Forest, The Serpent Isles - 10th day of the Sardonyx Moon, Year 24 AH
Hal’s answering laugh rang loudly in the chamber, bouncing off the icy walls and jagged glaciers.
“I knew the fucker couldn’t kill you,” he said, still grinning widely. “Where’ve you been? It’s been, what, fifteen years?”
“Twenty,” Regis corrected. He moved to continue undoing the angel’s binds. By then, the cold of the chamber had settled into a light chill, crisp but no longer stinging in its presence. A thin layer of creeping frost had begun to climb over the bodies of the collapsed guards, pulling them into the scenery until they’d become a part of the landscape. “And you have my sincerest apologies. Restoring a scattered soul takes quite some time, I’m afraid.”
Hal’s eyes shifted over to him. “Scattered?” He whistled. “Damn, I didn’t think it’d be that bad.”
Regis smiled. “I could say the same to you. Ten years is quite a long time to spend regenerating.” He began unlocking the chains around the angel’s wings.
Up close, the wound pierced by the chains was still bleeding slightly, undoubtedly the source of the rest of the bloodstains streaking the white feathers. The gash was deep enough to see bone, and it showed no signs of closing. He hummed and moved a hand over to the wound, pressing lightly on some of the exposed bone.
“Is this permanent?”
Hal’s face twisted. “Not sure. I think it’s healing, but it’s slow as fuck. Might take another five years at this rate.”
“I see. That is quite unfortunate.” Hal was known to possess the most powerful regeneration in Elaren, more reliable than a phoenix’s rebirth and faster than that of the other angels and Regis’s own at the peak of his power. Humans had once dubbed him the only “true” immortal, and this ability of his had proven exceptionally useful in the past. He would need to work around it now. This was yet another thing taken by the otherworlder.
“What about you?” Pale eyes studied him, assessing. “Never thought I’d see you using a vessel. Thought you hated them. Who’s the unlucky meat suit?”
“A village guard,” Regis replied easily. He successfully removed the chains around the angel’s wings and moved on to the last set, the ones binding his legs to the floor. “I’m afraid I had little choice in the matter; it seems both of us have been severely weakened. I haven’t been able to access the Ark or my true form since waking.”
Hal hummed in understanding, staring at the cut on Regis’s arm. By now, the bleeding had slowed to a trickle, though the demon would need to remember to wrap it later. He could no longer simply wait for injuries to heal on their own. In hindsight, he wondered if the pervasive cold in the chamber was intended to further slow down Hal’s regeneration.
“There are more guards outside this chamber,” Regis explained. “I suspect they’ll notice something is amiss soon. Are you able to fight?” Normally such a thing would be no question, but he hadn’t expected the angel’s injuries to be quite so severe.
“Well,” Hal drawled, “I can’t fly, the big ol’ gash on my wings’s still leaking blood everywhere, I haven’t been able to use magic for ten years, and I’ve probably got a bunch of broken bones that may or may not finish healing soon. Hard to say these days.”
Regis raised an eyebrow. “And?”
The angel grinned.
“And,” he began, “what’re we waiting for?”
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The last chain fell to the ground with a rattle. Regis rose back to his feet and dusted off his pants. A foot away, Hal stretched his arms out, cracking stiff bones and muscles. The chains, Regis noted, had left some marks and bruises, but they were visibly healing—albeit much slower than usual. Hal sighed happily, enjoying his new freedom.
“So? What’s the plan?”
It was easy to slip back into their old roles. Regis pulled out a scrap piece of cloth from his bag and wound it around the cut on his arm as he spoke.
“Once we exit this chamber, the main hallway leads directly to the prison doors. There are two branching hallways on the right and left. I didn’t pass by any patrols on my way here, so I wager there will be less than twenty or so guards in the prison.” He finished tying off the cloth and tested it, pleased when it stayed in place. It wasn’t a particularly neat job, given his lack of experience bandaging wounds, but it would suffice.
“There should be six to eight guards outside. I reversed the barrier runes around the gates. No humans will be able to leave.”
“So we can take our time,” Hal concluded with a grin. The demon chuckled.
“Indeed.” He turned to the angel consideringly. “Have you received your System yet?”
“You mean those weird screen things?” His brows furrowed. “Yeah, actually. The initialization or whatever popped up this morning. It just hit 100, like, a minute before you broke in. Is it a spell or something?”
“Good.” Regis was pleased. The timing was quite favorable to them; like this, the angel would be able to catch up fairly quickly.
“I’m afraid I don’t have time to go into detail now, but you should have access to your status screen. It will contain a few initial skills and titles that I suspect are drawn from your past abilities. Your ‘level’ will increase as you gain experience. For now, I would focus on the fight at hand. You will gain experience from killing.”
