[ - Author's Note - ]
It is November 22nd of 2021.
This story started on June 13th of the same year. Doesn't feel like it's been that long, but it's been over five months now. December 13th will mark the six month anniversary of this story. It's been a blast to write so far and exciting to see the responses.
On FFDotNet before this chapter went up it had a word length of 289,756 words. This chapter will push that over 300k. 127,878 total views. While I don't know how that compares to other stories of a similar size in a less popular corner of Fan Fiction I think it's fairly good. 316 Reviews, 786 people favoriting it and another 905 following, plus it's been added to four Community Archives. On AO3 it's at 264 Comments, 155 Kudos, 35 Bookmarks and 13,784 Hits.
I don't type this to brag or anything. In part it's to archive the growth of this story. This is where we are at the start of Act Two. I want to see how this compares to the start of Act Three when we get there. It's also something I wanted to mention as it's readers like you who made those numbers, readers like you who help drive it's growth. I thank you all once more for all of you who enjoyed it until now and continue to enjoy it. Without you I'd have no one to share this story with.
Anyway, onto the normal intro stuff and time to stop acting like a damned sap.
More of James' life post-party, a new mission from the Adventurer's Guild, Celestine is on the move as she said she would be and... zombies..?
Read on to learn more, my dear reader.
[ - Act II - Chapter I: I See Undead People - ]
"Whoa... She really is gentle..."
"I told you!"
It was a great day with bright blue skies all around and not a cloud to be seen and I was riding next to Serra on a white horse with a blonde mane by the name of White Peach. She was a strong looking, healthy mare and very easy going. Really, if I was standing within five feet of her and wasn't riding her she'd all but beg for some attention; bringing her face closer to be petted. By contrast Serra was riding a brown mare that was the runt of the litter and maybe a foot and change shorter then the other horses; perfect for a dwarf woman to ride.
I had finally gotten around to those riding lesson. We had another weekly sparring/beating session with Gregory and I got another three thousand in XP, plus some more adventuring for an additional two thousand and change. I ended up with an additional five Universal and four Regular Stat Points. Add in five Regular Trait Points and one and a half gold and it wasn't a bad haul all in all.
Mind the money I made from that was peanuts compared to the additional ice cream maker sales; another four hundred and ninety gold! It was a productive week.
"It's good to get out and ride for a bit, isn't it?" Serra let off as I nodded. In addition to all that the riding lessons went well; while I wasn't a master equestrian yet I had the basics down pat. We'd gone for a two hour odd ride along the country side and were making our way back to the manor. The two guards outside gave us greetings as we rode in.
"I'd have to agree. It's been a busy week so it's good to take time to do something relaxing." I told her as she nodded, smiling back at me. I had planned to say something else, but I could see one of the maids, Regina, jogging over to us. I was a bit confused, but she stopped before us and bowed a bit.
"I beg your pardon, M'Lord, but may I speak with you?" She said as she stood up straight. "In a private manner?"
I blinked at that, wondering what was up. "Sure. Let me help stable the horses and-"
"Now, now M'Lord, don't keep a lady waiting." Serra said as she dismounted taking her horse's reigns, smiling over to take White Peach's as well. "I'll take care of it." I nodded and moved to dismount myself. "Thanks Serra. You're a real worker, aren't you?" She laughed softly and moved to lead the horses away as I looked to Regina. "Let's go to my quarters; I can make some tea there."
"Thank you." She said, nodding as we turned to walk into the manor. It wasn't too much longer until we walked inside my quarters as I moved to a small stove kept there. A short time later two cups were on the table as we sat down.
"So, what can I do for you?" I asked her as I took a moment to sip the tea.
"In short... I need some... Financial help." She said bluntly. I blinked to her in confusion. Was she seeking a raise? We paid the maids well, and she was making more of the ice cream makers then anyone else; she had made thirty six or so gold from me, as I recalled. Sure, I was pocketing most of the money from it, but she was making more off me these past three weeks then she made as a maid for the past three months, easily. "To be frank I want to open a business."
"Oh?" I said as a means to prompt her to carry on. She nodded and sipped her tea before speaking once more, nursing her cup.
"Yes. I... Let me explain." She said, sighing. "I am... I was the daughter of a wealthy merchant in Caul; the Sweet Brown Family we were called. My great-grandfather started a sugar plantation and to work it he used slave labor; with a promise of freedom after ten years of work if they worked hard. I'm told he kept to his word too. My grandfather built a bakery for confections and when he took over everything he slowly went away from slave labor to paid labor. When my father took over he made breweries for rum and whiskey, adding to the business. I was expected to be the heir to business but..."
She paused for a moment, squirming as she nursed her tea quietly for a moment. "But?"
"...But he wanted to go back to using slave labor." She said with a sigh. "I found it stupid, really. I mean yeah, Caul is a Slave State and I got used to it all but... I just... It didn't seem wrong to me at the time, not really, but it didn't feel right either. I thought paid labor would be better anyway. You know, higher cost to pay people but more incentive for them to want to do better and not piss in the caramel. But then he wanted to go into the slave trade more directly; building a slave camp. I objected because while, again, it didn't seem wrong to me at the time I also knew slavery wasn't popular across the realm. I thought if it got out we were using slave labor or we owned a slave camp that profits would be hurt. We argued back and forth... And he was so gung-ho he decided to make me a slave."
"Shit..." Yeah, I remembered now that when I used Observe on her way back when. That was... I didn't want to imagine that level of betrayal.
"Putting it mildly, yes." She said, snorting. She took a sip of her tea to calm herself. "Thankfully I heard him outline what he was going to do to his business partner, so I knew to get the hell out. I made my way out and over to here... Took a job as a maid because I needed the money, but I don't want to dust shelves the rest of my life. At least I got to meet Riri; that got me to see how dumb slavery is. Pfft. But anyway, I want to work for myself now; maybe make my own impact, you know?"
"I can understand that." I said, nodding, sipping my own tea. "So... What do you need me for?"
"I want to make a food stand. Or rather an ice cream stand." Ahh, now things made sense. Regina had been more interested in the ice cream then anyone else. Well, making and serving it anyway. She'd even made the waffle cones with a pair of molds she asked the blacksmith to make for the house. Yes, in this world she invented the ice cream cone. "I've been saving coin since my arrival to start a business, and this is my best chance but I need so much that despite all that I can't afford it all. I need an ice cream maker. I need a house or store; not a large one but one that's built well and near the main road. I need something to keep the cream fresh until it's time to make, as well as other ingredients. Something to keep the ice cream cold as well. A stove to cook the mixture and the waffle cones to serve it in. I need to commission another waffle cone mold for my own use. I... You get the idea..."
"Yeah, enough of the picture, yes." I said, nodding once as I thought over it as I sipped the tea. "Well, if you build the thing I'm more then happy to part with a maker if you cover the materials." I told her as she smiled with a nod. "I can make the ice box myself, if you need it and I'd be happy to do it. I assume, though, that the stand will be the biggest cost?"
"Yes, yes it would be." She said nodding once. Well with my new fortunes I could buy it... But...
"As sure as I am that I could afford a place on or near the main road I do hope you understand I can't just buy it for you out of the goodness of my heart." I told her, sipping my tea for a moment. "So... if we assume I buy the stand or whatever it is that means one of two things; I lease it to you or you pay me back with interest."
