Boneville Explorer's Society dig site four, Yadrek Crater, Norga Province
April 2496, Thirty Years Ago
The cold air danced across Henry Bone's skin as he stepped out of the truck, his boots sinking into the snow covering the ground.
"So this is the infamous Yadrek Crater dad won't shut up about?" Henry said to himself. In front of him was a large circular indentation, more than a mile across but only a dozen feet deep. The rim sloped upward sharply on the far side where it met the sides of the Yadrek mountain range.
"Amazing, isn't it?" Harrison Bone asked as he approached Henry from behind. "How elegantly it defies all explanation."
"That's what you're opening with?" Henry said as he turned to face his father. "You're not even going to try explain why you haven't been returning my calls?"
"I've been busy."
"Busy enough that you needed my help? I find that very hard to believe."
"Actually, it's more of an issue with my crew."
"Your new assistant not living up to your standards?" Henry nodded at the woman exiting the driver's side of the truck who had picked him up at the train station.
"Janet?" Harrison asked. "No, she's more capable than I am. The problem is Percival. His kid brother Norman got in a car crash last week. As soon as we got word, he left for Boneville General Hospital. So until he gets back, I need a replacement."
"What about Mary? Or Liz? "
"Elizabeth hasn't worked in the field since she was pregnant with Francis. She runs our accounting department now. And Mary and I… aren't exactly on speaking terms at the moment."
"Come again?"
"She and I got in a fight a few months ago over how I run the Society. Shortly after, she transferred to Keegan's team in the desert and hasn't spoken to me since."
"So, what, I'm your fallback guy? The one you call in case you couldn't find anyone else? Typical."
"Oh, don't be so negative. This is a once in a lifetime opportunity."
"Sir, we should get going." Janet said as she approached the pair from behind.
"I suppose we should." Harrison replied. "Come on, Henry. Let's get you settled in." Harrison and Janet turned and began walking toward a small cluster of tents several yards away. Henry followed close behind.
"Now, the camp may look small," Harrison said over his shoulder.
"Because it is." Janet said, looking straight ahead.
"Regardless, I'm sure you'll find the accommodations more than satisfactory. Now, over here is what I suppose is the mess hall." Henry motioned toward the largest tent in the center of the camp.
"Dad, what are we doing here?" Henry asked.
"Would you rather we just go straight to your tent?"
"No, I mean what are we doing excavating a shallow crater in the middle of nowhere? I know you had some sort of "experience" here when you first formed the Society, but what do you hope to find by poking around the rubble two decades later?"
"It was more than a simple experience." Harrison turned to look at the crater. He pulled an old amulet from his coat pocket and idly turned it over in his hand. "Something happened to me that I cannot explain."
"It was an earthquake."
"Was it? What happened here wasn't natural, you can tell just by looking at it."
"Seismometers measured a magnitude 6.3 seismic event."
"Yes, something was measured. But the closest fault line is over two hundred miles away, and it didn't move an inch that day. There was no earthquake."
"Then enlighten me. If there was no earthquake, how did the mountain collapse?"
"I don't know." Harrison turned back to face his son. "Try as I might, I have no explanation. Which is why this dig is so important. I have to know what really happened here."
"Sir!" Janet shouted, standing on the edge of the crater. "The anomaly is back! We need to move quickly!"
"Grab the gear and meet us there!" Harrison shouted back, stuffing the amulet back into his pocket. As Janet ducked into one of the tents, Harrison ran into the crater. "Henry, follow me!" He shouted behind him. Henry reluctantly did as he was told.
"So, what's this anomaly?" Henry asked as he caught up with his father.
"That." Harrison stopped and pointed at a large cloud of white gas seeping up from the ground.
"A steam vent?"
"That would be an interesting find," Harrison said as Janet caught up to them with two men Henry hadn't met yet in tow, both carrying strange scientific implements.
"And certainly more helpful than this thing." Janet pointed at the gas cloud as the three of them approached it and began setting placing the various devices around the gas cloud.
"But this isn't a steam vent." Harrison said as Janet and the others backed away from the cloud. "This is perhaps the greatest geological mystery of this entire crater. It appears at random intervals, in random places, seemingly unprovoked, pulls itself back into the ground despite being a gas, and is comprised of the strangest substance I've ever had the pleasure of examining. The gas is entirely organic, at least on the surface. From the samples we've gathered, we can assume the individual particles behave like cells. But I had a lab at Boneville University analyze them under an electron microscope, and it turns out these "cells" are made of solid crystal structures mimicking organic functions. Technically speaking, they're as alive as you and me, and yet contain no organic compounds. Once we know where they're coming from, we can study them in greater depth. But right now, this setup will have to do."
