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The Age of Chaos Ch. 11 (Original Fantasy)
🕑 Added 2025-02-20 23:00:05 +0000 UTCA/N: In the aftermath of losing their transportation and supplies, Oren and Sophia need to stop in another town...
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“We’ll stop here for the night. Sleep in real beds for once.”
Sophia jolts at Oren’s gruff words. It’s the first thing he says when they come into view of the next town along the road. Not to say they did so swiftly or anything like that. Actually, it’s been days since the Hill Giant attack. Days where Sophia had to admit… she’s began to grow rather weary of ‘roughing it’.
With so much of their supplies ruined, they’d had to make do with what they had. Oren could hunt with the best of them thanks to his enhanced physicality and Otherworlder status, so they hadn’t gone hungry or anything like that… but it was still frustrating, especially with how low Sophia’s divine power was at this point.
If she could just find a comfortable place to rest, say her refuge where she had all sorts of protections and knew she’d be safe from the God Hunters, then Sophia was confident she could regain her full power within a few days… a week at most! The issue was, they hadn’t really had that yet. It was just one thing after another, and trying to recharge anywhere but her refuge would likely just end with her drawing the God Hunters right to them.
It was a bad situation that ultimately left her entirely reliant on Oren for… everything. She’d become even more of a burden than when they’d first set out at this point, and she wasn’t ignorant of that fact either.
As a Minor Goddess of Equity, Sophia felt it tearing at her very being to be using Oren in such a manner, knowing that no matter what small trinkets she might have for him at her refuge, she was ultimately going to come up short of all that she owed him at this point. And yet, as a Minor Goddess of Wisdom, Sophia knew full well that dismissing him from her service would only lead to her death. Her two domains tore her in opposite directions. Wisdom said she needed Oren to live… but she could never make their relationship equitable, not in a million years.
That was all to say, as they approach the town of Oakvale, a slightly larger settlement than Amberwell had been, Sophia knows she should tell Oren they don’t need to stop for the night here. She should tell him that they can just resupply and then keep going, because deep down the goddess knows that he’s only stopping for her sake.
After all, Oren isn’t even remotely tired from their multi-day trek and their sleepless nights. The Otherworlder is as hale and hearty as ever. No, the only reason he’s stopping here… is for Sophia.
By now, she’s realized Oren doesn’t want her to like him for some reason. It’d taken her far longer than it should have taken a Goddess of Wisdom to figure it out, but eventually it had clicked. He was a good man, her Otherworlder bodyguard. He was a good man with a good heart and a strong moral compass. And yet, for whatever reason, he wanted to push her away. He wanted her to despise him.
Unfortunately for him, his heart kept conflicting with his mind. He would be short and gruff with her for hours, sometimes even days at a time, but in the end there would always be another moment of kindness, of concern, of empathy. Like this one.
In the end, Sophia is weak. She doesn’t say a word as they approach Oakvale, instead giving her tacit approval of his plans. The idea of spending tonight in a real bed with a roof over their heads… it sounds fantastic.
Alas, they barely make it into town itself before Sophia’s plans come crashing down around her head. The side of Oakvale that they’ve entered from is a marketplace of sorts and just as she’s envisioning a tavern-cooked meal with actual herbs and spices instead of more deer meat burnt haphazardly over a campfire… a voice rings out, cutting through her thoughts.
“Oi! What do we have here? Religious iconography?!”
Both Sophia and Oren come to a stop as their heads whip in the direction of the falsely jovial tone. Fortunately, they aren’t the only ones who pause at the raised voice. A hush goes over the entire marketplace as everyone turns towards the brewing altercation.
God Hunters. Sophia blanches at the sight of them. A group of men, armed and armored, crowd around one merchant’s stall in particular. Most of them are facing outward, wearing openly hostile glares on their faces like they’re just daring anyone to try to intervene. One of them though… he’s facing inward and has his arm stretched over the counter and into the stall. From what Sophia can see, he’s holding a necklace from around the stall owner’s neck, forcing the poor paling man to lean forward in order to avoid being choked.
“N-No sir! It’s n-nothing! Just a little whittling my grandpa did back in the day! It’s a family heirloom Sir Hunter! Nothing more!”
