Mythica, book 1, Chapter 41+42.

Chapter 41.

“Stand still and die,” Gublax roared as Sabine kept her distance from the monster. She tried to get inside his reach, but the orc’s oversized axe seemed to counter her every move.

Finally, she spotted an opening when Gublax overextended on a swing. Stepping forward, she hit Gublax in the elbow with her buckler, pushing his axe further away and releasing piercing damage from the sharpened edge of her shield. The buckler cut deep and was only stopped when the strike hit the bone of the joint. Her dagger struck into Gublax’s chest, the unarmored orc grunted as the blade sank to the hilt and mana pushed the wound even further.

Her aim was perfect and the dagger strike would have killed most humanoids, but orcs were rather durable, and possessed two hearts. Gublax only had one heart remaining, but before Sabine could strike again, The orc dropped his axe and grabbed onto Sabine. She tried to dodge to the side, but her buckler was held fast in the bone of the orc’s elbow and she waited too long to drop the trapped bucker.

Gublax’s huge hand closed over Sabine’s forearm, and before she could react, the orc pulled. With a sickening pop, Sabine’s shoulder was ripped from the socket. A second tug removed the arm completely, and to add insult to injury, Gublax began to beat Sabine with her own severed arm. Mana flowed into the wound and would eventually rebuild her lost arm, but the pain was severe and Sabine was having trouble focusing on the fight.

A kick to the chest hurled Sabine into the center of the encircling orcs. Bones cracked and more mana was sent to repair her shattered ribs. Her supply of mana was running down quickly, and while Gublax was wounded, he was in much better shape than Sabine. The orc dropped Sabine’s severed arm and drew a dagger from his belt.

Quick as lightning, Gublax threw the dagger at Sabine. She saw the throw coming and rolled to the side, something she found was much more difficult without two arms. The dagger passed by her and she heard an orc further in the crowd gunt as the weapon hammered into his chest. A second dagger was hurled, but Sabine was prepared and dodged this blade also. She staggered to her feet and waited as Gublax grabbed his axe. Every second he delayed meant her body would repair a bit more.

“You’re fast, and I don’t know how you stopped your bleeding, but you’re out of tricks and it's time to end this,” Gublax said as he marched toward her.

“The prisoners are free!” One of the orcs shouted. Risking a glance over her shoulder, Sabine could see that both Orren and Skrix were free and the two nearest orcs that had been guarding them were dead. The pair were currently recovering their weapons and gear from where orcs had piled them.

“Kill them all!” Gublax roared. Orcs responded immediately to their leader, charging the nearest threats. Hamish and the spirit beasts responded as well, closing in and attacking the nearest targets.

Gublax laughed at Sabine as a half dozen orcs closed in on her. Sabine charged toward Gublax, if she could take him out, the other orcs might break or do what the verminkin had done, fight amongst themselves for leadership of the tribe. She only made it a few feet before the orcs behind her closed the gap. A spear deflected off her armor, and a sword chopped into the back of her leg.

Sabine spun around thrusting her dagger into the throat of the orc stabbing her leg, and bashing the face of the spear wielder with a kick. Both her targets were injured, but still in the fight. More orcs closed in and Sabine was hard-pressed to defend herself. She pushed mana into her weapons, feet, and whatever appendage she could use to hammer at her attackers.

She finished off the wounded pair and was stabbing and pummeling her way through the crowd when a sharp pain entered her back. The tip of jagged sword punched through her lower back, just under the armor, and tore through to the front of her waist. Not waiting for her reaction, the orc that had dealt the blow pulled back, using the serrations cut into the blade to saw open a grievous wound.

Sabine turned to face her foe, only to see a crossbow bolt slam into his head as Orren tried to help stem the tide of attackers. Her mana was dangerously low, it went down to 22% and fell as more attacks hit home. Sabine was giving as good as she was getting, and several orcs lay dead at her feet.

A powerful blow knocked Sabine from her feet, Gublax rejoined the fight. His axe had hammered through her armor and was lodged into her chest. Sabine felt weak as Gublax wrenched the blade free and prepared for his next swing. Mana flowed into the wound, leaving Sabine with only 5% of the precious energy.

Rage of the Revenant has activated, select a target for your fury.

The words appeared and Sabine could feel her power flood her body. Her target was easy, she wanted more than anything to take out Gublax. With her target selected, Sabine felt her connection with her body begin to fade as the rage took control. Her vision became tinged with a red haze as all thoughts other than killing her target fled.

