Two days. Oren runs with her on his back for two days straight barring the call of nature. He even has her feed and water him while moving, simply slowing down to a jog so the food and waterskin don’t go everywhere in the process. It’s an impressive feat no matter how you shake it, and it really just goes to show the power of an Otherworlder. Sure, they’re one man armies and capable of slaughtering fifty opponents without breaking a sweat, but this… this kind of stamina was what truly set them apart from mortals native to Creation.

  It wasn’t just that Oren had run for two days straight either. That was impressive enough in its own right, but he hadn’t stopped there. Not only had he run for two days straight… he’d also ran fast enough to get them to their ultimate destination in two days as well. What Sophia had assumed would take another four days at the very least, had instead been cut down massively by Oren’s dogged determination to reach their goal.

  Fortunately, the rock was still there where Sophia remembered it, because the road North of Oakvale actually stretched far further than it had when she’d last been on the mortal plane. Which to be fair, might have been a few dozen years ago, here or there?

  Regardless, the large boulder was no longer a half hour past the end of the road, but rather right alongside it. They’d almost missed it initially, but fortunately Sophia had recognized the great big rock for what it was and let Oren know they needed to turn around before they got too much further.

  From the rock, Oren had finally let her off of his back and Sophia hadn’t failed to notice the slight tremor in his legs as he’d straightened up to his full height for the first time in forty-eight hours. Nothing else she’d seen him do since they met had taken much out of the Otherworlder. He hadn’t broken a sweat against God Hunters, or running from Amberwell, or even fighting the Hill Giant. But this… this had clearly winded him.

  Still, it was going to be worth it. By pushing himself this hard, Oren had given them two more days than they would have had otherwise. There was every possibility that the news of the massacre in Oakvale hadn’t even reached God Hunter ears yet. If they were particularly lucky, then they would have all the time in the world they both needed to rest and recuperate. Oren could get some sleep and Sophia could finally begin refilling her divine power without fearing discovery or attack in the middle of the process.

  Everything was going to be okay… and that only becomes more solidified in Sophia’s mind when she sees it after they walk together for a while.

  “There! Oren, it’s there just up ahead. I can feel my own divinity calling to me!”

  “Wait.”

  She only manages to take half a step before Oren grabs her by the arm and stops her in her tracks. Looking back, Sophia furrows her brow in confusion.

  “What is it? What’s wrong?”

  “Nothing… I don’t know. I don’t sense or hear anything in that direction. There’s just this big… void up ahead.”

  Sophia blinks and then laughs.

  “Oh… that’s the refuge, silly. I said it before, it’s covered in divine wards. I suppose to someone like you, it’s not working as effectively as it should because of your special circumstances… but you don’t need to worry. The divine wards turn away all mortal interest. Even if someone did stumble across the refuge while out here in the woods for whatever reason, they would find themselves distracted and going in another direction without even realizing it shortly.”

  It was an excellent ward in Sophia’s humble opinion. The type of ward that didn’t hurt anyone and merely… turned away the unwanted and uninvited. That was the best kind of ward as far as the goddess was concerned.

  “… Right. Let’s go then.”

  This time it’s Oren who tries to take a step forward… only for his legs to finally buckle, giving out on him. Sophia’s eyes widen as she finds herself lurching forward to keep him from hitting the ground, only to almost collapse herself from his weight. Luckily, the Otherworlder is able to recover quickly, only needing partial support from her as he finds his footing again.

  “Sorry… I…”

  Sophia just shakes her head.

  “Don’t apologize. You’ve done so much for me Oren. Now let me do this for you. Come on. Safety and security are just a couple hundred feet away. They won’t be able to get to us once we’re within my wards.”

  Oren nods and together they all but shamble the rest of the way to the refuge. He really has exhausted himself pulling off this latest stunt, but it was for a good cause. They’d finally made it. The smile on Sophia’s face as she pulls Oren through the wards covering the entrance to her refuge grows wider and wider. The cave entrance quickly gives way to a set of stairs that lead down deeper into the earth and together, they stumble down them.

  Honestly, she can’t wait to show him everything. There wouldn’t even be dust either, because the hideaway has some self-cleaning enchantments too! The very first thing Sophia was going to do was-!

