Chapter 228: Taboo

Author’s note: Hi guys.

I have little more to say, but I'll save that for post-chapter notes.

Enjoy!

Chapter 228: Taboo - link: https://www.patreon.com/posts/124776293

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Chapter 228: Taboo

It wasn't like being a half-terr shifter violated some law. If it did, this “Korra” would be shackled instead of training freely in the heart of the city barracks. No, it was just a taboo - an unwritten rule. What's more, a taboo only among terr'dens.

Well, mostly. Even humans and other races followed it, too - to some extent.

There were shifters. Ashe had even crossed paths with a few. But they were - well, pretty rare. As far as she understood it, it wasn't as hard to shift into beast form as it was to get out of it. Too many lost themselves in the change, instincts swallowing reason whole. For terr'dens and halfs, it was almost certain. Something to do with their origins stemming from the beasts - which they hated to be reminded of.

The taboo kept them safe, but more than that, it kept their past out of sight, hiding their shame. Not that it mattered to Ashe. Humans had their own beginnings, and it sure wasn’t the grand, civilized tale some wanted to believe. When reason gave way, instinct took hold. Animal primal instinct. She had seen it before - most recently, when she first stepped into the city.

The ugly truth sat there in plain sight, yet most were too afraid to face it.

But not the half-terr bitch Ashe now watched, fighting with more heart than skill, swinging at her mentor with wild, unpolished strikes. She seemed to have no shame in what she was.

A giant step - wherever you took it.

It took young Ashe a while to accept that she was just a pickpocket. But once she did, life started moving. Sure, her current self was far from what she had dreamed of becoming, but she was free - unbound by rules like the no-shifting taboo. Rules were there to be broken.

And apparently, the half-terr had no problem with it as well.

'Well, to be fair, I wouldn't care to break a few rules, either. Not with a mentor like him covering my arse.'

"Come on, girl. Don’t just swing your arms - use your whole body, like I taught you."

One thing quickly became apparent. Whatever reason the monstrous bastard had for choosing her as an apprentice, it sure wasn’t for her fighting skills. Even a ten-year-old street rat from Munca moved better.

'Rather disappointing.'

Still, had to give the half-terr some credit - sparring against him would make anyone look clumsy. To an untrained eye, he might seem careless, moving without a thought. Maybe he was, to some extent. Hands in his pockets, the number of his sigils, giving him a strength which most could only dream of - easy to mistake him for someone who didn’t need to try, who could afford to be careless.

A dangerous assumption to make.

Every move he made, no matter how casual, was measured - calculated down to the smallest shift. A sidestep just out of reach of the woman’s claws. A nudge at her ankle, sending her stumbling. Nothing wasted.

'Definitely not someone I want breathing down my neck. Best do my part, then.'

Got to give credit where it's due - the half-terr had damn good instincts. Not just quick - beast sharp, natural as breathing.

And the longer Ashe watched, the clearer it became why the guy had taken an interest. The half-terr was a rough gem. Not cut for Ashe’s line of work - those unusual looks would have given her right away - but raw talent was there, waiting to be honed.

Whoever owned her before must’ve been a blind fool - or just didn’t care. Wouldn’t be the first. Plenty of masters took slaves for their own reasons, never bothering with much else, even though they had the gem right in front of their eyes. And the half-terr was one. Especially since she was only a sigil away from her second array.

'Did he keep her at that number deliberately?'

Wouldn’t be unheard of. She herself had once walked that line, straddling the 101st and 102nd sigils, refusing to move forward until the right array lay within reach.

'But what are they aiming for? Daggers? A Shifter Array? A mix of both?’

"So, what do you think, Ashe?" the monstrous guy, Deckard, asked her when they had finished their little demonstration.

"Daggers could work," she said, no need for pretense. Hard to judge with so little to go on, though he had to realize that. Not to mention that not everyone had the knack for judging the qualities of another, let alone give advice. "Maybe knuckles? Though she doesn’t have the weight to throw a proper punch."

Ashe’s brows shot up as a growl rumbled from the half-terr’s throat.

'There it is again - the beast! Has she lost it?'

"Don't mind her," the monstrous guy laughed, standing next to his apprentice as if oblivious to what slumbered within the bitch. "She won't bite you."

'Let the bitch try!' The thought flickered, unspoken. Instead, Ashe dipped her head.

"If you say so. Anyway, short sword - if not daggers, then that. Maybe a long-range weapon too?"

The guy gave a knowing nod. "Exactly what I figured."

"Look, I told you I don't think I'll be much of a help."

"Ah, I wouldn't say that. It always helps to have your thoughts confirmed."

"True," Ashe allowed, though her feet itched to leave. "Well, if that’s all, I..."

"What would you say to help me teach my apprentice - just a few dagger moves? I’d pay, of course."

'He can't be serious?' Only a fool would entrust the teaching of his apprentice to a complete stranger. And despite his casual attitude, the monstrous guy didn't strike her as one. No, everything about him felt deliberate, calculated. Even this. Something in his request gnawed at her.

"No, thanks. I have other plans."

"Fallen's Cry?"

"Yes." Among other things - but none he needed to hear.

"Then maybe we'll run into each other in the square. I plan to take my apprentice there soon."

'The fuck? Why is he telling me all this? Only a complete idiot or... FUCK!'

A slow, knowing grin spread across the monstrous man’s face. One step, and the space between them vanished. His hand slid free of his pocket and came down on her shoulder. Light touch, heavy presence. It crashed over her like a wave.

'B-bastard! If you think I will...'

"Don't. You seem smart, so - just don't," he said, tucking his hand back into his pocket, his presence gone. "Look, Ashe. I do hope you’re only here for the Fallen’s Cry. I'd hate to find out you're causing a mess in Castiana, or that you're here for my apprentice."

'His apprentice? Was it the taboo?' The questions burned, but she kept her face still. This wasn’t the time to dig for answers. This was the time to leave. Only a fool missed a chance to walk away with nothing worse than a warning.

A small nod. "You won’t."

"Good. See you around, Ashe."

'Not if I can help it.'

The half-terr may have been on her way to becoming a beast, but that guy was already a monster.

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Author’s note: I have always tried to be honest with you, so believe me when I say this is not something easy for me to write. To keep things short, my circumstances have changed and I no longer see a way I can continue to write at the pace I have been. No way around it this time.

Don't worry, I'm fine. Just life - sometimes things just don't work out the way you'd like them to.

As it is, I'll be pausing billing from April. I can only see two ways this could go - one chapter a week, or none at all. In the case of one chapter a week, I don't see that as worthy of your monetary support - it would make me personally feel pretty bad (Meaning the end of Patreon). And in the case of no chapter - well, that would mean the end for Lament of the Lost.

Honestly, I wonder if it's even worth continuing to write even one chapter a week. It would be a short chapter as it has been so far, and given the slower pace of my story, you'd just be waiting a week for not much to happen in a given chapter. To continue in this way with the story could only harm it in the end.

I wish I would be able to take Lament of the Lost to where I envisioned it years ago, but I'm incredibly proud that I managed to get at least book 1 to a proper ending.

This isn't a thank you or a goodbye, not yet. We still have one chapter tomorrow and four more to go next week (in which I hope to finish this prologue/side story). But I'm afraid we're inevitably heading towards that.

That's all from me for now. See you tomorrow.

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