Chapter 24: Chapter 24: The Pasts Mentor

The muffled sound of raindrop woke Nolan up. He was leaned on the wall hugging his knees. He was looking at the bed where Ciara was sleeping soundly as if she never really bothered that Nolan was there. It was awkward first when it all started but she has grown to sleep near Nolan.

"She's asleep," he thought. He smoothed his pants and dusted his cloak. He walked to the door and went down below where he looked at the notice board. There were twenty posters calling for help in reward for Talons. Nolan turned to his pouches and recalled that he was out of money.

He thought, "I've been using most of the money I got from Diego to take care of myself. The world's infested with demons, monsters, and beings of the dark that needs special attention to kill. Keeping wealth is quite hard when I have to gulp down potions after a battled." He stuck his tongue out in disgust. A waitress sidled towards him, her arms folded.

"Quite a lot of demons," said she. "Taking one?"

"I am thinking about it." He looked at her. His body squared and his eyes locking with hers. He loomed the woman and his countenance made the woman tug her hair. "Can you tell me anything?"

"Ah yes," she said. "There's mire around the settlements called toddler's mire. The place is infested with those aborted toddlers crawling around with worm-like mouths. Do you know them?"

Nolan listened with his chin propped. He mirrored the waitress's movement that she didn't even know that she was slowly getting comfortable in talking to Nolan. "I do. You sound like you know your stuff."

She shuffled her feet. "I've been living here ever since this settlement got built. So let me advise you that if you want real reward then go to the Toddler's mire. If you want a safe, yet poor paying job then go for Da's Mill."

He nodded. "What goes in Da's Mill?"

"Interlopers hoping to steal from the mill," she said.

"What they are stealing there, I mean."

"Grain, usually, Da's Mill's near the river and these bucktooth creatures usually take the grain of the mill. Da, the owner, wants to kill them but he offers too little. Not to mention that no one really wants to take care of his problem when there are higher demons going around destroying settlements." She shook her head.

"I see. Where's this mill?" he asked.

She eyed him funny. "You are taking his request?"

"If it earns me money, I will. I'll be looking to clear this toddler's mire too. Does the Inn sell, salt, and flour?" he said.

"Salt and flour?" she said with a raised brow. "Why would you want that?"

Nolan paused before speaking. "I need the flour to blind the aborted toddler, and salt to hurt their skin. If you ever find yourself facing these monsters then throw them at them."

"Is that really it?" she leaned back.

He bobbed his head. "They might look like they enjoy the mud but those abominations are sensitive to the salt. Their bodies can be easily wounded by salt. If I would describe it then it is like putting salt on a snail."

"Are you used to killing these creatures?" she eyed him.

"I am used to killing them."

"Oh," her mouth rounded. "That's good to hear."

...

In a damp flies-ridden place, Nolan walked with his sword drawn. His sword was coated in salt and the phantasmal oil made a strange light. He slogs through the mud and made wet sloppy sounds as he does. There were the aborted toddlers crawling on the mud, their eyes fleshy and swelling red. Their skin was festered with wounds and they look pathetic.

"May whatever God your parents worship redeem your souls," said Nolan.

He knew that these aborted toddlers were reanimated corpses of dead children. When he saw these monsters he was not able to kill them. But, he now knows that not killing these aborted toddlers and letting them carry on with their sinful lives was a much crueler fate.

He whirled his blade while holding the hilt of his sword. The blade that was made of fine materials cut deep into the flesh of the toddlers. Their bodies cut in halves as they crawled their way towards Nolan. Nolan focused his eyes, it turned into the sigil of the dove of thorns and the snake of woes.

The area around Nolan stirred. He didn't know why but he felt as if he was freed from his shackles. The curse on his eyes made him relieve the battlefields of the past. He swoops along the mud field and danced with his sword. He was rather stiff carrying Ciara around and getting his mobility back made Nolan feel better.

Nolan was slaughtering the reanimated toddlers to their deaths. A purple robed woman with a witch-hat slogs marches through the swamp with an eager anticipation. She was carrying a holy relic and as she was about to activate it. She spotted Nolan cleaving the aborted toddlers like butter.

She dropped her holy relic, mouth opened wide. She brought forth her staff and tapped it on the ground. A crimson wave of energy passes through the mud and concentrated to where Nolan was. Nolan, who was slaughtering the toddlers, felt the attack.

He tumbled and swirled and dodged the wave of red. The woman who fired it looked surprised. She clenched her fingers around her staff and tried to cast another. Nolan who was still relieving the memories of the past rushed towards the source of the attack.

The purple robed woman twirled her staff and erected a barrier. Nolan spun, he made use of his body weight to hit the barrier. The barrier reflected the attack easily. The purple woman, with an expression of tranquility, pointed her hand towards Nolan.

"ABRA!" she casts a spell.

Nolan threw a flask of phantasmal oil at the spell. The spell got neutralized for three-seconds. Nolan made use of that time to swoop towards the barrier of the purple-robed woman and thrusts. The woman took four steps back to avoid the blade. It was then that Nolan's eyes lost its shimmers and the sigil of the dove of thorns and the snake of woes disappeared from his pupils.

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...

The purple-clad woman raised her chin, her staff pointed at Nolan. "Heartless man, you kill these poor lost souls so easily!" she shouted.

