Into the Darkness: A Fantasy LitRPG Adventure (Axe Druid Book 4)

by Christopher Johns

  I guess fighting so low-leveled a group with a bunch of higher-level folks yielded expectedly little returns.

  “You seem bothered,” the statement was sudden, but not unexpected. She knew me too damned well by now.

  I pulled on my new gauntlet and then got out the egg so that I could feed it wind mana as I thought.

  “The werewolf wants me to start turning people. And he’s been more and more insistent and somehow—right? I don’t know what the hell is wrong with me that I’m not just ignoring him, but it’s getting rough dealing with it.”

  She leaned against me, her weight a comfort, and spoke softly, “Why did you choose to fight as a werewolf when you could have not transformed and saved yourself the trouble?”

  “Because I promised to use it the next time we fought something.” she blinked at me, and I knew what her thoughts went. “No, I didn’t promise to turn someone.”

  She nodded and stroked my tails absentmindedly. “You have brought so many of your powers under control. You have been gifted strength and power from the elementals. Won my affections and saved your friends countless times. This creature dwells within you and is part of you. Tell me, do you know what would happen if you were to crush it?”

  “Kill it?” My eyebrows shot up as I stared down at her open-mouthed.

  “Crush it,” she corrected. “When I was a young queen, there were those who thought themselves more powerful than I, though I was the chosen heiress, they felt they had a rightful claim. They came to me in search of my throne and found only strength and my will. When they challenged me, I took each one in stride, and right after each, I made them bow. It sounds as though you need to bring this creature to heel.”

  I settled against her, finally feeling a measure of peace within myself. The next time we weren’t balls deep in now-enemy territory, I was going to have to have a serious heart to heart with the werewolf in me.

  I look forward to it…it growled within my mind, then it was silent.

  ***

  Cold dew settled over me as I woke, almost as if a frost had fallen in the night. I opened my eyes to the clearing, but there was blood everywhere. My friends’ corpses, mangled and torn apart, scattered everywhere.

  Claw marks slashed the ground, deep grooves scored into the cold earth, and I wasn’t sure what to expect. Was this the wolf’s fantasy? Was this another of those nightmares?

  “Hello?” I called warily, my body falling into a crouch even though I had no weapons to protect myself with.

  Whispered phrases in multiple languages assaulted my ears, some of the ones I could make out babbling about the end that was inevitably coming being so much less gruesome than this.

  I snarled and turned to scour the trees, finding nothing. Finally, I stopped moving and as soon as I blinked, all my friends stood as one and surged forward to converge on me.

  I gasped noisily and launched myself out of the bedroll, drenched in sweat and breathing heavily. Between my gasped and ragged breaths, I explained the situation to Maebe. I turned to find my brothers very much alive but struggling through their nightmares, as well.

  Throughout the next day, we traveled slowly and cautiously with Kayda keeping an eye out for any more visitors, flying through the trees in her smaller form so she could see easier. When we stopped for any reason, we had lookouts posted, and that night, we posted a guard. Maebe put up a shadow barrier around the camp as we ate so that we wouldn’t be disturbed.

  “I would say that we should train you in more of the shadow spells, but I do not think that wise with present company.” Maebe sighed as she looked over at Manly, who puffed on her pipe on the back of her cart.

  “You don’t trust her,” I stated, her look at me confirmed it. “I don’t blame you. But you do have to admit; she’s been helpful.”

  “Yes, a snake is helpful when it eats the rats and mice in the granary, but never when it bites the farmer,” her voice was light, but there was a hint of anger in it. “Something is wrong. I do not know what it is, but I do not like it.”

  “I can believe that.” I still had the gauntlet on my hand as I fed mana to the egg. I’d been doing it all day, and there was still no real activity from within. I felt the little creature, the heartbeat was much, much stronger than before, but there was no movement. “I think those bounty hunters had a lot to do with what’s going on in Lindyburg, or what happened after we met you and before you came to this plane. And the sooner we get that taken care of, the better, but we need to move on.”

