-Realm Rift-
[A massive chasm separating the Incol and Ishen Realms. The Half-Demon Clans’ homes reside on large pillars in the middle of the chasm as well. There is a fourth pillar, said to be the entrance to the Aetherial Realm. Travel to and from this fourth pillar is heavily regulated, and very few Mortals ever get to visit it.]
“So. What is this all about?” Ensaru said, his voice clearly angry at Ari and Xeron’s interruption, as the door to the meeting room shut with a loud thud. Oroske and Kuro had followed them out, seemingly acting as bodyguards. Do they know we’re in Quarry to kill this man in the first place? Yenva mentioned the possibility of him hiring protection, I don’t know why I didn’t think of him hiring Hunters. Ari asked herself. Oroske seemed calm, and looked cool leaning against the wall with his arms folded. Kuro seemed awkward in comparison, simply standing around, but at least he seemed composed.
“We received an anonymous tip,” Ari stepped forward to explain, “That there is a tunnel in your mine that is a direct violation of the Sub-Terrain Treaty: a tunnel to the Realm Rift.” Ensaru paled. Ari continued before he could speak, “With the assistance of this security guard, Vel, we were able to navigate through the mines and locate this tunnel. Its existence has already been confirmed, and it’s undoubtedly part of your company’s mining operation. We would like to ask you some questions regarding this.”
Ensaru took a deep breath with his eyes closed, clearly trying to hide some level of frustration. He exhaled before speaking, “Very well. I’d be happy to cooperate. Before that though, would you mind waiting a few minutes for me to wrap up this meeting I’m in? It’s fairly important, and I’d hate to keep my colleagues waiting. It should only take a few minutes.”
“Very well,” Xeron sighed, “Do what you must. We’ll be waiting out here.”
Ensaru and his Hunter guards retreated into the meeting room, the door shutting with a much quieter thud this time. Ari caught the sound of a lock turning, something they maybe should have considered the first time. She turned to Xeron, “Did you know those two would be here?” She asked.
“I had no idea,” he clenched his fist, “But now I’m more motivated than ever to uphold our deal with Yenva.” Well, that was understandable. Ari didn’t have the history with Oroske that her brother did, but even she found him and Kuro to be frustrating to be around. The way they always seemed to get preferential treatment from Danfis and the others at HQ, especially the Red Cloaks. Beyond that, it was aggravating to see how strong they were in comparison to her and her brothers. There was this natural gap between them, and it often seemed insurmountable.
Still, she wouldn’t let that stop her from trying her best.
They didn’t have to wait long before Ensaru and the Hunter duo came back out. True to his word, that director was. Ari appreciated that. Far too many people would say things like “just a minute” or even “just a few minutes” and she’d end up waiting for them for half an hour, if not longer. “My apologies for the wait, Hunters,” Ensaru said with a small bow. “What questions can I answer for you?”
“For starters,” Ari said, grabbing her notebook and pen, “Were you aware of this tunnel’s existence before we brought it up?”
“I was not.” Straight to the point, she liked that in a person, even when it meant she had to do more work to get the answers she wanted.
“Did you order the dig that led to the tunnel’s existence? Or otherwise approved it?”
“I am typically not involved with the day-to-day operations of the J’alyr. Approvals for new tunnels are handled by my staff on site, and I’m entirely hands off on what tunnels they decide to dig.” More forthcoming this time.
“What digs do you authorize? And what operations are you directly involved with?”
“I personally only handle large scale digs, which are usually not a source of product for us, and rather a commission taken on to clear space for new construction. In the case of the J’alyr itself, I get final say on where we position new operation bases, and that’s about it. Even though I have a semi-automated process for that, I still go over the paperwork manually and ensure it meets my typical standards. As for my typical daily work, I personally read and review all research documents created by my staff, and handle the business side of things, which involves a lot of paperwork and money handling. I also frequently assist with getting deliveries of products scheduled for our clients.”
“I see, that is helpful for understanding your position. My last question for now then. Do you approve of this tunnel’s existence now that you are aware of it?”
“Absolutely not. The Sub-Terrain Treaty is a covenant between those that sign it and the Guardians. It is a mutually beneficial contract. To find that one or more of my employees would work in direct violation of this contract sickens me.”
