Chapter 9
Authors Notes for : Ok, a few things before I continue the story. A few of you have questioned why I chose to write a story in Campione when my main character is not the best fit for it. Well all I can say is I didn't. There is a reason it's called RANDOM CHAIN ADVENTURES. It was the result of a random selection by other people and a random roll. You see the challenge is to take what you are given and roll with it. Also if you don't have anything helpful to comment then keep it to yourself. I have found every comment that I have gotten so far to be rather rude. I mean the logical thing if you aren't enjoying a story is just to stop reading. I'll write things the way I want to write them, if that is a problem for you I recommend looking up one of the other hundreds of similar stories and giving them a chance. I recommend Hero of Horror by YJAnon because it's well done.
Back to the story:
It's funny but when a group of dangerous looking men tell you to come with them it's natural to be a little reluctant. However there was a battle raging behind us, I have to look back to hear Horus' swearing and the sound of explosions.
"Who are you?" I asked because I didn't know what to say.
"Look, there is no time for that. Your friend appears to be badly poisoned. You're half frozen, and Set's not going to keep the distraction up much longer. We can shield you from Horus' sight but we have to go now." The man said.
I looked back at my companions for a second. Hercules was breathing hard. Katashi looked from Hercules to me and nodded for me to go ahead. I could still see worry on his face.
"Yeah alright we will go." I responded
The man nodded and pulled out a large fist sized black diamond shaped gem and held it up and uttered a few arcane words.
I could feel the ripples of magic around me. It was a powerful but subtle spell that bent the moon light around us creating a dome of invisibility.
"So what does the Black Circle want with us?" asked Katashi to the man.
I tried not to gasp as I had been informed of them being one of the worst magic organizations we could run into.
The man gave an amused smirk "I see you know of us, well we'll have time to answer questions later but we should move now."
With that he turned and motioned to follow. Soon we were loaded into a nondescript black van with tinted windows.
If I had been more of a smart ass I might have commented this felt more like a kidnapping than a rescue. There was even a mention about blindfolds but the lead guy told them it wouldn't be necessary. Habit I guess.
I was growing concerned about Hercules though he wasn't complaining he was looking pale and sweating. His breathing was heavy. I hoped we got wherever we were going soon so we could get him some help.
Thankfully our drive was rather short but took us to what must have been a more commercial part Cairo.
Soon we were pulling into the huge parking structure attached to a huge hotel and Casino. The casino had multiple towers of glass and steel in a blue and gold color scheme. It overlooked the water. In another time I would have said it was kind of beautiful looking.
We drove through the bottom level of the structure that was attached to the casino. The parking lot was crowded except for one section. I could sense that it had a ward on it preventing others from noticing it. Instead of pulling into a spot though we drove up to the wall and one of the men got out and said a few words and part of the wall disappeared.
We drove inside and there was a hidden parking lot where we pulled in.
We pulled into a parking space and the leader of this group got out and opened the door to the van.
"Follow us." He said simply.
"Wait" I told him.
That surprised everyone but I waited until everyone got out of the car to pull out my small silver key and put it in the lock.
"What's going on?" one of the men with us asked. "I am using one of my Authorities." I told him as I opened the door to my warehouse. "I have something now that we are out of combat that can heal Hercules. No offense but I would rather not be in your debt any further than I have to be." I told him. The man nodded in understanding. One of the other men whistled as he saw the warehouse which was mostly empty. Commenting how useful this would be for smuggling. I stepped in and told them to come on as I led everyone to my med Bay. My med bay was a large cold white room with fluorescent lighting. It was filled to the brim with strange sci-fi looking contraptions like beds and human sized containment tubes that looked vaguely like the Stasis pod I had used for Yuki-chan.
By this point Hercules was coughing up blood. I instinctively went to a Large tube and pressed a button. It opened up and a mask lowered down from the ceiling of the tube. I told him to get in. He grimaced as Katashi helped him into the tube and helped him to hook up the mask. "Relax, the tube is going to fill up with liquid. You may feel a strange tingling in your body but this will help." I told him. He nodded and climbed into the tube which closed and slowly began to fill up with clear liquid as I moved to the side where a holographic display popped up with a holographic keyboard. It wasn't long before the device was in a diagnostic stage.