  “Yes, this is true, and the sooner you get this all taken care of, the better, as you said.” She frowned deeply before shaking her head. “Having to defend yourself from random attackers would never do.” I nodded. “Come. Let us rest for the evening.”

  I figured I would try to feed mana to the egg while I was asleep, it was a conscious thing so far, but I could feed mana around me as naturally as breathing now, so it would only be a matter of slight focus as I slept. I’d try it.

  “If you fail to keep doing it, I will do so for you when you fall too deeply to slumber,” Maebe assured me. I closed my eyes and began to work through meditative breathing cycles and funneling mana slowly.

  As I dreamt of flying with Kayda, I felt the pull of mana through my hand. Excellent. It was working.

  The skies were dark, but they were more like home than anything I had come to know in recent times. She swirled around me; her form larger than it had ever been. Her feathers almost as large as my body. As she soared about me, the steadily darkening skies seeming to come closer and condense, I felt her love.

  Wake.

  I opened my eyes with a startled gasp and reached toward the sky, the dawn light stretched across it.

  “You dreamt?” Maebe’s soothing voice reached me from my right. She watched me curiously, the shadows around her legs deeper than the deepest black that I had ever seen.

  “Yeah, it was a weird one this time.” I glanced around, and the others were still asleep or meditating except for Yohsuke. “Nowhere near as bad as before, but still odd.”

  “Come, we must speak.” Maebe stood and beckoned for me to join her.

  I looked over to my brother, and he seemed to gather that we would be stepping out as he mouthed, be safe, then tapped his earring.

  I nodded once, cradling the egg as I stood and joined my queen. She led us through the trees, the dawn light just beginning to truly shine on the world around us until she came to a hollow tree.

  She stopped and touched it, uncertainty on her face.

  “What’s wrong?” I closed the distance between us to stand next to her.

  “Why do you assume that something is wrong?” She frowned as she turned to face me. Her features looked as lovely as they always did. Her black, multi-colored, highlighted hair shimmering in the light.

  “Because normally when someone you love says ‘we must speak or talk’ that means something is wrong,” I tried to soften the statement for both of us, but the words still sounded jaded even to me.

  Her face lit up as she shook her head. “I simply wanted an excuse to speak with you away from the others. I am not unhappy.”

  The relief was almost immeasurable, and a weight shifted from my shoulders. “Oh, okay then. What’s up?”

  “I was happy to see that you reached for the shadows when that boy unleashed that flame spell.” She grasped my hand, and the stars along the back of it seemed to glow brighter at the contact. “That shows that you are more comfortable with your powers. But I wanted to ask you something.”

  “You are always free to ask me anything you want, Mae.” I smiled at her, leaning closer to kiss her forehead.

  Her eyes, green fire in the morning light, searched my face a moment, “Are you happy with me? Truly happy?”

  I blinked, a little blindsided by the question and the uncertainty in her tone. I tried to think back to all of our dealings. Had I not been paying enough attention to her? Affection?

  “Of course, I am, Mae.”
I took my hand from hers and lifted her face with it so I could look at her properly. “You know I love you, right? I know we may not have the chance to say it all the time, and that lately things have been more than a little distracting, but I’m wild about you.”

  “And I, you.” She frowned. “Something I said last night, about things being done sooner rather than later, made me think as I watched you sleeping, and it has me feeling things I would not normally feel.”

  Realization dawned on me. “This is about me possibly going home someday.”

  Her small, sad smile said it all. I pulled her closer, her breath warm against my chest. “I have tried not to think on it too much. But as time passes, I find myself wondering what it will be like to lose you. To lose all of my friends. The man I love.”

  “I’m sorry, Mae. I wish I could say that I know for sure what will happen, but I don’t.” I tried to think of the right words. Anything. The strain of it on my heart and my mind making me lose control of my mana flow, my mana draining faster and faster into the egg still in my hand. I took a breath.

