War God for Hire- Adventurer: A Reincarnation, Cultivation Adventure

by David Burke

  Despite all that, the first thing he noticed that had changed, was his race. He was now considered a War Godling. He took this to mean that he was something more than a demi-god, but less than a full god.

  But it also listed him as a demi-god of death. War and death seemed like linked concepts, even if they felt different to him. What this might mean, he didn’t yet know. Any way he looked at it, though, it was hard not to see this as a steppingstone towards his eventual goal.

  Chapter 22 - Lost in Translation

  Escape from the dungeon turned out to be easy. It might be worth coming back someday for more of the alloy they had created. As it was, Kyle managed to grab three hundred ingots of the stuff for his storage ring but that wouldn’t be enough to equip an army. And who knew just when a war god might be called upon for that.

  They were all feeling more confident about their teamwork, the power up that Gilthan had gotten, and seeing Kyle cut loose. Once he reached the top, he had pulled his aura back and slowed the spinning of his essence wheel. It made him feel like he was walking through molasses because he felt slower and weaker. The truth wasn’t far from that, but he hadn’t learned to control his aura well enough. He could move the wheel some and keep an increased power but not the high-speed spinning that made his senses expand out so far.

  The guards made surprisingly little fuss about the missing manacles, but Kyle couldn’t help but wonder if it would become an issue once they were back at the estate. In the end though, they were greeted by Lady Meeka once they got back. She congratulated them and asked about items that they got.

  They passed on to her some equipment since it was all of a size for dwarves and not really usable by any of them. The noblewoman seemed to be waiting to see if they had found anything more significant, but they didn’t tell her about the splinter that Kyle had absorbed or even about the clockwork golem. None of them were friends of Thena and it was probably best that a city state turned empire didn’t get plans for such monstrosities.

  Sure, they wouldn’t have the splinter to power it but who was to say they couldn’t make smaller versions and find alternate ways to power them. It was definitely something he was thinking about. A few of those could greatly enhance the power of any mortal army they were added to.

  Eventually though their return to the estate was cut short. Lady Meeka and Lash went off to discuss the plans for the challenge matches on the following day. Meanwhile the rest of the team was allowed to return to their rooms to sleep. Kyle was all too happy to sleep and had a great bed warmer in Hilde.

  The team woke up late the day of the challenges. It had been well past midnight when they made it back from the dungeon. Kyle found he had needed a bit more sleep than usual the last two nights. Creating the axe, turning Gilthan into an emissary, and then mastering the fragment of Dod’s scythe had all taken a toll on him.

  Besides the sleep though, Hilde had done her best to make sure he was well rested this morning. Her enthusiasm for him had grown by leaps and bounds since he had been able to manifest more of his divine nature. That was really saying something considering how devoted she had been before.

  Of course, Kyle had learned something about the reasoning behind that in the vision beyond the Blood of the Fallen. He knew at some point he was going to need to tell her about the heritage of her people and their connection with Krig, but he was still searching for a way to do so. He figured in due time he would be able to and who knew if a war god could be reincarnated then what was to say that a fire goddess couldn’t also.

  They relaxed throughout the day and only started talking strategy in the late afternoon. The matches were going to be held at twilight, so they still had time. Lash said, “I think it is clear who the actual leader of this team is but if Lord Kyle is willing, I would still like to discuss how we can best work together in these matches.”

  “You are still our arena team captain and the one with the most experience here other than maybe Hilde, but since she isn’t fighting in the arena it is really up to you. So, plan away,” Kyle replied.

  She bowed to him which only made him more anxious but then she started pacing as she outlined a plan. When she finished her final comments were, “So everyone understands?”

  Skrug mumbled, “Skrug no chop people in half.” Then he brightened up and said, “Unless whip lady or boss man says can.”

  “Yes err… not sure… well anyway that is probably a good starting point for you, Skrug,” Lash commented.

  “And I don’t get to show them how magnificent I am now,” Gilthan said.

  Kyle snorted. They all looked at him, but he just started laughing as he looked at Gilthan. “Did I say something to offend you, my friend?”

  e Kyle laugh even louder. He appreciated how well Gilthan was handling being a priest of the war god and still treating him like a friend. But clearly the laughter was making him feel uncomfortable as though he had pushed the level of familiarity too far.

  “I’m sorry Lord Kyle if I’ve offended you.”

  “Oh drop the Lord Kyle. I already have to put up with that stuff from the three of them. I can only let my hair down with you and Skrug and he just wants to eat most of the time. I’m still looking forward to when we can go to a bar. I bet you’ll be an awesome wingman. That is if the ladies here won’t complain too much,” Kyle said.

