Serpentlord (Rise To Omniscience Book 9), page 9
“Why not?” she asked, her voice coming out in a choked sob.
Her eyes glistened, but no tears fell. Katherine would not allow herself to lose her composure like that.
“I can’t tell you,” Morgan said.
“Who else knew?”
“Lumia and Gold. Neither of them could say anything either. We were forbidden.”
Katherine looked as though she wanted to ask more, but she just let out a long sigh and shook her head.
“After all this time hoping, wishing, getting closer and closer, I was so sure I would win you over. That I could, if not take Sarah’s place, then at least offer you a different form of happiness. One in which we could be together.”
“Perhaps in a different life or different time, things would have been different,” Morgan said. “I know you probably don’t want to hear this from me right now, but you are a wonderful woman. You are strong, proud, and loyal to a fault. I’ve never met anyone as selfless as you, and I know you’re going to find someone who will truly make you happy one day.”
“Seeing as I’ll be living for literal hundreds, if not thousands, of years, that may very well be the case. It still doesn’t mean that I won’t mourn what could have been,” Katherine replied.
“I know this is probably a lot to ask then,” Morgan said, taking a deep breath.
He could feel he was on the right track but knew that this next question would either solve a lot or ruin everything. Inwardly, he cursed his confused sight, wishing more than anything that it was full and mature. Being omniscient would make this conversation so much easier. Alas, he was still somewhat human in this regard, so he had to work with what he had.
Katherine raised an eyebrow as he paused, giving Morgan the final push he needed to ask his question.
“When Sarah and I get married, will you walk me down the aisle? Gwendolyn is gone, and I never really had any other family. I know it’s an insensitive question, but I wouldn’t ask just anyone.”
To her credit, Katherine didn’t immediately storm away in a huff, but thought about it. Finally, she let out a long sigh and gave him a weak smile.
“If that had come from anyone else, I’d probably have caved their teeth in. But I know you. You’re not a malicious person, and you’re definitely not the type to rub something like this in. I’ll think about it. Is that okay for now?”
Morgan nodded, then extended a hand.
“Friends?”
Katherine knocked the hand aside and wrapped her arms around him, squeezing him tight. After a moment, he hugged her back, feeling the warmth and assurance in her arms. Then, she let go and turned without a word, her long honey-blonde hair streaming behind her.
Morgan didn’t follow her as she left, though he was fairly certain of one thing: their relationship was now forever changed and would never be going back to the way it had been before.
12
“How did it go?” Sarah asked as he returned.
She still looked worried, her body tense and her lips pressed into a flat line.
“Better than I expected, but worse than I’d hoped,” Morgan replied, taking her outstretched hand.
“You love her,” Sarah said.
It wasn’t a question, but a statement.
“How can I not, with all we’ve been through?” Morgan replied, squeezing her hand. “But I chose you. You’re the one I asked to marry. I want to spend eternity with you. Well, if we live that long, anyway.”
Sarah swatted his arm, her engagement ring glittering in the moonlight as she did and lightening his heart just a bit. He’d made a difficult decision, but it was important. He couldn’t spend his entire life dragging Katherine along, giving her hope when he knew there was none. They both knew how they felt, but also knew the truth.
“Come on,” he said, mentally shaking off the feelings of loss and sadness and focusing instead on their mission. “We need to get changed and head off to see what damage the World Beasts are doing.”
The two of them headed away from the main military camp and into the woods, where Morgan pulled a bundle of armor from a small pocket space.
“These are for you,” he said. “This is the first suit of armor I made myself. It needed a little adjusting after you came back, but I think it should fit well enough.”
Sarah smiled at him, leaning in and giving him a peck on the cheek.
“If you made it yourself, how can I not wear it?” she asked playfully. “Would you mind?”
The ground around her rose in a dome, cutting her off from the outside world and giving her some privacy to change. Looking down at himself, Morgan inspected his clothes for any rips or tears. There were plenty left by the cultists and their burning acidic power. Truthfully, no clothes were tougher than his skin, and no armor could match his Starforge skill. Still, changing into something that wasn’t torn to pieces couldn’t hurt.
More tremors ran through the earth as he put on a new shirt, pulling a series of straps at his sides to tighten up the loose fabric. The line of blue scales curving around his forearm to the tip of his middle finger shimmered in the moonlight, the muscles on his arms rippling and bulging beneath his skin as he worked.
His final transformation had forever changed his body. His skin was thick, strong, and layered with scales. The very same had tried to cover his entire body, but he’d fought it down to retain most of his human features. His features were still quite angular, the tips of his ears were tapered, with a small line of scales along the outer edge, and his canines were overly large. His eyes gave him away as well, with his pupils contracting to slits when it became too bright.
All of these changes were quite minor, considering what his transformation had tried to do to him, including glossy skin covered in scales, shining silver hair, and thick, heavy claws. He didn’t need those weapons with what he already possessed. Besides, most of his strength was underneath his skin, wrapped up in the powerful skeleton with muscles denser than steel and nerves with faster reflexes than any living person he knew.