Thankfully the description was at my level of understanding. He was starting to suffer major organ failure in many organs. A human wouldn't be alive let alone conscious and I suspected even a Heretic God would be on the verge of death if not dead already but Hercules was Hercules and hadn't even complained. I immediately began activating the tube to recover.
According to the description it could heal anything with a pulse which he still qualified as. Soon a cloud of silver flakes filled the tube. I told Hercules to relax as the nanites did their work. He shuddered and twitched but didn't move.
"Any idea how long this is going to take?" asked the man who appeared to be the leader of the group.
I sighed "Look it will take as long as it takes. Things were worse than they looked. He'll be alright, I presume that your bosses would rather him be alive since he was the one who fought Horus to a standstill and would have won the fight had Horus not cheated.
The guy sighed and nodded annoyedly. "Yeah, do what you have to do."
Thankfully the process only took 15 minutes longer before the liquid began to recede down into the floor.
As the tube opened Katashi helped get the mask off and helped him out of it. He seemed slightly steadier on his feet.
"How are you feeling?" I asked him.
He winced slightly, "Better, tired but better."
"Well you're going to live but even taking into account your physiology as a heretic god and a powerful one at that, you're going to need lots of rest, a few days of bed rest at least and you should take it easy for a few weeks. You very nearly died."
He chuckled "Yeah that would be nice but I don't think Horus is going to give us that kind of time-" He began.
"I'll take care of Horus." I told him honestly with more determination than I actually felt.
"Kid, you really think you got a chance against that guy?" he asked.
I sighed "You can't fight and in this state it would be a slaughter. I can at least duplicate your strength and have a few tricks of my own."
He smiled and reached down and patted my head, surprising me. "Alright kiddo, I guess you are about ready to take down your first heretic god." He said.
I heard someone clear their throat and turned to see the leader of the small group that saved us waiting less than patiently.
"Listen touching as all of this is, My Boss is going to have my ass for as late as I am already. I don't want to piss her off any more so can we get going?" It was more a statement rather than a request.
"Sure, let's go." So we were led through the hidden parking lot past similar vans to the one we had been brought in.
We entered the building proper. The strange sense of space warping hit me immediately. I could feel powerful magics abound me as this place was much larger on the inside than it should be.
There was something seedy about this place, maybe it was just my feelings at the moment. We were led to a pair of glass doors. In front of them stood a couple of tough looking men in dark suits carrying high power automatic rifles. When they saw who we were with they nodded at us and opened the doors for us.
Inside was a lobby. There were a half dozen men similarly dressed to those with us that had been having a conversation which grew hushed as we approached. As we walked by I couldn't help but feel them eye us. There was something predatory in their gaze.
This place was… unsettling. There was an ever present scent of cigarette and cigar smoke as well as the smell of less legal drugs in the air. It was pungent and oppressive to my enhanced senses.
We walked past another group of men, one of the men was down on his knees pleading to one of the others for another chance. The man who was being pleaded to struck the man knocking him down and then spit on him, telling the others to get him out of here. Which they quickly did.
Eventually we made it back to a private area. There waiting for us was a very beautiful woman, she had olive skin and Arabic features with long dark hair and deep green eyes. She wore a low cut purple dress that accentuated her impressive curves. She had an eager hungry grin of anticipation as we walked in. I could feel powerful magic from her, magic on a level that was surprising for a mortal. I had no doubt this woman bore divine blood.
"Well I am glad that you finally accepted my invitation. I was going to send someone out to see what was taking so long." She said with only a slight hint of irritation.
"Ah I am sorry Miss Saab. It wasn't our fault they wanted to stop to heal one of their own. I figured it was better to let them than lose a possible asset." The leader of the little group with us immediately said with a hint of fear.
"Ah Khalid, It's not a big problem. Don't worry about it." She said then turned to me and smiled.
"My I must say I had heard the new Campione was a looker but you are simply adorable, certainly something worth waiting for."
I could sense Inari tensing next to me. This could go very badly.
"Ah nice to meet you Miss Saab…" I started to say. I reached out my hand to shake hers.
"Oh please call me Khalilah." She said softly with a grin. Something about this woman made me uncomfortable. She took my hand and instead of shaking it leaned down and kissed it. "Mmm so soft." She practically purred.
