Return of the Woodcutter

"You're that desperate to die, huh?" Aito asked.

"Wouldn't you do the same if you've spent hundreds, or possibly a thousand years imprisoned in this place? Waiting for the Tower System to call you outside, and use you to play the part of a monstrous beast? An ancestor to fake orcs. 

"Do you know how much it pains me to appear in that accursed desert, seeing the faces of copies. Of my dead kins. Every time. Every time I come back into my soul realm after that little outing, this desolate place reminds me of one thing. The truth. 

"My people are no more. Dead, all of them. And I can't remember why or how. All I know is that the gods played a part in it. I have this uncontrollable urge to kill them, but I am confined in this place where I cannot even control how I die. I'm only a puppet who has power over nothing.

"So tell me, human warrior. Wouldn't you be desperate to finally put an end to your torment were you in my place?" 

Aito silently agreed, nodding. 

He would have gone crazy a long time ago if he were trapped in this soul realm. Neither dead nor alive. The Khül might be powerful inside his own soul realm or outside, but he was still a slave to the gods. 

"And so, to you, the first true living being I've talked to in a long time. While I understand your reluctance, I want to make another offer," the orc said. "The weapon you used to kill my previous avatar contains a fragment of my original ax, Soulcleaver. Take it.

"In doing so, my soul will accompany you wherever you go. Be it outside or inside the Tower. Once you've acquired the necessary strength to safely kill me. Do it. I've already waited hundreds of years. I can wait a couple more for my suffering to end." 

Aito pondered the offer. It certainly was more enticing than the previous one. The Khül's ax only held a fragment of its original power, but was still dreadful. Aito had planned on taking it for himself, anyway. 

"I know what you're thinking, but I'd advise otherwise. Without my consent, you cannot take the ax," he Khül said. "Don't you wonder why this fake Krugan and that goddess warned you before you mindlessly grabbed my weapon? It's because I can take control of your body right now if I wanted to. It is a soul weapon after all." 

Aito had only briefly heard of those from Gwen. Soul weapons were items literally housing a soul. In doing so, the weapon gained a will of its own and powers no common weapons could have. 

For instance, the weapon could repair itself with time. Stay sharp longer or simply never dull under normal circumstances. 

But the soul within it had to acknowledge the owner and form a pact with him or her. 

"I… see," Aito replied, pondering. He should have known the Khül's ax was a soul weapon and yet did not notice the obvious signs pointing at it. "That certainly changes my plans." 

"And make my new proposition more entic—," the Khül paused, suddenly cocking his head to his left. He peered into nothingness, staring at what looked like a random area to Aito. He looked ready to fight. After a few long seconds, he returned his attention to Aito. "Sorry for interrupting. I thought someone was watching us. *Sigh*, hundreds of years in this place certainly messed up my mind." 

"No shit…," Aito said, eyeing the demolished blurry space.

"So, human warrior. Your answer?" The Khül asked, showing the darkness reaching his neck. "We have little time left." 

There was not enough time for Aito to think things through. At least not for his computing capabilities. He could already see a few issues that needed careful thinking.

If he were to take the ax, the orc's soul would follow him. What guaranteed him that, once outside the Tower, the Khül wouldn't try to steal his body to regain freedom? It was risky. 

But Aito hadn't come this far without taking risks. 

No pain no gain. 

No bet no reward. 

No power no atonement. 

"Moreover," the Khül added. "If you find the missing pieces of my ax, they will be of great help to you. Whatever your goal is, you will need its strength." 

"Ha, and in the process, I'll find your soul fragments," Aito replied. 

"Perhaps yes. Perhaps not. If we near a soul fragment, I'll be able to tell. But I doubt all of them are being kept in soul weapons," the Khül said. "It is more likely that they've already been absorbed. In that case, they are unretrievable." 

"But if, and I say if, we retrieve them. You'll recover your previous powers and memories," Aito said. "Assuming that is the case. Your personality will change, so will your desires. And what guarantees me then that you will not try to overtake me then?" 

