"I can't believe it! Quiff's done it again! A three Soul-Beast Channeler!" Someone said in the crowd. Gabe stood behind the banister of the stairs in the giant magnificent Grand Hall where the main party was being held. There were thousands upon thousands of wealthy and high Wooden-Thunder family members, even some visitors from other families. They were all being served and talked at, and the noise of it was almost deafening. Who would throw such a large party? Weren’t there limits to showing off? At some point it was just ridicules, like when a dinner party turned into a mob event. "Oh that's just like him!" Someone from another group said over her loud talking husband. Gabe had to focus, he was dressed in the finest possible garb and had even been bathed in smelling salts. All to be a Show piece for Quiff's house. He'd been paraded around and introduced to over half the people here and had just now gotten a chance to snoop around. For the past ten minutes he'd found and heard Nothing but chatty and half drunk patrons, with fake smiles and delicate clothing. But as he looked out into the crowd doubting he would find anything useful in this mess, his nose suddenly quivered slightly. A tinge of familiar smell, he started towards it immediately. Suddenly he felt more blessed than ever to have his Nose trait, because without it he would never recognize the scent of Seygo from such a distance. Usually he had to ignore his sense of smell as he was Always surrounded by something rancid or other like residue from blood on some of these Channeler’s hands, or a Family higher up who was too eager about his cologne. But as he got closer to the hint of A woodsy, almost Jasmine like odder he turned his smell sense all the way up by poring spirit energy into it. It was hard not to flinch away from the sheer amount of perfumes and food scents around him as he walked through the mass of people and rich snobs, but he had to find where that smell was coming from. It was so faint, barely at the edge of his awareness, but he knew it was real and as he bumped into a women he also knew it was coming from her. She was an elder realm Acolyte, and dressed in a bright red lose robe. "Excuse me!" She said looking at him like he had just insulted her. Gabe took a good whiff and was suddenly very certain she had been near Seygo recently he bit down his anger. "Oh I'm sorry I was just looking for the head of your household." Gabe said. Looking at the people next to her, they were all powerhouse Acolytes. He smiled Politely. "What?! Why would you have any business with Master Knarkly?" Gabe nodded. "Yeah that's him, it's a message from my master Quiff. I can't tell you what it is, but it's very urgent. Do you know where he can be found?" There were some Acolytes not sighed to a particular House hold or branch, but signed to the family as a whole. Gabe was glad this wasn't one of them. The woman sighed and turned to her friends. "we’ll have to Finnish this later, Mike." She gave her compatriot an obvious look and started walking towards the table with expensive food for those who felt like eating. Gabe followed silently.

After pushing through the packed house, they made it to a man who was Dreadfully Fat. Usually channelers didn't get so overweight but if they didn't have much talent or any self control then it wasn't impossible, oddly there were more fat channelers at this party than Gabe had ever seen in just one family. This man was a balding mess of flesh, with a double chin and a belly poking much too far out. His arms and legs wiggled as he munched on a plate of roast Drake. Even with his almost comical look, he still looked at everybody as if he was at the top of the family. His eyebrows pressing together when he saw Gabe following the woman towards him. "What is it?" The man asked with a grumbling voice. "Sorry to bother you sir." The woman said as she stopped and bowed her head towards him. "But this man has a message from Quiff, and said it was urgent." Gabe nodded. "Yes mister Knarkly." The man looked at him and rose an eyebrow. "Where is he? Is he really sending such a low level Servant to give me a message." He sounded angry. Gabe shook his head. "No sir, he sent me to come get you not. Your advise is needed on a very private matter, I'll take you where you need to go." The man looked intrigued, his advice? Someone wanted his advice? He rarely was spoken to by most of the snobs in the family, and Always laughed at behind his back about his weak potential. Unless he had them over a barrel, which his wise business sense often let him do. "Fine, lead the way." He motioned for Gabe to show him. Who would think that Quiff the richest man in the family would send for him personally?