I could feel Inari's murderous intent growing. I discreetly reached down and took Inari's hand to calm her.
"Nice to meet you Khalilah." I managed.
"Oh the pleasure is all mine." She said with a grin and I felt the grip on my hand tighten.
I was actually grateful when I felt the huge spike of power from a heretic god almost as powerful as Horus heading our direction.
Soon a man entered dressed in ancient Egyptian garb. He had a white kilt with a golden belt, a golden Egyptian headdress and several golden necklaces, carrying a golden staff with a crescent blade on the top. The most jarring thing about his appearance was his head. It was not a human head. It was animalistic but not easily distinguishable as to what animal it most resembled.
His skull and ears resembled a canine of some sort with diamond shaped ears on the top of his head. However his snout was long and narrow like that of an Aardvarks, ending in a pig-like nose.
At last without a doubt Set had arrived.
He had an air about him. He seemed very pleased with himself and very confident just by his stance. It was strange to see his strange lips drawn back in a grin.
"Ah so you are the strangers who have given my nephew such a hard time." He said amused.
"Ah welcome back, I heard you got to have a bit of fun on your trip out" Commented Khalilah.
Set chuckled "Indeed. I got to play with my Nephew a bit. Sadly I am not at full power or would have happily settled matters between us. Still seeing him flail about in frustration was amusing."
Perhaps it was his myth where he was a murderer and an overall prick but there was something about this man I did not like.
I had known Katashi a bit and already I could pick up that the grin he wore currently was a bit forced as he stepped forward and introduced himself.
"Ah so you are the one gathering heretic gods under your banner. Very interesting, Perhaps we may be able to do business together."
"Perhaps" answered Katashi.
Katashi introduced us in turn. I was actually grateful that he was stepping up as I didn't want to talk.
Then it was my turn for introduction though there was a glimmer in Sets eye when they fell on me.
"Ah so you are the young Campione that got under my nephew's skin. I could not help but notice that you seem to have a talent for copying the powers of others. Is that correct?" he asked.
"Yes." I answered against my better judgement.
"Splendid."
Inwardly I cringed. This was an evil god, I didn't like dealing with him. I hoped I wouldn't have to deal with him much.
Hercules was introduced and interjected "Hey thanks for saving our asses out there."
Set chuckled "Ah think nothing of it, Any chance I get to undermine my dear nephew makes it worthwhile."
"Well, I thank you all for coming, I have seen what you have done against my nephew, It was impressive. However it was also futile as you have undoubtedly noticed." Set began.
"Due to my nephew's Authority any single opponent trying to fight against him is at a grave disadvantage. Under usual circumstances at least. However mine is the authority of Chaos itself. It can make certainty, uncertain." He continued.
"Great so you have a way to break through his Authority." I interjected.
"Yes… or I would, however I was summoned here somewhere incomplete. I am currently missing that Authority… However I happen to have been close enough to sense where it was being kept. I know it is within the headquarters of the Order of the Golden Ankh." He added
"Wait let me cut to the chase. You want us to go, break back into the headquarters of the organization that is currently hunting us and the home turf of the god that is currently hunting us, so we can get back your power so you can help us to fight that god." I couldn't help but reply. My annoyance with being told where to go and what to do was growing.
"You are mostly correct; however I shall aid you by drawing my nephew and his forces away from the headquarters so that you can sneak in with the help of the Black Circle and acquire it."
"And I am sure they will acquire anything else of value they can find there."
Set gave a chuckle and a smile "Most likely."
"And if we do this you are going to help us fight your nephew."
"I was originally going to do so, however I believe it would be better if I taught you how to use it. I believe that between the two of you, you should be more than powerful enough to stop my nephew."
"Actually Hercules is unable to fight right now so it will just be me."
"Oh? That is troubling. Still I believe with my Authority you should be able to defeat him."
…And Should I fail or succeed I am sure that you will be there to finish off the winner to prevent any claim to your rule. I couldn't help but think to myself.
"Ah yes of course, say do you mind if I have a word with my friends for a moment? Thanks." I said as I grabbed Katashi and Inari and pulled them aside before he could say much about it.
Katashi raised an eyebrow and Inari came easily.
"Alright, I know this guy's legend and I am sure he is going to betray us so how are we going to stop that?" I asked.
