Dungeon Master 5

by Eric Vall

  Morrigan’s brow furrowed as she raised her head to me and opened her supple lips to speak. “I didn’t know you had brothers, Master.”

  “Yes,” I nodded slowly. “I believe by the time I was cast out, I had fifteen younger brothers and another on the way. Who knows how many more I may have now?” I sighed softly as I stroked my chin and remembered the sight of my mother, heavy with child as she looked down at me with scorn. “But like Nergal’s daughter Ruituri, I was the only son that my mother could not bear, and the seed that would grow into the being you see before you passed on to another goddess to carry.”

  “Who carried you then if not Qyris?” Rana asked as her blue eyes bore into mine over the flames.

  “A goddess named Eris,” I admitted and gritted my teeth against the next question I knew was coming. Morrigan’s dark eyes narrowed, and her mouth opened slightly as she stared at me in shock.

  “Eris?” the elf stuttered out as realization flashed across her face. I raised my eyebrows in surprise that the elven woman was the only know who even knew who the goddess was.

  “Yes, Eris is the one who carried me in her belly,” I confirmed with a firm nod.

  “Master… your dark powers, did they come from Eris and not your true parents?” my white-haired lover questioned with wide eyes.

  “My parents, one the god of victory and the other the goddess of the sun, wouldn’t have created a child with the powers that I possess,” I informed her. “Light comes from light and darkness comes from darkness. My true parents couldn’t have created a child with powers like mine. It could only have come from Eris.”

  The elf sat back on her heels as she breathed in deeply.

  “Okay, hold up,” Rana cried as she raised her hands into the air, and we all turned to her as she continued to speak. “Who is this Eris woman? I mean, it’s obviously freaking Morrigan out that she’s your second mom, so you have to tell us.”

  “Eris is the goddess of strife and discord,” I stated as I squared my shoulders. “She was the leader of the Underworld before my time.”

  “She is one of the most powerful goddesses known to mortals,” Morrigan added in a hushed voice, and Fea and Macha nodded their heads in unison from the elf’s shoulders. “My elven people may not worship gods or anything of the like, but she is one of the few gods acknowledged in our texts. I believe she was called upon by my people when the Alavesh stole from us, but she either didn’t hear us or ignored our cries for help.”

  “Eris is very fickle,” I stated with a small smile then raised my eyes to Morrigan for a moment and then the others after. “I’m surprised she helped my parents in the beginning, but it seems she had other plans for me once I was old enough.”

  “What does that mean?” Annalise questioned as she scooted closer to the fire. “What came next, Master?”

  “I must start this story with Isolda because she is where all of my stories stem from,” I murmured. “You may have heard her mentioned a few times, and I know I’ve let a few of the details slip, but none of you know who she truly was. You all know now that Isolda was my first love, the first human that opened her heart to me and allowed me within the confines of her flesh.”

  My minions listened, enraptured by my story as I continued. “The woman whom I fell in love with was a fledgling witch, not fully practiced or versed in her practices. Isolda summoned me by mistake, and her beauty overcame me as I stood in the middle of her crude circle. I was not yet a man nor was I a boy when I met her, and in those days, our love was innocent and pure before my true calling was given to me.”

  “True calling?” Carmedy asked sweetly as she scooted closer, and I bowed my head once.

  “Though Eris wasn’t my true blood mother, she still had a claim to me since her power was part of mine,” I said as I imagined Eris’s face in my head. Once I took down the heavens, she would be the first that I’d go after, the creature that turned me into what I am.

  “What does that even mean?” Rana asked with a scrunched-up nose, and I turned my attention to the fox for a moment.

  “Even though she wasn’t his mother, she was still partly his mother,” Annalise said with a nod of her head, and Rana’s face grew even more confused.

  “None of what you just said makes any sense,” the fox grumbled as she crossed her arms over her chest.