Based on his own initial levels, he estimated Hal should reach level 7 or so fairly easily, perhaps higher by the time they were done clearing the prison.
He turned and began to make his way up the stairs, stepping around the half-melted bodies. A bit of the liquid puddled around them, burning away the ice directly beneath. He still had one more potion left in his pouch that was labelled as an explosive. There were no markers indicating its strength, but judging by its color and viscosity, he guessed it had a smaller blast range than some of the other potions Markus had created. That was why he’d chosen to bring it with him. Destroying the entire prison would draw unnecessary attention.
Behind him, Regis heard rummaging. He turned and found Hal sifting through the dead bodies, wrenching their weapons out of their hands and inspecting them. He squinted down at them, poking at the blades with a dissatisfied expression before finally grabbing one of the axes and continuing up the stairs to rejoin Regis. That was a surprise. The angel had only ever used a spear in the past.
The demon placed a hand against the cold metal doors. He couldn’t hear any sounds on the other side, but that didn’t guarantee that no one was nearby. He nodded at Hal.
“I will handle the right hallway while you take the left. Once the interior of the prison has been cleared, we’ll meet again outside to handle the guards there.”
The angel saluted. “Aye aye,” he said cheerily.
After a final survey of the chamber, Regis pushed the metal doors open. A blast of cold air swept into the main hallway, where the bodies of the two guards from earlier still lay slumped in the corner where the demon had placed them. Regis paused, listening. He could make out the faint, yet distinct metallic sound of footsteps approaching from the right hallway. A guard patrol—three of them, judging by the number of footsteps he heard.
Regis nodded at Hal and moved closer to the intersection, sword in hand as he waited for the patrol to pass by. He counted their steps in his mind.
The moment the first guard stepped into view, Regis lunged.
The guard’s shocked yell was quickly cut off as the blade plunged into his chest. The other two guards in the patrol unsheathed their weapons in a panic.
“What’re you doing!?” one of them yelled, evidently confused by the guard uniform Regis was still wearing. The demon didn’t respond, slashing at the man instead.
His sword met the blade of another with a loud clang. With a furious yell, the guard shoved the demon back and swung at his neck. Regis ducked below the blow and buried his sword in the man’s wide open stomach.
The guard choked and attempted to kick the demon away, but Regis was faster. He yanked the blade out and sliced the guard’s head off in one smooth motion. It took some additional exertion, he noted, but it seemed his last two levels had given him enough strength to do so in a single swing.
[You have gained experience!]
The sound of rushing wind filled his ears. The demon turned around to see the remaining guard thrusting his spear at him. Regis ducked to the side just in time, the edge of the tip nicking his cheek. The spear slammed into the wall, stone cracking and snapping from the impact.
Regis readied to lunge at the guard, but just as he raised his weapon, the blade of an axe slammed vertically down on the human’s head. He heard a loud crack as the man’s skull was split in half. The guard slumped to the ground, blood gushing out from the open wound on his head. Hal yanked the axe out. He looked pleased.
“This thing’s kind of nice,” the angel said. A bit of giddiness had entered his movements, his love of battle overpowering any residual weariness from his imprisonment. Regis chuckled.
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“I’m glad you’re enjoying yourself.” He picked up the sound of approaching footsteps again. It seemed their fight had drawn the attention of more guards, two groups approaching from both hallways. Now would be a reasonable time to split up.
“I’ll see you again outside,” Regis said as he turned to face the group approaching from the right. He felt Hal do the same behind him. The angel cracked his knuckles.
“Wanna race?”
Regis raised his own sword, wiping away the traces of blood from the cut on his cheek. “Gladly.”
They both lunged.
Regis sprinted forward. The guards flinched back, surprised at his speed. Drawing his sword back, the demon carved into the first guard and used the momentum of the swing to slice the neck of the second. Metal flashed in the corner of his eye, and he ducked down. An axe sailed above him where his neck had been, the human’s torso wide open as she finished the swing. Regis sliced upwards as he rose, cutting the guard down.
Not stopping, he raised his sword in time to block an incoming blow. He twisted his blade, wrenching his opponent’s weapon out of his hands and slitting his throat now that he was defenseless. The guard slumped back against the wall, his weapon falling from his grip. Regis caught it in his free hand.
Three more guards appeared at the end of the hall. Regis flung the extra sword at the closest one. The metal embedded itself deep in the man’s torso.
One of the other guards swung at him, and Regis dodged nimbly to the side. In the narrow hallway, it was difficult for them to maneuver with their more cumbersome weapons, he noted. The demon hummed to himself. Twisting around, he blocked an incoming spear and caught the second guard reeling back in the corner of his eye.