"That is fair, M'Lord." She said, standing up straighter as she smiled to me. I looked out to the sun to get an idea of the time. "Hmm... If we hurry we can make it to town and see what we can buy from the town hall and be back before lunch." Despite being the son of the local lord I couldn't just point to a building and say 'mine', I had to compensate the land owners. And the best way to get an idea for what was available to buy was to visit the Mayor of Argon City.
...
Wait, who was the Mayor again?
[-]
Unknown Location
Blood Soaked Hill
"Gods... Gods, so many..." The man let off, panting as his axe dripped with red ichor as he looked down at the rotting bodies under him. They had been moving mere moments before.
He made them stop.
Another was crawling away; towards where the town was. Even if it had no legs and was just a crawling torso, he couldn't let the undead fiend get away as he walked over to it, almost shambling himself as he lifted his axe up slamming it down into it's skull.
It was dead. For real this time. He looked upwards after his slaughter of these... zombies...
How were there zombies here? He thought no one summoned them... How... How were they overrunning everything... He had to kill the one that ate his daughter after he got home and... Oh gods, what happened to the world!?
Darkened, red and foreboding skies was the only thing to answer him. It had to be... It had to be whatever turned the sky so blood red... Even the clouds were dark red and the sky was thick with them...
The man shambled away; he was low on food, water, rest... Security...
Even sanity...
What was going on in this crazy world?
[-]
"Young M'Lord, it's been sometime! Years since we spoke I think! You are looking very ravishing today; wanna fuck?" The Mayor let off as I sighed. Oh. Yeah.
Her.
Regina blinked and looked at the other woman with a dull, confused stare. The Mayor's office was well furnished; shelves on one side of the room, windows on the other and pictures hanging on the back of the room. Nice wooden floors and walls, a rich colored desk and plush, red covered chair.
The Mayor herself was more covered then most women in this world... Which would mean something if she didn't dress like a walking fetish.
In short; she wore a black Playboy Bunny leotard with the white cotton tail, white detached cuffs, a black bow tie, dark colored pantyhose and red, three inch high heeled shoes. The outfit varied from the norm after that; she also wore white gloves, a cropped, black, long sleeved jacket and a black top hat with a red band just over the brim and a set of white, bunny ears sticking up from the sides of the hat. Yup.
The woman herself stood at five foot four with C-Cup breasts and a slender figure, short blonde hair with two bangs that hung down to her chest and bright, green eyes. Pink coated lips turned up as she spun a cane in her hand, pointing it to me; it boasted a black shaft with a steel end to which was attached a well designed brass piece that clutched a red spell orb within it.
(-)
Name: Velvet Sweetrabbit
Title: Mayor of Argon City
Class: Mayor/Performer
Level: 21
Alignment: Friendly
Reputation: 67
Status: Healthy, Happy, Horny
Romance Rating: 167
Corruption Rating: 52
Known Traits
[Hormonal Imbalance] Your hormones are just a bit out of whack. Double all Romance and Corruption Ratings. Ratings required for marriage are increased to 200
[Slight of Hand] You are able to perform 'magic tricks' that rely on non-mana means, pickpocket and attack with greater ease. +10% Dex
[Like a Rabbit] For you sex is not the answer to anything. It is the question. The answer is yes. +20% to all Sexual Stats. +20% to all Pleasure Received. +25% to Ple for all sexual partners while in intercourse
Having lost her virginity at the age of nine local healers identified that Velvet's lustful instincts were much, much, much greater then the norm. She proudly boasts she's fucked over three hundred men and one hundred and fifty women in her lifetime. Despite all efforts her condition has been unable to be fixed; rather then be embarrassed about it she prefers to own it... Much to the embarrassment to all around her. Despite all of this she was elected Mayor for ten years running; in spite of her condition it's widely agreed that she is a capable and honest Mayor.
(-)
"We're here for business not pleasure, Velvet." I said firmly as she pouted. "I'm interested in helping Regina start up her little business. She needs a store or small building, near the main road. Do you have anything?" Despite the pout she moved to a shelf, pulling a folder off of it and taking it to her desk, laying it down. She opened it and started to flip through what seemed like deeds. She quickly sorted out the deeds and making two piles. Soon she set one pile back to the folder and shut it and lifted the other one; seven sheets in it.
"Got it! How about a tour then? Let's go see what's best for you guys!" She told us as we nodded and followed Velvet out of the office and city hall as we walked towards the main road. I couldn't help but notice that Velvet walked with long strides that seemed custom made to swing her hips side to side. Needless to say she caught all kinds of male attention. And some female attention, really.
Soon we were building shopping. The first was too big for Regina's needs; it would be a lot of wasted space with nothing to do with it. Also, Velvet told us how she had a threesome with the couple that used to own it.
Second was a simple, wooden stall with one back room. Sadly it was, in fact, too small for her needs and too far from the main road. Not helping was the Mayor's story of how she blew the young man manning what was once a produce stand.
Third was a building that was just a street off the main road; it was a little bigger then Regina needed but not by much; it had a stand with a room behind it, plus a second story with two other rooms. We agreed it was a maybe... Before Velvet talked about the lesbian orgy that was held in one of the rooms.
Fourth was the cheapest but that was because it was just a stand. Like, just a stand without storage. It was like a well made lemonade stand. Thankfully no Velvet sex stories about the stand... But one about the alley next to it.
Fifth was a building as opposed to a stand, it was a small bar. By small, I mean small there was only room for two tables and a counter. There was another room in the back, a cellar and a second story so it was bigger then she needed, but it was both on the main road and within spitting distance of the Guild. I was wondering how a bar like this, small as it was, failed in this location before Velvet told us (After describing how she was railed over the counter, of course) that the former owners were part of a criminal ring that was shut down five years prior. The owners avoided being swept up in it, but someone thought they back-stabbed the ring and were, in turn, back-stabbed.
As in literally stabbed in the back.
Regardless we agreed it was now at the top of the list.
Sixth was a perfect sized building but it was a too far from the main road and I could tell at a glance there was a lot of issues. For starters one of the support pillars was a home for a nest of carpenter ants and didn't look like it would last the year. Velvet agreed with me; it would have to be repaired and the ants dealt with... And then she told us she remembered the orgy she once held there.
The seventh and last was a four story house and even further away. We dismissed it right away, got the required Velvet sex story (A three day long, drunken orgy. Dear lord...) and took a moment to talk things over. We both agreed that the fifth was the best option; it was a bit more then she needed but it's location was perfect and there was enough room to expand if need be. We returned to the office, talked it over and I looked over the deed and it's price.
Two platinum and fifty gold for the deed, plus another five silver for fees to the Mayor's Office for the paperwork and another gold in tax. Before Prim's party I couldn't even dream of this. Now?
I could afford it with relative ease. I now owned a building.
Once done I turned down another offer to fuck Sweetrabbit like a... Well, rabbit and Regina joined me in going to the former bar with the key. She opened it and we went inside. We had a good look around before but we took a more careful look. I saw a spot behind the bar counter that would be a great place for a fridge (Well, ice box they called it) and it had a stove inside it already. It needed some TLC, but a little elbow grease and it would more then serviceable once more.
Soon the two of us agreed on a price for her rent; a tenth of her earnings. While normally a risky price to set I had a feeling that the ice cream would make money hand over fist. It also meant she owned me nothing until she had gotten everything running.
For help cleaning up the place she could hire the maids at the manor; if she paid a fair price there would be some that would take the extra work. We hashed out the rest and shook hands.