Ari observed him as he spoke, meeting his eyes, watching for signs he may be lying. She couldn’t find any. She could tell he genuinely meant what he said.
“In fact,” Ensaru spoke again before she could, “If it isn’t too much trouble, I’d like to ask you to bring me to this tunnel, so that I can see it for myself. I’d also like to have this information to begin an internal investigation.” He turned to Oroske and Kuro. “I’ll go with them on my own, you boys hold down the fort here. I’m sure we’ll be just fine. I’ll be sure to share if my investigation leads to any information about the Mienr or their Empire.”
“Thank you, Ensaru,” Oroske said, “Be safe out there.” He met Ari’s gaze, then Xeron’s. “Keep him safe for us, will you?”
Ari gave a small shrug, “Sure, we’ll do our best,” she said before turning around to lead Xeron and Ensaru back to the J’alyr.
It was a long trek back. They made a small disruption when Ensaru arrived at the prep yard and commandeered a trolley to take them into the mine. While it caused a bit of an upset, it was clear the majority of the workers respected Ensaru enough to let him do what he wanted.
They eventually arrived at the tunnel, Ari had counted the tunnels on their trip out to help remember exactly where it is without a guide. They’d brought along Vel, though that was more because she wanted to come along than anything.
“Well, damn.” Ensaru said bluntly as he inspected the hole, making the same checks Ari had made earlier. He made a rel orb and sent it to light up the other side of the chasm, revealing an undisturbed wall of stone on the other side. He sent it a fair distance in all directions, ensuring there were no other tunnels dug into the other side anywhere near. He even checked the side they were on, holding himself to the wall with one form of magic or another as he poked his head out to watch it. Once he was done, he moved back inwards a fair bit before facing Ari and Xeron. “If it was a small hole, I maybe could have written it off as a mistake, or a miscalculation with direction and distance. But this hole is a full-size tunnel, which makes it fairly damning evidence that it was intentional.”
Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
“I agree,” Xeron said, crossing his arms and meeting the older man’s eyes. “Any ideas who would have done this in your company?”
“None that come to mind immediately,” Ensaru said. “There is another possibility, even if it’s a small one, that some vagrant miner is operating down here and dug it, while not being an employee of the J’alyr. I don’t like that possibility any more than I like the idea of one of my own doing this.” He thought for a moment, hand on his chin, before speaking again. “I know I said it earlier, but I would really like to launch a full internal investigation into this matter. Would it be alright if I got back to you with my findings in a few days?”
“That should be fine,” Ari said with a small shrug. What was a few more days of delaying their attempt to kill this man? If his investigation brought up any new information as well, they may get a bonus from the Guardians. Danfis implied that the people who captured the snitch got a hefty bag of extra Venn for the accomplishment. “What do you plan on doing about the tunnel in the meantime?”
Ensaru smiled, “We’ll need to go a fair bit deeper before I can do anything.”
The Hunters followed him back the way they’d come a fair distance. Finally, he stopped and placed a hand on the wall.
“You’ll want to be behind me.” He said, with that same smile on his face.
Ari and Xeron did as he said. Once they were safely behind him, he began to channel aether into the stone. Except, it looked… odd. Aether usually had a blue-ish hue to it when it was being channeled, but in that moment it shone with a golden light. In fact, Ensaru himself seemed to have a small golden aura around him as he channeled it. Ari had never seen anything like it, and documented the experience in her notebook.
After channeling for nearly a minute, the stone in the walls began to shake, and they could hear loud thuds approaching from down the tunnel. Within a few seconds, the cause came into view. The tunnel was collapsing in on itself, seemingly returning to the way it was before it was dug. It stopped a few feet in front of Ensaru.
“You closed it off with jarou?” Ari asked, “Won’t it just dissipate into aether again in a few minutes? Maybe a couple hours, if you’re really strong with the element.”
“You know your stuff, young Hunter,” Ensaru said, his voice ragged with exhaustion. “Touch that wall, and channel unaspected aether into it. If you do this with stone created through usual jarou magic, you will be able to sense its aetheric makeup.”
Ari did as he said, aware that what he said is true. It was a lesson Orun taught her when she was a kid, and it’s one of the basics of aetheric forensics. To her amazement, she couldn’t sense anything. It was like she was channeling aether into natural stone.
