Supernatural: Chronicles of the Order 8
Chapter 21: Reiko's Revolt, Part 1
(DISCLAIMER: No, I don't own Supernatural because it belongs to Eric Kripke and Warner Bros. So, enjoy the show! Rated M for graphic violence, adult content, and adult language.)
It was a cold night in the Barathite capital of Etrogarde as the nobles were all in bed in which some of them were enjoying an autumnal feast of the finest morsels imaginable. Even though most of the townsfolk and those living in the slums were asleep, that didn't stop the capital's secret police to conduct searches against the will of those who fervently served the nobility that ruled alongside Father Warren with an iron fist. It wasn't long until the secret police caught up to a man that was returning from a nightly milk run as they tailed him to his house in which they were ready to pounce. By the time the secret police broke into his home, they saw him putting away his groceries as they were ready to arrest him on the spot, for they weren't about to show him mercy anytime soon.
"Nicola DePaola," said the leader as he was armed with a gun in his hand. "You're under arrest!"
"On what grounds?!" he yelled.
"On what grounds you say? You were violating curfew not too long ago."
"Curfew starts at ten, not eight, you idiot!"
"Are you talking back to me, Nicola? Talking back to the secret police not only is a slap to the face to us, but to Father Warren as well!" The leader sees a rectangular imprint on the wall where a picture was in which he siezed Nicola by the scruff of his shirt. "Where is the portrait? Where is the portrait of Father Warren?!"
"It's in the trash where it's meant to be! You have no right to punish us like that all for a fucking picture to be tossed aside!"
"Anyone who refuses to display Father Warren's portrait or throws it away will be punished with death!" The leader shoots Nicola in the shoulder as he he later kicked him in the stomach. "No one disobeys Father Warren, no one!"
"The Castellano Family will return and will kick you religious zealots out of our planet! We will see the advice of the Dowager Empress Claudia again, make no mistake!"
The leader of the secret police was ready to kill Nicola until he felt an assassin's bullet hit him in the head the moment he fell to the ground. The underlings who saw the leader dead in the street spotted a young man with black hair and lavender eyes dressed in a black hood while armed with a sniper rifle. The underlings took out their guns as they were ready to shoot at the assassin until they were met with a rain of arrows shooting them to death in which they fell to the ground. When Nicola got up, he spotted the assassin parkouring down to the street as he noticed him to be part of the resistance that were in the underground in which the latter was trying to overthrow Father Warren's oppressive regime, for everyone was getting fed up with the restrictions that have gotten a lot worse over the years.
"You okay, old man?" said the assassin as he got out a first aid kit to treat Nicola's wound.
"Vittorio…" he said as he had tears in his eyes. "Thank the gods that you saved me."
"Father Warren's regime has gotten worse over the years. A week ago, some kid took off with some of his flock's choice morsels in which Marnathi went after him when he took off of this homeworld."
"Your family ruled Baratheon for centuries until Father Warren ousted your late grandfather and banished the rest of your family."
"I know, but procuring a fake visa is like dressing as fake Feds in the Elder Days fighting and hunting down monsters. Things will clear up in which the future Lord of the Ashizoka System will come here, but he's not doing too well right now."
"'Not doing too well?' Alas! We're all doomed!"
"Not quite, but if the future Lord of the Ashizoka System is resting, his lady wife will be coming here in his stead in which she'll do more than just ruffle Father Warren's feathers. No man has ever went up against him, but he'll be beaten by a woman as predicted by the omens that I've seen. As for the mess in front of your house, my group will salt and burn the bodies in which we'll send a message to Father Warren that the goddess of the Ashizoka System is coming here."
