Fractured Spirit Read online

  Alpha World

  Book Five:

  Fractured Spirit

  Daniel Schinhofen

  Copyright © 2018 Daniel J. Schinhofen

  No parts of this book may be reproduced in any form by an electronic or mechanical means – except in the case of brief quotations embodied in articles or reviews – without the written permission from the publisher.

  The characters and events portrayed in this book are fictitious. Any similarities to real persons, living or dead, are purely coincidental and not intended by the author.

  Copyright © 2018 Daniel J. Schinhofen

  All rights reserved.

  Contents

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Chapter Twenty

  Chapter Twenty-one

  Chapter Twenty-two

  Chapter Twenty-three

  Chapter Twenty-four

  Chapter Twenty-five

  Chapter Twenty-six

  Chapter Twenty-seven

  Chapter Twenty-eight

  Chapter Twenty-nine

  Chapter Thirty

  Chapter Thirty-one

  Chapter Thirty-two

  Chapter Thirty-three

  Chapter Thirty-four

  Chapter Thirty-five

  Chapter One

  Alburet hung a reluctant smile on his face as the people waiting for him moved forward. “Lords Dracon and Theron, good to see you both. Soon-to-be Lady Theron, I’m honored. Glad to see you, Berk. How may I help you all today?”

  Vladimir stepped forward, “I wished to be among the first to congratulate you on your achievement. Renful informed me that you were returning. I’m quite eager to catalog the Keep and I would like to extend an invitation to dinner tomorrow night.”

  Alburet winced, “I’m afraid I won’t be available then, Sir Dracon. We’ll be holding a banquet to celebrate that very achievement. Since you were involved in the effort, you are welcome to attend.”

  Standing there with a nonplussed look, Vladimir nodded. “I see. It is good of you to extend such an invitation to me. Would you be able to speak with me privately at the event?”

  “I’ll make sure that it is arranged, Sir Dracon.” Alburet bowed slightly.

  “Well then, I shall see you upon the morrow. Have a pleasant day.” Vladimir climbed into his carriage, which left shortly after he was inside.

  Wilbur’s lips twitched as he fought off a grin at Vladimir’s abrupt departure. “Would we also be invited to this banquet, Alburet?”

  “Of course. You and the Lady, as well as the Matron, are invited, Lord Theron,” Alburet replied without pause.

  “Tha’ be good. I’ll be draggin’ me sister off to visit durin’ the party,” Erin added.

  Stacia smiled at her sister, “Tha’ be fine. I’m sure we will be havin’ some things to talk about.”

  “I see you are busy and I do not wish to hold up Lord Jones’ servant. We will see you upon the morrow. Have a pleasant day.” Wilbur bowed to Alburet and Stacia, then handed Erin into the carriage.

  Berk stepped forward as Lord Theron’s carriage rolled away. “Alburet, I had been expecting Sir Jones to be with you. I only just received a message from him stating that he’s quite busy at the Keep and requests that I join him there once the portal is established. Would that be acceptable?”

  “It should be fine, but it might be a bit before Rolland gets here to set it up. I’ll let our receptionist know to expect you, as the portal will be inside our guild hall. Was there anything else I can do for you today?” Alburet asked, pulling out his Homestone.

  “No, that will suffice, thank you. Congratulations on making history,” Berk replied with a small bow of his head.

  “Couldn’t do it without all the help we got from lots of people,” Alburet chuckled. “Just stop by when you’re ready.”

  “I’ll be along shortly,” Berk said, climbing into his carriage.

  “Al, we’ll catch up to you later now that everything is in hand,” Gerald told him as they all watched the carriage leave. “I’ll message you in a bit to find out about dinner.”

  “That’s fine, have fun shopping,” Alburet replied as Gerald and Marysue turned to leave. “Ladies, why don’t we drop our excess gear at home before we go out?”

  “As ya wish, Asthore,” Stacia said, taking his bag from him. A moment later the quartet was outside the guild hall and their home.

  He detoured into the guild hall as the ladies went into the house. He found Vanessa sitting behind the desk with a book open in front of her. As he came in she closed the book and looked up with a smile, “Welcome to Alpha- welcome back, Alburet! I hear the raid was a success.”

  “News sure does travel fast,” Alburet snorted. “I’ve a few things to let you know. Rolland will be setting up the portal to our new Keep in the back room. Once he’s done, allow Berk, Lord Jones’ assistant, use of the portal.”

  “Can do,” Vanessa replied with a smile.

  “Also, the officers are all taking the next day or two off. Kim will be finding another receptionist to split the days with you. Oh, and thank you for working the extra days while we were gone.”

  “It’s fine. Kim was paying me a bonus to do it,” Vanessa replied. “I’ve already got another person lined up to help here. I’ve also reserved a place for the banquet tomorrow night on Kim’s request. She felt it would be good to hold it at a larger venue than here.”

