A Soldier's Life - 316 - Caught Between A Rock And A Hard Place (final edit 8-5-25, its better but prob needs another pass)

Chapter 316: Caught Between A Rock And A Hard Place Rhuuk must have been fatigued from his relentless combat as he was carrying the pair. Hi

Chapter 316: Caught Between A Rock And A Hard Place

Rhuuk must have been fatigued from his relentless combat as he was carrying the pair. His swings lacked their usual ferocity, and I presumed he had depleted much of his aether reserves and wasn’t using his tattoos at the moment. Even though the dungeon enhanced the recovery of aether, he could not charge forward recklessly.

We paused in the short corridor to the ice demon chamber to watch the other two progress. Mynasha observed, “They both look to be conserving aether, probably for the fight with the ice demon.”

I was not as certain. “Will they try to steal the horns when we come out,” I speculated.

“No,” she said, then hedged. “Possibly. Maybe they are conserving aether to confront us after we fight the demon and are weakened.” At least she was admitting to herself that honor was secondary to the prize of being the Supreme.

My hand brushed the blue glowstone to my right. I took a modest block of it into my space. I needed to conserve my own aether as I had only recovered about two-thirds. While Rhuuk fought, I spared a glance into the ice demon chamber. Frost coated the blue glowstones within, and a thin layer of snow covered the icy floor. It was a treacherous environment to fight in, and we were warned that the longer you fought, the colder the chamber became. Since you would be sealed inside the freezer, it was a death sentence if you couldn’t slay the demon quickly. Of course, Maveith had a ring of warmth.

I tried to find the demon. We were told the ice demon blended into the floor, looking like a snow-covered stone, but from my vantage point, there were a dozen or more large stones. I was slightly concerned that the demon might resist my dimensional space and it would result in a desperate fight. From Glasha, I knew it was a highly magical creature, capable of creating a frozen aura around itself.

It was also covered in a white, bony plate exoskeleton, making it difficult—even with a runic weapon—to locate flesh. Maveith’s bludgeoning hammer would have been handy for this encounter.

“Are we going?” Mynasha asked, seeing my uncertainty and the competition getting closer.

“I say we let them fight the demon and take the horns when they exit.” Mynasha looked shocked at the suggestion. She had followed my lead so far and I had carried her.

“We cannot kill them,” she stated resolutely, but didn’t say we couldn’t rob them. I nodded, sheathed magebane, and the black spear appeared in my hand. Having watched Rhuuk practice, I thought the spear was a better weapon to keep him at a distance since his broadsword had longer reach than the magebane.

We watched the pair work slowly through the dretches and blood stirges to reach the corridor where we were waiting. They came up short, not expecting to see us there. Jhuarkasha barked mockingly at us. “Too afraid to fight the demon?” It was a weak taunt, clearly crafted to lure us into killing the ice demon. The cleric lacked cunning among other things. I could see him being a puppet of the warlords, but I didn’t know if Mynasha had the fortitude to stand up to the warlords. Not that I cared for the fate of the Caliphate.

My eyes slid to Rhuuk, and I tried to read his intentions. Rhuuk was covered in dretch and strige blood but showed no signs of fatigue. Even though Jhuarkasha was the candidate, Rhuuk was clearly the one in charge. Mynasha was waiting for me to answer the insult. Apparently, I was the one who spoke for our team. “How do you know we have not already defeated the ice demon?”

The cleric peered into the snow-blanketed, icy chamber beyond, his face betraying panic. If we had both horns we could complete the third trial. The snow lay undisturbed, making it evident that we had not yet crossed the threshold into the demon’s domain, but uncertainty was on the cleric’s face. “They have not,” Rhuuk voiced aloud, figuring it out, while not breaking eye contact with me. His eyes drifted to the spear for a split second and then back to my eyes.

“The demon is all yours,” I gestured slightly with the spearhead to let them pass, but they didn’t move. It was a standoff. I think they planned to take the horns from us when we exited—but that was also our plan. In my estimation, they must have intentionally slowed to let us enter first. They had been acting more fatigued than they actually were as well.