"Living crystal…" Henry muttered to himself. He walked up to the cloud.
"Wait, don't!" Harrison shouted as Henry stretched out his hand to touch the cloud. As his hand entered the strange gas, he heard a voice in his head.
"And since you two are the only souls around, you'll have to do." It said, as if whoever was speaking was right in front of him. He stumbled back, lost his balance, and fell to the ground.
"Are you alright?" Harrison asked as he and Janet helped Henry up. "What happened?"
"Did none of you hear that?"
"Hear what?" Janet asked. Before Henry could respond, the gas abruptly sucked back into the ground. Then the ground began to buckle underneath them. They tried to run, but the ground quickly collapsed in a burst of rock and dust. The three were sucked into the resulting hole.
"Sir!" One of the two hired hands shouted as they both ran to the edge of the hole. He turned to his counterpart. "We have to call Keegan."
"No, we've got to call the boss." The other one responded. "Tell him the Betrayer could be on the move."
"Jigafta, we can't just let these people die."
"They're a cover, Utenki. Nothing more. Now let's get going."
"Wait!" Utenki shouted. The dust had begun clearing, and through it he could see the outline of a Bone standing up in the midst of the cloud. "Someone's still alive!" He ran to help them. Jigafta reluctantly followed him.
"That isn't a person." Jigafta said as they reached the thing standing in the middle of where the anomaly used to be. It had the basic shape and features of a normal Bone, but was made of a black semi-solid substance, which dripped from the creature in large globules. Jigafta drew a knife from his belt and held it in front of him. His hands shook.
"What is that thing?" Utenki asked.
"You idiot!" Jigafta snapped back. "That's the Betrayer! We need to get out of here now!" Instantly, his partner unholstered his revolver. The creature cocked its head to one side, observing the two Bones. Then, without warning, it rushed forward faster than either man could register and grabbed them by their foreheads.
Both men screamed and convulsed as the creature began stripping them of their memories. With all his remaining effort, Jigafta raised the knife to his throat and slit it, killing himself. Utenki in turn put a bullet in his own temple.
Disappointed, the creature dropped the two bodies to the ground. It then shuddered for a moment while its skin took on the appearance of a normal Bone's. He then walked off into the distance.
"Jigafta… Utenki…" He muttered to himself. "I suppose it'll have to do. At least until I can find Deyavara. And figure out what the hell he's been up to."
Below ground, Henry Bone stirred awake as water slowly lapped at his face. After the ringing in his ears stopped, he pulled himself up and took a look at his surroundings. He was on the shore of a massive underground lake. Toward the center of the cavern's ceiling sat the hole he and the others had fallen through. Through it he could just barely make out the night sky.
"How long have I been out?" He muttered to himself. As he stared at the cavern's ceiling, he saw something stir in the corner of his eye. He flinched, and instinctively moved his hands to protect his face.
"Oh calm down." Henry heard a raspy, barely audible voice say. "I'm not going to bite or anything." Henry lowered his hands. Lying on the ground a few feet away from him was his father's assistant, struggling to her feet.
"It's… Janet, right?" He asked as he offered her a helping hand. Grabbing it, she pulled herself off the ground. "Would you mind telling me what the hell happened?"
"Your guess is as good as mine." She talked as she brushed sand off of herself. "But I think we can safely assume that whatever happened, it was your fault."
"My fault? What did I do?"
"You made direct contact with an unknown, extremely volatile substance that collapsed a section of the ground into an underground lake, destroying months of your father's work in the process."
"Point taken. Speaking of my father, where do you think he ended up?" Henry surveyed the lakeshore for any sign of his father.
"I don't see him." Janet began looking around as well. She spotted a red smear on the ground leading away from the shore and into the entrance of a smaller cave. "This can't be good." She ran to the trail, Henry following closely behind. When she reached the trail, she bent down to examine it. "It's definitely blood." She announced aloud. "Relatively fresh too. A few hours old at most."
"Dad…" Henry muttered under his breath. He immediately took off running, following the trail into the rest of the cave system.
"Wait!" Janet shouted as she ran after him. "Don't just run off!" She caught up to him and in the tunnel and grabbed his arm. "You don't know what's at the end of this trail."
"My father is hurt! He could be dying!" He wrenched out of her grasp and continued running. "I'm not going to waste my time debating the issue!" Henry shouted behind him as he approached a corner. Janet was quick to go after him again. As Henry rounded the corner, the tunnel suddenly opened up into another large cavern. The floor, however, abruptly dropped off three feet in front of the entrance. Past the drop off, a massive ravine stretched in either direction. When Henry came barreling around the corner, his momentum nearly threw him into the ravine. Janet caught up to him just in time to catch his arm and pull him back onto the ledge.
