Chapter 10
Inescapable Future and Unwanted Responsibilities
As the sun began to light the eastern horizon, the immense walled castle city of Raven's Keep still awash in darkness, a loud bang sounded on the door to Seth and Sara’s makeshift room. Not knowing what else to do, not knowing how to repair what his peers had done, Borrik paced outside the storage building in which Seth slumbered. He had followed his master's orders precisely, telling those to whom he gave alms that he served Seth as his lord and master, and Ishanya the goddess who granted Lord Seth his power. Many times Borrik had explained his visage to those he met dwelling in the streets. At first they shied from him when he approached, but he was able to gain their trust through his words easily enough.
But the other members of his pack held different loyalties than those of his own. They were not men of faith before meeting Seth, and through their transformation, they clung to the feral beliefs of their wolf sides, understanding only what they saw with their own eyes and what they felt by instinct. To the other three wolf men in Seth’s service that night, Ishanya was a being of no substance and as such held no claim to the glory of being their creator. Thus they spread the word of Lord Seth, a walking god who had begun creating a new race of vicious fighting beast-men to defeat the enemy hordes in the south. Throughout the night, by word of mouth and through the very deeds of Seth, Sara, Borrik and his men, word spread and there were those who began to seek out this walking god, and eventually they had located him. Borrik needed to rouse his master.
Seth, hearing the banging on the door, opened his eyes, unable to believe morning had come already. Using his sight of the gods he reached out and sensed Borrik outside the door. Recoiling his senses, Seth softly kissed Sara upon her forehead and as gently as he was able, woke his new wife. Untangling their bodies Seth rose and quickly pulled on his trousers and walked to answer the door. Turning to be sure Sara had made herself presentable, Seth pushed the door open a crack. Seeing it was still dark he asked Borrik what it was that he wanted. Borrik tried to respond several times, but each time stuttered to a stop and began anew. Seth was not yet awake enough to make any sense of the man's rambling so instead told him to come in.
Borrik yanked the door open upon its rusty hinges, and rushing inside, quickly closed the door behind him. His large wolfish head drooping low as if he had done something more disappointing than waking Seth so early, Borrik stood silent in the small dark chamber.
"What is it, Borrik?" Seth asked. "And please, this time just spit it out."
"M'lord forgive the untimely hour, but I should warn you that there are...um..." Borrik paused as if to gauge his own words. "There are people here to see you," he concluded evasively.
"Who is here to see me?" Seth asked, his tone now becoming one of concern.
"I am most sorry m'lord, but as I explained to you before, the other men hold to their wolf instincts and their understanding of beings greater than themselves. They worship you as their creator in their own way, so the orders you gave last night were not followed as closely as we might have hoped," Borrik confessed. "Please do not underestimate the men's loyalty, m'lord, it is only a difference of understanding."
"Oh my," Sara said. She understood instantly the consequences of the men's actions.
"So there are people outside who wish to see a living god?" Seth asked. Seth could not believe what he was hearing, his brain barely awake enough to even complete sentences.
Borrik simply nodded his head which still drooped towards his chest, completely ashamed.
"How many people are we talking about here, Borrik? Five, ten, fifty?" Seth asked.
"Several hundred," Borrik said. If it were possible, it appeared that with this answer Borrik managed to lower his head further in guilt.
Seth was at a complete loss for words, and Sara’s jaw simply hung slack for a moment as she shook her head, not believing the words she was hearing. Seth began to pace the small room for a moment. Appearing to come to a decision, he stopped mid-stride and spun upon his heels to once again face the man of his own creation.
"Help us with our armor, Borrik. I'll speak to them and try and set things straight, and for the gods’ sakes, stop looking like a whipped dog! If this is anyone’s fault it is my own. I should not have overlooked this possibility." Seth’s tone grew more and more agitated as he spoke.
Borrik did not hesitate to follow his orders. Snapping his head up he began gathering Seth’s armor and helped him don the suit in entirety. Seth then assisted Sara with hers, and Borrik, looking at the pair of them in the daylight, feared that the impressive appearance that the pair now commanded was just as likely to hurt his argument to the people as it was to help. The appearance of the couple alone in their black armor was likely to gain followers, for these two humans were a vision of fearsome power.
Seth was truly disappointed, but not in his men, for they were not at fault for their lack of human understanding of the situation. Seth had created them as such, and he knew from here on he would have to pay much more attention to detail if he were not to repeat such a mistake. With himself and Sara fully armored and ready to leave the city on a moment’s notice with the king, Seth nodded towards the door.
Borrik swung the heavy door wide, its hinges protesting the abuse. Borrik stepped out of the building ahead of his master and Sara, clearing them a path. Within the last few minutes the sun had crested the horizon lending light to the land, and bringing a dull, surreal feeling to the courtyard outside the storage building. Seth, with Sara’s hand in his, stepped out from the gloom of the small building to confront several hundred common people who had come to apparently witness his glory. Realizing that his helm would stifle his ability to speak clearly to such a large gathering, Seth reached up and pulled back his wolf-faced visor. Too suddenly he regretted the act, and knew there would now be no changing the minds of the general populace. For as he pulled back his visor, a man in the crowd pointed and shouted, "That’s him there, the god that made these wolf men!"