  They both stop dead in their tracks at the bottom of the staircase, Sophia’s thoughts fizzling in her head as her eyes widen at the sight waiting for them.

  “Fuck.”

  Oren’s reaction is as succinct as it is appropriate given the state of her refuge. The whole place looks like it’s been through a damn hurricane, despite being fully underground! Her table and chairs are knocked over, her drawers have all been pulled out haphazardly, and her things are strewn all across the floor.

  Pulling away from her, Oren draws his sword and sets his stance, even though he can barely walk.

  “Thought you said nobody could get in here.”

  “I… t-they shouldn’t have been able to. And if someone had gotten inside, I should have been alerted. The wards are all still intact too.”

  This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

  Before Oren can answer… a third voice cuts through the stagnant cave air, causing Sophia’s eyes to widen even further and a shiver of fear to run down her back.

  “You should never be too reliant on wards. Honestly, you shouldn’t be too reliant on anything or anyone you don’t have full control over. Never know when it or they might… fail you.”

  There, up on a shadowed ledge close to the cave ceiling… Sophia can just barely make out the outline of a person. Oren immediately moves to stand in front of her… and he even manages to make it look easy too, like he’s moving without stressing already strained muscles. Pointing his sword up towards the third party, he grunts.

  “Who are you? How did you get in here and what do you want from us?”

  There’s a brief pause before the shadowed figure speaks again.

  “Mm… always so blunt, Oren. So impatient. Never any time to just… talk with you, is there?”

  What? Did this man know Oren? Sophia can see Oren faltering in confusion as well… something that the shadowy figure pounces on.

  “You know, I really thought it would take you two longer to get here. After you were both so kind to give me directions the other night at the tavern, I did everything I could to slow you down. Tell me, how are dear Lieutenant Elric and his God Hunters faring these days?”

  That was him! And… he must have somehow been spying on them when they’d discussed things their first night in Oakvale before bed. He’d overheard them and then sicked Elric and the other God Hunters on them. But how hadn’t Oren detected his presence? Just who was this man?!

  “Dead.”

  Oren’s succinct, one word answer provokes neither anger nor grief. Instead, the shadowy figure lets out a bark of laughter.

  “I suppose that’s not surprising. You are such a very good killer, Oren.”

  The Otherworlder flinches and Sophia finds herself finally speaking up, if only to come to his defense.

  “They left him no choice! They were going to keep coming after us no matter what!”

  And yet, while Sophia does believe that… she also can hear how weak her excuses sound, even to her own ears. They’d justified killing the God Hunters instead of just running because they knew that unlike those thugs in Amberwell, these ‘thugs’ were far more likely to chase them to the ends of the earth, on top of reporting them to their superiors.

  But then they’d had to leave behind witnesses in the form of the entire population of Oakvale anyways. And even worse, now they were finding out that the superior Elric had spoken of… was two steps ahead of them all along, waiting for them to get here. What was all that slaughter for, in the end? Oren had been forced to kill all those men… for nothing.

  “I’m sure. And yet, judging by the speed with which you arrived, they barely equated to more than a bump in the road, didn’t they? Ugh. How infuriating. First, your directions were outdated and it took me half of a day to realize it and locate that stupid fucking boulder. Then, it took me another half a day to slip past those pesky wards you’ve put on this place. Seriously, most deities would have just slapped on half a dozen or so and called it done. But not you… no, you decided you were going to pack this place with over FIFTY.”

  Sophia blushes at the sudden rant thrown her way. Of course she hadn’t stopped at just the basics. Even if she’d never gotten a chance to use this place, it was supposed to be her home away from home. In reality, she’d made this in a fit of youthful rebellion, intending to come live on the mortal plane because she was upset about some forgotten slight that someone had dealt her up in the Heavens.

  By the time she’d finished the refuge, cooler heads had prevailed and Wisdom had reasserted itself, making Sophia realize just how foolish she’d been. But of course, she’d kept the refuge anyways just in case…

  Before she can formulate a response to the shadowy figure’s diatribe… he suddenly moves. Leaping down from the ledge, he lands a dozen paces away from them both. Covered from head to toe in black, the man chuckles.

  “And you, Oren. Pushing yourself so hard to get you both to safety only to find it was all a lie. I shouldn’t be surprised I suppose. You were always… driven when you wanted to be.”