"What'd I tell you?" Janet asked as they both recovered, panting. "I knew we'd run into something like this. And yet, despite my warnings, you just had to rush ahead and nearly kill yourself."
"I promise to be more careful in the future." Henry said. He noticed that the trail of blood hugged the wall and followed a narrow path along the edge of the ravine until it took a turn, where another platform opened up, leading to yet another tunnel.
"This is the strangest cavern I've ever seen." Janet said as she eyed up the ravine. "The tunnels leading here didn't look the slightest bit natural, and now we've got… this." She motioned to the platform the trail of blood led to. As she did so, Henry started walking along the edge of the ravine, continuing to follow the trail.
"Are you insane?!" Janet shouted. "What happened to being careful?"
"I'm watching my step." Henry replied. "But we won't find out what happened to my dad, or why he dragged himself along the edge of a ravine with an open wound, if we don't keep moving forward." Reluctantly, Janet followed him.
"What made you decide to work for the Society?" Henry asked after a period of prolonged silence.
"I'm not sure this is the best time for this conversation, considering..." Janet replied, looking over the edge of the ravine.
"We'll be fine. It's not like we have much else to do but keep moving forward anyway."
"If you must know," Jane sighed, "I've always had a passion for discovery. Your father took me under his wing my sophomore year at Boneville University and helped me turn that passion into a career. I've been his shadow ever since, though I think he prefers the term protégé. What about you? What got you into this business?"
"Family." Henry shook his head. "My siblings and I were all raised on the tales of dad's many adventures out in the field. Exploring caves. Discovering lost civilizations. Dad evangelized this line of work like his life depended on it. My two sisters both joined up as soon as they could. But me… I never really took to it. I got a degree in financial engineering, and I had intended to break ties with the family business entirely. But the only job I could find was as a financial analyst for the Society's parent company. Ironic, huh?"
"Wait, you're a financial analyst? What are you doing here then?"
"I used to be. I quit a couple of years ago. Now I mostly just help wherever I'm needed around the Society."
"Must be pretty boring."
"It's not the worst job in the world. It's leagues better than sitting at a desk staring at numbers all day." The two of them reached the far platform. "And besides-" Henry was cut short by a groan coming from the tunnel in front of them. Immediately, they both ran to see who or what had made the sound.
Just inside the tunnel lay Harrison. He was sprawled out on the ground, bleeding slowly from a poorly bandaged gash on his leg. He was flickering in and out of conscious. He could barely move as Henry and Janet rushed to his side.
"Dad, what happened to you?" Henry asked as he ripped a strip of cloth from his coat and rebandaged Harrison's wound. "What were you thinking?" As henry worked, Harrison grabbed his arm.
"I found the truth." Harrison's eyes were wide with fear. "When you set off that explosion, it all came rushing back. What really happened to me that day..."
"Janet, come help me with this." Henry motioned to his father's leg. Janet crouched down and began applying pressure to the gash. Henry turned back to his father. "Dad, you've lost way too much blood."
"That's not important." Harrison coughed. He drew the amulet from his coat pocket and pressed it into his son's hand. "This is. I meant to give it to you long ago but… I felt I needed to hold onto it. Now I know why. One day, someone will come for this amulet. You have to keep it safe until he returns."
"He's clearly delirious." Janet said as she stood up, the wound as bandaged as the two of them could make it. "If we don't get him back to camp, he's going to die."
"Right." Henry lifted his father onto his back and the three of them set off further down the passageway. "What possessed you to run all the way out here anyway?"
"Followed… The… Golden…" Harrison fell unconscious again.
"Well, that's great." Janet said. "I was hoping he knew some way out of here. Any ideas?"
"Follow the golden…" Henry muttered. Suddenly, he saw a golden light out of the corner of his eye. He looked around frantically, and thought he saw something move down a corridor to their right.
"What is it?" Janet asked, looking around. "Did you spot something?"
"I think this is the way out." Henry pointed down the corridor.
"How can you tell?"
"I've got a hunch. Besides, what options do we really have at this point?" Henry started down the passageway. With a sigh, Janet followed after him. The two walked in silence as the cave in front of them began to curve upward until they saw the stars twinkling above their heads.
As they emerged from the exit into rolling foothills, Henry saw yet more movement out of the corner of his eye. As he looked, he could just barely make out the tail of some golden glowing creature dart behind some nearby rocks. Henry instantly ran over to investigate, but when he looked around, there was nothing in sight.
