War Aeternus 2: Sacrifices

by Charles Dean

  Lee took the stone and placed it in his inventory right away, much to the shock and anger of the guards who had escorted him. His instinct to unload everything he had onto Amber had been correct. He hadn’t known what type of dirty tricks they would try to make him give up his stuff, but he had figured they would try something. “There. See? I don’t have anything on me,” Lee insisted. “I gave it all away to the church.”

  “The church!” The guard punched him in the gut and then shoved him into the cell and slammed the door behind him. “You rotten little ingrate. Just keep making this harder for yourself every step of the way. You should have kept some money knowing we were going to come for you when you murdered those innocent men. Now, give me back the stone.”

  Lee had no issues tossing the small object back, and he was somewhat relieved to see the door close: it meant that there was at least a semi-present wall between him and the guards, so he’d at least have some sort of warning before someone punched him again.

  Lee turned around and looked at his quarters. There was a pile of straw on the floor, a bucket that Lee knew the purpose off but didn’t want to think about, and a very tiny, very slow trickle of water leaking from a crack in one of the walls that disappeared in the floor. The cell was a tiny ten-foot-by-five-foot box, and as Lee’s eyes darted between the pile of straw and the bucket, he felt like he was going to lose the delicious dinner he had eaten earlier.

  Well, Augustus,” he thought glumly, “you were right: I’d much rather have spent my night in my real world. He did his best to lie down and get comfortable on the straw but quickly learned that it was impossible. The dirt floor was hard, the straw was itchy, and the constant dripping of water was an incessant annoyance.

  “Little late now. Maybe tomorrow,” Augustus’s voice laughed in his ears. “I can’t believe you passed up my generosity and ended up here. There’s no way I’m going to let you off the hook with a simple ‘You were right, I was wrong.’ How about this: get me at least one follower, and I’ll renew my offer. That shouldn’t be hard. This is a prison, after all. Your fellow prisoners should have plenty of time to think and no way to escape listening to you, so do your thing and get me another member of the flock.”

  That . . . Lee looked around at all the people whose faces were pressed against the bars as they stared at him. That shouldn’t be too hard. At least I already have their attention.

  “Not tonight. Get some rest first. You’re going to need it,” Augustus’ words were ominous, and his tone was dark, making it obvious he knew something that Lee didn’t--and that made Lee’s mood sour all the more. After the beating he had just received, the last thing he wanted was to spend the night in this awful place, much less with a drunken, gloating god holding something over him. Sleeping in the other world and waking up here would have been much better. “Hey, don’t act like I don’t look after you.”

  Fine, fine. I’ll get some rest, Lee grumbled to himself and Augustus. Shouldn’t take long at all to do a miracle and get a follower tomorrow.

  “Oh, you’re right. This challenge might be too easy. I want you to convert a guard, one of the Firbolgs or Leprechauns.”

  Lee’s jaw nearly fell off. What the? Have you not seen how much they hate me?! That’s not possible! Lee wailed his protest, but all he got in return was the sound of a chimp’s grating laughter.

  Just when he thought Augustus was gone, though, he heard one final phrase from the troll of a deity. “I’m doing this all for your own good,” the god whispered patronizingly.

  Fie! The heck you are! Lee shouted profanities and insults in his head, but it was no use. Augustus was clearly done talking to him for now, and so Lee finally took the shape-shifting god’s advice and went to sleep.

  Chapter 4

  Name: Lee

  Race: Human

  Class: Herald - None

  Level: 17

  Health: 270/270

  EXP: 8019/10500

  Primary Stats:

  Power 27 (28)

  Toughness 27 (28)

  Spirit 27 (28)

  Secondary Stats:

  Charisma 20

  Courage 20

  Deceit 18

  Intelligence 131 (137)

  Honor 5

  Faith 650

  Personal Faith 222

  Skills:

  Unarmed Combat Initiate Level 7

  Swordplay Novice Level 6

  Sneak Novice Level 9

  Cooking Initiate Level 7

  Trap Detection Initiate Level 6

  Knife Combat Initiate Level 8

  Mental Fortitude Initiate Level 1

  Sleight of Hand Initiate Level 2

  Divine Skills:

  Golem Sculpting Novice Level 10

  Appreciative Drunk Novice Level 8

  Nectar of the Gods Initiate Level 1

  Faith Healing

  Divinity Powers:

  Life in Death

  Lee woke up to a loud clanking sound coming from down the cell block.

