She sighed, although it sounded more like a whinny. “Must I remind you that the spirits warn of the future? There will come a time when the lands here cannot support us. They don’t tell me all, only that the tribes must move. Are you not stallion enough to take the lands of the feeble two-feet?”

  “Think not to bait me, mare. I have no problem taking from our enemy. I will crush the skulls of their children with my own hooves, but I will not seek that for which I have no need. The spirits provide all we need upon these open plains. And you, weaver of magic, should know that just because they are tiny does not mean they are feeble.”

  It was an argument that Apolashi-nari had repeated with numerous chieftains over the past couple of weeks. Most refused to budge now, yet she could see the worry in their eyes. This was just one step in moving them forward. The Master’s plans would come to fruition, but all in his time.

  The sand of the pit was stained with the blood of both fallen and victor. The coppery scent was pleasant to Ajmal. He had fought in the arena when he was a younger bull but had never risen beyond the level of a division champion. Now it was upon him to name the new arena champion, the one deemed the strongest of all the minotaurs.

  Ajmal regretted the loss of Rak’kar. The former champion had been sent out with his quadrian on a mission that was important to the cult. There had been much potential in that one, but Ajmal wondered if perhaps he had overestimated Rak’kar. If he had truly been strong, he would have succeeded. The cult would have controlled the resources of an abandoned dungeon in the Murkwood.

  This would have provided them with wealth and a foothold in enemy territory. More than that, such a dungeon would have been the perfect breeding ground for the creation of an army of monsters. From there they could have swept aside both the moon elves and the soft human nation of Albia.

  Such was not to be, though, and only the weak mourned for what might have been. If there was one thing that Ajmal was not, it was weak. He used the cult for his own purposes and his own power. Some others in the cult believed that Alucien was a god, or at least a being of divine power. Ajmal knew better.

  There was only one god, and his name was Dikastis. Ajmal would become his greatest prophet and sweep all the infidels from Talos. This would become a true holy land for the will of Dikastis, even if he had to kiss a serpent or perhaps a spider to make it so.

  The thought made him grin as he lifted the hand of the new arena champion, Bran’tar, into the air to the loud cheering of the stadium. Yes, he would take care to make better use of this champion. He would become a rallying point in the future.

  Chapter Thirty-Nine

  “What I have lost and what I have gained, equally make up the path of my life.”—Inscription on the gravestone of the first lord of Eris’ Rise.

  Eris’ Rise- David Nelson

  Less than a year had gone by, and Dave couldn’t help but look back on his life. Here he was surrounded by a few close friends and the family he loved. He had regrets about how he had lived his life on Earth. It had taken a trip to a new world to show him the treasures he had before him.

  He equally felt silly for some of the decisions he had made here. The shortcomings in him that had been exposed. But he also saw the growth in himself. All in all, he was content with the man he was becoming and proud of the family that he had.

  So much stood before him left to be done, but he felt for the first time that their position in Eloria was safe, at least for the time being. His son would be returning home, although from the way he talked about that princess, Dave couldn’t rule out a visit to Miromar in the near future.

  Of course, he also had new lands that had to be toured. Duke Dave sounded sorta stupid to him. Duke Nelson was better, but his favorite was Duke Murkwood. Then the added title, Champion of the Realm, wasn’t too shabby even if it hadn’t come with such a great perk. He looked forward to the work, if he was honest. They now were going to have a lot more opportunity to change the lives of people around him, and King Eikhorn seemed a more reasonable sort than Borstein had.

  First, he needed to stabilize his own lands; then he would have to do inspections of the other military units. The Faelorans had fled after hearing that Borstein was deposed, but that didn’t mean they wouldn’t bear watching in the future. There was the new ambassador from the sun elves that they would have to deal with. He was going to be travelling back to Eris’ Rise with them on his way to visit the moon elf Throne.