"Are you sure you didn't hit your head during the fall?" Janet asked.
"No, I'm fine." Henry shook his head. "Where do you suppose we are?"
"We're obviously still in the Yadrek Mountains. Which means camp can't be too far off." She scanned up and down the mountain range. "Ah, there it is." She pointed at a cluster of small lights almost a mile away. "We'd better get going before your father's condition worsens."
She and Henry, still carrying his father on his back, began their hastened trek toward the camp. As they left, a glowing fox slipped quietly back into the cave.
FIC Headquarters, Argus City
May 2499, Twenty-seven years ago
X'lish and Nibet sat outside the Director of the FIC's office, flanked on both sides by bodyguards. They had been there for over an hour. During that hour, the hallway was almost entirely quiet, save for X'lish tapping her foot on the ground from time to time. She didn't usually mind waiting, but Viprus dodging her questions the entire helicopter ride had made her particularly anxious for some straight answers. The handcuffs still strapped to her wrists didn't help either.
"Would you stop that?" Nibet asked as her sister put her foot down again.
"I'm just trying to pass the time." X'lish sat back.
"Pass the time?" Nibet scoffed. "We're sitting here, awaiting judgement in the stronghold of our greatest enemy, and you're tapping your foot like a three year old? I guess I shouldn't have expected anything less."
"What is that supposed to mean?" X'lish asked as she stood up. The guards in the hallway drew their guns.
"You know damn well what I meant." Nibet rose to meet her sister eye to eye. "You're a two-bit traitor, and in your folly you've dragged me down with you."
As Nibet spoke, X'lish slammed her knee into her sister's gut. Nibet caught it. Slamming X'lish's leg to the ground, Nibet pivoted over it and swung a kick at her sister's head. X'lish blocked the foot inches from her face and jumped, carrying both her and her sister into the air. Nibet brought her feet around underneath her and landed in a firm stance as the two began their descent. Still griping hard on X'lish's knee, she flipped her sister over and tried to smash her into the ground.
Suddenly, the doors to the office opened. Viprus rushed out first, grabbing Nibet and yanking her off of her sister. Then Faldr emerged, catching X'lish as she fell.
"You know, I'm beginning to think your sister likes fighting handcuffed." He remarked as X'lish got back on her feet and the guards re-holstered their weapons.
"You!" Nibet shouted at Faldr as she attempted to tear herself from Viprus's grasp. "Mock me again and I smash your teeth in!"
"Control yourself, Nibet." Viprus said as he struggled against her thrashing.
"Control myself?" She turned to face him. "This man is the enemy? Why have you not struck him down yet?"
"Because he is not my enemy. And he is not your enemy, either. The Order is."
"Have you two gone insane?" She finally broke free from his hold. "Did you both forget that we swore to protect our way of life?"
"There's nothing to protect!" Viprus shouted. "The Order lied to us. It's a criminal organization."
"What?" Nibet asked, lowering her guard.
"Drug trafficking." Faldr interrupted. "Arms dealing. The black market. The flesh trade. Extortion. Corruption. Even tax evasion. Name a crime committed in the last ten years, and chances are the Order helped commit it. Despite what you've been told, it isn't some bastion of justice standing valiantly against the forces of oppression. It is a plague, a disease that festers in this country's wounds. And it needs to be stopped, by any means necessary."
"Such a rousing speech." Daniel clapped as he walked out of the director's office. "And with perfect timing, too. Despite the scene your guests made, and the PR nightmare your stun yesterday caused, the Director has approved your request." Daniel walked up to Faldr. "Now go out there and get some results." He walked off down a nearby corridor.
"Who was that?" X'lish asked.
"My handler." Faldr sighed. "Anyway, now that the Director's approved your stay, we can begin the debrief." He and Viprus began walking in another direction. The guards motioned for X'lish and Nibet to follow.
"Debrief?" Nibet asked as the four of them, plus their escort, entered a dimly lit room where the other two agents from the raid on the fort were waiting."
"I'm not going to ask you to take it on faith that everything you know is a lie." Faldr said as he walked up to one of the various screens around the room. "Luckily, I don't have to. I have proof." He pressed a few buttons and a large array of electronic documents popped up on the screen.
"What are these?" X'lish asked as she and her sister examined them.
"Sales records. Accounting ledgers. Shipping manifests. All for highly illegal activities. There's enough evidence there to put half of New Taebid's criminal underground behind bars for good. And it doesn't stop there. We've located over a dozen criminal networks across the country using this evidence."