Vittorio notices his backup coming here to collect the dead bodies of the secret police as they were ready to salt and burn them the moment they were put into a cart. When he finished up cleaning and bandaging up Nicola's wound, he set him back into his house as he stared at the rectangular imprint on the wall in which he spotted the portrait of Father Warren in the trash. The man in the picture was a gaudy one as he had slick salt-and-pepper hair and brown eyes in which he had a smile that made any person cringe if he saw him out in public. He never cared for the likes of the man in the picture as he gave the portrait the middle finger before leaving Nicola's house, for he was ready to topple the overzealous regime that has poisoned the reputation of his homeworld for years, for it has gone far enough already…
I was in the kitchen as I was busy making some treats that Reiko would take with her when she would undertake the mission to overthrow Father Warren who has a stranglehold of the people living on Baratheon. The sight of the poor man's cake being put into a container with some castella in another was a sight to see as I placed them into the picnic basket that was about to be taken with her on the mission. By the time I went towards the counter, I saw the chocolate cake that was cooling on the rack as I decided to put the frosting onto it while it was still warm the moment I saw it melting all over it like a glaze coating a fresh donut. With the chocolate cake put into another container, I put it into the picnic basket as I later spotted Reiko entering into the kitchen as she was seeing the treats that were made for her, for she was also worried about me in general due to the double whammy I have.
"You've been busy, haven't you?" she said to me.
"I made the desserts that came from the cookbook that Drusus carts around," I said.
"I see the castella and the poor man's cake in containers already."
"I made a chocolate cake from scratch, but I ran out of eggs due to the fact that the rest were put into the castella. The eggless cake has a leavening agent in the form of vinegar and baking soda, but it turned out fine."
"I've tried something like that in which Aya made it with the ingredients that you talked about. It tasted very good in which it was one of my favorites during my childhood."
I slowly got up from my wheelchair as I gently hugged Reiko warmly. I was worried about her as I noticed her hugging back in which she wasn't afraid to go on her mission, for she was concerned about the crisis that was leading Baratheon to a state of ruin, for this was a revolt against one man and his merciless regime that ousted Claudia's family from power in the first place.
"I worry about you on this mission," I said.
"I know," said Reiko. "I'll be fine, Sammy. As long as I get to Baratheon, I'll make sure to liberate its capital from Father Warren."
"Be careful…" I kiss Reiko's lips as I continued to hug her. "Father Warren isn't easy to get rid of, but his secret police are dangerous."
"I won't fail, Sammy…" I see her place her hands on my stomach. "Besides, the little ones can't be without a mother, now can they?"
It wasn't long until I saw Reiko leave with the picnic basket in her hands as I had high hopes for her. Even though the roles were reversed, I was on the sidelines as I was also hoping that everything would be okay on the horizon. Still, I was recovering from the battle that I had against Sawney Masbath two years ago, but I was fearing the worst as I also had a gut feeling that Reiko would be walking into a trap, for Father Warren and his cronies are refusing to give up on their power on Baratheon…
Reiko arrived in an Order of Letters ship as she was in her quarters the moment it left Valinorian airspace. She was mainly going towards Baratheon to topple Father Warren as she wanted to prove her bravery by coming there to see what was there in Etrogarde, the Barathite capital. When she looked into the picnic basket, she saw the containers of cakes and castella as they were there for her in which it was my way to give her a care package the same way she does for me. When she opened up one of the containers of castella, she saw the door to her quarters open as she saw Nibori entering as she had some clothes in her hands in which they were mainly the hunter garb that was worn in the Elder Days, for this was a first after all.
"We left for Baratheon, but not without changing first," she said as she set the clothes on the bed.
"Aren't those men's clothes?" asked Reiko.
"Those clothes were what most hunters wore in the Elder Days and boy, eveyone loved dressing in that flannel."
"I never wore pants before, but if I'm going there to Baratheon, then I'll wear them on this mission."
"If you're going there, you better be careful about Father Warren, who rules the Barathite capital with an iron fist and still has a stranglehold on Etrogarde. Going to the capital won't be easy in which Father Warren's rules and regulations on those who live in its walls or in the slums aren't safe from his secret police. Women and girls are the most targeted because of the fact that they're forbidden to wear pants or shirts in which they wear prairie dresses and dress their hair in bouffants. They're also forbidden to cut their hair or wear earrings or display piercings on their body because Father Warren deems them sacrilegious. Long hair is coveted because it's a crown for a woman just for her husband to wrap his feet in. As for the rest of the rules imposed on the capital, it's everyone who lives in the slums. Everyone is forbidden to play any kind of music genre except for the sermons of Father Warren. Toys, sports events, dancing, and public displays of everything have been banned except for the nobility who reap the hard-earned money from those in the slums just to stock up on the choice morsels that have been imported to the planet. The worst that could happen when one refuses to display or throws away a portrait of Father Warren, he or she is killed on sight for disobedience in which no one is safe from him, the nobility, or his secret police."