Like a tidal wave accompanied by cheers and “ohs” and “ahs”, the poor souls with nothing left to believe in were awash in a blackness their own eyes could not see. They fell to their knees before the man they believed a god. Without the chance to speak a word, without opportunity to repair such a foolhardy error, hundreds of hopeless everyday citizens mistakenly accepted Seth as their god, and with their acceptance the power that was their life twisted and altered inside them, all colors fading to black. Such was the mass hysteria, that a single misguided belief could lead countless people to this end. Seth knew not what it meant in the realm of his bargain struck with the goddess Ishanya, but he did know that now he was responsible for the lot of them. Feeling like he might vomit, Seth attempted to steel his nerves as another immense responsibility was heaved upon him.
Looking through the crowd Seth was at least somewhat relieved to see few children. Most of these people were the worst off, those who had lost their homes and families, so grieved by loss they needed to cling to something, and that something was Seth. Seth stood looking over the crowd, knowing not what to say to the people, nor having any idea what to do with them, when a very large man in tattered clothing stepped out from the crowd, his shoulders hanging in defeat, his eyes swollen and red from grieving. The man approached several steps before pausing as Borrik and the other wolf men gathered near as if to defend their master. The large man just stood there as if lost in himself, his eyes becoming unfocused, and tears threatening to escape once again. Taking a deep breath, he gathered himself before speaking.
"Lord Seth, I swear myself into your service, and pray you make me as you have made these men." The large man paused, raising his hands to gesture towards Seth’s wolf men. "I have lost all that I have loved, all that I lived for, and now I wish to be made as one of your great warriors so that by your power I may have my vengeance." With that the large man fell to his knees, staring ahead blankly.
A cheer arose from the crowd and
Seth realized that this was the reason that had driven the people to him. Each of them wanted to revenge the loss of their loved ones, each of them wanted to fight and Seth did not blame them, nor could he refuse them. Looking to the man who had fallen to his knees just a few yards before him, Seth imagined him to be a farmer. He was a large man by any account, with wide shoulders and thick muscles. Seth imagined him pushing a plow through a field by hand, too impoverished to afford even a mule, but too stubborn to let his family starve. A family that was ripped from him.
"What is your name, good man?" Seth asked.
Looking up with unfocused eyes, the man raised his head before speaking to the god who questioned him.
"My name is Connor Falion, Lord Seth. If you give me the chance I will fight for you and in time die for you to join my dear wife and four daughters who were raped and then gutted by orcs as I lay unconscious, thought dead.”
Seth simply nodded his understanding, impressed the man had not killed himself, wondering if he, in the same circumstances, would have gone on living.
"Do you all so wish to serve me, fight for me and perhaps die for me?" Seth shouted.
The crowd erupted into something between a chant and a cheer, all of them vowing to spill blood for Seth, and though somewhat disgusted at the notion, Seth understood their desire. What would he be willing to do for vengeance if he were to lose Sara? Raising his hands for silence the crowd quickly quieted to hear his words.
"Do you all wish to become like my men here?" Seth asked. He then gestured towards his men to either side, trying to gauge the crowd’s reaction. Once again the crowd erupted into shouts of various profane words summarily followed by the cry of “yes”. Again Seth raised his hands for silence.
"If you wish to serve me then you shall take your orders from these men," Seth shouted. He again gestured to his wolf troops to either side. Waiting for their shouts of approval to subside, Seth gave his new followers their first order.
"Gather what you own. What you don’t need for battle discard or sell. Arm yourselves the best you are able and in one hour be outside the castle's southern gate," Seth commanded.
Having sworn obedience, the crowd rose to their feet and began to quickly exit the courtyard through the inn. Seth watched them stream out, wondering to himself what consequences would come of his actions this day. He only prayed he would be able to bear the burden as he turned to address his second-in-command.
"Borrik, I have a dilemma." Seth stated plainly. "I have accumulated near three hundred new troops if my estimate is close. I need near three hundred wolves. Please tell me you have a solution," Seth concluded, sounding defeated.
Borrik stood for a moment in silence. Seth imagined him thinking, but then realized as his other troops each nodded to some unspoken conversation that he had been communicating with the pack.
"M'lord, I do think we have a solution," Borrik announced.
Seth listened as Borrik described his plan in which Seth’s wolf men who remained in the forest would challenge the alpha males of several packs of wolves they had encountered while scouting the woods. Having defeated these alpha males, Seth’s men would then command the packs of feral animals and could bring them to Seth, wherever that might be. To Seth it seemed like a reasonable plan considering the circumstances, apart from the fact that performing nine such transformations just nights before had left him nearly unconscious and now he had three hundred to perform. However, he had been forced then to siphon the wolves at a distance. If his men could convince the feral animals to allow Seth to touch them, he could siphon them effortlessly and transfer their power without so much as breaking a sweat. Agreeing with the plan, Seth told Borrik to find the whereabouts of the king, and keeping one of his other wolf men as a personal guard, Seth sent the remaining two back to the forest to help in collecting the beasts he needed.
