Chapter 4: Sacrifice – Chapter 4: All the Wrong Choices

The party – presumably all Human – just stared at her. It could be that her voice, still sounding odd and carrying a vague feeling of power, had caught their attention. Or it might be the utterly destroyed wall and door that she had created during her previous escape. Then again, it might simply be because she was naked, because she had wings, or because she was not the same race as they were.

The numerous reasons for their silence congregated in her mind, but Aperio found that she did not care. Destroying the crystal – clearly property of the Empire – had certainly been the best thing for soothing nerves. Ever since that moment, she had felt oddly calm.

She did not know the reason why the party before her had slain the giant two-headed dog, but nonetheless it made the group seem friendlier. Killing anything that served the Empire was a big plus in her book. Even if the ones doing it were Human.

The blue-robed man was the first to regain his bearings, gesturing to his sitting colleague and asking something in their strange language. Some of the words they used vaguely reminded her of the Common she knew, but that might be mere coincidence. It certainly hadn't helped with communication thus far. At least they weren’t attacking. Yet. That was a lot better than her usual interactions with armed Humans. Either you got a beating for speaking out of line or they used that abominable collar to shut you up.

Her attention was drawn back to the present by a small book the injured Human pulled from the insides of his robe. He hastily flicked through the pages looking for something. Maybe he is a mage? She had seen some mages keep a book with more complex runes and rituals with them, and the man slumped against the wall certainly fit the image of a mage. 

Not a high-ranking one, if the sparse nature of his attire was anything to go on. Either that or these people had vastly different standards, but that was doubtful. Even the guests from other nations that she had been forced to serve had followed the same style of dress.

The better you were at what you did the higher your rank, and the higher your rank the more extravagant your clothing became. It was a custom Aperio never quite understood. Why would you need to use gold and fancy patterns around your enchantments? Then again, Aperio had only ever worn discarded rags or very simple dresses. The plainest of clothing, without even the faintest remnants of magic or gold trimming. Perhaps the difference would reveal itself if she were ever to wear such an outfit. Something she would have to try, now that she was free to choose.

It only took a few moments before the man ripped a page out of his book and handed it to the other robe-wearing man, who held it tightly in his fist. A moment later a faint green light came from his closed hand, and when he opened it again he held a shiny silver necklace. 

Aperio took a few steps back, eyeing the man and his potentially evil accessory warily. She really didn't like metal things that went on the neck. Said man laughed when he noticed her slow retreat but stopped after the leather-clad woman said something to him that he did not like, if his expression was anything to go by. 

Not understanding what they were saying was vexing, but there was not much she could do about it. She didn’t know a spell that could translate, she didn’t know if such a thing even existed in the first place. 

Why don’t they speak Common though? Everyone in the Empire does. She paused for a moment, cocking her head to the other side again. I’m not in the Empire then? There wasn't much Aperio could do to test her theory, especially when only Humans were present. She could, however, attempt to speak in the only other language she knew – even if it was unlikely they would understand. Should they fail, all they would know is that she spoke two languages they didn’t know.

Repeating her previous statement in her people’s tongue yielded the same results; confused looks and some hushed whispers spoken in that infuriatingly incomprehensible language. At a loss for other options she tried one last thing. Another brief muttering of the [Reality Check] incantation, accompanied by the customary wave of the hand, resulted in four green glows and a look of surprise from the injured man.

The others didn’t seem to like what she had done as the armour-clad giant took a few heavy steps forward and somehow managed to glare at her even though its face was covered by a helmet. She wasn’t sure if the thing was even alive; it could be a magical construct. The Empire had always tried to make them but had never managed to actually do it, at least as far as she knew. 

This could have been the first one they had made, and if so, it seemed that it had promptly decided to start a rebellion. That would be funny. With a mental chuckle, she discarded the thought. It was increasingly unlikely that she was still inside the borders of her most hated country. 

While she was contemplating things, the two men had fallen into a discussion of sorts. She couldn’t tell what they were talking about but she was very sure it involved her as they pointed in her direction multiple times. The injured one didn’t seem to like what the other was saying as his face shifted between pain and annoyance. 

While the two men seemed to have forgotten their previous semblance of caution, the same couldn’t be said about the armoured giant and the leather-wearing woman. They both looked ready to spring into action at a moment's notice, and the woman seemed especially wary. She was currently inspecting her daggers. One by one she removed them from their sheaths, checked their sharpness, and inspected the engraved runes before putting them back into place. It reminded the Elf of the idle nonchalance the royal guards displayed. The more relaxed and uncaring they looked the closer they were actually paying attention to something, which was usually her.

Aperio observed with interest; she had seen such weapons before. Most of them had just been enchanted to be a bit sharper and more durable, but these ones looked to be more complex. While she couldn’t be quite sure, she thought she saw the runes for wind and lightning on the blades. It was times like these that she was especially thankful the guard who put her on library duty tended to forget to forbid her from reading and learning.