Jhuarkasha tried not to give away their intentions but turned to Rhuuk for orders. The tendons on Rhuuk’s hand flexed, and I watched the tip of his blade for movement. His eyes held an eagerness to test his skill against mine, but he was also intelligent. He had studied me on numerous occasions and seen what my dimensional space held.

“You can have the goliaths if you give us the hellhound skull.” The warlord’s statement threw me off. He laughed darkly at my surprise, “You thought we wouldn’t find out why a human would help a candidate in The Choosing?” Damn it Maveith! I assumed it was his actions that had revealed why we were here.

“We didn’t tell anyone,” Mynasha said from my side.

“I know,” I said while maintaining eye contact with the warlord.

I tried to regain my mental footing, thinking out the implications. There had to be spying and divination magic but Maveith’s attempt to contact his sister was likely the reason. I shook my head slowly, it didn’t matter. I was certain the bulky pack Jhuarkasha carried had the snake demon horns. If we left the dungeon, he now had leverage over me as Zorana and Myra were his slaves. Maybe he wanted something more—something he had seen in my dimensional items? A slight anxiety stirred in me, I couldn’t let him live.

I grinned, showing confidence. “How about a friendly wager? We will put up our hellhound skull for the snake demon horns? The winner walks out of here with both. Just me and you, no need to get the clerics involved.” If Mynasha was involved, she could probably end this quickly if we moved to the large chamber away from the walls. But I was worried that Jhuarkasha could shield Rhuuk and prevent my attacks.

I was going this route because I had doubts about fighting the ice demon, and Rhuuk was an unknown threat. Glasha had indicated the ice demon was not much weaker than the shadow demon, and we had hoped not to have to fight either. The warlord didn’t take long to answer. Rhuuk looked at the spear again and my sheathed blade, clear wanting on his face for both artifacts. That was why I was surprised when I answered. “No, human. You have no honor.”

Really? We were talking about honor now! I wanted to grind my teeth, but I had learned enough about warlord honor in our months in the Caliphate to twist it to my advantage. “I killed Warlord Trakor, it was I who brought down his roc, Chaostail, north of Varvao,” I said. “I claim his honor for mine.”

“You lie, human,” Cleric Jhuarkasha yelled at me, spittle flying from his mouth. Stealing a dead man’s honor was unhonorable and had to be met with an honor challenge, so I thought I would force a fight either way. Mynasha had taken a step back from me, also stunned at my claim.

Warlord Trakor led the expedition to conquer Western Telha; his unexpected death nearly doomed it, causing infighting among the remaining warlords and clerics. From Glasha and Tarnasha’s conversations, I knew Trakor had been an ally of Rhuuk, but I did not know how deep the alliance went.

War Cleric Mynasha was at the head of that fleet, the strongest cleric, and I had just stunned her by admitting I was the pain-in-the-ass Hound who had killed Pathfinders and warlords alike, nearly thwarting the annexation.

I could also claim Pathfinder Rakuh as my victim and his honor, but I thought I wouldn’t need to because of Rhuuk’s reaction. I had killed Rakuh in an honor duel when I freed the goliath slaves in Kraken Bay. That Pathfinder was the patriarch of the Sun Shadow Clan and respected throughout the Caliphate. Glasha had been warned me that several warlords and clans would seek to avenge his death.

My eyes had not broken with Rhuuk. Some people didn’t need a Truthseeker to read the truth in another. “No, I believe he tells it true.” Rhuuk’s breathing had slowed as he prepared mentally and physically. “Death or surrender?” He asked for terms.

“Death,” I didn’t hesitate to respond.

“No!” Jhuarkasha barked, getting his wits. “Surrender!”

“Not your decision, cleric. It is my honor,” Rhuuk said dismissively. I caught something in an exchange between them. Was this an act? I had only recently learned the orc language, so the nuances were still a little lost on me, but reading body language was something I had gotten good at from all my weapons practice. They were expecting this outcome—maybe even desired it. Don’t doubt yourself, Eryk, I told myself. I could beat Rhuuk.

“We should move out to the large cavern,” I gestured with my spear, not liking the ice demon at my back.