The God Hunter chuckles darkly, pulling the necklace up higher to study the carving in the sunlight. This inadvertently gives Sophia a better look at it as well. It does indeed look man-made, far too imperfect to be anything but crafted by mortal hands. However, it also looks a lot like a Symbol of Power.
Sophia had read about Symbols of Power up in the Heavens. They were often used by deities of the Mortal Planes as ways for their followers to spread their influence. Either they handed them out to their followers… or they instructed their followers on how to make them.
“Just a little whittling, huh? Nothing more, is that right?”
“Y-Yes sir!”
“Mhm… and tell me, what was the name of the God of the Forest near here again? What did you lot call him?”
Sophia grimaces, immediately recognizing the trap for what it is. Unfortunately for the merchant, he’s in a deep, deep panic. He’s answering quickly without thinking, hoping that by acting the part of a toady, he can make the God Hunters go away.
“B-Bormus, sir!”
The already quiet marketplace gets even quieter. Even the stall owner freezes up, realizing he’s fucked up. A cruel, wicked grin spreads across the God Hunter’s face. It’s… flimsy at best. Absurdly so. If there had been a God of the Forest near here, then everyone would know his name, not just its worshippers. Even if the God Hunters had killed him, his name would still live on in the memories of Oakvale.
But the God Hunters don’t operate on logic or reason. Sophia tenses up, expecting to see a man die any moment. The God Hunter will use his knowledge of the god’s name as a sign of guilt and will strike him down right here and right now. She doesn’t see another way this ends. Except… that doesn’t happen. After a long silent pause, the God Hunter chuckles and even lets go of the man and his necklace.
“Well. Just a family heirloom then. No harm, no foul.”
The merchant looks like he can barely believe his luck. His hand goes to the carving around his neck, even as he swallows nervously and nods hurriedly.
“Y-Yes sir. Nothing m-more than that. Thank you s-si-!”
“Burn it.”
The God Hunter’s harsh voice cuts the other man off on the spot. For a moment, the stall owner looks like he doesn’t understand.
“I… I beg y-your pardon sir?”
Stepping back from the market stall, the God Hunter points to the ground at his feet.
“Come out here, place it on the ground, and burn it.”
When the other man hesitates, the God Hunter drops his hand to the pommel of the sword at his side.
“Now.”
Slowly, shaking, the merchant comes out from behind his stall. He clutches at the necklace like a lifeline.
“A-Ah… p-please sir… it’s just a simple carving. I-!”
“It is religious iconography carved in worship to the dead god Bormus. Such things are illegal in Oakvale. Now, judging by your age, your grandfather has long passed, so no judgment can be rendered upon him. And if what you say is true, you did not know… so no judgment will be rendered upon you either. All you must do is prove yourself. By burning the religious iconography.”
Such base cruelty. Sophia trembles with emotion as she watches the stall owner slowly pull off the necklace and set it down on the ground between him and the God Hunter.
“I… I do not have a way to start a fire, Sir Hunter.”
With a wide smile on his face, the God Hunter pulls a flint and steel from one of the pouches at his waist.
“That’s alright my good man! I have them right here.”
Everyone in the market watches as the merchant, trying not to cry, kneels down with the flint and steel and carefully lights the wooden carving on fire. It takes a few tries, but when the God Hunter looming over him makes a noise of impatience in the back of his throat, the man hurries up and quickly gets it done.
The God Hunter lets the small blaze burn away at the carving for a couple minutes before bringing his boot down hard. Snuffing out both the flame and crushing the weakened wooden Symbol of Power under his boot, he shifts his foot back and forth a few times before letting out a boisterous laugh and yanking the merchant up from his knees by his shoulders.
“There we are! Good man! A good, proper, god-hating man! Well done! Well done!”
The God Hunter takes his flint and steel back, and then he and his compatriots walk away. Slowly, movement in the marketplace picks up again and while some continue shooting pitying looks over at the despondent stall owner, most just go back to their business. Almost like this was a daily occurrence for them.
It strikes Sophia then that it probably was. Oakvale was bigger than Amberwell. Not big enough to have its own fighting pit… but perhaps big enough to have its own squad of God Hunter stationed here.
Turning to Oren, she grabs him by the arm, leaning in close to whisper to him.
"W-We can’t stay the night… they’ll surely discover us. We have to keep going.”
