Here is Chapter 11 of Kael Draven: Empire of the Forsaken.
Following the destruction of the bounty squad in Chapter 10, Kael seeks understanding — not of himself, but of the world that dares to fear and hunt him. With Rhel's help, Kael will finally glimpse the scale of the systems moving behind the curtain.
Chapter 11 — Whispers and Warnings
The corpses were burned by dawn.
Not buried. Not left to rot.
Burned.
Kael stood over the pyre, watching smoke spiral into the sky. His armor glinted red in the flickering flames. The war axe leaned against a blackened stone, quiet now, as if satisfied.
Rhel stood a few paces back, a hand over his mouth.
"You really don't take prisoners, do you?"
Kael said nothing.
The dragon, silent beside him, let out a faint growl — not hostile, but unsettled, like it sensed something nearby and didn't like it.
Kael looked up.
"They'll come again. Smarter. Stronger."
Rhel gave a grim nod.
"And sooner than we want."
By midday, Kael had summoned the camp leader — the older woman who'd first allowed him to stay — and asked for something rare in this world:
A map.
They brought one, hand-drawn, frayed at the edges.
Kael crouched by the fire and studied it carefully.
Cities. Rivers. Ruins. Trade routes. Dangerous paths marked with crude skulls. Areas labeled "guild territory," "unclaimed," or worse, "dead zone."
He pointed to a section northeast of their location.
"What's there?"
Rhel leaned in.
"That used to be Kharon's Edge. A city on the cliffside. Stronghold of the Blackscale Guild. But... it's gone."
Kael turned to him.
"Gone?"
"Destroyed. Two winters ago. Something... massive tore through it. Survivors said the sky bled and the sea boiled. Nothing but ruins now."
Kael's gaze narrowed. "Not natural."
"No," Rhel said quietly. "And not forgotten either."
He tapped the map again, near the mountains.
"There's one place that's still open to outsiders. A border city—Varethin. Neutral ground. Not ruled by a single guild. Trade flows through it. Mercenaries. Knowledge."
Kael folded the map.
"I'll go there."
Rhel blinked. "Just like that?"
"I need information. I need to know who's whispering my name to the shadows."
Two Days Later
Varethin rose like a fortress carved from iron and ash.
Its walls weren't beautiful — they were functional, spiked and cold, lined with rusted cannons and gate guards armed with runed spears. A dozen flags flew above the main tower, each representing a faction with interest in the city but none with control.
Kael stood at the edge of the forest line, Rhel beside him.
The dragon remained hidden deep in the hills — too large, too terrifying to bring in openly.
Rhel adjusted his coat nervously.
"You sure you want to walk in dressed like that?"
Kael didn't answer. He was already walking.
The moment he passed through the outer gates, the atmosphere changed.
Heads turned. Conversations stopped.
No one approached him. No one dared. The red skeletal armor. The war axe. The aura of presence. Kael didn't speak, but he didn't have to. People stepped out of his path as if pushed by an invisible force.
Rhel walked a few steps behind, trying to act natural.
"Try not to kill anyone. Yet."
Kael stopped in front of a tavern carved into the side of a stone stairway — The Hollow Fang.
The door creaked open as he stepped inside.
The interior was thick with smoke, iron sconces burning low. Men in armor, women in cloaks, robed mages, drunk sellswords — all packed into corners, some laughing, some sharpening blades.
Until Kael entered.
The silence was instant.
Then the whispers began.
"Is that him?"
"Red armor… the axe…"
"He walked out of the Ashridge alive."
"The Guild of Glass placed a contract. 10,000 gold."
Kael moved to the bar.
The bartender looked like he hadn't blinked since Kael entered.
"What'll it be… sir?"
"Information," Kael said coldly. "Paid with silence."
The man gulped.
He was pointed to a back room — not a trap, but a broker.
A woman sat inside, one leg over the other, scrolls rolled neatly beside her and a dagger hidden under her sleeves.
Eyes sharp. Voice sharper.
"You look like death dressed for a banquet."
Kael sat across from her.
"Tell me why bounty hunters from the Iron Vein came after me."
She raised an eyebrow.
"Straight to it. I like that."
She unfurled a scroll — one stamped with Kael's face, sketched in precise ink. Red armor. Axe. Glowing eyes.
WANTED
Unregistered Entity
Potential Tier 5 Threat
Suspected Origins: Outer Planes
"Care to explain how your name ended up on this list with no history, no guild mark, no city origin?"
Kael didn't move.
"No."
She smirked. "Didn't think so."
She leaned forward, voice quieter now.
"They don't know who you are. That's what terrifies them. Men like you don't just appear. Power like that? No one ignores it."
"The guilds think you're a rogue summon. Maybe a failed godspawn. Maybe an escaped weapon."
Kael's gaze darkened.
"They're wrong."
"Doesn't matter. They believe it. And the Guild of Glass is rallying support. They've already sent scouts to the west to confirm sightings of a red-armored giant with a beast behind him."
Kael stood.
"What does the Guild of Glass want?"
She chuckled.
"Control. What else?"
"And they never like what they can't leash."
Outside, Kael stood on the stone bridge that led deeper into the city. He looked out across the rooftops, the sea of people, and the rising tower in the distance.
The pieces were moving.
Not because of prophecy. Not fate.
Because fear made people desperate.
And soon, they would try again.
End of Chapter 11