The remaining massive wolf man, whose fine coat was the color of toasted bread, introduced himself as having been named Jonas Highguard when he was a human. Seth made note of it, intending to create a chain of command among his growing number of troops to more easily handle them. Not sure what else to do, Seth led Sara through the inn into the street beyond, Jonas following a few paces behind, as if nothing out of the ordinary had transpired. It wasn’t until they had walked nearly a block that Seth noticed people beginning to gather behind them, following at a distance, speaking in excited but hushed tones. Seth continued leading Sara along, pretending to be unaware of the growing throng of people following them.
Nearing the southern gate of the immensely walled city, Jonas interrupted their thoughtful silence relaying to Seth that Borrik had located the king. He was now mounting his horse with his retinue preparing to ride south to battle. Seth nodded his understanding and continued without pausing. Approaching the gates Seth observed a commotion ahead as people poured out from the city into the rolling hills beyond. Seth knew in the pit of his stomach that these were now his people, those he had commanded to gather outside the walls of the castle. The armored guards to either side of the gate snapped to attention and raised their fists to their chests in salute to him. Though Seth was not their commander, he was a member of the king's court, a lord, the head of a new order of mages, and now apparently the commander of his own troops. His rank, it appeared, was appraised quite highly by those in the army. Seth simply returned the guards’ salute, banging his own fist to his chest thus allowing the men to return to their duties.
Passing the guards, beneath the portcullis, Seth found himself facing another possible quandary. Word had spread of Seth at unbelievable speed throughout the night, and though his message had been misconstrued, he had inadvertently gathered many followers wishing to fight with him for their own reasons. Seth knew once these people were melded with wolves, mutating their bodies and consciousness, they would be loyal soldiers. However, the problem he faced was the king’s reaction to Seth’s growing following. Seth knew not how the king might respond to Seth’s apparent raising of an army. If word had spread to the king that Seth had proclaimed himself a god, he would have a lot of explaining to do. Seth had to figure out a way to show his loyalty to the king as well as a way to show his new followers that their so-called god took his orders from the king to better serve the kingdom. It was a very tangled web Seth had fallen into, with loyalties and responsibilities holding him fast, each movement he made in one direction caused tugging in ten others. Seth wondered at his ability to keep it all in balance.
Stepping beyond the great onyx-colored walls, Seth and Sara were met by a tumultuous cheer. The people gathered here believed Seth their savior, just as Ishanya believed him the champion to her cause. The king believed him to be the deciding factor in the battle to come, just as Sara believed him too good for her affections. Borrik and the wolf men believed him a god among mortal men, and Seth believed he had no escape from any of their expectations of him.
Jonas issued ahead of Seth and Sara, clearing a path through the crowd for the newly-wed couple. Without pause Seth strode a few hundred yards, putting some space between himself and the castle wall, as well as gaining the attention of all those who gathered. Turning to face the many people who had come, Seth guessed that he had accumulated at least another hundred followers. It was a ragtag band of men and women at best, with a few children who were near to, but had not yet reached, the age of adulthood. The people here had done as they were told, and they carried little upon their persons, though Seth assumed that they had little in the way of belongings remaining to them in any case. Most of them clung to something that could suffice as a weapon, from knives to clubs, from pitchforks to shovels. Seth’s weary band of lost souls had done as they were commanded to the best of their abilities.
Seth was not surprised to see that as he assessed his followers through his wolfish visor, more people, coming in twos and threes, poured out from the gates to join the growing crowd. He wondered how many more would come, and hoped that it was both few and many. Seth was torn. With every soldie
r he could create, it made better odds for their victory in battle, yet with each follower he gained he became responsible over yet another life. Looking to Sara, Seth momentarily lost himself in her loving amber eyes, shining through her wicked helm. Just looking at her seemed to help Seth focus, and returning his gaze to his newest followers, speaking as loudly and clearly as he was able, Seth directed them to clear the road and line up in an orderly formation. Taking his cue, Jonas strode towards the crowd and began directing them into ranks. Within moments four equal lines appeared with men evenly spaced, one row behind the other. Seth dared not give any orders yet nor make any more plans without first gauging the king's reaction to his growing following. So with nothing left to do, Seth remained with Sara at his side, and they waited patiently for the king's arrival.
Long moments passed before Seth could hear the pounding of many hooves upon the cobble roads within the castle. Seconds later Borrik exited the city and spotting Seth, marched directly to his side.
"M'lord, the king approaches leading his retinue to battle, and it appears you left your mounts behind at the inn,” Borrik observed. "Do you not plan to join the king?"
Age of the Gods: The Complete, twelve novel, fantasy series (The Blood and Brotherhood Saga) Page 55