Achievement Unlocked: Land Lord
You now own and rent land!
Properties Menu Unlocked
Another menu? Huh. I paused to the menu and clicked the new option.
[Welcome to the Properties Menu. This menu will help you organize and understand your current properties and industries that you own.]
There was a list set up with a search menu at the top. The list was, of course, short; just one was listed; The Frosty Bull.
[Click The Frosty Bull.]
I did so and soon I saw an image of the building with a series of information.
(-)
Name: The Frosty Bull
Type: Bar
Location: Argon City, Barony of Mungale
Purchase Cost: 2 Platinum, 50 Gold
Sell Cost: 1 Platinum, 60 Gold
Income: N/A
Production: N/A
Status: Under Repair/Inactive
(-)
[You will be able to check up on the current status of your buildings, businesses and industries with ease. You'll be able to organize them as you please.]
Huh. Easy enough. I backed out and was about to go out of the menu fully when I noticed that the Class Menu had an asterisk by it. Huh...
I went inside to look and... felt like an idiot.
Yet again.
I had forgotten about my god damned Class Skills!
I resisted the urge to unpause and bang my head into a wall. Or through it.
I unlocked it when I hit level five but I was told I couldn't do shit with it until I got Class Points at level ten. Well, I'm level thirteen now and I just forgot about it until now.
That would have been real handy back when I was fighting Halbert... Gah...
I quickly looked to the skills; an image of five squares side by side in my view. It was the current skill block I had access to, and now I had three points to spend. I could spend a total of three points to each skill and, as I under stood it, I could only spend ten in the block total. I took a moment to look at the five skills.
(-)
Spell Blade Skills
Magical Avatar (0/3)
Your focus on magic is heightened. +5% Magical Damage per Class Point Invested
Swashbucker (0/3)
You've trained well with the blade. +5% Physical Damage per Class Point Invested
All in Balance (0/3)
You've focused on both spell and blade in tandem. +2.5% All Damage per Class Point Invested
Combat Medic (0/3)
You might be in the fight first, but you can heal as well. +2% to All Damage and +3% to Healing per Class Point Invested
Quick Reflexes (0/3)
Your best weapon is your speed and reflexes. +5% to Spell Casting Speed and Weapon Speed for each Class Point Invested
(-)
Huh. Reminded me of when I played Champions Online, really. [Olivia, can I respec my Class Skills later on?]
[Not currently, no.]
So what I picked was what I was stuck with, or at least stuck with for a long time. Damn.
Still, I had to pick wisely. I could place three points right now and place seven more as I leveled up. What did I want? I could spread two into each one. Or I could ignore one, max out two and put just two in two others. Or max out three and slip one into a remaining skill.
What I did know is I didn't plan to be a healer so I didn't think Combat Medic was the best choice for me. The various pluses to damage was tempting as well... For now I decided to hold onto one of my points until I mulled over it more but dropped two into Quick Reflexes. I wasn't sure if I wanted to max it out yet, but I knew I wanted some in it; I only wore light armor after all; quicker cast times and attacks might make up for that.
I exited the bar with Regina and after she locked it we paused to have a quick chat to expand on her the plans. I was about to say something only to get cut off by someone else.
"Oh thank the Goddess you're here. I thought I'd have to run for the manor!" I tuned to see Kara quickly jog up to me, panting hard as she looked to me, hand on her chest. "Beg your pardon, but I have a job... And it's a critical one!" She told me as I nodded to her before looking to Regina.
"We'll talk later. I'll see you at the manor." Regina nodded and turned to leave. Kara took my arm with a not-so-gentle tug led me to the alley for some privacy.
That she was pulling me here and not into the Guild underlined how critical this was; she wasn't wasting any time. "There's a serial murderer in Mungale." My eyes widened and before I could say anything she continued. "The Guild's been reporting on someone going around and murdering isolated people; usually just one or two people but sometimes small groups, usually with an axe. He's been moving north, starting from Faircas. I got a report this morning that... A large family was just murdered a couple miles from town; they left to go flower picking this morning and a farmer coming to town stumbled over them... They're all dead... I need someone reliable to go investigate and find this bastard and end him."
"Sure, I can get on that." I told her with a nod. I didn't know who was paying for the job, but in that moment it didn't matter.
[New Quest Gained: CSI – Mungale]
[New Objective: Investigate the Crime Scene]
[New Objective: Find the Killer]
[New Objective: Kill or Capture the Killer]
I took my Voxlux out and immediately called Miria. I was speaking the moment her face showed up. "Sis, the Guild has a job for us; we're off to track down a killer."
"Really?" Her face's brow rose up in the image before nodding. "I'll see if I can grab everyone. I'll meet you at Argon's gate; tell us what we got when we get there."
"Meet you there."
[-]
Unknown Location
Darkened Forest
The body hit the ground as he panted. Before he never knew that zombies were smart enough to use bows and arrows.
He had learned the hard way before. Luckily the trees provided good cover to approach the thing until he was in range to throw his axe into it's chest. It was still squirming when he got to it and pulled his axe back out.
Splitting it's head in half fixed that.
He took a moment to look around and shivered at the sight. The trees were rotted in all directions, bark peeling off and looking ready to fall over. Leaves hung off the branches, drooping down as if dead, not even shivering in the breeze. Dead leaves littered the floor of the forest with bits of blood, here and there. He'd stumbled over bits of flesh now and then, torn limbs and even skulls.
What horrors had come to Eostia...?
A rustle made his head turn; another zombie had arrived. One arm carrying a man's head; torn from it's body and carried by the spine. It looked to him and roared in challenge.
He threw his axe at it with practiced ease, his weapon sailing through the air...
[-]
Aeris was visiting the Academy for the moment and wasn't answering her Voxlux but the rest of the gang was more then able to join me. With the location Kara gave me we headed out It wasn't too long until we arrived at the rather small hill and...
Good lord... It was like the fantasy world equivalent of the Texas Chainsaw Massacre...
Kara had said it was a large family but she never said how large... And they were all very dead. The father of the group was laying by a rock; his left arm removed by some kind of bladed weapon, the back of his head caved in. The rock in question was covered in blood and what seemed bits of bone and brain clearly what had been used to cave in said skull. The mother was four feet away; her back was hacked at with gashes crossing over her back three times.
The eldest looking son was disemboweled and on his back; his face caved in with a boot print; bits of brain and blood splattered away from the impact site. The next oldest son had a large stick in his hand; his head cut in two from the left ear to the right jaw. The eldest daughter was hacked from left shoulder to the middle of her abs. The next daughter was in several pieces; both legs taken off at the thighs, the left arm at the shoulder and the right at the elbow.
I don't think she died quickly...
The youngest of the lot I could see, maybe a twelve year old boy at the oldest, had a sharp stick jammed through his back and into the ground. By the marks on the grass and dirt in front of him he tried to crawl away while pinned down to the ground.
He most certainly did not die quickly.
I wasn't surprised when I heard Tiffany empty her last meal onto the ground behind me. Miria was dry heaving as well as Makoto looked horrified. I was sure my face matched hers; I mean sure I've seen horror movies and like before but it was different seeing it in person. I think only Riri was fully in charge of her senses but to be frank a good chunk of her life was a horror show. Even then she was a good two shades paler and half a shade greener. Then her head turned before dashing off to the side and gasped. "G-guys..." I moved over to see what she saw...