In one smooth movement, he hooked his leg onto the first guard’s torso and wrenched him to the side just as the second guard swung. His axe slammed into his ally’s skull. The man’s eyes widened, a sound of horror escaping his throat, but Regis cut him down before he had a chance to process what he’d done.
[You have gained experience!]
Still not enough for a level, Regis noted. At the earlier levels this would’ve been enough for several.
He proceeded deeper down the hallway, running past the sitting room where he’d killed the two guards that had escorted him inside. Behind him, he could hear the sounds of ringing metal and crunching bones where Hal fought. For a moment it reminded him of that day on the Field of the Fallen, when the sounds of battle had rang from within the ruins, but this was an entirely different situation. The angel should have no issue disposing of the guards.
When Regis turned the next corner, an arrow whizzed past, narrowly missing him. A guard holding a bow and arrow reached into his quiver. In the narrow hallway, there was little cover. It would be troublesome if he allowed the man to continue firing.
Ducking lower to the ground, Regis sprinted forward. The guard yelped and quickly knocked another arrow to point at the approaching demon, but Regis was faster. He cut off the man’s hands just before he could release the arrow, then cleaved his head off.
More movement flashed in the corner of his eye. Another group of guards hurried out from one of the rooms lining the halls. He spotted a few sigil talismans, and some of the guards began to chant when they saw him. Mages.
Regis pulled out the last potion without hesitation and threw it at the group before they could finish their chants. He’d found it was best to deal with mages quickly, and he had no desire to combat spells in this tight space with only a sword on hand.
The glass shattered, a burst of red light blooming outwards as the area was set aflame. The guards screamed, their figures rendered into blurry shadows between the flickering fire. By the time the light faded, only their smoking, charred bodies remained. Regis stepped closer and nudged one of the burned bodies with his foot. It twitched slightly, but otherwise remained still.
[You have gained experience!]
Still no level, Regis noted. Perhaps he’d been spoiled by the quick early levels. He shook his head and studied the hallway, the grey walls and floor now stained with red and charred in the areas the explosion had hit. There was no one else in sight.
He turned and backtracked to the rooms he’d passed to ensure that no one was inside. It seemed the ruckus of the fight had drawn the guards all into the hallway, and what was left were deserted rooms with hastily thrown blankets and rumpled sheets.
In retrospect, some of the guards hadn’t been uniform. It seemed the guards here lived inside the prison, likely an additional means of secrecy. As a result, there were more guards than he’d initially estimated, but this was beneficial for them. Perhaps Hal would reach level 10 or higher by the time they were done, which would allow him to unlock his stats.
Regis stepped past the rooms and found an empty storage area with racks of weapons and spare uniforms in addition to an office. Once they were done dealing with the guards, he noted to return here to search the area more thoroughly.
As it was, Regis found no other living beings on this end of the prison. Satisfied, he turned to head back to the main hallway. There, the bodies of that first wave of guards lay still. He heard a few yells down the other hall where Hal was likely finishing up. The demon strode to the prison doors and pushed them open, stepping outside.
A cool breeze blew past, and Regis took a moment to enjoy the fresh air. The prison had been rather stuffy, so this was a welcome reprieve. In front of the metal gates, the guard who’d taken over earlier turned around and stiffened when he saw the demon. Covered in blood, sword dripping red, he likely made for a sight.
It was simple to cut him down. Compared to the inside of the prison, the exterior was incredibly sparse. Regis easily fell into a rhythm as he made his way around the perimeter of the building, the familiar dance of battle.
In front of him, a younger guard stumbled and fell backwards, landing on the dirt as he scrambled away. As soon as he reached the circle of runes, his back hit an invisible wall. Only a brief flash of silver light indicated what had happened. The barrier had been successfully reversed.
“No no no!” The guard slammed his fist against it, but the barrier held strong. As long as human blood ran through his veins, he had no way of escaping the circle of runes.
Regis strode forward calmly, his sword at his side. Blood dripped down the blade, staining the soft grasses. The guard spun around, pressing further into the barrier in an attempt to get as far away as possible.
“Please, just let me go!” he begged. “Why’re you doing this? Who even are you?”
Of course, the human wouldn’t know who he was. From the outside he appeared like a simple guard who’d decided to free a traitorous angel. So much time had passed, his death considered so immutable a fact, that the possibility of his true identity had never crossed the man’s mind.
The demon stopped in front of the quivering guard and raised his blade. “That,” he said, “is not your concern.”
A single swing was enough to send his head flying. The severed head landed on the ground with a thump.
[You have gained experience!]
