Respite

Dawn had arrived. A faint ray of sunlight entered the room. Uriel began to open her eyes. Everything seemed blurry at first. It took a moment for her to adjust her vision. As soon as her sight cleared, she looked around and inspected her surroundings. It didn't take her too long to guess where she was: a bedchamber, specifically her bedchamber in Nul Hunur.

How did she get here? What happened? Questions popped at the back of Uriel's head. Uriel tried to sit herself up for a more comfortable position, so that she could think better. As she did, a current of pain jolted down her body.

Uriel winced. Gritting her teeth, Uriel grabbed the side of her stomach. She squinted fiercely, trying her hardest to tolerate the pain. With frustrated grumbles, Uriel wheezed and let out a series of restricted breaths. Her fingers pressed, slowly tightening with each count. Moments passed before she could start moving again.

Despite the discomfort, the pain actually did something. It triggered her memory. Suddenly, Uriel remembered what had happened, just before she slipped into unconsciousness.

Out in a vast field, she and her forces had finally met and engaged the warriors of the Allosaur Clan. The battle itself began and continued quite smoothly, until the four other Greater Clans arrived. In mere moments, Uriel and her forces found themselves overwhelmed by the enemy.

The last thing that Uriel remembered was being on her knees, with an enemy warrior ready to pound her skull right into the dirt. The brute's club fell down upon her, and then everything faded into black. Uriel could not remember anything that happened after that. She couldn't even remember feeling the blunt edge of the hammer striking her.

Uriel tried her hardest to fill some gaps, but nothing came to mind. She squirmed on the bed, only to feel more discomfort and pain around her body. Finally, Uriel pulled the blanket aside and inspected her body. Her eyes quickly widened from what she saw.

Stripped off her armor and clothes, Uriel found herself wrapped with strips of bloodied bandages. The bloodstains looked too thick and much to have been from meager cuts. Although her body appeared to be in one piece, the damage on Uriel's body gave the impression that she had been burned, beaten, and even skinned in some areas.

"W-What happened to me?" Uriel grunted with horror. She had suffered many injuries in the past before, but never needed her entire body wrapped.

"My lady!" a familiar voice spoke. Uriel didn't need to look to recognize the voice.

Mycelia sat nearby an open window. The elven sorceress had a few scratches on her body and face, but she appeared to be at a better state. At least she didn't have an entire body wrapped in bandages, save for her arms, which seemed to always be covered.

Rising from her chair, she approached swiftly. "My lady, thank goodness you are awake!" the elf exclaimed with relief. She carried a smile that reached from cheek to cheek "I began to fear that you would not awaken any time soon."

"Would not awaken?" Uriel uttered, clearly puzzled "What happened? Why am I like this?"

She pulled off the blankets, further displaying her injured body. A twinge of pain opened, causing a little more discomfort.

"Please calm yourself, my lady," Mycelia replied, helping Uriel lay down. She then pulled out a vial of blue liquid from her pouch. "Here, drink this, my lady."

"What is that?" Uriel asked, somewhat suspicious.

"It is a potion that should relieve you of some of your pain," Mycelia answered. "It won't heal you, but it should help you tolerate any discomfort you are feeling."

Uriel accepted. Opening her mouth, she drank the potion. It had no taste. Before long, Uriel felt some of the pain in her body subside. It did not disappear completely, but she found it a little easier to move.

"Thank you," Uriel sighed deeply, as if so much had just fallen from her body.

"It is the least I could do," Mycelia replied, hiding the vial. "You're still recovering from your injuries. Fortunately for you, my spell saved you just in time."

"Your spell?" Uriel groaned. She lay back on the bed, actually finding it more comfortable lying down than sitting up. "What spell? What did you do to me?"

Mycelia didn't answer immediately. She first took a deep breath and composed herself.

"My lady, you were gravely injured during battle," she explained. "That snake of a shaman struck you down with a magical bolt. I needed to return you to Nul Hunur, so I could properly heal you. It was a long, and very unpleasant procedure."

Uriel shot Mycelia with an incredulous stare, as if she had just been told the worst joke. "I was struck by magic?" she asked, clearly having no memory of the incident. "When did that happen?"

"Right after you killed the Triceran Chieftain and two of his warriors," Mycelia answered. "You had let your guard down, allowing the shaman to attack you from afar."

