The Cursed Souls of Liriethem - Forgotten Lore of Liriethem Volume 1

The secret of the statue king

Liriam's feet steered her way from then onward, leading her to wander without direction across different parts of the kingdom for almost three years. In all that time, she barely spoke with anybody and, to avoid having to do so, she moved frequently, forcing herself to simply forget everything. She had some casual encounters, but they were strange and forgettable. She walked almost all day and slept the rest of the time. She led an austere life, always sleeping outdoors, eating frugally, not caring too much about what was happening around her.

After being so long in this self-inflicted exile, her body took her once again to the mountain chain of Liath, only this time much further south of Liamsa. The roads in these mountains were very difficult and Liriam was barely looking where she was stepping, hindered in the mental lethargy in which she was. When walking around one day, she tripped over some cracks on the ground that were hidden among some rocks and fell into a hole. Her face showed no emotion, neither when tripping nor when falling. After a fall of several meters she felt cold water around her: She had fallen into a lake. It was not the same lake where Liriam had extinguished her internal fire, since this one had clear water and had no islands, but the water felt just as fresh.

The contact with the water woke her up a little. She swam to the shore of the lake, more by instinct than by will, and when ashore, she saw that there were large stones on the ground. "A cemetery". It had no resemblance to Liamsa's greatness, only some formless rocks to mark that bodies were underground.

- They had to make sure of your skill, that you were prepared to protect them... the spirits had to make sure of it -

The voice that came behind her was unmistakable: her father. She turned around and there he was: the soul of Oril III. She wanted to tell him so much, but words didn't come easy to her. She spoke slowly and with difficulty: it was difficult to articulate a full sentence after spending such a long time wandering and avoiding contact with other people.

- Father!... What... are you doing... here? To see you... again... again, it makes me... happy... but... what did they have to... check.... the spirits?

- You offered your life...

- Father... I've killed... so many... people! I felt... dark hearts... everywhere... and I only did what... the spirits... asked me to do, I followed those new instincts... but... I stopped being... myself, to transform... into someone I am not... - Liriam exclaimed, remembering everything that happened in the Heart of the Hydra, and began to cry. Three years had not been able to help her forget the pain.

- Death is arbitrary, but it is also fair. Everybody dies; it is a law to which no one can escape. Men always think that they will live forever, but they lie to themselves. Our time is limited and we cannot control it. Something you should have known and have now learned with this hard experience is that no single soul is completely pure.

- Men with families, women who... were probably mothers, sisters... - Liriam continued sobbing.

- As I said, death is fair. But the consequences are beyond our power. Your sister rules Liriethem now, after you left the Heart of the Hydra, and the court is faithful to her... and, thanks to you, there is no one with a corrupt heart. She will be a queen like there never was in the history of Liriethem.

- But it was she who... killed you, father!

- I will not deny that I did not expect that from Larem, my... secret daughter. - There was some discomfort in Oril's voice when talking about this topic - I welcomed her and made her part of my life; and how many problems it brought me! You know the whole story now; I have nothing to hide from you. But you see, I didn't have a pure heart either: I committed my faults... but I tried my best to do good, and now I find myself where you see me.