Nibori's words of warning alarmed Reiko as she was fearing the worst for the people who lived in the Barathite capital. Still, she was willing to defy Father Warren as she grabbed the clothes that were on the bed and went towards the changing screen. Taking off her dress, she got into the pair of jeans that were brandished by hunters in the Elder Days as she took off the slip and put on the sports bra that was made for her figure. By the time she put on the v-neck t-shirt, she put on the longer greyish blue shirt that covered it as she later put the belt around the jeans to keep them from falling. With a pair of socks with some boots on her feet, she emerged as she looked into the mirror as she was staring at the long silver hair on her head. Instead of having it cut off, she put it into a bun to keep it together in which she saw a black ball cap that was made to hide her hair. Looking at the earrings on her ears, she was concerned about them dangling as she didn't want to remove them. She liked them just the way they were as she was accepting the perks of being the future goddess of the Ashizoka System in which she was itching to put Father Warren in his place, for she wanted to help restore Claudia's family to their rightful place on Baratheon.
"You look good in flannel," said Nibori.
"I never wore flannel before, but I can manage," said Reiko.
"As soon as we get to Baratheon, the better we get to the capital, but security is tight all over. We'll park the ship near the outside of it, but our best bet is in the underground in which the sewer system has become much more advanced in which the wastewater is filtered to be cleaned while the wastes are separated as a power source for Etrogarde's energy."
"Sammy told me about how Maro led him into something like that during his stay in Cordell Island once."
"From the looks of it, the system is operated, but by a resistance group who've been on the planet for a while in which one of the fighters happens to be the future Emperor of Baratheon that's been wanting to take back the planet from the overzealous bastards and the resident piggies that have been ruling the capital for years."
"His name's Vittorio Castellano,' said a familiar face as she entered into Reiko's quarters.
It was Elise as she was dressed up in a black jacket, pink tank top, green camouflage pants, and boots in which she sported a silver bracelet that had the Winchester Sigil emblazoned on it. She was even armed with her bow and arrows as she was ready to go up against Father Warren, for she was also wanting to liberate Baratheon from his dangerous influence.
"It's been two years since you dropped off the map," she said.
"We've been on an island in the Skalvarg Archipelago on Valinor," said Reiko.
"I heard about the drowner nest on Cordell Island getting taken out in which the townsfolk living in the Grand Hill district saw a surge of raw power coming from the Happy Boar Meadery. I also heard about how Sam nearly died from overexerting his raw power after he mopped the floor with Sawney Masbath two years ago. I never forgot about how he helped you and Nibori to exorcise the demon who possessed me in which I wear that bracelet with the Winchester Sigil on it. After what happened to me, I can't sit by and let every single creepy-crawlie I come across attack people. I have to do my part like everyone else in which I also have to make sure that the likes of the Executive Division and their ass-kissers get the boot."
Elise made her point clear as she was there to help Reiko and Nibori take down Father Warren in which they would stop at nothing to restore Baratheon to its former glory. The time of the nobility and the overzealous regime that they hid behind was coming to an end as every single chieftain, governor, mayor, and all ordinary townsfolk have had enough of it. The time of keeping the Barathite royal family out of their homeworld was over, for it was time to topple their oppressors once and for all…
Vittorio watched in one of the slum houses as he was steering clear of the secret police that were watching all over the place. He had a loathing for those people as they were patrolling the slums looking for possible innocent people to arrest. The house he was in was empty as he saw the same rectangular imprint on the wall in which Father Warren's portrait was found in the fireplace all burnt with only his eyes intact. He smiled at the ruined picture as he was also wanting to get rid of the man who ousted his family in the first place. Just as he was about to get out of the house, he heard a radio broadcast on a loudspeaker outside as it was blaring all over Etrogarde in the top part, the middle part, and the slums, for it was another one of Father Warren's dismal sermons on repeat.
