Road, The Serpent Isles - 11th day of the Sardonyx Moon, Year 24 AH
It was a clear day. The blue sky hung cloudless above them, allowing the sun to beam down on the forest path. Though it had grown quite chilly over the night, morning had brought with it a new wave of warmth.
Regis reached into his bag to remove some of the berries he’d gathered that first night. His stomach hadn’t begun rumbling yet, but he was learning to recognize the early signs of hunger. Beside him, Hal stared. The demon raised an eyebrow.
“Is something wrong?”
“It’s just weird seeing you of all people eating.” Hal squinted down at the berries. “What are those anyway?”
“Some sort of wild berry. I found them in the forest.” Regis picked up another one and handed it over for Hal to try. The angel promptly popped it in his mouth, but after a few seconds of chewing, his face twisted. He spit the berry out and shuddered with an exaggerated dramaticness that was not unlike that of a child’s, Regis noted with amusement.
“Ark, that tastes like shit.”
“Really? I thought the flavor was rather interesting.” He supposed that might explain why the berries were so abundant.
“Yeah, ‘cause you’ve got nothing to compare it to.” Hal coughed a few times to clear his throat of the substance. “Whenever we reach that village, you’ve got to try actual food. Some of these humans really know how to cook.”
“Perhaps.” Regis ate a few more until he felt satisfied, then closed his bag again. In this case, he doubted Canedge would have much in the way of taverns or restaurants, if the woman’s assessment of its current state had been accurate.
“When’re we gonna get there anyway?” Hal asked. Regis hummed.
“Quite soon, I believe.”
Hal huffed and fluttered his wings, newly wrapped now that they were traveling again. “Man, walking’s slow as fuck.” He turned to the demon, eyes suddenly brightening. “Hey, you know what we should do? The festival’s in two days, right? We should celebrate or something.”
Regis chuckled. “Celebrate our deaths? That’s a peculiar prospect. Perhaps we should wait and see what the situation in Canedge is first.”
The angel shrugged, but didn’t argue.
The two continued down the road, soon exiting the forest to step onto the main path. Here, there was no canopy to obscure them from the bright sunlight. Regis’s eyes roamed the surroundings, but he found no other signs of life nearby. In the past, the forests of the Serpent Isles had been home to a fairly large population of centaurs as well as some elf settlements, but they had yet to encounter any. Either the makeup of the area had changed in the last twenty years, or the two species had grown even more reclusive. He was rather curious to see if the System had reached those two populations yet.
“Hey, is that the town you were talking about?” Hal suddenly said. Regis turned in the direction the angel was gesturing.
Up ahead, he could make out the faint outline of a town in the distance. It was, however, a far cry from his previous encounter with Canedge. The streets had been bustling then, the buildings tall and sturdy. From their current position, he could see collapsed roofs and piles of rubbles, and there were no villagers in sight. In five days, the town had become unrecognizable.
Hal whistled. “Damn, something definitely went down.” He glanced over at Regis, an eyebrow raised. “Your ‘experiment’ do this? Pretty impressive.”
The demon opened his mouth to respond, but before the words could escape, a rustle sounded from his right. His eyes flitted to the source of the noise just as a human burst through the bushes with an axe pointed in his direction.
Regis leapt back to dodge the swing, unsheathing his sword at the same time. The man’s movements, he noted, were slow and clumsy, and his axe did not appear designed for fighting. The human struggled to yank his axe out from where its blade had landed in the earth, and Regis used the opportunity to step forward and cut him down.
[You have gained experience!]
The demon turned to assess their surroundings, spotting Hal a few feet away dealing with a group of three. The angel seemed to be enjoying himself, taunting his attackers as they tried and failed to hit him.
Footsteps pounded to his right. Regis spun around and raised his blade, blocking an incoming attack. The clashing metal blades rang clearly on the open road.
In front of him, a large, burly man snarled at him as he tried to force the demon’s blade back, but it held firm. His muscles visibly strained, but still the sword did not move. Growing frustration mounted on his face while Regis studied him calmly.
“Are you from Canedge?” he asked. The human gritted his teeth and jumped back, cursing. His chest was heaving, breaths heavy with exertion, Regis noted. This was a useful reference point to determine his current relative strength in relation to his stats.