  “Cellmate 264, wake up! You have a visitor!” a voice called out.

  264? Lee blinked his eyes open. He hadn’t expected to be able to sleep well, but between the combination of drinking and being beaten, he had passed out within seconds of closing his eyes. Isn’t that me? Lee brushed straw and, for some reason, fresh grass out of his hair and off of his clothes as he stood up.

  “So, you’re the divine zymurgist that I’ve heard so much about,” the visitor said, already talking to Lee even before he came into view. “I hear you’ve been up to a lot in the short time you’ve been in Kirshtein.”

  “More than others, less than some,” Lee answered, catching sight of a Human dressed in funny clothes that Lee could only assume was formalwear. He was wearing tall, black boots; frilly, red pants and gold, white, and black puff wear of the sort that was popular at court during the 1500s--back when they liked clothing to accentuate rather than slim down its wearer--and the only thing the man was missing to be right at home in an Elizabethan court was a cape. As much as Lee wanted to mock the man’s attire, one glance was enough to tell him that this man was both rich and important. There was no peasant in town that could put together garments like that or afford to keep them clean.

  “How may I help you?” Lee asked at last.

  “Mmm . . .” The man let out a disapproving breath as his eyes ran up and down Lee in a rather uncomfortable manner. “I expected more of you from all the stories.”

  “I’m more than others, less than some,” Lee responded curtly. “If you’ve come for a beer, you might have to come back later. I’m all out of fresh water--and apparently luck--these days.”

  “I see that. No, I came to meet you and inform you that I will be taking on your case in court--when it reaches court, that is. I’ve already put together a line of witnesses, written evidence listing the rather . . . financial motivation . . . of some of the guards to tell things in a certain light and character witnesses to vouch for you. I am Gregory, and I’m here to tell you that you are in good hands with me as your lawyer. I assure you: I’m the best that money can buy.”

  “Ah, I see. That’s great,” Lee let out a sigh as he stuck his hand forward, only to have the man stare at it as if he were a leper. “I don’t know how Amber got ahold of you so quickly, but that’s such a relief to know she already found one for me.”

  “Amber?” The man watched Lee’s hand until he finally took the hint and pulled it back behind the bars again. “I know no such person.”

  “Ling? Miller?” Lee guessed, only to see the man still shaking his head. “Then . . .”

  “I don’t bother myself with names. I was hired, and here I am. I assure you that, as long as I’m overseeing your case, you’ll be fine. The result isn’t etched in stone, but it should . . .” The man looked toward the entrance to the hallway, seemingly rather irritated by something. “It should be in a few weeks if . . .” The man again turned his head back to the entrance before huffing and shouting, “I sa
y, did your superior not inform you I was here? I need a few more minutes with my client. Be gone until I’m done. You two know the rules: I am to have privacy with my client!”

  “We know the rules, but your meeting is over. He’s scheduled for the first fight of the day. We have to get him cleaned up and in the sands at an hour past first light,” the guard answered back impatiently. “Way I figure it, we’ve already been nice enough just by allowing you talk to him to begin with when he’s got such an important date.”

  “What? That’s madness! There is no way he could be slotted for a fight before his court hearing. He still hasn’t been proven guilty! What type of half-baked sideshow are you running here?!”

  “Look, you old blowhard, Captain Delilah sent out orders last night. Cell 264 is to fight off against a Glubinsa an hour past first light. Now, unless you want to join him on the sands, you’re gonna have to cut your conversation off early!” The guard chortled at his own bad joke, obviously far too concerned with having his own little bit of authority usurped by someone he considered an inferior.