  He looked at Hilde in particular as he said the last part. She only said, “I’ve expressed my opinion on the matter. You may do as you please, you are my lord and my god.”

  “It’s no fun if you don’t tease me back, Hilde,” Kyle said groaning softly.

  “I still don’t understand what was so funny earlier,” Kierra added. Kyle was glad for any time she would join into a conversation.

  “It is something from the world that I was born in. There was this tv show… well I guess you guys don’t know what a tv show is. Sorta imagine moving images on a screen that show people doing things,” Kyle began.

  That only mad

  “You mean like the scrying screens they have up in the arena to allow everyone to see more details,” Lash asked.

  “A little like that. It shows people, but it isn’t really. They are just pretending everything.”

  “So like the plays that rich mortals go to watch with actors pretending to be gods, heroes or monsters?” Hilde asked.

  “Yes, something like that but on a screen,” Kyle replied.

  “Humans are so strange,” Kierra mumbled.

  “Except it wasn’t actually people, it was drawings. What we call a cartoon,” Kyle tried to explain.

  Everyone was looking at him as though he had sprouted a second head, so he just kept going. “Any way, there was this character who had a belt that sorta looks like Gilthan’s receptacle and he was kind of a pretty boy too. He could shoot a beam of light out of his belly button. But he would go around saying how magnificent he was while a student at a school for heroes.”

  They were all still staring at him as though waiting for him to make a point. He remembered why he tried to avoid cultural references when talking to the natives of Verden. “Okay, never mind. I guess you had to be there.” He obviously wasn’t going to be able to explain an anime series to them.

  An awkward silence settled in the room and surprisingly Skrug was the next to speak. “Me sure it is funny if boss man laughing, just me no get it.”

  That made the rest of them laugh and Kyle just shook it off.

  Lash waited till the laughing died down and said, “Okay, so we all understand the plan for tomorrow?”

  There was some general nodding, but Kyle summarized things, “Yeah, we slow play them. Drawing them into where we want them, then hit them with some shock and awe.”

  Chapter 23 - Back to the Arena

  The time had come and obviously word had spread around the city. Kyle was surprised to see that the repairs to the arena were so complete that the damage caused by the Aekor attack was completely erased. He caught
himself though because sometimes he expected them to function with medieval level technology.

  Magical power made a huge difference. Knowing what he knew now, he was pretty certain that he would have been able to repair the majority of the arena in a single day. While the human mages didn’t have access to the level of raw power that he did, they had experience and numbers on their side.

  Kyle found himself more and more often thinking about the people around him as humans or mortals. They were something different than he was. It was a bit disconcerting, and he made an effort to quash those thoughts, but they kept springing up time and time again. Right now, it wasn’t an issue, but Hilde’s fears did make him cognizant of the way this could become a bigger issue if it continued in the way it was going.

  Now though he just wanted to take in the setting. Every noble house in all of Thena has a private box. The regular seats were filled with everyone from merchants down to laborers. He was even surprised, although on second thought he realized he probably shouldn’t have been, to see that many of the laborers were wearing colors representing their favorite house team. There were apparently sports fans anywhere you went.

  They had been forced to stand at the edge of the arena while a parade of nobles walked by to get a look at the new team. They were considered outsiders and House Avarda was counting on their performance. Even a number of military officers came by to take stock of them. Their team had an elf, half-troll, and lycan all of which were known threats to the expansion of Thena.

  Kyle was the oddball that none of them knew what to think about. Obviously, the very idea of a war elemental was interesting to those military officers and the former herald of the war god was a draw in and of herself.

  Of course, the looks he got from the officers which weighed his worth were infuriating in how they tried to make him feel as though he was a tool. Those looks though were less invasive than the ones he got from many of the noble women. They were weighing him in an entirely different manner. Many of them appeared to offer coins to Lady Meeka but she would only say that they should know the rules of the arena.

  Once it was all over, Lady Meeka came down to speak to them. He’d seen team owners want to give a pep talk before a big game. It almost never went well, but he was here, so he would listen.

  “The amount of coin that is going to change hands tonight is substantial. The betting is stacked against us. The only real question that they are betting about is how far House Arvada’s team can make it. The majority seem to think that you can’t even defeat one professional team, but the odds get longer and longer the further into this you make it.”

  Kyle had an interest in sports betting as did any player. It was strictly off limits for them but that didn’t mean they weren’t interested in how odds were laid. “And what are the odds being placed that we go all the way?” He asked.

  “I think it is set at 100:1 right now. But no one is betting on that so far. A couple of adventurous women who saw your previous fight here have been willing to bet on you getting through twelve of the fifteen fighters at something like 50:1 odds.”

  “Why don’t you place a big bet on us taking out all the other fighters. That should earn you some serious coin,” Kyle said.