“It’s a straightforward question,” the demon repeated. “I’d simply like to know where your group is from.”
“Shut up!” The man lunged and thrusted his sword at Regis. He side-stepped the blow and grabbed the human’s wrist, twisting it until he screamed and dropped his weapon. It landed on the ground with a thump.
Behind him, Regis could hear a few yells and squelches as Hal dealt with the rest of the group. A quick sweep of the bushes and trees revealed no one else, so he turned back to the man. He’d fallen to the ground and was staring up at the demon with wide eyes as he attempted to back away. Regis advanced with slow, measured steps.
“Once again, who are you? It really is a rather simple question.” His voice was calm and steady, a stark contrast to the man’s frantic response.
“We’re villagers—we weren’t gonna hurt you, I swear! We were just looking for some money’s all!”
Regis hummed as he absorbed the information. “I see. Your group acted alone, then?”
The man nodded rapidly. His back hit the line of bushes, and beads of sweat formed along his forehead. He seemed to be telling the truth, Regis assessed. Though this man was clearly quite strong, he hadn’t moved as one trained in combat would, and his clothes were worn and tattered. Villagers turned into bandits from the present circumstances. Regis nodded.
“Alright, I believe you. Thank you for answering me.”
A mixture of confusion and hope crossed the man’s features, but before he had a chance to speak, Regis swung his sword in one smooth motion and beheaded him. The man’s head went flying, landing down on the ground a little ways away. The demon brushed his blade against the grasses to clean the blood off, then sheathed it again.
[You have gained experience!]
“‘Weren’t gonna hurt you,’” Hal mimicked mockingly as he strode forward. He snorted, wiping a splatter of blood away from his face. “Yeah right. That’s why you ran at us with weapons.”
Regis scanned the area, noting the dead bodies of the remaining three bandits that Hal had fought. The road was quiet again, only the sound of the wind reaching his ears. Up ahead, the town still looked the same as before.
“It seems the situation in Canedge is more dire than I thought, if its villagers are resorting to banditry.” He tossed a spare cloth at Hal, who caught it and began wiping down his axe and any blood that had gotten onto him. Perhaps Regis should suggest the angel fight a bit more “cleanly,” for the sake of discretion, but that seemed neither worthwhile nor the most productive thing to mention.
Once Hal had gotten rid of the bloodstains, they continued forward towards the town. Regis kept his eyes open for any more attacks, but the remainder of the journey was quiet.
The two soon reached the town itself. Its present state had already been evident from far away, but the devastation was made all the more clear up close.
Regis’s gaze swept past the deserted streets littered with trash and debris and stray belongings. Broken chairs and tables. Tattered clothes fallen from their clotheslines. Shattered mirrors. Many store windows had been broken, their shelves looted and ravaged, and he could see cuts and other markings along the building walls. The further into Canedge they went, the worse the destruction was.
Regis paused and crouched down, placing a hand along the cracked road. He rubbed at a dark stain, and when he raised his hand, the substance flaked away. It smelled distinctly of iron.
“It seems there was fighting here,” he said as he rose, patting the dried blood off his fingers.
“I’ll say.” Hal squinted at a nearby collapsed building. “Don’t see any bodies though.”
“No,” Regis agreed, “which means there should still be townspeople here. They’re likely taking shelter in other parts of Canedge.” He glanced around, overlaying his own memory of the town atop the destruction. He turned in the direction of the square. “For now, I’d like to see if we can gather any more information.”
“Why’re you so interested in this place anyway?” Hal asked.
“It’s not Canedge in particular that I’m interested in,” Regis explained as he led them deeper into the streets. “Rather, I believe it may be an early example of what other towns will experience once the System has fully integrated. I suspect we’ll witness quite a few areas collapse.” Such a fundamental change in the world would inevitably bring chaos. Canedge would be the first of many.
Something clattered in the distance. Regis’s steps slowed.
Up ahead, one of the more intact stores stood with its door torn down. Through the broken windows, he could make out dim shadows and toppled shelves as well as a hint of movement between the destruction. He met eyes with Hal in silent communication, then stepped closer.
