Chapter 97: The Mystery of the Photograph

Name Hagden Guild AION Post Marks 5 Class Journalist

Hagden, newly minted Assistant Editor in Chief of the AION Post, was drinking.

He tipped the glass back into his mouth and downed the last of the whiskey. The ice clinked as he sat it back upon the table and he sighed. Before him was his latest story, featured on page five where his weekly column graced the pages of the AION Post.

“Late night?” Came a voice from the door.

“Jacob!” Said Hagden. He motioned to the chair before his desk and the younger man sat down. “Why are you here so late?”

“I was going to ask you the same question,” said Jacob, eyeing the empty glass before Hagden.

“Ah, pardon me. Let me get you one.”

Hagden waved away the young man’s protests and set about to refilling his glass from the bottle which the Editor is Chief had gifted him and made a new one for Jacob. He whistled as he poured the dark liquid into the glasses.

“Take it,” said Hagden, handing the glass to Jacob.

“I, um, don’t really drink,” said Jacob warily, looking at the drink.

“What? How did you get a job here?”

“I would like to imagine by the quality of my work.”

Hagden rolled his eyes then placed the drink on his before Jacob. He returned to his seat and leaned back.

“So, why the visit?”

“I saw your light was one,” said Jacob. “It’s past 9’o clock. Most everyone is gone, even Willz.”

“I do some of my best thinking when this place is empty,” said Hagden, motioning around his office. He took another sip of his drink. “And also my best drinking when alone. Never let anyone tell you that drinking alone is a bad thing. I’ve had some of my best times doing just that.”

“So do I,” said Jacob. “Thinking, I mean.”

“And what are you thinking about tonight, young Jacob?”

“Well,” said Jacob, with some hesitation. “Actually, it’s about that article you wrote a couple days ago. That one, the one on your desk.”

_Perhaps great minds think alike,_thought Hagden to himself.

“What of it?” Said Hagden.

“I’m just a little confused, is all. We have a new event beginning with a foe no one has ever known the likes of in Esem. Then you meet a guild randomly in Avalon, who afterwards turns out to have defeated her at some sort of game.”

“I’m not hearing a question, Jacob.”

“Sorry,” said the young man quickly. He scratched his cheek where some stubble was growing. “You wrote the article about them being the saviors of Esem. Do you really think they can be?”

“And why not?” Said Hagden. “They beat her once already.”

“But according to my research that was mostly a fluke. They didn’t even fight her, really, but were involved in some kind of game.”

“Still impressive, no?”

“Sure, bug why are you hitching your horse to their wagon, so to speak?”

Hagden smiled, an expression which belied his already intoxicated and slightly depressed mood. He almost felt like a marionette being forced to move by some otherworldly strings from high above.

“Everyone at the AION Post is laughing at me,” said Hagden. “Even Willz was confused as to why I would write about this guild. Are you here to mock me as well?”

“No, no, no sir!” Said Jacob quickly. He gulped and then finally took the drink from the desk and took a quick swallow. “I am just curious.”

Hagden sighed. Perhaps it was the whiskey, or that he had known Jacob for over a year at this point that allowed him to lower his guard. He and Jacob had once shared an office down the hall, and had often exchanged ideas between one another. Hagden found the other to be slightly timid, but his writing was decent and in the end that was all he really cared about.

“I’ll tell you a little secret,” said Hagden slowly. He got up and closed the door. When he returned Jacob’s eyes were wide and his mouth was slightly open. “When I met the Seven Stains, I did more than talk with them. They let me take their picture.”

“Really!” Said Jacob excitedly. “But, why not run that in your latest article about them?”

“I was going to, but something stayed my hand.”

“Something…?”

Hagden opened up a drawer on his desk and found a folder. He removed a single photograph from it’s yellow pages and placed it on the table.

The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.

“Take a look,” said Hagden, sliding the picture gently over to Jacob.

The young man gingerly picked it up. He squinted at the photograph and muttered something.

“What’s that?” Said Hagden.

“I said they don’t look like much.”

“How so?”

“They all look like relatively new players. I doubt any of them have their second contract yet.”

“You’re right, of course,” said Hagden with a small smile. He noticed that his glass was empty once again and got up to refill it.

“So, why not publish the photo along with your article?”

“That’s a great question,” said Hagden, back turned to Jacob as he set up his next drink. “Let me tell you a story, first. Do you know what I did before I came to the AION Post?”

“Oh, um, well, you were an adventurer, right? I’m pretty sure you’ve told me before.”

“Correct! And on my travels I met quite a large number of—oh! Would you like another?” Said Hagden, turning slightly and looking at Jacob’s empty drink.

“If I say no will you finish your story?”

“Sound’s like a ‘yes’ to me,” chuckled Hagden. He took the others drink and gave it the same treatment as his own.

“Anyway,” continued Hagden as he slid back into his seat. He was quite the experienced drinker and he knew he was about to be at the threshold of his limit quite soon. “Where was I?”

“You were an adventurer and you met many interesting people,” said Jacob, taking a sip of his drink. He shivered.

“Perfect, you’re journalist skill of summing up information is exactly why Willz hired you. That and your, what was it? Excellent writing.”

Jacob slightly flushed and then cleared his throat.

“So, to make a long story short I was quite close with a couple members of the Old Guard.”

“Really!” Said Jacob. “You never mentioned that!”

“Oh, I don’t like to brag,” said Jacob. “Honestly I met them when they were not as famous as they are today and so I don’t view them as that ‘shining guild on the hill’ that so many young players do. It is useful, however, whenever the AION Post needs to fill an interview column.”