  “I think I can better explain. We all know that you are two halves of your parents melded together into a separate person,” I explained in a soft voice, and the fox watched me with wary eyes. “When I was born, I had not only my parent’s powers but also Eris’s, and that would make her a third parent in this situation. I’m not only the product of the exquisite breeding of my parents but also Eris’s, I am part of her like she is part of me. It is the same for Nergal’s daughter, Ruituri, just like Haruhi explained.”

  “Still kind of confused but go on,” the fox said with a shrug of her shoulders.

  I nodded and did as she bid. “I was still in my adolescence during this time, not old enough to understand how to use or control the powers I had been given, and that is when Eris took me under her wing. As Morrigan said, Eris is very powerful and, like my parents, is high up in the Holy Order despite the nature of her powers. During this time, Isolda blossomed before my eyes, more appealing than ever, and her magic had bloomed alongside her.” I stared deep into the fire and watched the wood crackle and pop from the blazing heat.

  “I’d been told many times not to fraternize with humans, but I still went to her every chance that I could,” I told them as a small smile came to my lips as I remembered all the times I had spent with the beautiful Isolda in her secluded cottage. “But we were quickly found out.”

  “Is that when you were cast out?” Morrigan asked as her eyebrows lifted.

  “No… Eris was the one who found us together, and she offered me a deal in exchange for her secrecy.” I chuckled darkly, and my minion's faces fell. “It sounds as if I was forced into doing it, but in reality, it was something I wanted. I had turned away from my parents a long time before any of this happened, and Eris, my second mother, was the one who seemed to understand what I was going through. My parents had Otia, and he was the golden child, literally. He was born with the ability only to speak the truth, and they doted on him for having such a pure power that would help the mortals.”

  “What was the deal?” Rana questioned in a firm voice.

  “I would become the ruler and god over all the Underworld,” I stated, and each of their eyes widened in horror as they stared at me. “Eris passed her legacy down to the only son and heir she had, and I wholeheartedly accepted.”

  “Y-you were t-the god of the u-underworld?” Carmedy stuttered, and I looked over to her and saw the fear in her wide emerald eyes.

  This was the reason why I hadn’t wanted to tell them, the fear and distrust in each of their eyes was enough to tear me to shreds. My women knew I was evil in some ways and exacted revenge on any god we came into contact with, but telling them my true nature seemed to make it more concrete than before. I wanted to reach out to them and pull them to me, but I knew now was not the time. They would pull away from me in fear.

  “I was,” I confirmed with a nod of my head and a small smile. “Or perhaps it is better to say that I still am because no one has been overseeing the underworld since I’ve been gone.”

  My minions were utterly silent as each of them mulled over this information. Carmedy was the first to lift her head to me and stare into my face with a frightened wonder. They had known me for a while now, and they all knew the love I had for them was true, but it was still a shock to hear the words come from their own Master’s mouth.

  “Did Eris betray you?” the cat asked in an honest voice. “Was she the one who had you cast from the heavens?”

  “No, she wasn’t.” I chuckled softly as I ran a hand through my hair. “Eris stayed faithful to me until the end. Even on the day I was cast out, she was by my side, and I guess that’s one thing I can thank her
for. In fact, she doted upon Isolda even more than me, and I bet that if she met you all, she would like you just as much or if not more than Isolda. Eris was my true mother, the one who cared enough to raise me, and she made me into what I am today. She wanted Isolda to be a part of the underworld with me though it is impossible for a mortal to do such a thing. Isolda… attracted more attention to herself than I would have liked even if she helped me while I oversaw the underworld.”

  “How does this underworld thing work?” Rana questioned through narrowed eyes. “Did you live there or were you in the heavens this whole time?”

  “Once I became the god of the underworld, I moved there but was still permitted to enter the heavens as I pleased,” I told her with a gentle smile.

  “What did you do in the underworld, Master?” Carmedy asked excitedly.

  I turned my head to her, pleasantly surprised that the feline was the only one interested in my duties as the god of the underworld.