“How did you do that? This goes against everything I’ve learned about aetherology and magic.” She demanded.
Ensaru laughed wryly, “That’s a secret, young miss. I trust you can find the answers if you search long enough.”
Xeron checked himself, and was visibly off-put by the truth of the situation. By the time he’d shaken himself from his thoughts, Ensaru was already a dozen paces down the tunnel, heading back to the surface.
Before long, they were finally back on the surface, and at Ensaru’s office building. Kuro and Oroske met them out front.
“So, what’s the news?” Oroske asked, pushing himself off the wall.
“The report was accurate, there was a tunnel reaching out to the Realm Rift.” Ensaru said, coming to a stop in front of the other Hunter duo. “I collapsed the tunnel. I already mentioned it to Ari and Xeron here, but I intend on launching a full-scale investigation to find out who was involved and who was responsible for the creation of this tunnel. I assure both you and them, the culprits will be found and punished accordingly.”
“Good to hear.” Oroske nodded. “Well, shall we get back to work, now that your distraction is over?”
Before Ensaru could answer, Xeron spoke, “Actually, I was hoping we could talk, Oroske. All four of us, maybe over dinner?” Ah, right. It was hard to tell sometimes since it was naturally fairly dark this deep in Quarry, but it was getting pretty late. Ari and Xeron had spent a lot of time going in and out of that mineshaft.
Oroske looked at Xeron with a shocked expression, but quickly caught himself and switched to his usual smiling expression. “Sure, we can do that. Is that alright with you, boss?”
Ensaru waved his hand in dismissal, “Go for it. I don’t think you’ll be much help with our newest problem, so I’ll cut you two loose for the next couple days.” He turned and met Ari’s eyes, “I should have a full report for you by then. Can you wait that long?”
“Sure, no problem,” she responded, “Thank you for your willingness to cooperate.” With that, Ensaru waved his hand, this time in farewell, and entered his offices.
Without any pleasantries, Xeron gestured for the group to follow and led them away. They ended up finding a quiet Ish’din-style restaurant there on the fourth layer, surprisingly run by actual Demons. Despite having a couple dozen booths to sit in, only a couple were occupied.
Their server was a Half-Demon, and wore a black chain bracelet, adorned with a silver tag with the Venn ‘V’ engraved on it. A slave, poor girl, Ari realized. She had deep blue eyes, but with the narrow, slit pupils that were a trademark of Demons. Despite her status as trenui, she was well dressed in a dark blue serving girl’s outfit, complete with alternating black and white frills, and her blonde hair was kept clean and well groomed. That was nice to see, at least. She didn’t speak much, and was very polite and concise when taking the table’s orders.
Their orders thusly placed, Xeron began the conversation. “So. I’m sure you two are also investigating the New Spire Empire, but since you’re working closely with Ensaru, I’m guessing you’re also here to kill Yenva Muwal?”
“Straight to business, I see,” Oroske said, lounging in his seat, one arm spread across the top of the bench he and Kuro were sitting on. “I’ve always liked that about you. You’re correct on both accounts. Though, our orders aren’t explicitly to kill Ms. Muwal, just to do something about their little feud.”
Xeron folded his arms, and a small smirk appeared on his face, “Well then. I look forward to eventually engaging one or both of you in combat.”
This left an awkward tension at the table, one that made Ari very uncomfortable. She couldn’t bear it after a minute, so she broke the silence. “Well, since we’re also both investigating these Mienr people, why don’t we share information? That way we don’t waste time looking in places the other group already looked.”
“I agree,” Kuro spoke. It was the first time Ari had heard him talk all day. “Besides, maybe putting our information together can lead to new discoveries?”
“Well put, Kuro,” Oroske praised him. “I’m all for it, Xeron?”
Ari’s brother simply sighed in resignation, “You’ve got a point, unfortunately. Very well, let’s discuss.”
Their food arrived not long after, and most of their discussion was had between bites of their meals. Ari had mixed feelings upon finding that Kuro and Oroske had been having similar luck to her and Xeron. They ended off their conversation about the potential of moles working for the Mienr in the various companies in Quarry. The existence of this Realm Rift tunnel certainly pointed towards that being a very real possibility.
The group split up outside the restaurant, but not before Oroske said, “I am also looking forward to our future battle. May the best Hunter win.”