"Good evening, Mr. Gemini, Mr. Capricorn, Mr. Aries," said Yvette, the friendliest of the bunch.
The five people walked deeper into the chapel and took a seat on the frontmost row, directly facing the three masked men sitting near the altar. Even after sitting down, they could stop but be amazed at the floating fireballs that occasionally danced and flickered, illuminating the dark chapel without being affected by the blowing wind.
Is this Mr. Gemini's power? He seems to be the one who's able to control fire. Thought Yvette. He sure has gotten even stronger. I wonder when he'll let us gain supernatural power.
"Good evening everyone," said Graham using Rood's voice that was further muffled by the mask. It caused his voice to sound entirely different from his original's.
Almost everyone appeared to have noticed the difference is Graham's voice-- everyone except Eduard, who remained clueless. Diedrik was especially perceptive, as shown in his change of expression that reflected puzzlement and suspicion. After all, the person was wearing a mask, so they would never know if it was the same person or not.
"Don't worry. I'm just wearing a disguise," replied Graham solemnly, "That's why my voice changed, as some of you seem to have noticed," he added.
Diedrik felt embarrassed and guilty for having suspected the man, but he quickly brushed off the feeling.
"Now, I've gathered you all today because there is an update to the situation. There had been a fight between the Police and the Pale Society, with the Police emerging as the victors. I'm sure you should have also noticed the sudden blockade that appeared near Raadhuislaan," said Graham seriously.
So that's what the blockade is about! How did Mr. Hymes know about it? Divination? Or was he dragged into it again?
Luuk looked at the man sitting next to him and pondered.
Blockade? What blockade? Thought Jacco. He was clueless about the situation so he could only look at Graham in puzzlement.
Isn't that information top secret? I couldn't even get anything after asking around for the whole afternoon... How did Mr. Gemini know about it? Does he have an informant within the Police? Or is he a member of the Police himself?
Diedrik was awed by the man sitting in front of him while his brain was coming up with all sorts of scenarios.
He can't be a member of the Police, since our first-ever request was the assassination of Yvette's father. Or he's a very corrupt member of the Police force, which I don't think is the case. So he must have an informant in the Police who told him about all that, and the informant must be an important one at that.
While Diedrik's brain was wandering away, Yvette and Helga were showing only admiration for Graham. They knew about the blockade and had been very curious about what had happened there, but nobody seemed to know anything. They also didn't expect it to be a fight between the Police and the Pale Society, the organization that had been threatening their city.
I wonder if Mr. Gemini was involved personally in the fight? That must be why he knows about it. He must be very powerful himself to be able to fight against those powerful people! Maybe he worked with the Police? Which meant our little syndicate is on good terms with them?
Yvette's mind also began to come up with her own scenarios regarding the information.
What blockade? Why does everyone look at Mr. Gemini like that? Did I miss something? Eduard was as clueless as Jacco. He hadn't left his house the whole day because he was busy reading his comic books in peace, now that his brother problem had been taken care of. The previous night, he went to bed very early, so he had completely missed the announcement about the stay-home order.
"Ahem..." Graham cleared his throat., "Now I will tell you the sequence of events in detail, so please pay attention," said Graham, and then continued speaking solemnly.
"Last night, the Pale Society released a horde of ghouls and another kind of headless supernatural creature near Raadhuislaan, which took the souls of countless victims. After that, a mysterious black hole appeared, from which an even stronger Ghoul came out. That was why the Police relocated all the people and sealed off the whole area."
Their expressions showed visible surprise.
"The Pale Society showed up not long after that, which resulted in the death of a Police Sergeant, Paars, and numerous other officers. The Police, with the help of the mafia that came a little later, managed to kill four of the enemy's members while the rest managed to run away after someone who appeared to be their boss showed up," he recounted the story, based on what he himself knew.
The mafia was also involved? So the Pale Society is even more dangerous than I thought?! Diedrik's expression showed a surprise yet again. ...And for Mr. Gemini to know this much detail can only mean one thing. He was there personally. So now there is another possibility that he is a member of the mafia. Although, it is much more likely that he is an independent party, otherwise he wouldn't know the event from the beginning since he said the mafia came later.
The mafia? What? Mr. Gemini is involved with such a dangerous organization? I hope it won't implicate us in any way. I don't want to be involved with the mafia no matter what! Thought Calvin while looking at Graham with a gaze that seemed to be analyzing the man.
"Worry not, everyone. We are not associated with Fratello Maggiore in any way, so you can rest assured. We're an independent party that operates on our own terms," said Graham, finally as though he knew what the members were thinking based on their expression.
The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.
Calvin's expression relaxed while Diedrik felt validated. His assumption had been proven correct. Meanwhile, Yvette, Helga, and even Eduard somehow showed relief on their faces.
"Now that the Pale Society has been reduced to only a handful of members, we can focus our attention somewhere else. However, we will still reward you for your effort in finding out more about the serial kidnapping recently and other things that you managed to gather," added Graham kindly.
Great! I thought my effort would be useless-- thought Eduard happily.
"Now, there is something very important that all of you must hear," said Graham with a very serious tone.
He muttered very quietly and suddenly the fireballs burned brighter. To the five people there, it was as if the fireballs were reacting to their master's words and were burning brightly in response. They were awed by Graham's power and quickly focused on the man so that they wouldn't miss what he was about to say.
"First of all, be aware that something big is going to happen in the future, something that will affect us all," he said vaguely with a voice that could make people tremble.
Luuk's expression showed a shock that was hidden by his mask.