The interior of the store was even more of a mess than it had seemed from a distance. A number of jars and boxes had been overturned or opened, and the floor was littered with rotted fruit and broken glass. Regis carefully treaded around the mess towards the back of the store, where a villager was crouched down by one of the few standing shelves and rummaging between the items.
“Excuse me?”
The man jumped and spun around, eyes wild. He looked fairly young, Regis thought. His arms visibly shook as he took in the demon and angel. He swallowed, and Regis noted a small knife at his side that a trembling hand reached towards. Clumsy, unsure. Not a threat.
Before his fingers could reach the handle, the demon stepped forward and lightly tapped his arm. The man’s entire body froze, and Regis put on a placating smile.
“I apologize for surprising you. We don’t mean you any harm.” He gestured with his free hand to Hal, but he kept his other in place. “My friend and I are travelers. What happened here? I passed by here less than a week ago.”
The man’s eyes darted between them. “You’re not with Hendrick or Ryker?”
“We’re not. I’ve never heard of those names,” Regis reassured. The human still looked uneasy, but his hand no longer moved towards the knife. He eyed them carefully.
“…You’re really just passing through?”
“Yep,” Hal said, pronouncing the ‘p’ with a pop. He had on a cheery grin. The angel wasn’t able to appear as harmless as Regis could in his vessel on account of his height and build, but his laid back demeanor seemed to work well enough. The human released a breath, some of the tension finally leaving his shoulders.
“Yeah. Yeah, okay, I guess that makes sense. I mean, if you wanted to kill me you could’ve already,” he muttered, though Regis suspected he was mostly talking to himself. He shook his head and faced the two again. “Um, sorry about that. I’m Peter. You said you two’re travelers?”
“Cyrus and Declan,” Regis introduced. He felt Hal eye him at the name choice, but he continued smoothly. “You’re correct. We couldn’t help but notice the destruction here. If you don’t mind me asking, what happened?”
Peter shook his head. “There was—there was this huge riot in the square. Someone got stabbed and it just kept getting worse.” He shuddered. “Once the mayor got killed, it was chaos. Everyone’s System started appearing at once, Hendrick tried to grab power, but Ryker went against him, and—” his voice caught, and he released a shaky breath. “It was a mess.”
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Regis listened closely, particularly intrigued by the description of the System’s appearance. It had, thus far, appeared largely random, but this could be an indication that certain events could trigger a faster integration. Perhaps conflict sped up the System’s spread? If that was the case, then his original prediction would need to be adjusted.
“I see. That’s terrible,” Regis said sympathetically. “I can only imagine how confusing that must have been.”
“You two shouldn’t have come here,” Peter said, shaking his head. “It’s not safe.”
Regis glanced back at Hal, who looked like he was pushing down his amusement at the comment but otherwise controlling his reactions. He turned back to the human.
“Is there anywhere we can stay nearby?” He furrowed his brows as though in concern. “We saw some bandits around the edge of town. I worry we won’t be able to leave peacefully.”
Peter bit his lip. “I mean…” his voice trailed, eyes flitting around the messy store. “I could take you to the hideout? A lot of us who don’t like Hendrick or Ryker’re there,” he explained. Regis had suspected that something of that nature existed. Peter did not seem strong enough to survive on his own out in the open, and he’d clearly been scavenging for food to take elsewhere. A hideout was the most reasonable assumption.
“We would greatly appreciate that,” Regis said. The human seemed to believe the sentiment, as his shoulders finally fell.
“Okay, um, just give me a second and we can head out.” Peter turned to the shelves again to rummage through the remaining jars.
The sounds of clinking glass and scraping wood soon filled the rundown store. As the human searched for anything salvageable, Regis felt Hal’s eyes on him. The angel raised an eyebrow and nodded in the direction of Peter in a clear question. Regis shook his head and pressed a finger to his lips. He would explain later. For now, it would be ideal if the angel simply played along. Hal seemed to understand the message, because he shrugged and stood back in a more relaxed pose.
“Okay, that should be it!” Peter had pulled out a worn sack that now had a few lumps inside, though the contents appeared rather meager. “We should go now, before someone finds us.”
Regis nodded and gestured for the human to lead the way.
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The ‘hideout’ turned out to be Canedge’s general store. It was a rather smart location, in Regis’s opinion, given the large size of the building and its pre-existing supplies. The shelves appeared fully intact, a far cry from the building they’d just come from, and a few additional blankets had been piled onto the tables.