  “I led legions of demons, sometimes out to war or simply to earth for fun, punished evil souls for all of eternity, and brought some of the better souls into purgatory. The most fun I had there was creating personal punishments for souls. It was similar to the illusion god’s power but more vivid, and I relished when they’d cry out for mercy.” I chuckled lightly, and surprisingly, the cat didn’t pull back at my harsh words.

  “Sounds like you really liked it there,” the redhead muttered, and when I looked over to her, her blue eyes were downcast at the glowing embers. She didn’t seem as shocked this time. If anything, it seemed as if she was upset that I had liked it in the underworld.

  “And then?” Morrigan asked as her dark eyes moved over my features.

  “As I said, Isolda was attracting more attention and caught the eye of a certain god… my brother,” I answered thoughtfully. “My brother cannot tell lies, I know I told you that, but what I haven’t mentioned is his powers also work on others. When he asks anyone a question, they must answer. They are forced to speak truthfully in his presence. Otia found Isolda, saw us together one night when I hadn’t returned to the underworld or the heavens. The little bastard snuck up to the window and saw us… together.” I added pointed emphasis to that word and knew they understood my meaning. “Once I left and returned to the underworld without the knowledge he had even been there, he cornered her in her cottage and got all the information he needed from her.”

  “Oh no,” Carmedy breathed sadly, and I tentatively reached out to take her paw in mine. She didn’t draw back or flinch away, and that was a good sign.

  “Otia went straight to the Holy Order, not to my parents and especially not to me, but to the people who would hear his word and cast me out,” I told them as I leaned my head back and remembered the day I had entered back into the god’s realm without even knowing what was going to happen to me.

  “But he’s your brother, why would he do such a thing?” Annalise cried through a scowl, and from her expression, I knew she was thinking about her own brothers.

  “Unlike mortals, who is your blood and who is not doesn’t matter to the gods,” I said as my hands clenched unconsciously into tight fists. “Otia didn’t care that I was his older brother. He only saw the opportunity to have me gone from the heavens and be the only one who my parents would lay their favor on, not that they did that for me to begin with.”

  “I guess blood isn’t thicker than water,” the petite alchemist sighed, and I gave her a sidelong smile in agreement.

  “Gods and goddesses don’t acknowledge those types of things as holy or sacred. Their children are often tossed out into the god's realm to fend for themselves,” I told them in a voice tinged with sadness as I remembered all the children who roamed the heavens, not knowing how to control their powers. “The god's realm is a place rife with corruption and perversion.”

  “I guess it makes sense,” Rana admitted, as the fox finally gave me a slight smile. “Look at all the gods we’ve encountered already. They’re all greedy, selfish assholes. They all couldn’t have become like that after they fell, it was something learned in the heavens before they fell, right?”

  “You’re right.” I laughed loudly, and the redhead’s face cleared even more as she listened to my voice.

  “So, Otia told the Holy Order?” Annalise asked as she ran her hands over her chestnut braid.

  “He did, and the Holy Order told my parents in turn. I’d returned to the god's realm for a meeting with Eris. I had appointed her as an overseer of one of the many legions of hell and needed to speak to her about a few things. I made it two steps through the Sanctum, and they were on me,” I told them as I remembered that day as if it were yesterday. The shouts and screams with fingers pointed in my direction and finally, being forced to my knees in front of the Holy Order and the scornful faces of both my parents, Eris at my back as she was the only one who supported me. “They took me to the Holy Order and heard the recounting and confessions given to Otia from Isolda. In the heavens, there is no jury to determine your fate. There are only the accused and the judge.”

  “Then you were cast out from the heavens, Master?” Morrigan whispered.

  “Yes, the Sanctum closed behind me as I fell, and the gates to the underworld slammed shut as I crashed into the earth where you found me not long ago,” I said as I raised my head, squared my shoulders, and looked each of them in the eye.

  “What happened to Isolda?” Annalise asked as she raised her hands over the licking flames and warmed herself.

