Lith Verhen/History/Volume 8

## Chapters 745 - 953

Lith has Tista, Nyka, and the Trawn Woods Emperor Beasts imitate the Maekosh wargs' practice method of using Silverwing's Hexagram. Quylla expresses her uncertainties about twisting the story in their report, but offers her support by giving Lith the Odi dictionaries she compiled. Constable Tyris Griffon meets them for the report. She refuses to divulge any Forgemastering secrets as Lith still refuses to tie himself down to the Kingdom, but gives him free access to the Royal Library and other resources. Lith suggests Orion take him in as a mentee, but Orion refuses.

### Awakened Council

Athung Soranot from the Awakened Council confronts Lith, asking to bring him into the fold. Lith catches the young Awakened off guard and drives her away, warning Reaper, Sentinel, and Lifebringer to watch for her return. He meets Zinya's children Frey and Filia, who mistake Lith as Kamila's betrothed due to him sending Zinya to Lutia and his almost one year relationship with Kamila.

Lith and Solus inspect the gravity ring given to them by the fungal creature in Kulah as well as translating the book on Body-Swapping to find a way to update it with modern magic. The ancient regulating runes on the ring enlighten them to a more versatile method of Forgemastering that avoids the on/off like nature of their crafted works up until that point, allowing them to regulate the artifacts' like a true magic spell. They continue to experiment with creating the ring and the Huryole sword's runes.

Kamila is brought over to Protector's house for a double date. She faints upon realizing Lilia and Leran are hybrid children and that Emperor Beasts can shapeshift into humans, but warms up to the family. Protector shows her his hybrid and Emperor Beast forms and Lith tells her about the depths of his relationship with Protector. He explains his cracked life force and his world tribulations that led to his changes, before revealing his Hybrid Form. She accepts him and the two strengthen their relationship going forward.

With his spirits lifted and the prospects of his future looking brighter due to Body-Swapping, Lith makes an appointment with Protector's Awakened master Faluel the Hydra. He is ambushed by five of Gaaron Roghias' minions after exiting the Derios Warp Gate but makes short work of Cresia and Ormr. Gaaron intervenes before Lith can kill Aria, allowing her, Horyu, and the third Awakened to escape, though they are caught and killed by the Trawn Wood Kings. Despite Gaaron's equipment and knowledge of Spirit Magic spells, Lith's superior physical prowess and cunning allow him to overpower and kill the older Awakened.

Raagu Drerian approaches Lith along with Athung, asking him to join the human faction in the Awakened Council. However, Faluel the Hydra appears with Protector and rebuffs her, claiming Lith as one of the beasts' own and that humans had never done anything for Lith. Athung gifts Lith an Adamant communication amulet with a white crystal to monopolize Lith's human contacts on the Council before they leave, giving him the first item enchanted with modern runes. Faluel brings Lith to her lair, where he shows her his Hybrid Form and Origin Flames.

She offers him an apprenticeship, imparting a few lessons on Spirit Magic, Origin Flames, and runes. She also talks about Dominance and teaches him a meditation technique to connect with individual elements of world energy instead of world energy as a whole. Lith agrees to give her a response after his tenure as Ranger concludes. Faluel's wayward son Sedra appears and attempts to attack Lith out of jealousy, forcing Faluel to concede additional knowledge and a couple old language dictionaries.

Solus begins translating the Forgemastering booklet from Huryole using Faluel's dictionaries and books from the Ernas' library, meticulously detailing the Runesmithing foundations. Meanwhile, Lith experiments with creating a mana barrier using Spirit Magic with little success. Lith accompanies Quylla and Phloria to Yondra Mefaal's funeral at the Black Griffon, where they meet Lord Mefaal and his three children. The Mefaals express indifference over Yondra's death due to her estrangement from them as the result of her pursuing her work, leading Lith to spend more time with his family.

### Laruel

Friya organizes a vacation to practice fighting monsters in the Rothar caves near the city of Javvok. Phloria is suspended from duty as Headmistress Onia of the Black Griffon launches an investigation into Kulah's events. They encounter plant-infected bugbears and are ambushed by a group of desperate malnourished undead from the Jiera Continent. Kamila reveals the destruction of the human race on Jiera and the three Countries' intent to colonize it. Leegaain provided Empress Milea Genys with a cure to the plague on the condition she share it with the other Countries, and Kamila shares the spell for the cure with the group.

