Storyverse

Chapter 13: Depari

–...and then, out of nowhere, he pulls out a comically large spoon, – said Sol.

–So?... – Ludwig asked again, while Martha was laughing.

–The joke is that, because the spoon is comically large, he still will be able to eat all the ice cream, despite he will still eat "only a spoonful", as he promised, – Sol explained, speaking in completely serious tone.

–Yeah... Gen Z humor is a mystery to me...

As soon as Ludwig said this, the carriage stopped. There was some noise outside. Seems like two soldiers who were riding next to the horses pulling the carriage were trying to hit something. Without waiting for the problem to be resolved by the kingdom's loyal subjects, Sol opened the door and got out of the carriage. Everyone else followed him, deciding that it was better to immediately understand the situation. It turned out that the carriage's path was blocked by huge pillars consisting of a red, slightly pulsating material covered with veins. It was flesh. At the ends, about 70 meters above the ground, these pillars became sharp... and every single one had a human corpse impaled on them, almost at the very top of the pillars.

The columns stood close to each other, going quite far to the right and left. The soldiers, taken aback, tried to cut it with their swords, but the blades bounced off as if from a stone, leaving no trace on these pillars. The four heroes came closer... or rather, three. Marren, as soon as he saw these huge columns, froze in place and began to tremble slightly. Ludwig, looking at Sol, said, with a voice full of sarcasm:

–Well, shine, our master of deduction.

Sol looked at the pillars, and then, thanks to his eyes, he was immediately able to determine the following:

–These things are 100% made from the flesh of different living beings. There are no bones. There is no blood. They have been here for a long time. I have no idea who created this and how...

–I have a pretty good idea... – Marren suddenly said, taking a step forward. – I know those who could do this...

The other three turned to look at him. Ludwig was about to ask, "Who is this"... but first decided not to torment the armored guards. "Leave it, we will clear the way ourselves!" he said to the soldiers, who nodded and returned to their horses.

–So... who created this, in your opinion? – Sol asked.

–The cult of the flesh, or, as they call themselves, Depari... these are fanatics who once turned me into what... into what I am now, – Marren answered in a trembling voice, lowering his head.

–Errm... I may be blind, but... what are you? – asked Ludwig.

–I... I am no longer a human, but an ugly monster, unworthy of life...

–Cool, we have 2 dead insides in our team, – said Ludwig. – Well, if you've already started it, then tell us your oh-so-tragic backstory. From the very beginning, please.

–Okay... it all started... when I was born...

–No that level of "from the very beginning"!

~*~

The Byanerions were a family of noble origins from the kingdom of Arai, who, however, had been losing their fortunes dramatically over the past few generations, forcing them to sell off their fiefs one by one. On the verge of ruin, Marren's father decided to start a dangerous adventure hunting the legendary monsters in order to earn money, however, he died on this hunt. He did not die from from the beasts of legends, which probably do not exist, but from highway bandits. In order to have enough money for a house and food, his widow sold her 13-year-old child, as she thought, into slavery. Although, it didn't really matter to her – whoever those strange people in meat masks were, they paid well.