  “Who. Are. You?”

  Oren is gritting his teeth at this point, his sword still pointed at the figure. In response, the other man just chuckles.

  “Sorry… I suppose you wouldn’t recognize my voice. What if I talked a little more like this. ‘You’ve come such a long way, Oren’.”

  Oren freezes in place. The shadowy figure has completely changed his voice on them and it sounds like Oren recognizes him from somewhere now.

  “’You’re the Hero, Oren. Your potential is limitless. You just have to believe in yourself more’.”

  “No…”

  Finally, the man reaches up and pulls back his cloak, dragging down his mask to reveal his face.

  “’I see you’re finally starting to believe… Oren’.”

  “Raythe.”

  Sophia doesn’t understand what’s happening. Oren sounds like he’s seen a ghost. She doesn’t recognize the man of course, but then she wouldn’t… not if he was from Oren’s past. Wait, was this man connected to the people who summoned Oren to this world in the first place? And they already knew he was connected to the God Hunters too. So in the end… it was they who’d summoned Oren here after all.

  “You! You brought Oren to this universe. You and the God Hunters! Why? Were you hoping he would kill Gods here on the Mortal Plane for you? What do you know about the God Killer? Did you lot summon him too?!”

  Silence falls in the face of Sophia’s frenzied questions. ‘Raythe’ looks past Oren and stares at her for a long moment before a slow, wide grin spreads across his face. Oren, meanwhile, looks frozen stiff. He’s facing away from her so Sophia can’t see his face, but she sees something she’s never seen before etched into every inch of his posture anyways. Terror.

  “Oh? Comparing me to those worthless scum… what a lark. The God Hunters are nothing but pawns for those like me and my master. Still, I’ll let it slide in favor of everything else you said. Because this… this is delicious.”

  “Raythe.”

  Oren’s voice sounds almost pleading, which causes Raythe’s grin to widen even further.

  “What was it you said? Yes, we did indeed summon Oren to this universe. But you wanted to know about somebody else, didn’t you? The God Killer.”

  Sophia tenses up. Is this ‘Raythe’ really just going to tell her what she wants to know?

  “I usually prefer to tell lies over the truth, admittedly. But sometimes even someone like me can admit… that the truth is worse than even the darkest, most cutting lie.”

  “Raythe. Not another word.”

  This time, Oren’s tone sounds angry. And threatening. Sophia blinks at the Otherworlder’s back. What is this? What’s going on?

  “What if I were to tell you that the God Killer is closer than you think, Goddess?”

  What? Was he saying HE was the God Killer? Sophia didn’t understand.

  Raythe’s grin grows and he lets out a dark chuckle.

  “In fact. What if I were to tell you that Oren and the God Killer-!”

  Suddenly, Oren bursts forward with strength he doesn’t have and slams his sword into Raythe’s chest. Sophia gasps at the abrupt violence, her hand coming up to cover her mouth. Only… just when she’s expecting the man to drop to the ground dead, Raythe seems to recover from what should have been a fatal blow. He reaches up, wraps one hand around the hilt of Oren’s sword… and backhands him away with the other.

  As the Otherworlder falls to the ground at his feet, Raythe holds up the handle of his weapon to reveal the blade no longer exists. Almost like it met an immovable object and disintegrated in the face of it. Almost… almost like the mortal blade came into contact with true divinity and shattered into a million fragments.

  Raythe was a god. The one who summoned Oren to this world… was a god. That god’s grin stretches from ear to ear now as he pays Oren no mind and stares Sophia down, finishing his sentence like there was no interruption.

  “-are one and the same.”

  … What? It takes a second for Sophia to parse his meaning. But even once she does, she’s still bewildered. He’s saying that Oren and the God Killer are one and the same. That… that can’t be. The God Killer was a monster who slew the Heavens. Oren had saved her. He’d helped her. He… he was looking at her now from the ground with guilt on his face.

  The Otherworlder doesn’t even try to deny it. No… the God Killer doesn’t try to deny it. Because it’s true. Oren is the God Killer. Oren is the one who killed her father and everyone she’d ever known or loved.

  A/N: Sophia learns Oren's true nature and you guys learn Raythe's true nature. Anyone see the latter reveal coming?

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