Oathbreaker

Liel trudged down the stone steps leading down the blackspire tower, blood dripping from her closed fist onto the ground, leaving a trail of her sins behind. When she reached the writhing pitch-black mass at the foot of the stairs, it turned to face her, maw agape as it sensed what was contained between her fingers. She lurched her hand forward casually, throwing Ciaphas’s eyeballs towards the creature, which she had removed immediately after life had faded from them.

After their conversation, the blood dripping from Liel’s missing eye had dried on her cheek.

‘What is with Horror and ‘eyes’? Is it because of the plot to stifle the use of Ciseus’s powers? Or maybe it’s non-correlative... of course, Horror is just strange in of itself...’

She trudged down the path leading towards Lonlond, trying desperately not to collapse on top of herself, the fatigue of the past couple of days compacted and violently exhausting.

‘I thought Morrigan would appear again... haven’t I stolen that ‘debt’ he wanted to reclaim by messing with and killing Ciaphas? After all, wasn’t his only reason for helping me to stifle Ciaphas’s call for assistance? I wonder if that Red Bard will be angry with me, and try to kill me too...?’

She glanced toward the town ahead with a hollow gaze.

‘Would that be such a bad outcome...?’

Liel shook the silly thought out of her head, letting out a heavy sigh as she took a seat on the hillside below the blackspire tower, holding her sword in her lap as she stared into its silver sheen, covered in crimson stains that dripped along its edge.

She stared at it for a time, waiting, yet nothing happened. Then, she waited a bit longer, until the sun began to set behind the snow-capped mountains in the distance, a warm orange glow bathing over the landscape.

Then, she saw the silhouette of a man in the reflection of her blade, as if that man were standing behind her. But she knew better than that.

“Lord.” She greeted solemnly.

“A lot of questions have arisen for you, I see.” Ciseus smiled softly.

“Some answers are too dangerous for me to know, I think. I’ll keep my questions to myself, for now.”

“That’s a good way to go about it, although not directly aligning to my will. Shouldn’t a servant of mine be inquisitive and willing to track down the truth? How can one support the hero of a story without the proper facts?”

Liel hesitantly reached towards her cheek, touching upon the darkened ink underneath her skin, dead and cold.

Did this mean she would have to confront her fear by herself, as she always had?

More than that, as an oathbreaker, why was he still calling her his servant? Hadn’t she lost that right by defying his Will?

“Do you remember what I said when you were preparing to enter the gateway to Hel? My ‘Will’ isn’t like me at all... if I could do away with it, I would. I won’t fault you for acting of your own accordances, I would never expect you to be so silly. The only thing it costs you is power, and that can be made without the help of a God. Perhaps not magically so, but still remains possible.”

‘Why does he keep saying something so contradictory to my teachings? His ‘Will’ is not truly his? Why can he not change it? What kind of silly game is being played here?’

“I know not what to do now...”

Liel glanced down at the ground, her feet brushing up against the fresh snowfall.

“What is left for me at home? A world that despises me for my choice? Besides, Laisson is still out there somewhere… it means I still have debts that need to be paid.”

“Then, if you’re choosing to remain here, are you up to a task?” Ciseus smiled warmly.

Liel glanced at the reflection in her blade. For a moment, there was silence, until her lips curled up slightly, grinning.

“What would you have me do, Lord?”