Knights Apocalyptica

Chapter 161: Crossroads and Devils

He’d expected the stranger to drag them to some alley far away and far away from help; if that’d had a chance of happening, they would’ve made a break for it.

Enide would get away, get help, and he might hold his own long enough to be arrested and for it all to sort itself out.

But that didn’t happen. They didn’t end up going away from the strip, and the bastard was quiet as a corpse the entire trip, a walking, shambling weirdo of a man who hid his skin with bandages. He led their way through the dense crowds of Vega, and people parted, giving their group lingering stares. As strange as a sight that it may be, they knew their Arch-Magi.

It was still morning, so an insane number of people weren’t out and about, but those that were looked a little off, and likely hungover. They arrived at their destination, which was close to the Magi headquarters. Erec gave the massive glass pyramid a lingering stare, before turning his attention to the quaint yet well-advertised building in front of them. A large neon-light sign pronounced it “The Garden Of Eden.”

And the inside… Well, it led to a different world.

As they strode through the door, the atmosphere entirely changed. Inside was a lush garden, grass under their feet, and a plethora of flowers decorating a meadow in the distance; pillars were erected around a massive square suspending a sheer canopy that filtered out the sunlight above. This whole place was like a massive gazebo. Past the pillars was the aforementioned meadow, a rolling countryside of yellow and purple flowers, clouds, and a cleaner sky than Erec had ever seen.

All around the garden were stone tables, filled to the brim with couples and groups with enough gumption to brave the early morning hours of the city. Dressed in suits and dresses that made Erec and Enide look like bottom-cavern rock tossers.

Erec turned around to stare at the door they’d gone through; instead of a wall and windows, there were more of the rolling fields of lush life that were unnatural to this world.

“Just… What is this?” Enide asked, spinning around to take in, too.

“Don’t get too excited. It’s an illusion,” The Arch-Magi answered, nodding to a hostess as she ran up to their group. “An area of expertise to my glyph research. And this establishment was well worth the investment of my resources. People call it one of the wonders of Vega, but then, almost every other thing on a block receives such a title. To me, it’s a wonderful source of income and a discrete place for meetings.” he stepped past Erec, his hand curled into a fist. Then, he tapped it against thin air, making a dim echo as if he’d hit a wall, despite it seeming to bounce off nothing.

“So. Those are the walls,” Erec nodded, filtering away that information. Given this man’s talent for illusion… Well, it didn’t make for a very promising match-up against himself if it came down to it.

“I’d based this place off videos from the old-world, blended with personal experience with Gaia.”

“Gaia?” Enide asked.

“Ah, now that’s… Well, not exactly a well-kept secret, but I don’t care to have a chat about that for now.” He waved his hand and barked off some quick instructions to the hostess instead. The girl launched into a whirlwind of staff activity, and quickly, the three of them were led to the ‘back’ of the establishment, which was a raised gazebo at a further point from the entrance. They stepped up the steps and sat down at a polished marble table. A waiter was there in a second. Erec asked for water, Enide called for whiskey, and then the waiter vanished, letting free pearl curtains to either side of the pillars marking the entrance to the raised gazebo.

As the cloth closed, the rest of the restaurant vanished, including the noise. Leaving them seemingly alone in the middle of a dream landscape.

Any other time, this would’ve been magical. Real or not. His eyes begged to roam and swim in the details of this place; it was like the bio-caverns but much better. More natural. With more plants. Even the air had the scent and lightness to it that, deep down in the earth, they never could fully replicate.

Instead, he had to focus to keep his attention on the Arch-Magi. The man was studying them with a barely disguised intensity. His eyes, where the bandages were parted, never left Erec’s face. His chapped lips were curled in the smallest of smiles, though why, Erec could scarcely guess. All the same, it unnerved him and made him wonder if this was a mistake. If they were already deep in a trap too far for them to escape from.

The waiter returned with their drinks, took an order from the Magi for food for the table, and then left.

Only then did the Arch-Magi finally launch into why he brought them here.

