Chapter 15 - Remorse (Patreon)

The two escapees began to approach the Imperial soldiers on the wall - who manned a variety of siege equipment stationed atop the edifice. They raised crossbows at the two.

"Halt! Identify yourselves!" one of them yelled out in Common.

Echo stopped and came to the Empire’s version of attention, "I'm an adventurer. I need to speak to Commander Margrave in Post 3."

The soldier looked confused and there was some chatter as another uniformed man with an emblem on his shoulder came up to them, waving for his soldiers to put down their weapons. "Hail! You know the Commander?"

Echo nodded, "I was with a group of adventurers. I was captured but escaped. I need to report back urgently."

The man nodded and waved for Echo to follow him. Fumi reached out and grabbed his hand.

Echo squeezed it and looked down at her, "It's alright. They won't hurt us."

They followed the man to a lift and he directed them to board as it descended. A simple elevator that used a pulley system and a platform on a track. When they arrived at the bottom the soldier instructed a small squad to escort Echo and Fumi to Post 3.

Echo shook his head, "Just point me in the right direction; we can get there on our own."

The soldier nodded, "You were running pretty fast. What type of adventurer are you?"

Echo ignored him. He took off at a, Fumi just a step behind him.

By the time The Sun and Inferno were setting in the West the two arrived at Post 3.

Echo made his way to the Headquarters. Fumi was right behind him the whole way, gripping his arm tightly as if it was her only tether to reality.

Commander Margrave greeted him in the entry hall with a look of shock on his face.

"You…you’re that adventurer! The one that vanished!" He gave a crisp salute, clasping his fist to his chest. “That Lux cleric said you stayed behind to hold off some crazy mage. But that was…three years ago.”

Echo looked back at Fumi who just shrugged her shoulders. He felt the boiling rage at his betrayal, the pain he had suffered. “I’m going to kill him.” He was talking about Rickard, but the Commander interpreted it differently.

"Calm, lad. Yer safe now." He patted Echo on the shoulder.

Echo remained silent, fuming at Rickard’s betrayal.

"Well, I would like a full report if ya don't mind. Issues happening within The Empire's borders are my issues."

Echo gave his report. Tersely, just describing capture, imprisonment, and escape. He excluded the pain and suffering he went through, and the consumption of once-people in those dark tunnels.

"Such a tale. My condolences for your suffering. Can I do anything for ya?”

"I would like to request quarters for myself and my companion before we head back to the guild."

He couldn’t be around people right then. He just needed time to process what he had done. What he had been through. He couldn’t be back at the Guild Hall and inundated with questions.

He needed calm.

"Permission granted. I'll have one of the officer houses made available.”

Echo left.

Fumi was already at the door and glared at the Commander before trotting out after Echo.

"...You said you're not Imperial." She spoke in Gori/Japanese.

"I'm not,” he responded in kind.

She looked at him with suspicion.

"I'll explain once we are in a private."

The were directed to a small house. It had two rooms - a restroom and a general room. As soon as the door closed Fumi pushed Echo against it.

"...Explain."

"I'm not from this world."

"..."

"I died, met a God, and was allowed to choose a world to be reincarnated in."

"...Okay." She turned and went to the restroom.

"You believe me? Just like that?"

She turned back with a resolute glare, "...Yes." She turned and shut the door.

Echo sighed and lay down on the bed.

The churning rage against Rickard’s betrayal gnawed at him. If he had stuck around, maybethey could have beaten the Tiberius guy. His Goddess’ power kept him visible, after all.

He shuddered as he felt a phantom sensation of the cube being pressed into his chest. He stood up, panting as panic raced through him and memories of the pain seared in his mind.

He clutched his temples and sobbed as the taste of the meat echoed on his tongue.

Fumi came out of the room and caught is attention, "...Your turn."

Echo nodded and for the first time in several years took a bath. The water was even heated, and seemingly limitless.

He was able to get a good scrub and finally get clean, wiping off layers of grime, coated sweat, and blood. Lots of blood. So much so that he had to empty the tub several times and scrub himself over and over.

He rubbed his skin raw as the memory of the holy symbol of Aqua in one of the corpses assailed him.

Ingrid.

He scrubbed to the point he was bleeding once more, trying to rid himself of the filth of his actions. He had eaten people.

His wounds healed over.

He gave up and shuddered.

I can’t wash this away.