  “Why, I never! What is your name? To be so disrespectful to a man of my stature!” the lawyer objected.

  “Careful with those threats,” the guards sneered. “This ain’t the old days anymore. Things have changed, and your type should learn how to handle that change, old man. Otherwise, you just might end up on the sands with him.”

  “This is breaking court procedure. You can’t have them fight to the death until after their trial! Everything about this is illegal! I will have your necks!” the man harrumphed and then turned and started walking out, leaving the two guards where they were to eye Lee up and down. “Don’t think this is over,” the lawyered called back. “I’ll get you out in no time now. They’ve broken too many laws!” But Lee could barely hear him, and he could only see his figure storming out thanks to his use of Ethan.

  “Alright, hands against the wall, or we’ll gut you right here. Don’t try anything funny,” the guards warned, not that it would have made a difference. Lee had already thought about trying something, but Ethan could now clearly see ten guards stationed in the other room, who were just sitting around and talking. Even if he killed these two, healed up, and managed to get one or two of the other convicts to help him, there was no way he could escape.

  Well, I guess I’ll just have to trust that lawyer. Even if it was certain death, he still was tempted to try breaking free since everyone made it sound like he had just been given a death sentence anyway. He knew for certain now that he was going to have to fight a Glubinsa to the death, whatever a Glubinsa was, and the only thing stopping him from making a desperate attempt at escape was the thought that he still had a chance at being a law-abiding citizen in the future.

  Lee was dragged by the arm and escorted across the prison and into a large, sand-covered hallway with a heavy iron gate at the opposite end and two more guards watching whatever was happening on the other side of the gate.

  “Fresh blood?” one of the guards asked, turning his head to look at Lee.

  “Yeah, he’s set to fight a Glubinsa.”

  “So, we need to arm him and get him out on the sand?” the guard asked, looking over behind him at a weapon rack that was near the gate. There were three or four each of almost every type of weapon a man could imagine from the dark ages hung there. Nothing as exotic as a battle poi, sai or kama were present, but everything from a halberd to a dagger seemed to be represented.

  “We could,” the guard escorting Lee responded as he began unshackling Lee’s arms and legs. “We could do that, or . . .” The man looked over at the sands. “Well, his kind should be able to handle a Glubinsa unarmed, right? I’ve heard Humans are wily and clever, often using their heads to cheat and ruin others all the time. I’m sure he’ll think of something.”

  “Him? Clever? If he were so clever, he wouldn’t be here in the first place,” the other guard responded, laughing at the idea. “We should give him . . . Something? Maybe a large rock?”

  “No. He can earn some points and buy his first weapon the same way others buy their second and third.” The guard’s big, dopey ear-to-ear grin just made Lee want to punch him right in his Neanderthal-esque unibrow.

  Lee might not have been particularly comfortable with killing innocent people, but his desire to free himself and kill even one of these guards was growing with every sentence that left that stupid lug’s mouth. He suddenly had other things to worry about, however. The two guards swung open the gate, and Lee was thrust forward onto the grayish brown sand of the colosseum. While the middle of the arena was wide open, there were nine thick, heavy pillars sprouting up along the outskirts, holding up a large stone roof that hung above the arena. The arena itself was circular, with a radius that appeared to be roughly a hundred and fifty to a hundred and seventy-five feet wide. Other than the usual footprints and divots in the sand, the arena floor was relatively flat.

  “Come on, god boy, show us a miracle,” one of the guards taunted.

  Oh, right. Not only do I have to get out of this place, but I also have to convert a guard at the same time. Thanks, Augustus.

  “So, uhh . . . Where is this . . . Glubinsa?” Lee asked skeptically, looking out at the empty sands. He was kind of surprised that there weren’t many spectators. In fact, the seats were barely ten percent full.

  “Not even a weapon?” he heard one of the audience members call down. “They must really hate you!”