"What does this have to do with the Order?" Nibet asked.
"We pulled all this from the Ryonia Corporation's central databanks during our raid seven months ago. She coordinated and funded these networks."
"You can't prove the Order was involved in any of this!" Nibet shouted, tearing herself away from the screen.
"That's what I thought too. And then Viprus brought us these." Faldr pressed another button and a new set of documents appeared on screen. "Transcriptions of so-called "council meetings" between Lady Ryonia, Senator Holdsten, General Haenkos, and several other individuals. You probably know them as the Order's governing body. Now every meeting the Lady Ryonia would make a financial report, detailing the profits her various criminal organizations had made for the Order. There's some… pretty damning evidence in there." Faldr paused to let Nibet and X'lish read through the transcripts. As she read, Nibet began to shake.
"They're fake." She spat. "They have to be." Viprus put his hand on her shoulder.
"I pulled these from the Vanguard's archives." He said. "They're real." Nibet slumped to her knees and began crying. After a minute, she stood up next to her sister and dried her eyes.
"Alright, let's say we believe you." X'lish said. "What do you want from us?"
"Your help." The other man in the room, Victor, spoke up for the first time. "We've hit a dead end. The Order, despite its less than stellar security measures, has managed to cover its tracks. We don't know where its headquarters is. It's not noted anywhere on the files we've managed to recover, and they keep their Vanguard in the dark about its exact location too, so none of you will be able to tell us either. So the only other option left is to break back into the fort, access General Haenkos's private logs, and hope we find a clue there."
"Why not just interrogate him directly?"
"We have been. For the past few hours. But neither he nor the Senator have given us anything. So, until we can crack them, the fort is our only option. And since it'll more than likely be under Vanguard protection, we thought having a few Vanguard of our own would prove useful."
"I know none of this can be easy for you to hear." Faldr began again. "But we need all the agents we can get our hands on. Will you help us?"
"Yeah." X'lish said, without a moment's hesitation. "I was planning on ditching the Order anyway. Honestly all this doesn't really surprise me."
"I'll help too." Said her sister. "Now, don't get me wrong. I still don't believe you. Entirely. But, if you're right, then I want to see this hard evidence for myself. So I'll help you get it. After that, though, I'm done."
"That's good enough for me." Faldr beamed. "Now that you two are officially part of the team, introductions are in order. Now, I already know your names, but not everyone does. If you would be so kind…"
"I'm Nibet Trenya."
"X'lish Trenya."
"Thank goodness." Faldr breathed a sigh of relief. "For a second I thought I had you two confused. My name is Faldr Milzaek. You already know Viprus. The other two are Specialist Victor Bone and Lieutenant Satranik Haenkos."
"Haenkos?" X'lish asked.
"Yup." Satranik responded. "The general is my father."
"Isn't that sort of a conflict of interests?"
"She actually joined because of her father." Victor said. "Faldr asked me to find trustworthy individuals to help us in the fort raid. She was at the top of the list. Signed on without any hesitation."
"My parents separated before I was born." Satranik said. "After my mom died, I joined the military to get close to my father, figure out what kind of a person he was. I didn't like what I found. So I've got no qualms about bringing him in."
"Oh!" Nibet piped up suddenly. "I don't know why I only just now thought of this. Do you know Selthash Haenkos?" Satranik tensed up.
"Where did you hear that name?" She asked. Her fist clenched.
"He's a member of our Vanguard team." X'lish interjected. "Do you know him?"
"Sort of." Satranik sighed. "If you'll excuse me, I'm going to go have a talk with my father." She left the room as quick as she could.
"Ok…" Faldr rubbed his hands together. "On that note, I'll show you two where you'll be staying for the time being." He and Viprus left the room. X'lish and Nibet followed after them.
"So, Faldr." X'lish said as she caught up with him. "Do you mind if I ask you a question?"
"Not at all."
"How did the FIC manage to turn Viprus to your side?"
"We didn't. He came to us. Said he could offer us some intel, in exchange for our help. He's the one who got us the recording of the Senator and Kelkaid Nagratek."
"You know about the High Lord?"
"Viprus told us as much as he knew. Though it's not been very helpful. This Kelkaid figure is a ghost. He's managed to stay in the shadow of the Order his whole life. He's got no records, and all the information we've gathered on him since is flimsy second-hand reports from less that reputable sources. If there's anything you could tell us, I'd appreciate it."
"I wish there was. We lived our whole lives inside an academy for assassins. We barely know anything about the organization we were raised to defend."
"Yeah, Viprus said pretty much the same thing. I just hope you're telling the truth."
