A Bored Lich

Chapter 82 - Aftermath

There was not much left for them at the base. Doevm, Frey, and Wade had nothing valuable left at the base besides the things they carried on their backs. They didn't say goodbye to the men, nor did they know if their men were still alive. They just left.

The hot, humid forest which they had spent a year in, fighting for their lives, had a pillar of smoke hovering over it. The high trees were now the size of a thumb as they walked back to the Virility household. The path was a line of dry dirt through a grassy field, formed from travelers' constant walk of it. Sometimes the three would pass by someone, their worn and bloody cloths earning sour looks. Wade's spear became his walking stick.

Doevm walked behind the other two with his book in front of his nose. 'I don't remember reading this,' he thought. 'At the same time, I do. The two sides of myself fused together, earning me two sets of memories. The Lich wasn't able to read this book, yet my human self was.' He took out his necklace, which had faded from its see-through state to Ploly. It crumbled in his hands.

'This material is also what the pillars in Maximus Draken's legacy ground were made of. The Ploly does have a significant property, but this book,' he held the black book out in the open, as he doubted Frey or Wade would care about it. 'This book tells me nothing about Ploly, or how to turn it into this glass-like material, or even what the see-through material can do. All I know is it temporarily strengthened my soul.'

He flipped through the entirety of the book again only to confirm. He looked to the dark sky and sighed. 'If it wasn't so sad, I would have laughed. I got bored and reincarnated to fight. Now that I'm here, there are so many interesting things happening. I didn't even get the chance to practice soul magic yet. I've only learned how to heal my soul and how to resist a soul attack.' He looked to Frey, who was hunched over. It was like a mini storm hovered over him, threatening to send down lightning at any second. 'I could work with him, but maybe later.'

He put the book back in his spatial ring then stared at his shaking hands. 'They won't stop, even when I try to relax. I should be fine by now. I cried, didn't I? What do humans do to stop this pain?' He looked to Wade and Frey. 'Wade seems like he might know. He was able to keep calm when I wasn't. These emotions, I know I asked for them, however they're becoming troublesome. I need to learn to manage them.'

The three walked until it was night-time. The moonlight was blocked by the clouds of smoke, having yet to disperse. They found a good campsite in a small patch of trees next to a creek. Wade set up the fire, Frey, the tents, and Doevm, the food. When it was all set, they sat around it, staring into the flames. It popped and cracked, dancing in front of them. It cooked their food and warmed them but the group glared at it.

Doevm held his rations over it. Staring into it, he couldn't help but think of how the flames were like the ones that Hopi's eyes had when he pointed to Frey. A bloody hand, the Elf had thrown away his life with just that. 'Why did you do it, Hopi?' Doevm thought. 'Why did you sacrifice your life for someone else? What is this human action, which I can't understand? After death, everything is over, at least that is what you think, yet you still gave it up. Was it because you would have regretted not saving Frey? Was it because you were close? Why couldn't I make the choice on who should have lived while Wade was able to? Was he wrong? Was I right?' His hands wrapped around his hair, getting another headache. He finished his meal and walked away from the camp.

'I am both a Lich and a human. What does that mean?' Doevm moved to the creek and stared at his reflection in the water. 'I was never really human, even with my years of exposure to them. I always shut myself away in the library, reading books. Even when I went on missions with the squad, I only really talked to Hopi and Frey, and that was just a few words. During the war, the longest conversations I had were my field reports. I've watched interacted with humans for centuries, yet I still don't understand them. Why does it feel that, with my soul fusing, I've lost something? No, that's not right. It's like I never had it, and I've only now realized.' He sunk his hands in the frigid water, wincing a little. He rubbed the dirt off himself then looked again at his reflection. 'I don't know this face.'

"Doevm," Wade called from over at the fire. "It's getting late. I'll be the first on watch. Get some sleep." He finished his meal and started his patrol of the surroundings.

Doevm stood up and walked to his tent: "Yeah, you're right." He walked inside his tent and lay down on the dry grass. 'Maybe I should just sleep and clear my head.' He closed his eyes.

…

"Are you going to sleep too?" Wade asked Frey, who was still staring into the fire. The giant turned his food, uncaring that it was already a ball of charred meat. "Frey?" Wade took a step closer.

"I'm not going to sleep," Frey said as he turned his food over. "Please just leave me be."

"I see," Wade said. He waited for a few minutes, but seeing him remain as a rock, he soon left to keep watch of the surroundings.

'I'm so weak,' Frey thought as he replayed the battle in his head. He knew his mistake the second he left formation to get the Bloodwood spear. 'We are supposed to be one. Why did I lose sight of that?' As he stared at the fire, he got a growing hunger. He threw away his charred ration and put his head in his hands.

'We're supposed to have each other's backs. Why did I break formation? Why did Hopi give his life for mine? What am I supposed to do now; go back to the mansion and hug my sister, telling her I fought valiantly?' He pulled his dented armor out of his spatial ring. It was still covered in dirt and his own blood. He threw it into the creek, cursing at himself. 'Hopi stayed the group. He deserved to live. How can I look Gwen in the eyes and say I will protect her?' He thought and thought as the fire burned away the last of its wood.

…

Doevm felt hands shaking him awake. He opened his eyes and grabbed his dagger. Wade threw his hands in the air. "It's your time for watch. Calm down." Doevm sighed and sheathed his dagger.

"Sorry Wade, it's a habit I picked up." He got off his grass pile and yawned. Through the divide in his tent flap, he could see Frey staring into the ashes of the campfire. "Has he gotten any sleep?"

Wade sighed and whispered, "No, he's said that we should just leave him alone but I'm not sure that time is what's going to heal him. I'm sure if we leave him like this, he's not going to sleep all night. Can't you do something about it?"

Doevm blinked, "Like what?"

"Your," Wade waved his hands in the air, making strange signs. "magic." He smiled and let out a nervous chuckle.

"My magic?" Doevm thought for a second. 'Now that I think about it, I never erased his memory after the incident. He didn't react when I did it, only encouraging me, like he's known…' He stared at Wade, trying to force an answer out of him to a question he didn't ask with silence.

Wade scratched the back of his head. "I've known for a while now, Jameson too."

"Great," Doevm sighed. "Just don't tell anyone, ok? I don't like killing people if I don't have to." He pat Wade on the shoulder and left his tent. 'That should keep him quiet.'