“Your group has made a grave error.”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” Erec said.

“Yesterday, you invaded one of my safe houses, In which was an associate by the name of Seven-Snakes. Now I’m aware you attempted to bring him into Vega to face justice, and likely intend to turn back over my associate to the council. Your approach to this situation has been most unfortunate because, you see, we want the same thing.” He leaned back and swirled his glass of wine.

“I don’t see how we want the same thing at all. From where I sit, you’ve gotten in the way of us receiving help from the Arch-Magi. Are you scared that Seven-Snakes will name you as helping him when we turn him in? Is that what this is?”

“I doubt your group would be foolish enough to name me. And if you did, it’d scarcely matter. Arch-Magi is not a title gained through wealth but through power. Power leads to wealth. I have allies, and even the strongest on the council would be weary of making more of a direct move against me than a censure. It would be in your best interest to cooperate, not seek to make me a powerful enemy.”

“Wait.” Enide cut in, eyes wide. “You found Seven-Snakes?” she slammed a hand on the table, whiskey splashing out of her cup and landing on the Arch-Magi’s robes. He glanced at it, a frown, but didn’t show more of a reaction.

“We did,” Erec confirmed. “Sorry, I didn’t tell you… We planned to turn him over to you guys as soon as we got what we needed.”

“The hell does he have that you want?” Enide asked, the raw anger dialing down as she saw Erec’s conflicted expression.

“That’s precisely my point,” The Arch-Magi opened up with a wide smile. “Why would you go to a rat of a man like Seven-Snakes? He would never be honest with you. He’d lie to his mother if the price was right. Instead, you should have gone to the one he debriefed after returning and struck a deal. You’re interested in the facility to the west, correct? Do you know that outsiders also are interested in it? Well, I know what they want, and I want to see these outsiders as well. You maybe be interested to know that among those outsiders is a former Knight, which your group is undoubtedly very keen to investigate if the rumours of your Kingdom are true. As you can see, I believe our interests coincide with this.”

Enide sat back down and grabbed her whiskey, taking a deep drink. Erec almost regretted ordering water. I owe her an apology when we get through this. Even so, those words. This man knew what he was talking about and had the information they wanted.

How in the hell could they trust him?

Enide finished her drink, then leaned back with a deep frown. “Alright. Bandages. So these Knights have you by the balls since they got your rat. And you’re trying to cut a deal. Don’t pretend you aint, and act like it don’t matter. The angle’s all wrong. Else you wouldn’t be screwing around taking me and Erec to this restaurant; if you were going to kidnap us for leverage, you woulda already done it.”

“I already have what I need from Seven-Snakes. And, what I’ve been told, we’re all after the same thing. You require the Arch-Magi to breach the vault. I would prefer if we could leave out my involvement with Seven-Snakes when you turn him in, as it would make working together difficult. Within that vault is an object that will draw the outsiders out from hiding. No, I won’t tell you, and I doubt you’ll get that information from Seven-Snakes easily.” The Arch-Magi replied.

The curtain shuffled; they shut up and studied one another in silence. It was a war of charged looks as five servers convoyed in an absolute feast. Food in an almost grotesque abundance filled the table; far more than three people could eat. There were pancakes topped with unearthly fruits, layered with cream and syrup, sprinkled with cinnamon and powder. Those alone took up a quarter of the table. Shoved next to the pancakes was half of a roasted pig, minus the head. The skin looked to be also coated with syrup. Then there were the sides. Sausages, eggs, and even more veggies and fruits that were unfamiliar. Which baffled Erec since he’d accrued a wide variety of agricultural information thanks to Dame Juliana and the bio-caverns. But those little square-like green cubes with supple skin like a grape? Yeah. No idea what that might be.

All of this, and outside of this fake garden, real people starved not even fifteen miles away. The Arch-Magi dug in without a care as he let them hang on to his proposition.