“I am comfortable here,” Rhuuk said, motioning Jhuarkasha away. At least Jhuarkasha didn’t cast any spells on him—none that I noticed, even with my aether-infused sight active.

Rhuuk was an imposing warrior, built like Maveith and more agile than Benito. With his tattoos, he was probably faster than me, stronger than me, and on top of that, he had more combat experience. But what he didn’t have was a dimensional space.

The blue-lit corridor we were standing in was twenty feet wide with a ceiling to match. Rhuuk’s stance changed as he gracefully circled my right. Mynasha backed away from me, and I think Rhuuk knew she couldn’t use her lightning in proximity to the glowstones.

His footwork was some of the best I had ever observed. It gave away nothing of his intentions, and he glided like a feather, barely disturbing the ground. I almost felt embarrassed watching him, knowing my own footwork paled. I would have liked to cross blades with him for no reason other than adding him to the dreamscape, but I was not risking my life.

I circled him and watched him closely while the two clerics looked on for a minute before he narrowed his eyes and moved in closer. When he came within ten feet, I attempted to move a portion of his chest to my dimensional space. No—I only tried to relocate a piece of him to my dimensional space. Instead, thunder rocked the area, and I was thrown backward, tumbling in a daze. I barely had enough awareness to realize I was heading in a very bad direction—toward the ice demon room. I laid out my body and skidded to a stop. I was conscious, but my head hurt, and my aether was depleted. I fumbled into my pouch for a lesser healing potion. 

The healing potion worked too slowly as my vision crystallized. At least it looked like Rhuuk hadn’t been spared. He was picking himself off the floor of the main chamber, Jhuarkasha hovering over him but reluctant to help and interrupt the honor duel.

I realized what had happened slowly. This had happened to me once before when I had tried to place the belt with small dimensional pouches into my dimensional space. Another dimension could not exist inside another and was forcibly expelled. Did that mean Rhuuk had an artifact on him—or had his own dimensional space? My hearing returned as I stood, and Mynasha was hovering, uncertain if she should help. I probably should have gotten more clarity on the rules before we started.

Rhuuk looked angrily at Jhuarkasha from the ground. Jhuarkasha stepped back. “I didn’t know you would be affected too!” The cleric said apologetically with some fear in his voice. So, I had been set up. They had figured out the extent of my abilities and prepared a counter. I was stupid for not realizing it. Rhuuk struggled to his feet, clearly suffering from the concussive blast. He fumbled for his own healing potion, and I looked for my spear. Fuck, it had rolled into the demon’s chamber behind me. Shit—one of the snow-covered rocks was creeping closer to it.

I drew magebane and started to advance on Rhuuk, who still seemed disoriented, but it wouldn’t last. And it didn’t, as retrieved his blade before I closed. He parried my first attack and regained his footing as his mind cleared from the healing potion. I pressed as best I could, but he was clearly channeling aether to his tattoos as he was faster than me. I didn’t think that was fair, as my aether pool had been drained in the explosive feedback.

I was forced back as Rhuuk regained himself. My hope was he would expend his aether on his tattoos, and the fight would be even once again. I was tracking my own aether restoring painfully slow. Realizing he had the advantage, he pressed the attack. I grunted when I blocked a heavy swing, my shoulder aching from the force behind it. I told myself to just parry or dodge in the future. So much for consuming essences like candy for the last two years, I was outmatched physcially.

Rhuuk was deft with his broadsword and difficult to read. I was soon sporting a deep cut on my thigh and right bicep. The leg wound hadn’t reached the muscle, but the wound on the arm had. If my shield hadn’t been in my dimensional space, this might have been more of a fair fight, but as it was, I was at a disadvantage. The exchanges got more and more violent as I was on the defensive and retreating. I took another cut to my same injured arm; this time, he reached the bone, making that arm useless.

