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A Soldier's Life - 247 - Soul Prison
🕑 Added 2024-08-17 15:49:37 +0000 UTCChapter 247: Soul Prison
The path along the river was much slower moving the next day than if we had remained on the ancient trade road. Still, I didnât want to risk being spotted by the wyvern. Maveith didnât complain about our route. At least the wyvern would have kept lesser predators from violating its hunting grounds. The only threat my earth pulse returned was a cluster of giant trapdoor spiders. They were not even that large, just the size of a large cat.
After a few hours, Maveith relaxed as well and started cleaning the coins we found by the wagons. We were both moving fairly silently; my earth pulse was very effective, and Maveith needed something to occupy his time. âMost of these coins are from the Endless Dark,â Maveith said softly, keeping his voice as low as possible.
âWhat? Are they goblin coins, then?â I asked, half interested. My knowledge of the Endless Dark was limited. My current focus was on scanning the banks of the river with earth pulses.
âA few are goblin coins, but most of them have dark elf scripts and images.â Maveith handed me one of the silver coins. He had cleaned most of the dirt off it. He was right, it was Elvish with a date stamped and Ishaena Esari, which translated into City of Pure Blue Stone. On the other side was the face of a female elf. Time had flattened the relief, and I was not familiar with the Elven calendar.
âHow do you know they are dark elves? The elven language is the same as the surface elves.â I asked, handing him back the coin.
Maveith took the coin and rubbed it a little more with a cloth before answering. âThe elf matriarch pictured on the coin is Novaneae Dralahidoe. She rules a dark elf city on the other continent in the Endless Dark, Ishaena Esari. When I left my home, I picked up a lot of threads of knowledge. One of the human cities I passed through traded with the Dark Elves. The dark elves only trade in their coin as the humans mix impurities into theirs.â He held up the coin, âI recognize this coin.â
Maveith hadnât seen the coins we got in the wagon chest, and I never saw them after they had been cleaned. Most of the coins in the Telhian Empire were either Telhian coins or blank dungeon coins found in reward chests. There was some consistency with other empires in the denominations, but the Telhian Imperial Reserve collected foreign coins and reminted them with Telhian images.
I only knew this was because merchants preferred dungeon coins due to their high purity over Telhian-minted coins, similar to what Maveith had indicated with the dark elvesâ preference for their own coins.
âAre the dark elves evil?â I asked Maveith to continue the conversation as a distraction.
Maveith let out a long exhale, which told me he was thinking about how to answer. âI know very little of them and have only seen a few in my travels. Actually, the dark elves are not dark. Their skin is mostly pale to alabaster in tone. They are called dark elves because they live in the Endless Dark. Their hair is as white as their skin, but the ones I have seen dye their hair various colors as a status symbol. Their warriors always dye their hair black.â He paused as he reached for old knowledge. âThey are not friendly to the elves on the surface, but I do not know the reason. Maybe Raelia would know.â Maveith said the last as a hint that perhaps he wanted to see her again.
âWe are not going to visit Raelia. If I can avoid it, I will never enter Bartiradian lands. We have to be thirty miles north of Caelora by now. Letâs move back to the trade road,â I said as I started angling us back. Orienteering was not easy without landmarks, and the Aganterao River was my only reference. The trade road ran parallel to the river all the way to Telha.
As we stepped onto the ancient road, I immediately frowned as I kneeled and studied the road. Konstantin had mentioned one evening the stone pavers were spelled so no vegetation would grow on them. Still, the canopy had encroached above, and the road was heavily shaded and covered in most places in soft soil likely from decades of composting leaves.
Maveith was kneeling with me. âMost tracks are headed south,â he voiced what I had already seen written in the soft layer of dirt. âThese wagon, horse, and footprints must be from the First Citizenâs expedition.â I nodded in agreement.
