Soulforge Legacy Series

Lance:

Being held in my mate’s arms was something I had dreamed about since I was little. The stories the village elder’s wove around the various bonfires throughout the years captured the imagination of every kid. Stories of various legendary couples. Of their love and their deaths.

The tragedies and feats no other could hope to match. Of spells cast to change large swaths of the world. To either make a passable section impassable to prevent an army from crossing or turn a barren landscape into a paradise.

They did this all while they fell deeper and deeper in love. Sure, each of them died in the end, but none of them were without those they loved even at the end. Something I didn’t think that I deserved. Not after all that I had let happen.

This was something that Priestess Guenevere and I talked about at length as I searched for a path forward. One that led to both redemption and forgiveness. One that might, one day, lead me back to my mate. To allow me the right to convince her that I was worthy of her. That we were meant to be.

Of course, the priestess was blunt in her choice of words as she let me know that there was a chance my mate may never forgive me. And while I prayed to the goddess for a different outcome, I accepted the possibility.

Still, even if such a thing came to pass. If she outright rejected me, I would never be far from her. I would protect her until the day I returned to Selene. To the meadows from which all wolves come from.

Which is why, even after my little fox nearly rejected me last night, I watched over her. Even as she slept, I watched. Both her and those around her.

Still, while I kept my attention on everyone around her, her body kept drawing my attention. She was perfect in every way. Sure she had more curves than some of the wolves back home, but why wouldn’t my warrior mate be well-built? Plus, those curves allowed her to sit more flush against me.

And then there was her height. She was shorter than most beastkin women. Short enough that, if she were to lean against me, I would have no issues resting my head on hers.

Oh, and her eyes. Those piercing electric blue balls of fire seemed to almost cut through me. To see the real me. The one I kept hidden away.

All tied together by her scent. Honey-suckle and cedar. Just one whiff soothed the beast in me even as the creature begged me to mark her as mine. To solidify the bond.

Even now he didn’t seem to understand why we had done nothing. Why we had let her go. The thing thought that, since we were being controlled, the fault was not ours. I tried time and time again to explain to him that that was not how it worked. That even if it was not our fault, our body had still done the deed. That our soul was still stained by what our hands had done.

It was one of the reasons I had decided to stand up. To peek my head over the stairs and watch my mate hold her ground against people who had caused so much pain and suffering.

My eyes locked onto the girl hidden behind the tank. Just seeing her brought forth memories I wished I could forget. Of how easily that little monster had controlled me. Forced me to do horrific things. Say words I did not mean.

Seeing her also brought forth the fear that she would do it again. That she might use me against my mate. The very idea nearly caused me to race back into the room with those below, but I couldn’t. Not with my mate in danger.

Sure she seemed stronger than the last time I had seen her, but they had been holding back during that last battle. And even then, she had only won thanks to the element of surprise. Something she didn’t have.

As I watched, something flickered in the light. I barely caught a glimpse of whatever it was before an invisible heat flashed through the room. Screams filled the room as the guards burned. Then they stopped.

Only the five monsters survived my mates first strike. They didn’t hesitate to return the favor. Still, even as they charged at her, they died one by one. That is, until the little monster and her pet were the only ones left. Those three fought but just as Kyren seemed to be gaining the upper hand, the demon decided to join the fray.

His mana flooded the area. It held me in place as he strolled into the building. Given his expression, he wasn’t happy at what he saw. Going so far as to send both his spawn and her minion back to her mother in the shortest, darkest path available to them.

Then he turned every bit of attention to my mate. He didn’t look willing to hold back as he sought to take what was not his. To forcefully claim what was mine.

Surprisingly enough, she held her own. Unfortunately, he had the reserves to keep this up for hours. Something that she couldn’t match. Not yet at least. And when she ran out of steam, he would make his move. Which meant that I had to do something before it was too late.

Sheer will allowed me to push my body to its limit. To do terrible damage to it even as I made my way to the arrogant demon. After all, who leaves their back to a set of stairs?