"Brothers and sisters of Baratheon who are faithful to God," he said over the loudspeaker. "We have ruled the capital with a firm hand in which we hold sway of those who live on this planet. For years, we have burned heretics, arrested blasphemers, and cleansed Baratheon's capital of sinners in order to maintain goodness here. The Castellano Family that ruled here have tried and failed to bring me down in which I am your salvation to Heaven. Men, work and bring up your yearning and train your sons and daughters to be good folk in the name of God. Women and girls, build up your husbands and be good wives, for the importance of keeping sweet is vital for you to retain the grace of God with your blessings."
"'Grace of God…'," said Vittorio in disgust. "That's such a big fat joke!"
"...All who live in Etrogarde's slums will train up your daughters to be groomed for marriage, for it is a fulfilling life with a husband and children. All women and girls must keep sweet in order to get to Heaven. All women and girls should also forgive their husbands for their behavior or else they will be burned as heretics in the Holy Fire to cleanse them of their sins. For true salvation, one must give up their aspirations and dreams in order to go the Celestial Kingdom, for I am your prophet and leader who will lead you to the Gates of Paradise."
"Oh, put a fucking sock in it!"
The sermon ended as Vittorio waited patiently in which he was there in the empty house the moment he was ready to set out when dusk settled. The presence of Father Warren's secret police combing the slums alarmed him as he had to slip out before they caught up to him. When he went into the dining room, he saw an Atreidian carpet on the floor as he rolled it up and revealed a trap door in which he opened it up to reveal a basement in which went downstairs. With the door closed, he peeked through a small hole as he saw a small string in which he pulled it the moment the Atreidian carped unrolled over the door. The basement itself was a network of underground tunnels as Vittorio went towards a door and left to where his hideout was, for he was mainly sabotaging the establishment and the regime of zealots who ruled Baratheon for years since his grandfather's ouster. When he went into the war room, he saw an Elf arriving as she was returning with some choice morsels that she stole earlier, for she was also getting tired of Father Warren's dangerous regime like the rest of the planet's citizens.
"You made it with the motherlode, didn't you, Lorena?" he said.
"These were stolen from Old Man Zampano in which there's no sign of his ex-wife anywhere," she said. "The old bastard finally croaked, but his servants have been arrested for moving Father Warren's portrait around."
"I'm glad that you didn't caught, but we're risking our asses to topple Father Warren and his ass-kissing cronies in the nobility. I'm also glad that Marnathi isn't here in which she was forced here by Father Warren to 'stay with her husband' in which he even nullified her divorce from him and made it void just to keep her from 'being loose' while working on the job as a cop in the Intergalactic Space Patrol."
It wasn't long until Vittorio saw an Order of Letters ship touch down near the underground portion of Etrogarde in which he noticed Reiko's group getting out of there. He was right on the money as he viewed my wife's presence as an omen to topple Father Warren and the nobility once and for all, for he was expecting some help and hope coming from the one who was destined to liberate Baratheon from the clutches of the ones who have abused their power in the capital…
The Order of Letters ship touched down near one of the sewer entrances of Etrogarde's underground. With Reiko leading the way with the picnic basket in her hands, she had Nibori and Elise in tow as she went in first. The place would normally be stinking of the stench of stagnant water and feces as everyone noticed some cleaner robots hard at work keeping the place safe and sanitized in which they saw a filtration system that separated the wastes from the water the moment it was kept clean for drinking. Reiko never saw anything like it before as she also saw surveillance cameras watching all over the sewer system, for she had a feeling that someone was watching everyone in her group. By the time she went to a door, she opened it up to be a treatment room in which it was run automatically without any problems. Even though the room was clean, she noticed a table as she placed the picnic basket on it the moment she got out a container of castella and opened it up. The sight of the sliced cake was eager to satisfy the hunger of Reiko and her group as they got into it just in time to eat, for they had a long way to go to topple a regime of zealots soon enough.
