Bodies lay in haphazard positions, some of them reclining in an odd boneless repose. Which was appropriate because most truly were more or less boneless now.

Despite the blood that splattered the walls and the perforations that had torn up countless pieces of high class furniture this actually wasn’t the worst of it.

The worst was downstairs...on the floors Billy had passed through ‘before’ he’d managed to calm himself down a little.

Down there and on the nearest streets, things looked like vision of hell.  Complete with the lakes of burning blood and the smell of charred flesh.

“Y-...You...look, you don’t have to do this...We can talk about this.” said a short, but broad chested man, with a curlicue beard.

Billy’s face was as impassive and unreadable as always. His voice was light enough that if one ignored the pools of viscera and blood, one could almost imagine that the tone was a friendly one.

“Ah...I’m sorry. I think we’ve long gone past the point of talking about things.”

*****

Ophelia Delphi lay sunbathing by one Nereida’s famed beachside resorts. One that was relatively well known amongst the higher-ranked nobles and elite practitioners but remained fairly unnoticed by the common folk.

The sort of place you could only get into if someone else gave you an introduction.

She was finally taking her quarterly break. For while it would appear that she hardly ever spent any time in her office, the truth was that twenty to twenty-two hours out of every day was spent working.

Being the central hub for the Ministry’s psychic network meant that she spent a majority of her time, coordinating the operations for various regions both on and off the continent.

She’d still be working now, but a certain someone, whose name she didn’t dare think of, and whose scent made her feel nostalgic and lonely had made her promise to take at least one day off every three months.

It used to be every three years but the thing was that person had known her well enough to know that she’d cheat, or she’d skip it. Either that or some inter-kingdom crisis would pop up.

Making the vacation days more numerous upped the chance of her actually taking one of those breaks as she was supposed to take them.

That person who for now and until the day of Ophelia’s retirement came, would remain unnamed, had known her very well.

Sternly reminding her that the consequences of stressed out, strained Head Administrator Ophelia would be dire for the world at large.

Resulting in some consequences and the dereliction of her duties. Lecturing her repeatedly  about self maintenance and care, being part of any true upholder of the public order’s responsibilities.

Thus she was here, lying in a teeny, weeny, tiny, polka-dot bikini, that she’d had one of the staffers pick up.

While she, Ophelia was enroute from overseeing the mediations for a century long trade deal between the Great Kingdom of Lloyd and a certain Meallan-Based EITC dynasty.

Ophelia’s cultivation had already long reached a state that made tanning impossible, in the same way most strong practitioners could no longer get drunk off normal alcohol.

E.G. the fact of  Inebriation technically being a state of being poisoned and tanning technically being a type of soft sun damage.

All the same the sun’s were rays were pleasant to lie in, the day was just warm enough and the breeze just cool enough that she could just maybe see herself relaxing enough to take a nap.

If she was very, very lucky she could maybe make some headway on catching up on some of the sleep that she missed while trying to keep the world’s problems from boiling over.

Then there was gust of wind that sent sand blowing everywhere. Dennis, her attache appeared, giving a little shallow bow in greeting.

“...Ma’am.”

Dennis was her right-hand man, bodyguard and assistant, he was also the primary method she usually ended up using to cheat herself out of having any significant amount of rest.

As he was the one who she trusted the network to on the days that she took vacation. His strong psychic abilities allowing him to hold down the fort till either the day was done, or till something important enough for her to take back the reins came up.

“What’s up?” she said, peering at the man from over the top of her silvered sunglasses.

“The Gold Moon Sect that primarily operates on the outskirts of Albrecht's territories was just wiped out and there might be a related situation taking place in the Grand Duchy of Sitara.”

Ophelia nodded and then with a sigh, she got up from her beach chair. Wrapped a towel around her waist and then took off the glasses.

“Welp...guess it’s back to work for me.: said Ophelia heading towards the resort to get a more professional change of clothes. There was actually a pantsuit that she’d had laid out and waiting, ready for just such an occurrence.

She looked to her assistant, a bemused smile curling the corners of her lips, her brows scrunching, creasing and adding to the frown lines she’d been collecting since she’d first gotten the position.

“ Well you were the one listening, Dennis, explain the situation to me.”

*****

The situation was thus; Roughly seventy-two hours ago a certain senior member of the Gold Moon Sect called a hit on Bone Tree Company. A squad of martial experts and riflemen was sent to Gene.

Then on the following day, while Edna and few of her associates on the Thousand Ghost were discussing future plans, the squad attacked. Slaying three of the weaker Ghosts.

Killing more than a dozen normal, passerby and gunning down one Edna-Rae Maddoc, who’d stood and took the fire for Elena Maddoc.

Who’d been in a vulnerable state after taking on the initial burst of shock and awe spells, that they’d used to open their assault and take the Bone Tree Company by surprise.