Katashi sighed and nodded in agreement "I wasn't intending on trusting Set either. Don't worry I will take care of things, can you take care of Horus?" he asked.
"Honestly, I don't know. I mean he was giving Hercules a good fight and Hercules could squish me like a bug. However a lot of that was his Authority, without it I have no idea how I would match up against him."
"Let's not do this then." Said Inari flatly "I don't want Raven picking fights she can't win. Why don't we wait until Hercules is well enough to fight or even call this operation off? I don't want innocent people getting hurt but nothing is gained getting us killed in a fight between two rival heretic gods. This is the backyard of another Campione, this problem will likely take care of itself." She stated.
Her argument was perfectly logical. What was to gain by fighting Horus? There was certainly nothing to be gained by working with Set…
Katashi sighed and nodded, turning to me. "Well I hadn't intended everything to fall on your shoulders and I will understand if you want to pull out now. I can't make you risk your life in a fight you likely can't win." He told me. "Though if by chance you do go through with it I think I can handle Set and the black circle." He informed me.
I nodded and sighed. It would be so easy to walk away… It was the wise thing to do, the right thing even.
"I can't…" I started.
"I can't walk away from this." I stated firmly something in me; something in the core of my being wouldn't let me. I wondered if this was some drawback I had taken but for some reason I just couldn't.
Inari let out a sigh of frustration. "What do you mean you can't?" she tried not to yell.
"I spent a lot of my life running away from my problems. Maybe it makes sense now but I can't run. I don't want to. I have to face this." I told her.
She shook her head and sighed "Fine… we will face it together, no matter what happens I'll be there." I could tell she wasn't happy about it.
Then I felt a strong hand pat me on the back. That surprised me. I looked over to see a grinning Hercules. Who must have wandered over "I think you're finally ready." He told me. "Go get him, kid." I could tell he was proud.
Well I figured… It was finally time to start acting like a Campione.
With that we returned to the gathering. Set didn't seem slightest bit annoyed. I guess he understood he wasn't exactly trustworthy. I had no doubt that if we hadn't chosen to go along with their plans that the Black Circle would have refused to continue to protect us which would have led to a messy confrontation with Horus the moment we tried to leave. In the end maybe we didn't have all that many choices anyways. However, at least I had made a choice. I guess I could take some pride in that.
The plan as it turns out was simple. As Horus and his group were likely out trying to find us, Set would go somewhere that was sparsely populated and challenge Horus. That would draw Horus and his forces. Our group with a small group of the Black Circle would break into the museum at that point. They had specialists at breaking and entering.
Mitsuko, Hercules, Katashi and Yuki would be staying behind… I hoped not as hostages but again we were a bit limited on options.
Khalid, the leader of the group that had come to rescue us would also be leading this operation for the Black Circle. He introduced me to a couple of other tough looking characters. Saif and Rabi, Saif was a tall wiry man with a nose that looked a little crooked like it had been broken a few times. Rabi was a stocky man of average height with a thinning hairline, his dark hair beginning to turn grey. He bore a scar over one eye that made me surprised the eye was still intact. Both men wore dark jackets, shirts and pants.
The two men had small duffel bags with them. I could sense the space warping magic on them. They were much, much larger on the inside.
It wasn't long until it was time to leave.
We piled into a black van and soon were off. It was late at night now. As we left the commercial part of Cairo the road grew darker and my mood grew heavier. I was nervous about breaking into a museum that also served as the headquarters of a magic agency. Then there was the little matter of doing battle with a god. Could I really do this? I wondered to myself. I felt Inari's hand squeeze my shoulder. I guess she could sense my tension.
We parked a few blocks away from the museum. Then there was the waiting. Though my watch said it had been a little over 10 minutes I swore it was closer to an hour. Finally Khalid got a phone call. It was a short one lasting less than a minute.
"Alright, the fight started, time to go." He said starting up the van. I took a deep breath and let it out slowly as we drove off.
We parked a ways away from the Museum. It had been decided that we would use the entrance to the museum Hercules had inadvertently created with Horus' body.
Inari turned into a giant Bird and we climbed on her back and she flew up into the sky. It was long until we were on the roof of the Museum. I wasn't a fan of heights so I was glad when we found the hole and Saif pulled out a rope and succored it by tying it around a pillar.