And I then joined Miria in dry heaving.
It was a baby. It was not even a year old. It seemed to have crawled away from the massacre that was in progress. Instincts to get away or something, I dunno but...
It was... It had been... Oh god...
It was cut in two. There was a baby that was cut in half! Head to groin! Down the middle of the baby's body! I couldn't tell it's gender from the mess...
Miria's last meal joined Tiffany's and I fought to not vomit myself.
"What... What kind of monster... Gods..." Tiffany let spitting out additional vomit. "Are we sure this... thing we're after is human?"
"It's what Kara said..." I replied, my voice wavering a bit. It wavered because I was trying to keep my vomit down. Yeah... I could see why the Guild wanted this guy done in. "Miria... Think you can sniff this animal out?"
"Gah... hakk, hakk..." She let off grabbing a flask by her hip and taking a swig, swirling it in her mouth before spitting it out. "Gahh, yeah... Fuck, I'd do it for free... To put something like this down..." She said as she took a few deep breaths to regain her composure. "...Let's go..." She said as she walked down towards a forest, the rest of us following behind her...
[(⸜∕ ) Investigate the Crime Scene]
[-]
Barony of Tyn
Road Going North West
Celestine smiled softly, taking a moment to stoke Prim's hair as her head rested upon the Goddess Reborn's lap as the youngest of the Shields had a nap. Despite how much the girl had grown she was still, in some ways, childish. It was reassuring in a way.
The carriage she sat in was larger then her usual and escorted with a dozen Dawn Templars on horseback. In addition she had both Claudia and Maia as additional escort in the vehicle with her; the former reading a book and the latter looking out the window with a bored look on her face. As grassy fields rolled by them Maia would be the first to break the silence. "Ya know, there's one thing about this Black letter business that I can't fully wrap my head around."
"What's that?" Claudia asked, lowering her book to look to the redhead as Celestine also turned her head to look at well.
"I mean we have a lot of guesses as to who could be pulling this bullcrap..." Maia began. "But we're sure none of them alone can pull it off, right?"
"'Sure' might be a stretch, but it is a reasonable thing to say, yes." Claudia said simply. In her experience Maia was a classic case of 'Book Dumb but Street Smart' and while not well educated tended to ask the right questions or make more down to earth points others could miss. "Although taking any of them lightly could end poorly for us."
"But any two of them might be a real handful, right?" She asked as she leaned back in her seat. Claudia just nodded to her; after all that was obvious. "So... who would work with who?"
"Hmmm..." Claudia let off as she set her book aside to cross her arms in thought. "Good question..."
"We did establish, as much as Maia would not like to admit it, that as mercenaries the Black Dogs would work with any of them; assuming the payment was worth it." Celestine began. "And all those we suspect would hire them in turn. Likewise, Zenith merchants could be the ones funding the operation but doesn't like working with the Church. The Church would be willing to work with the rest, although they would stick their noses up at the Dogs even as they hired them. The odd one out are the Slave States."
"I think they would work with The Church if one could sell the other on the plan..." Claudia began. "But there is one thing to consider. The Black Dogs are led by Vult, The Church is led by the Archbishop. But who would emerge as a leader of the Slave States?"
"A good question." Celestine said as her brown furrowed in thought. "The two front-runners would be Duke Stoneshard or Duchess Bludhorn..." She began, listing off the leaders of the Duchies of Hol'canna and Anvil. "Although I am sure Count von Blitzhaus would insert himself into that race. That said..."
"We need to consider them a possible threat in this manner, but they are not a truly united block." Claudia said with a sigh. "Those three are united on the topic of slavery and little else; it's possible they might not even be able to decide on a leader from among their number."
"That said it wouldn't be impossible for them to unite under the banner of extending slavery." Celestine added herself. "I could see someone like Stoneshard or Blitzhaus masterminding this plot; but I am doubtful they would simply because of how hard it would be to unite the other Slave States discreetly. We need to capture and interrogate one of these 'agents' of this storm."
"Agreed." Claudia said with a nod. "Even if the agent doesn't directly know the mastermind what he or she does know can point us in the correct direction."
"Mind it feels like looking for a needle in a haystack in the dark..." Maia sighed as she crossed her arms. "Let's face it, we know to look out for Black Letters, and we can let everyone under us know... But that just means the agents have a heads up since they should be hiding among our underlings. I hate to say it, but at least for now we're going to have to rely on luck and the hope these agents screw up."
"...I agree... Which brings up a new point." Claudia began. "The Voxlux could be obtained by this enemy." She let off as she sighed. "We may need to ask what defenses James has to counter such an event."
"I hate to say it, but I agree." Celestine said with a sigh, looking down as Prim squirmed mid-nap before sleeping deeper into sleep. "A device able to empower our forces could be used to do the same for our foes. I would ask what security he intends to implement, if any."
"A good idea." Claudia said as she nodded, moving to pick her book back up to read once more. "Once we arrive in Mungale we can get a full report on it from him once we've made contact."
"Speaking of contact..." Maia began looking over to Celestine. "How'd you enjoy that dance with James, anyway?"
"Maia..." Claudia let off with a warning tone as the redhead lifted her hands up in a placating motion.
"Hey, I'm not teasing. It's just... Ya don't hear of Celestine involved with a guy, at all." She said before lowering her hands. "I mean it was her first dance in, what, five decades?"
"Just one, actually." Celestine replied with a soft smile. "And for your information, it was rather pleasant. Most of those attempting a dance are clearly attempting to court favor; he was merely assisting me for a moment, is all."
"Heh, hey he's easy on the eyes if nothing else." Maia grinned. "Although you would have competition there..." Maia said, her eyes darting down to Prim. Celestine smiled and ran a hand over the girl's hair as she snoozed on, smiling down to her as the carriage rocked gently.
"Assuming that comes to pass James is a baron's heir; he's allowed two wives. Assuming of course, Prim agreed to it." Claudia said as Maia snortred.
"Daughter of a Grand Duke..." Maia began, pointing to Prim first then Celestine. "And the High Queen. If he marries either one he'll be able to claim a hundred wives if he wants."
"Fair point." Claudia said, chuckling. "Given what I know of the lad he should be willing for more then one bride, but would at least want to be sure the wives would all get along."
"Regardless, we'll see what he's been up to once we've arrived."
[-]
Unknown Location
Ruined Farm
Sagging, discolored wheat and a rotten barn with peeling paint was the first things that greeted him after he climbed over the short, crumbling fence of the farm.. The red skies were his only real companion as he looked about. Maybe he could bar himself in the barn for a time; hold off the hordes? Or find the farmer's house; the food and items of the now dead owners could still be put to good use...
He decided to go to the house; he needed supplies and food was hard to come by in this nightmare... Although on the porch he could see...
Three zombies... Two seated and poking at the ribs of a torso of a copse on top of a pile of bodies. A third held an open skull with it's brain showing to the open, red tinted air.
A minor problem.
He lifted his axe to fight once more... Only to duck as instincts screamed at him to move, ducking and rolling as something exploded behind him; was it a fireball? "What?" Let let off, turning to face the new threat.
Zombies could use magic now!?
He saw a band of them, armed to the teeth. One held a broken, bloody spear, another a staff with a human skull on the end of it. One held two, long swords with the blades broken in half, another with a bow with arrows made of bone and sharpened teeth and one with a chipped saber. Five, strong looking and rotting foes.
This would not be good as he stepped back, griping his axe.