"This is good," said Elise as she took a bite of a piece of castella. "I never expected you to bake this before leaving."
"Sammy made it," said Reiko. "He baked it for me just like I do for him."
"Sam knows how to cook, but he can't be up on his feet for too long," said Nibori cautiously.
Without warning, Reiko heard gunshots coming from outside of the room as she noticed an angel blade that was hidden in the picnic basket. Getting it out, she left the room as she walked cautiously further in which she saw Marnathi running for her life. What she didn't expect was that there was an unusual monster chasing after her. Reiko never saw anything like it before as the monster was ready to pounce until she saw an arrow pierce its head the moment it yelped and fell to the floor, but it wasn't out for the count yet. It wasn't long until the monster went towards Reiko as it had her pinned in which she dropped the angel blade she was carrying. The monster was twice her size as it was ready to kill her while she was squirming to get the angel blade that fell out of her hands. Struggling to get free, she finally reached the angel blade as she stabbed the monster in the chest the moment she rolled out of the way when it fell to the ground. She was no stranger to dealing with monsters as she once destroyed Behemoth during the battle at Gale Canyon and helped Moro and Rie flush out an aswang nest on Targaryen, for she was happy that she stopped the creature that nearly killed her. Even Marnathi was astonished to see her standing as the threat was averted for now.
"You really did put a damper on that thing," she said as she gave the thumbs-up.
"I don't know what that thing was, but this is a new one," said Reiko as she held the angel blade in her hands. "I don't have a journal for this, but the monster is finished."
Without warning, Reiko heard footsteps approaching as she spotted members of an Orc clan emerging to find the dead monster on the ground in which they were led by a Draaza matriarch who had a bow in her hand complete with silver arrows in her quiver. Marnathi noticed her to be a pinnacle of wisdom as she bowed down to her presence in which she examined the dead monster that Reiko killed, for she noticed the arrow in its head before she retrieved it.
"It seems that our kill was finished off by a thrush," said the Draaza matriarch as she saw Reiko holding the angel blade in her hand. "We've been tailing that loup-garou when we dropped off Vittorio and Lorena to be our eyes and ears, but we never expected to see the monster finished off at the hands of a Nephilim."
"Matriarch Zadraathi," said Marnathi as she got up. "Aren't you far from home with your clan on Maugrim?"
"After fighting tooth and nail against the Executive Division, we're also there to topple an Alecrian criminal that has eluded his captors until he had the gall to oust Emperor Vito from power."
"Ma'am," said Reiko as she bowed in front of Zadraathi. "I never saw such a dangerous monster like that, but it was going after Marnathi."
"You tangled with a loup-garou," said an Orcress with light blue hair. "From the lore of the Middle Days, the Men of Letters used them as watchdogs to guard their trinkets from intruders. This one served as one of Father Warren's attack dogs just to chase after Marnathi for speaking out against him. At a standpoint, loup-garous are invulnerable, but their vulnerable spots are in the chest and the head. They're weak against silver, but an angel blade?"
It wasn't long until Nibori and Elise ran out of the room as they saw the loup-garou's carcass on the ground in which they never saw anything like it before until now. What they didn't expect was that Reiko and Marnathi stood there as they were at the mercy at Zadraathi and her group in which they were there in the underground for a lot of reasons, for they were there to help Vittorio reclaim what was stolen to him.
"Looks like we have a loup-garou that got ganked," said Nibori as she saw the monster's carcass.
"Reiko finished it off," said Marnathi.
Zadraathi and her group stared at Reiko as they bowed in reverence. They were aware of the omens that were prophesied as they were signs of putting an end to Father Warren and his regime of piggish nobles and religious zealots. Reiko never expected herself to be revered before as she was also the future goddess of the Ashizoka System, for she had so much greatness just as much as me
"The sages of Maugrim spoke of a High Elf with angelic blood coming here as foretold," said one of the Orcs as he saluted Reiko. "My wayward gay brother sought you and your family out on Shiganshina, only for you to slay a loup-garou that nearly toppled a cop."