Oren hesitates for a moment, staring at the smoldering remnants of the necklace on the ground. Then, he shakes his head.
“No. We’ll just keep our heads down. The coin we got in Amberwell was one of the things we didn’t lose in the attack, so we don’t have to draw attention to ourselves earning anymore. We’ll simply resupply, get a room in a tavern, and hunker down for the night. They’ll never know we were here.”
Sophia shivers. He sounds so confident and really, she wants to believe him. Especially because of all the aforementioned reasons for not wanting to spend another night under the stars. But… she has a premonition about all of this. Something is going to go wrong. She just knows it.
In the end though, Sophia just bites down on her words and slowly nods her head in agreement. Together, they move to buy new bags and fill them with the things they need. Sophia lets Oren do the talking, afraid to draw any attention to herself at this point. Better to be as much of a wallflower as possible and let the ugly brown garments that Oren picked out for her back in Amberwell do the heavy lifting.
Before long, they find themselves entering a tavern without incident. Oren had been smart enough to ask some subtle questions about the God Hunters. Sophia’s assumption was right, they were staying in town and operating out of the mayor’s house. The mayor, who was now dead and who’s entire family had been killed for worshipping the God of the Forest.
It sent a shiver down Sophia’s spine, but there didn’t seem to be anything they could do about it. Oren agreed too, because he’d picked out the tavern further from the mayor’s house. Within twenty minutes they had a room and even had permission to eat in private, taking bowls of a delicious smelling soup upstairs and locking themselves away in the process.
“Are we getting close?”
Sophia blinks as Oren finally breaks the silence just as she’s bringing a spoon full of soup to her lips. She quickly slurps it down, swallowing thickly before responding.
“What… uh, what do you mean?”
Oren gives her a look.
“Your hideaway. Are we almost there? You said it would take only a week to reach it.”
Sophia does her best not to flinch at that. She may have been fibbing ever so slightly back when she gave that time frame. Funnily enough though, Oren has made something of an honest woman of her. Between the horse and the blistering pace he’s set, they’re actually a lot closer than Sophia would have expected to be at this point.
“… Still f-four days on foot… faster if we get another horse. Its North of here. The last time I was on the Mortal Planes, the road ended a couple days North and there was a great big boulder about thirty minutes past the road’s end. We turn left at the boulder and walk for another thirty minutes and we’ll be at the cave I hid with my divine power and made into my little home away from home.”
She falls quiet at this, hoping that he won’t ask her about the reward she’d promised him. By her father, she hopes he doesn’t ask about that. She has things to offer him of course, she wasn’t being completely dishonest… but they’re baubles at best.
Oren gives her a long look, one that Sophia avoids. Finally…
“Alright then. Eat up and rest well. We’ll depart at first light.”
Sophia nods and focuses on her meaty soup. First light was probably prudent, given there were God Hunters in town. Fortunately it seemed like Oren had been right. Keeping their heads low and not drawing any attention to themselves was working just fine. So far they were just a pair of travelers passing through. No more, no less.
The soup is amazing. The bed even more so. Sure, it doesn’t hold a candle to her accommodations up in the Heavens, but with each passing day those feel like more and more of a faded memory, or maybe a very good dream she once had. This bed, for all its lumps and hard spots, was the best bed she’d had in days.
As she drifts off to sleep, a small smile spreads across Sophia’s face. Maybe… maybe everything was going to be alright after all.
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A/N: Damn it Sophia, you just had to go and jinx it didn't you?
As always, leave a Like and let me know what you think!
Also today is a big day because today the first chapter of this novel goes live on my public websites! Time to see what everyone else thinks. Fingers crossed!
Comments
Alun Lewis
Hmmm...Sophia is catching on to Oren's intentional dick behaviour, but still hasn't begun grokking to the idea her protector helped put her in the mess she finds herself in currently. And her worries that she won't be able to compensate Oren fairly for his efforts? Laudable but I can't wait for her to start understanding that Oren is protecting her as an act of penance instead of as a transaction...
RanmaChaos
Sophia wakes up to the town on fire.
TheSinful
Deep in the forests of Albion laid the small town of Oakvale, unchanged by time and untouched by the sword. There lived a boy and his family. A boy dreaming of adventure, of one day becoming a hero
