Read lily harper 04.5 - the bladesmith for Free Online

’Twas the only way I imagined I could oppose the Roman threat.”
    “A noble choice,” Persephone offered.
    I did not bother looking at her. “Aye; boot Ah misread the strength o’ the Romans. They were calculatin’ and cunnin’ in their attacks. They saw mah strength an’ mah speed an’ they knew Ah would be ah valuable asset in their fight against the clans of Alba. As I belonged tae one o’ the biggest o’ the clans, the Votadini tribe, an’ mah ooncle was Chieftain, the Romans wanted meh oonder their control.”
    “I remember,” she started as she eyed me narrowly. “I remember you telling me you were the Chieftain of the Votadini?”
    “Aye, fer ah short time Ah was,” I admitted with a brief nod. “An’ Donnchadh was the reason. The strength provided by Donnchadh’s spirit attracted the Romans tae meh. They realized the only way they could attain Votadini land was tae convince meh tae work with them, nae against them. They offered meh the Votadini kingdom. All Ah had tae dae in return was allow them tae slaughter mah kinfolk; which Ah did.”
    “What?! You betrayed your own people?” Persephone asked with a shocked expression that later turned into a smile. “No wonder you were later appointed the position as Master of the Underground City.”
    “Aye, Ah betrayed mah oon clan,” I answered tersely.
    “But what does the tree have to do with any of this?” Persephone asked, her smile no longer resident.
    I exhaled slowly. This was the part of the story that Lily did not know yet. I was uncomfortable. In general, I am not a man who parts with any personal information easily. “Shortly after the Romans massacred mah kinsmen, they soon made their attempts on meh oon life.”
    “But, as an immortal, you couldn’t be killed, correct?” Persephone demanded. “You still carried the spirit of Donnchadh, which made you immortal?”
    “Am Ah tae tell this story? Or do ye prefer tae?” I asked as I speared her with a cross expression.
    She frowned and her lips tightened. “Go on.”
    “Ye were correct, Ah couldnae be killed because o’ Donnchadh. Boot when the Romans attempted tae murder meh, they displaced meh.”
    “Displaced you?” she repeated. “What does that mean?”
    “If ye would allow meh tae finish, mayhap ye would find oot!” I railed at her. As I lost my temper, I sensed the rumblings of Donnchadh stirring within me, growing fiercer as he became more desperate to wield his control over me. This conversation needed to end quickly because I could no longer wait for Persephone to bleed me properly. I feared I was on an expeditious path of losing any sense of containment or control over Donnchadh.
    “Very well,” she grumbled, holding her chin up high. “My apologies.”
    “Ah found mahself in a place Ah didnae recognize,” I started. I breathed in deeply as the rush of unhappy memories suddenly flooded my mind. “Ah later learned that the new place I inhabited was none oother than the Oonderground City. ’Course, ’twas nae called the Oonderground in those days; an’ neither did it appear sooch as it does today. Boot its purpose was the same: tae poonish sinners for all eternity. Despite how unfamiliar the place was tae meh, Ah was immediately announced its king.”
    “With no training, or any kind of orientation whatsoever?” she asked, appearing shocked.
    “Aye,” I said as I nodded. “Nae trainin’. Ah was supplied with ah demon guide, Gerode, who introduced meh tae my role; boot he didnae prepare meh mooch. All I knew was that Ah was now Lord to the Kingdom o’ the Damned.”
    “But you were not technically dead, yourself?”
    “Nae, Ah wasnae. Nor was Ah technically alive either. Had it nae been for Donnchadh, Ah would have died. At least, that is mah belief. Ah dinnae pretend tae know how, or why, Ah became the King of the Oonderground. All I can tell ye is how Ah foond mahself in that wretched position.”
    She nodded. “I find that very fascinating. I