  “Lash has tried to convince me that it is going to go like that, but I don’t know. My friends all say that the other races can’t stand up to well trained professional human gladiators,” she replied.

  “It isn’t even really gambling, but do what you want,” Kyle said.

  She winked at him and said, “Oh I always do.” Then she turned and started to walk up to the stands but looked back and said, “Oh, one more thing. If you do make it through all the other fighters, then you should expect to be offered some ladies’ favors. It is considered the height of rudeness for a gladiator to refuse and if you pick up one of them then understand that you are agreeing to take that lady up on her offer.”

  “I doubt Skrug will get any thrown at him, but you never know for sure. And the male nobles have long considered this to be a game relegated to the bored womenfolk. So, while it is still possible some of them might throw a favor at one of the ladies it is far more likely that Gilthan and Kyle would get multiple offers. Just don’t pick up more than you can handle.”

  Gilthan asked, “And is this because we are slaves.”

  “Oh no. I didn’t make up this rule. This is because you are gladiators. If Lash picks up a lady’s favor, then she would be expected to follow through too. But you likely won’t have to worry about it unless you defeat all three opposing teams.” Then she truly did leave.

  “What is she talking about?” Kyle asked and Lash just laughed.

  She replied, “Hilde would just love this. Nothing you have to worry about Lo… or I mean, Kyle. For now, we just need to focus on winning. At least that is what you used to say.”

  Kyle nodded and then the trumpets sounded, and it was time for their team to take the field. They all trotted out to their respective side and took up the formation they had agreed upon. Skrug was the top of their pyramid with Kyle behind him and to the left, Kierra matched his place but on the right side. Behind Kierra was Gilthan and Lash was behind Kyle.

  Unless the other side had any demi-humans, they assumed that any of their team could beat the entire other team, but the plan called for them to make it look like more of a fight than it was. Kyle figured if they were going through with this then they might as well put on a show. Although, standing here now under the stars with the mage lights making everything brighten up, Kyle felt a mix of excitement and at the same time a sense that this was a waste of his time.

  This was going to be over all too quickly, so he might as well enjoy it. The first team that lined up on the opposite side was from House Tarkin. Kyle really didn’t know much about the political structure of Thena, but each of the houses tonight had some beef with House Avarda and so Meeka really wanted to put them in their places. It wasn’t that he really cared about their politics, but Meeka had been the most decent of all the nobles so if he could give her a leg up then all the better. Especially since he knew they would be leaving here soon.

  Kyle took stock of the opposition. Before he would have had to rely upon his eyes and ears, but now he had the ability to sense things at a far greater range. Even without expanding his aura too much he could target the opponents. Each was a regular human. This really was going to be over quickly.

  Their back row was three archers, and the front row was two guys that would have been perfect as NFL linebackers but were nothing compared to his size, let alone Skrug. When Saber appeared to act as the official, he shouted to both teams to prepare themselves. Kyle could sense Gilthan starting to move the air. None of those arrows was gonna get close.

  When Saber brought his arm down signaling the beginning of the team match the other side started with three arrows and were pulling back to fire again even as Saber was running for the safety of the sidelines. Three volleys of arrows in rapid success attested to the skill of their archers but it was all for naught as Gilthan controlled the very air and made the arrows fly over their heads.

  Lash called out, “Hold.”

  They all knew the plan, but emotions could surge during battle. Kyle felt himself fidgeting. There was little to no risk from this team, but it was still a rush. So, they just all stood at the ready. The other team clearly hadn’t expected this. They flashed some signs between them.

  That was a good idea Kyle realized. His team needed to come up with their own hand signals for battle. Eventually their two-point men started straight forward while their archers all moved to the flanks.

  “Skrug, take it to the big ones, Kierra you’ve got the archer on the left, Gilthan and I will take the two on the right,” Lash ordered.

  It chafed at Kyle, but he was being held in reserve. It really wasn’t necessary for him to engage though. The fight was almost over before it began. Kierra sprinted at her opponent, dodging, or even catching th
e arrows out of the air. She then dropped him in two blows once she reached him.

  Lash took a bit longer in that she moved forward slowly knocking the arrows from the air with her weapon in tri-staff form. When she got closer, she quickly changed it into a whip and upended her opponent by tangling up his foot. From there she sprung through the air and knocked him unconscious with the pommel of her dagger.

  Gilthan’s foe was down before he even fired another arrow as a bolt of electrical current sent him to the ground spasming. Not that Skrug’s two fared any better. They had shields but all that did was result in broken arms. Subtly and holding back were not the half-troll’s strong suits so when he slammed the flat of his axe against their shields it was with his great strength and both of them crumpled under the onslaught. One more little love tap from him and they were both down.