  “I was leaving that to her, so it works. If anything vital comes up let me know, otherwise tell everyone I’m busy for the next two days please. Minus the officers, of course.”

  “Can do. Enjoy your down time. I look forward to hearing the story tomorrow night,” Vanessa grinned. “I’m sure your wife will enjoy a day of pampering.”

  Alburet chuckled, “Goodness knows we can all use it after that adventure. Have a good one Vanessa, and thanks again.”

  Crossing over to the house, Alburet put his back to the door as he closed it behind him. He sighed deeply. “Thank god that’s over, for now at least.”

  “Al?” Karen called to him, from where she sat with the other two on the sofa. “Can we talk for a moment?”

  Looking up, he found them all looking at him with serious expressions. “What’s the matter?”

  “Well, last night we kind of got caught up with the party and didn’t do what we’d talked about before the Keep raid,” Karen told him. “We were approved to hear about why you’re here.”

  Closing his eyes, he felt his chest clench as he imagined their disgust and hatred for him when they heard his story. Taking a deep breath, he nodded. “Yeah.” He walked over to an open chair and sat down. “It’s not a good story.”

  “Master, they will nay turn away from ya, trust in them,” Stacia gently told him as she got up from the sofa. She came to him, sitting in his lap and stroking his hair, “We all be a family.”

  He met her eyes for a moment, then looked to Karen and Fluffball. Each set of eyes he met gazed back at him with love. “I’m sorry, it’s just fear. Okay. You’ve seen David and Kaylee, so you have a reference here for the people involved in the tragic tale.” Swallowing as he felt his emotions churn, he continued, “Kaylee was in college...”

  He told th
em about the assault on Kaylee. About her being in the hospital with severe physical and emotional trauma, the beating and rape, and the man who did it. He told them how he’d gone to work, and executed that man on his way to see the judge. He was trembling when he finished. Tears streamed down his face as Stacia soothed him.

  “That would be why you reacted so badly to Paval,” Karen murmured, standing up. “You really think that you killing the man who raped and beat your friend’s daughter would make us hate you?” She knelt down next to the chair beside him while Fluff did the same on his other side. “Al, you should know me better than that. I think you did the right thing. You were easier on him than I might have been in your shoes. I’m thinking breaking every bone in his body sounds about right.”

  “He hurt her terribly and you couldn’t help her,” Fluff said. “You just wanted her to know that the man who hurt her wouldn’t be able to hurt anyone again. I don’t hate you for it. I wish you could have been there for me.”

  He broke down into sobs as their love and acceptance flowed over him. “Thank you,” he managed to choke out between sobs. He reached out to them, hugging them as they perched on the arms of the chair.

  “We’ll help you with your memories the same way you’ve helped Fluff and me,” Karen reassured him. “I’m not going to let you get away from me that easily.”

  “I want to help you like you’ve helped me. You have shown me nothing but love and acceptance. I just want to give back as much as I can. I’ll be here with you, Stacia and Karen,” Fluff murmured as she kissed his ear.

  “See, me lovin’ husband? None of us will turn from ya. We have a wonderful family, tha’ will always support each other. Truly, we be blessed, each of us,” Stacia told him, gently brushing his tears away.

  They held him until he was calm again. When he finally regained control of his emotions, he looked at each of them in turn. “Thank you. I don’t know how I ended up in this situation, but I don’t think I deserve it. You are all too good for me.”

  “Silly idiot,” Karen sighed before she kissed him.

  “I feel that way, too,” Fluff admitted before she stole a quick kiss. “It’s nice to know that I’m not alone in that.”

  “Ya all love each other. We all deserve it,” Stacia stated firmly, kissing him, then Fluff, then Karen. “Now tha’ we have broached tha’ topic we can mayhap see about goin’ on with the day. After dinner tonight, we will be walkin’ in one of ya memories, master.”

  Alburet’s jaw clenched, but he nodded, “Okay.”

  “Now we need to see about trainin’, shoppin’, and by the time we be done with all tha’, it be about time for lunch. As it means goin’ by to see me Da’, we can expect it to take a bit of time.”

  “We can go train separately, then meet you two over at the inn,” Karen said. “We can go shopping together from there.”

  “I think tha’ be best,” Stacia agreed. “We will be seein’ ya there. We mayhap still be talkin’ to Da’, but hopefully it will nay take too long.”

  “We’ll see you there,” Fluff agreed as she went to the door. “Karen, will you walk me to my trainer?”

  Karen joined her, “I would be delighted, Fluff.” Looking over her shoulder, Karen grinned, “See you two later.”

  Alburet watched them go, letting out a deep breath as the door closed behind them. “Thank you, dear heart, for helping me hold it together as much as I did. I know that they don’t hate me now. I could feel their love. Without this ability to read emotions I probably wouldn’t believe it.”

