Book 2: Chapter 48 (Patreon)

“Why would anyone betray a [Hero]?” Madi queried.

Orrin and Daniel turned slowly to her and then glanced at each other.

“Seriously?”

“I mean…”

She frowned and hushed them both. “There’s a difference between testing someone and straight up betraying them. It’s a common trope in stories. If you betray a [Hero], they always come after you and it never ends well. Even the few leaders in the past who succeeded in capturing their own personal [Hero] lived to regret it.”

“It is a recurrent theme for a reason,” Arandir leaned back again. “We wish for history to never repeat that mistake. As for those few leaders who have made the unfortunate mistake of thinking a [Hero] is a resource to use, I will say only they did not live as long as they perhaps thought possible.”

It was Orrin’s turn to frown. “You’re admitting to murder, altering history, and fabricating stories to do what? Protect future [Heroes]?”

Arandir sighed. “Young man, there are different versions of [Hero], just as there are different versions of Administrator or [Mage]. Every person is unique and holds powers truly unique. Study two [Fire Mages] and you will see small differences in the same spell. The [Hero] of the Calamity destroyed our world and displaced millions of people. He is not the most powerful [Hero] to ever live, he just had means, opportunity, and a reason. We do not protect [Heroes] from the people so much as we protect the people from their own short-sighted agendas that at the end of the day would result in their deaths or worse.”

Daniel stood and paced, something Orrin knew was due to his growing frustration. “Arandir, I’m going to try and say this straight because I’m about to lose my patience. You want to tell us a dangerous story so I’ll trust you more and maybe give you or some other elf a power in the future?”

“Yes.”

Daniel almost missed a step when the elf answered directly but regained his composure. “But you are not demanding anything in return?”

Arandir leaned forward and checked his teapot. He must have found it too cold, as he rubbed his hand along the bottom. Orrin noticed his hand glowed like Emily’s had when she used her fire magic. “I demand nothing but humbly request that you do not share this story outside these walls. At best, you will be labeled a heretic or crazy. At worse, you will incite a war greater than you can imagine.”

Daniel crouched next to Madi and had a quick conversation. He glanced at Orrin.

Orrin shrugged.

“I guess it’s story time. We agree not to repeat it.”

Arandir poured a cup and waited for Daniel to sit back down. “Please keep in mind that what I tell you has been handed down in my family. There are doubtless other details unknown to them or perhaps not shared from generation to generation for any number of reasons but I will do my best to tell the history of the Calamity as I was taught.”

He took a sip before he began. “The world as you know it is only but a small sliver of what used to be. From Dey to the furthest reaches of Veskar is but a generous-sized kingdom of the old lands. One kingdom of dozens. The elves had multiple forest groves but also sailed the seas and lived in towns with humans. Most recognized our King but some branches did not and ruled in different ways. The dwarves claimed the mountain ranges but farmed as well. Even the orcs did more than travel in nomadic tribes. Some even built cities. The world was far-flung and diverse but dangerous. Each race had an Administrator. Any king or dictator could claim greatness but until an Administrator was born in your lands and worked to raise your people up, the rulers of other races would not recognize you. Over time, the Administrators created a loose coalition to exchange tips on how best to use powers, to discuss best options for class reassignment, and other things lost to time.”

Arandir placed his cup down and waited until all three of them met his eye. “This next part is something you should never repeat. Demons lived among us freely. They had their own Administrator. While wars were fought with them, it was no more than against any other race. They were one and part of us. Again, I cannot stress that saying this to the wrong group could result in your immediate death.”

He sighed and took another long pull on his tea. “Demons, despite popular myths, do not look all that different from you or me. Some have horns or tails and some have a red tint to their skin but most could pass for human or elf. The other races can procreate with demons as well. Sometimes their children would look more like the dwarf mother than the demon father. But every demon, full-blooded or with a single drop of blood has a special ability. They gain experience from killing the enlightened races.”

The old elf paused. “This terrified the other Administrators. Century after century passed with the demon race slowly spreading this ability. Meetings without the demon Administrator were held to discuss the problem, for the elves, the humans, and the dwarves saw this as a problem. Every child born with the power of a demon would fall under the demon Administrator’s purview. If a human and an elf had a child, the child had a chance to fall to either side. The odds were perfect but it was not one hundred percent. In their fear, the Administrators gathered together. All but the demon. They altered the System together. They did something to alter or take away the demon Administrator’s powers.”

Madi’s eyes were huge. Daniel seemed to be taken with the story too.

Orrin kept watch for whatever trick Arandir was trying to pull.

“They assumed that if the demons did not have the power of their Administrator, they would flounder. Instead, the old Administrator used the last of his powers to become something new. A class never seen before. Demon Lord. Instead of having the powers of an Administrator, this class gave the demon vast authority over all demons. He could command them or sway them… the details are vague to me. What they had tried to stop, they sped up. The new Demon Lord sent his people out to conquer and kill. War swept the entire world and hundreds of thousands died in months. The Administrators, including my great-grandfather, summoned a [Hero]. They tasked him with defeating the Demon Lord. They lied to the man and told him the demon was the original aggressor. They promised things they could never give and sent him on his way. Then they began saving up their power to summon another because they had only summoned the first as a diversion. They had no hope the man would pull it off.”

Arandir reached for another piece of melon and caught Orrin’s glancing at the door. “You are free to leave if you so desire.”

Orrin shook his head and sat back in his chair resigned. “Go ahead.”