“So what about them?”

Hagden was quite again. He stared at his drink. Why was he sharing this with Jacob? He trusted the young man but his theories were just that. Theories, and he had next to no proof to back them up.

“Let me show you another photograph,” said Hagden. This time he had to leave his desk. Though he had just recently moved into this new office, he had diligently moved all of his belongings from the old office and put them away. There were three filing cabinets in the back and he opened the middle one. After a moment of rummaging around, he found what he sought.

“Here you go,” said Hagden. He handed Jacob another picture. This one was older, but depicted a similar scene as the one of the Seven Stains. “Use your journalist glasses, so to speak. What do you see?”

Jacob’s eyes bulged, and Hagden took the opportunity to pour himself yet another drink.

_Last one, old man,_thought Hagden to himself.

“Well?” He said as he took his seat again. “What do you see?”

“It’s a picture of the Old Guard!” Said Jacob, light in his eyes. “And, um, is this you in the front?”

Hagden smiled.

“In fact it is. What? Didn’t believe I knew them?”

The picture had been taken over 10 years earlier. He had met them during a good mood and finally convinced them to allow a photograph to be made with him. Karkren had never liked the photographs, and Solomon was always indifferent, but as luck had had it they had agreed.

“I believed you…it’s just…wow. Sir, you had such a beard back then.”

“Thanks,” said Hagden dryly. “Now, I didn’t just show you that photo to brag. I want you to closely examine everyone is both of the photos. Tell me what you see.”

Jacob now held both photos in either hand, and his eyes darted between both. He appeared confused, and finally sighed.

“I don’t see anything, Hagden,” said Jacob finally. He set both of the pictures back on the desk. “What am I missing?”

“Look,” said Hagden. He placed his finger on the one of the Seven Stains. “Do you see this man, here? Describe him to me.”

“Um, well, he’s about your height. A few years younger, maybe. He isn’t smiling…he looks a bit worried, maybe?”

“And his arms?”

“Oh, yes. He has his arms crossed. I can see he has his first two fingers resting on his bicep.”

Jacob blinked.

“So what?”

“Does that look like anyone here?” Hagden now pointed at the photograph of the Old Guard.

“Well…” began Jacob. He squinted at the picture, then took quickly back at the one of the Seven Stains. “This guy…This is Spade, right? The one who died a few months ago? He’s got a similar look on his face, and his arms are crossed in exactly the same manner.”

“So, what do you think?”

“Think?” Jacob’s mouth fell open. “There is absolutely nothing to think here. These are two different people. Just look at their faces, and their hair. Is that what you are getting at?”

“Oh, probably nothing,” sighed Hagden. Jacob’s words were what he had suspected he might say, but they hurt no less to hear them uttered with such conviction. “Here’s the rub: I knew Spade the Thief. In fact, I knew him quite well. We were friends, and just before he died he had written to me that he wanted to talk about something. Something explosive about the Old Guard that he could not trust to a letter.”

“What was it?”

Hagden felt his eyebrow twitch out of annoyance.

“Well, considering he died, Jacob, I’ll never know. But wasn’t his death curious to you at all? A member of the Old Guard drowns at sea? Is that even possible? No one ever recovered his body, either, and the Old Guard seemed wholly uninterested what had become of their partner.”

“True, his death was a bit odd. But are you really suggesting that Spade and this other guy are real and somehow?”

“I don’t know,” said Hagden shaking his head. He began to take another sip but noticed his glass was empty.

“Here, I’ll do it,” said Jacob. He took both their glasses and went to the whiskey bottle.

“Thanks,” said Hagden. “Here is the thing: I knew Spade. I knew his quirks and his habits and how he carried himself. And when I met this new player—Chase—there was something rather eerie about him. Yes, his face was nothing like Spade’s, but, I don’t know, like he had been reborn or something.”

Jacob hmm’d and returned the drink back to his superior.

“I wonder when this Chase spawned in Esem.”

“Avalon, I know that much,” said Hagden. “But that’s a good question. I didn’t think to ask.”

“It’s unlikely that they are the same person,” said Jacob slowly. He frowned and stared at his drink, then took the glass, and downed it all in one gulp. “But a good journalist leaves no stone unturned!”

Hagden had to stop himself from laughing. Jacob was red faced and clearly not handling the alcohol well.

“So you want to help me?”

“Sure,” said Jacob, nodding his head. “But where do we find them?”

“That might not be a problem,” chuckled Hagden. “I told them to come by out office if they ever wanted this photograph of them. We might get to meet them soon.”

“Then what? Interrogate them?”

“Nothing like that,” said Hagden. “But two journalists—one award winning and the other fresh eyed and full of vitality—should have not problem getting to the bottom of this.”

“Very well then,” said the young man. A smile coming over his face. “Guess we finally get to work together on something.”

“Yes, but,” Hagden placed his finger next to his nose and winked. “Let’s keep all this between ourselves, eh? Don’t need the others or especially Willz to find out about our ’secret subject’, got it?”

Jacob swore himself to secrecy right on the spot, and, after a another half hour of chatting the young man yawned and excused himself for the night. Hagden remained in his office a little longer.

He glanced once more at the whiskey bottle. It was a good vintage, and had likely cost Willz quite the sum. Hagden shook his head, denying his impulse to finish the blasted thing that night. He would not open it again until he had gotten to the bottom of this mystery.

“Old friend,” muttered Hagden, looking once more at the picture of the Old Guard. His eyes slid lugubriously over to the photo of the Seven Stains. “Chase. Soon all will be revealed. And even if you are not the same person, then the mystery of your death will at least be brought to light.”