And so this is what i've spent the last couple of weeks doing.
I have such a soft spot for soulmate AUs, and i've been spending a lot of time playing rpgs too, so it was bound to intercept eventually.
In terms of the individual characters, Sadik's a traditional fighter/mercenary type, Gupta's likely a red mage, Kiku's a ninja/thief type and Herakles is a hunter.
Gupta felt the adrenaline that rushed through Sadik as the taller man raised his sword against the beast. Through his partner, he was able to feel the flow of the battle and pick up on the areas Sadik wasn't covering. It made it that much easier to spot a good opening. As Sadik rushed in from the left, Gupta raised his staff and cast a fireball off to the right. Their opponent caught fire instantly. The kill was easy from then.
Their current mission done, the duo took their reward and began the journey to the next town over. Travelling constantly around the continent while living through their fighting skills was a hard existence, but Gupta enjoyed the freedom, and he knew that Sadik wouldn't have it any other way. Besides, the soul link between them helped.
The soul link was a mysterious force that permeated the fabric of their reality. Each person in the world was born with only a handful of soulmates with whom they could activate a link. Once two soulmates found each other and activated the link between them, they became able to feel each other's sensations and intuitions, and could share power between the partners. This caused some bizarre effects when combined with magic; a mage like Gupta found that it was easier to cast magic within Sadik's sphere of awareness, extending the effective range of more powerful spells. Yet even those not magically inclined seemed able to conjure white magic like effects upon their partners, usually by sending portions of their own strength or vitality through the link in a crisis. Since the soul link had been discovered, it had revolutionised fighting for those able to utilise it.
The next town over loomed before them as Gupta and Sadik continued to walk. The day's travel had been long, and Gupta was looking forwards to finally getting some rest. The energy radiating off of Sadik told the mage that his partner was planning activities a little more fun than simply sleeping. As the duo passed through the gates of the town, Gupta opened his mouth to deliver a snarky comment, but before he spoke Sadik froze and glared over at a shape in the distance. Gupta followed his partner's gaze.
"Damn brat!" Sadik swore, storming over to another two men sitting against a fountain in the distance and focusing in on the taller of the two. Gupta saw the man's teal eyes light up in recognition then flare into irritation within the space of a few seconds.
"I'm no happier to see you here… Jerk." He replied.
"Herakles, please try to be polite." The smaller man implored.
"You know him?" Gupta assumed, looking from Herakles to Sadik.
"Yeah. I met this brat before… He's never been anythin' other than trouble." Sadik spat.
"More like you're the one causing trouble." Herakles accused, turning to the small man with him. "Kiku, Sadik and I have been… Rivals for many years. He's always stealing bounties from me."
"Stealin'? Brat, I do most of the work! Not my fault ya gotta be so lazy all the time." Sadik scoffed, looking towards the information board fixed to a pole next to the fountain and studying it intently.
"Stop fighting." Gupta complained, elbowing Sadik as he turned around and staring intently at Herakles. "I'm Gupta. Sadik's partner. I don't care what history you have."
"I'm Herakles. Nice to meet you." The taller man yawned. "This is Kiku. He's my partner." He gestured to the smaller male accompanying him.
"Nice to meet you." Kiku bowed. "And Sadik too. I too, wish that the two of you would stop fighting." He sighed.
"I think the two of them are more alike than they think." Gupta commented, rolling his eyes.
"What?!" Herakles jumped up.
"Well, how about this then?" Sadik grinned, spinning around suddenly, much to the shock of the rest of the group. "There are two monsters plagin' this town, right? I say we go out there together, see which each of us wants to deal with. We'll know more once we see it fer ourselves, right?"
"You're… Suggesting we work together?" Herakles assumed sceptically. "Why would I work with you?"
"Necessity." Sadik answered. "I don't like ya either brat, but these guys look tough. I don't even think I can take both of 'em by myself. Never said we had to fight together. Just that each of us pick one of the targets. And that we communicate so there's no more 'kill stealin''."
"That sounds like a good plan." Kiku assessed.
"…Let's do that." Gupta agreed.
