38 - Chapter 37 - Day 1825

Thomas slowly came to slumped on the floor. He was confused about how he ended up on the floor. The last thing he remembered was being introduced to the potential target of his search.

Thomas slowly picked himself off the floor, and looked around groggily. Jarel and Adya were still sitting in their seats and looking towards him. He had a feeling they had just stopped a conversation.

“Are you alright, Thomas?” asked Jarel. “I think you should check your system status to make sure everything is fine.”

“Yes, though after that, please do not attack anyone,” said Adya. “That is an order.”

Thomas felt a weird compulsion at Adya’s words, but thought nothing of it. He picked himself off the floor and took the seat he seemed to have fallen out of. He took the time to compose himself, then decided to take Jarel’s advice. He could think of no reason as to why he suddenly collapsed.

He was still thinking through the potential causes that could have caused him to collapse, when he came across a new entry on this status. As he read through the entry, he realised that it was not something that happened, but something that was done to him. How had they circumvented the formation he had already been subjected to?

From the look in his eyes, and the expression on his face, Adya surmised that Thomas had found the new entry. She double checked his identification to ensure there were no problems.

“So before you start to get angry or upset at the way that you have been treated,” said Adya. “Tell me the orders you received.”

Thomas tried to resist the compulsion to answer the question and found himself writhing in pain so intense it was beyond anything that he had ever experienced.

“Yes, refusing my orders will be a painful process,” said Adya. “I would not suggest attempting to test the limits of the mark.”

“I was told to locate a child, approximately 5 years old, with abnormal abilities.” said Thomas, finding the pain vanishing, leaving only a memory behind. “Then to test this child, using a talisman that I was provided for the purpose. If the test confirmed that the child was my target, I was to execute them, and everyone who knew thay existed within reason. Make it look like a bandit attack, and report back the completion of the task.”

“When were your orders issued and by whom? Also where were you based when you received the orders?” asked Adya.

“I received the orders a little over 2 months ago.” replied Thomas. “It was personally given by one of the elders who lead the Council of Sects. I was already in the human kingdoms, and communicated remotely to receive updated orders.”

Adya could sense where this was going, and gave Jarel a pointed look. “What were your original orders that led you out here?” she asked.

“Another elder had apparently sent out her agents in search of something.” replied Thomas. “Our orders were to identify her agents and shadow them. If they found what the elder was looking for, then we were to kill the agent and seize whatever it was that they had found.”

“And this is why you should not complain about what I have done to you.” replied Adya. “You were already enslaved by the council. You were sent out to kill your own colleagues and potentially an innocent child and their family. What I have done is free you from that burden. You only have to follow my orders now, and not the convoluted orders of elders with morally questionable agendas. In case it was not clear before, I now have full control over you, that includes the formation that keeps you alive. You may not attack, and in fact must defend, me, my family, our retainers, and our interests in that order. Do you understand my orders?”

“Yes Miss Adya.” replied Thomas, not happy at the situation he found himself in, but helpless to do anything about it. The orders made it even more impossible for him to take any actions against his latest owner.

“Do you see Jarel,” continued Adya. “You had already been marked for death. Had you not come to me in the manner that you did, you would likely already be dead. The circumstances are the only reason you still live. You should be more grateful and accepting of your new situation.”

Thomas only just now realised that Jarel was in the same situation as himself. That just made things worse. They had not used a single time artifact to gain control over him, somehow this girl was able to do so at will. An assertion that was immediately validated by her next order.

“Time is growing short. I need both of you to ensure my secrets stay secret.” said Adya. “To that end, I am not going to be testing myself to confirm if I am the target of your search. As long as no one knows for certain, no matter what their suspicions, you don’t need to lie to state that you have not found the target. Neither of you will take any action, or by your inaction allow those targeting me to locate me. Is that clear to both of you?”

Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website.

They both nodded in acquiescence. After that Adya continued.”As the hunt seems to be heating up, we need to secure more people as fast as possible.” said Adya. “To that end I need you both to go and find a peak Tier 5 each and bring them back to me, so that they can undergo the same process that you have undergone. I expect you back as soon as it is safely possible. You will bring them to me alone, then proceed to incapacitate them to allow me to take over their control formations. Do you understand my orders? You are not to take any actions or inactions that would remain within the scope of my orders, but would intentionally or unintentionally invalidate their intent.”