“When the [Hero] returned, having struck down the evil demon, he was surprised to find them about to summon another [Hero]. The human and orc Administrators had usurped power from their king and tribe leader, respectively. So many of every race had died. The dragons had fled the lands… The [Hero] demanded the rewards he had been promised. They laughed him away. They thought they had won.”

Arandir smiled in pride. “My great-grandfather went to the [Hero] and apologized. They talked and he let split enough that the [Hero] figured out the rest. My great-grandfather learned what none of the Administrators knew. The [Hero] had collected friends to fight by his side on his way to the Demon Lord. He had lost most of them in his final fight and was grieving. He was nearly broken. Finding out that the great evil he had been sent to destroy was actually the one originally wronged… finished him.”

Orrin imagined that happening to them. What if Silas had sent them on a mission to kill someone, telling them this theoretical person was evil? Then they return and find out it was all a power play. He shivered. Silas wouldn’t last long.

“The [Hero] asked my great-grandfather why. Why would they go through all the trouble of outing this demon, a person they had once called friend and exchanged ideas with? My great-grandfather told him it was to keep the fighting between races to a minimum. If the demons overtook the world, anybody could kill anyone, just for the chance at some experience and levels. He laughed…the [Hero] laughed until he began to cry. He thanked my great-grandfather but said something cryptic to him that he didn’t understand until later.”

Arandir spoke slowly and Orrin was certain of everything, this was the part of the story each generation made sure to get right. “I pray you get the world you want but never get to affect it again.”

“My great-grandfather left and the next day, the [Hero] unleashed a spell that destroyed the world. Every human, elf, dwarf, and orc that had fought with the Administrators was transported to this small crop of land we call Asmea. Every Administrator, save my great-grandfather, was dead. He never knew for sure why he was spared. It took him only a few years to realize something was wrong with his Administrator powers. It took him longer to realize no new Administrators were being born to the other races. He spent the rest of his life trying to figure out a way around it. The [Hero] disappeared or died, I do not know which.”

He downed the rest of his tea and poured himself another cup.

“Those bastards,” Daniel muttered. “They made a mess and then had him clean it up. I get why he blew up the world.”

Arandir reached across the space and placed his hand on Daniel’s clenched fist. “That is the part that my grandfather did not learn for many years. He did not blow up the world. He reshaped it and placed those he found deserving in this prison that is Asmea. A peninsula surrounded by dangerous waters. Every person who found themselves on that plot of land that is now Dey had hatred in their hearts toward the demons. The rest of the world is alive, they just live on the other side of the Pass. The demons have spread and most everyone is at least part demon now. However, despite the Administrators’ worst fears, there is no rampant bloodshed for experience.”

Orrin was reeling. “How could you possibly know that?”

Arandir smiled at him. “Where do you think I got this delicious tea?”

Orrin frowned. His [Analyze] had only told him it was green tea but not where it was from. He’d missed that. He’d spend time using the skill with Tony’s small collection of tea and could trigger at least the region it was from.

“You trade with the demons?” Madi hissed.

“As do the dwarves,” Arandir responded without any guilt. “There are a select few on this side who have realized the errors of the past. My great-grandfather wished until his dying day that he could have undone what he did to the demon Administrator.”

“You mean turning him into a Demon Lord?” Daniel spat. “I wouldn’t have let any of my enemies live. I’d say he got off easy.”

Madi rolled her eyes. “Daniel, the poor man lived for centuries with the guilt of what he did. I think he suffered.”

Orrin smirked at Daniel’s comment. “That’s the hole in your story, Arandir. If they took the demon Administrator’s powers, how did he change his class?”

“I do not know.” Arandir’s face showed no hint of frustration. “My grandfather told me the System self-corrects but I was not there. Nor was my great-grandfather to learn what happened to his betrayed friend. Let me give you a piece of advice that comes with age. Something that you likely will not learn for decades but maybe you will take to heart. You cannot know everything but that does not make the things you do not understand untrue.”

Daniel and Madi continued asking questions but Orrin pulled up his Quests.

Defeat the Demon Lord-

In the southern lands, the Demon Lord has risen. The dark   armies have been assembled. Seek out and defeat the Demon Lord before the   Dark Horde attacks.

Reward:   1,000,000 XP and Dark Essence Unlocked.

“What about the other Demon Lords?” Orrin asked, cutting off whatever Madi was saying. “There have been others. The [Hero] who created the Sea of Fire fought one, right?”

Arandir’s eyebrows closed together for a second. “Yes. A class that we know next to nothing about. Why do you ask?”

“Where do they come from? If the System created it in response to those dicks abusing their authority, why are they still around?”

Arandir sighed. “You ask very clever questions. I am beginning to see why you are part of the [Hero]’s party. Again, I do not know the answer to your question. Every great while, a [Hero] and Demon Lord appear. I am old and knowledgeable but not omniscient. What I do know is that no new Administrator has been born into this world or across the Pass since the Calamity. You might be the key to reuniting the world and helping the people on both sides grow strong again.”

“You want Daniel to go around and bop some Admin powers on each race?” Orrin asked incredulously. “You don’t think the System or that [Hero] messed with things so that’s not possible?”

“It might not be possible.” Arandir smiled. “But I have to try. The Administrators failed the people at the end but that was after thousands of years of peace and prosperity. All fruit rots but I hope we can harvest the seeds and grow something new and better.”

He turned to Daniel. “Would you like to help me change the world for the better?”