My eyes studied those tracks that were not heading southâthree sets of prints, probably all men. One man was dragging his right leg. Maveith was patient while I studied and walked the tracks heading north toward the capital. âThey abandoned everything as they do not appear encumbered. Two of the men are injured. One has a serious leg injury, and the other has an upper-body injury.â
Maveith cocked his eyebrow in question. I pointed, âThis set of prints has the man dragging his right leg, and this set has uneven steps and is favoring his right side.â I demonstrated how I pictured the men walking from how the tracks spoke to me.
âYou have gotten more skilled at reading tracks than I,â Maveith said in appreciation. I just nodded absently at his praise. In the Hounds, I had learned to track people so I could hunt them.
âThe tracks are probably just over a day old. We are going to catch them before they reach the capital,â I said, digesting the idea I might have to kill the men. Maveith remained quiet, waiting for me to make a decision on the fate of the men on the road. I removed the blood compass and channeled aether into it. Castileâs sample was still pulling southeast toward Caranhagan. I had more samples for Castile that I could use, but I hated resetting the blood compass to see if Boris was alive.
I sat on a log and opened the compass. Maveith stood over me and remained alert while I meticulously cleaned the artifact, heated it, and retrieved a new sample. Maveith hovered, interested in what I was doing but not interrupting me. A half-hour later, I closed the compass and channeled my aether into the device. The compass pulled modestly north, and I judged the pull. âFirst Citizen Boris is one of the men ahead of us.â
Maveith looked appreciatively at the compass and then up the road, âWhat do you want to do?â
âI am only getting one pull on the compass, and he is less than thirty miles ahead of us because of the strength of the pull. They canât see a goliath,â I focused on Maveith to see if he objected to me killing Boris. I had no love for Boris and would probably be doing Duchess Veronica a favor if I killed her brother.
Maveith didnât object but had a pertinent question. âWhat are we going to do when we get the capital, then?â Maveith asked. âI do not wish to be sent into your space, Eryk.â
I sighed. âNo time would pass for you, but I understand. We will cross the Aganterao River, and you can wait with Ginger on the northern coast. We will pick you up once I have chartered an Adventurerâs Guild ship.â I explained my loose plan.
Maveith looked at Ginger, who cocked her head in question as well from hearing her name. I could tell he didnât like my plan, but we had few options to get out of Telhian lands without passing warring armies.
I looked at the tracks, the sky, and the road behind us, coming to a decision. âStay back a quarter mile, Maveith. I will walk Ginger forward and confront the men.â Maveithâs face pinched in displeasure at being left behind. âI can handle myself, Maveith. I have an aether shield amulet and my bag of tricks,â I assured him. I showed him the aether shield amulet to prove my point and started walking ahead. Maveith waited unhappily, and Ginger looked back at him as we opened up the distance, confused.
I handed Ginger an apple to soothe her, âDonât worry, Maveith will catch up, girl.â I moved on a fast walk, checking the tracks every hour, and it appeared the men were resting frequently. As night approached, I halted and waited for Maveith to catch up. Ginger was excited to have our pack back together, nudging Maveith like she was scolding him for being slow.
âThey are not far ahead, Maveith. The last urine stain on the tree was still wet and pungent. I just wanted to let you know.â Maveith nodded, and I walked away again with a confused Ginger.
Two miles later, in the deep twilight, my earth speak pulse found the three men thirty feet off the road. I walked slowly and waited for them to reveal themselves. Borisâ crass voice cut the air, âWe have bows trained on you, traveler. Leave your horse and head back the way you came.â Although my pulse gave me a fuzzy image of them, I knew none of them had bows.
I was chewing on some tough jerky as I spoke. âBandits on this road?â I asked, amused. I had deepened my voice, and he had not recognized me.
âI am not a bandit,â Boris barked in a raspy pain. âI am First Citizen Boris Angella, and I am commandeering your mount.â
I stood and waited for the three men to make their way onto the road. One man had his leg splinted and had an empty scabbard on his hipâhis sword was another lesser runic weapon in the moonlight. Boris held his dungeon-forged weapon but had his ribs wrapped. The third man looked uninjured but frail and definitely not a warrior. No weapons and no shoulder musculatureâmaybe this was the necromancer.