[-]
[(⸜∕ ) Find the Killer]
"This is... Not what I was expecting..." Tiffany said as we got a good look at our (Literal) axe murder.
"Yeah, I'd say so..." I let off as I saw the farmers on the porch of the house running inside to take shelter from the fight about to start, leaving a chess game and dropping a basket of bread as they went.
Our path through the forest brought us over another site of death. What looked like a hunter, slain with an axe through the head and a bladed impact to the chest. In addition there was a dead woman nearby; killed from a strike to the chest; her basket of herbs scattered across the ground. We kept following the trail and it led to here; a small, cozy farm with golden wheat growing and a worn, but sturdy red painted barn nearby. And our guy was...
Ummm...
He had a bushy beard that was dark brown and matched his shaggy hair. Bloodshot blue eyes looked to us with heavy bags under them, eyes darting about from person to person. He wore a worn, brown tunic and darker brown pants tucked into black boots. Standing at six feet four or so he was built strong and powerful... He was also covered in splatters of blood and gore. There was a piece of bone stuck to his shoulder and another stuck in his beard. He held an axe in both hands, but it wasn't a combat axe; it was a lumberjack's axe. The one odd thing about his clothing was the circlet on his forehead; steel and blood spattered with a green spell stone in it's center.
But the real shocker was that he looked terrified. Not 'Oh no, my mass murder spree is about to come to a violent end with my death' but rather something more akin to 'complete and total primal fear'. I used Observe to try and find out more about what was going on here.
(-)
Name: Peter Hacksaw
Title: Lumberjack from Faircas
Class: Lumberjack/Wildman
Level: 15
Alignment: N/A
Reputation: N/A
Status: ?
Known Traits
[Hard Worker] No matter what you do you put in your all! +5% to End
[An Axe To Grind] You love your axes! +3 Damage to all Axe Weapons in your Hand
[Gentle Giant] You don't want to hurt others if you can help it. -3 Damage to Non-Aberrant Races. +3 Damage to Aberrant Races
A lumberjack from a family of lumberjacks; he has twice before signed up as a recruit when the need to fight Garan arises. With the Garan conflict in rescission he's returned home to his wife and three children to return to the trade of lumber. Happy, loud and proud; Peter Hacksaw wants for little beyond the happiness and cheer of those around him.
(-)
...
Okay, this was beyond strange. I focused my magical senses on him; I had a suspicion... After all, why did a friendly lumberjack turned axe murderer wear a magical circlet?
"Everyone! I want him taken down alive and un-maimed!" I told the girls, pointing to the man with my rapier. "Something is funny here and I want answers!"
"You heard him girls!" Riri let off as she spun her knives. "Let's get him!" As her words came out my vision flashed and came to a close up on Peter's bloodshot eyes, coupled with his pale, blood splattered face.
"No... No... You'll not turn me!" He let off, moving to a combat stance as the view pulled back.
_Lumberjack from Faircas_
Peter Hacksaw
With a flash my view was normal once more and the fight started. I threw an Arctic Orb at his feet as he hopped back but when the spell impacted the ice spread out enough that he landed on it with his feet; he yelped and was about to slip when he slammed his axe into the ground to both break the ice and maintain his balance. Miria had an arrow notched but held fire as Tiffany quick summoned a beast from a book in her left hand; a cartoonish monkey knight creature made or red mana with a pair of long tails and... It's legs replaced with wheels. Yes, I am serious.
She pointed to the man with her staff and the wheeled monkey charged and the moment Peter regained his balance he was forced to lock weapons with the summoned creature that started to push him back as it's tails moved to wrap about his arms. Seeing this he stepped back and swung the butt of his weapon up to knock the thing back. Before he could strike he was deflecting Makoto's strikes as she charged in from the side. He turned to face her and went for a big swing only for Makoto to back-flip away. Before he could give chase Riri had delivered a jumping dropkick to the back of his knee. She rolled back and over her shoulder a moment after she landed as he was knocked off balance.
[-]
The impact to his knee was painful, but Peter pushed through it; these zombies were fighting smarter then most and ganging up on him. The decayed scorpion fiend charged him once more on it's eight legs, it's dual stingers reach for him once more. With a war cry he swung as hard as he could, with the technique his old commander had taught him. In a splatter of gore and blood one of the tails came off of it. He then jumped away, further this time, from the red ice fired by what was clearly the zombie commander leading them (A zombie leader... What else could there be left now?) as he pointed a broken spear at him and roared in challenge.
He struck the scorpion fiend once more and charged the zombie leader. The small one with the broken swords leapt in from the side and moved to intercept; he feigned an overhead swing before driving the butt of his weapon down into it's face and knocking it over. He couldn't finish it off; he was forced to dodge away from a bone arrow fired at him and then the scorpion fiend once more; although this time he struck the fiend true on the head and slew it with his axe.
The leader dashed in now, broken spear aimed at his heart...
[-]
I dashed in and jabbed at him with my rapier; trying to make him block or fall back as Riri recovered from a hard strike to the center of the forehead; that would leave a mark until we healed it up.
We could have killed him already, I was sure, but we were trying not to do that. I thrust and swung at him to try and keep him on the defensive, but I had to step back now and then to dodge a swing to avoid being hacked apart. He swung his weapon like a man possessed (And I feared that wasn't far off from the truth) as I waited. Makoto moved to flank me but didn't move in; I had called out to Tiffany earlier as I waited. Soon I was rewarded.
She quick summoned a new summons; a really buff, orange rabbit man that grabbed him from behind with a tight bear hug as I started to step in, the rabbit beast leaning over to force him down to into a squat. Before Peter could do a thing I set my hand on his forehead, my palm over the circlet as I used my Appraise spell. My eyes widened a bit as I finally got a basic idea of what the enchantment on the spell stone even was (I was sure there was one on the stone, I was not disappointed. Sadly) and was stunned for a moment. I didn't understand it in whole, but in what little I could understand in that short moment...
Dear god, there was a real evil bastard out there that needed his heart carved out.
Slowly.
With a rusted spoon.
After his balls were nailed to a wall.
Before I could fully recover from my revelation Peter howled out loudly.
[-]
Peter screamed out; unsure why the zombie wasn't digging his skull open, but fear combined with a boosting technique let him power out from the undead werewolf's grip, with enough force to knock both it and the leader zombie back. He moved to decapitate the leader only to see a flash of movement; the saber wielding corpse dashing past him. He felt the weight leave his weapon before seeing the axe head separate from the shaft in his hands. He had no time to think on it, swinging the shaft at the werewolf, only to be drop-kicked in the back of the head by the short one.
It was turned as a child, he was sure. Sad...
He couldn't linger on the thought however; he had to survive...
The wolf-man grabbed him once more, right arm pinned to his side but left hand freed. He tried to grab the wooden shaft in his left hand only to have the saber wielder smack his arm with the back of her weapon. The lead zombie let his weapon drop to the ground as he grabbed at his head with both hands and-
Pain! Unbearable pain! It was as if burning hot, blunted and serrated blades were scraping around his head. He screamed in horror and pain! This was worse then being turned! This was worse then joining their number!
His soul! His soul was being devoured! To fuel the monsters magic!
'Help me! Goddess Larentia! Eternal Queen of the Light! Help me please! Save what is left of this world! Help! Help! HELP! Heeeeeelllllllll-'
And then the pain ended and the world was no longer red.
