by Riker Kane
And then there were the Nobles themselves. The women were dressed in white silk linens that matched the fair skin of their faces. Tight corsets squeezed their stomachs and pushed their breasts up to give them a maximum amount of cleavage. Their frilly skirts went to their knees, tempting men who had no shame in staring. Their hair was done up over their heads in a way that it was obvious this was no ordinary celebration.
While the women oozed their regal sex appeal, the men carried themselves with a pride that was nothing short of arrogant. They had their noses in the air, their brows furrowed like anything they heard was ‘preposterous.’ Their hair was slicked back over their heads or combed with a perfect coif. Even their mustaches were freshly trimmed. Their linens were tailored right to their physiques, their shoulders broad and their pants with the perfect creases. They wore black and purple and dark red and white and gold, all of the colors you would associate with this kind of pomp and pageantry.
As the smell of fancy perfumes and exotic foods filled my nose, Rhiannon and Zafina stood at my sides and observed the ‘wild’ scene in front of me.
“This is remarkable,” Rhiannon said. “These people were escaping the destruction of their world not too long ago and now they hold a gala that would imply they were victorious.”
“Perhaps this is their means of coping with their loss,” Zafina said. “There is little chance they will be able to return to Qashia. Now they celebrate having found a new home. They certainly have the means to do it.”
“If things keep up, they won’t be celebrating for too long,” I sighed. “They of all people should know Pandora isn’t stopping at Qashia. I have to get through to Queen Cellica.”
“Queen Cellica has only asked for our presence. I’m certain once this celebration comes to an end, she will see reason and assist us in acquiring the resources from the mountains.”
“We are stuck here,” Rhiannon said. The look on her face told me she was doing her best to deal with the festivities. Out of everybody, she was the last person who wanted to mingle with people like this.
“Hello. And who might you be?” Of course, that meant she was the first person anybody would take an interest in. A Noble man suddenly appeared in front of her. He was older, head bald except for the brown hair just above his ears. He had a wide nose and big, round eyes. His mustache was thin and curled at the edges, almost like it had been painted on.
His friendly greeting and even friendlier smile weren’t enough to make Rhiannon do the same. Instead, she narrowed her eyes slightly, jaw clenching.
“Her name is Rhiannon,” Zafina answered for her.
“Ah! Rhiannon!” The man raised his head up and nodded slowly. “I am Lorah. Queen Cellica speaks highly of all of you and your accomplishments against the undead ram.”
“You’re aware of that?” I said.
“Truly! Queen Cellica informs all her people of both threats and triumphs. To truly be enlightened, one must step away from the darkness of ignorance.”
“Hmm… That’s good advice.”
Lorah hadn’t taken his attention off Rhiannon. He was a few inches shorter but that didn’t stop him from holding his hand out to her. “Forgive me for saying, but you look like a fighter.”
“I am,” Rhiannon said with a nod.
“Then I have no doubt you played an important part in felling that demon beast. It would be an honor for you to join me on the floor.”
Rhiannon hesitated for a second but she knew we couldn’t cause a scene. If it were me in the same situation, she would’ve forced me to do it. It was amusing to see the roles reversed though, so I grinned as much as I could.
Rhiannon glared at me then nodded to Lorah. “It would be my pleasure.”
While Lorah led Rhiannon out to the floor with the other dancing couples, Zafina put a hand on my arm. “Our main objective is to collect the resources. But it would be good to get to know the Nobles. It is not only the raiders we are trying to unify.”
I sighed a deep breath and shrugged. “Convincing this group to go along with the raiders will be tougher than that ram we just killed. They’re above the other Qashians, literally and figuratively. But nobody ever said Operation Reconciliation was going to be easy.”
“I will do my best to earn the trust of the Nobles. Perhaps I could influence them that their best interests lie in supporting us.”
“Try not to be too supportive.”
Zafina leaned in close and kissed me softly on the cheek. “Of course.” She winked before walking off on her own. It wasn’t long before a group of Nobles took interest in her. Lyra stayed secluded in a corner by herself, a plate of food on the table in front of her. Whenever a Noble approached, she only needed to glare for them to walk away.
“I suppose I’ll get myself a bite—”
“There is plenty of food to eat.” I turned around when a voice interrupted me. Queen Cellica stood there, her hands intertwined in front of her. She was wearing the same white silk dress I saw from before.
She wasn’t alone though. A man about a foot taller than me stood just behind her. His head was shaved bald, the only hair on his face a blond goatee around his mouth. His face was tan and weathered with scars around his eyes and cheeks. He wore a black uniform that looked about two sizes too small. When you were as tall and bulky as he was, it was always hard to find something that fit you properly. The good part was nobody ever laughed at you because of how big you were. And it was safe to assume nobody made fun of this guy.
He had his arms around his back, his chest puffed out. The guy wasn’t moving, only staring at me with those beady brown eyes of his.
Cellica took another step toward me. “I can assure you, you will get your fill.”
“Are you sure about that? I can eat a lot. Probably more than your big friend over here. He’s well-nourished.”
