Chapter 1
City of Akland
Treasurer's office
“I know the goddamned hero’s were summoned but that doesn’t mean we need to throw a fucking parade!” I scream at the squire forced to come begging to my office carrying a message from the duke.
“Sir…” He starts to talk and try to explain the dukes insane request but I mouth for him to be quiet.
“If you would like to keep your head, I encourage you to practice the virtue of silence.”
We both know that I can’t actually refuse the duke’s order but that doesn’t mean I have to kowtow and lick his feet either. The real question is how can I grant the request without further draining the dukedom’s pockets. The treasury is already next to empty from the famine and the shrinking peasantry.
I quieted down and pulled out scrolls detailing the dukedoms wealth acquisition records scanning over it and paused when I noticed a strange gap in reports back from the latest tax collection.
I looked at the trembling squire with curious eyes as I tapped the scroll. “Squire Reynolds you’ve run messages for many of the high and low nobles correct? Could you please tell me about the situation with…” I looked over the scroll one more time reading off the local ruling mayor's name, Baron Von Elyss. “Baron Elyss’s domain.”
The squire quickly looked around desperately searching for some escape as he took a reflective step backwards, but was frozen in place when I stood up and leaned over the heavy desk.
“Boy, I do not repeat myself, nor do I need guards to force out information. Do not test me.”
The young man gulped deeply before falling to the ground prostrating himself like he’d been smacked in the stomach by a sword hilt. “I do not mean to offend my Lord High Treasurer! I just wanted to protect the trust I have been granted by my esteemed nobility. As my Lord orders, however I will tell you what little I know.”
He is trembling as I sit back down and begin writing notes detailing the story he tells me.
Elyss' domain had fallen apart and what little remained of the already suffering populace is believed to have moved to the neighboring domains, fallen to the famine, or died to the blades of bandits. As for Elyss himself he was last seen leaving for capital of Aquatiaine an island nation to the far south. No doubt aware that he would be held personally responsible for the failures of his peasants to produce food.
I rang a red bell attached to my desk summoning a masked figure from the shadows, a spy. Half monster- Half man, swore to an oath of absolute servitude giving up his tongue as proof in exchange for a magical contract that bestows immense power over shadows and all things secret. His pure white mask with no markings for either nose or eyes gives a strangely haunting impression the first time you witness it.
I notice the squire still staring holes into the ground resisting all impulses to look at the figure that appeared out of nowhere.
“Find Elyss, throw him in the dungeons and then report back to me.”
With just that the figure vanishes once again
“I remember a messenger telling me of a town in Elyss domain, a neighboring noble had remarked of the place being the scene of something horrific.”
The squire nodded.
“It was a town on the farthest reaches, apparently a nobles bastard had lived there which is why anyone discovered what had happened in the first place. The ground all around the village was dead in a perfect circle, as if demons had salt the very Earth itself. But what was worse was the corpses. Although many had surely fallen to the famine, some though…” He dropped his tone to a whisper attempting to hid the thoughts that shouldn't be spoken aloud in polite company. “There was evidence that they were eaten… by humans.”
I sighed deeply. If this was known among nobles, even in secret. It was only a matter of time before it spread among the peasantry.
Perhaps this is one reason why the gods saw fit to summon the Heroes now.
“Dammit, we need the parade… no that won’t be enough, a full festival will be needed… There must not be a single bit of fear shown in the ruling classes' eyes lest we risk rebellion. We can’t risk raising the taxes on the farmers either or we’ll have more towns like that in other villages.”
I rang the bell summoning another spy. While writing my response to the lord in a letter.
A simple explanation disguised as a demand and a threat.
We will have his festival but the taxes paid by all minor nobles will be doubled to pay for it in the form of a one time ‘donation’ and not a copper extra will be pulled from the pockets of the farmers. In exchange we will be able to celebrate the heroes and keep the peoples minds far away from thoughts of rebellion and monsters in the dark.
I sealed the letter with my house sigil of a snake eating its own tail, proper for a family of treasurers, and then handed it over to the squire while waving my spy towards him before explaining.
“Take this letter back to the Duke. He’ll have this festival if he can meet the conditions I gave him. If not then I suppose he’ll be forced to pay out of his own pocket because the nation simply doesn’t have the money for it. Also…” I stood up once more and walked around the desk to look the young boy in the eyes, ignoring his trembling. “This person here,” I rested my hand on the spy's shoulder, “will be accompanying you from now on. You needn’t remember or recognize their existence but if your lips ever loosen and you think to talk about our conversation the way you did other lesser men… know that he is there and will act as necessary.”
With that message delivered I turned around as I the spy merged with the young squire seeping into his shadow without noise as the young squire gave up all presence of dignity, yelped, and began sprinting at full speed from my office the slight scent of urine escaping with him.