He paused, finally drawing in heavy breaths, and the emptiness in his eyes told me he had exhausted his aether. Only a few minutes had passed, and I began to retreat toward the ice demon room. In a prolonged fight, I realized I would lose. Maybe I could lure him into the demon chamber and turn the demon against him. Rhuuk wasn’t stupid and didn’t move, allowing me to step back. He was content to recover his aether so he could recharge his tattoos. After gaining some distance, I took the chance to drink a lesser healing potion from my belt. He frowned, clearly displeased. He might have thought the Titans had destroyed all my potions.

Most importantly, as the potion worked, my wounds closed and the potion mitigated my blood loss. I was feeling some weakness from the blood loss, just another sign that things were not going well for me. I was at the entrance to ice demon room, but Rhuuk did not enter, clearly understanding my intention to lock us inside. “You cower like a human,” he berated me. “You are not fit to be a First, or to be allowed in this dungeon.”

I wanted to laugh. He somehow thought his insults would make me come to him. Minutes passed as we continued to stare at each other, with thirty feet separating us. Rhuuk was forced to cut down a dretch that had wandered too close. I was content to let my aether restore. I could now cast a few air shields or recover things from my dimensional space. I used some aether to increase my blood. Maybe Rhuuk thought I had poor aether channeling, or the backlash had damaged my dimensional space.

I dissuaded him from that as the black blade appeared in my other hand. His eyes narrowed at the weapon, but he clearly did not realize it was an Orc’s Torment—at least not yet. The clerics watched from opposite sides of the entrance. Mynasha looked worried and frustrated at the same time. Rhuuk took a moment to reach under his armor and toss aside metal fragments. Was that what had repelled my dimensional space? Or was he trying to deceive me? I hated clever opponents.

I looked back at the black spear. The mound had crowded close to it, hovering near it. That irked me as I didn’t want to lose the powerful weapon. I checked on my aether and walked out corridor to confront Rhuuk. He changed his posture very slightly, maybe he was not ready to receive me.

With mage bane in one hand and Orc’s Torment in the other, I attacked. He started to backpedal, on the defensive, as I now had the advantage with two blades, and he could not use his tattoos. He still enhanced his speed and strength for quick exchanges, but it I was also only focused on wearing him down now and not dumb enough to be baited by openings.

He was very deft with the broad sword and it took time before Orc’s Torment finally cut through his gauntlet and back of his hand. His hissed but didn’t cry out as he retreated further into the open cavern. Jhuarkasha was confused and nervous at the turn of events.

Rhuuk’s eyes were locked on the black blade. “You have no honor to bring such a vile blade into the Caliphate.” I didn’t respond but a smile creeped on my face. I could tell he was desperate. A circled and made him kill a dretch while he sought an advantage.

Minutes passed as we played a game of cat and mouse. Konstantin would be mad that I was playing with food but I had a plan. An effect of Orc’s Torment was that magical healing would be ineffective, and Rhuuk learned that after I cut his hip with magebane. He swiftly drank another healing potion and growled in frustration as it failed to heal his wounds.

That poison now flowed through his body, but frustratingly, he was still able to command his aether enough to activate his tattoos. I almost lost my arm trying to take advantage of an opening. I could have used an air shield to pressure him, but I had another fate in mind for him.

I asked as haughtily as I could. “Violet or blue?”

His confusion was evident on his face, “Violet or blue?” he echoed.

“Yeah, what is your favorite color?” I asked, gaining confidence as I closed.

“It does not factor into the contest,” he retorted angrily.

I had stopped a dozen feet away. “Actually, it does,” I stated. “I wanted to know…” I paused dramatically as a cubic yard of violet glowstone appeared above his head. He had no chance of seeing it with his helm’s visor. As the stone fell, too slowly for my liking, “…what to make your tombstone.” I finished.

Panic appeared briefly on his face as the pressure settled on him. He made the mistake of trying to resist instead of getting out of the way. The stone crushed Rhuuk, and a squirt of his bodily fluids splattered on me. Some of his limbs still stuck out from under the glowing violet stone, but he was most certainly dead. Technically, I could say that I didn’t kill him if questioned by the elders.

“Guess I won, I believe that is ours.” I stated tiredly, looking over at the astonished Jhuarkasha, indicating his pack with the demon-snake horns.