  Yeah, you figure? Lee looked up to find a Human eating some type of food that he had never seen before, something he assumed was the equivalent of popcorn.

  “Don’t worry. He’s in there somewhere,” the guard called to him with mock assurance.

  “Huh? He’s in here somewhere?” Lee muttered aloud. The timing of the warning was fortunate. The moment he looked back to the sands, he saw a red, semi-transparent liquid shoot up from the ground beneath of him. He did his best to dodge by jumping back, but he wasn’t fast enough, and the liquid still grazed his right arm.

  Lee hadn’t expected it to sting so badly or deal 13 points of damage the moment it struck him given that it was just a dark-red liquid, so the damage notification came as a bit of a surprise. He watched with a mixture of fascination and horror as the clothes around the wound corroded, though they didn’t completely disintegrate, and the cloth became riddled with holes.

  “What the hell?” Lee grabbed the burn on his arm with his opposite hand, still feeling the sting. He studied the creature in front of him and realized that it was nothing more than a voluminous pile of gelatinous red slime. It seemed to move by collapsing in upon itself and then pulling itself up in the direction it wanted to move as it reformed, which meant that Lee was easily able to avoid its attacks just by backing up slowly--and he already knew firsthand that its touch alone was reason enough to keep his distance until he figured out how to handle it.

  Really? What is this? The first fight of an RPG quest? Why is there a slime? I’ve been in this world far too long to just now be fighting slimes. Lee’s gamer instinct forced him to mock the life and death scenario he was already in.

  Just as Lee was processing how he was supposed to fight this thing barehanded, now understanding exactly how sick the stunt the guards had pulled on him was, the Glubinsa upped the ante. It flattened itself completely out then shot up while spinning around. Four large globs of acid shot out from its main body, and one was aimed directly at him. He flung his body to the right, but he wasn’t quick enough. The glob grazed his left shoulder and shaved off another 13 points of health on contact.

  “How in the hell am I supposed to fight this thing?” Lee screamed in frustration as he turned and ran. Over the course of twenty-four hours, he had gone from ‘Oh, this is happy-go-lucky! I’m so rich!’ to ‘And now you’re fighting to the death. Good luck!’ He was willing to take suggestions from just about anyone at this point, and thankfully, someone provided one for him.

  “Come on, Human!” one of the Firbolg g
uards called to him with a laugh. “I thought you could perform miracles thanks to that stupid Human-loving god of yours? Just turn him into beer and drink him!”

  “He’s not wrong,” Augustus’s whispered into his head. “You are capable of performing miracles, and I do love me some human women.”

  You mean, like, with my own faith? Lee tried to keep a healthy distance between himself and the Glubinsa slime while doing the math in his head. He actually did have a handful of personal followers, and as a result, he was, in fact, a novice deity. He just didn’t know what all his divinity powers were. He knew that he had access to Life in Death, which wouldn’t help him here, but one other power was hidden, and there were two others which were still listed as locked.

  “What? Are you an idiot? Your miracles are from me, not your little summer camp’s worth of followers. Use the skills I gave you to save yourself. I swear, for someone who has such a high Intelligence stat, you really don’t spend enough time thinking.” Lee couldn’t see Augustus, but he could have sworn that he could hear the god shaking his head. “Do you know how much trouble I’d get in if they found out I spent so much time helping you stay alive? This is as close to cheating in this game as it can get without us both dying.”

  Huh? You only gave me a few skills. The only thing you did was give me the ability to make golems, get stat boosts from being drunk and craft beer. He didn’t see how either of the first two were supposed to be helpful in this scenario. Ethan would likely melt instantly if he came in contact with the Glubinsa, and he was short on high-octane booze at the moment--not that running around while intoxicated and fighting for his life didn’t sound tempting. The only other things he had ever received from Augustus aside from the Book of Augustus--which was basically nothing more than a glorified crafting manual that taught him to make fried chicken and a few other miscellaneous things--was his newly-discovered ability to make damn fine booze if he had the ingredients handy.