Thomas was reeling from the series of orders that this girl was giving him. He tried to think through ways that he might be able to warn others, or make them aware of the trap. However, the orders left no room to manoeuvre. The last instruction was the death knell in any plans that he was trying to formulate. Even if the wording of the orders left room for options, the fact that she had said that he could not go against the intent of the orders meant that he had no choice but to obey. A part of him noticed that this girl was more proficient in giving orders that could not be circumvented than even the elders. Just who was this dangerous girl that now controlled his life. “Yes, I understand.” he responded through gritted teeth.

Jarel was still in awe at Adya’s ability to command. As this was not his first time going through this, he was more accepting of the situation. The fact he had been targeted by his own group, for doing as he had been ordered to, had shattered whatever loyalty he still held. He had not yet transferred that loyalty to Adya, not even started, however he had to admit, she was just trying to keep herself and her family safe. Listening to the orders that Thomas had been given, she had been right to be worried about the actions of the other elders. He idly wondered how many innocent lives and families had been destroyed by the more overzealous members of their former organisation. “I understand,” responded Jarel.

“Since we don’t actually have a lot of time.” replied Adya. “I need you both to make the appropriate arrangements, and start the process of hunting the next group of tier 5s today. However, before you leave, show me the formations that you both have. The one designed to confirm the target’s status and the suppression formation.”

They both presented the formations by placing them on the table in between them. Adya was careful not to touch either formation. Her prudence was rewarded as she analysed each of the formations and realised that they could both be primed to activate based on touch. The identification formation would require further study, but the suppression formation was straight forward enough to understand. “Do you know if the formations require special parchment or ink?” asked a distracted Adya.

“The ink is a high mana version, that is made from special ingredients,” replied Thomas, who had a more thorough understanding of talisman design. “The parchment is not anything special, though the thicker it is, the longer the talisman will last.”

“Interesting, you may take the talisman’s back now.” replied Adya. “You have your instructions. Unless you need anything else, I would suggest you be about your tasks. Remember, never refer to me as the target, even by accident.”

With that order, the two felt compelled to start their assigned job. They both stood and with a small nod, they were on their way.

Adya sat contemplating what she had learned. She tried to see if anything had truly changed from her perspective. Apart from speeding up the timeline, nothing else had really changed. She was still being targeted. They still had a limited amount of detail about her, nothing really apart from her age. She had never known the number of people hunting for her, so it did not really make any difference if the number had increased. Finally the nature of the threat had not changed either. They all either wanted her under their control or dead and erased from existence. The sooner she could build out a strong team under her control, the safer she would be.

Originally she had intended to stop at 8 tier 5s, and 4 tier 6s. Now, since some of these elders had the audacity to order her death, she was just going to keep capturing stronger and stronger agents, building out her strength. She knew that would paint a target on her back, but she would try to mitigate some of that risk by providing false information back to the elders. Perhaps making it look like they had lost a large number of agents to opposition action. Every one she converted, would increase her own strength while reducing the threat arrayed against her.

She needed Sai back. That would accelerate her work into this mana coin machine. She also needed to increase her personal power. She would need to start to work on creating her meridians sooner rather than later. She needed to come up with a design that would give her the maximum benefit.

Adya decided that was enough rumination for one day. She went off to find her mother and Parth. She needed to see what was happening in the wider family. Though she had been supporting the efforts to convert spies whenever they were caught, she had not been keeping a close look at the details. She needed to bring herself up to speed. If for nothing else, than to ensure that no unknown situation or threat could blindside her at the worst possible moment.

As in any situation, Murphy’s law, the one that stated the worst possible thing will happen at the most inopportune moment, delivered more often than not. And thought she could not prevent the law from acting against her, she could take precautions to minimise any such impact. That always started with gathering information. As she mused, she found herself in front of the doors to her mother’s office.

She knocked and entered to find her mother and Parth in the middle of a tense discussion. “Greetings mother.” she interrupted, “just what is going on?”

“Ah good that you have come, Adya.” replied her mother. “We have a problem, your father’s caravan has been attacked on the way back to the city. While we don’t have the full details, having already seized all the goods and wealth the caravan was carrying, we think the attackers are holding our family for ransom.”

Murphy’s law had struck yet again.