Reiki flowed through every aspect of him now, his bones, muscles, tissue, nerves, skin, and organs. Every part of him was full of the energy of the world. Even his blood wasn’t technically blood anymore. And yet, despite all these changes, he still felt the same and oddly human.
Despite the veils of light that wrapped around him and the strings of fate he could now see extending from everyone and everything, he still didn’t feel different. But despite what he felt, Morgan knew otherwise. He was different. Where he had once been weak and helpless, he now was now stronger than anyone who would stand in his way.
Which, of course, meant that someone stronger would have to come along to challenge him. The World Beasts were a problem, and one he knew he might have to face. However, as his sight was growing clearer, he was beginning to see a path in which they need not intersect too many times. Several paths, in fact, in which he and the beasts did not need to fight to the death.
Unfortunately, there seemed to be no avoiding what was going to happen next, and he would be an idiot not to follow Elyssa’s orders. They needed to know the progress of the World Beasts, and he needed to be there in person to get a good estimate.
He was only at the beginning stages of his omniscience, so he couldn’t place too much faith in what he saw. At least not yet. Still, having even a hazy or distorted view of things to come was better than nothing at all. It allowed him to prepare for what may very well be a dangerous situation, both for him and most definitely for Sarah.
He trusted in her strength and in her ability to protect herself. She’d grown strong after her resurrection and had more to grow still. While his skills and abilities would now continue to grow passively as he fought, he would assure hers did as well. The best way to protect her was to make sure she was as strong as possible, and collecting the cores of powerful beasts was a clear way to gaining strength.
“You can drop the barrier now.”
Sarah’s voice came through the earthen dome, slightly muffled and snapping Morgan from his thoughts.
The walls dropped, revealing Sarah, now dressed in the armor he’d made her and looking more beautiful than ever.
“Well?” she asked, placing her hands on her hips and striking a pose. “How do I look?”
She was now dressed in the golden breastplate that he’d formed from a combination of adamantine, supersteel, and an alloy found deep in the earth that gave it this stunning color. It wasn’t quite as strong as the adamantine, but made it far lighter and easier to move it. The breastplate was sleeveless – Sarah’s ice could protect her better than any armor could, plus she preferred to have her arms unencumbered – with the top of the armor flaring out around her neck and the bottom stopping right at her waist.
Two wider pieces flared out to protect her hips, while a pair of greaves covered her shins. A piece of cloth woven through with magesteel hung from her waist, and a pair of pants made with the same material clung to her legs.
“Looks like it fits,” Morgan said, slowly walking around her.
“But how do I look?” Sarah asked.
“Dangerous,” Morgan said, giving her a smile and winking. “Now, come. We have a mission to accomplish and a rendezvous to keep.”
She took his hand and Morgan used his Rift skill, pulling them through space and to where the four World Beasts battled, tearing the very fabric of the continent apart at its roots.
***
“Do you all understand your orders?” Katherine asked.
She stood before the fighters of Garrison Blue, the single most unreliable group of fighters in the entire North Kingdom. They had also been the ones who’d come to save them when they’d been pinned down by the cultists in the South Kingdom and saved their lives.
“Yes, ma’am!” the soldiers said, slamming their fists to their chests.
Katherine winced at the volume, glaring at the gathered soldiers until they realized what they’d done.
“Sorry, ma’am,” said their leader, Darv, looking embarrassed. “We’ll be quieter when we’re on the move.”
“You’d better be,” she muttered, turning to face the darkened road ahead.
Garrison Blue was now well outside the area controlled by the alliance’s military, so they were effectively on their own. She could still escape back to them using her own portals, but seeing as the cultists had managed to block her ability to do so last time, she wasn’t going to be counting on it. Instead, they’d be using their skills to remain hidden and hopefully avoid any unnecessary conflict.
They were stepping in as scouts, ones that couldn’t so easily be caught or killed by the enemy.
“You all have your communication pendants, correct?” she asked, eyeing the group of mostly men and women.
They all nodded, displaying the pendants around their necks.
“Good,” Katherine said. “We meet at the rendezvous point in four hours. If you run into any trouble, signal the nearest group for assistance. If I find anything big, I’ll be calling you all in, so stay alert.”
They saluted again, quietly this time, and split apart into eight groups, each moving at a slightly different angle to cover more ground. Katherine was going to go off on her own, as she could move faster that way. That, and because she needed to be alone right now. After that talk with Morgan, she couldn’t stand to be around subordinates.
Once she was alone, Katherine finally allowed her mask to crack, allowing a silent sob to escape her. The pain was horrific, worse than any physical blow she had ever taken, and this time, she knew it was over for good. There was no going back, no ifs, buts, or maybes. Morgan was with Sarah, which meant she was completely out of the picture with no hopes of ever having him for herself.
She had thought she’d lost him once, when he’d vanished after Sarah’s death, but this was so much worse. The knowledge that he was now forever out of her reach was painful beyond measure. And while Morgan asking her to walk him down the aisle to his marriage with Sarah might have sounded cruel, it made her feel a bit better.