My dagger found its way past his ribs and into a lung. The demon’s extended claws tore through my flesh as he spun to face the new threat.

Searing pain tore from my shoulder to my hip. The fiery agony tore through my insides. Even without seeing the wound, I could tell that it was likely fatal. Especially as I was already having trouble standing.

My vision wavered as I staggered to the side. Just in time to see Kyren kill the bastard.

Blood spattered across her face, sword out, she looked more beautiful than before.

My legs chose that moment to lose the last of their strength. Without anything to grab onto, I had no other choice but to let my body crumple to the floor.

To my surprise, my little mate caught me. And here I was thinking that she hated me. Not that I blamed her. Still, it was nice to be held by her even if it was only once.

Her mouth moved, saying something, though I knew not what. “Thank the…” I stopped to take a shuddering breath as I tried to keep from coughing up a lung. “Gods that you survived.

When she spoke again, I managed to catch one word. “…healers…”

My hands wrapped around hers as I stopped its frantic movements. To stop her from trying to save me from the inevitable. “We both know there is nothing they can do.”

Her eyes glistened as a tear made its way down her cheek. My eyes tracked that tear as it raced to escape while wishing that I could comfort her. To tell her that everything would be okay. I missed whatever she said as the darkness started to creep in on the fringes of my vision.

I used the last bit of my energy as I tried to tell her to remember to not be so hard on herself and to find someone that made her happy. “All I ask is…” That was all I managed to get out before the world finally faded to black.

I floated there, in the black void of nothingness. No field or goddess. Nothing but darkness and nothingness in every direction.

As I floated there, I wondered if this was the afterlife. If this was what awaited everyone. Then again, likely as not, this was my punishment for what I did. All the good and evil tallied up to give me this sentence. To be alone, forever.

With nothing to see and no way to track time, I found my mind wandering back to my mate. Wondering if anyone would ever be able to sneak into her heart and love her as she so dearly deserved.

An odd series of lines and colors brought life to this place devoid of everything else. They grew and shrank, appeared and vanished. Over and over, again and again. Though, with each pass they seemed to multiple. Then, without warning, they stopped.

In their place was a cloaked figure. “Lance Fenris Lupin of clam Lupin.” A voice echoed strangely in the place. Bouncing off the nothingness only to suddenly vanish for no reason. “In recognition of your selfless sacrifice for your mate, I am here to make you an offer.” Confused, I narrowed my eyes.

This wasn’t how the stories spoke about the path through the afterlife. Sure, there was mention of a cloak figure in some, but not once did they speak of any offers. Even the stories those who gave everything for those they were protecting failed to mention such a thing.

“Why?” The word was out of me before I could think better of it.

“Honestly?” It asked as a bony hand reached up to whatever passed for its face under the hood. “The gods all decided that we should expand the ability to return to the world of the living to all of those on your planet. At least they asked me if I could handle the work.”

I tried to hold in my excitement at what it was saying. “You mean I can return.”

“Sure,” its shoulders lifted. “But only if you are willing to pay the same price as everyone else.”

Ah, there it was. Nothing was ever free. Even in death. “And that would be?” My first born? And wasn’t that a thought. Then again, it could also ask for a piece of my soul. And that was only the first two things to come to mind.

“Ten percent of your experience, as well as a few other minor things.” It waved its bony hand. “Nothing too horrific.” It spoke as though ten percent was nothing. Gathering that amount had taken me nearly two years.

Then again, given what it was offering, was it not worth the cost? If I was dead, I had no use for the experience. At least if I was alive I would have a chance to gather it again.

But even if I was told that I would never be able to gather a single drop of experience again, it would be worth the price if only so I could see my mate one more time. To try and convince her that I deserved a second chance.

Path set, spine straight, I spoke the words that would seal my fate. “Fine, I agree to your demands.”

“Good,” it said as it let out a soft sigh. “I really didn’t want to have to explain to that damnable woman why I couldn’t bring you back.” Before I could ask who it was talking about, it offered me something spherical. “Take this and activate it. Afterwards I will take you back to the world.”

