Mystery of Ancient Legends

An introduction of the humble men of Core Crest

Chapter 21 Mystery of Ancient Legends

It was late morning to early afternoon in Kenderhell where the men were retrained from their own way of life. Instead of pots and pans they took up spears and shields. Instead of baking food, the created fortresses. Many of which took their time in fixing structures destroyed by many orcs, and more lately; the dead. The sun beat down on them hard, producing much sweat from their labor but it was welcomed. Many gladly gazed up at the blue cloudless sky since they all spent plenty of time in the darkness.

The numbers of them were very few. The few remnants that took cover in their basements when the attack happened. Most were unlucky to have those resources, of a secret room, or a basement, hidden from view. Orcs were stupid, and many people knew, so they spent the extra coin to have their basements built. Those greedy with desire, of gluttonous in their wealth were too stupid, more stupid than orcs.

Ropes were used the haul large trees, trees coming from the wild that brave men hastily cut down. They were being dragged for some more wood, while the scraps were being used up. They would need more scraps.

Then, there was a man, cloaked in a dark blue robe. He was of a larger build, a staff in one hand, while the other was at his side. He walked in slowly and there was Corplus, who gazed at the figure with suspicion.

The wizard walked to him. “What do ye want?” Corplus said rudely. “What brings a wizard to this place?”

“I am looking for someone. I heard Querela lives here. Where is she?”

Corplus rolled his eyes and shook his head. He knew about the woman, and her whereabouts. “She is in a farm...if ye can call it a farm anymore.” He pointed his finger in the direction of the farm. “Over in that direction. That is where she be.”

“Thank you…” the wizard stopped as if to get his name.

“We do not give names here. I will not give ye mine for ye have not given me yers. Just go about yer business and leave.”

“Very well.” The wizard turned and left in the direction he was lead in.

What man could want a low life person like that in any way? Especially desire to see her so much that he would ignore the work being done. Ignoring the people. I wonder… Corplus waiting until the wizard was very far from him, and he slowly followed the wizard, pretending to be the overseer of the work being done.

He followed the wizard to the farm. The road was not a straight path, it required walking through twisted roads, covered in poop brown soil. As he followed the wizard, the population of people decreased greatly, almost to zero people. He hid behind the rubble of a nearby house.

The wizard walked through the hole in the door of the farm, still the farm was as it was left after the first initial assault on Kenderhell, though the charcoal no longer burned with the fire of anything. “Oh Quarela, I have come for you!” The phrase was silently cruel, Corplus could hear it as he descended upon the farm. The grass crunched underneath his iron boots.

He heard a scream. “Glutua no! Leave me be!”

“YOU FAILED!” he roared.

He is Glutua? Why...why is he here! Corplus fell to the ground and froze as the wind died. The wizard walked back out holding a chain. This wizard pulled the chain, and there she was. Serves her right. He watched as the woman who stole Leryk’s purity through the device of alcohol.

She did not scream, rather was being lead off, towards the direction of Corplus. He remained hidden in the dark, watching very carefully. Glutua passed by him with Querela. He patiently waited as the clinking of chains passed him. He let out a brief sigh before peeking his head out, seeing the wizard disappear over the hill.

He followed him again. He ran passed the hill, finding him leaving the gate. He saw the people who were once working leaning against walls. Truth be told, Corplus would have thought it funny, grown, largely built men cowering in a corner, however it was Glutua, so he could not quite satisfy his need for humor. The wizard walked very casually outside the gate.

He heard rushed running. He turned and there Leryk was, running hard towards him. “No!” he called, grabbing Leryk before he went to fal, pulling him to the ground. “Boy! What do ye think yer doin’? Ye can not go there!”

“She needs our help!” Leryk said, struggling under the older man.

“Ye wish to help the woman who caused yer imprisonment? Ye want to help the woman who raped you?” he asked. “Why?”

“Because it is only right as a soldier to help those who are weak! Get off of me!”

“Slave to the flesh are ye?”

Leryk punched him. The force sent the man off, landing on the patch of dirt behind him. “I am going to save her from that man! He will not harm her!” Leryk ran towards the gate.

