Chapter 150 The Generous Undead King.
Dave appeared in the Bone Palace, standing in the Undead King's audience hall.
The king looked warmly down at Dave from his throne, like a father looking at a son.
"You have heard by now that the Demon King and the Church are to become allies."
Dave nodded.
"Those two factions do not trust each other, it will take time for them bring their unified forces to bear.
"You have grown quickly, my Childe. That is a good and necessary thing, for to serve your king and defend our Kin against the demons and the Church you must continue to grow ever stronger!"
"I will do my utmost to stand against our enemies," Dave replied.
"When I look at you, young draugr, I remember another of my Children. He was brave and powerful. Like you, he rose in rank and garnered achievements too numerous to count. He was faithful before Death and after...for a time.
I treated him as my own and promised him my daughter in wedlock. Yet when our kingdom faced a great foe, I broke that promise, and in turn, I was punished for it."
"I have no intention of betraying the legion!" Dave said resolutely.
"I do not doubt that, Childe. Even though you are Death's champion."
Dave's thoughts screeched to a halt as the meaning of the Undead King's words sunk in.
He didn't feign ignorance or attempt to explain, "So, you know?"
"Aye, I have known since the first day you set foot in the Land of the Dead. But worry not. I have seen you, I have watched your actions and how you treat our Kin, the Dead. You, unlike others, do not despise who we are. You are one of us, Kin, and I have chosen you to be my Childe."
Dave's eyes met the king's, "Are you not afraid that I might betray you as Deadra did?"
"Deadra was a fool," the king gazed out through the palace windows at the broken moon.
"His betrayal was for love, the love of someone lost to us. The patron you serve inhabits her form.
"I promised to get her back for Deadra, but he didn't trust in me. He asked The Black Skull order for aid and they promised him they could revive her. The Order! A cult of madmen that imprison our Kind and commit atrocities upon them for some unreachable goal. As if it is not enough that the Dead suffer in their undead state!"
The undead king was incensed for a moment, then he regained his calm and looked at Dave.
"It sounds as though you dislike the life of the Undead," said Dave.
"No, I have long since become accustomed to this state, and I no longer have any desire to change it."
Dave remained silent for a moment.
The Finder's widget is vibrating
The Book of Death is near.
A small glow appeared right above the King's shoulder revealing a floating tome, a necronomicon.
"You can see it?" asked the king seeing where Dave was looking.
"Yes."
"I assume Death had tasked you to bring the book to her" The king grabbed the book.
Dave kept silent.
"Do you want it?" asked the king.
Dave nodded
"Then here," said the king and threw the book. It landed near Dave's feet.
The king's continued in a voice filled with infinite sadness, "I do not want Death to take another of my children. Give her the book, and ask her to give me back my Elanor."
"If you don't need the book, then why not give it to her back then, before all of this happened, before Deadra turned…"
The king was silent for a moment before he said, "I killed my own daughter for what I thought was necessity. Afterwards, I was maddened with rage and the pain of my loss. I wanted Death to suffer for refusing to aid me, for devaluing the sacrifice of my daughter's life.
Until I lost Deadra, until all that had value to me was lost. Now the book no longer has any meaning for to me."
"I see."
Dave pocketed the book.
You have obtained the Book of Death.
"I was a fool, and Deadra was no better. The Undead grew too strong and powerful, too quickly, yet it was meaningless. I broke my word to him and in retaliation, he did the same to me. Pride blinded both of us.
Only when I became an undead did I realise that nothing really matters. Pride, wealth and power all came easy with the might of the Undead. But they all lost meaning to me.
The legion grew strong, powerful but I was empty.
"What about the other abyssal Knights, aren't they family?" Dave asked.
"They too are my Children, all the Undead are, but I still long to see my daughter. Petition Death in Our Name to give me back my own."
"I will," said Dave.
"Now Childe, tell me did you obtain anything of value in the dragon's lair?"
"The treasure was no treasure at all. Not a single item of value, even the gold was enchanted dross. But, I did obtain one item of singular value. A dragon's egg."
"May I see what you took from the dragon's lair?" asked the king.
It was comical as it took Dave long minutes to bring many broken and decorative weapons out and place them before the king.
But the king was patient, waiting for Dave to place all the weapons on the floor and finally bring out the egg.
"Andre," the king called. The huge smith appeared in the hall and swiftly bent the knee to his king, humbly bowing his head..
"You called for your servant, your Majesty?
"Take these items and do your utmost to repair them for our young draugr Death Knight. They were once powerful artifacts but have suffered the depredations of time and the abuse of a brooding dragon."
"It shall be as you command, sire!" The smith gathered all the items and bowed as he left.
The king waved and the egg appeared in his hand.
"As for this, the egg of an Abyssal dragon, dark and foul creatures by their very nature. Considered too vicious and willful to control. But a hatchling if it is branded could become a mount fit for a king...or even a god."
Dave's heart dropped thinking the king was going to take the egg from him.
The king continued, "But it will need an abundance of dark energy to grow, I will place it near the Death Heart in hope that the energies around the stone will hatch the egg sooner. You must be present when the dragonet breaks through its shell so that you can brand it."
Dave was surprised by the generosity of the king.
"Majesty, why?" he asked
"You are my childe," the king said in a warm tone. "Do not worry at it, just accept your sire's largesse. Now go. Bring back my daughter from the grasp of Death,!"
Dave nodded and accepted the Death Challenge, disappearing from the hall.
He reappeared in Death's cave. As always she sat at the edge of the small pond with her legs in the water.
"So, you return," Death said in her emotionless voice.
"Yes. And I brought your book." He held it out to her.
"I thought it would take you many turns of the seasons. How did you obtain it?" she asked as she took the book from Dave.
"I simply asked for it, the Undead King gave it to me to give to you."
Death was surprised but didn't ask more on the subject.
"I can finally go back," she whispered, pleased.
Shaking herself she looked at Dave, "You do not need to continue on with the current challenge, bringing the book is enough!"
Congratulations!
You have successfully completed your challenge.
Your ring has been upgraded.
A new skill has been added to your arsenal.
"Do you still wish to follow the path of the sword?" asked Death.
"I am not much of a magic user, fighting in close quarters has always been my preference, " he answered her.
"So be it, I could have given you the power to raise and control the Dead. But, when all is said and done, if instead you command those that raise the dead the result will be the same. And perhaps even better," said Death.
Your choices have altered your path in the Legacy of Death
The Death Legacy has changed.
The Path of Warrior of Death unlocked.
From now on, even in death, your quest for seeking Death's legacy shall not be nullified.
Dying shall no longer deem you unworthy of ranking in the Undead Legion.
Dying will no longer expel you from the Dead Realm.
Dying in the Dead Realm or the Underworld will no longer affect your quests or the opening of the Undead Expansion.
'THANK GOD! Finally I can die in the game without losing everything.'
Dave heaved a sigh of relief, then he chuckled at the irony of being happy with the prospect of dying.
"Thank you. I have one more thing to ask you."
"What is it?" asked Death.
"The king asked for his daughter back."
"It will be done. I no longer need this avatar.
"You still have two more challenges to complete. Only after you reach the Abyssal Rank of the legion shall you acquire the full Legacy of Death."
A light shone from her and she disappeared from the cave.
His body shimmered and he was back in the Dead Realm, this time he was in front of the gate of the Bone Palace.
"Time to try out my new Death Knight equipment!"