Champion of the Gods
Copyright© 2025 by QM
Chapter 17
Darras led the confused, yet still silent, victims out of the house, noting several captured guards helped by the mithril-armed temple guards, most of whom had given up without a fight. The mithril armoured swordsmen cut down the ones who had fought ruthlessly. Darras and his wards were then escorted to the main temple, where Nurion and several priests met them. Being surrounded by Elves and away from captivity finally broke the spell on the victims, with several rushing up to the priests, sobbing and wailing.
‘Kervak’s magic user had placed a geas on them to keep them docile, ’ Erren explained. ‘I left it on them to keep them calm until they got here.’
“Made moving them easier,” Darras nodded as Nurion approached.
“Thank you, sir Darras,” the priest said with a polite bow. “With good fortune, we can end this idiocy now that the victims are safe.”
“It may be that Kervak was not the only beneficiary,” Darras warned. “He was the mastermind, though.”
“Indeed so, sir Darras, though with the kidnap victims free, we will be able to investigate thoroughly,” Nurion replied.
“Erren ... Wenderos will guide you in this,” Darras acknowledged.
“We are truly blessed,” a happy Nurion nodded. “Though we were remiss in not knowing about the victims, it was a most cleverly crafted plot.”
“Kervak was an expert in manipulating circumstances, and the Elven reticence to openly discuss family issues allowed him control over a guild,” Darras explained.
“Ah, yes,” Nurion sighed. “That is an issue amongst us.”
“Still, it’s done now,” Darras concluded. “Wenderos trusts you to correct the harm done.”
“We will, sir Darras, we will.”
“Welcome back, my love,” Erren greeted Darras. “We’ll likely have a visitor later, though I doubt Serulon will cause issues.”
“And your brother?” Darras asked.
“Hard to say, he’s keeping a low profile,” Erren shrugged.
“Preparing for a war in the South?”
“Probably, though it’s very unlike him to move openly.”
Erren was correct. Serulon appeared on the lawn and came to the bathing area where Darras and Erren relaxed. As was now her custom, her clothing vanished, and she picked up a large goblet of wine that Erren had poured for her before stepping into the water.
“I had been expecting our brother to contact me over Darras’s actions in Jizzard,” Serulon said after the greetings. “Only he didn’t, it was Cheelath.”
“Cheelath?” a surprised Erren asked. “Why would the goddess of crops be complaining about Darras?”
“Apparently, the Lizardmen of Hrasstic are worshippers of her, and Kervac had been bribing them to withhold the flax they gathered to keep prices artificially high, and they mourn the loss of income ... or will, according to Cheelath.”
“Seriously?”
“Seriously,” Serulon replied with a wry smile.
“I somehow doubt she’s in my brother’s camp,” Erren frowned.
“As do I,” Serulon agreed. “Nevertheless, she complained, so here I am.”
“He was irredeemable and had kidnapped Elven children,” Darras shrugged. “Nor did I kill anyone else.”
“I know,” Serulon nodded. “Nor will I be bringing it to the Allfather. But, a complaint was made from an unlikely source.”
“A very unlikely one,” Erren agreed. “Well, she’s welcome to visit and talk things over, should she desire.”
“I’ll let her know,” Serulon nodded. “It might just be she wants an invite, as your residence here is much discussed by many neutrals.”
“She could simply just turn up.”
“I doubt she’d get to see much,” Serulon chuckled. “Plus, the other gods would assume she was now an ally of yours.”
“Do they know who my allies are?” a confused-looking Erren asked.
“Venicia does, though she’s closed-mouthed about what she knows with our brothers and sisters,” Serulon replied. “The others just assume it’s Doriel, Hallis and Pelegard.”
“As we’ve collaborated in the past,” Erren nodded. “Though I’m glad the others aren’t widely known.”
“Well, our brother certainly doesn’t,” Serulon replied. “Though you know all his.”
“Bimmlat, Colanthus and Bennos appear to be the remaining ones,” Erren shrugged. “The others finally discovered that they were not valued at all.”
“Something they should have realised before they got drawn in,” Serulon smiled. “Szavona is still very angry with him and Darmela has now realised that his indifference to her ... business practices has left her isolated and reviled in many lands.”
“Could take generations for Darmela to recover,” Erren shrugged. “Though at least Fordel will survive.”
“True, well played there, sister,” Serulon replied.
“I tried to avoid harm coming to the people of that land,” Erren nodded. “I targeted the institutions that had offended me.”
“Robbing them of wealth and influence for generations,” Serulon chuckled. “And your temple and worship restored, too.”
“That was my main aim, though I suspect the Darmelans will not love them.”