Corplus wiped off some blood from his mouth as he saw the young lad run through the gate, after the wizard not doubt. He knew it would lead him to Topuka, inside the ruins of a never ending darkness of mazes, traps and pathways. “Fat chance of that boy. Ye are likely to get yerself killed before ye can lay yer eyes on that seductive maiden. Yer head will be filled nightmares.” He looked up at the sky again, before coming to the realization that he must speak to Constable. “Constable is not going to like this.”

“Do not worry. I will not save the woman, but I will make sure he makes it out alive.” said a familiar voice.

He turned to see Arcwa. “You?” he asked.

“Well it is something at least is it not?” Arcwa said to him. “Besides, I am curious as to what makes Glutua so dangerous.”

“Do not test him too much. You may find things out that ye do not want to know down there.”

“I know more things far disturbing that you sir, can imagine.” Arcwa said striding off into the distance, disappearing as a dark fog rolled in.

So there they were, Jurea, Luthien, and Constable. The three sat in a room. This room was illumined by Luthien’s staff. Luthien held out a book in front of her, a quill and a scrap of parchment. Jurea and Constable were on opposite ends of Luthien, sitting next to each other anxiously. This room was part of the newly constructed city hall. It was still rough considering many carpenters were dead, and it was not meant to be nice and tidy as was common with the other one. The wood was often nailed by other scrap pieces of wood. There are no whole pieces of wood anymore. They must now build with broken supplies.

“So tell me about this phenomenon? What happened?” Luthien asked the two of them. “Start from the beginning.”

“It was a dark day. The same day I came face to face with Sipus, the ring leader of the Assassin’s Guild. He frightened me into his service, which was to fight, and die for the city that night. He expected all of us to die that night. It was all, or nothing, from the setting to the rising sun.” Constable explained. He noticed Luthien write something down on the parchment at the mention of Sipus’s name? “I came to that wall, with people I had known all the way from Malitu. Originally, many of us came from Felldur, which is now under the shadow. I spoke directly with Glutua that night also. We challenged each other, while one of us lives, the other cannot live in peace. He and I will do whatever it takes to rid the world of the other.”

“Good beginning. And this is when it happened. The gates broke, and the orcs started swarming in. Men were killed and so were many enemies during that period, but it was right when the first clash happened. I could feel a certain part of my being get sucked out of my soul, but it did not disappear into nothingness. I think Constable has part of my soul.” Jurea explained soon after. Jurea wrote the information down on the parchment.

“So as I suspect. Soul sharing.” Luthien replied. She leaned back in her chair and folded her arms. “So Jurea, it is clear that you feel no benefit to this, it is almost uncomfortable to you, yes?”

“Yes.” she answered. Her hand buried in her face.

“Do not weep.” Luthien said, turning to Constable. “And what of you Constable? What do you feel?”

“I feel an invasion. It is not exactly hostile, but it is uncomfortable to me as well. However, there is even more to this. I feel stronger when she is around, more resilient. If she was near me the day you arrived, I do believe that I could have killed that kuai.” he answered.

“A kuai, I doubt you have ever seen one. They are often deeper into the effects of Cadrasar. They do not venture out often. Only the lackey’s do. Unlike the regular orc you were likely to have faced, they are more structured. They know how to fight, intelligently, and tactically. If you think that the only thing that separates and orc from a kuai is brutish strength, you are sadly mistaken. They are far more dangerous. Yes, a band of orcs may, if under strong leadership defeat a kuai, but it would take numbers to do that.” Luthien said to him. “So you feel stronger and more resilient, you will need that. Glutua will have to recover given the blow he has suffered here. He will take his time, this next time, he will not stop until the city has been taken to the ground.”

“I have a few more questions for you, Luthien if ye do not mind.” Constable said.

“Ask away.”

“I am trying to lead the city back into its former glory, back to ancient days, before we were kind enough to let the orcs infest our land and corrupt our minds with their ideals. What suggestions would ye have of me?” He asked. There was a knock on the door. “One moment.”