The attackers made extra deadly by the quality of their equipment. With each of the riflemen using  high-tier  firearms and rounds. The extremely rare sort used for hunting demonbeast of above the first realm.

The good news is that Edna didn’t die, the people of Argus would never know just how close they were to catastrophe.

The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

Billy’s modifications to her physiology and the increases to her cultivation, helping her to pull through, despite a heavy amount of tissue damage and the fact that she’d actually ended up having one of the rounds lodge itself within her skull.

With Billy’s earnest ministrations ensuring that her recovery would be both complete and speedy.

Once that was seen to and he was sure that his people were safe there was only one thing on Billy’s mind.

*****

Working more quickly and with more impetus than he’d ever had before. it took him all of three hours to find the dealer of the weapons. Whose business he took a part both in financial and literal terms.

Though he was conscientious enough to leave the man and his ex-employees alive. From there he got the name of the five Gold Moon Sect and Mercenary Sub-Company that they’d used to hit his Edna.

He found them and an all their smaller installations, and setups within eight hours. Working his way up, destroying the sub-sects and affiliated groups with a clinical precision before finally going after the Gold Sects’ main headquarters.

A great darkness and thousand chittering, chattering shadows were called from Billy’s inner-world.

The sect was flooded with shades, who ‘tidied’ up the few survivors while Billy consumed the soul of the Sect Elder and Headmaster to find out if there was anyone else responsible.

All this took roughly twelve hours. And flying as fast as he could it was a five hour commute before he reached the Duchy of Sitara on the northern portion of the Continent.

*****

Ophelia nodded as her attache and his aides gave her a point by point report of what had happened. In summary, everything that she was seeing, was the consequences of someone making a ‘white-knight’ play.

Honestly, it was only a matter of time before someone made ‘some’ kind of play. Especially with what the ministry’s agents saying that little Bone Tree Company revealed.

A game changing piece of aetheric tech like what they’d come up with was enough to make even Ophelia’s feet feel itchy.

White Knight plays were essentially flim-flam shows where you first acted as a  black-knight, or called up an associate to do so for you.

Damaging and destabilizing the intended target and then swooping and offering aid while they were at their most vulnerable. Creating a point of influence and contact.

It was one of the three most common  tricks in the stratagems of Monde’s who’s-who, right up there with Shallow Water Courier use  and using demonbeasts to soften a potential target.

In this case it seemed that everything that could go wrong did go wrong. With the black knights being destroyed and the ‘white knights’ being uncovered for what they really were.

Ophelia looked around at streets that simultaneously orderly and disordered, with thousand of frightened pedestrians milling about, while ministry agents took reports and testimonies from witnesses.

“It was nice of him not to kill any of the townsfolk at least…” said Ophelia. Staring at the ominous, ten-mile deep pit of glowing, black embers that lay where the Sitara’s Ducal Mansion once stood.

“...Yes, Ma’am.” said Dennis.

There were several such pits throughout the entire Duchy, all of them equally as deep, all of them filled with a darkness and miasma that all the best mages and priests in the kingdom were scratching their heads over trying to get rid off.

Countless people spoke of hungry things of shadow that had run rampant through the streets. Breaking things and tearing apart the city, though they mostly seemed to avoid attacking anyone.

“This doesn’t look like the work of someone who's just in third realm…” said Ophelia.

“Actually there are... were...a few Second and  third realm practitioners in both the Gold Moon Sect and Duke Archibald's service, ma’am.” said Dennis.

“And no sign of any of them?” said Ophelia.

“It would seem so, ma’am. Actually we have a few confirmed deaths from the life-sign tracking artifacts for those who hailed from influential families.” said Dennis.

Ophelia confirmed the statement telepathically checking in with all the agents that had stationed as staff in those households.

“Huh…Well...Damn. I think we might have to re-think this one. I have a hunch that we’re dealing with someone on the fourth realm and that’s a ‘whole’ different playbook. Shit, that means we can’t even use this as an excuse to try and get him to fall in line. Get me the supervisor in charge of this area.”

“Er...she’s numbered amongst the casualties, ma’am. Asphodel hit every single administrative, military and financial asset that was attached to Duke Archibald's name.

Taking out everything with either the Dukes fingerprints or the Gold Moon Sect’s fingerprints on them.  Purposely choosing to hit the Duke’s mansion last.” said Dennis.

“I’m assuming none of the family survived?” said Ophelia.

Dennis just stared at the pit, that radiated an energy that seemed to sap one strength away and fill ones veins with ice.

“It’s almost overkill really, I get wanting to settle a hash...but I say the smart money, is that at least part of this was a message to everyone else who's watching.” she said, commenting more to herself than anyone else.

Making and remaking plans and she went through possible options and plans of action.

Ophelia nodded, absently finding herself with strong craving for coffee and cigarettes. Quietly sending out an order for one of the aides to get her some.

“Okay then...get me whoever’s ‘not’ dead, then.”