“Pay no mind to Vull,” she said with a subtle grin. “He may be suspicious but he will cause you no harm. It is not often we have outsiders visit.”
“It’s kind of a long walk to get here. Ignobles would have trouble making it.”
“You are not a Noble like us but you are not a Qashian. I sensed your arrival. There is something… different about you.”
“You sensed my arrival? You must have some superpowers.”
The corner of her lips twitched into a smile as she stared unblinkingly at me. “You are amusing.”
“You should tell that to my companions.”
“You would fit in quite well in Euphoria. I am glad for your company.”
“I appreciate it, but I’m not here on vacation. You know I need the resources from the mountain if I’m going to hold off Pandora.”
She took a step back from me, her small smile leaving her face. “Follow me.”
Something was up but I didn’t question her. I just walked with her and her giant bodyguard to the floor where the others were dancing. Vull stood on the edge of the floor as Cellica stepped out onto it.
Her hand reached out to me. “Indulge me.”
It was at that moment, I wished she’d just told me to kill another zombie ram. “I’m not much—”
“Not a dancer. Yes, I’m aware. Which is why I want you to indulge me.”
As Rhiannon danced with Lorah, she looked over at me and bit her tongue to hold back her smile. I didn’t think she’d get her payback so quickly. At least Cellica was good-looking. Knowing that, how could I refuse?
The room was filled with nearly a hundred people, most of them minding their own business, which made dancing even easier.
I took Cellica’s hand and she pulled me forward, pressing her soft chest right up to me.
“It’s hard to dance without my cane,” I said.
“Don’t worry. We’ll move… slow.”
The minstrels played a slower tune that allowed us to do just that. One hand on my shoulder, Cellica cupped my other hand in hers as she looked into my eyes. I placed my hand on the small of her back, trying not to move too low.
/>
“Yes, you are amusing,” she said, her grin growing.
“I wish I knew what was so funny so I could do it more often.”
“Look at me, Virgil.” I stared into her deep blue eyes and saw them shimmering. It was strange. Almost like there was energy in them. “I do indeed feel the power within you. There is strength in you… Mana. It makes my throat dry and my heart beat faster. Between my legs, there is an ache.”
“Right… Now when you say Mana, do you mean Mana or… ‘Mana’?”
She pressed her body even harder against me. At this point, she was starting to get a rise out of me. Now, if Rhiannon or Zafina or Lyra were watching, they would’ve said something. But I had good reason. I might’ve been a Battle God but I still had the parts that made me a warm-blooded man.
While I was trying to explain a situation to nobody at all in my head, Queen Cellica leaned closer to me. Her face moved next to mine so that the perfume on her neck flowed right into my nostrils. The scent was sweeter than sugar. It flooded my senses so much, my mind blanked out for a second.
“Yes, I crave you…” Cellica’s breath was warm against my ear. Warm enough to make me swallow to clear my suddenly dry throat.
But the song came to an end. The audience clapped and Cellica gently pulled away from me. As a livelier tune resumed, Cellica returned to Vull.
Without her trying to seduce me, my senses came back to me. “I need the resources,” I said bluntly.
The short-haired blond straightened up, her foxy eyes no longer trying to peer through me. “I will consider it. For now, I only want to enjoy the rest of this evening. Fill your belly, Virgil. There is plenty of food for you.”
Cellica moved to her throne at the head of the room with her bodyguard keeping a close eye on her.
Not knowing whether or not I got through to her bugged me but not enough to stop me from heading to the food table. It was an impressive spread. Beef. Pork. Chicken. Lamb. Every cut of meat you could want, all roasted to juicy perfection with an aroma that made your mouth water. There were plates of vegetables like carrots, potatoes, and tomatoes, too. And breads and rices and pastas. All of the salt and fat anybody could crave. And that wasn’t even counting the sweet cookies and cakes sitting at the other end of the table.
“She wasn’t kidding about there being plenty of food.”
I grabbed a plate and began picking at some of the chicken when I felt someone standing next to me. It was a younger man. Brown hair smoothed on his head in a bowl cut. Chubby cheeks that matched the rest of his round face and body. He was dressed in the same fancy silks as the others though he didn’t have the physique to look as regal as everybody else. I figured he was barely twenty or so. I wouldn’t have thought much about him if he wasn’t standing right next to me.
“I need to speak to you,” he said with a soft voice.
“Oh, sorry. Did you want some of this chicken—”
“Please. There is not much time to talk. You must listen to me.” He leaned in closer, speaking in a low whisper I could barely hear over the music and conversations around us. “You must go to the Lower Chambers.”
“What—”
His eyes widened, staring at me pleadingly. “Meet me in the Lower Chambers later tonight. Please. Before it is too late.”
Before I could ask him any more questions, he walked away and left the room entirely. And I had plenty of questions.
“Pretty popular.” Lyra walked up next to me and nudged me with an elbow. “I saw you out there with the queen herself. Not bad.”
I was too distracted by my conversation to pay much attention to her.