Two humans stood inside on either side of the door—the designated guards, Regis presumed—who ushered them inside. Peter led them down into the basement, which was deceptively large. It appeared to be a storage space with an additional hallway branching into several more rooms. Here in the main area, the crates and barrels had been pushed to the side to create more floor space. Blankets and sheets had been laid out as beds, and a number of villagers huddled around the room looked up as they entered.
Regis immediately recognized the half-elf sitting near the back of the area from the bookstore. The boy seemed to recognize him as well, given the way his shoulders tensed when he saw the demon. Hazel eyes swept over him with distinct unease. Regis raised an eyebrow. Curious. He’d thought that they’d parted on relatively friendly terms. He would need to keep an eye on the boy.
“Lora!” Peter called. He hurried past the wary villagers, apparently oblivious to the tension hanging in the room. “I found some of that medicine you wanted. There wasn’t much of it though,” he added in a more somber tone.
A tall woman with dark brown hair pulled into a braid turned from where she’d been conversing with one of the villagers on the floor. Dark blue eyes moved between Regis and Hal, lingering particularly long on their sheathed weapons. By Regis’s estimates, she was probably a bit older than Cyrus was.
“Thanks, Peter.” She didn’t look away from the two strangers. “Who’re they?”
“They’re travelers,” the younger human explained. “They didn’t have a place to stay, so I said they could rest here for now.”
The woman—Lora, Regis guessed—frowned. She was clearly a fair bit more cautious than Peter was, but smart enough not to voice her distrust openly.
“Yeah? Where’re you two from?”
“Cannia,” Regis lied. Seeing as the half-elf boy was here, he used the same false background for consistency. “I’m a scholar specializing in the war. I originally came to the Serpent Isles for research.” He stretched out a hand. “My name is Cyrus. This is Declan, a friend of mine.”
Lora stared at his hand suspiciously, but after a moment’s pause, she carefully shook it.
“Lora,” she introduced. “I…I help watch over the people here.”
Humble, Regis thought. Based on their body language and the way Peter had gone to her, the others in the room clearly viewed her as a leader. In his peripheral vision, he could already see a few of the villagers relax a little now that Lora was speaking to the two strangers in the room.
“It’s nice to meet you,” Regis said, “though I wish it were under better circumstances.” He furrowed his brows. “Peter explained a bit of what was happening, though I’m afraid I’m not aware of the full details. It seems you’re in a rather difficult position.”
Lora pursed her lips. “You could say that,” she muttered. She lowered her hand and shook her head. “It all happened so fast. I can still hardly believe it.”
“The riot, right?” Hal said. He cocked his head. “I hear there’s some Hendrick guy running around trying to call the shots now.”
A bit of bitterness entered the woman’s voice. “You’d be right about that. He was the old guard captain.” She snorted. “At least, that was his official title. I don’t think he ever protected us from anything. He spent most of his time going after the poorer parts of town.” She shook her head. “He stepped up after the mayor died, but no one liked him back then and no one likes him now. Most of us’d rather die than let him be in charge.”
Her words were met with a few murmured assents around the room. The death of an unpopular leader followed by a power vacuum with multiple parties vying for control. It was a situation that Regis had seen many times throughout the centuries. This seemed to be a much smaller scale example of it, though its violence had been amplified by the System’s appearance.
“What about Ryker?” Regis asked, remembering the second name that Peter had mentioned.
Lora froze. The demon raised an eyebrow internally. Before he had a chance to question her further, however, the sound of pounding footsteps echoed throughout the basement.
“Lora!” one of the guards from above the store yelled. He was panting, clearly having sprinted downstairs. “Ryker’s here!”
The room erupted into chatter, several people inching further away. Lora cursed and promptly bolted up the stairs, the guard and a few other villagers following behind her. Regis exchanged looks with Hal. Around them, the remaining villagers were tense. After some consideration, Regis made his way up the stairs himself with Hal behind him.
By the time they reached the ground floor of the store, it appeared quite different from when they’d entered. Several bottles and jars had been thrown to the ground, and one of the tables was entirely toppled.
