NOVEL NEXT Chapter 22 - Ties of Blood
‘I came here to ask for your help.’ Caeileera said with sorrow in her voice and fell to her knees.
Lilyth cocked her head and gave Caeileera a confused look. She couldn’t blame her. The woman swallowed and continued:
‘My brother needs to be stopped. This madness needs to end.’
Laachersain wasn’t quite exactly her brother, since they technically weren’t related - they were just spawned in the Crimson Pool as part of the same batch, but it was close enough a term.
‘Some elaboration is required,’ Lilyth said in a flat voice.
‘We were summoned here by Löwe about a year ago,’ Caeileera began. ‘He has grown tired of his old master, some man named Rivard, and wanted to take over. Instead, what happened is Laachersain saw what was going on here and usurped the necromancer himself. As you can imagine, Löwe was furious about this but with some… coercion… agreed to assist my brother with his plans.’
Caeileera shuddered thinking about what Laachersain did in those days. She has since stopped feeling sorry for Löwe but remained disturbed about Laache’s actions nonetheless.
‘My brother viewed this dreadful man as a valuable resource and utilised his knowledge from this “Earth”.’
Lilyth grimaced upon hearing this.
‘And what is Laa… Lae… your brother planning?’ the slimeling asked, concern apparent in her voice.
‘I don’t know,’ Caeileera said truthfully. ‘I was never included in any of these discussions. Laachersain never trusted me enough to view me as anything more than a lackey.’
‘And why would that be?’
Here came the difficult part.
‘I never quite fit among the other Sanguine…’ Caeileera started but quickly trailed off seeing Lilyth predictably tense upon the mention of her race.
She fully expected that reaction, but it still hurt to see it.
‘You don’t look like those w- I encountered.’
That correction again. Caeileera suspected Lilyth wasn’t alone, but this proved it. Still, that kind of behaviour told her that if she managed to convince Lilyth to trust her, then maybe she would be able to escape this nightmare and start a normal life.
With a sad sigh, she summoned her mask and put it on. She hated the thing.
‘Better?’
‘Eh. Take that thing off, you are much easier on the eyes without it. And stand up for Christ’s sake.’
Caeileera smiled and did what Lilyth asked her to. Then led by an impulse she threw the ugly thing at the wall where it shattered, the pieces falling into the water in a series of splashes.
No turning back now.
Without the mask, she would never be accepted home again. Still, was it really one to begin with? For the first time in a while, Caei felt free. It was both exhilarating and terrifying. If she misjudged here…
No. No ifs.
Lilyth raised her eyebrow.
‘Sorry,’ Caeileera said, feeling a bit ashamed about the display.
Lilyth nodded and motioned for her to continue.
‘Not all of us are monsters. The things you have been fighting so far are closest to what you would see as animals. We all come from the same source, but we are a higher manifestation of it. There are fewer of us, and well…’
Caeileera stopped, looking for the right phrase.
‘You actually run everything?’ Lilyth came to assist her.
‘Yes. Thank you.’
‘No problem. Question: who “manifests” you?’
‘The ruler of the Pale Badlands. People here call it “The Blood that Devours”.’
‘Sounds… friendly,’ Lilyth chuckled and visibly relaxed.
She actually lowered her sword. The slimeling then shrugged, approached Caeileera and sat on the altar, facing the hole in the wall.
Yes!
‘Yeah,’ Caei laughed back, feeling relieved.
She placed her glaive on the altar and sat by Lilyth, doing her best to ensure her boots would not touch the water.
‘I am amazed you feel comfortable wading through that stuff,’ Caeileera observed.
‘I don’t,’ Lilyth said matter-of-factly. ‘Like, the only reason for me going topless is because I didn’t want to get the new set of clothes covered in this stuff.
Both she and Caei shuddered at the same time at the mere thought of it.
‘I really need a bath,’ Lilyth sighed sadly. ‘Anyway, you were telling me why the Pale Badlands were a perfect holiday destination.’
‘It’s not just us Sanguine and our… their lord there. There are also other sentients, usually mortals captured on raids. Most of them can live fairly normal lives there. Some… aren’t this lucky. I always found this abhorrent. I know I wasn’t the only one, but expressing such views is… frowned upon.’
Lilyth nodded.
‘Which is why you want out?’
‘Yes. I can't save them, but at least I can save myself. Laachersain, and likely others, noticed my reluctance to join in these activities. They never had any concrete evidence to turn me in, but the suspicion was there.’
‘Which you are now proving correct.’
Caei smiled weakly.
Now’s the hard part.
There is also another reason. When I came here… well…’
‘Well?’
‘First, allow me to say something: I know you are a creature from the land of Death and Shadow, making you a subject of Lady Ereshkigal.’