"Nothing," the Khül replied plainly but honestly. "Although I'm currently a weapon, if I retrieve my old strength, I will be able to break out of my imprisonment. Then, nothing but your own powers will guarantee your safety. But believe that, as I am right now, I have no desire to harm you. Only the gods are my enemies." 

"Then why—" 

"Too many questions for too little time, human warrior," the Khül interrupted. The darkness had already reached his chin. "I would gladly debate on this topic for hours with you, but my sanity runs thin." 

There was little time left. Soon the orc would go crazy again. Aito had to make a decision and fast or… well, he didn't know. But he didn't want to stay in this place to know what could happen. 

"Let it be now the moment you make your choice," the Khül said, stretching his open palm. "Grab my hand to make a soul pact. Or stay put. Either way, I will send you back amongst the livings." 

Aito reached for the orc's hand and stopped midway, hesitating. There were too many unknown variables. However, the orc had been honest. Aito could see it, feel it in his guts. And so he asked out of nowhere. 

"Can I trust you?" 

The giant orc grinned from ear to ear, the darkness spreading to his pulpy lips as he replied, "No." 

Aito smirked as he grabbed the Khül's huge dark hand, at least twice his own size. A surge of electricity pulsed within his entire soul. Neither painful nor pleasant. 

A moment later, the Khül let got of his hand. Aito stared at his palm where a tattoo depicting an ax had appeared. 

"This is the symbol of our pact," the orc said. "As a soul pact requires a clause, there is, of course, one to ours." 

"Shit… and you only talk about it now?" 

"Kaha, fear not. It is but one. A simple yet sometimes difficult one," the orc leaned on his oversized knee. "Do not show weakness. If I deem you weak, the pact will be broken and I'll fight your soul to the death." 

Aito wanted to say, "you tricked me," but he actually hadn't asked for the details of the pact so in a way, it was his fault. Moreover, there could have been more clauses. 

He sighed. "What do you mean by do not show weakness?" 

The orc smirked, "That will be for me to decide, or more precisely, for my crazed self. It can be anything. From refusing to fight an opponent or simply being picky about food."

"Double shit…," Aito cursed. His life basically would be decided by a crazed orc's whim until he acquired enough strength to defend his soul against an opponent at least at the Awakened level! 

"Ahaha!" The Khül laughed madly for the first time. His sonorous voice echoing into the void. "Fear not. Although I will be crazed, I'm not unreasonable. As long as you prove worthy—as I'm sure you will—there'll be no trouble. Hum it is almost time. If you have one last question, ask now." 

The darkness suddenly recovered the orc's mouth entirely, almost reaching his nose. 

Aito chuckled. He's been had, but somehow, he didn't feel so bad about it. There were clauses to every soul pact. He could have ended up with a worse one.

Also, he started to like the Khül's honest behavior. It was refreshing.

A thought struck him. He had been talking to him for a while, but Aito realized now he did not know the orc's real name, only his title. 

"Do you remember your name?" Aito asked. "Or you're too messed up to even recall that?" 

The orc chuckled. "Humans and orcs gave me many names, titles. The Destroyer. The Khül. The Storm. But I'd appreciate you call me, Urük. As my esteemed father and mother named me." 

Aito nodded. "Sure, Urük. I'll remember it." A halo of light engulfed him as a sincere smile curved up the Khül's lips.

"One last piece of advice, human. Be mindful of when you wield me. It can impact your bloodlust in a negative way. Increasing it beyond normal," Urük declared. "But I'm sure you'll be able to resist it with your willpower. As long as you don't invite it, all will be fine." 

"Wait… What do you mean—" 

Aito was sucked in by the light that called him back to the world of the living. 

"Let's meet again, human warrior," Urük said, the darkness recovering him entirely. A few moments passed as he stayed still. Then suddenly, he started thrashing around, destroying everything in his path.

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