Path of the Deathless

169 (II) Cell

169 (II)Cell

Cripple said. Its voice was thick with disgust. Cripple's hands shook. Cripple's words sounded like a plea now, and Shiv was practically enraptured. Cripple continued regarding Shiv, but then, after a moment, it unclenched its fist.

Shiv nodded. "Had a run-in with an eldritch entity," he admitted. "Tried to convert me, tried to change me. Didn't quite take, but it's not a thing I would recommend."

Cripple chuckled at Shiv's understatement.

"A flaw?" Shiv asked.

Cripple explained.

Somehow, Shiv understood intuitively. "Felling shit, you were a slave even before you went to the Abyss."

Cripple said, but there was no anger in his voice, just exhaustion.

"Owners?" Shiv asked.

Shiv took that opportunity to dig for some information. "The Inquisition came in on this large ship. Hawgrave referred to that ship as if it were a person. That was an automaton, wasn't it?"

Cripple replied.

"But the System doesn't want that," Shiv said. "The System wants you to only change through struggle."

Cripple said, nodding once.

Shiv blinked as he tried to process what that skill name could possibly mean.

Cripple explained.

Cripple's words made Shiv think of Can Hu. Forbidden Africa seemed to still operate the same way to this very day.

"So you rebelled," Shiv said.

The Deathless waited for the Ascendant to continue with his story. Ultimately, it didn't. it said with a weary weight in its voice.The Ascendant hummed.

"Yeah, I'm definitely glad," Shiv said with a shudder. "I want nothing to do with her. And if she comes near me, I'm going to kill her and myself. Maybe not in that exact order."

Cripple noted with a faint note of derision.

"Yeah, she was at Blackedge just a bit before you. Her and Halsur."

Cripple spat. "

Shiv squinted at the Ascendant and decided to press his luck. "You know, the Starhawk said something about you. He said you were the closest to him in terms of morality."

If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, it's taken without the author's consent. Report it.

Shiv's words made Cripple flinch.

"And I'm a brute," Shiv said. "And you're kind of a pussy. We all got our problems."

The Avatar angled its head at him. And Shiv got the feeling the Ascendant was glaring through its mortal vessel.

“The Delve was…” Shiv frowned, trying to find the words. "Well, it was pretty straightforward. I had to do a Quest and overcome five encounters. The first four were adversaries I faced during prior evolutions, or what I regarded as essential moments."

Cripple said, more a statement than a question.

"Yep," Shiv replied. "Faced myself. Found it kind of a pain in the ass, to be honest. I had to defend Blackedge and the people on it." Shiv neglected to mention that they were victims of his sloppiness, who perished because of the collateral damage he inflicted. "Anyway, as I went through the encounters, the Legendary skill adjusted itself. And eventually I got Leviathan of the Shapeless Tides.”

Cripple asked, sounding as if he didn't believe Shiv.

"Just like that," Shiv said, without a moment's hesitation. He tried to shrug, but the chains and metal bands holding his body in place made it hard. A grunt of annoyance escaped Shiv. "But I do have a guess as to why it's so easy. Main reason is, I’m plenty monster already.”

Cripple held out a finger and spun, urging Shiv to continue. The Deathless held back a smirk. He wanted to see how the Ascendant responded to his following statement. "So, there's a good chance that my soul and mind might have parts from a Tarrasque," Shiv paused, "or maybe parts that were inspired by a Tararsque. Not sure, you'll have to ask Udraal Thann."

Cripple nearly choked. He stared at Shiv. The Ascendant stared at Shiv for a long moment and finally looked away.

Shiv waited for Cripple to say something else, maybe make a comment on how they confirmed things with Valor, but when it didn't, a faint flame of hope ignited inside Shiv. If they had Valor, he suspected Cripple would have told him. Especially considering Valor’s relationship with Udraal and how he was in Starhawk's Perch. And that made Shiv remember something.

When he asked the Ascendant about Starhawk's Perch, it told him the town suffered many casualties. It told him that Adam was in a medical coma, but it said nothing about the Perch itself. And it said nothing about the Tarasque, either. Shiv thought to himself. And the latter thought made his stomach tumble with nausea.

Cripple asked. There was more than a hint of urgency in the Ascendant's voice. And when Shiv shook his head, a sigh of relief escaped the Avatar.

"Exiled?" Shiv echoed, raising an eyebrow.

Cripple asked, sounding surprised.

"About what?" Shiv said. His insides tightened. He wondered if he had made a mistake.

Cripple elaborated. Shiv's eyes widened, and got even wider when Cripple continued.

It took everything Shiv had not to burst out laughing. Suddenly, Shiv knew something Cripple didn't. It was like they both had pieces to a larger puzzle, but only one of them was putting it all together.

Cripple explained. There was a tone of wistfulness to its voice, as if it missed Maia greatly. The Ascendant fell quiet for a beat.

Shiv fought the urge to tell Cripple that the one he knew as Maia was still alive, or at least still alive in some fashion. Shiv knew her now as the Forgotten Artist, if judged by the burnt tome she'd left behind. Shiv told himself.

Psycho-Cartography added.

The truth was often ignored when reality got too uncomfortable.

Cripple said, a growl of anger entering its voice.

The Ascendant's fist clenched again, the meal groaning, and Cripple’s voice shuddered as it spoke.

"So you mustered your forces and decided to go down." Shiv thought about that for a moment, and he bit his lip. "Roland and the Eclipsebreakers, their descent into the Abyss to slay an Abyssal Lord. Was all of that real?"

Cripple answered.

"But thanks to Roland, it wasn't," Shiv said.

The Ascendant let out a little humph of displeasure.

Shiv's mind ground to a halt. Something twisted inside him, and he started to feel sick.

Cripple paused and regarded Shiv. the Ascendant began. But there was an uneasiness in his tone.

Shiv screamed internally. Faces flashed before him. Of Georges, of Uva, of Valor. Of Rose, even. He wasn't there. He wasn't there when they needed him then. He wasn't there, and it was because of the Ascendants.

And suddenly, his rising anger popped like a bubble. Shiv squeaked.