War God for Hire- Gladiator by David Burke (books under 200 pages .TXT) 📕

but instead just sat there, lost in his own thoughts. He wondered about Hilde, if their perspectives were so different. It sounded like he had more in common with a dead god than he did with the voice inside his head.

Eventually she broke the awkward silence. “Now, is it your plan to break rocks all day and learn the language by singing songs with mortal children at night?”

The disdain in her voice made Kyle feel like he wanted to tell her off, but as his grandfather always said, ‘beggars can’t be choosers.’ He didn’t exactly have any other options here. Then he thought maybe he should take a different tact. What woman didn’t like to be asked questions about herself?

“So, how long did you serve Krig for?”

“It was my turn to serve him for one century. The terms of our deal required that one of us meet his needs as a personal servant, a liaison for a century at a time. I had served him for nearly ninety-four of those years before he passed the mantle on to you,” Hilde answered.

“Yeah, that’s right. I remember you saying something about a deal. How did that come to be?” Kyle asked.

“He appeared on my home plane. It wasn’t frequented often by the gods, as our essence type is considered to be raw or unrefined essence. But not Krig. He saw us as another place to test his might. The battle raged on for weeks as he brought his forces into our realm. Slowly, he wore us down. Even mortal ants, if directed properly, can bite. Eventually, he brought his own might to bear. He struck down our queen and then declared himself our ruler.

“None of us had the might to stand against him, so a deal was worked out whereby we could satisfy him but not become a slave race. It was the only logical thing to do. We thought that we would be used to defeat others, but he never actually called upon our might. Most of the time, he depended upon his mortal minions,” Hilde answered.

“So you are almost done with your century of service. What will happen then?”

“I will be free to return to my people, although our existence there is different. There is a part of me that will miss this, although being trapped in the void chained to your mantle is infinitely worse. Maybe you will understand why I am anxious for you to move things along,” Hilde said.

“Okay, so one last question and then I will listen to what you think I should be doing. What happens if I don’t free you from wherever you are stuck within three years?”

“You would break the pact we have and lose the fealty of my people. Oh, and you would be without a guide,” she answered matter-of-factly.

“That is what I was afraid of. So, I best get to figuring this out,” Kyle said.

“I’m glad that we are on the same page. This is so odd. Celestials are sometimes tasked with helping reincarnated mortals, monsters, and even other celestials or fiends. It isn’t super common, so I have never had to do it before, but the tales I have heard have always been about how important it is to let the one you are guiding know who is boss.

“I hesitate to do that with you for obvious reasons. That said, you still need to listen to me. You someday may have far more knowledge and mastery of essence than I do, but for now, you are little more than a babe at this—you have both too little power, and too much.”

“What do you mean too little and too much?” Kyle asked. He had put his business cap on. No one in the clubhouse worked harder than he did. He studied every detail that he needed to succeed.

“Simple, you are practically oozing with essence for anyone to see. Mortals will fear or be attracted to you because of it, depending upon a variety of factors. Monsters will hunger for you so that they can grow stronger and possibly ascend. The same for celestials and fiends, except they are more likely to play a long game with you and look at you as a battery more than a meal.

By Dod’s hells, even a half-way talented human or elven wizard may be able to detect that you are more than you seem, even if they can’t say exactly what that is. If any of the demi-gods were to see you, they would risk their immortal souls for a chance to seize your mantle from you. And don’t even get me started on what would happen if any of your siblings found you,” Hilde said.

“I’m not sure that really explains anything to me. Are you saying that I have too much power inside me, so I’m like a T-bone to a junkyard dog, without any way to fight off said dog?” Kyle asked.

“If I follow the meaning of your strange expression, then yes. Now as I see it, you need three things. You need a place to hide until you are strong enough to defend yourself. Then, you’ll need a trainer who can teach you the ways of combat. That will not only serve to help you protect yourself, but should also help align you more to your mantle, as well as gain you more essence. And, last but not least, you need someone to teach you to speak the common tongue,” Hilde said, sounding as though she were a long-suffering saint for putting up with him.

“Why can’t you just teach me to speak it?”

“I’m not actually speaking it. All celestials and fiends are ultimately creatures of emotion. I am simply translating the emotional meaning. I have enough experience with this to make it fairly simple, but I can’t actually teach you the language. Even if I could, that is the work of a mortal,” Hilde replied airily.

“Well, I don’t know about hiding, but a couple more days of