He got out and dried off before reaching into his pocket dimension and grabbing some pajamas. As he looked into the small mirror he recoiled.

"What happened to my eyes? And my hair?" He muttered as he held his eyelid open to get a good look.

His eyes were completely black save for the pupil, which was the same silver that his magic manifested as. Even the multi-colored glimmer of sparkles that marked him as a mage were gone, instead replaced with deep, crimson ones scattered in the black.

I guess Eternal Youth didn't stop everything that bastard tried.

He ran a hand through his hair which had lost its silvery luster and instead was a stark black with a streak in the center that was still silver. But it was long. No longer caked in blood and congealed into a mess, it cascaded down his back.

He held up a hand to his hair and concentrated, "Subtractive Transmutation." He cast a short spell that could remove portions of objects by turning their molecular structure into air. In this case, it acted like a haircut. After taking another long look at his eyes he went back to the main room.

Fumi was already lying in the bed and had shut the oil lantern to a dim glow, but Echo could easily make out the whole room.

"Do you mind tossing me a pillow? I'll sleep on the floor if you want the bed."

Fumi looked over at him quizzically, "...You don't share warmth?"

Echo scratched his head, "That's tricky to explain. I just met you. I don't want to intrude on your space."

She shuffled over a bit and tapped the bed. A tacit invitation to share.

Echo wasn't going to refuse a soft mattress after sleeping on a table in agonizing pain and huddled in a hovel. He slid under the covers and took care to stay on his side of the bed, hovering near the edge.

Kill...

Consume...

Evolve...

The urge hit him and he shook his head, running to the restroom and locking the door.

There was a guttural growl from the other side of the door, and he felt an instinct to open the door and attack Fumi.

But, with line of sight broken, the urge slowly faded.

"I'll sleep in here tonight,” he called through the door.,

"...Okay," Fumi replied.

Tiberius rode through the night across the vast deserts of Lestosk, his wolf-monsters easily traversing the kilometers, riding hard for Sinktown.

A few days travel.

He had contacts there, contacts that owed him. They would be able to provide him with access to a mage that could transport him across the world.

Then, to another lair.

He had many located across Heimfold. All were filled with other experiments. Other monsters.

But he desired to recover his two wayward monsters. The two that had escaped. His most viable subjects.

Fumi Medrana Soju…

He grinned as evil machinations turned in his head like sinister clockwork. A truly sadistic plan coming to fruition.

I know exactlyhow to get you where I want.

But it would take time. Lots of time.

It takes a while to capture a whole city.

Echo woke the next morning and got off the floor, stretching, and opening the bathroom door.

Fumi was laying on the bed, curled into a ball, the sheets torn to shreds.

"Fumi, wake up."

She stirred a bit before looking up at him with a deadpan expression before sitting up.

Echo quickly averted his eyes, "I'm sorry! I didn't know you slept nude." He covered his eyes and stood up, reaching into the pocket-dimension, and pulling out a set of clothes.

He turned around and waited until he heard her stand up. He turned back and saw her unhappy expression as the clothes were very large for her frame.

"...Too big." Fumi looked slightly annoyed but there was a little bit of a lift to her voice.

Echo nodded and put a hand on her shoulder, "Transmute Substance." The clothes shrunk to the appropriate shape and size.

"...Thank you." For the first time since meeting her, Echo finally sensed an emotion from her that wasn't hostility, shyness, aloofness, or fear - he sensed gratitude.

He grinned, "No need to thank me. Come on, let's check in with Margrave and then we can go to the guild."

Fumi hugged Echo. She was crying and in between small sobs whispered out, "...Thank you…for saving me."

Who knows how long she was down there.

Echo slowly wrapped his arms around her and held her until the tears stopped.

Kill…

Consume…

Evolve…

He was able to push the impulse aside but had to grit his teeth as he felt the urge to bite into her skull and then rip her apart.

He quickly left the building, putting the front door behind him as the urge slowly faded.

I've got to find a way to suppress that.

He couldn’t go around eating people.

The memories came flooding back and he dry heaved in the street, doubling over as the taste of Bertram’s monstrous form came back to his tongue.

If they kept their distance from each other, the instinct seemed to just simmer below the surface. Able to be kept in check, but always there. Lurking like a predator waiting for a moment to take control and attack.

After visiting the mess hall - which drew several looks from those around them as their appearances were quite a stark contrast to the soldiers - they visited the Headquarters once more.