Confusion remained on Uriel's face. She tried hard to remember. Nothing came to mind, but blanks and empty spaces. She could not recall fighting any chieftain or being hit by a spell. It felt like some sort of fib made to cause rumor. Uriel recalled naught but being moments away from death, and then sudden darkness and silence.

"I don't… remember that," Uriel grumbled.

"You don't?" Mycelia murmured. She nervously stared at the floor and twiddled her thumbs. "My lady, do you remember using dark magic to frighten the enemy?"

Uriel grimaced. That could not be true. She knew only one type of spell, and it was not powerful enough to frighten the enemy. "N-no," she answered directly. Her voice firm. "I cast dark magic?"

"You really don't remember anything, do you, my lady?" Mycelia asked, only to have Uriel shake her head again in response. With a glum sigh, the elf took a seat by the edge of the bed. "My lady, during that battle, you embodied the very shadow of your predecessor."

Mycelia began to briefly explain what occurred during the battle. She started with how Uriel mercilessly slaughter the Pachy warrior, all the way to the point where lightning had struck the overlord. Although she explained briefly, Mycelia gave enough details to create a vivid image in one's mind.

Uriel listened with a hanging jaw. Any pain that she currently felt quickly vanished. Guilt and dread replaced the ache across her body. For most of her career as a warrior, she had fought against vile fiends that had twisted pleasures and sinister magic. Never in her wildest dreams or horrid nightmares did she imagine herself becoming one of them.

Hearing all this felt like a knife being stabbed straight into her chest, and then slowly twisted to worsen the pain.

Without hesitation or shame, Uriel would admit to enjoying the thrill of battle. She enjoyed dancing with death, as well as defeating those whose names commanded respect. Slowly killing a person in battle, however, was a sadistic line that she could never cross. It reminded her of a certain woman she despised and failed to kill many times before.

Even worse than the torture of the body was the torment of the soul. Uriel had faced risen dead a few times in the past. They fought with such fury and anger, but their voices howled of intense torment and suffering that no living being could ever produce. They would cry and scream, begging for release, otherwise they would experience unending anguish.

Uriel's expressions gradually changed, as she listened. At first, her eyes popped wide open, as if she had just been slapped across the face. She then stared at the ground for a few moments, contemplating all the information she had been told.

Her eyes then closed. With reluctance and hesitation, she absorbed the truth and accepted her actions. It took time some time for her to do so. She gritted her teeth and clenched her fists, as if an object were being removed from her body.

"How did it come to this?" Uriel groaned, her fist trembling. "How could I have done any of that?"

Mycelia sucked in her lips. "It is not your fault, my lady," she consoled. "You had no control of your actions. You had no idea of what you were doing."

"Perhaps, but that does not excuse the fact that I was the one responsible," Uriel mumbled. "How long have I been here?"

"Four days," Mycelia answered. "It took me one whole day to heal your damaged body. You then continued to sleep for three days. I was very worried that I may have been too late."

"Four days," Uriel repeated. She pinched the bridge of her nose, trying to organize her thoughts. Besides learning of the battle, she also learned that she had been unconscious for four days.

Four days may not have seemed like much, but a lot could have happened in that amount of time. She worried not only for herself, but also for Jotun, Ragosh and the rest of the lizard folk that she had brought into this mess.

Were they safe? Did they escape that battle against the five greater clans? So many questions came to mind, but she needed to handle things one at a time.

"Is losing oneself an effect of the Overlord's power?" she then asked, still having difficulty accepting the facts.

"I cannot prove it, but it is possible," Mycelia responded, shrugging slightly. "Even to practitioners, magic is still a mysterious fount of power. Many have fallen to madness and corruption, due to their own hubris. Considering how great your power is-."

Uriel frowned. "We can't let it happen again," she interrupted. "It may have saved us from that disaster, but I do not fancy the thought of this power going out of control. Is there a way to keep it in check?"

The elf rubbed her chin and stared at the ground, trying to think. Suddenly, her pointed ears twitched, as she bobbed her head up. An idea must have come to mind.

"I do believe that it may be possible to do so, if I placed a magical seal upon your body," she answered. "However, it will be harder for you to use your full power."