Lyra raised an eyebrow. “Are you okay, Virgil? You look like you’ve just seen a ghost.”
“I haven’t seen a ghost… But there might be one here.”
16: The Secret To Euphoria
The festivities went into the night, so late that it seemed like even the moon itself was getting restless. But eventually the music died down and the conversations quieted. Everybody had their fill of food and dancing took its toll.
After talking with the others, I sneaked my way out of the hall as quietly as I could and managed to avoid the attention of the guards, who were so few in numbers for some reason.
I didn’t know my way around the castle but there was only one way to go down. I had to assume these were the Lower Chambers the stranger told me about.
As I stood with the others in the hall—dimly-lit by a lone torch—the others stared at me curiously.
“Do you really trust him?” Lyra said. “This could be a trap.”
“What kind of trap could it be?” I said. “If Queen Cellica was hostile, she’s not the type to do it in secret.”
“Perhaps this is a test,” Rhiannon said. “To see if you would go behind her back.”
“Rhiannon’s assumption is plausible,” Zafina said. “But if this were subterfuge, it is a risk we have to be willing to take.”
I nodded in agreement. “I looked in that guy’s eyes. He was scared—truly terrified. Something is going on here.”
Lyra crossed her arms and sighed as she leaned against the stone wall. “Where is he anyway?”
It wasn’t long before footsteps on the staircase approached. The younger man who spoke to me at the food table cautiously looked behind him before coming down to meet us.
He looked at each one of us before letting out a deep sigh of relief. “Thank you for coming,” he said in a low voice.
“We didn’t have any trouble,” I said. “I didn’t notice any guards wandering in the halls.”
“After Queen Cellica holds her big banquets like this, the guards come in after. There’s so much food, they have to get rid of it. Right now the hall is filled with guards who are getting their share.”
“Perfect time for us to meet.”
He nodded. “My name is Mitar.”
“I’m—”
“Virgil. Rhiannon. Lyra. Zafina. I was there when you met Queen Cellica.”
“Okay, okay.” Lyra took a step to him. “The introductions are over and done with. Are you going to tell us what this is all about?”
“Yes. Follow me.” Without hesitating, Mitar walked down the dark hall cautiously but quickly. “We must move fast before the guards see what we are doing.”
“Then we’re doing something the guards don’t want to see,” I said. “This must be a big secret. Are you sure you want to be showing this to us, Mitar? You know we’re not Nobles.”
He stopped and widened his eyes at me. “You need to see this because you are not Nobles.” He continued leading us down the path, twisting and turning through the labyrinth-like maze that made up the Lower Chambers. I could easily get lost down here. Wherever we were going seemed hidden.
Fifteen minutes later, we stumbled upon a set of black iron doors. Long bars kept it locked along with a thick chain and padlock.
Mitar looked behind to see if anybody had followed then worked his key into the padlock.
“It’s like opening a Christmas present,” I said. “I never did get anything I ever wanted though. Everybody just assumed I could buy it myself…”
Mitar pulled the lock off then pushed the iron doors forward. It was open only a crack when the bright blue light from within shimmered into the hall.
“Quickly.” Mitar ushered us inside then closed the door back up.
As the iron clanged closed behind me, I looked around the large room. It was spacious, like a big hole carved out of a cavern. The ceiling was covered in black rocks and the floor was made from stone. It was like we were inside the mountain itself.
At one end of the room, there was some type of lab equipment. It didn’t fit in with the medieval atmosphere of the castle we’d just left behind. No, it looked more like a workstation or laboratory you’d find at a Legion District.
But that wasn’t even the strangest thing in the room. There was a container next to the workstations. A glass tube big enough to hold someone. And there was s
omeone inside.
“Is that…” I narrowed my eyes as I walked closer to it. A figure floated in a vat of bright blue fluid. Tubes were poked into their arms and legs with a mask covering the bottom half of their pale face. They were covered in tattered black rags. Their head was smooth and their eyes were closed. I didn’t need to look any closer.
“That’s a Herald the LOD is keeping tabs on.” I looked at Rhiannon and Zafina, both of them widening their eyes in surprise. “Acolytes from Pandora…”
Lyra’s eyebrows furrowed in confusion. “What’s going on here?”
We all turned to Mitar, who suddenly looked sheepish. He stared at the Herald floating in the tank and shook his head.
“When the Nobles made the decision to split off from the other Qashians, Queen Cellica decided there was no place more fitting than the mountains to the north. It was a natural fortification. There were ample resources for building. And there was untouched wildlife that we wouldn’t have to worry about overfarming. It was the perfect spot to establish our new community. A perfect spot for Euphoria.
“But what we didn’t anticipate was that it was the breeding ground for attacks from the other world. You saw how difficult it was just to make the journey here. The undead ram you defeated was only a glimpse of what we had to fight. We lost several men clearing out the space we used to build our community.”
He put his hand on the tank with the Herald inside of it. “Then one of these things attacked—these Heralds you call them. It took all our combined efforts to defeat him but we did. I remember the look in his eyes when we beat him. He was on the floor, waiting for his end.