Nolan kept his sword at hand. His eyes slowly went dim as he recognizes the outfit of the woman. Purple robes, a witch hat, a staff, and a sympathy for the lost souls. He knew her, and it breaks his heart seeing the one and only mentor of the Bleak, the purple thunder, the witch of the Nether, and the Purple Rose of the River of Nix.

"Audrey Cress," said Nolan.

She raised her brows. "You know of me?" she folded her arms.

"Disciple of the Nether, River of Nix's Witch," Nolan lowered the Sword of Zachariah. "I am Nolan," the sigil's appeared in his pupils. "A Bleak Walker, if I offended you then I am deeply sorry."

She harrumphs, "You killed the aborted toddler," she grimaced. "I could've sent them away from this mire peacefully." She scanned the area. "Yet look at what you've done. They are mostly dead. I have heard that men of the Heir of the Old Revenants are stoic men. But to witness such slaughter, while you dance and whirl that sword of yours...is quite unpleasant."

"I was looking for money, and you know how we, the bleak walkers, do our thing to survive," he told her.

"Yes. And now that I am not trying to zap your soul, I can see that you've walked far. How far exactly?" she asked.

"The Satin Path, Stasis River, and the Old Pale Pass," he mouthed. "I've walked in the barren lands."

"And you came back alive," she nodded. "Hmm, if we have continued fighting right now, how would I fare?"

"I would have found a way to slit your throat." He said blandly. "I am rather proficient in killing monsters."

"And you qualify me as a monster?"

"Yes. I do not dare to hesitate in fighting against Witch of the Nether," he fronted her. "You would have thundered me with a far stronger spell. Not to mention that the holy relic you have right there could blind my eyes temporarily if you want to."

She folded her arms. Her staff placed between her elbows. Her dark purple hair that reaches up her waist was swaying. "You say that but I can feel that you have tricks up your sleeves that can deal with me. Hmm, your inner core is strong, the soul that you have is no ordinary, and it smells no lies and shows that you have indeed travel far." She eyed him, her nose an inch away from his. "Hmm, you would have been a perfect man if you weren't so tasteless in killing such poor souls."

Those words triggered the sigils in Nolan's eyes. They light up in a dark eerie color, the vision of the old future flashed upon Nolan's eyes. The death of his comrades, the battle near the Overlord's territory, the back of Audrey Cress supporting her, and her myriad of spells that have saved many of his comrades.

The world turned dark for Nolan. He felt like he was stuck in a dark world along with Audrey Cress. Below their feet was a ripple that spread on every direction. Nolan's eyes glowed softly as the sigils in his pupils made him relive all the painful memories.

The world of black then showed images of Nolan listening to Audrey, as she demonstrates the power of the runes. The images rippled, the images turned into a group of bleak walkers, and Nolan protecting Audrey from an army of Ghouls. The images continued to ripple as if the sigils were showing everything that he had experienced with her.

Audrey could only see the sigil's mesmerizing her. She could feel the pain that was being emitted from Nolan's eyes. Suffering, despair, hopelessness, anguish, sorrows, and the desperation was felt by her. She took two steps back, the mud making a sloppy sound, she straightened her posture.

"You poor man," she said. "I've heard that the Heir of the Old Revenant is cursed with the sigils of woes to remind them of what they have done and experienced. To continuously reflect until the end of their days, to constantly remind themselves how good it was to be still alive. It is a constant and perpetual negative visualization for them to appreciate their life. But for us, this is a curse."

The images vanished, what was left was the mire. Nolan's head jolted, he squared his body and lowered his head. "Forgive me you must have felt the effects of the sigils."

"No worries," she said. "I've witnessed something interesting. I've seen walkers with two symbols in their eyes but, I haven't experienced such painful emotion being emitted. Are you used to this curse?"

"I do not see it as a curse," he said.

"I see. She grabbed hold of her chin. "I must say that even if you are a tasteless man for doing such horrible deed. I can understand why you would do so. I can respect you for being able to endure such perpetual reminder. Yet, I cannot forgive your tasteless acts of slaughtering these lost souls."

"We have different ways I know that, even so, that is the mercy I can give these children. To live a life in such a sinful manner, being forced to become an atrocious monster."

"You can send them off with a holy relic," she added. "They are hard to get but they are the desirable way. My reasoning tells me that your methods are correct, but my values say that it is wrong. Do not blame for being aggressive, though I must admit that you were as well. Were you relieving a memory with your eyes?"

"Yes." He sheathed the Sword of Zachariah. "I was experiencing the memories of my past. There are times that I go into a trance like this. Forgive me I would have killed you if I didn't wake up."

"You, killing me?" she said.

"Yes." He coldly stated. "When I am lost in a trance I function with deadly efficiency. I have little control."

"You are confident about your own skills," her brows arched. "Your eyes say the truth. I can guess that you have your ways to kill me. What is your name?"

Nolan bit his lower lip. He hesitated. "Nolan Salvatore, a Bleak Walker."

"I see." She nodded. "I am Audrey Cress. You can go now, Nolan Salvatore. You should leave this place for me." She reached for her pockets and retrieved a pouch of coins. "Leave and try not to do such tasteless things if we ever meet again."

Nolan pocketed the pouch of coins. He spun. He looked over his shoulder before clenching his fist. He had already decided not to meddle with those who he knew from the past. It was aching his heart but he didn't want to tamper on things that might change the timeline.

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