Saif, Rabi and Khalid all cast a quick spell that made them undetectable by modern surveillance systems. I copied it and cast it on myself and Inari. Then we climbed down the rope and wound up on the floor of the museum.
The Museum was eerie with the lights off. We were surrounded by exhibits of mummified bodies and ancient tablets. It was silent. Saif pulled out a gun and a flashlight and told me to lead the way. The gun made me a bit uneasy honestly. I could sense magic off of it but just to make sure I informed the others if we ran into security guards or cops I would take care of it.
Even if I hadn't been given a tour I think I could have found the entrance to the true headquarters of the order of the golden Ankh by the feel of the magic and the enchantments upon it. I placed a hand on the place I had seen it placed and repeated the words that I had heard Dr. Karim say. As before the wall disappeared again revealing the elevator.
We crowded in and I pushed the button to the bottom floor and for a moment all that greeted us was the hum of the elevator going down and the feeling of motion.
The elevator opened up to a new floor this time. It opened to a short hallway, there was the same carpeting and wood paneling but the Hallway ended abruptly in a heavy metal door. Way with a panel next to it on the wall.
I could hear Saif and Rabi sigh at the same time as we entered. When we reached there it looked like there was an optical scanner, a fingerprint scanner as well as a place to punch in a code.
Khalid asked the two men if they could get past it. Rabi grimaced and said "Eventually but this is going to be a real pain in the ass. We are better off snatching someone from upstairs and using them to get past it or just having her use one of her powers to rip the door off." He said motioning to me.
This was supposed to be a stealth mission somehow I got the distinct sense things were going sideways.
Inari smiled to us "This is a trivial matter for one such as me, do not worry. Just stand back and I shall have this solved in no time." She told us. We backed up for her. She seemed to focus for a moment and then very quickly shrank. She got smaller and smaller and as she did she became more insect-like until soon where she had stood a single tiny black and crawled towards the door. Soon she disappeared under a barely perceptible gap between the floor and the door.
It took a minute or two but soon there was a click from the door and it swung open revealing a rather smug looking Inari "As I thought all that security on one side of the door but nothing on the other."
With that we moved on the hallway split into a T after that a sign on the wall directed one way as a library the other a warehouse.
Without wasting any time they headed to the warehouse section. The door was just a simple door. I guess they figured the heavy steel door at the front was enough to protect them.
The "Warehouse'' as it was called was a large room with display cases and With Shelves along the wall displaying various Magical devices. There were amulets, rings, weapons, etc. All of them had a plaque telling what they were by them. It was very much set out like one would in a museum. There were several empty spots. The spots where items had been taken to be used in their search for us and Set I would imagine.
There was also a door at the back, with a sign denoting dangerous items, with a warning for anyone entering to be careful. Rabi and Saif both opened their duffel bags and immediately began loading them with whatever they could grab. I can't say I was surprised… I was just disappointed.
When Saif and Rabi were satisfied that they had stolen enough, they headed for the door at the back.
"This is where the item we are looking for would be stored" announced Khalid.
I moved up to the door as I could sense magic on it. There were simple spells to trigger an alarm if someone other than a small group of people opened it. I quickly used a spell to dispel the alarm. It wasn't hard.
"Alright it's clear." I told them soon we were in the room. The room itself was large and mostly empty.
Hanging on the wall were two Stone tablets. They were behind thick glass and quite a few spells. Both were so magical it almost hurt to look at. One I could tell that it was an Authority. That was what we were here for. The other I could tell had something sealed in it.
"That's the one we are after." I pointed out the Authority.
"Let's Take both," said Saif pulling out a crowbar. I was about to shout for them to stop but Rabi quickly cast a spell to dispel the spells on the glass in front of the tablet.
"Stop, don't do that you're going to let whatever it is out!" I warned them.
Saif smashed the glass with the sealed tablet behind it. Khalid Stepped in front of me "Relax we are professionals nothing is going to happen." He assured me
From the energy that it was putting out I knew that was a bad idea but before I could say anything Saif reached up with a gloved hand and grabbed it… Then everything went to hell. I guess So much for professionals.
There was a blinding flash of light and everyone except Inari and myself were thrown from their feet.
When I could see again, which was a few seconds later, I saw the tablet glowing brightly and floating in open air. I could feel a wave of malevolence flowing from it as the light began to take form in front of the tablet. It took on a vaguely humanoid shape.