"I don't owe the Order anything. I've been planning to run away for weeks now. Why would I keep anything from you?"
"I suppose you're right. You're sure there isn't anything more you can tell me about him?"
"Well, I do know he's the only man my father, the head of the Vanguard, has ever feared."
"Your father?" Faldr asked. "Viprus never mentioned who the Vanguard leader was. What's his name?"
"Tagyr Trenya." Faldr stopped for a moment.
"Tagyr, huh?" He muttered to himself. "That's not a name you hear every day."
"Is everything alright?" X'lish asked.
"Yeah." Faldr nodded, resuming his walk. Just then, he caught sight of a familiar face down the hallway to his right. "Actually, I've got to go take care of something real quick. You two just keep following Viprus. I'll be done in a minute." He ducked down the corridor. After the others had left, Jigafta Utenki stepped out of the shadows behind him.
"I just finished speaking with Daniel." Jigafta said. "I'm actually rather impressed. In seven months you managed hurt the Order more than I could in two years. Even though I'd chalking most of your progress up to good timing, you've still done a fantastic job without me around."
"What are you doing here? I thought you'd wandered off for good."
"I told you, I just had to take care of something."
"You've been gone for seven months."
"Admittedly, it did take a little bit longer than I had anticipated. But that's not important. You've got some prisoners that need cracking, and I need to get back into the swing of things. Let's walk and talk." Jigaft and Faldr left the corridor for the interrogation rooms. "While you've been busy running the show, I managed to grab us an ace in the hole behind the scenes."
"An ace? How do you mean?"
"I recently learned that the Order has been funding a group of archaeologists called the Boneville Explorer's Society from behind the scenes."
"I'll have Victor look into it."
"You can try, but I doubt you'll find much in the way of a paper trail. These guys are thorough. I did find something, however. Two archaeologists in a tight spot that now owe me a favor. I'm meeting up with them in the near future to get some intel. With any luck, they'll be able to find out where the Order's base is."
"It's in a big city skyscraper somewhere east of Argus City and north of New Taebid."
"How do you figure?"
"I've got my own ace in the hole. A former Vanguard named Viprus. He managed to pin that much down during the rides to and from his missions for the Order, before we had to blow his cover."
"From what I hear, he isn't the only Vanguard you've recruited. I guess you really took a liking to those twin sisters from the Ryonia building."
"Are you going to actually tell me why you left, or just keep dancing around the point forever?"
"I was investigating your family." Jigafta said. Faldr crossed his arms. "I'm kidding, I'm kidding. Mostly. Why I left isn't your concern."
"I know you enjoy playing the whole 'spy mind game' bit, but my team doesn't work that way. You need to start being honest with me."
"Don't push your luck. Or do I have to ask you about what happened to your father?" Faldr didn't respond. "I thought not. Anyway, enough bickering. We're here." The pair stood in front of a large steel door. Inside, they heard shouting.
"You know, I thought mom left you because you were an asshole!" Satranik shouted at her father, who was handcuffed to a desk in front of her. "That made sense! So imagine my surprise when I found out that she left you because you gave my older brother to a cult so they could raise him as an assassin!"
"Satranik, you have to understand." He responded. "If I didn't comply, they would have hurt your mother. Perhaps even killed her. And they would have taken Selthash by force anyway. I did what I had to do."
"And that's supposed to make what you did right? That's supposed to justify keeping this from me for years?"
"I don't expect you to understand everything right away, but please trust me when I tell you I sacrificed what I did for the greater good. I wanted to tell you about the Order, but I didn't think you were ready."
"Well, you were right about one thing." She sighed as she stepped back from the table. Just then, the door swung open, and Faldr and Jigafta entered the room.
"Hey Satranik, how's the interrogation coming?" Faldr asked.
"Slowly. Who's this guy?" She asked, pointing at Jigafta.
"He's… my… boss, for lack of a better word. He's the one who started this whole thing."
"Betrayer!" General Haenkos blurted out as his eyes locked with Jigafta's. He jumped up out of his chair and grabbed Satranik's sidearm. He placed the barrel against his head. "I won't let you!" He screamed. He pulled the trigger, splattering his brains against the wall next to him.
"I'm really starting to get tired of that." Jigafta said as he walked up to the general's body.
"What the fuck was that?!" Satranik shouted.
"I've been hunting the Order for years. Now that we're getting close to exposing them, they've ordered all their members to commit suicide should they run into me. It started happening a few months ago, once I caught onto their trail at the Explorer's Society. I didn't think their higher ups would have the balls to follow through though. Perhaps the Senator will be more willing to cooperate." Jigafta swiftly left the room.