The route outside of the town led North to a babbling brook. Sadik led the group as they headed towards the stream, chatting away to Gupta and Kiku who were giving minimal responses. Herakles trailed along behind the group, making a point of ignoring Sadik as much as he could.
This approach brought problems when they finally found the monsters they were looking for. Sadik sunk to the ground, and Gupta and Kiku followed. Herakles continued walking for a few steps before Kiku reached out and pulled him onto the grass.
"What's going on?" Herakles asked sleepily.
"We found 'em." Sadik pointed over to the creatures in the distance.
The first creature before them took the shape of a beautiful ebony horse, with a wild and drenched mane that seemed to be matted by weed from the water. A second look revealed that the hooves of the horse were reversed. It appeared to be incredibly untameable and tetchy.
The second creature bore the resemblance of something half man and half turtle. Humanoid arms and legs extruded from its shell, but its hands and feet were webbed, and its beaked face was entirely non-human.
While Sadik recognised the first creature, Kiku's face lit up at the sight of the second.
"It's a Kappa." He described. "They are often considered to be responsible for drownings. They are obsessed with politeness and accepting challenges posed to them, but in a straight fight, we would almost certainly lose to its superior strength and wrestling skill."
"Really? Wrestling?" Sadik's face told the gathered group that he was forming an idea. "Well, that other one's a Kelpie. That'd be a water horse. No way am I fightin' a horse though, so we'll take the Kappa on." He turned to Gupta and grinned cockily before running off in the direction of the Kappa, Gupta getting to his feet and following on behind with an exasperated look.
"Wait! You cannot take it straight on!" Kiku warned, shouting after the two.
"Sadik, are you even listening?" Gupta warned.
"Come on Guppie, just trust me on this." The larger man argued. "Give me yer strength, just fer a little. Promise I can do this."
"But why…? There are many better ways." Gupta shook his head. "We don't have to fight it."
"I wrestle. It's what I do. No way am I backin' down from a fight like this." Sadik stated. Gupta stared at him for a moment before smiling slightly.
"Ten minutes, and then I finish this myself." He warned, fixing Sadik with a matronly look before settling down onto the ground so that he could send more of his energy through the link without risking injury.
"Thanks." Sadik smirked, stepping up to the Kappa as new energy flowed into him.
"Hey there!" He shouted. "Bet ya can't beat me!"
Kiku and Herakles crept after the Kelpie, Kiku definitively more annoyed than usual. His quiet fury was a delight to Herakles, who was always of the opinion that his soulmate needed to be more open with his feelings.
"Leaving us to deal with a creature we know nothing about while he goes after something I know how to defeat using a method that is absolutely the hardest imaginable…" The small man grumbled.
"Things like this are part of the reason why I dislike Sadik so much." Herakles empathised. "However, I do know a little of these water horses…" His hand moved back to the bow he had brought along, pulling it from his shoulder and holding it steady. "If I hit it truly enough with a silver-tipped arrow… It should turn to a starchy mess."
"That sounds like a plan." Kiku agreed. "So long as we creep up on it slowly enough that it does not notice us…"
A terrifying screech rang out as the Kelpie turned to face them, baring its teeth, and their plan fell apart before it had even begun.
Sadik struggled to find purchase on the wet grass as he wrestled with the Kappa. Kiku wasn't kidding; this creature was more worthy an opponent than any he had ever faced before. He felt alive, and Gupta's strength flowing into his own certainly helped with that.
"Hey, how're we meant to stop this thing anyway?" He checked with his partner, being pushed a little further towards the water and responding with the greatest measure of his strength.
"I believe you are supposed to knock the water from its head." Gupta mused, leaning against a tree. "That should render it powerless."
"Got it." Sadik nodded, looking to the creature's head. Sure enough, a plate filled with water was situated in the middle. Digging in, Sadik pushed off to the side, trying to topple the Kappa over. It responded with a forceful shove that nearly sent Sadik sliding into the water. A gasp was heard behind him.
