The Legendary Hero

The testimony of the refugee had not been accurate. It had not fully encapsulated the sheer horror of what we saw as we made our way across the blighted countryside that once had been the northern reaches of the Spirit Kingdom. Farms and homesteads had been burned, the crops and livestock withered and shrivelled by some unknown ailment. The demons had made their path direct, avoiding major centers of population on their way to the capital city of Lokanos, though the sudden onset of disease had many cities and towns burying dozens by the day.

We stopped in a village whose population could not have been more than five hundred before the demons invaded. The place was scorched to the ground, bodies strewn haphazardly through the streets. Flies swarmed around them in thick clouds. Huge black birds perched from high points in the desiccated and blackened bones of burned houses and eyed us warily as we passed.

“Reports say that the village was sacked eight days ago.” Ser Erik said, riding up next to me. I’d been given a horse after my truck was stolen, and now the saddle sores ached to all hell. “Most of the civilians fled before the attack. A small force was dispatched by the local lord and was quickly put down.”

“Eight days?” Imalor asked, “Seems a long time to leave embers still smoldering.” He pointed to a large, circular burn in the center of the village. Thin trails of orange smoke slowly drifted up from the ashes, which surrounded what once might have been a ceremonial pyre.

We dismounted and walked up to the edge of the burn with caution. A sour tang filled my nose as we approached. No insects buzzed through the air here, no birds perched nearby, despite some nearby corpses. The ashes here held a weird coloration, a deep slate gray with flecks of gold, which was unlike the remains of anything I’d seen burnt before.

Lynessa gasped. It was the first sound I’d heard her make all day, yet she knelt by the ashes and stared at them, eyes nearly popping out of her head.

“What is it?” I asked. She ignored me, and scooped some of the ashes into a small glass bottle, then tucked it away into her pocket.

“This is certainly odd.” Ser Erik said, “I cannot help but wonder what the demons must have burned in order to make remains such as this.”

I glanced back at Lynessa. She glared at me and said nothing.

“Do you think it has something to do with the disease tearing through the Spirit Kingdom?” Imalor asked.

“I don’t think so.” I replied, “We’ve seen a few casualties of the plague on the campaign thus far, and none of the dead here appear to have been inflicted by it.”

“Still,” said Ser Erik, “best not to take chances, don’t you think?”

“No.” I agreed, “We’d best not. Unless someone has any information on this?” I looked around. Nobody responded. “Very well. Keep your distance. If you show signs of infection, quarantine yourself until Lynessa can confirm it.”

Later, when we made camp for the evening, I decided to confront Lynessa about what she’d found. We were not on speaking terms after last night, though her reaction to the ashes warranted a check-in. If she’d found something of value to the campaign, I wanted to know of it. We needed every possible advantage in the upcoming conflict.

She was lurking at the edge of the encampment as she had taken to, this night finding a lonesome bluff on which to sit. The sky was still shrouded by clouds, and had been since we entered the lands of the Spirit Kingdom. They ambled in circles day in and day out, concentrated on a point to our south that approximated the location of Lokanos.

Lynessa’s gaze was filled with anger when she saw me approach, though she did not leave. She held the bottle of ashes in her hand. She had been expecting me.

“What do you have there?” I asked, “I know you don’t want to talk about it, but if it’s something we can use for the good of the campaign, I would have it known to everyone.”

Lynessa’s eyes narrowed. “Are those your honest concerns, Dale?”

“Of course.” I said. “Defeating the demons is the single most pressing concern, and any kind of support on that front will ultimately save lives.”

“Well.” She said, “We’ll just see about that.” She held up the bottle and tapped on the side. The ashes inside glowed faintly, golden light radiating from within. “Do you recall when I said that I had found a spell to take you home?”

“Yes,” I began warily, “but you said that it required some rare ingredients, some of which were impossible to obtain.”

“Well, as it happens I believe that we’ve managed to find them all.” She responded. “Powdered dragonbone, ground from the bones of Almaxor the Mighty. Demon’s blood, which we’ve encountered in great supply. Holy water, blessed by the Divine Speaker. The real one, Galemar, not you. And lastly, somehow, against all odds, The Salts of Creation.”

“So those are the Salts of Creation?” I asked in confusion, “How can you be sure?”

“They match the descriptions of them exactly, from coloration to texture to smell.” Lynessa said, “And that is besides the point. I’ve collected all of the ingredients for the spell. I can send you home.”

“Right.” I said warily, “Like you would do that.”

“I would.” She responded. She stared me right in the eyes, unflinching and unblinking. “I have everything needed. Say the word, and I will send you home.”

My mind raced. After all this time, after everything I had been through, the power to return home was right within my reach. I doubted Lynessa, yes, though only little. I believed that she believed she had the power to do as she claimed. The issue was, I wasn’t sure that I wanted to go home. Actually, I was beginning to realize more and more with each day that passed that I couldn’t. I had too much unresolved business here and now.

Spineripper had to die. That much was obvious. He had killed Arthur and Father Alton, slaughtered thousands of people and put entire cities to the sword. Secondly, I had to do my duty in ending this conflict, to make the sacrifice of all those who had died in the Demon War worth something. To make their deaths have purpose. For third, well, after all was said and done I would have to help the people rebuild their lives. I would find a new Divine Speaker, one that actually believed what he preached, and dedicate effort to rebuilding the homes I had destroyed by waging war against the Church of the Great Father. And fourthly, and perhaps most important of all, because I wanted to. Never in my life back home had I ever felt like I amounted to anything, but here I had a purpose, a mission. I was starting to like that feeling.

“Save it for yourself.” I said, “I’ve made a promise to the people of this realm and I will not break it. I will fight the demons and end their reign of chaos over this world. Afterward, I will rebuild the roads and cities. I will end the plague of war, and when peace has risen and all is green again, then I will return, but not a moment before.”

Lynessa looked at me, an expression of pure shock crossing her face. Her hazel eyes widened and her mouth hung agape. “You’re sure?” She asked, voice quivering slightly.

“I’ve never been more sure.” I said. I meant it.

“I–” She stammered, “I’m sorry. For testing you. For not believing you.”

“No.” I said, “I’m sorry. For treating you awfully. For saying the worst things imaginable to you. All you’ve done from the start is believe in me, and I’ve let you down at every turn. I realize that now, and I am committed to making things right, to fixing what I’ve broken. I don’t need money or fame or a promise to return home. I will help you and the people of your realm fight this evil that has plagued you for decades, and if I fail then I will die without regret, knowing that I gave my life for something worthy.”

“It was always you.” Lynessa murmured, “You were always the Legendary Hero. You just needed to realize it.”