It told her that he cared for her. Even hearing him tell her that he loved her hadn’t gotten that across the way this had. He’d asked her, of all people, to walk with him, which was normally an honor reserved for a parent or close family member. Morgan had none of those and chose her, which told her how highly he viewed her and how close he believed them to be.
It still hurt, and it would for a long time yet, but perhaps in a few years, the pain would ebb and she might find someone of her own. Someone who could make her happy and didn’t constantly break her heart.
Katherine caught a flash of movement from below – she’d been running through the treetops to avoid detection – and slowed, swiping at her eyes to clear them of the tears that had begun to gather there. A small group of trolls, perhaps a dozen in number, were gathered around a small fire, making sure to keep it sheltered.
Most were asleep, but two remained awake to keep watch.
“…don’t understand why we have to keep doing what he says.”
She’d missed part of their conversation, but stopped to listen in on what they were saying. These trolls were well inside the Glimmerlands, at least two or three hundred miles from the border of the Brutal Bayou.
“Because he’s the one who inherited the power of the Chief,” the other troll said, poking the fire with a stick.
“But he’s not one of us,” the other troll said with a growl. “He hasn’t even left his little hidey-hole, making us do all the hard work!”
“Well, if you want to go fight with him, you’re free to do so. In the meantime, we need to keep moving. We’re supposed to raid one of their supply wagons in two days. Maybe we’ll get lucky and find some money. Those elves are pretty rich, I hear.”
Katherine pulled out the smaller copy of the map she had that marked their supply routes. She then traced a line from where they were, estimating where the trolls would end up. It was clear that they would be in a perfect position to intercept them, which could only mean one thing. Someone had leaked that information.
There was a traitor in their ranks, and it would now be her job to flush them out.
13
Grace sat in her cage, her knees pulled up to her chin and arms wrapped around them. She watched silently as thousands of elves, dwarves, and beastmen were marched from the underground room. With the mass influx of new captives, this hardly put a dent in the number of civilians locked up with her.
The troll and gnome pens were completely emptied, their numbers depleted for the grizzly act that was to come. The only remaining gnome was the one lying in the cage over, curled into a ball and pretending the world didn’t exist.
Over the past few days, she’d managed to worm some information out of him but had been largely unsuccessful in keeping him engaged.
Even so, she’d found out plenty, most importantly, what was happening to all the poor souls being dragged from their pens. They were all going to be killed, sacrificed to Strangler to increase her power. Apparently, empowering this many cultists was costing her a significant portion of her strength, and with her current fight with the other World Beasts, she needed that strength replenished.
When they’d come down, she was afraid they would be taking her as well, but apparently, she was safe this time.
Grace felt a mixture of guilt and relief as she watched the poor souls be ushered out, whipped and kicked when they didn’t move fast enough. They all knew what was going to happen and were helpless to stop it. She could already hear the screams and smell the coppery tang of blood in the air.
It was early morning now, but she knew those screams would not stop for quite some time, and even once they did, they would haunt her dreams. She needed to find some way of getting them out of here, but as of right now, she had no idea how.
This building was located in the port city of Aster in the Arcane Kingdom, which was why the smell of salt was so prevalent. Aster had once been a popular place to live, flourishing with trade and commerce. However, a disaster had struck some fifty years ago, when a tsunami had rocked the coastline.
Thousands had died, and the city had been abandoned, making it the perfect place to keep thousands of sacrifices.
Though Grace had briefly met Shedra, she had no way of knowing if this was where he’d set up his headquarters. For all she knew, he’d simply come to make sure she’d been captured before leaving. After all, they had ways of traveling quickly using those green-tinged portals, so he could be halfway across the continent by now.
A particularly loud scream made Grace wince, but when she looked over to the gnome, he was still sleeping.
“Doesn’t any of this bother you?” she snapped.
She knew he didn’t deserve it, but with the way she was feeling right now, she needed someone to talk to, and seeing as being nice didn’t get so much as a peep from the gnome, she wondered if getting him angry might work.
“Of course it does,” the gnome replied, not moving from where he lay. “Nothing I can do about it, though, so no point in getting all worked up.”
Grace gritted her teeth, but one of her gnome captors slammed a spear haft against the bars of her cage.
“I’m getting sick and tired of hearing your voice, girlie, so keep it down!”
Grace inhaled, then opened her mouth wide and used her Siren Scream, blasting the gnome clean off his feet and slamming him into one of the crumbling pillars, turning it to dust. The gnome got to his feet, completely unharmed, and glared at her.
She didn’t care. She knew he couldn’t hurt her, so she could do whatever the hell she wanted.
“Keep acting out,” the gnome said, walking back to the cage and brushing off his clothes, “and you’ll be screaming like the rest soon enough.”
Grace debated blasting the asshole into another pillar, but seeing as the room was already so unstable, she didn’t want to risk collapsing part of the roof on an innocent civilian. Instead, she just sat back and sulked, still trying – and failing – to find a way out of here.
