Magic chronicles 2: Rise of the empire

Chapter 4: The Reaper

     Urzael has arrived back into Froznia, and starts moving towards the Glacier's Vault, a large fortress made by the empire to house soldiers who are active in the north, and also to watch the mountains for any danger. He remarks about how they didn't see the danger coming when it mattered, as he made it to the stairway to the entrance. as he walked up, he was seeing more and more dark liquid.

     "Well, it's definitely from the void, whatever attacked this place, if the gel says anything." Urzael says to himself, and starts venturing through the icy fortress, there was almost no light, he ended up using some light magic to see. Void gel everywhere, that, and bodies. Almost unrecognizable from how cracked their form is, some shattered entirely by the void. Urzael detects no souls within them.

     He made it to the main hall, and he found three soldiers still alive, they wouldn't stop talking about 'the reaper' that killed the rest. They decided to follow Urzael through the rest of the fortress, the storehouse was completely empty, except for a bit of void gel on the wall. As they're on their way out, one of the soldiers disappears. The three that remain are on high alert. When they made it out of the vault, they started south, following a trail of void gel. Another has vanished.

     The two that remain follow the path through the forest, the last guard let out a gasp, when Urzael turned around, the last soldier was gone. Officially no survivors of Glacier's Vault. He thinks, then, he starts seeing more bodies, piling up almost making an entire hill. next to it, sat him. The void creature. Urzael notices a human form beneath it. 

     The creature stood up the ground around him turned dark, spikes and tendrils started rising from it, all of which points directly at Urzael. 

     "You sure don't like taking prisoners, huh? Unfortunately for you, I aren't like the soldiers you've taken out." Urzael says, it growls and hisses. It lunges towards Urzael, the tendrils following. He sidesteps the attack and puts some soul magic into his fist, the creature turned around and lunged at him again. This time, Urzael used that soul magic and punched it square in the chest, the man's soul left the body, then Urzael blasted the void that was coating it with even more soul magic. the void gel, now a lifeless blob on the ground, is separated from the body of the man. Pink hair, large scar on his chest. Urzael realizes after a few seconds of inspection he pulls his soul back in. The man now stands there, looking into Urzael.

     "Thank you... These things I've done, I cannot hope to repent for over the years, but you did save me, surely you must want something in return?" He says, sitting down against a tree, Urzael sits against another tree that's close. He thinks of a deal he could work out.

     "Well, I so happen to be a mage lord of the empire, a rather high seat as well, I think I can work a pardon out for your crimes. I do hope you can work under me, and someday as an equal. My power grows with more souls under my possession, I ask that you hunt souls of criminals, in part like what one would call bounty hunting. But in addition to their life for reward, bring most the souls you hunt to me, you also use that power to grow in strength, by one-time absorption. However I give them a second chance at life, by living as a fragment of me. Also my top request is your name, I don't want to be calling you reaper for the rest of our camaraderie." Urzael explains his thoughts. The man looks up in surprise at himself forgetting to tell Urzael his name.

     "Right, I'm Kellan Belsarion, you've met my brother once or twice before, Kian, and your job offer wasn't much different for what I was forced to do for the void king. So I accept your request, this should be at least a bit of fun, I get to stay active and get legitimately rewarded for it, also I didn't catch your name." Kellan replies, they get up, and start walking towards Xalengard.

     "Name's Urzael, Urzael Iroha. Then again you may of heard of me by one of my several names, the most common being 'The Gatekeeper'." He tells Kellan, he does recognize that name, as they're walking back, they see the man with the blue cloak sitting in a tree, looking down at them, Kellan looks back up.

     "Kian, my brother. I've done quite harm to the world, but now it's really me. Urzael here was my savior, if you will. Also, I guess I'm part of the empire that's been growing from here on." He tells Kian, he jumps down.

      "I see, I shall come with you. Urzael, is it? I've seen you around before the planet almost broke, and it still is, in a sense, hard to navigate a world that we once knew, but no longer." He says, Urzael tells him about the job he gave Kellan, and extended an invite to him as well, also noting aloud that he does remember Kian. To which he accepts, the three start on their journey back to their new home. When they reach the north gate, a guard asked if they were prisoners.

     "No, they aren't prisoners, in fact, they wish to join the empire, after I extended a job offering for a more immediate reward of pardoning Kellan of the things he unwillingly did." Urzael explains, the guard looks at him in a way that betrays his confusion, regardless, the gate opens, and they're in the the mage city. Kellan and Kian, the reaper and the wolf pack, have found home.