  “A fate worse than mine,” I said sadly as I remembered Isolda’s beautiful face the last time I had seen her. Isolda with her flowing hair the color of goldenrod and her sparkling cornflower blue eyes that crinkled at the corners when she smiled. “I haven’t seen her since that fateful day when Otia found us, but I know for sure that she suffered the fate that most humans do when they’re caught fraternizing with gods. They took away her ability to speak to the gods and her ability for magic, her sole livelihood, all because she got caught up with me.”

  “Will that happen to us?” Carmedy frightfully asked as she held her twitching tail between both paws.

  I reached out and ruffled her short, black hair.

  “I dare them to try to do anything to any of you. If they do, then they will end up like all those left in our wake, powerless and dead.” I smirked, and the feline calmed down, and her tensed shoulders relaxed.

  “Then we came into the picture,” Morrigan said as a small smile spread over her colorless lips, and Fea cawed once softly and pecked at the elf’s white hair. “Tumbled right into your lap.”

  “You gave me a new life, and I am eternally grateful to all of you,” I said softly, reverently. “You freed me from the dungeon and have faithfully followed after me wherever I’ve gone. You are not only my minions but my lovers, and I promise that no harm will ever come to you under my eye.” I bowed to them and offered my hands out to them.

  Four hands reached out and clasped mine. I had told them most of what happened in my life in the heavens, and as I expected, they were frightened in the beginning, but now, they were even more eager to accept me for who I was. I hadn’t told them before to protect them from who I was, but what I hadn’t realized was my minions were stronger than I had first thought. We had seen and experienced so many things together that it didn’t matter who or what I was. My minions were hardened warriors who got better and better by the day, and yes, they still needed some training and guidance, but they could handle the truth about my past.

  “I am sorry it took me this long to tell you, my dears.” I gravely uttered.

  “It’s okay, we understand. I, for one, am very glad you told us though. It helps us to understand you better.” Carmedy grinned as she patted my shoulder with a soft paw, and I opened my arms to her. The feline fell forward into my embrace and snuggled deeper into my arms.

  In time, each of my minions came over to me, and we laid back into the soft feathers of my sleeping Bantam. Each of my minions cuddl
ed into me and soon enough, as the fire died down, each of them drifted off to sleep. I'd been apprehensive about telling them for so long, and now, most of the burden was off my shoulders for good. Annalise lay her head on my chest, and I stroked her soft chestnut braid as it fell over her shoulder.

  I almost wished I had told them sooner, but I knew now was the best time. They wouldn’t have been ready to hear all the things I had told them earlier. I drifted in and out of sleep for a few hours and enjoyed the beating heat of the fire as it continued to blaze on with a little help from my power. All of my minions were soon fast asleep, and I lifted my eyes towards the hole in the ceiling of the tent and looked up at the twinkling stars overhead.

  We would take to the heavens eventually, and I would look upon the faces of the family I had lost, even my mentor who had gone to great lengths to watch me succeed in her place as the ruler of the underworld. All of them must die, every single god or goddess who had looked down on me and thrown me out of my rightful place in the heavens. I lay my head back against my Bantam and closed my eyes once more, determined to rest for the night, when I heard a soft whisper on the cold wind outside the tent.

  I peeked open one eye and listened as the sound grew in pitch. I could almost make out the words, but they were garbled and intermixed with the rustling of the dead trees outside. I sensed no presences near us and closed my eye again as I shifted comfortably against my women.

  I heard it again, but this time the words were louder. I opened both eyes and lifted my head to listen to what I now realized were frightened screams. They were still incomprehensible, but the voice felt familiar to me. I turned my head towards the tent flap, but the sound didn’t seem to be coming from outside anymore. I glanced up at the Bantams to see if they had heard it too, but most of their heads were tucked under their wings fast asleep. Silence fell over the tent, and I turned my head in all directions to listen for the sound again, but nothing else came. I lay back still but jolted upright as the scream came again but this time next to my ear.