Wounds closed quickly as Sabine’s body pulled in the raw mana around her at an incredible pace. Gublax looked shocked at Sabine’s seemingly miraculous healing and backed away as she renewed her attack on the orc leader. Managing another swing of his axe that Sabine easily dodged, Gublax roared in frustration as Sabine began to land mana-enhanced stabs and kicks. Gublax had trouble fending off her attack. His axe was unwieldy with one of his arms was still injured from the damage her buckler had done. With each hit, Sabine added to his woes.

“Kill her!” Gublax shouted, pulling nearby orcs in front of him. Sabine was furious that these orcs tried to keep her from her target, and she tore them apart, stealing a long serrated sword from one of her foes, giving her some extra reach. One after another, the orcs fell to her fury. Seconds passed and the rage began to take a toll on Sabine. Mana still flowed into her, but the exertions were tearing her apart almost as quickly as she could heal. The ratio of injury to healing would get worse with each passing second.

Finally, the last orc in front of her fell, and Gublax tried again to swing his axe at Sabine. She blocked with her sword, and the cheap, serrated blade snapped in two, allowing Gublax’s axe to dig deep into her shoulder. Sabine’s rage-induced logic welcomed the blow, it brought her foe close enough to strike.

Drawing the hidden dagger from her boot, Sabine struck with a mana-infused stab into Gublax’s right eye. The orc stiffened as the mana released piercing damage deep into his head. Gublax jerked back suddenly, pulling the knife from Sabine’s grasp. A final, mana-infused headbutt landed on the dagger’s handle hammering it even deeper into Gublax’s skull. Sabine could hear something pop inside the orc’s head as he collapsed in a dead heap at her feet.

With her target fallen, Rage of the Revenant ended and Sabien collapsed to the ground next to Gublax. Weakness flooded her limbs and even her mana seemed to move more sluggishly as it continued its endless quest to repair her battered and hacked form. Sabine was shocked to see the pile of bodies around her. In her blind rage, she had no idea how many of Gublax’s minions she had slain, but it must have been at least a dozen.

Over by Gublax’s throne, the two spirit beasts were tearing apart any orc that tried to get close. Orren with his crossbow and Skrix with his throwing daggers were adding to the carnage. On the other side of the battle, Hamish and his undead had been defeated, and another half dozen orcs from that fight were charging toward Sabine.

She staggered to her feet looking around for Reckoning. The flail was on the ground about twenty feet away, the handle still clutched in the hand of an orc who had succumbed to the weapon’s curse. Twenty feet may as well have been a mile, Sabine just didn’t have the strength to walk over there. She pried her dagger from Gublax’s skull and stood to face the attacking orcs.

One fell with a crossbow bolt in his chest, and another went down as a throwing dagger pierced his throat. Orren and Skrix were doing everything they could to save her. Sabine stabbed at the first orc to reach her, but there was no speed or power in the blow. The orcs wasted no time and began to rain blows down on Sabine who lacked the strength to deflect them. As the last of her mana ran out, Sabine’s vision began to dim.

Chapter 42.

You have failed as my champion once again. A new test will determine if you are worthy to return. Though I can observe your actions, I may not help you where you are going. This test of undeath is one you must face alone. Know this, if you survive your test, you may return to my favor once more.

Sabine’s mind took some time to piece together what was happening. She had been killed again and was in the same strange testing place as before. Inside the room was a pallet bed that she was laying on, and a simple footlocker. Sabine was dressed in her armor, but it was fully repaired from the battle with the orcs. All her weapons were gone, but something might be inside the footlocker.

Opening the footlocker, Sabine was glad to find Reckoning waiting for her. She reached down to grasp her weapon, only to pause for a bit. Her mind was foggy, and she was still feeling the effects of her latest death. Grabbing the weapon now would almost assuredly result in another struggle for control once it realized her weakened state.

Time was of the essence in this place, but Sabine still waited for several minutes until she felt more like herself. Grabbing Reckoning, the weapon didn’t challenge her for supremacy but did try to infiltrate her thoughts, pushing her to go into another rage. She was all burned out of anger at the moment, and Reckoning’s attempts were futile.

Exit into the tunnel and reach the end of the passageway to have another chance at life.

Armed, armored, and ready as she would ever be, Sabine left the room through its only door and began walking down the passage. She infused mana into Reckoning, noting that like her previous trip, this strange realm had no mana in it. When whatever mana she did have was used up, her journey would be at an end. Sabine wasn’t exactly sure what would happen to her if she died here, but something told her it wasn’t going to be an afterlife that she would enjoy.