  “I don’t want you to stay,” Maebe blurted, and I froze. She looked up into my eyes, suddenly very serious. “If you can go home, I want you to. I want to be certain that all of your hard work pays off and that you can be with your son. I would not steal his father from him. And I would not steal that joy from you.”

  Again, I was at a loss. I knew for certain that she was being kind and considerate in this. Her love of children and me bleeding into one another.

  “Does this mean that you want to end things?” My voice was soft, as I tried to mask the hurt.

  Her fist connected with my stomach lightly, surprising me. “No.”

  She reached up and pulled me down so that I could see the myriad emotions playing over her features. “I love you. And I want to spend this time that we have left together. Every moment is precious, and I would share them with you. And Vrawn.”

  I couldn’t help the snort of laughter that escaped me. “And Vrawn.” I shook my head. “You know that she very well may kick my ass if she finds out that you were crying because of me.”

  “It would do you well to train with her. I know that you have seen her fight but watching her with those undead was top notch.” Maebe grinned.

  “I bet it was.” I smiled back, and suddenly she kissed me. Pressing her lips and body as close to mine as she could, and all of my air was gone. Once more, my mana control was gone, and a wild stream of mana funneled into the egg as our lips mingled.

  “You know, I’ve meant to ask you something else.” She cast her eyes down when a sound caught my attention.

  Crack, snicht, crunch

  I looked down, spiderwebbed cracks formed along the scaled shell of this egg.

  I brought it up so that our eyes were almost level with it. Of course, Maebe had to levitate so that she could see properly.

  A small nose pushed through, a tiny sharp bump on the nose to help crack the shell. Brown eyes peeked out from within, and as I went to help the creature out, Maebe swatted my hand away.

  “I read a book on hatchling creatures,” she hissed, her eyes still on the hatchling. “If they do not get out of the egg on their own, they may not develop properly. You could hurt it.”

  I sighed and said a soft prayer for the little thing as it fought for freedom. Strands of viscous fluid stuck to the little creature as it clicked and opened its jaws. A sharp intake of air, and a soft croaking sound emanated from the eggshell. A wee piece of it lifted as the creature within looked about almost cautiously.

  The slitted brown eyes fell on me before more excited croaking and small claws reaching out of it, the shell crumbling in on itself as the little thing tried to escape.

  Alert!

  A Gust Raptor hatchling has imprinted upon you. Would you like to take it as your familiar?

  Yes/No?

  My friends had bought her for just this reason, right? Though Gust Raptor was pretty fucking amazing for a species. I wonder what it did? I accepted and read over the next alert.

  Alert!

  You have accepted the Gust Raptor hatchling as your familiar, would you like to name it?

  Yes/No?

  I could feel the mental bond already formed between us, her mind was a flicker against mine, but it was inquisitive and sharp. She needed a good, strong name. A name that would strike fear into the hearts of many.

  “I think I’ll call you Bea,” I announced, proudly naming her after a famous gunnery sergeant of Marines, beloved actress and one of my favorite funny people. She wriggled her body in my hand, trying to look around her. Her mind quieted at the name, and she growled hungrily. “Yup. All we need now is a couple of old ladies and some cheesecake, and all the ladies are here.”

  “She is beautiful,” Maebe whispered. Both Bea and I looked up to see her staring in wonder.

  “Do you want to hold her?” I asked as I offered her to Maebe with a hopeful smile. I was here without any sort of pocket bacon, so I would need to look for something for her to eat. “I need to find her something to munch on.”

  The queen didn’t hesitate in the slightest to take the hatchling from my hands, cooing to her and rocking her as if she were a child. I sent mental images of Maebe and attached the feelings of safety and security to her. Feelings of love. That settled the hatchling for a moment.

  I cast Life Sense, and there was nothing in the immediate range of the spell, so I reached my awareness out into the shadows around us as the sun rose higher. I felt motion up in the north of where we were, a small creature, a baby rabbit, and sighed. It would have to do.