In a matter of moments a servant appeared from the doorway holding a bucket of soapy water and began silently scrubbing the ground. There was no need for us to speak, we both knew our places in the world were outside each other's hemisphere.
There are some nobles who fraternize with the lesser classes and some who abuse and enslave them. Both of these types are fools of the strongest nature. As are those like Elyss who simply ignored their existence.
It is right for a noble to recognize a lesser person's existence in the same way that it is right for a human to recognize a herded animal. But to treat them as if they are the same is ridiculous.
Lesser classes exist to propagate and reward the existence of their betters. In exchange their betters ensure the lesser classes' needs are met to a minimal baseline.
This is Life.
Animals and slaves survive sure but they are not living, they do not have hopes and dreams that must be met or satiated for betterment. They only survive. It is for this reason they can not be granted recognition by God.
No animal or slave can have levels and titles because god would never waste their time with such beings. And because god would never waste their time these things can not seek out betterment.
They Survive.
They cannot Live.
I sigh, distracting myself with thoughts of philosophy as my status appears before me and a Spy lays down an envelope before vanishing once more.
Level: 54 Name: Lord Henry Ellenwar Job:High Treasurer
Class: Blessed Nobel Age:67 Health: 1200/1700 Mana: 200/300
Stats: SEALED Infamy: 20000 Fame: 15000
Titles: One Who Has Bargained With God, Ruthless, Enemy of the Proletariat, ********, Bandit Slayer, Murderer, One Who Would Be King, Spy-Master, Dark Confidant….
Active Abilities:
Sleepless: 4 Hours remaining until loss of consciousness : 3 day cool-down
Sealed Abilities
Summon Spy: 25/30 Active networks
Form Contract: 5 Contracts remaining until next collection.
…..
I felt myself sighing as I looked at the sealed title knowing what it meant and hating the god who refused to take it away.
I’m a noble dammit! I’ll never be that person again.
I’m nothing like those others and I’ll prove it no matter what it costs me!
I opened up the folder the Spy had handed to me. Though they appeared blank they were actually covered in very small dots used to form a coded language called ‘Braille’ that a summoned hero once showed the previous king many years ago.
I closed my eyes and ran my fingers over the papers visualizing the words as I read the Spy’s meticulous notes in my mind. Without me needing to explain, just by listening to our conversation the spy networks had gone to action searching out information on all the happenings in Elyss’s territory and all territories of similarly useless managers.
Although no-one else had been suffering quite so badly as those under Elyss there were other cases of towns abandoned and only starved and withered corpses remaining. Of particular note was the rumors of a group of bandits sticking to the outskirts and hitting merchants who wander too far off the main highway. It isn’t the first time the kingdom has dealt with bandits but the mercenaries usually flock like they are covered in gold, this group though seems particularly adept at hiding and also particularly ruthless.
Most bandits are mindful of their targets, avoiding hitting any person too wealthy or powerful and they tend to actually leave people alive and unharmed as a means to keep their bounty low and infamy rating under control.
On the following page was a particular note from my Spy asking for a mind-wipe. It wasn’t a particularly difficult request and standard when working along the war front where it was easy to pick up debilitating titles and curses that are linked to particular experiences. But it was rare for a Spy operating within the capital region to ask for such a thing.
The Spy explains though that when following the trail of the bandit looking for leads he stumbled across an attack sight. The exact details are hard to depict through text but when showing me his status I saw a strange title labeled “Infected with Hunger” and “Touched by the Evil God’s Hand.”
I start to ask him to explain what the hunger is but I see him quickly write down on a separate sheet a plea not to.
He taps that paper asking me to keep reading, I do, and see he believes they are a series of Insanity titles. A kind of divine curse that can be triggered by specific action like being forced to remember something traumatic.
I’d seen curses like them before myself and believed there was truth to his words.
I once saw a cultist in the western lands who cursed his entire bloodline to be compelled to fight to their last breath. The curse was double layered through the casters' hatred though, if someone survived combat with a Blood Warrior, they would take on the curse themselves and be compelled to keep seeking out more and more dangerous targets.
It took a Hero taking on the curse himself and slaying every last blood warrior before turning the blade inwards to end the curse.
Whoever this person was, whatever this ‘Evil God’ was, we would find them and ensure they breathe their last breath long before things ever get that far.
“Go to the Tower and prepare for the ritual. I'll be there soon… You know what must be done if the ritual fails to get rid of the curse. Ready yourself.”
The spy hesitated for just a moment at my words before sinking into the shadows.
I shook off my own feelings and took a deep breath before standing up and leaving my office.
Passing the maid still cleaning without a word.
I wave to my assistant buried in her own pile of paperwork and head out the door to my tower, preparing for dark magics of my own making.
I am really enjoying this story even tho it only been two chapters
Thanks so much for the review and comments! As long as people are reading I'll do whatever I can to keep it going! I already go the next couple of chapters written and ready to go and I'm working on more all the time!