Uriel grunted. The idea intrigued her. She was about to accept, but soon got second thoughts. She looked at the palm of her hands. The Overlord remembered the times her power proved to be useful, particularly when she granted Mycelia additional power to defeat the metal guardian in the Chamael Village.

"Would you… be able to undo the seal, if necessary?" she eventually asked. Her voice gave pause, hinting some qualm towards the idea.

A confident smile formed on Mycelia's face. "If I make it, then I can just as easily undo it," she admitted with her head up high. "If you ever wish me to open the seal to use your power, then I should be able to do it."

"Then let us do it," Uriel replied. "While I do not wish this power to go out of control, it would be a waste to simply keep such power locked. In time, I may even truly master it."

"If it is what you wish, my lady," Mycelia accepted, whilst giving a slight bow. "However, I would suggest you rest first. Although my magic managed to save you from death, you need more treatment and rest to heal your body."

Uriel huffed through her nostrils. "Very well," she replied, as she leaned her head back against the pillow. Tapping her fingers on the bed, Uriel decided to move on to the next concerning matter. "About our companions… are they safe?"

Mycelia nodded. "Yes, I believe so," she said. She reached from her pocket and pulled out a small piece of paper. "Jotun had recently sent this to me, through a crow. He tells me that most of them have escaped, and are on their way towards the Chamael village."

"That is good," Uriel sighed. She welcomed this news. It may not have completely comforted her, but it did give some ease to mind. "Hopefully, they'll make it there safely."

"Jotun and his Blood Crows are leading the way," Mycelia remarked, hoping her words would grant extra assurance. "He and I may have our differences, I do believe he is quite capable of leading them. He was a captain, after all."

"I see his optimism is beginning to rub off on you," Uriel noted, chuckling softly.

"That doesn't sound like much of a compliment, but I'll take it for what it is," Mycelia murmured.

Again, Uriel chuckled. She then took a deep breath and let out a long sigh. "This conflict has become far more complicated than we realized," she commented.

"It indeed has," Mycelia agreed, leaning back a little. "I assumed this to be a simple spat amongst savages. I never expected one of their leaders to hold great power from a time of old."

"I will admit that that it would have been better and simpler if they were just beasts to be tamed," Uriel confessed, pouting a little shamefully. "However, those lizards proved to be a little more sophisticated than either of us imagined."

"I suppose so," Mycelia grunted. "Perhaps after a few centuries of development, they may actually become something to admire."

"From what the companions we've traveled with, I believe they already do deserve some of that admiration," Uriel groaned. She lifted her head and stared at the ceiling. "Regardless, of how this conflict has turned, it does not change my goal. If anything, this now directly aligns with my goal."

"Yes, you need the lizard folk to take hold of Ebonus, correct?" Mycelia assumed.

"Not only that," Uriel replied with a stern frown. "That Allosaur, Kreshrak, is one of the reasons these Dark Lands must be tamed. I understand the need to build arms to protect oneself, but that shaman has outright proclaimed his desire to bring war to the kingdoms. We must stop him, before he could do so."

Mycelia laughed a little and shook her head.

"What is so funny?" Uriel asked, raising a brow.

"You don't see the irony?" Mycelia asked back. "The previous Overlord did whatever he had in his power to destroy the kingdoms, and now here you are, the current Overlord will do whatever to protect them."

Uriel sniggered. "I'm not my predecessor, I told you that," she replied. "It is not in my interest to conquer and destroy. Many have died and been scarred by these Dark Lands. As the new Overlord, I now have the opportunity to change this realm for the better."

"And like I said back then, my lady, I shall look forward to what you will do," Mycelia remarked. "For now, please continue resting, my lady. I shall return later with some food and drinks for you."

Uriel murmured. "Mycelia… I don't think I truly thank you enough for all that you've done for me," she expressed. "Your assistance has been invaluable."

Mycelia blushed and smiled. "It is the least I can do, my lady," she answered, with a nod. "Now, please rest."

The sorceress exited the room, and then slowly closed the door behind her. For a while, she travelled through the hallways, but eventually came to a complete stop. There, she held her head up and gave a deep sigh of regret. Pulling Jotun's message from her pocket, she unrolled the paper and quietly read it again.

Most of us have escaped.

Retreating to Chamael Village.

Be on guard.

Land is falling into chaos.

Lizard clans beginning to fight each other.