As the guard had said, there were new unfamiliar faces freely rummaging around the shelves that he assumed were Ryker’s group. The demon eyed the fallen food with a frown. There was no rhyme nor reason to the destruction that he could see. It seemed rather illogical to him, similar to a tantrum.
“Ryker,” Lora hissed. She stood in the center of the room, one hand wrapped around the handle of the sword strapped to her belt. She hadn’t, however, unsheathed the weapon yet. “I told you to leave us alone!”
The human she was talking to appeared around the same age as her, perhaps a few years younger. He had messy dark hair and a somewhat frail appearance that was contrasted by the spear he carried at his side.
“You’re being stupid,” Ryker countered. They seemed familiar with each other judging from their body language, Regis noted. “If we team up, we could take Hendrick down! Take the town back!”
“And who’s in charge after that? You? You lost that right the second you killed Arnold.”
“He was in my way,” Ryker argued. He took a step closer, but Lora didn’t move back, stubbornly maintaining her ground. “Look, I’m the highest level in Canedge other than Hendrick. No one’s got a better chance than me.”
Lora shook her head. “And how’d you get those levels? Don’t lie. I saw you kill Arnold for ‘experience.’ You’re worse than Hendrick!”
“You wouldn’t understand. You’re weak,” the man practically spit out. “I’m the only one strong enough to take him down.” He slammed the butt of his spear down into the floor. The entire room shook, the shelves rattling from the impact. Regis heard Hal release an impressed whistle directly behind him, but he kept his attention focused on the argument at hand. Both humans seemed rather passionate about the topic, he noted. It was intriguing to watch.
Lora’s fingers tightened around the hilt of her sword, and she leaned back slightly. Despite the unease evident in her body language, her voice remained steady. “You’re not strong, you’re just a brat swinging around your new toy.”
Ryker’s nostrils flared. He took a threatening step forward, and both Lora and the few villagers who’d followed her inched backwards. Regis scanned the room. In these close quarters, a fight would prove needlessly destructive.
“I am strong,” the man insisted, face reddening. “Stronger than you. Stronger than anyone here!”
His voice had risen to a shout, one that would undoubtedly be heard clearly in the basement below. A few of the people in Ryker’s group had also removed their weapons. Now, Regis thought, would be a good time to step in.
“I do not believe that is true.” His voice was calm as he stepped forward. Ryker’s eyes snapped over to him, briefly flitting between him and Hal.
“Yeah? And who’re you supposed to be?” he said with a sneer.
“A traveler,” was Regis’s answer. He was vaguely aware of Lora panickedly gesturing at him, but he ignored her. He nodded at Ryker. “It would seem to me that if you were truly as powerful as you say, you would not need to proclaim it so loudly.”
The man’s eyes flashed dangerously, and the demon continued.
“From my experience, the only people who feel the need to emphasize their superiority to such an extent are deeply insecure.” He cocked his head, frowning. “This amount of anger seems quite unhealthy. I recommend—”
He didn’t get a chance to finish his sentence, because in the next moment Ryker let out a roar and lunged for the demon just as Regis had predicted. He didn’t move or reach for his sword. He didn’t need to.
A pale hand grabbed onto Ryker’s wrist, stopping him in his tracks. In front of Regis, Hal loomed over the human with a sharp grin, his wings flared even though they were invisible to everyone else in the room. His fingers squeezed tighter, holding on with a vice grip that didn’t loosen no matter how much the human thrashed.
“Careful there,” the angel said. Slowly, he twisted his wrist, and Ryker screamed. His spear fell out of his hand and landed on the floor with a clatter. “You should watch where you swing that thing.” A loud snap rang throughout the store, but it was quickly drowned out by another scream.
Regis placed a hand on one of Hal’s wings in silent signal, and the angel promptly dropped Ryker from his grip. The man doubled over himself, his other hand wrapped around his wrist in agony. The demon noted that Lora looked hesitant, almost concerned for a moment.
Ryker scrambled back up to his feet, expression furious even as his arm shook. “You’re not getting away with this,” he fumed. As he spoke, he inched towards the door, and the others in his group seemed much less confident now that their leader was injured. None of them had struck Regis as fighters. The thrill of the System and their high levels could only take them so far before old instincts sent them running at the first sign of true danger.