  Dave wasn’t entirely sure how he felt about that. The ambassador was a bit of a nerd by Elorian standards, a bookworm, if a capable mage. What made him dislike the man was the natural tendency of a father when he saw his daughter too interested in a guy. Back home, Dave probably would have been happy with her picking a nerd over a jock, but now he couldn’t help but be concerned, even if it was a bit of a double standard about Jackson and the princess. He could admit it. Fathers are entitled to be overprotective of their daughters.

  Either way, that was a problem for another day. Now he sat back in a comfortable chair, with Emiri in his lap and a roaring fire in front of them. Their future was just as bright as that, but it would wait for tomorrow. Tonight he would rest.

  Epilogue

  Alucien sat, well, he didn’t really sit. He was still largely incorporeal, so body posture was a different matter altogether. No, he was only halfway formed up. It had taken him more than ten centuries to get to this point, but the progress was moving faster. A decade, maybe two at the most, and he would be back in the flesh.

  For now, he contented himself with watching. He could influence the world in many ways. If push came to shove, he could still gather a huge amount of magical energy to burn an enemy to ash. That, of course, came with a cost, so he contented himself with being a puppeteer.

  He pulled the strings from behind the scenes. Servants such as Seimion were annoying to lose, but he had only been Tier 5 even if he had his little power up trick. In the grand scheme of things little more than a glorified pawn. A pawn who had accomplished much. Astag’naralrion was stirring. Her shackles had been severed. That much at least Seimion had succeeded in. It would take time for the dragon to be fully awake, but one didn’t rush a woman, whether she be human or dragon, to leave before she was truly ready.

  Seimion had also managed to remove another of those from Earth. Alucien had already killed three of them himself. With one sleeping and one hidden from even his sight, that left only the Nelsons in play. Offers had been made to the father and son. They were the first that he would have picked.

  No offer could be made to the mother. She was protected from even his scrying by her connection to the creator. He scoffed. Anyone who placed such reliance was not worthy of his offer, anyway.

  This left the two daughters. Alucien thought of the ways in which he might bring one of them to his side. He contemplated the options. There was time to play with, they were both young, and each had their own hook he might pull on. For the one a love of magic and desire for knowledge, which he could provide like no other. For the other, her connection to the monsters of Eloria.

  A smile crossed his intangible lips. Who knew, perhaps Dave could be eventually swayed. He had been so close. It might only take time, and Alucien knew that when you had eternity, all things come to he who waits.

  ALSO IN THE SERIES

  WATCHER’S TEST

  WATCHER’S QUESTION

  WATCHER’S FATE

  WATCHER’S REPOSE

  FROM THE PUBLISHER

  Thank you for reading Watcher’s Repose, book four of Life In Exile.

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  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  SEAN OSWALD was born on Krypton, Zenn-La, or Planet Vegeta, depending on which one of his kids is asking and what mood he is in. He served in the USMC straight out of high school before going on to obtain a highly useful degree in ancient languages.

  Then, onto the mission field to work at an orphanage in India with his wife and 2.5 kids before returning to the US and surrendering to the dark side. Some say Sith, but his business card reads attorney.

  Now, he lives with his wife and nine (yes, 9) children in central Illinois. Although to be fair, some of the kids are moved out and now he has version 2.0 called grandkids--which are even more fun, despite still having a 4 year old of his own.

  When he isn't serving justice, moving furniture for his wife, or playing with his kids, he is busy trying to force all the stories in his head onto a piece of paper.

  For first looks at new projects and chapter-by-chapter reading, check out my Patreon.

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  The LitRPG Guildmasters

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  LitRPG Guildmasters Titles:

  Altered Realms: Ascension by B.F. Rockriver

  Brightblade by Jez Cajiao

  Ethria: The Pioneer by Aaron Holloway

  Grim Beginnings: The Ashen Plane by Maxwell Farmer

  Primeverse by R.K. Billiau

  Shattered Sword by TJ Reynolds

  Tower of Gates: Hack by Paul Bellow

  Cipher’s Quest by Tim Kaiver

  Watcher's Test by Sean Oswald

  Star Divers by Stephen Landry

 

 

  Sean Oswald, Watcher's Repose: A LitRPG Saga (Life in Exile Book 4)

 

 

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