"You're related to Gethig and Gorthog, aren't you?" she said.
"My name's Garvanog Barzuk and you already met my mum, who is a Draaza matriarch. You also met my wife, Lysette, who's also a member of the Farragut Clan."
"I take it that you're part of the resistance," said Elise.
"We're a lot more than that," said Zadraathi. "My clan never forgot the kindness of Federico in which he took care of some of the injured when the Executive Division attacked Maugrim. He even cooked some basic meals that ranged from the usual staples stemming from hot dogs to canned beans. It was when he and his sons were caring for everyone in which Liesel's forces left the food supply in our homestead barren until Federico and his sons arrived to help us. They lived their lives from planet to planet in which their kindness was granted with full bellies due to the pantry staples that they had."
"I'm so sorry…," said Reiko.
"We lost our food in the homestead in which Liesel's forces poisoned the harvest," said Lysette. "It was catastrophic when the food that was grown for the winter ended up being inedible due to the toxin that was put onto it. Luckily, I had the cabbages harvested earlier in which I kept it with me just to make further meals with the pantry staples that were given to us."
"You dined off of budae-jjigae, didn't you?" said Nibori.
"It was all we had, but we got by until we were called to aid the war effort."
It wasn't long until Reiko saw Vittorio and Lorena rushing towards the group as they were glad that everyone was here. Still, there was a long way to go as the time to overthrow Father Warren was going on as planned, for the time to stop him was near already…
I was in the sitting room as I was busy knitting while I was stuck with the younger children in which they were playing in their playpens. The crafting of booties kept me occupied as I was more than likely to be worried about Reiko. I was looking at the two younger sets of twins as they were in there playing with their usual stuffed animals and teething rings so they wouldn't get bored. When I finished up with the booty that I made, I slowly got up as I was ready to set all four down for a nap until I noticed Minara rushing into the sitting room in which he was concerned about what was going on. Still, I had to put the younger children up as I couldn't leave them unattended, for they had to be put back in the nursery soon enough.
"Looks like your hands are full," said Minara as he saw the knitted booty that I made.
"I know what you're gonna say to me, but you won't like it," I said.
"Reiko went on that mission to Baratheon, didn't she?" I nodded sincerely. "I won't hold it against you because of the fact that I heard of her fair share of taking down monsters. She even took down Behemoth during the Gale Canyon incident."
"She even helped Moro and Rie take out an aswang nest on Targaryen two years back. I have faith that she'll accomplish her mission to topple Father Warren and restore the Castellano Family back to their rightful place on Baratheon."
"What?!"
Minara remembered the presence of Father Warren as he was no stranger to his tactics at the time. I never saw Father Warren before as I also wanted to know more about the enemy that ousted Claudia's family from power all those years ago. Still, the subject of dealing with the infamous religious zealot that had a stranglehold on Baratheon was taboo one for the Mitani Clan in general, for I wanted to know more about our latest enemy.
"You're worried about Reiko just like I am," I said.
"You don't know what Father Warren is capable of, Sam," said Minara.
"From what I heard, Father Warren ousted the Castellano family from power in which they'll stop at nothing to retake their homeworld and free it from his influence."
"Father Warren is a manipulative scumbag. Many years ago, our clan had noticed a suspicious group of people encroaching on our homestead in which Grandfather noticed some Terran women dressed in prairie dresses being paraded by him just to 'teach the gospel' to the ones who lived in our walls. What we didn't see coming was that Father Warren sent his men to kidnap some of the women and girls who lived in our homestead. One of the targets happened to be Reiko, who was too young at the time. Father Warren and his group of zealots burst into the homestead and kidnapped most of the women and girls in which Reiko was spared, thanks to the help of Aya and Ellen at the time."