[You have leveled up! 14 —> 15]
[The [Fear] species trait has leveled up! 1 —> 2]
[Strength +3, Agility +4, Constitution +2, Mana +3, Will +4]
Regis lowered his sword. After circling the prison a second time to ensure no one was left, he roughly wiped the blade along the grasses so that it was no longer dripping. Constitution, it seemed, remained difficult to level. Depending on how much of a weakness it became in the future, he may need to begin training it individually.
The demon glanced around. The forest was quiet around them, the only sounds being the distant rustling of leaves. Barcombe was far enough away that they didn’t need to worry about discretion.
Hal still hadn’t appeared. Regis frowned. Even weakened, it shouldn’t take the angel so long to kill a few human guards. His battle instincts would still be present. Of course, it was possible that he was simply taking longer, overcome by the thrill of a fight.
He turned back to the open prison doors and strode through. He would check on him, to be certain. It wouldn’t do for him to lose his general so soon after breaking him out of prison, after all.
Regis stepped past the corpses in the main hallway and turned to the left. Hal had left a mess in his wake; several of the bodies had been slammed into the walls or had their skulls crushed, a stark contrast to his own clean and precise cuts. Blood stains spattered the walls, and many of the corpses were so mangled that they were barely recognizable as humans. The angel had always been rather creative in battle.
A shrill scream rang from further inside the prison. Regis found himself freezing for a moment and frowned. That was clearly not Hal’s voice; there was no cause for concern. Human instincts were continuing to prove an oddity. He shook his head and continued, turning around the corner to find the source of the noise.
There stood Hal holding one of the guards against the wall with a single hand gripped around his throat. The other one he dug into the man’s eye as he thrashed and screamed his throat hoarse.
“Doesn’t feel so good when it’s you, huh?” the angel said, digging his fingers in deeper. His pale eyes gleamed in the light. “I’ve got a pretty high pain tolerance, but it still stings, you know?”
“I’m sorry!” the human yelled desperately. He was quickly losing blood. Frankly Regis was surprised the shock alone hadn’t rendered him unconscious. “I’m sorry, please!”
“It’s too bad you humans don’t heal very fast,” Hal mused. He twisted his finger again, and the guard choked, his limbs falling limp as he finally blacked out from the pain. It took a second for the angel to notice, and when he did, he clicked his tongue and dropped the guard to the ground. He landed in a twisted heap. It wouldn’t take long for him to die of blood loss.
A quick survey of the area revealed no other guards remaining in the hallway. Regis approached, studying the angel closely.
“Are you finished?”
Hal turned around. His face and hair were covered in blood, and at some point he’d thrown his axe to the ground where it now lay a foot away. He wiped his face with the back of his wrist, which only succeeded in smearing more blood around. He exhaled.
“Yeah. Yeah, I’m done.” Tense shoulders slowly loosened, and his eyes swept over the demon. “You already kill the ones outside?”
“I did.” He nodded down the hall. “I found an office and a storage room that way. We’ll need to search the bodies and the rest of the prison while we’re here. We should find a decent amount of supplies.”
“Sounds good.” Hal stepped over to his fallen axe and picked it back up. A few chunks of flesh were stuck to the blade, which he flicked off with a finger. “Guess you won that round.”
Regis smiled. “In fairness, you didn’t seem particularly concerned about speed.” His eyes landed on the guard the angel had just dropped. His chest had stopped moving by now.
Regis himself didn’t typically engage in torture unless as a means to an end, often finding it a waste of time. However, as he studied the bloody hole where the guard’s eye had been and remembered the brief snippet of conversation that he’d heard, he found he didn’t mind the angel’s indulgence. He returned his attention to the rest of the prison.
“Shall we go? I’d like to leave here before nightfall.”
Hal nodded. He stepped forward, not bothering to move around the bodies. They would both need new clothes and likely new weapons as well, if the state of the angel’s borrowed axe was any indication.
They continued down the hall, the prison now quiet. The door to the chamber remained open, and the chill had now spread throughout the building. Without the engraved runes of the walls to keep it active, however, it would soon fade.
“Hey, Reg?”
Regis glanced back at the angel, raising an eyebrow. “What is it?”
Hal didn’t say anything for a moment, his usual casual, jovial demeanor replaced with an uncharacteristic seriousness. Those pale eyes swept over him.
“I’m glad you’re alive.”
Regis studied the angel closely, considering a few different responses. “I would say the same to you,” he finally said, and the words were sincere. If he could only have one of his generals left, he was glad it was Hal.
He turned back to the hallway. By now they’d reached the office doors, and Regis tugged them open to find the inside as he’d left it. A heavy desk sat in the center, stacks of papers piled in the corners, while full bookshelves lined the walls.
“Now,” the demon said. “I believe it would be pertinent to plan our next move.”