"Rgh!" He grunted, finding a sudden surge of strength he didn't know he had. With one decisive move, he sprang back and forced the Kappa onto its side with enough momentum to spill the water from its head. Forced down by the action, the creature didn't move again. Considering it neutralised enough, Sadik looked up towards the tree to see Gupta lying still on the grass.
The Kelpie charged Herakles and Kiku with blinding speed and the two were forced to jump either side to dodge. Herakles scrambled to get clear enough of the monster to draw his bow, and Kiku, upon realising that he possessed no silver, resolved to act as a distraction. He took a throwing knife from his bag and hurled it at the Kelpie, which turned towards him, hissing in fury. Herakles became instantly aware of the opening, and Kiku sent some of his focus and precision over the link, knowing that he would be unable to use it himself to attack the creature effectively. As the Kelpie charged forwards, Kiku realised he should have saved at least a little for himself, as he was kicked by the forelegs of the rearing creature and punted backwards over the brook and into a rock on the other side. Herakles released the arrow, which flew straight and pierced the hind quarters of the Kelpie, which writhed for a few seconds before dissolving into a gelatinous mass. Herakles found himself unable to celebrate the victory, as the feedback from Kiku's pain caused him to drop his bow and run over to his ailing partner.
Sadik rushed to Gupta's side, dropping to his knees before his partner.
"Guppie? Can ya hear me?" He asked, shaking his partner's shoulders frantically.
"Sadik… I'm fine. I just used too much power." Gupta stated, rousing and staring up at the Turk with amusement. It was then it occurred to Sadik that the surge of strength he had experienced before had not come from him. The soul link worked in strange ways sometimes.
"Guppie. And here ya call me the idiot." He laughed.
"Oh shut up." Gupta smiled back.
Herakles slid to the ground beside Kiku and scrambled to get a response from the shorter man.
"Kiku, how many fingers am I holding up? Are you okay?" He asked, waving his hand in front of his partner.
"Mmn…" Kiku babbled incoherently.
"Okay, just stay still…" Herakles pondered his options. Ideally, Kiku had to be conscious enough to drink a healing potion, and he didn't know any white magic he could use to heal him in the meantime. Only one real option remained.
"Try to relax." He advised, pushing as much energy as he thought he could spare back along the soul link. If he concentrated it enough, he was sure it'd have at least the healing power required to get Kiku conscious enough to use more conventional methods.
For a moment, there was no response, and Herakles feared that it wouldn't be enough. But then Kiku awoke before his eyes, looking towards his partner slowly.
"Herakles… How did I end up in the brook?" He asked blearily.
"You got kicked by the horse." Herakles explained. "You should take this." He handed Kiku a healing potion, which he took and sipped at as he eased himself into a sitting position carefully.
"Thank you." The smaller glanced over Herakles, noticing his slightly dishevelled appearance. "Are you okay?"
"I'm fine." Herakles smiled easily, shaking his head. "We killed the monster after all. I was only… Tired after using the soul link to heal you."
"Oh. I am sorry for the inconvenience." Kiku looked to the floor.
"Don't be silly Kiku." Herakles argued. "I love you. And I don't want you to be hurt." He helped the small man back to his feet. "Let's go join the others."
"Gotta admit, working with ya this time wasn't the worst, brat." Sadik relented, as the group stood back around the fountain later that night.
"We managed to kill both bounties, so I'd say it was a success." Gupta shrugged.
"It was quite a good thing that we managed to spread the load." Kiku assessed.
"It wasn't bad." Herakles agreed. "Perhaps if we meet again along the road we can work together again." He turned to Kiku. "For now, let's return to the inn. We can leave tomorrow."
"Right." Kiku nodded, joining Herakles as they walked off into the town.
"Ah, could use a hot pot of tea after all this, huh Guppie?" Sadik commented, leading his partner towards the other side of town, as Gupta walked along without complaint, knowing better than to get between Sadik and tea.
As towns blurred into a repetitive scenery of work and reward, many more adventurers and mercenaries were met. Even during dark times and moments when the world seemed all too closed, the soul link between those two pairs of mercenaries meant that they were never truly alone.