Her first journey to this place hadn’t been too bad. She had fought various foes in the passageway, but the only real challenge had been the option to face the ogre at the end. From the messages she received before, the challenge to face the ogre was sort of a one-time deal, and her journey through this realm should be a bit more straightforward this time.

Sabine had only taken a few steps along the passageway when ghostly figures began to appear in front and behind her. When they closed in, they began to take shape. They were rather small, only about five feet tall, and when they took on a physical form, she wasn’t surprised to find these were verminkin.

“I killed enough of you in the Darkrealm, and I doubt you’ve gotten any better at fighting since then,” Sabine taunted.

Mana for her weapon wasn’t needed and her reach was just fine. Most of the verminkin were armed with the same crude weapons she had faced in the Darkrealm. Mushroom stalks with bits of metal hammered into them were no match for Sabine’s armor, and her flail gave her a greater reach than her foes.

With each swing, a verminkin was crushed. Instead of a body crumpled in front of her, Sabine watched as the fallen just dissipated into the air. The flow of enemies didn’t seem to be slowing down and it was then that Sabine realized the danger she was in. She couldn’t stay here and fight, the enemy was limitless and eventually, they would start to land blows and slowly drag her down.

She had to push forward, and unless there was a foe right in front of her, Sabine kept pushing further down the passageway. As she progressed, the enemies started to change. Gone were the verminkin, and in their place was the simple undead that she had fought in her battle with the necromancer.

The undead were larger and more durable than the verminkin, but they fell almost as quickly. Sabine’s pace didn’t slow unless multiple enemies attacked from in front and behind at the same time. After a while, the undead were replaced with the humans she had killed, the mercenaries that had supported the necromancer as well as the thugs that tried to shakedown Orren.

Once the human foes were defeated, the flow of enemies stopped for a time. Not wanting to waste a good thing, Sabine began to jog at the familiar ground-consuming pace she could keep up pretty much indefinitely. Another pair of spectral foes began to approach from in front of her, causing Sabine to slow her pace. It wasn’t more mercenaries, or undead this time, instead, it was her sister and her husband.

“Sabine, why are we here, what is this horrible place you’ve brought us to?” Adrienne asked.

“We’ve never done anything to harm you, Sabine, our family thought of you fondly and Adrienne even told the children happy stories about you. Why are you doing this to us?” Adrienne’s husband Peter asked.

“Stop, don’t approach. If you really are Adrienne and Peter, don’t take a step further, Sabine demanded.

“Please help us. We just want to get back to the children, they’ll be terribly frightened if they wake up and we’re gone,” her sister begged. The two had ceased their approach and were holding onto each other in fear.

“The children? They’re both adults now. What’s the last thing you remember,” Sabine said. It was most likely that the pair were some kind of monsters just waiting for Sabine to let down her guard, but if there was a chance that this was actually her sister and Peter, she had to try and help.

“I remember being sick, Peter was taking care of me and then, well, I can’t remember anything after that,” Adrienne said.

“And you Peter?” Sabine asked.

“I remember the sickness. I tried to fight it and take care of my Adrienne, but I lost you,” Peter said, looking toward Adrienne as the pair began to realize they were no longer in the realm of the living.

“You both were lost to the same sickness, and it’s time for you to move on. This is no place for you, and I’m sure some wonderful afterlife is waiting for you out there,” Sabine said.

“But Sabine, what about Charles and Isabel?” Adrienne said. Sabine could see the fear on her face as she worried about her children.

“They are fine, I saw them back in the realm of the living just about a week ago. Isabel manages the family farm, and Charles runs a produce market. They’re both married and have children of their own. They loved you very much and wouldn’t want you to remain here in this awful place,” Sabine assured them.

“Why are you here?” Peter asked.

“I’ve died as well, Peter, but I’ve been called back to take care of something before I can move on. When I’m done, I hope to join you both,” Sabine said. She wanted nothing more than to spend time with her family, but not in this place.

“Will you look after them when we leave?” Adrienne asked.

“I’ll do what I can. I’ve already given them both some funds, and I’ll make sure they want for nothing,” Sabine assured her sister.

“Thank you, Sabine, I think I can leave now. Please come join us soon,” Adrienne said. The pair became blurry before dissipating into nothing.

“I don’t know who’s in charge of this place, but those two were good people and deserve better than this place,” Sabine said. The things she encountered in this realm might not be real, but Sabine was determined to deal with them as if they were.

Not everyone you meet in this realm is hostile. You have met the spirits of people that you knew in your former life. By helping them move on to the afterlife, a reward will be granted to you should you survive this place.