As predicted, without another word, the group exited the store, leaving the trashed room behind them. Hal snorted and bent down to pick up the fallen spear, twirling it around in his hands and inspecting it. None of the villagers seemed able to speak, still busy processing what had happened. Regis turned to Lora.
“Is everyone alright?”
She blinked, pulled out of her stupor. “Uh, yeah. I think so.” She swallowed. “Who are you?”
“Scholars,” Regis repeated his earlier lie. “Though we’ve picked up quite a few tricks in our travels.” His gaze moved over to the door. He could no longer see Ryker, his group long having disappeared down the streets. “That was Ryker, I assume.”
Lora nodded. She still looked a bit shaken, but was recovering rather quickly. That was a promising sign. “He’s the other one trying to take over,” she explained.
“And you don’t trust him.” It was a statement, not a question. The woman shook her head.
“No, he… he hasn’t been the same since he got the System. All he cares about is leveling up, no matter the cost.” A trace of bitterness entered her voice. “He was right though, he’s probably got the best chance at taking down Hendrick. But who knows what’ll happen to Canedge once he’s in charge.”
“Why not do so yourself?”
Lora looked up, brows furrowed in confusion. “What?”
“If both Hendrick and Ryker are poor candidates,” Regis said, “then it seems to me that your best option would be to defeat them and regain control of the town yourself. The other townspeople here seem to respect you.”
The woman laughed in disbelief. “Me? I can’t do something like that.”
“Why not?” Regis gestured to the destroyed store around them. “I doubt this conflict will end peacefully, and you seem to genuinely hold Canedge’s best interests in mind. You would not necessarily need to lead afterwards, should you truly not wish to, but removing both Hendrick and Ryker would take care of the majority of the town’s current problems.”
Lora still looked doubtful, but he could practically see her mind churn as she thought the idea over. It was true; the current chaos in Canedge had two clear sources, and removing them was the simplest solution. The human seemed to be realizing it too even as some of her unease remained.
“But…taking down both of them?” Her voice was hesitant. “That’s insane.”
“It is not,” Regis said simply. “And if you’re amenable to the idea, I’d like to help you.”
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“So?”
Regis glanced over to where Hal sat on the opposite side of the door. After some more conversation, Lora had said that she’d ask the other villagers before making any further decisions, though Regis suspected they would be in agreement.
Until then, the demon had offered to guard the ground floor while the villagers spoke. Lora had seemed much more accepting of the idea after Hal’s brief show earlier, and so the two now sat alone in the trashed space. If he listened closely, he could make out the faint murmurs of conversion below them.
“I’m afraid you’ll need to be a bit more specific than that,” Regis said. Hal snorted and gestured around them.
“I mean, why’re you so interested in this place? I know you get your weird little interests or whatever, but this is pretty out there even for you.”
“I wouldn’t say that.” He cocked his head. “Consider this something of an investment.”
The angel raised an eyebrow. “An investment.”
“We won’t remain on the Serpent Isles for long,” Regis explained. “And once we’ve reached the mainland, our attentions will be primarily focused on gaining influence there.” He nodded outside the window, where the littered streets remained deserted. “The people of Canedge have gained their Systems at an accelerated rate. Once more time has passed, it’s possible that this town could grow rather influential.”
Hal’s eyes flashed with understanding. “And it’ll be easier to get them on your side if you helped put the leaders in power.”
He leaned back, stretching his legs out on the floor. “Still doesn’t really seem worth it to me. For all you know, this place’ll get wiped off the map in another fight.”
Regis laughed and shook his head. “Always so pessimistic.”
“Hey, I can’t help it.” Hal shot him a grin. “And what was that back there by the way? Declan?”
“I thought it suited you.” Regis glanced over at the area the confrontation had occurred. After Ryker’s group had left, Hal had handed the man’s dropped spear over to Lora, who’d brought it down to the basement. “I see you’re serious about the axe.”
“Oh yeah, I’m starting to get attached. Super satisfying to use.” He paused. Below them, a few more muffled murmurs could be heard through the floorboards. If Regis focused, he could make out a few distinct voices as the villagers argued back and forth.
Hal sighed. “They’ve been at it for ages now. Now what?”
“Now,” Regis said, “we wait.”