  I hardened my heart and reminded myself that all creatures needed to eat and that soon enough, Bea would be able to do this on her own. For now, I would hunt for her.

  I reached out with my mind and cast Nether Transport (Minor) on the rabbit, bringing it into my outstretched hand in a ball of solid shadows.

  “I’m sorry little friend, but my baby needs to feed.” I came over to Bea and held the terrified creature out to her, her inquisitive head tilts looked so cute just before her jaws opened wide. Sharp, small teeth coated her jaws, and she snatched the struggling creature from my fingers greedily. She barely chewed, settling with rocking her head back to open her throat and swallow the morsel mostly whole.

  “Fuck, that’s cool.” I groaned with feeling. I remembered Kayda being pretty brutal as a baby as well, that thought brought her attention to me. Our bond opening slightly as she stirred from sleep.

  “We should get back to the camp before Kayda figures out what we have here and starts to tear the forest apart to get to us.” I grinned at Maebe, and she nodded back just as excitedly before we took off back toward camp.

  Maebe stroked her gray scales while we walked, the small lines of light green that seemed to flow over her body like a representation of wind breaking over her was so beautiful I almost tripped trying to take more of her in.

  When we arrived, the others had begun to move about the camp and clean for our trip out that day.

  “Welcome back,” Yohsuke called from his place by the cooking fire. He glanced up and saw us then smiled, “Congratulations. The hell is that thing?”

  “This is Bea,” Maebe announced proudly. “She is the gift that you all bestowed upon Zeke. Come and see her.”

  The queen toted the little raptor like she was a proud mama showing her newborn child to her closest friends and relatives. I was proud, but at the same time, an emotion I never thought would clench my chest quite so tight as it did, found its way into my mind and heart—longing.

  Did I want this with her? She had told me that she was happy with me. That my time here with her was good, but she wanted me to go home. I wanted to take her seriously. And I wanted to have my son in my life and be a huge part of his.

  My mouth went dry, and it was a fight for the rest of the world not to fall away from me at that moment as I thought about my little boy. My fists clenched, droplets of blood dribbling d
own my left hand, grounding me in my mission here. This was as much for him as anyone else on Earth. He was my reason back home, even if I had reasons to fight here, as well. I tried to swallow past the cotton mouth I had and took a few steadying breaths.

  Now, I might never know what this would be like with Maebe. What was I going to do? Fuck. Damn it!

  I shook my head and opened my eyes, grateful that my friends and Maebe were distracted by the scaled bundle in Maebe’s arms.

  By now, the others had gathered around, and Kayda was truly awake, having opted to sleep in her full, twenty-feet-tall normal form, she hopped closer to take a look. I stepped in front of her, she craned her neck to see past me, and I put a hand on her plumage.

  “Wait, dearest,” I spoke soothingly as I blocked her path. “Let them come to you. I know that you wanna see, but remember what happened when you came at Coal too fast?”

  She blinked and looked around for her lost brother and I sighed, the loss still fresh. Kayda, me, and the whole party had grown attached, so when he had been called home, there had been a good deal of sadness.

  Scared? Kayda quested, our bond fully opened now. She sent me an image of Coal cowering behind me.

  “That’s right, baby. She could be scared, and we don’t want that.” I ran both my hands over her thick feathers soothingly. “We have to take this slow and do it properly so that she gets used to you. So, you stay here, and I’ll get you some food while you wait.”

  Food! She spread her wings and shuffled her feathers noisily as she waited.

  “Yo, Yoh!” I called to my brother, who turned my way. “Can I get some chow for tiny here?” I thumbed my nose and shoved the thumb toward Kayda, who pecked at me playfully.

  “Yup!” He reached into his inventory and pulled out a massive haunch of meat, ribs still within it, and offered it to me. It was heavy to him, but with my significantly higher strength, it was light as hell for me. I tossed the large morsel up for Kayda, who caught it deftly and bent her head to put the item between her talons to begin pecking it apart gleefully. Ripping muscle and the sound of her clicking beak accompanied me over to the others.