  “Aye,” Stacia murmured as she helped him to his feet. “Now ya know tha’ they love ya as much as I do. Iffin ya be willin’, after we talk with me Da’, we can swing by the Temple with them and officially add them to our family?”

  Meeting her eyes, he could see her love as easily as he could feel it. “As you wish.”

  She kissed him tenderly before taking his arm, “I do so love it when ya agree with me.”

  A small chuckle escaped him, “You make it easy to do so. We should get going, we don’t want to hold up the day too much.”

  “As ya wish,” Stacia mimicked with a smile.

  Chapter Two

  It was still early when they reached the Dead Man Inn, so the tap room was empty except for Marian behind the bar and Stewart slumped at his normal table. Marian looked over as they entered, ready to greet a customer. When she realized it was Stacia and Alburet she let out a shout and rushed around the bar towards them.

  “Ya be back, thank the Dark Lord! Is Deirdre okay? Is Violet okay? Is she back in the city now? Is she coming by soon?” The questions spilled from Marian as she hugged Stacia, then Alburet. Stepping back, she looked at them hopefully.

  “Sis be fine,” Stacia told her. “Violet be fine as well, she be a Two-souled after all. She was havin’ breakfast at the Keep when we left.”

  “Where is Deirdre?” Stewart asked, joining them near the bar.

  “She was having breakfast with Chris Eveningstar,” Alburet informed Stewart. “We wanted to let the family know that Deirdre is safe and the Keep was taken.”

  Stewart eyed him before nodding slowly, “You have also grown, quite a bit it seems. Marian, go wake your father while I take Alburet down to train.”

  “I will go with ya, sis,” Stacia added, following Marian towards the back hall.

  Stewart fixed a level gaze on Alburet. “The Dark Lord has told all of his followers that he views you with great favor. That’s a very rare thing. I doubt you can fully comprehend the depths of what it means, being a Two-souled. I mean that not as an insult, but as a fact.”

  “I don’t understand why he would. All I know was that I had a quest to get Deirdre to the Keep safely and did so. When I speak to him next, and I’m sure I will at some point, maybe he’ll explain it to me.”

  “One can always hope, but Gods are Gods for a reason. They love to be inscrutable,” Stewart finished, his lips twisted in a sardonic smile. “Let’s see about training you. After all, the more powerful you are, the better off Stacia is. I also want to hear about the journey and raid.”

  Following Stewart, Alburet chuckled, “I’m sure Grimgar and Almira will as well. I’m having dinner with my officers tonight and a banquet with my guild tomorrow. How about we set up for a family dinner the night after that, so we can go over it all at once?”

  Lips compressed into a frown, Stewart nodded, “I can’t argue the reasoning, but I think lunch today would be better. That should still give you ample time to take care of what training and shopping you need to take care of.”

  “True, but my guildies will all be coming back to train and gear up today. Probably means it would be best for Grimgar and Almira to be in their shops,” Alburet countered.

  As they descended the tunnel that led down under the inn, Stewart grumped, “That’s a valid point. How about letting us come to the banquet as well than, to hear the tale and celebrate with you? You should invite the shopkeepers that you have agreements with. I’m sure the gear you purchased helped, and it will make them feel like they had a hand in this event.”

  Alburet considered that for a few moments as they walked. “Actually, that would probably win us some points with them. It’s a good idea, thank you.”

  Stewart chuckled, “As long as we’re invited, too.” Glancing at the new chest piece Alburet was wearing, he asked another question, “Are those the Leathers of the Demon Lord?”

  Brushing at the leathers, Alburet grinned, “Got it as the loot for completing the raid.”

  Snorting, Stewart shook his head, “Favored by a God, indeed.” They entered the underground chamber that housed the trainers for the Necromancers and Summoners. “The book is on my desk, as always.”

  “I would be shocked if it wasn’t,” Alburet replied. “How has it been, being able to summon your demons inside the inn without fear of reprisal?”

  Head bowing for a second, Stewart sighed. “It’s different. We’ve done things one way for so lon
g that being able to do it differently seems odd.” Stewart took his seat, pushing the open book across to Alburet. “You have a lot of choices to make. Choose wisely.”

  Picking up the tome, Alburet nodded as he flipped to his first set of choices. “No pressure or anything. I mean it’s not like my choices are set in stone.”

  Stewart leaned forward, grinning, “They aren’t. Maybe you don’t know about the Ability Stones that can be found in the most dangerous zones.”

  Alburet pulled his gaze from the book, “Ability Stones?”

  “They are rare. Truthfully, they are very rare. I’ve seen one, only one mind you, in my lifetime. They reset your Abilities, so you get the chance to choose them all over again. It was a good ten years ago, but I can still recall the look on the Necromancer’s face that brought one in to reset his Abilities.”

  “Wow, that’s pretty interesting,” Alburet mused before turning back to the book.