[-]
"Gah!" I let off as I finally pried the circlet off of his head. It fought me tooth and nail; the programming on the spell making it cling like a band of tight duct tape. I imagined, given the screaming, that it wasn't pleasant...
"I... what? Where? How?" The man let off as he looked around as if in a daze. I looked over the thing in my hand with a critical eye. "Wh-where am I? Who are you? The zombies, the zombies! Where are.."
I bit my lip as I slipped my skull cap off and took a deep breath.
"James what are you doing?" Miria asked as she came closer as I donned the circlet and-
Blood red skies. Dead and dying plant life all around. The structures around us made of rotting wood. I then turned to my sister and saw...
Flesh rotted off her body that looked unrecognizable in facial structure, hair color and style; the outside of her left bicep was missing as was her jaw. Instead of cat ears she had pieces of her scalp puled and curled on top of her head. One eye hung loosely out of her socket... A breast hung from an open top, but it was torn in half; with the other half hanging off a strip of skin. Her rotting flesh was colored a sickly green, and she eyed me with a primal hunger... If I didn't act soon she would lash out, turn me into-
I tore the circlet off and gasped out as I shook my head, gasping loudly as I panted for a moment. Miria, a non-rotted version, was looking to me with worry. "I'm... I'm fine... I had to see... What this thing did first hand and, oh damn it..." I doubled over, hands on my knees as I panted harder trying not to puke.
Again.
"Ma-Master, are you okay?" Riri asked as she walked over to me hand moving to set a hand on my arm, stroking me softly as she looked to me with worry. I shook my head.
"No. No, I'm not." I said as I looked to Peter. "Let him up..." Tiffany nodded and dissipated her beast and let the man stand as he cradled his left arm.
"I don't... I don't understand where did all the zombies go..? When did the sky become normal and clear once more?" He let off, looking around before looking down to his clothing. "Wha-wha... Where did all this blood come from!?"
"I'll... I'll explain everything... But I need your help." I told him as I tried to keep my last meal down. "Who are you and do you remember how you came to Mungale?"
"M-Mungale!? This isn't Faircas!?" He let off as he looked around. "I'm... I'm Peter. Peter Hacksaw. I'm... I'm just a lumberjack. Signed up for the army when Garan came knocking, but I'm a lumberjack by trade... I... I dunno how I got here, Sir. Honest."
"Well what do you recall before everything went to hell?" I asked, maybe a bit too bluntly, but I needed to know.
"Er, w-well... I was choppin' down the trees like usual. I was about to hook a log up to the mules to pull back to town and I saw someone in robes... They looked hurt and I went over... Woman! It was a woman! I was carrying her to camp to get a better look at her wounds and... Something pressed to my head and... ... When I woke up everything looked dead and strange... I went home but I saw... I saw the zombies for the first time... M-my family... Were laid out on the table; t-t-torn apart..." I saw a... distanced, traumatized look to his eyes. As if trying to distance himself from the events he was a part of. "They were eating at them... Eating at them... I got them all, killed them to the last... B-but I kept running into more and more zombies... E-everywhere I went.. Towns overrun..." He shivered. "Cities..."
"..." I looked down to the circlet, gulping. I didn't want to say it but... Did he deserve to know? Should he live in ignorance? No... No, he'd... He'd figure it out sooner or later. "... This circlet is an enchanted item. It uses spells I've never heard of before..." I began to speak. "It effects the wearer by altering their perceptions. When I... When I put it on for that moment..." I turned my head to look at Miria. "I didn't see you. I saw... someone else... Something else. And that thing was a zombie... And not only did it alter perceptions but it was pressing on my mind... Making me feel fear, horror, paranoia and a desire to survive... And I only wore it for a moment... Hell, it was just for a moment but I almost forgot about what I just put on..."
Everyone looked to me with varied degrees of horror in their eyes. I gulped deeply and spoke more. "Golden wheat was rotting on the stalk.. A sturdy barn looked ready to fall over... I think... I think it messes with your mind... Makes you see the worst, most horrific thing in the situation that you could see then and there... It makes you feel horror to a primal level and forces the worst thing that can be pictured be pictured."
"What... what do you mean... What do you... ... ... No... ... No... No... No, No, No, No, No, No No-No-No-No-No-No-NoNoNoNoNononononononono..." Peter clutched at his head with both hands as tears starting to well up and spill out of his eyes as his whole body trembled. "Goddess, No! NO! NO! NO! Please for all that is holy NO! Noooooooooooooo..." He let off before collapsing to his knees in a sobbing mess. Every zombie he had killed, every zombie spanning four territories... Wasn't a zombie. And what was worse the first zombies he ended in his home... Was more then likely his own family. Dead by his own hand, their last moments seeing their husband or father hacking at them with an axe, unable to understand why...
I had no words... Miria and Tiffany hugged the man from two sides but it seemed to make his sobbing worse... This man had killed dozens, dozens of people. He never knew until now what he'd done and it was hitting him all at once. I had no ability... to comprehend what he was going through.. I looked down at the... evil item in my hand and turned it over. Inside of it, behind where the spell stone was set as some kind of maker's mark. I never saw one like it before; a spiked ring with a gap at the top with one lone, unattached spike pointing up and two pointing down towards the ring. In the center was a circle with a 'U' inside it with two points at the top corners pointing out.
[(⸜∕ ) Kill or Capture the Killer]
[Defeated List]
Peter Hacksaw=1200XP x 1.5 Mercy Bonus=1800
+20% Dark Horse Bonus
Gain 2160XP
Achievement Unlocked: Giver of Mercy
Granted Mercy to a Foe
[New Objective: Turn the Mission in at the Guild]
I was having nightmares for the next... year.
[-]
As the adventurers pulled the subject away towards the town a cloaked and hooded figure looked out from their perch in the forests branches as a snort was given. "Rather unfortunate. The Chazon failed, at least mostly. My report will not be well received..."
The figure would soon climb down and move towards an awaiting horse and from it's saddle bag a small cage would be removed. Pen set to paper as a small slip was tied to the leg of a pigeon before it was released. The figured sighed, mounting the steed and turned to the south east, following the bird's path...
[-]
Once Peter was somewhat composed we cleaned him up as best as we could in the river before escorting him to the town. I made the executive decision to have him escorted to a guard house by the girls as I reported in to Kara. I presented her with the circlet and watched as her face paled as I explained the full situation.
[(⸜∕ ) Turn the Mission in at the Guild]
"That is... This is... Gods... Gods..." Kara let off. If she went whiter I'd mistake her skin for flour. "This is bigger then a mass murderer. Someone made this thing. More over someone made it to do... To do..."
"Yeah, I do not recommend trying that thing on." I said shivering for a moment. "It has spells on it I've never heard of; either the guy who made this has either a lot of time on his hands to make nightmares... or access to some really old, exotic and rare magical knowledge. Worse the only means of identifying this guy is the odd mark inside of it."
"I've never seen one like it before. I'll send it off to the Central Guild; they might know more." She said sighing. "If nothing else we can get the word out about what this is; we might catch another circlet like this before too much damage is done." She sighed moving to go and get the money and brought it back. "Here. You earned it..."
[Quest Complete: CSI – Mungale]
[Gain 1400XP]
Level Up!
You are now Level 14!
+1 to Dex, Acc, Mnc, Agi & Mag!
+1 to End!
+2 RSP & SSP!
+5 UTP!