The sphere was a quarter the size of my palm and felt warm. It also looked oddly familiar. Like I had seen it somewhere before. But that – wait, this was a SoulStone. Every traveler got one of these not that long ago.

Was this what allowed them to return from death?

Wait, that couldn’t be true because they came back before they got their SoulStones.

Oh, what did it matter? This being was offering me a chance to ‘respawn’ as the travelers called it. If that meant I had to use a weird tool, then so be it.

But before I used it, I took a moment to appreciate the thing. To observe it before it vanished to wherever it was destined to go.

A dull grey light shone from the depths of the orb. Every once in a while a whisp of silvery light peaked out. Almost like a full moon on a overcast night. It would light up the clouds enough to cast the world with shadowed light. Still, there would be times in which the moon would find a crack, a sliver of space between the clouds in which to peak at the world below.

With a deep breath, I forced myself to move onto the next part. While there wasn’t much left, I pushed what was left of my mana into the orb.

Unlike various other times I had used most of my mana, I did not pass out. Even as the orb pulled every bit of my mana from me, I did not turn into a dried-out husk. Death did not take me.

But, then again, could one really die if they were already dead?

Still, I felt like someone had taken a spoon to my insides and hollowed me out. As if everything that was me had been removed, leaving nothing by my body floating in this space. Even my wolf was gone. Stripped from me. Without it, I wasn’t even a whole being. I was so weak that I was not even worth being called human.

Suddenly the space around me pressed inward. Almost as though it was interested in what was going on and was trying to get a good look.

I felt as though I was going to be squished by my watchers as they continued to push in. Then, without warning, something inside of me popped.

It was as though there had been a soap bubble of a sort and it had finally given up.

With it gone, the encroaching void found itself free to charge in. To fill in the space that had been opened up inside of me.

At the same moment, silvery streams of light exploded out of the orb. They wrapped around me dozens of times before starting to constrict. The more they constricted, the more of whatever was in this place pushed.

I found myself between two impossible forces. One trying to explode outward. To scatter me across the area while the other wanted to turn me into a dot.

Soon enough, the pressure grew to be too much for me to handle. I roared in pain as the pressure continued to grow.

Then, as if it had all been a dream, the pain vanished. Even the aches and pains from my death vanished. On top of that, my other half was back and he felt stronger than ever.

It was then that I realized that I was no longer holding the orb. In its place was a pair of charms.

The first one to catch my eye was that of a fox with its tails wrapped around a realistic heart of all things. But it wasn’t eating it. If anything, it looked as though the fox was protecting it. From what, I had no clue.

Given the two tails on the fox, whoever had created it was probably going for a kitsune. But that was an assumption as I had yet to see one in their fox form.

Though, what caught my attention about the creature wasn’t the blue tinged fur or the way the tails seemed to waver in an unseen wind. It was the eyes. They reminded me of Kyren. Especially as they watched me. Studied me. Judged me.

I almost expected the little creature to attack me as my hate had. But it didn’t. It just sat there, watching.

My eyes wandered over to the second charm. It was of a wolf, but not one I had ever seen before. The dark fur sparkled and shimmered even in this place and its odd light that wasn’t really light.

Looking at its fur was like looking up at the sky on a moonless night.

Unlike the other charm, the eyes of this one was focused on the kitsune. They looked sad, eager, terrified, and conflicted even as it held a heart in its mouth. Almost as though it were offering the thing for it to take.

Something about the way the magic radiated off the two charms felt off and after pulling up the information, I realized why.

They were a set item of sorts. Even, and when, they were separated, they would always be together. A fact that helped given that one of the effects allowed the holder to locate the other charm at any time.

Of course, that wasn’t the piece of information that kept my attention. It was the fact that the two objects were already bound to their users and could never be lost. Users that didn’t just include me.

The Soul Wolf was bound to me. However, Wolf’s Heart was bound to Kyren. All I had to do was get her to accept the object one time and it would stay with her no matter what.