“Well first of which, the only way to turn something good is to put it at the epicenter. Now, culture is often dictated by people, which influences politics, which in turn, influences culture. Now, when the orcs came in, the people had ‘freedom’ at the epicenter. Grento was, and still is a great military power, one of which only the Ranger’s Guild would ever face in open war. This has also become the home of many great heroes, and thus is also unofficially named ‘The Land of the Free’ or ‘The Home of the Brave’. Now consider this, freedom is what destroyed this nation.” Luthien replied. “I know many humans have looked at how extreme our customs are, such as if you commit a sexually immoral sin, the only way to appease is to penetrate oneself to the point of dying on the very spot or room in which that sin was committed. We cut off hands of robbers, cut out the tongues of those who curse, and put to death those who malicious put to death others. Now why would we do that?”

“I honestly have no idea.”

“It is best to lose one part of the self, than to have the whole body burn for eternity in the Abyss of Chaos.” I just explained to you the law of Zinasa, not the law of Kinasa.”

“What are those laws?”

“Love Unverdus with all your heart, all your might, and all your soul. You must serve full heartedly, and in doing so, you will complete what has not been completed by others.” Luthien replied to him. “So do you believe, Constable, that Unverdus is real?”

“Yes.” Jurea looked to him. “He spoke to me, as I was training Leryk one night. And on that day, soul turned to do his will, to my last dying breath, whatever it may be.”

“You? He spoke to you? You were an atheist last I knew.” Jurea replied. “I believe you even mentioned that this world is falling apart, and a God who would allow that to happen is not a God worth believing in.”

“Things change, when reality becomes more fantasy, or when fantasy becomes reality.” he answered.

“Unverus has, and always will choose to work in mysterious ways younglings.” Luthien replied. “The fall of Kinasa, the proceeding fall of Zinasa, all before a year ends. Also what happened in the course of the year, Decrepantaur gained a powerful ally in the south, the drow. When they have recuperated, we can expect them to come here, but let us cross that bridge when it comes to it eh? You have someone waiting at your door.”

“It is open!” Constable called out, and Corplus came running through the door. “Yes Corplus? What is it?”

“Oh well this early morning a wizard came and spoke with Leryk. The wizard left with a woman, and Leryk went off, complaining how we were to do nothing about it, until we could speak to you. Obviously that was not to happen soon given the sudden, importance of yer meeting.” he replied.

“Send him this way.” Constable said to him, Jurea looked irritated.

“I cannot sir.”

“Why not?” Constable’s face went as red as the blood stains over his shirt.

“He ran off. Towards Topuka. He is probably going to die a horrible painful death, but so has not many of us as well.” he replied.

“Your pessimism is far out of place.” Constable said, moving his door rapidly, and pushed passed Corplus. He grabbed Studly, Kreftic, and Arien who followed him outside.

“He is not alone sir.” Corplus said. “Arcwa went with him.”

“That...thing! That thing is supposed to comfort me when a boy is away doing things that he is not ready for?”

“Unverdus works in mysterious ways.” Luthien said to him. “Based on what I know, or heard of this woman, he is in good hands. You have little need of fear for the boy. If Unverdus wills him to come back, he will come back.”

“And if he does not?”

“Then he will die. You must grow to accept the fact that Unverdus wills all things that will happen. All outcomes are governed by him, even you humans who put time as the deciding factor of all your decision making; Unverdus controls time. He controls it all.”

“Then what would you have us do?” Jurea spoke.

“Get ready for the war.” Luthien said, smiling. “Do not build for ultimate defense. You will get too comfortable.” Constable knew this, that is why so many people died the other day. They were too comfortable with the defense, they neglected many things that night. “I would build small barricades made of blades and spears. With much less men than you are accustomed to, you need to fight smarter, not harder. Do you understand?”

“Yes, I do understand the costs of putting so much energy in one thing that it is almost temporary at best. The best thing I can do is to plan tactics with what few people I have, in a growing threat to the east.” Constable said.

“Now, here I must ask you, what is your greatest weapon? What is your sword, dearest Constable. You are a strong man, and with Soul Sharing you are even stronger than before, stronger than many men before you. It will not matter any more how hard you train Leryk, even in his youth, he cannot best you in your old age. What is your best weapon?” Luthien turned to Jurea. “What is your best weapon?”

There was a brief silence as the two rubbed their chins in confusion. “Tactics?” Was Constable’s answer. He said with such uncertainty, it was obvious. “Soul Sharing?” was the answer Jurea chose to give Luthien.

“Both of you are wrong.” she said to them.