The group is relaxing in Javvok when Lyta the Dryad and Headmaster Duke Marth arrive and bring them to the plantfolk city-state of Laruel under royal decree to diagnose and find a cure to the undead plague. Marth explains the situation of Queen Leannan the Titania's struggle against Erlik the Draugr Treant from the Jiera Continent who seeks to take over Laruel. Lith contacts Athung and Faluel, learning that the Council pays the "crisis" little heed.

Lith reunites with Kalla, who was invited by Lyta due to her expertise in Necromancy and partial undead nature making her capable of safely interacting with the patients. They analyze the plague, discovering the infected each have a blood core that is separate from their mana core and bear the same energy signature. The "plague" is actually Erlik the Draugr Treant's undead tissues that bond to their victims like a parasite, sharing both their strength and hunger in a way like two different living beings fused together rather than a hybrid.

Kalla reveals their discovery to Empress Milea Genys, and the Magic Empress makes an attempt to invite Kalla, Phloria, and Lith to the Kingdom though Marth deters her. Kalla decides to pursue the energy signature, with Lith, Friya, and Phloria in tow. They make their way to the village of Erlik's last headquarters where they are confronted by a Treantling named Illum. Lith quickly ousts Illum as a thrall, who attacks them in his Grendel thrall form.

Kalla and Lith subdue the thrall when two undead Thorns cause a distraction. Lith kills the Thorns and Illum attempts to escape but is killed by Phloria. They question the plantfolk, learning of the World Saplings and Erlik's intent on becoming Laruel's ruler to gain access to the knowledge of Laruel's Sapling. Upon studying an infected treehouse, they learn that mold spores have infected it in a form of life poisoning. Lith relays their findings to Marth (making the other Countries' researchers jealous with his holograms). The group meets Jirni and Kamila in Laruel, who are studying Manohar's whereabouts on the Garlen Continent.

Leannan the TItania visits Lith's group and they reanalyze the treehouse, identifying Erlik's end goal of using the mold to establish a link with and take over the Sapling. Unable to locate Erlik's hideout without merging with the treehouse and alerting Erlik, Leannan asks Lith's group to hunt him down. Lith and Kalla successfully analyze the scarring on the treehouse as a mass of darkness magic imbued with Erlik's willpower, and relay their findings to Leannan, who thank them for their help. Unbeknownst to them, the multiple willpowers interacting with Erlik's willpower alerts him and leads him to order Kaelan the Vampire to lure Jirni and Kamila to Othre to distract Lith and Quylla.

Lith returns to Lutia where he informs Faluel of the circumstances. Faluel warns him that he has become a target of ambition and resentment for all young Awakened due to his feats and killing of Gaaron, but promises to protect his family. Kaelan's failed assassination attempt on Jirni and Kamila leads them to Erlik's location but the Draugr eludes them once again.

Erlik storms Leannan's castle with his followers. The Draugr's partial control over the Sapling allows him to control Laruel's Warp Gates, preventing the other city-state Sovereigns and Leannan's elite soldiers from entering. Lith, Phloria, and Kalla accompany Leannan's Fae to engage the undead plantfolk while Leannan battles Erlik for control of the Sapling's powers. Leannan invokes the Ritual of the Chosen, forcing Erlik to enact his contingency plan, in which the sacks of symbiote in the treehouses turn into massive Draugrlings.

Leannan manages to kill Erlik by poisoning his connection with the World Sapling with darkness magic. With the Draugr's defeat, the plague disappears from Laruel and all the infected are cured. However, Gremlik had embedded some of his tissues with Erlik's, allowing him to take convert the Draugrlings into Grendelings under his control. Gremlik faces Leannan in a losing battle, and is killed. Leannan severs her link with the Sapling, and Laruel ceases to exist.

### Horseman of Dawn

Lith is promoted to Captain. As spring goes by and summer arrives, he is kept busy by the increased monster spawn rate despite the Royals assigning three Rangers per region. Lith also contemplates sharing the secret of his Awakening with Kamila with their 2 year anniversary drawing near.

Lith accepts Faluel's offer of apprenticeship, learning about the Kellar Region's Regional Lord, Xedros the Wyvern. At Faluel's recommendation, Lith approaches Xedros to learn about Origin Flames and Light Mastery but leaves Solus behind. He finds the First Wyvern in a pitiful state, learning of Tyris' punishment and the fact that Constable Tyris is a Guardian. Xedros imparts knowledge of Origin Flames and how to use them in exchange for Lith healing his condition, the result of Tyris leaving behind a spark of her own life force to hinder his recovery ability. Lith exchanges Gerda's pelt and the corpse of the Clacker Queen in exchange for a small sliver of an Orichalcum ingot that Xedros had purified with his Flames.