Lilyth cackled like a madwoman, completely throwing Caei off.
‘I wouldn't put much stock into that bit,’ she said. ‘My working relationship with Ereshkigal lasted…’ Lilyth broke off as she checked something on her interface. ‘... around eight hours.’
It was Caeileera’s turn to be confused.
‘I don’t understand. You can’t be eight hours old.’
Lilyth pointed at the altar.
‘I’m thirty-three. I just took a slight detour not of my choosing while I was being brought here. Not that the whole trip was my idea.’
‘You are a human from Earth?’
‘From Earth, yes. As far as the human part… I think I am something else now.’
‘You’re not like Löwe, though.’
Lilyth smiled sourly.
‘Thank fuck I’m not. Anyway, why does me being me matter here?’
‘It likely doesn't, given what you’ve just told me. A few months ago… in a moment of despair, I started praying. I wanted some god… any god… to help me. I couldn’t keep watching what Laachersain and Löwe were doing. And… I was answered by Akh’ret, the god of Life. I was afraid that you being well… you know.’
‘I have received no instructions one way or another, and even if I did…’
Lilyth shrugged.
‘A god forbidding you from associating with someone is not a deity worth following, I find. And based on what you are saying, this Akh’ret didn't give you any dispositions of that nature either.’
Fair point. And it’s not like Lilyth is a creature of Death. Just a one of Shadow.
Lilyth sighed.
‘So… As much as I want to trust you, especially since you are the first person here to provide me with some actual answers… Tell me… why should I believe you?’
Caei’s heart sank at that, but she understood.
‘You have no reason to.’
‘I don’t. But for the life of me, I also can’t see one why you would be lying to me either. You had multiple chances to kill me, and yet… you didn’t. You could have taken Sarin and delivered it to Laachersain. You didn’t. Instead… the Sarin is gone and we are talking and not fighting. You could have devised some convoluted plan to get me to him… but there would be so many moving parts there, that it wouldn’t be practical. I mean… just knock me out and take me there. Us killing half of your minions along the way would be counterproductive. So… while I can’t say I trust you, I am willing to work with you. For now.’
‘Really?’ Caeileera couldn’t believe her ears.
‘Really.’ Lilyth confirmed.
‘Thank Akh’Ret.’
Wait… why not just…
‘Would me sharing the quest I got from Akh’Ret help?’
‘Hang on, you can share quests?’
‘Well… yes,’ then it hit Caei why Lilyth was asking. ‘Oh… sorry. I forgot you are new here.
A window appeared before my eyes.
Caeileera wants to share the following quest with you: The Master of the Tower
Type: Divine - Life - Dungeon
Difficulty: Hard
Description: Laachersain of the Sanguine is a potential threat to the living being on Dwynveia. His plans must not come to fruition.
Objectives:
Stop Laachersain
Rewards for your participation:
500 experience points
1 Perk Point
Approval of Akh’Ret
Approval of Ereshkigal
Rune of Shadow Bolt (Umbral Arcana)
Penalties for your participation
Disapproval of The Blood that Devours
Do you accept this quest? Yes/No
Well, that does it.
I thought “Yes” and said:
‘Welcome on board, Caeileera. Just a few more questions. The first one is quite personal. Your… fangs… do you… well…?
It felt awkward to just ask, but I had to know. I had Aki to consider.
How do I phrase that delicately?
‘Drink blood?’ Caeileera guessed, sparing me the embarrassment. ‘I’m not a vampire if that is what you are asking about. While I can… I don’t have to. I can subsist on normal food, just fine. I gather, since you don’t have any blood, that it is your companion you are worried about?’
‘Yes,’ I said, cursing myself for being terrible at hiding things. ‘The second thing… how did you know I am a tenebral slimeling? And how did you find me?’
‘The first one is easy. I can sense you don’t have any blood, and what’s inside of you is slimy. There is also a certain smell about you that all creatures of Ereshkigal have.’
I nodded.
‘The second one is more complex. Löwe had a magic mirror he used to communicate with Laachersain. That mirror suddenly stopped working after Maximilian reported issues with intruders. So I was sent to investigate.’
Aki, I thought in horror. She could be in danger. Did Caeileera… No. She wouldn’t have that quest then. Calm down, Lilyth. CALM THE FUCK DOWN.
The Sanguine must have noticed something about it because she quickly added:
‘I assume it’s your friend who broke the mirror. Don’t worry. I came here the fast way. If Laachersain sends anyone else, it will take them a while to get here.’
I nodded.
‘Still… let’s go to her. I don’t feel comfortable leaving Aki alone in this situation.’
I got up and started wading through the water but Caeileera stopped me. She was standing on a floating disk of light.
‘Why walk when you can fly?’ she asked with a smile.