The promise of future rewards was fine, but Sabine was much happier that her family would be free of this place. Someday, Sabine hoped to join them, but that day wasn’t today. She had promised her sister that she would look after Isabel and Charles, the only way she could do that was to leave here and deal with the threat that Gnessos had tasked her with defeating.

More blurry figures approached from in front and behind Sabine, reminding Sabine that she needed to keep moving. The opponents changed, and she faced humans as well as more of the orcs. The number of attackers was greater than the last time she had journeyed here, but so far, the opponents had been manageable. Time passed and Sabine cut her way through the foes, taking only a few hits as she went. Her mana was still in decent shape when she spotted the end of the passageway.

A solid oak door reinforced with iron straps marked the end of her trial, but it wasn’t unguarded. Only one final figure stood in her way, and as Sabine closed in, it solidified into a monstrous blend of giant dog and insect. It was the shell hound that she had faced in the Darkrealm. The disturbing head of the beast split open like a banana peel, revealing it to be a giant, tooth-lined maw.

Mana granted Reckoning reach and improved damage. Sabine struck as she entered range, the head of the flail sailing toward the giant mouth of the beast. It was the same strike that Sabine had used to kill the creature the first time, and it was smart enough to recognize the threat. Rolling to the side, the shell hound almost avoided the attack, but the flail clipped its side as the creature moved.

The chitinous exoskeleton shattered under her blow and the crushing mana was released to blast open the belly of the hound. The monster gave a horrible screech and lurched toward Sabine. Despite the damage it had taken, the monster was fast. Sabine tried to block its attack with her buckler, but the monster simply used that arm as a good point to latch onto.

The peeled-open head of the monster snapped shut over Sabine’s arm, and she could feel its teeth dig in deeply. Sabine twisted her hand, releasing the mana from her buckler into the mouth of the beast. It flinched as the mana slammed into it, but the monster held on tightly. Sabine hit its body again with her flail as the mouth began to chew and pull at her.

Lightning fast, the mouth snapped open and shut once again, drawing Sabine’s shoulder inside. Her arm was snapped off and swallowed, but the thing had a firm grip on her, and it was already beginning to chew away at the flesh and bone inside her shoulder. Empowering the flail with Stagger, Sabine hit the flesh hound again. This time, the flail head hit the back of the beast where the spine would be on a normal hound.

The explosive power was released as Stagger triggered. The shell hound reflexively opened its maw, tearing chunks of flesh from Sabine’s shoulder as it did so. Her mana was getting dangerously low, but she was free of the monster’s bite.

Stepping back, Sabine began to attack with Reckoning as fast as she could. One blow after another hit the shell hound. She paid particular attention to its head, pummeling the monster and not allowing it to get its bearings. The strikes were unenhanced by mana, but with Sabine’s strength, they proved more than effective enough. After three blows, the hardened shell protecting the monster was crumbling. With its shell breached, Sabine only needed one more strike to end the creature.

She could understand how the verminkin were so terrified of these monsters. If a shell hound managed to latch its bite onto a living creature, it would surely bleed out before it could free itself. Being undead, Sabine didn’t have that fear, though, in a way, her mana was like the blood supply inside a living being. At least the things were easy enough to kill with a flail. If she had held a normal sword of some type, breaking through the shell hound’s hide would be a much more difficult prospect.

Her mana was now down to 31% but the flow of enemies seemed to have ceased. Sabine reached for the door, and as she opened it, her vision faded, and she found herself floating in the void once more.

You have completed the trial set before you and as a result, may choose to return to your previous form. Should you perish again in the physical world, you may, or may not, be offered the chance at another trial. Each trial will become progressively more difficult.

A reward has been granted to you based on a unique interaction during the trial. You have received the following item.

1. Shell Hound Plate. This set of armor has been fashioned from the plates of a shell hound and treated in various elixirs to make it more resistant to shattering. Attuned specifically to you, the armor enhances any mana you may infuse into it.

Attuned to this realm, the armor can never truly be destroyed. Should it become damaged, you may perform minor repairs using your mana. If it is too damaged to be useful, the armor will be summoned into your personal storage area inside the realm of the dead. Once inside the realm, the armor will slowly mend itself and eventually be ready for your use once more.

Should you perish and face another trial, you will be given the option to complete a challenge and receive an upgrade to your armor.

When you return to the realm of the living this armor will be waiting inside your storage.

Before even being given a chance to see what her armor looked like, Sabine felt herself ripped from this realm and the familiar feel of her borrowed body returned.