I could hear the 3 men with us swearing and getting to their feet; guns were pulled and aimed at the forming figure.
Soon I could make out the figure forming. It looked humanoid but distorted, emaciated with gray shriveled skin tightly clinging to the bone. It was a tall figure wearing an Egyptian crown of a pharaoh. It wore a Kilt and many golden chains around its neck. It had scars all along its body as if it had been cut apart and sewn back together. It's eyes were sunken and milky white. As soon as it fully materialized it screamed in rage and pain.
Somehow through my Authority I knew its story immediately. This was Osiris the Egyptian god of the dead… or rather it was supposed to be. The golden ankh must have tried to summon him, but something went wrong… terribly wrong. The terrible twisted thing they had summoned was likely too strong for them to kill; they were forced to seal their sin away. Keeping it buried as a terrible secret deep in the bowls of their headquarters.
Gunshots went off to no avail even if this was a twisted and distorted version it was still a god. I Conjured Hunter of Immortals in the shape of a sword and charged forth. Unfortunately Osiris in his rage was quick he charged at the men shooting at him, with a clumsy swing he struck Saif, who went flying. Unfortunately, even clumsy as it was, I could immediately feel the touch of his authority on poor Saif, to touch Osiris in this state was to touch death itself. Even though I saw Saif slowly rising I knew he was no longer alive.
"Get back" I shouted as I ran between the men and the rampaging god swung my sword. Osiris' right hand went flying and he screamed in pain and anger and swung at me in turn with the other arm and stump. I was able to carefully dodge.
I was faster and stronger than him at this point but I knew even the slightest touch or graze could be lethal, or at the very least cause necrosis wherever it touched.
I heard a scream of pain behind me Saif had turned on Rabi and Khalid. From my estimation something terrible had just happened to Rabi.
Osiris attacked me again and again, even though it cost him his other hand and arm he just screamed at me. It was unnerving.
Osiris wasn't very coordinated; he swung at me clumsily and tried to bite at me. I should have had an easier time against him. However there was a ferocity and unpredictability to his attacks that made it difficult to fight him. Still eventually I found an opening. He stumbled slightly after a wild swing and it left his heart wide open. It was an opening. I quickly took plunging hunter of immortals deep inside his heart.
With that he paused and those milky white eyes actually blinked. Then the unexpected happened. His lips drew back in a slight grin of relief and he relaxed.
"At last." He said in a raspy voice. "Thank you Campione for freeing me from this pain. Maybe we can meet again one day when I am in my proper form. I would like to challenge you with my full strength." With that he crumbled to dust.
With that I felt power flowing into me. I gained an Authority called "Lord of the dead." I could revive dead bodies into undead servants. I had truly defeated my first god and this was my prize.
So with that I let out a breath I wasn't even aware I was holding and turned to see the chaos that had happened behind me. I could hear Khalid desperately unloading his gun into a slumping Siaf. With Osiris no longer around he was returning to just be dead. Nothing I could do about that unfortunately. I looked over to see Rabi on the floor clutching his throat which had been ripped out. He too was already dead.
When Saif finally stopped moving Khalid gave a sigh of relief. He looked angry but put away his gun. "Come on, let's get the tablet and get out of here." He said walking up without any further words and pulling the tablet with Set's Authority off the wall. He took both duffel bags off the bodies without much regard for them.
I hadn't known Saif or Rabi that well. They certainly didn't seem like people I wanted to know if I was honest. Still leaving them there in the bowls of an enemy base just didn't sit right with me.
"Ummm what should we do about them?" I asked.
"Leave them; they will only slow us down."
"Just leave them here?"
Khalid sighed in frustration "Pull your head out of your ass girl, we have to escape now. We don't have time to be lugging around a pair of corpses. They knew the risks when they came. Now come on, let's get out of here before we have to fight our way out."
I sighed. It didn't feel right but I couldn't refute his words. So we left. Simple as that.
I don't know what I expected as we were leaving. Maybe a horde of members of the Golden Ankh barring our way or something to that effect but there was nothing… Nothing waited for us, we made it back to the upper level and once we made it up the rope all that greeted us was the open night air. With that we were free… well there was still the little matter of dealing with Horus.