"Are you going to be alright?" Faldr asked Satranik as she leaned against the wall.
"I don't know. I hated him, but I sure as hell wasn't prepared to see him kill himself."
"Did he tell you anything?"
"Nothing that will help the investigation, but I got what I wanted to know at least." She straightened herself up. "I'm going to go find someone to clean this mess up." She left the room just as Jigafta re-entered it.
"What happened with the Senator?" Faldr asked.
"No dice." Jigafta sighed, pushing the general's body out of the chair and taking his place. "He must've heard the gunshot because he beat his head in against the desk before I got there. It looks like the fort may be our last option after all."
"This is not how I pictured this day going." Faldr closed the door and sat down opposite Jigafta. "So, now that Satranik is gone, would you mind telling me why your mere presence caused two perfectly rational men to kill themselves?"
"I suppose I have a… reputation for making people talk. Like Graham. Or Lady Ryonia. I can extract pretty much all the secrets someone tried to hide from me. I guess the Order finally wised up, because I haven't been able to get my hands on a living member of the Order for months."
"It still doesn't add up. How do they know it's you if you've never left any witnesses?"
"It's probably the presence I exude. I am a terrifying individual, after all."
"Bullshit. I think you used to work for them."
"Well that came out of left field."
"No it didn't. He called you 'betrayer'. He knew who you were. Now, if you didn't work for them, you tell me how those two things fit together."
"I've got to hand it to you." Jigafta said as he stood up. "You've fairly observant. But you've missed the mark by a mile. I didn't used to work for the Order. But I do know who founded it. My brother. We used to be close, but after his wife died we had a falling out. Twenty years ago, he managed to get the better of me. He left me for dead in the snow of the Yadrek Mountains, and went on to create the Order thinking I was just a distant memory. I've made it my life's mission to make him regret that mistake."
"Are you kidding me?" Faldr stood up, knocking his chair aside. "I've spent the last seven months of my life trying to follow your crusade, and the whole time it's been nothing more than a petty sibling rivalry?"
"It's much more than a mere rivalry. My brother endangered this whole country when he founded the Order. And while I want to see him pay for what he did to me, I'm bringing him down because it's the only way to protect the people of this country from ruin. Now you now my secret. It's time you told me yours. Just who are you?"
"I guess it's only fair." Faldr took a deep breath. "My father was Virnakt Milzaek, one of the most skilled assassins to walk the face of the earth. And, based on the information I've gathered over the last seven months, I think he worked for the Order."
Atheia, the royal palace
May 2499, Twenty-seven years ago
Brian Harvester paced furiously in her room. As fast as she could, at any rate, being an eighty year old woman. Ever since the Locust had aged her into an old woman on the night the Great War began twenty-two years ago, she had been largely confined to the palace. Which suited her fine. Rose was under the impression that she had turned her back on the Locust, and no one else knew of her involvement with Balsaad. She was left to do as she pleased, which mostly consisted of secretly coordinating the rat creatures' efforts from within the city walls.
She was content to bide her time in the palace, playing the doddering old fool until the time came to free her master. That was until Lunaria was named Queen. Then she became restless. Her time was running out. Soon a suitable partner would appear for her. And she would grant her master freedom.
Such thoughts whirred around in her head as she contemplated her next move. Suddenly she heard someone approach her from behind.
"Go away." She rasped. "I'm busy."
"Yes, being a spy for the Locust looks incredibly time consuming." Said the young woman behind Briar. She whirled around and grabbed the intruder by the cuff of her tunic.
"Who told you that?" She spat. "Tell me or I will rip it from your mind!"
"Relax, oh great emancipator." The woman responded, meeting Briar's wild gaze. "It just so happens that, for the moment, I too work for the House of Mists." Briar contemplated for a moment before releasing her grasp.
"What are you doing here?" Briar asked. "Why has the master seen fit to seduce yet more agents?"
"He hardly seduced me." The woman laughed. "I'm doing this as a favor. My name is Sozenga." She stretched out her hand. Briar didn't move.
"You may claim to work for my master, but that doesn't mean we're allies. I want to know why you're here. Or I will remove you from this room."
"You couldn't if you tried. But that's beside the point. I have a proposition to make. You want to see your master freed. I do as well. But it must be done at the proper moment."
"The sooner the Locust is awakened, the sooner I can be restored to my former youthful glory, and I refuse to grow senile waiting around for the opportunity."
"You have to think bigger than yourself, Princess Briar. You need a partner. The dragon, Balsaad, was too weak, Rose is too old, and Lunaria doesn't possess her mother's talent. So I suppose the next best option would be to hope Lunaria's children show more promise. Am I correct so far?"