In my deep voice, I sought information: âDuchess Veronica did say her brother was stealing from the Emperor. She asked me to go keep an eye on him and report.â
The three men looked at each other, a bit confused, and Boris spoke for them. âHow did my sister find out about my expedition?â Boris said with vitriol.
This was interesting information, and I was glad I had taken the time to talk. âShe has her own spies in Count Catoâs household,â I said dismissively. I balled up the chewed jerky in my mouth and spit out the salty glob on the ground. I could sense it was getting close to the time to dance.
Boris sounded a little desperate, âOne hundred gold for your horse and your silence.â Boris stepped closer and the uninjured man started to form a spell form in his hands, indicating their intentions. Magebane appeared in my hands, and I released Gingerâs reins. Boris was a good swordsman, but he must have broken ribs as I easily deflected his blade and slashed above his knee, cutting deeply into his quad. Even his hardened skin couldnât stop the magebane.
The mageâs spell splashed across my aetheric shield as the amulet worked. The blue flash of the shield lit up the surroundings briefly and highlighted my face. My disguise had deep reddish brown rubbed into my hair and beard, and my face had some dark shadows that made me look older. Still, the recognition flashed on Borisâ face.
âYou!â He stumbled back as if he had seen a ghost. âKill him!â The mage was confused by the aether shield, and their third companion could barely stand. Borisâ stoneskin spell form was already dissipating from the aether poison from the blade. I didnât hesitate to move past Boris to reach the mage. I slashed his arm as he tried to ineptly to block it. I then turned on the third man, who was limping backward. I moved into him, blocking a feeble strike with an air shield and then a lightning stab to his throat.
I turned to face the crippled Boris and incapacitated mage while pulling out a glowstone. That should alert Maveith to come forward. âWhat did you do to me?â Boris rasped angrily as he struggled to use his aether and remain standing.
I ignored his pleas and asked the mage, âAre you the necromancer?â He nodded fearfully.
âSo, tell me what a soul prison is?â I asked calmly.
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Comments
Erick Thiemke
corrected
Trevayne
Thanks for the chapter.
Jacob Mitchell
Hawk one?
Andrew Crews
The only threat my earth pulse returned *was giant *trapdoor spiders. The only threat my earth pulse detected was a cluster of giant trapdoor spiders.
CryptoBird
âHawke tuah.â - lol but please reconsider. Donât break the 4th wall. It doesnât flow.
John Donovan
The Hawks tuah joke is much funnier now that she is barely worth spit.
momo2009
Maybe just have maveith use the blade to threaten him to go in to the amulet, and then erek choosen when to leave bc I recall Eryk left first when the servent lady used the amulet. Or fake it by taking his blood sample first then make him enter in the name of the empire since no one know he quit the hounds.
Liam Andrews
At least he didnât know Aesop had defended him to his father until after he had already killed him. The mission to destroy the archives was definitely a better reason to kill someone than the targets Sergius was giving him
Silver Beard
I have actually no idea what Hawke tuah is- I had to look it up... Mystery Eggs needs it's own channel in discord.
Silver Beard
The partner still has to have access to their eather to even enter. Recall the trial where Aiden tried with Eryk and failed because he couldn't channel with power? The sword cuts one OFF completely to their power- precluding all spell forms or spells.
momo2009
thanks
Erick Thiemke
It is the Underdark in D&D
momo2009
Hi love the lore part of the story. So is the Endless Dark, another dimension or just deep underground because last time it was the dungeon that tried to trapped the group in the endless dark but i wasn't clear on what it was. And multiple species live in the endless dark?