An angry shout focused everyone's attention on the squabbling men. By the looks of it, the discussion had come to an end. A rather violent one. Why the man in blue decided to set fire to the hem of the grey ones robes was not something she understood, but better that guy than her. At least it solidified the thought that they were mages. Just like those fools and their teachers.

The fire was put out in short order and the man in his now blackened robes glared at his assailant. The woman had her daggers out and looked ready to attack but was stopped by a rumble coming from the armour. She said something that did not give the impression of happiness and forgiveness; it sounded rather contemptful and mocking. Aperio didn't need to understand the words being used in order to know that, despite being displeased, the one who carried daggers was not going to start a fight with her teammate. After all, the ex-slave had responded in a similar manner every time she had gotten an order. 

Though, technically it wasn’t talking; she just thought about saying mean things about her captors. Maybe she is a slave? It wouldn’t be too far-fetched for it to be true. Slavery was a widespread practice and people didn’t shy away from enslaving their own. 

Another few words from the mage caused the woman to take out a scroll from her satchel and activate it. A moment later the air surrounding the woman grew hazy, reducing her to just a vague outline. Aperio tilted her head to the side as she followed the shadowy outline of a person move in a wide arc, trying to get behind her. While it wasn’t clear what the group was trying to achieve, she had observed them always keeping their eyes on the beast and each other, so every time the shadow would leave her field of vision Aperio would take a few steps back and shift so she could still see the three remaining people and the sneaky member of their group.

This dance continued for a while before the shadow’s step faltered and she made her way back to the rest of the group. Once there the hazy aura surrounding her ceased to be and she said something to the slightly burned men, whose expression grew more fearful the longer the woman talked. Aperio took a quick glance behind herself but didn’t find anything that would warrant fear in the room. 

The inability to talk to, or at least understand, these people was starting to vex her, but try as she might, there was nothing she could do about it. So, in lieu of other options, she chose to do what she had done the entire time since meeting the group of Humans. She waited for them to do something.

Her patience, however, was not rewarded as the group continued to hide behind the armoured giant and talk about things in the language she did not understand. The calm she had gained after destroying the crystal and the mist it contained was starting to wane. This group of people was truly getting on her nerves now. They made no effort to try and talk or otherwise communicate with her. They just continued to yell foreign words when it was clear that she could not understand, set their own compatriots on fire or tried to sneak around to achieve Gods know what. 

Idiots. All of them.

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Deciding that waiting was getting her nowhere she started to walk towards the only other door she could see. After she had crossed half the room, the blue mage shouted something yet again. He was either too stupid or too arrogant to realise that Aperio was unable to understand what he was shouting and, seeing that she was going to ignore him, rushed to block her way. 

Finding her path freshly obstructed by the increasingly annoying mage who still held onto that shiny silver necklace, she stopped and glared at him. She didn’t like being near that thing, especially now that it was giving off an eerie glow. Having accomplished his goal he started talking, again. Letting out a sigh she gave the man a look of exasperation. It had been honed to convey her absolute displeasure by the hours she had spent being a plaything for spoiled brats. The man – unfazed by her annoyed expression – slowly approached, taking great care to not appear threatening.

Normal people would be calmed by the cautious approach; he obviously meant no harm. But Aperio was not a normal person and the shiny metal accessory he held in his hand was more than enough reason for her to be on guard. Once he was within arm's reach, he stopped and looked her over. Though his gaze lingered on certain areas more than others, they included the entire visible length of her wings. He was clearly curious, but respectful.

Done with his inspection he presented her with the necklace, obviously meaning for her to take it. She just shook her head, a gesture she hoped was still understood by these people, and took a step back. She did not want to touch anything that reminded her of her old life; she had gotten a second chance and she would be damned if she spent it as a slave as well.

Displeased that she did not accept his dubious offering, he slowly stepped forwards. Then, he started to lunge at her with his arms outstretched, necklace in hand. He was trying to force this thing onto her! His attempt was cut short by delicate fingers closing around his wrist like a vice. This insolence had to be punished. 

The man’s eyes trailed up the arm that held him in place until they met the Elf’s cold gaze. He paled and tried to free himself but only let out a pained yelp as Aperio’s free hand closed around his throat and he found himself hoisted up. Before the rest of his group had shaken off their surprise, the blue-robed mage was sent crashing head first into a wall as she threw him as hard as she could.

He struck the wall, his screaming cut suddenly short. Amidst the sound of breaking rock a very distinct wet crack echoed around the room, followed by the soft thud of limbs and cloth descending to the floor. What remained on the wall stayed there for a few brief heartbeats before sliding down, giving the broken stones a fresh paint of blood, brain, and innards.

