Four Horsemen: Chapter 1 Part 2 of 2 (Patreon)

“That’s the wealth of the Asmani traders!” Mya growled.

“Oh I think your much more interested in the other chest my dear Mya.”

Something passed silently between the two of them.

“My companions?” Petor asked.

“You are beyond the veil so you cannot connect to them, but once you are back in the mortal realm you will be reconnected. There is one small issue with the bodies you’ll get,” Limos held his fingers just apart from one another.

“You see they’re brand new, soo pushing you into them you’ll open your essence channels and form your essence core, but you will be at the white core stage once again,” Limos shrugged.

“And my shards?” Valter asked.

“Your armor will be returned to you in a fixed state, and you’ll be as you awakened.”

“So you’ll put us in new bodies, offer us jobs, we’ll sell our gear to you,” Petor said.

“If you complete some jobs for me then I’ll give you what your heart desires,” Limos smiled. “Say a god worthy of a true paladin.”

Petor’s hear caught in his chest, a faint smile hanging from Limos’ lips as he looked to Desari. “The destination of the free cities of Galmorr.” Her face slackened, eyes widening as Limos looked between Mya and Valter.

“A proper place for your families to rest.”

They looked at one another and back to Limos.

Petor looked over to Desari, he had them all.

“I agree, though only if I can make the contract,” Desari said.

“As she said,” Mya ground out. “I hate being on this side of the deal.”

“I agree,” Petor said.

“I will not take on any jobs that will harm innocents, anything that will go against my personal code of honor,” Valter said.

Limos held up his hands. “I can live with that dear knight.”

Desari breathed in and waved her hand, essence flowed from her finger, runes and symbols overlaid one another, they looked like the bindings that connected him to his demons.

It created a floating page of blue light.

“You will give us bodies and our effects, you will have the first pass of any goods we wish to sell. If you do not appear within three days we will assume you do not wish to buy them and have passed on them.”

“Agreed,” Limos inclined his head.

“You may only offer us jobs, you will not force us to take them on. If we are to complete one of your jobs then you will give us our agreed upon rewards.”

“One job per person’s desire,” Limos held up a finger.

Desari looked at the others.

“I am fine with that,” Petor said. “What of my mount?” the others focused on Limos.

He clicked his tongue. “That will be a little harder.”

“Make it harder to get to your jobs,” Valter said.

Limos clicked his tongue. “Once you have some goods worth my interest then I’ll bring your mounts with me too.”

“You’ll give them back to us, not just bring them and as soon as we get to wherever we’re going. Which is not going to be some place that will trap us.” Mya said.

Limos pressed his lips together. The silence stretched as he looked at Mya, he parted his lips slowly, “Very well. Once you are away from prying eyes in a place of nature then I will appear and return your mounts to you. I hope that you have something good to trade by then.”

“We’ll do our best but no guarantees.”

Desari’s finger traced more words upon the glowing document, she tapped her finger to it, marking it.

“Place your finger upon the oath page.”

It floated above the campfire.

Limos read it over, studying it with a monocole as Petor approached. The words were as Desari said. He took a breath and pressed his finger to the page, he became a little less substantial, feeling lethargic as he moved away.

Desari raised a finger, making the others pause.

“Right now we have no one we can trust but one another. We have lived entire pasts, who knows where our footsteps have led us.”

“We need to get away from that cathedral and figure out just what happened to us,” Petor put his books away.

“We should swear an oath to one another,” Desari’s eyes slid over them, watching the impact.

“What you want to make an oath about?” Mya leaned back, a Cheshire smile upon her lips.

“Trust, that we will not lie, that we will not attack one another, assure our trust in one another,” Desari pushed on, talking faster. “We don’t know what we will learn, what might change in the future, the oath will allow us to remain faithful to one another and if someone isn’t then the others will know.”

“I agree, I think I trust you all, but an oath protects us all. The whole stronger than the individual,” Valter said.

“I miss a good old haggle,” Mya grumbled. “Valter let me negotiate for your clothes. I agree.” She didn’t wait for him to respond.

“I..,” Petor pressed his lips together, his face hardening. “I agree.”

Desari worked hard to keep the relief from her face, but Petor sensed it like some sixth sense.

“What do you need?” Valter asked.

“Some of your soul and some of your power. Here it is the same thing.” Essence flowed from her finger as she wrote out a one page contract. “The contract will be that we will not lie or attack one another. Simple but powerful. We swear to not betray or visit harm upon one another. If we do then might our cores be destroyed.”

“There, read it over and check it.” She held her chin as if studying it. That took more out of her than she’s willing to say.

Mya made a hole with her thumb and forefinger, the space between shimmering as she looked through it at the contract.

“No hidden bindings in the sides, nor woven into the fibers of the parchment. I’m almost offended,” Mya lowered her fingers.

“What’s the spell?” Petor asked.

“Lets me see through illusions and other trickery.”

“Looks good to me,” Valter raised his head from studying the wording.

“Fine to me,” Petor shrugged.

“Okay, I need you to hold a corner and infuse in some of your power. Usually we would need blood, but in our soul forms, there’s literally no other way we could make a stronger binding contract.” Desari’s finger glower as she grabbed the contract, becoming more material. Petor, Mya and Valter held their corners.

“How do we put power into it?” Petor fidgeted.

Desari read the wording in her book she’d laid to the side, memorizing the words.

“Reach into yourself,” Desari’s eyes became unfocused. “Reach for that point you pulled from in the fight, draw your essence forth through your chest, down your arm and your hand,” Her veins danced with colors, green, red, blue and white mixing and spreading down her arm, elemental veins.

Valter’s eyes glowed as embers in a fireplace, rising in brightness, lines of magma traced through his veins into his hand, a shimmering grey fog coiled around Mya’s arm and flickered in her eyes, her eyes becoming milky.

Petor’s green flames ignited in his eyes, a snake of green flame, weaving down his arm.

Magma spread across the parchment like cracks in the earth, from where Valter held the contract, mist left grey lines from Mya, Desari’s rainbow lines and Petor’s green flames joined the others in the middle of the parchment. The power mixed together, by blood, by soul, by contract. The page burned apart, a tether and oath a binding in four parts ran up Desari’s arm, and joined with the space where she’d drawn her essence, her power from.

It was like having a ball of inward spikes clamp over her heart, becoming part of it.

They grunted, holding their chests.

“Mother of a hornbacked whales uncles fucking arsehole drunk shitpan,” Mya cursed. “I need a fucking drink.”

She rubbed her forehead. “Shit a fucking anchor.”

Desari had bent under the oath’s strain, raising herself slowly to be kind to her body and brain. “Soul oaths are, rough.”

“One good act of soul binding deserves another!” Limos said, tapping his contract with a grin. He knew he had them after all.

“Fuck,” Mya held out her hand, Limos put the pen into her hand and she scrawled out her signature, her essence burning her name into the paper.

Each followed suit, with Petor last.

[Quest: True Paladin]

[Become a true paladin]

[Quest: Legend of the Dead]

[Overthrow Goddess Yasseen and her corrupt rule]

Petor dismissed the quest from his vision, only he was able to read his logs.

“Very well,” Limos raised his fingers.

He studied the others. Guess I’m part of a band now.

“So what are we going to be called?” Valter asked.

“Oh that bit’s easy,” Limos grinned. “The four horsemen.” Limos snapped his finger. Darkness consumed.