momo2009
Wait perhaps you can learn from the necromancer by using dream amulet. Once the other 2 are defeated, you give the magebane to Mavieth and tell him to slash the necromancer every hour (as much as needed) while you and him enter the dream amulet and make him store all of his knowledge about necromancy, books, location, lore, spell form and spells. That way you have all the knowledge for future battle/travel. Then you can kill, or store him to use or release later, or let him go after taking all of his goods/items, some blood for threaten and future tracking (plus you can claim to still be hound he doesn't know you quit)
momo2009
bold or italic for sounds perhaps, would make it less confusing.
momo2009
keep it please i love it when author drops earth slang and jokes into other worlds and affecting their language and culture. Or even cooking or invent something.
momo2009
Well that other mage who fell to the elf mage feed his drake essence, so Eryk could in the future give Ginger essence to improve her stat or maybe even do magic? :) Please author magic fly horse would be interesting.
Juan Magallon
âSpit on that tangâ đ€©
Erick Thiemke
It is his changing character. He has set off down the road after killing Aesop. His only hesitation/reluctance is hunting to kill other people but he is passing that moral line in the last 5 chapterss
Victor Skaarup
I donât get the contrived squeamishness. Boris attacked him first, as well as attempted to commandeer his horse. It would be foolish to leave living enemies behind. Particularly ones who can reveal he is still alive. By all means obtain information, and then then kill them. He has been in this world long enough to know the culture.
Kbzzy
Why will he not go to the bartiradiansv
Thresher
Yeah thatâs what I thought but itâd still be cool if Ginger could get a boost in stats. Maybe Eryk could feed her some essences eventually. Obviously that seems like a waste but having a horse with super strength and speed or higher intelligence would be awesome.
Karnnie
The dungeon food is Aether Rich, helping to replenish Aether faster, that is the only thing that has been stated about the food. Ginger was a trained war horse when he first found her, and has always been smart.
Karnnie
should reword the Hawke Tuah, it is a sound, not something you say.
Enk
i don't agree, eryk's been enslaved by the empire, and boris epitomises and worsens this by his every action: death's too good for him.
Lemes
Well, there you have it. Now the MC will have a runic sword of excellent quality that will not put him in danger in the orc lands.
Joe Sebright
Gave me a good laugh
Thresher
Is there a count for how many times Eryk has given a dungeon apple to Ginger? Iâm not sure if the dungeon apples can increase stats, but itâd be pretty funny if Ginger started getting stronger from all the stuff Eryk feeds her. Thanks for the chapter.
steve H
"Hawke tuah"
Thresher
I like Erykâs new line of thinking. Heâs been through a lot since the start of the story, so it makes sense for his morals to have shifted a bit darker than they were before.
Erick Thiemke
He didnât say, just the sound he made when he spit it out đprob wonât make the final edit but thought it was funny
Zurko
ain't no way bro said Hawke tuah
sdf
fun chapter, thanks
sdf
That or them cornering him and threatening him, using a truth spell to determine if he had it on him... then when the spell fails to discern he's lying, they curse and threaten him. "You better come up with it then. Can't run, or the Hounds will hunt you down. Can't hide. You get it to us in a week, or the only thing you'll be graduating to is the inside of a baker's oven, all warm and toasty-like. Ain't none of your high friends can keep you safe from us."
sdf
It wouldn't take much, just an overheard conversation during that scene where they were waiting outside his door. "He has it on him, I know it." "We should kill him now." "No. Curse his luck, he has friends in high places, and if we kill him and don't find the amulet on his corpse, the First Citizens'll gut and bleed us like pigs, losing it for them."
Andrew
Thank you!
Garrett
No problem.
Erick Thiemke
fixing - thanks!
Garrett
be doing Duchess Veronica if I killed her brother. Is there supposed to be "a favor" in there?
Erick Thiemke
2nd of 4 for cycle. So I am going to have to go back and add the part where the Hound pups (Castian, Harris, and Savino) try harder to get the dreamscape amulet from the MC by orders of Boris - otherwise, killing Boris feels slightly out of character for the MC. The MC has definitely shifted his moral line a bit since killing Aesop