"Yeah... I guess so." I got three gold (The others got the same cut, of course) five Universal Stat Points and another six Regular. On top of what I already had and the level up that was ten Universal, Twelve Regular. Oh, and two Sexual now.
I didn't spend them. Not right now...
I needed... Something... I didn't know what...
[-]
"What a hard day..." Merlin said as he sipped a cup of tea as I moved a rook. It was killed on his next move. I was playing like shit and I knew it. He knew it. If there was a fly on the wall it knew it. "Such an occurrence... I can see why you're all so... disturbed."
"I would use the term horrified but yeah." I said making another move, taking his bishop with a knight. The knight was put under threat right away.
"I can only imagine, Son." He replied making his next move as soon as mine was done. "For what it's worth you've saved others from what would come had he not been stopped, and you were one of the few on hand able to recognize the problem right away. Some, less... Cautious adventurers would have looted the circlet and donned it without any understanding of what would come for them. You'll over come it, I know it."
"Yeah... I'll just have extra ice cream and snuggles with Riri... But my worry isn't with the circlet... It's with who made it." I said. Despite it being my turn I stared at the board not even considering the pieces. "Peter said that thing was set on his head. By someone else. I don't know why but it screams of more then malicious intent. I don't know if he was picked at random or picked for a reason, but either way this screams of a test run to me. I can't... I can't explain it exactly. Call it a gut feeling. The thing that bothers me most is Peter..." My father took in a breath as he crossed his arms. "I can't imagine what he feels now... What kind of help does he need to live with himself right now?"
"... Larentia only knows..." He said as I finally made a new move. "Larentia only knows..."
[-]
Two Days Later
Unknown Location
Shadowed Stone Building
Footsteps echoed in the darkened building as someone moved down the massive chamber. If there was a comparison to be made it was like a large throne room; very long with high a ceiling. At the back of that room was a set of stairs that led to a raised section and there sat a massive, seven foot tall throne. The only illumination came from a window behind the throne and let in the dying light of the day making the throne shadowed and not allowing the figure on it to be seen, save for two arms in wide sleeves. Besides the throne was another figure; tall and wearing some form of long coat but shadowed as well, meaning nothing of him could be made out.
The first figure finally stopped when feet met a pool of light on the stone. "My Lord, a messenger pigeon has arrived." The feminine voice came from the first figure as she knelt down, wearing light colored robes as she bowed her head. "Our agent is bringing the full report in, but based on what we know the Chazon was a partial failure. The test subject was under the correct effects, but what he saw was not intended. Nor did he move in the direction he was meant to."
"I see..." The man on the throne replied. The voice was older and firm as one hand moved into the shadows where the man sat; by what could be made out we was rubbing or stroking his chin. "Unfortunate but with such prototypes it is not... unexpected. The fate of the subject?"
"Defeated by adventurers. The circlet was removed while he was alive."
"They spared him?" The man said, less as a question and more in surprise. "I'm surprised they were willing to show such mercy. But this removal... Was it after he was defeated or while the fight was raging on?"
"Apologies, but the note did not say. It should be in the full report."
"I see. Tell Unussol what we do know and to start planning adjustments. Once the full report comes in he can adjust it from there."
"As My Lord wills it." She said before standing and turning to walk away, footsteps echoing in the room. Soon the doors opened then shut as she passed through them.
"We're investin' a fair bit inta t'is project payin' off, Father. Ye t'ink it'll work it the end?" The man next to the throne asked in his accented voice as he turned to face the man on the throne, glasses shining in the light for a short moment.
"Humpf. The project isn't that expensive in material; just in Unussol's time. In the grand scheme of things a failure is a... minor set back is all. Our purpose will still march forwards like a juggernaut; this will merely... clear the way to speed things along." The man on the throne said as he leaned back into his massive seat.. "Even if we must discard this plot it will, in the end, be worth the risk. And even if our little plot were to fail... This could yet be a tool to... other ends."
"Aye, aye... That much is true..." The other man said with a nod. "An' even so, not like we're wastin' people worth that much."
"Indeed. It is most fortunate these otherwise unwashed ignorants can be of some use to us and the true cause."
[-]
It's been three days since the event where we managed to stop Peter and brought him in.
While we were still impacted by it we moved on and went forwards. Yesterday myself and the full gang did another mission; an easier one involving clearing out a small wave of slimes passing through the region. I used Blessed Weapon on Miria's arrows as well as the blades of Makoto and Riri and we went to town slaying the damn things.
Miria was, in particular, very adamant of killing as many smiles as she could and after running out of arrows asked me to imbue her sword as well.
Given what happened to the both of us way back when... I don't blame her, really.
Either way the girls got stronger. Riri and Makoto came up to level nine from it as well and Tiffany popped to level eight.
For my Universal Stat Points I dumped all ten I had into Magical Power; after all Muscle Wizard increased my Strength based on Magical Power and then I had Hit and Move boosting my Agility based on my Strength. For my Regular Stat Points I split them in half; putting six into Constitution and six into Endurance. The Two Sexual Stat Points I got from the level up were dropped into pleasure.
My stats were slowly creeping up bit by bit. Aside from Luck all my stats were now over forty. Although I did make a mental note that I would need to put more focus on my Primary Stats next time I had a good amount. I needed to boost Dexterity in particular. I made a note to pick a job with a good stat reward next time.
On another note Regina had begun to clean up the former Frosty Bull and we were designing the ice box for her new place. Three other maids, including Ur'Akara, was helping with cleaning the place up. I took a check on the place and it was already much better; a soft blue paint was being put on the inside walls and the outside was being painted white with red stripes. One of the tables was repaired quite well and the other replaced, ditto with the chairs with six repaired and two replaced.
Regina was clearly excited about what she was doing and she was talking at length of how things would go for her. In addition she was giving me ideas; with money rolling in now I could afford better equipment if I found it but I could also invest it as I did with Regina. I had been thinking of it before, but now I was thinking of it a lot more. I could start a business, staff it with competent people and let coin roll in... And create new value and opportunities in not just Argon City but all of Mungale.
If I could do my own thing to help invest and build up the Barony then I would build my own power base. The better the Barony was then the better able it could weather whatever was coming. I could only do so much, but it could matter in the end. I decided to take my time and figure out what I could make or what businesses I could start that would make money. I needed to be smart about where I put my investments after all...
That said... Not everything was going that well and it came where you'd expect.
As one would expect no charges were laid on Peter Hacksaw; it wasn't his fault after all given he was not in control of his senses, literally. The circlet item that Kara nicknamed the Hell's Crown (An apt nickname, I thought) was sent out to the Central Guild, the Adventurer's Guild base of operations for further inspection and to be cataloged. She assured me information would spread out from there to every Guild in Eostia and spread from there; if another of these were found they'd know what to do.
As a side note she had also told me the Central Guild was very interested in the Voxlux system and said I would have permission to install my booster/public address systems on any of their buildings if another location could not be found. Given that they were as damn near common as in this world as McDonald's that meant I could put it in any city and major town.
Back on track, Peter was held in the guardhouse as I reported into the guild. We then got the local constable involved and he agreed that, yes, it wasn't his fault. In the end he was released and I offered him to stay in the manor for awhile until he got back on his feet. He politely refused and stayed at an inn with what money he had with him at the time. I... Didn't know what else to do, but the constable suggested I just go home. I... Didn't know what else I could do, so that's what I did for better or worse.