That sounded pretty ominous. By the way he worded it, it's something entirely different from the Pale Society's attack, or even something much bigger. Why hadn't he told us about this before?
The five associates of the Zodiac Syndicate were also visibly restless. Graham's words had managed to agitate them and filled their brains with all sorts of sinister scenarios.
The Pale Society is not all? There is something even bigger? Diedrik thought.
"What is it, Mr. Gemini?" asked Yvette, breaking the painful silence. Her voice sounded very concerned.
"Even I don't know the detail," replied Graham with a lie. He didn't want to straight-up tell them the world was going to end because he didn't know how they would react. Even he himself needed his ability to calm down after learning about the truth. Whether the end was preventable or not was something out of his current knowledge, and only Paim could answer that for him.
"The second thing is that we need all of you to prepare for this upcoming big event. Yes, I'm offering you the chance to become a Contractbound, and based on your contributions so far, I might also provide you with the necessary materials," added Graham with open arms.
A Contractbound?! Finally, the chance has come! Shouted Diedrik in his heart. He had been working hard for the sole reason of getting rewarded with the chance of becoming one, and now it was right in front of his eyes. It would be even better if the materials were also provided by the man, but he would already be happy enough to become one.
"Now, this is something that you have to decide yourself. Once becoming a Contractbound, there is no going back. And also, you basically sell your soul to the Deity in exchange for power. Think carefully before deciding and tell me your decisions on the next gathering, which will happen on Saturday night," said Graham.
Silence crept into the abandoned chapel as the five associates were thinking about Graham's words. They knew that Contractbounds were people with supernatural abilities, just like the man himself, but they didn't know about the part where they had to sell their souls. It was not an easy decision to make.
Woosh...
The wind blew in, breaking the silence. The floating fireballs were still burning bright without being affected by the sudden breeze, illuminating every corner of the large chapel with their orange lights.
I definitely want to become a Contractbound, but am I ready to sell my soul to the Deity? Eduard pondered. But what does it even mean? Does it mean we don't go to heaven once we die? That's even assuming heaven exists. So I guess why not, as long as I don't die, I should be alright, right?
Should I become a Contractbound? Would Fabien still accept me if he knew the truth? Helga was conflicted. I don't really need this power since it's enough for me to be with him...
Suddenly, her attention was drawn by the sound of throat-clearing from in front of her.
"Ahem... Helga, we have a special task for you, and for that, we surely hope you will consider becoming a Contractbound. We will provide all the necessary materials should you say yes," said Graham persuasively.
"W-what special task if I may know?" she asked cautiously.
"The big event that will happen in the future might involve Fabien Arnaud one way or another," he said, which caused a shock to her. She raised her eyebrows and there was worry on her face. Graham then continued, "That's why we want you to become stronger and to watch over Fabien on our behalf. You are quite close to him, no?"
Helga nodded slowly and hesitantly.
They were indeed very close now, especially since Graham had told her about what the man was actually feeling toward her.
I don't want anything bad to happen to Fabien. I guess there is no other option but for me to become a Contractbound. I hope I can be of use to the syndicate while at the same time protect the man that matters to me.
Her hesitation turned into conviction as Helga said, "Alright, I'll do it,"
Graham nodded in approval.
"Very good. Then I will give all of you your tasks for now. Everyone except for Helga, who will be watching over Fabien, will focus their attention on gathering information about a man called Emiel Gompers aka Emiel the jeweler. He used to run a jewelry store with the name 'Bron's' on Grotemarktstraat, but now the man has suddenly disappeared. Be very careful because he is a very crafty one. Always prioritize your own life first," said Graham seriously.
"Now then, please follow me to the confessional for your personal rewards," said Graham.
Diedrik stood up first and followed Graham to enter the small chamber on the right side of the altar that had two entrances. Graham entered through one side while he entered through the other. Inside, there was only a small gap for their voices to travel to without allowing each other to see the other side.
"Tell me, what do you want or want to know?" said Graham gently. However, he was still using Rood's voice which sounded rough and interrogative despite his best attempt.
"I just would like to request for my materials to be provided. Have I contributed enough for that?" asked Diedrik carefully not to offend the man.
There was silence for a second that was followed by a short chuckle.
"Haha! Then it shall be arranged," replied Graham amusedly. He didn't expect the man to be that straightforward. Although he currently didn't have any materials, he could easily go to the black market to try to buy the cheapest one he could get or sneak into the cemetery's morgue again, especially since the Police should be busy with the Pale Society.
Diedrik almost couldn't control his excitement, but he quickly calmed down. It was unbecoming of him to act that way in front of Mr. Gemini.
"Thank you very much," he replied with gratitude and grace.
"Before you go, let me do some safeguard measures," said Graham suddenly.
Diedrik nodded and then stood there patiently, waiting for Graham to do whatever he needed to. Graham began chanting quietly from behind the separation wall while concentrating on the man through the gap.
"I, in the name of the Deity of Cunningness and Transformation, hereby plant the thought in your head that you will forget all about us in case you fall under an enemy's control!"
Diedrik felt funny for a second like something had just entered his mind but he couldn't pinpoint what exactly. The feeling disappeared very quickly and since he trusted the man to some extent, he didn't raise a fuss about it. He left the confession chamber after thanking Graham one more time.
Meanwhile, Graham was breathing heavily on the other side. Using one of those abilities took a lot of his stamina.
"Val, just four more people to go," he muttered weakly as soon as Diedrik left the confession chamber.