"No…" I was fearing the worst as I was concerned for Reiko's safety. "And she volunteered to go on the mission to restore Claudia's family to their rightful place…"
"Reiko may have been hidden, but Grandfather tracked down the other women and girls who lived in the walls of the homestead. What he found there was a compound that was once a hub for hunters. What he also found that the women and girls were being lined up so that some of his loyalists were ready to rape them by force so that their seed can take root and bear the future of his perverted religion. Grandfather caught up to Father Warren's group in which he was aided by Ralph Farragut the moment he shut down the operation and all the captives were set free. When Father Warren and his group were about to be arrested, they fled Alecrast into parts unknown until I heard how that prick and his followers went to Baratheon and ousted Emperor Vito and his family from power. Throughout the years, that manipulative bastard kept Baratheon isolated in which he even nullified divorces that stemmed from failed marriages, including that of Marnathi Trelundar. The man's dangerous and he keeps the women and girls on a short leash in which he wants them all to 'keep sweet' at all times."
"Reiko…"
I was scared to death as I was worried about Reiko's safety. Guilt seeped all over me as I wanted to use my raw power to bring her back in which I should've never tasked her to take the mission in my stead. When I slowly got up from my wheelchair, I was ready to leave the sitting room until Minara stopped me in which he didn't want me to put my life at risk right now. Sitting back down, I started shaking in fear as I wanted to help Reiko get out of that mission, for I couldn't let her face death in front of a religious monster like Father Warren.
"I put her at risk," I said.
"You can't do anything right now, Sam," said Minara.
"Your sister is going up against that religious bastard without a moment's hesitation and she volunteered to bring him down."
"Reiko will be fine, Sam. From what I sensed on Baratheon, there's a resistance group operating in the underground led by Vittorio Castellano. They're put there at the behest of Federico in which they're slowly shutting down the corruption of the nobility and the machinations of Father Warren and his followers. There's nothing to fear right now."
I clasped my hands in prayer as I was praying for Reiko's safety. I was concerned about her whereabouts as I also realized that Nibori and Elise were with her in which they were no strangers to going up against evil. The thought of those two accompanying her put me at ease as I had faith that they would see this mission through, for I was confident that Reiko would fulfill her efforts into restoring the Castellano family to the Barathite throne as planned…
Reiko and the others were in the war room as they saw Vittorio and Lorena staring at the surveillance cameras that were monitoring everything all over Etrogarde. She never saw them before as they were also detailing the situation about the waning popularity that Father Warren had. The sight of angry people all over the planet voicing their protestations on screen was more than enough to alarm Reiko in which she also noticed the backlash against the planet's rulers. She also noticed Father Warren on screen as she saw him surrounded by several women and young girls all dressed in prairie dresses the moment he was addressing his sermon, for no one in the room was hearing it in which Vittorio was thankful not to hear his voice.
"The screens have a lot of things in this war room, but I'm very glad that they have a mute button," he said. "I've heard enough of his shitty sermons already in which he really has to go big time. My family have been the rightful rulers until that perverse shit stain ousted us out of our homeworld."
"Don't forget, he's wanted on his own homeworld for trying to abduct and rape a group of women and girls near the Mitani Clan homestead," said Lysette. "My father and Ippei Mitani stormed the abandoned roadhouse in which some of the women were about to be raped by Father Warren and his followers. The bastard and his flock fled, but sooner or later, he'll get his comeuppance soon enough."
"And here come the women around that prick weeping," said Marnathi in disgust as she saw a casket that was opened up to see the body of Emiliano Zampano on display. "Therefore, I'm more than glad that my ex-husband died in which his slimy bastard son's rotting in a prison cell somewhere. Still, we're stuck watching this oversized shit show of a 'funeral' featuring yours truly in an open casket while the resident shit stain and his flock weep for him."
"You shouldn't disrespect the dead," said Zadraathi cautiously. "Emiliano Zampano may have been a total prick, but a Draaza is forbidden to show dishonor towards one who has passed on."
"So, that's Emiliano Zampano," said Elise as she saw his carcass on screen. "He looks a lot like his slimy son, Cesare, who's rotting in prison."
Reiko saw Father Warren on screen as he was delivering the funeral address for a vile man like Emiliano Zampano. Even though she couldn't hear it, she was recognizing the lip movements carefully as he was ready to lay Emiliano's body to rest. When she saw the lip movements on screen become more serious, she had a gut feeling that he would soon find the resistance that continues to oppose him.
