed.”
“How about we cut to the point? You tell us what you know?” Karl growled.
“Why should I do that?” Milandra asked.
“Because we traveled a long distance to find and rescue you from pirates,” snapped Elora.
“Rescue me? Or to abduct me?” The silver-haired lady replied with her eyes on Nameless.
“What are you talking about?” Karl asked.
Zel snorted, “abduction? It is a wonder why anyone would even bother.”
“Nameless, What is she talking about?” Elora asked.
“The armor is telling me to take her to the Glade of the Heavens,” the knight gasped.
“Glade of the Heavens? Where the Favored received their gift?” Elora asked.
Milandra nodded. “It is believed the barrier is thin between our realm and that of…other beings.”
Karl’s hand grasped the holy symbol around his neck and fidgeted when he noticed Milandra staring at him. The Ooraki tucked the symbol under his shirt.
QUICK, YOU MUST TAKE HER FROM THIS TOWN AND TRAVEL NORTH TO THE GLADE OF THE HEAVENS. I DEMAND THAT OF YOU!!!!
“ENOUGH!!!” Nameless shouted with his fist clenched at his sides.
For a brief moment, blue flames engulfed his body, sending off a wave of intense heat that caused the others, except Milandra, to fall back. The knight rose to his feet.
“The lost soul has decided who they are,” the silver-haired lady said.
“I am Nameless,” the knight snapped while standing firm.
I … DEMAND … YOU …
“Not anymore,” Nameless growled, and the others glanced at each other. Milandra nodded with a thin smile.
ARMOR MAGIC REMAINING: 31.75%
….
Nameless glanced at his hands, looked around the room, and then tilted his great helm. “It is like I am now alone in this armor. A presence that I always felt has left,” he observed.
“Very good,” Milandra said in a voice that was above a whisper.
“Can someone tell us what is going on?” Zel demanded.
Ghoul One and Ghoul Two hissed in agreement.
“He has decided to be Nameless,” Milandra answered.
“When I was Impetitus, I served the Blue Flame. But I failed a quest to get the Golden Chalice. I was betrayed by one in my party and then punished. I don’t fully remember,” Nameless said with his hands at the sides of his head.
Milandra touched the knight’s shoulder, and her eyes flared white. In a deeper voice, she said, “the gods were not who they claim to be. They offered salvation but did not share the price. By making the pact with them, you swore yourself into their service. Your god, Caeriggnas, traded you to the Mad Mage so that they could infuse your soul into the armor. An ancient and powerful relic from a lost time.”
“Why?” Nameless asked in a voice just above a whisper.
“The Mad Mage needed a guardian, and Caeriggnas is patient. Once the Mad Mage expires, the Blue Flame will have a servant to call upon through your armor. Caeriggnas predicted correctly the goblins had used the Chalice to activate the machinery and reduce the Gods' ability to influence this world. Each needed a way to stay connected to their servants, and their hope for salvation was that this world requires a guardian. One arises every one hundred years.”
“The Gifted One,” Elora whispered.
“Yes,” Milandra responded.
“And that is you?” Zel scoffed.
The silver-haired lady nodded.
The necromancer stated, “but you are so old!”
“I am the reincarnated spirit of this world’s guardian. Like Nameless, I vaguely recall my previous lives. Imagine how difficult it was for the knight, and they only had three previous existences. I have lived thousands, and my memories are jumbled and faint,” answered Milandra.
“What do the gods wish to do with you?” Elora asked.
Milandra sat down and took a deep breath as she scratched her head. “There are places where the barrier between realities is thin. The Gods want me to pledge my soul to them, thus allowing them greater presence back into this world.”
“And if you refuse?” Elora asked.
“Then they would sacrifice me, granting them a burst of power that will allow them to undo what the goblins have done. This will bring us back to the way it was before where every one hundred years, a threat will arise that they will need their champions to face off against.”
“Each god has their own servant trying to claim you?” Karl asked.
“Yes, they have since turned on one another. They lost their influence, and the Imperium transferred the power from the Blue Flame to their wizards,” Milandra said and pointed at Karl’s holy symbol tucked under his shirt.
Milandra continued, “the followers of Numaron continued to operate their banks, trade, and swapped their worship of him for economics. The same went for Ahlyaa, the goddess of life. Her followers continue to study medicine and agriculture.”
“That leaves Ararax, god of war, and Viaiter, goddess of roads,” Elora said.
“I believe you all know who their followers are,” Milandra said.
“Prince Zaverick is working for Ararax!” Karl exclaimed.
“And the Pirate Queen works for Viaiter, the patroness of thieves,” Elora added.
Zel snorted and shook their head. “One gets a demon army, the other gets pirates, and all you have is a suit of armor. You worshiped the wrong god.”
Nameless laughed. It was the first time they heard it, which echoed deep from within his great helm.
“You’re not wrong,” Nameless replied.