“You also reduced indirectly the wealth of the former King’s Council of Rachtelin, too,” Serulon acknowledged. “Such a clever piece of planning.”
“It took over twenty years to put into place, but yes, I’m pleased it worked,” Erren smiled.
“Our agent Kervak has been eliminated in Jizzard,” Casal reported to the Dark Lord.
“A pity, he was somewhat talented in manipulation,” the Dark Lord replied indifferently. “I assume it was by the hand of my sister’s agent?”
“It was,” Casal confirmed.
“And the other distractions?”
“Are in place to keep this agent from interfering in the south until it’s too late.”
“Good.”
Darras was busy in the far north. Scouts from Iversirion had been in the area for over a year now. They had thoroughly mapped the temple complex set between two volcanoes and approached across a highly acidic lake by a narrow bridge. Darras was there to confirm that there was a transfer circle in place, as the Elves had not reported finding one. The temple itself was of First One origins and looked to Darras’s eyes to be ... wrong, though he could not explain why it seemed that way.
‘It’s not enspelled, ’ Erren said as Darras looked around the undecorated rooms and chambers.
“Why does it feel so odd?” Darras asked.
‘All the walls are slightly angled to give the building extra strength, ’ Erren explained. ‘It’s creating an optical illusion as your brain is determined to correct the image from your eyes, but can’t quite do it.’
“Ah, right,” Darras nodded.
‘Take the corridor to the right and follow it to the central chamber, please, my love.’
The central chamber was huge and unlit, though Darras could see well enough to navigate. This improved as he lit several lamps he had been carrying and set them around the perimeter. Darras then began examining the floor, using touch, not vision, to explore the surface. Soon enough, he found markedly different areas and used a charcoal stick to mark them. The process took over an hour, though when finished, Darras stood back as Erren’s spirit detached from his body to examine the floor.
‘Yes, it’s a transfer circle, ’ Erren confirmed.
“And we can’t break it?”
‘Nothing in this world so far could, ’ Erren nodded. ‘Perhaps in a hundred years or so.’
“Seems an odd place to put one.”
‘This land at the time of the First Ones was further south, hence warmer, ’ Erren explained. ‘The world looked a little different then.’
“Glad they are no more, this Casal doesn’t strike me as being terribly reasonable.”
‘The only other race they tolerated was the Ubaids; even then, they were more like slaves to the First Ones.’
“I wasn’t planning to talk things out with him anyway,” Darras chuckled.
‘I doubt he’d give you the chance, ’ Erren smiled. ‘I’m finished here, we can go.’
“Of course, my love.”
The spirit of Erren merged into Darras, and he set off back to the hidden gateway of the forest folk, guarded by the Snownymph Brelli. “May Osruit and Lomarris bless you, lady Nymph,” Darras intoned before he passed through the barrier.
“So, you were right, and that is the site for a transfer circle,” Darras mused as the pair relaxed in the living room.
“There wasn’t much doubt in my mind,” Erren replied. “It does mean you’ll need to visit once a year whilst this dispute is ongoing so that I can keep an eye on it.”
“They hid it well,” Darras nodded.
“That’s why I want to keep an eye on the place,” Erren thinly smiled. “It strikes me that there might be a reason the First Ones did that, one I’m unaware of.”
“Can’t hurt to be cautious,” Darras agreed. “What’s next?”
“I’m noticing an increase in interference in various realms, where certain groups are making decisions that are causing unrest for various rulers,” Erren replied.
“Ah, you want me to deal with them?”
“No, the other agents, particularly Tiruk and Amina, will be; you’ll only be called in if a lethal response is called for, if it’s in territory it would be dangerous for that pair to enter.”
“Understood,” Darras nodded.
“I suspect they hope to give you and me the runaround to distract us from what they are really up to,” Erren smiled.
“Whereas we want to find out what they are up to,” Darras chuckled. “Not go chasing ghosts and shadows.”
“Exactly, that’s why you’ll join Balat as the forest folk begin exploring the southeast.”
“Gresh?”
“Yes, though carefully; I’ll supply both of you with various measures to prevent the various spores and toxins from affecting you,” Erren replied.
“It’s that dangerous?”
“Potentially, yes.”
“Interesting challenge,” Darras smiled.
“I suspect it will be,” Erren agreed. “It does mean we visit Doriel in her home, which will be nice.”
“Oh, I look forward to that,” Darras chuckled. “Her first visitors other than Balat.”
“He’s her agent, so he doesn’t really count,” Erren smiled. “I’m looking forward to it as much as you are.”
“Yes, Balat has hinted it’s worth seeing,” Darras replied. “I assume we’ll go when you’re ready?”
“As ever,” Erren giggled. “My timing is impeccable.”
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