Commander Margrave held out a letter, "Give this to Master Grovesward if you would. Oh, and the Guild Hall entrance is disabled for some reason – you’ll have to go South to Drekhold.”

Echo left as the Commander saw the two out.

Fumi tapped her foot, her long, red hair gracefully dancing in the wind.

"...Ready?" she asked.

Echo nodded and took off in a jog that kicked up flurries of dust. Fumi right beside him.

During the run Echo filled in Fumi on his death, being judged, and the events that led him up to meeting her.

She nodded solemnly and asked a few questions here and there, showing curiosity and not just a polite distance as she had previously. She seemed to warm up to him the more he revealed about his journey thus far. But she was still very shy and reserved.

The time passed quickly in this fashion. They made astonishing progress, and based on the one map that Echo saw in the Headquarters of Post 3, he was averaging forty kilometers per hour.

They did have to stop occasionally to fix their shoes with some transmutation spells, but they made it halfway to Drekhold before they chose to stop at a caravanserai for the evening.

They both took one of the side-chambers and shut the door.

Echo shrugged, "Sorry, I don't have any bedrolls."

"...That's okay." She sat down in seiza and closed her eyes, breathing deeply.

Echo sat down next to her, "What did you do back in your time?"

She cracked an eye open and gave him a slight sideways smile, "...Warrior...I fought invaders." She turned forward and her gaze was resolute. "...Was caught…I refused to break. They kept me prisoner…”

"For how long?”

"...I don’t know."

Echo leaned against the wall to get slightly more comfortable. He retrieved his sword from the pocket dimension and sat with it across his lap.

Fumi glanced over at him with curiosity gleaming in her eyes, "...You were a warrior?”

Echo shrugged. "Yeah. How did he end up getting his hands on you?"

"...I was a prisoner…" She returned the look to Echo, her eyes filled with sorrow at the memory, "Woke up on a metal table and felt…such pain. I'm special, the only reason I was a warrior is I can't die…I still can't die..."

Echo nodded, "Does your race stop aging at some point?" He had no clue about the lifespans of the various races.

"...Yes. Once adult we remain…millennia…until we die.” She got up from her position and sat next to Echo, "...I'm sleeping here."

Echo nodded, "I don't mind. We'll make it to Drekhold tomorrow. We'll have a nice, home-cooked meal. You're welcome to stay as long as you want."

Fumi didn't respond and just nestled up next to Echo. He gently set an arm around her as her breathing deepened.

Kill…

He had to push her away and scrabble to the other side of the room as the instinct rose within him once more. She seemed on edge as well and moved to the farthest corner from him.

"...Tell me…your life before."

Echo smiled and talked softly into the night, telling her all about his past life, mostly about his childhood in The United States, but then about his world travels during college, his stint in the armed forces, and finally his life as a teacher.

She sighed contentedly and occasionally asked a clarifying question in her hesitant fashion but seemed to be opening little by little.

Echo was just happy to have someone to talk to after so long.

He left out the specifics of his death, but he told her everything else she wanted to know and spoke deep into the night.

She tried to scoot closer.

Kill...

He had to stop speaking and clench his teeth as blood pulsed through his veins, his blood heating up as instinct threatened to take over.

He ran outside again and closed the door behind him, sagging down and curling his arms around his knees.

“…Goodnight Echo.”

“You too, Fumi.”

Echo made his way up to the wall. Staring off in the distance, he felt a calm wash over him. The warm, summer evening wind blew past him.

But the breeze could not carry his revulsion with it. He thought again on what he had done. He had killed and consumed over a dozen people in those tunnels.

He sank behind the small crenellation and buried his head in his arms, heaving with sobs.

What have I done?

Tiberius finally arrived at his destination, his mutated monsters carrying him far faster than any other creature could.

He killed them on the outskirts of town, slitting their throats as they sat patiently, waiting under his thrall. He raised a hand, incanted a spell, and burned them to ash.

Going into the town he made his way to the headquarters of the Shimmering Sands Caravan. He found the soothsayer’s wagon and knocked politely, manifesting his shadowy aura to cover his form.

The door opened and an old, blind woman greeted him.

“Well, if it isn’t you.”

“I’m here for that favor.”

“Yes, yes. Where to?”

Tiberius smiled. “The Krekyo Dominion.”

Fumi’s homeland.

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