One of the Barmaids of the inn would find him the next day; hanging by his neck from a bed sheet tied to a ceiling beam, a stool on it's side on the floor. I... I wasn't surprised but...
I was at a loss of what to do. I couldn't force him into anything. I couldn't jail a free man for his own good. I was at a loss of what I could have or should have done. I didn't know. What could be said to offer comfort to him? What could be done to undo what had happened? Could I... Was there a better thing I could have done..?
All I knew was if I ever caught up with the... thing that made the Hell's Crown I'll leave both my mercy and my fucks to give at home.
It was depressing to think about, in the end.
I did have a brighter note come in; my spell orbs had arrived.
I had ordered twenty five of them at fifteen gold each, plus another five for the delivery, for three hundred and eighty total gold. I didn't have to pay for them, however, the Adventurer's Guild had covered the cost already. The thing is I had plenty of Voxluxs ready to go now but I still needed to make the boosters. Of course I had made a larger box with a spell stone set into it that would enchant them for me. I had the orbs brought to the little workshop I was doing my work in, set the first one inside, shut it and turned it on. The enchantment would take half an hour and I asked a maid to swap them around once they were done.
Once sure that was done I returned to a sitting room I was using as an office for my work. On the desk was a map of Eostia and I had gotten a lot of wooden markers painted red and with a very basic illusion spell on it that projected a ring of light around the base. We now had an idea of how far the booster reached. We knew it reached north into Garan; how far we didn't know but could guess based on the other directions.
To the east it reached about two thirds of the way into The County of Jetra, Geofu's north most territory. To the south it covered most of Faircas, also in Geofu, and in fact covered the bulk of the Dominion of Geofu itself. Westward it covered all but the southwestern most tip of the Cameron Barony and almost half of Pinewall's Barony to the south west. North West it covered all of the Duchy of Sanka in Feoh and all but a small section of the County of Ironheart, just northwest of the Kingdom of Feoh itself.
Now that I knew my range I had to work out how many boosters I'd need to cover all of Eostia. I also considered how far I could reach outside of it; Celestine's intelligence networks would fall in love with it I'm sure. Celestine was the most important person of interest right now for the Voxlux but not the only one; The Adventurer's Guild was also very interested in what this could do. The ability to share information rapidly and with little worry for distance? Yeah, they wanted it. Hell, every government on Sererus would want it if they knew about it. For now however my deal with the Guild was explicit; for now Voxlux boosters would only go up in Eostia and after that only nations friendly to Eostia with long term treaties. Although that deal also meant I had to sell them a total of two hundred Voxluxs so they could distribute them to their agents. Once ready I would bring them to Kara and she'd take it from there.
After all until I knew what the 'Black Storm' was and who was brewing it I had to keep things close to home. Hell, for all I knew the threat was in the very heart of Eostia itself. In truth it felt overwhelming, what I was up against; I didn't know where to look for clues. Hell, I might not even see the clues if it was waved before my face. I would need both help and direction for this. I planned to be the one installing the boosters to get around Eostia and maybe see the sights... And get an idea of what could be going on. As I placed the markers down on the map I hummed in thought. Of course the big threat could just be stepping out of the planning phases and moving into a preparation phase. It brought me back to how I knew about the Black Storm at all.
Halbert's final words.
He hated me with a burning passion, but he tried to warn me about it. The only reason he'd do that in his final breath would be if it was a threat to Prim and, since he was at that point as good as dead, he had to rely on me to guard her.
That had to be absolutely galling for him. Asshole.
That begged the question; how did he know about it at all? By all appearances he wasn't part of it so how would he know? Unless...
Unless he was invited to join them and rejected the offer. It made sense, at least to me. Which meant there could be agents across Eostia, close to the royal families, close to the nobility or even composed of nobility, close to the Seven Shield Princesses... After all if they could get an invite to the Butler of House Fiorire who else have they reached out to? It was Paranoia Fuel, distilled and purified.
As I finished placing markers I looked down at the map. I had, in the end, placed eighteen markers down on the map in addition to the one in Mungale. I had set one down onto the capital of each of the Seven Kingdoms while the other eleven were spread out across major cities in the border territories while doing my best to avoid the Slave States; even if I had to set a couple down onto Limited States to keep things covered well. They were fairly spread out aside from two spots; Ur would get it's own despite being next door to Mungale and Feoh's Baronies of Cauldona and Ironside would get one each. This is one part to ensure a little stronger and more coverage over both Dominious and Zenith as I was sure there were both agents and ambassadors inside them Celestine would want to keep in contact and one part a means to alerting the public if an attack was coming from the Empire.
I was over viewing the map as my own Voxlux started to ping. I pulled it out and answered it as my father's face appeared over it. "What's up Dad?"
"You're still home, right?" I nodded as he gave me a calm, even look. "We just got a report in from a patrol. A carriage approaches under an escort of the Dawn Templars. It bares the emblem of the Seven Shields Alliance." I sucked in a breath. "They'll be here in an hour."
Naturally Eostia had a banner under which all seven kingdoms untied. I could guess who was approaching us then.
Celestine Lucross. And this time wasn't a brief break from travel for a random inspection of the border of a neighbor in the middle of a civil war.
This was official business... With me.
"Got it. I'll be ready to greet them." I replied as he nodded and shut it off. I took in a calming breath and turned to the door opening it to step into the hall... And then a flash of white once more came over me.
I could see, disconcerting as it was, my body walk down the hall before the 'camera' moved ahead of me and out a window, lifting upwards and panning out to showcase the manor in full. "With feet now under our hero he no longer stumbles but walks, even with little direction of where to walk to. Yet forwards he shall go... And soon he will be given a new quest by the realm's highest authority..." The narrator said, last heard as I left Fortress Ur and Stonewall City. The view started to fly off, showing the road as it went.
"On horse drawn wheels comes the High Queen Celestine Lucross seeking what may now better her people and her lands. Heavy is the responsibility bearing down on her shoulders." Soon I could see a well made carriage; mostly white with pale gold accents as it rushed past with half naked, mana armor clad knights riding with it. The camera moved behind it, showing Mungale Manor off in the distance. "But with grace she rides forth... With none knowing how this will better the future as the storm brews in the distance."
As the carriage rode off to the distance that gold, fancy font in a title rose up into my vision.
Act II: By Her Will
As my normal vision returned I only had one thought.
Here we go...
[ - Author's Note - ]
Whew. That was... Fun to write in a way. And not fun in another.
I'm not much into horror but I had this idea one day; what if someone, through no fault of their own, saw the world as a full on Zombie Apocalypse. Where he saw normal people as rotting, moving husks. A family having a picnic would be seen as zombies eating a fresh kill. A woman walking homes carrying bags of groceries in her arms would looks like a zombie carrying decapitated heads. A kid carrying a base ball bat home would look like a zombie with a human leg with bites taken out of it. So on and so forth.
I wanted to use the idea for something and then I started this fic. I had this idea planned for awhile and I had a... group I wanted to establish down the line. So, here we are.
The Straw Poll is still open and has forty two votes so far. Feel free to vote if you haven't already! It's still at (slash) 1j54gju4o
Sadly FFDotNet doesn't allow for direct links; just put a period instead of a forwards salsh (/) instead of the (slash) and remove the spaces.
Let me know what you think; leave a review and comment on the episode, if you liked or hated the tone of it, what you liked or disliked about the rest of the episode and so on.
Until next time!
~~Eostian Scribe