Before she could contemplate the absurdity of her actions the other robed man of the group – whose shock was finally giving way to action – rushed to stand between her and the remains of the one that had dared to try to force his will on her, one hand still pressed on his injured stomach.

“Move aside,” she growled, not caring that he wouldn't understand. “I have no quarrel with you.”

The mage barring her way did not respond. Instead he lifted his free hand and produced a ball of fire, which he promptly threw at Aperio. To her eyes the flames flying her way seemed to be moving awfully slow; slower than she remembered these kinds of spells to move. Taking a step to the side she watched as the ball of fire sailed past her, barely missing the leather-clad woman, and splashed against the floor.

Not wasting any more time she kicked off the ground towards the offending mage, earning her a satisfying crack as the stone floor broke under the force of her step. A fraction of a moment later she was in front of the man and threw a punch. A sickening crunch resounded through the room as her fist tore its way straight through his chest. Gore in shades of pink and brown viscera painted the floor behind him, with chips of shattered bone like sprinkles in the muck.

The room was silent, save for the wet splat of the corpse as it slid off of Aperio’s lowered arm and dropped onto the floor. Her eyes wandered between her blood-stained arm and the corpse on the ground, not quite believing what she was seeing. How did I do that?! In the past she had trouble carrying a few bigger tomes at once; throwing someone across the room, or straight up punching through someone, was not something she should be able to do.

The only people she knew of that could do these things were the royal knights, and they trained for their entire lives to accomplish these feats. She had merely died in some overly complex ritual. It might have been intended to ascend the Emperor to Godhood but something had clearly gone wrong and, while she felt better then she ever had – even after getting blood and innards all over her arm – she doubted she was a God or anything else related to the divines.

Gods were supposed to be beings of absolute power; able to do as they pleased, able to force people low with their mere presence

Given her experiences over the past few minutes, she was clearly none of that. Gods had also not answered any prayers for over a thousand years. Unless something had seriously changed in the world, the Gods were gone and this was fact.

The plausibility of her own divinity had to be postponed as the telltale clanking of armour announced the approach of her next possible adversary. Turning to get a better view of the walking hunk of metal she caught sight of the sneaky woman. She stood next to the discarded book of her now dead ally, daggers in hand and a look of absolute hatred on her face.

Ignoring the slow charge of the giant – it would be a moment or two until it arrived –  Aperio looked at her a bit longer. She could understand her feelings; she had just lost someone dear to her in a very one-sided slaughter. But there would be no apologies, no begging for forgiveness. Someone tried to take her freedom and that was something she would not allow. Never again. 

The hunk of metal recaptured her attention once it was close enough to fight and was preparing to swing its sword. For a brief moment she considered trying to stop the blade with her hands but decided against it. Even if she somehow felt that she could, it just wasn’t worth the risk. 

Instead she unfurled her wings, taking flight briefly to gain some distance. Her opponent stopped to look at her before saying something to the angry woman who quickly produced a very ornate looking scroll from her satchel. 

It had a plethora of gold and silver markings and no obvious runes that would hint at its function; Aperio hadn’t seen one like this before. Before she had time to think about her next course of action the room was bathed in a bright, golden light. As soon as the light touched her a tingling sensation spread throughout her body. She feared it would end in pain like unknown magic usually did, but the pleasant tingle stayed until the last bits of golden light had faded.

Though the light surrounding her had faded, a certain element of the glow had not. Glancing down, Aperio saw that her skin itself seemed to be emitting the golden glow. She quickly dismissed that notion. Skin didn't glow; the light she currently held on the surface of her body was likely a side effect of whatever spell they had used. She felt a faint wistfulness for the spells the Imperial doctors had used. Though they had admittedly been harsh to administer, they were effective, and at least one of them would let her know if anything had changed about her that she couldn't perceive.

Looking back at her potential enemies she saw that the woman had collapsed, having exhausted all her mana to activate the scroll. The armoured giant was already making its way back to its fallen comrade. Every few steps it would look back to see if the Elf was doing something, but she just waited. If the giant wanted to go away and not fight that was fine with her. Even if she could throw a man around like a doll or beat one to death, she still doubted that she could just punch through that armour.

As the giant reached its fallen teammate, it removed a fist-sized crystal from a hidden pocket. Picking up the unconscious woman, it started to chant an incantation. As the seconds ticked by, the voice of the giant didn't cease. Clearly, it was a more long-winded incantation, and the giant was gambling on Aperio not taking action until it was over. His hopes held true as the Elf was patient, and did not move to interrupt.

As the chant wound to a close and the duo before her disappeared, Aperio stood rooted in place; not in shock, but in surprise. She had finally heard a word she was sure she knew.

Vigil. The [Righteous One]. The [God of Light].

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