"'Brothers and sisters of God, we will find and eliminate the resistance that backs the heretical Castellano family?'" she said as she was concerned for everyone. "'I sent my one of my attack dogs to bring back Marnathi in order to force her to pay respects to her husband who died suddenly, for she will be caught and burned as a heretic for her constant disobedience.'"
Marnathi clenched at her fist as she wanted to slug Father Warren for siccing that loup-garou on her earlier. She wanted to get rid of him as she was more than likely to be hating him more for nullifying her divorce from her late ex-husband. Still, everyone had to be focused on bringing Father Warren down as his days being a spiritual leader were numbered in which they would stop at nothing to bring him to justice.
"That piece of shit!" she yelled. "He knows that I'm no longer married to that old prick and yet he controls women like they're a bunch of cattle about to be shipped out for slaughter!"
"Father Warren put you through hell, didn't he?" said Reiko.
"It wasn't me that got put through the ringer, for it was all the women who have been forced into marriage instead of living their lives and aspirations like everyone else. When we reach Father Warren, I'm gonna bust his balls for forcing me back here just to 'make nice and keep sweet' around my ex-husband!"
"You really don't like the guy, do you?" said Nibori.
"No, but now that he's dead, I'm a free woman with grown children that I raised after my divorce from him. When I get my hands on Father Warren, I'll do more than just 'keep sweet.' I'll go and castrate the bastard!"
Reiko sensed the anger in Marnathi as she saw her rushing towards the door of the war room. When she opened it up, she heard footsteps approaching as she closed the door the moment she had a gut feeling that the secret police had caught up to her location. She locked the door as she got out her gun in which she was hearing the footsteps get closer in which they were reaching the door. Reiko had to get everyone out of the war room as she saw a spare door next to the surveillance screens. When she opened it up, she led everyone out of the war room as she closed the door behind her in which she later noticed the doorway being covered up before the footsteps got closer. What she heard outside of the war room was that one of the members of the secret police was busy searching for their target as he was flipping everything in there, for he was getting impatient.
"Marnathi Zampano!" he said as he was searching everywhere in the war room. "You have been charged with adultery, disorderly conduct, and dishonoring the memory of your husband. If you surrender quietly, then I won't sic another loup-garou on you!"
Marnathi recognized the leader's voice as it was none other than Nucci as he was tearing the war room upside down just to get to her. She wanted to take him out until Reiko stopped her in which she didn't want to have their location given away. When she saw a small hole through the wall, she peeked through it as Nucci was getting angry that Marnathi wasn't there, for he was there to nab his target for running away in the first place.
"You better not be hiding anywhere else, you ignorant puttana!" yelled Nucci as he punched at the wall near the door. "Father Warren will burn you at the stake for dishonoring the memory of your husband in which he'll see you purged from this life or the next! One day, I'll find you and I'll deliver you to Father Warren personally and you know that he hates disobedient heretics!"
Reiko stepped away from the small hole as Nucci was making his way towards the secret door. She had to get the group to safety as she spotted the man standing near the wall on the other side, for he was ready to strike.
"I see you!" he yelled as he was banging on the wall.
"Quickly, get everyone to safety!" yelled Reiko.
"We're not leaving you!" yelled Elise.
"We have to go!" cried Marnathi as she led the way further into the underground.
The group made their way out of sight as Marnathi was the last one to get going. Just as she was about to get away, she saw the wall being blown to bits as she noticed Nucci armed with a rocket launcher in which she saw him sieze her by the scruff of her tunic. Reiko, on the other hand, saw Nucci dragging her further away as she was wanting to rescue her, but was barred at the last minute.
"Get out of here!" yelled Marnathi. "You have to go!"
"Marnathi!" cried Reiko as she was worried about her safety.
"You better get moving! I'm not out of the fight yet!"
It wasn't long until Reiko saw Marnathi being taken away as she vowed to rescue her from the one who captured her. Clenching her fists, she was willing to save the cop from a horrible fate as her mission still stood, for toppling Father Warren was the main goal after all…
To be continued...