“You could’ve went to Boldwick first. If you intended to ally yourself with us,” Erec said, refusing to cut himself a piece of that pig. No matter how much this food made his stomach rumble with desire. Enide showed a similar restraint, though not within her cup. “Why us?”

“This is my way of going to Boldwick. Through you, my message will be delivered, and then later, we may converse. Now, I’ll be blunt. I dn’t have an intention of working with your group, as I have my own resources. Now, you can do me a favor, and instead we can cooperate. One of the outsiders is a former Knight, isn’t that true? Normally, I would talk to your leader, but as things are, this situation will reach a rapid conclusion, and you were the best method of conveying my message in a timely manner.”

Enide snorted. “This is like one of those old stories.”

“Oh?” The Archmage asked.

“My Ma told me that if you walked on a cross-roads, and had a want deep in your heart, you might reach across the veil. Before you knew what was happening, a devil would appear. It knows all the right words, tells you all the things you wanna hear, then offers you a deal. Best deal you can picture, since you get what you want, deep in you. He gives you it. And then it turns to ash in your hands, whole world falls apart, and then once they bury you, you get to spend the rest of your life with the devil, since that was his price.”

“This is nothing of the sort. My dear, this is how Vega operates, how any polite society functions. We call it quid-pro-quo.”

[Well, it’s not as if we’re unaware of his ulterior motives. But, you need in that facility, and even then it’s uncertain what within it is attracting the attention of your mother. This man has the information that you may or may not be able to shake free from Seven-Snakes. Though you may not like it, in business such arrangements aren’t uncommon. Quid-pro-quo indeed.]

There was a knock on the pillar outside, and the Arch-Magi waved in a waiter—the man whispered in his ear, and then left in a hurry. The Arch-Magi cut himself another piece of pork, and then set his knife down.

“Ah, our time is coming to a close. As a sign of good faith, I shall elaborate on what I meant by ‘this situation will reach a rapid conclusion.’ Right about now, the Church and a few key members are headed towards where your Knights set up to interogate my associate. I’d recommend you go and intercede, and bring my message to your leader, before you all are detained by the Magi for starting a fight within our city.” The Arch-Magi said.

“What did you do?” Erec asked.

“Not I. Don’t worry, I have never worked for the church. Those Silver Eyes see things they shouldn’t, and stick their noses in places they don’t belong. They’ve been particularly keen on you Knights for the last couple of days, and I had wondered why. Even more concerning, as of yesterday a self proclaimed bishop to their farce of a religion wandered into the town, and red priests had stopped given their sermons, and holding hushed meetings, paying the fees nescessary to admit all of the red priests in the outer-city past the barrier.”

Erec and Enide stood up. It was like back home. Back when they came in after him at his own manor; or when they’d come for his family after his mother’s betrayal.

But how? Out here?

“Now, I provide this information, again, in good faith. Move quick. Collect your Pendragons, and go off to your battle, where chaos will spiral outward, and the Magi will have to come and bring order. Tell your leader my offer; keep my association with Seven-Snakes our little secret, and you’ll find me a most useful ally. Now. Go.” He waved them off.

They didn’t need more then that, like a whirlwind, they ran to the streets; only pausing for a second to plot before running off.

“Get your Armor and Axe, I’ll drag my family to your hotel. Then we fuck up the priests. Deal?” She said, which after a nod, she vanished.

Only to reappear in front of him, gripping a handful of his hair, pulling him to her level to plant an adrenaline-fueled kiss on his lips. She tasted like whiskey, and when she pulled back, there was a note of amusement in her eyes.

“I forgive you for omitting your find, for now. But when you and I roll off alone together, you better be spilling your secrets in the future before some assholes comes up and drags them out, alright?”

“Deal.” He said, reeling as she once more vanished.

He didn’t have time to dwell on it, instead, he began to run. Letting fury ignite in him to power him along the ground, each pump of his legs throwing him through the air, but it wasn’t quick enough. Memories of the church storming his house when he was a kid ran through his mind like a monster’s claw through a body. They brought pain, panic, and anger.

This time, it’d be different.

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