Lith experiments with Origin Flames, Solus realizing that Xedros deceived them on how to use the Flames properly. He tower Warps them to a beach near the city of Vinea, where he gifts Solus a swimsuit and teaches her how to swim. Solus' first opportunity to be live without disguising as an accessory or having to hide herself delights her.

Upon being summoned to Zantia by Baroness Mergrave, Cestor's replacement, Lith learns of undead sightings during disappearances along the Kusha route and suspicions of the undead trying to create a Warp Gate. Solus translates the Runesmith book from Huryole, learning how to craft rings which they decide is the best use of the small ingot sliver. Lith reports Ranger Acala's disappearance to Kamila.

Acala reappears being chased by undead. Lith rescues him and kills the assailants, whom he notes are unusual in that they share a form of mind and mana link and capable of using hard light construct arrays. Acala returns and explains how he tracked bandits to their hideout and discovered they were vampires, turning travelers into thralls and being capable of moving during the day. He witnessed the conversion process involving a white crystal and machinery resembling Odi technology. Commander Berion orders the two to investigate despite their mutual dislike, with Lith becoming wary of Acala's ambition to earn achievements as a potential threat as well as his strong envy.

The Rangers retrace Acala's steps in the cave, discovering it to be an Odi ruins with protective arrays repaired using modern runes. They come across a lab filled with blood spatters and a white prism bearing the same energy signature as Acala's previous assailants. They decide to split up to cover more ground and Lith makes a model replica of the machinery. Lith is suddenly attacked by a Werefolk named Nalrond, who mistakes him for Dawn/Acala due to mistaking Solus as a cursed object, and flees shortly after a brief confrontation.

Acala brings Lith to fight the undead when Nalrond appears and exposes Dawn. Dawn turns her undead minions on Lith and the three-way slugfest ensues. Lith knocks Nalrond unconscious and escapes into Solus as she assumes Tower Form thanks to the geyser. Nalrond explains the origin of werefolk, the Three Horsemen, and the Rezar tribe's downfall at Dawn's hands. The pair make their way to Dawn's Odi laboratory filled with tomes and a machine, finding it completely replicated with hard light constructs in a mix of Warden magic and Light Mastery.

Solus assumes her Tower Form, disrupting the constructs and looting useful tomes. The duo fight the vampires that arrive. Dawn arrives and the two clash, with Lith barely fending her off due to Solus taking control of the mana geyser and providing him with mana. Nalrond denounces Acala for his betrayal, and Acala causes an internal struggle in his attempt to focus on killing Nalrond to hide his guilt, allowing Lith to exploit the opening to nearly destroy Acala's body.

However, Dawn reveals that unlike Solus and Lith's own nature, she and Acala share the opposite relationship where Dawn is the dominant personality and thus Acala is a part of Dawn instead of vice versa. Solus uses a spark of her own life force to boost Lith's Origin Flames at great detriment to herself, driving Lith into a rage and the two achieve fusion, transforming the two into a single powerful entity. Dawn is forced to escape, Warping thousands of kilometers back to Baba Yaga on the Jiera Continent.

Nalrond asks Lith to kill him, at peace with avenging his people, but Lith directs him to Protector's home. Lith gives a doctored version of events to Berion before warning Faluel of Dawn's escape. Summer passes quietly; fall and the cold season arrives, with the undead threat becoming mitigated. Lith is granted a month's leave along with Kamila and he Invigorates her before they engage in recreational activities.

Back on patrol in the Kellar Region, Lith revisits Xedros, who explains Solus' pocket dimension is an omnipocket. After hearing about Lith meeting Nalrond, Xedros explains about Fringes and offers to help with the Council. He also makes an offer to help Lith if Dawn ever returns, which Lith accepts.

### Hybrid Reveal

Lith visits Protector's home to find Nalrond having fit right in and meeting the Fastarrows' 8-month old newborn daughter Fenrir. Nalrond apologizes as he inadvertently revealed Solus' existence to Selia, and Lith is forced to introduce her to the couple. Solus adopts her humanoid form after materializing her tower and Selia offers her friendship. Returning to Lutia, Lith comforts Elina over her guilt of having failed Orpal and Trion, before visiting Rena. He discovers she is pregnant with triplets, but one of the boys has the Strangler disease.

Lith requests Marth, Quylla, and Vastor's help with curing the child, but they are unsuccessful. Lith brings Quylla to ask Faluel for help, who explains how the Strangler works, why the boy is still alive due to Lith's blood, and the possibility his family are potential hybrids as a result. Lith recruits Nalrond and promises to help insulate Faluel's cave as payment. The four Healers successfully cure the triplet.