"Cease your prattling. Where are you going with this?"
"I'm here to tell you there is a better option. You could wait for Lunaria's children to be born, hope one of them is a gifted Veni-Yan-Cari, and run the risk of being discovered and killed as you attempt to perform the ritual with the unstable dreaming eye of a child as your partner. Or, you could bide your time. One day, an omen shall appear from the west. A great image in the sky. It will foretell the coming of an individual of unrivaled power, who will be a much more… compliant partner for the ritual."
"And why should I believe you?"
"You will simply have to trust me. For now, continue doing as you have always done. I will watch over you and make sure you are not discovered. And I will lead you to the being of great power when the time comes. All I ask is that you be patient."
"What makes you think I need your help?"
"I suppose you don't. You could always take the first opportunity you get. That's more than likely going to get you killed, though. My way is much more subtle. Much safer."
"And what do you get out of all this? You said you were only here as a favor."
"In short, I need this being of power here when the Locust wakes up. The surge of energy it creates will serve to heighten its power further, putting me one step further toward my goal."
"Bah!" Briar threw her hand into the air. "I'm no one's pawn. I serve only one master. And I will complete the ritual on my own terms."
"Don't be so unreasonable. I'm offering you a-" Sozenga stopped speaking as the room began to darken. Briar raised her fingers to her forehead. She began to speak. As she did, the words didn't come from her mouth but seemed to echo inside Sozenga's mind.
"Leave this place now." She rasped. "Or I will tear your mind apart piece by piece."
"Damn." Sozenga winced as she felt the flow of the Dreaming begin to constrict around her mind. Before Briar could subdue her, Sozenga's fists morphed into clubs and she rushed across the room, attempting to knock Briar unconscious. As Sozenga raised her fists, Briar darted to the side, levitating inches above the ground. She slammed her elbow into Sozenga's side as she did, knocking the nightmare entity to the ground. Briar floated over to Sozenga and placed her hands over the younger looking woman's temples.
"You will tell me everything you know." Briar spat.
"I don't think so, you old bat!" SozengaSozengaSozenga shouted. She grabbed Briar's hands and pried them off of her head. Then she kicked Briar off of her, sending her flying across the room. As Briar recovered, SozengaSozengaSozenga jumped out of a nearby window. Landing in a courtyard, she put all her strength into her legs and jumped, clearing the palace and the city walls as Briar rushed to the window after her. She landed in the plains outside of Atheia, completely drained.
"What was I thinking?" She thought aloud. "Taking on a fully mature Veni-Yan-Cari, especially one as anomalous as that woman, before I've recovered my full strength?"
"I agree." Said a voice behind her. "You're lucky to be alive." Sozenga stood up and whirled around, fists raised to defend herself. Standing in front of her was Shard, of the First Folk.
"The Shattered One." She hissed. "To what do I owe this displeasure?"
"You made the extremely foolish mistake of freeing yourself. Now, I'm going to kill you. You aren't getting a third chance."
"Just try me." She cajoled. "I've got more than enough energy to take y-" As she spoke, Shard rushed forward and thrust his hand through her gut. She spat up a wad of blood as he began absorbing her into himself.
"Like I said. Foolish mistake." He remarked, mostly to himself as Sozenga was almost completely absorbed into his being. Then he began receiving flashed of her memories. They started off as his, like they always did with every nightmare entity he felled. Nothing exciting, just lab work. Then it cut to her experiences. Most of it he already knew. Then he came across her conversation with Briar.
"Oh no." He muttered to himself. "How did she slip underneath my radar?" Having finished absorbing Sozenga, he ran off back toward Atheia. He didn't take three steps before an animal rushed out of the underbrush and clamped its jaws around his neck. His vision exploded. Stars and spots scattered everywhere as he desperately attempted to remove the beast from his jugular. Eventually, he got his hands around its tail and yanked it off. As it flew through the air, he was able to make it out clearly. A golden glowing fox. It landed and took off once again into the underbrush. Shard didn't pursue. Instead he stood still, rubbing the back of his head.
"Where was I going?" He muttered to himself. "Oh well. I've got to get back to the cave anyway." Without so much as a thought for finding and destroying Briar, he leapt into the distance back toward his secluded nightmare entity prison.
After he left, the fox reemerged. After looking around for a moment, it jumped headlong at a nearby bush. It dissolved as it touched the bush, as if their essences combined. Then the bush stood up and morphed into a humanoid form. After pausing for a moment, the figure too dissolved, the particles carried by the wind toward Tanen Guard.