Solus translates two blueprints for a barrier ring and a Tier 5 magic storing ring. Lith figures out to use magic circle ink to help apply modern runes and they successfully craft a prototype barrier ring using Necro Forge and the purified Orichalcum ingot. Rena goes into labor and Faluel helps deliver them safely, with Rena naming the formerly afflicted child Falco in her honor. Lenart Quontar is named after Lith and Quylla and Teryon Nessa after Tista and Nalrond.

Lith's birthday is held at the Ernas mansion at Orion's insistence. He reunites with Mirim Distar, who tries to offer him positions in the Kingdom after his Ranger duty concludes, but he refuses, citing his upcoming apprenticeship with Faluel and disappointment with the delay in Phloria's trial which had continued for almost a year. Raaz brings Lith to Orion's private study, where Orion explains the country's hesitance to help Lith due to his shifting loyalties to the beasts. He gifts him the sword War in his outrage at the country's treatment of Phloria and apologizes for his treatment of him in the past.

Lith invites Selia and Protector to Lutia, where reveals his Hybrid nature to his family and his plans to become Faluel's apprentice after leaving the army. Though most express their doubts, Elina resolutely accepts him, even expressing concern for his condition. The Verhens quickly come to terms and promise to keep his secret safe. Lith then explains his Awakening, but they reveal that they had known ever since he attended the academy, recognizing how he was different than his peers.

Lith and Solus spend the rest of their leave splitting their time between family and work. They consume the remaining Orichalcum ingot in an unsuccessful attempt to craft a Tier 5 magic storing ring. In the remaining 3 months of his service, Lith reflects on his past two years as Ranger, deciding to forgo becoming a Lich and deeming becoming a cursed object impossible. Lith revisits the Lost City of Huryole as his last destination.

## References

1. ↑ Chapter 747: Deep Bonds (Part 1)
2. ↑ Chapter 750: Hard Truth (Part 2)
3. ↑ Chapter 757: Meeting (2) (Part 1)
4. ↑ Chapter 761: Fright Night (Part 1)
5. ↑ Chapter 766: Moment of Truth (Part 2)
6. ↑ Chapter 775: Powerhouse (Part 1)
7. ↑ Chapter 778: Secrets and Ignorance (Part 2)
8. ↑ Chapter 784: Gifts and Knowledge (Part 2)
9. ↑ Chapter 786: Grudge (Part 2)
10. ↑ Chapter 795: Pay the Piper (Part 1)
11. ↑ Chapter 800: Manohar's Wife (Part 2)
12. ↑ Chapter 803: Smokescreen (Part 1)
13. ↑ Chapter 810: Grendel (Part 2)
14. ↑ Chapter 816: Life Poisoning (Part 2)
15. ↑ Chapter 820: Erlik's Plan (Part 2)
16. ↑ Chapter 824: Battle of Wits (Part 2)
17. ↑ Chapter 826: World Tree (Part 2)
18. ↑ Chapter 831: Opening Move (Part 1)
19. ↑ Chapter 840: Clash of Titans (Part 2)
20. ↑ Chapter 845: Hard Times (Part 1)
21. ↑ Chapter 852: Commitment (Part 2)
22. ↑ Chapter 858: Hard Bargain (Part 2)
23. ↑ Chapter 862: Rising Tide (Part 2)
24. ↑ Chapter 866: A New Project (Part 2)
25. ↑ Chapter 871: Old Enemies (Part 1)
26. ↑ Chapter 874: Hidden Signs (Part 2)
27. ↑ Chapter 884: Evil Light (Part 2)
28. ↑ Chapter 888: Mother Lode (Part 2)
29. ↑ Chapter 895: Real Magic (Part 1)
30. ↑ Chapter 897: Back Home (Part 1)
31. ↑ Chapter 900: The Red Sun (Part 2)
32. ↑ Chapter 904: It’s Home Again (Part 2)
33. ↑ Chapter 935: Friends and Enemies (Part 1)
34. ↑ Chapter 909: Bad News (Part 1)
35. ↑ Chapter 916: Blood Ties (Part 2)
36. ↑ Chapter 920: Spirit and Light Magic (Part 2)
37. ↑ Chapter 924: Birthdays (Part 2)
38. ↑ Chapter 926: Secret Meeting (Part 2)
39. ↑ Chapter 933: Cursed Objects (Part 1)
40. ↑ Chapter 953: Raiders of the Lost Academy (Part 1)