Gabe led him through the party and towards the back part of the mansion. The man didn't even think to bring any Acolytes with him, after all Quiff's house was the safest in the Family, and who would attack him here. The chatter of the party quieted as Gabe led him further through the hall ways of this massive house. "Um..." Knarkly gasped as he walked, out of breath. "does Quiff really have to be so far away from the party?" Gabe looked back at the man in shock, he was an Ancestor Realm Channeler and yet out of breath after just that short walk. What had this man been doing with his training? Just eating? Was his cultivation signature an illusion? "We're almost there sir." Gabe said. And stopped at an office room. This door led to Cindy's office, she was the head Acolyte of the house and took care of most city business Quiff had. Her office had runes that prevented spying and only allowed family members and Acolytes inside. "In here sir." Gabe said and opened the door. The big man limped inside breathing heavily and the moment he saw a chair sat down in it. Gabe stepped in behind him and shut the door. The sounds of the party, and all senses outside the room disappeared behind the huge slab of gold and wood. Gabe strode over to the desk and looked at Knarkly with a smile, his bald headed form looking just as malicious as ever. "So, where are they?" Knarkly looked around and then looked up at Gabe curiously. "Hey, aren't you the Channeler with three Soul-Beasts everyone is talking about." Gabe nodded slowly, and stepped closer to the man. "And your the Bastard that took Seygo Greenwood." Gabe didn't waste a second after he said it, immediately summoning Two of the Demons inside his Inner room. Knarkly's eyes went wide, and his face turned pale. "What the heck! Where did....?" Gabe mentally told the demons to hold the man with their auras. A red glow held Knarkly completely still and sealed his Channeling. "Now, tell me where you are keeping her." Gabe said calmly looking at Knarkly with Crazed eyes. He could have done this to Quiff, and actually had plans to if it came to that. But if he had done it already and Quiff didn't know where she was, or refused to tell him it would be his only chance. He'd be forced to run and try to find her from outside the family. But after smelling Seygo’s scent on this man’s acolyte Gabe was certain he had picked the right person. "I... I don't know what your talking about! Let me go right now!" Knarkly shouted not amused. Fortunately no matter how loud the man was this room would hold his screams inside it. Gabe shook his head. "Can't, you see I'm not really an Acolyte for the family." Gabe said pulling his Family crest off his neck and laying it on the desk. The necklace was very intricate and held the image of a soaring bird over a tree. "I'm from the Greenwood family." He grinned like he was preparing to enjoy this. Knarkly dropped his jaw for a second. "Th...that's impossible." He demanded. "Quiff said he signed you.... how did you get in this party! Where are my guards!?" He was becoming Hysterical. Gabe told one of his demons to slap him but not hurt him. The Demon on his right wordlessly stepped forward and popped the man across the face. His bumbling sttoped as blood sprang from his mouth and a few teeth shot across the room. "Sorry Master..." The demon said. As Knarkly looked at the Demon with blood coming down his cheek and shock in his eyes. Gabe waved him off. "It's fine, this man is a weakling. That's not your fault." Knarkly shot his wide eyed gaze towards Gabe, smart enough to realize who the boss was.... his face was going numb, but it was the tingle down his spine he was suddenly worried about. Who was this? a man With Deity realm demons answering to him. Knarkly's business smarts began to run as fast as they could. Nothing happening here could be taken at face value, this Supposed Greenwood family member knew about the Phoenix girl and somehow knew Knarkly was involved. He held all the power in this situation, Knarkly knew what that meant. He couldn't let the man keep his position here, somehow Knarkly had to gain control. "What do you want? Power? Money? I have many things I can give you." He said through his bloody lip.

This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.

Gabe rose his hands to his sides in an uncaring shrug. "You fat piece of shit, I don't want anything. I'm worth more then everyone in this party. What I'm asking in this kind and polite manner is... where. Is. The. Girl?" Gabe held his anger in check, he knew from looking in the man's eyes that Knarkly knew about Seygo, and that was enough to make him want to kill the Blob. He didn't know how much time he had before he was missed at the party, but He would get the information out of this man one way or the other. "Oh? What girl?" Knarkly asked as convincingly as he could muster while shaking just a little in his seat, the pain in his mouth and on his face from just that one slap was almost making him dizzy. Gabe looked at one of his demons and the Man suddenly felt a Shocking pain in his right leg. Flesh began to peal off in bloody strips and Gabe almost cringed at the awful Screeching the man did. "That's enough." Gabe said and looked at The pale tearful Knarkly. Gabe felt his soul being marred here by the pain he was dishing out, but he could only frown at that feeling. This scene reminded him of where he was only weeks ago, in Afell's palace, but what had happened to him there was just Cruelty for cruelty’s sake. This was for Seygo, all of it was. Anything he had to do would be done. And this man, who knew where Seygo was, wansn’t a saint. To have taken such an innocent woman from her already mourning family, he deserved this in some ways. "Now, do I look like I believe you?" Gabe said. Knarkly spat blood at him but wasn't close enough or strong enough to get any on Gabe's Silver and red robe. He was being held completely still except for eyes and mouth. "You'll die for this, my family will kill you for touching me. I don't care who you are." knarkly was hyper ventilating, he couldb’t bare this pain he wished so badly that someone, anyone would come through that door. Gabe shrugged at him. "I'm an Acolyte remember, if your body is discovered dead in this room and I say it wasn't me... well do you think they'll doubt it?" Acolytes couldn't lie to their family, or their spirit contract would strike them dead. "You.... Son of a bastard! Who are you!!" Gabe chuckled. "I'm Friday. Dear friend of That Girl you stole from My family. And King of the Hell's revenge Demon hoard. You can call me Dread-song." Gabe came up with that name on the spot, but liked it. It fit the situation, Revenge was Dreadful business. And the King of a demon hoard needed a demon’s title.

"I... I don't have the information you want." Knarkly said, he was now very aware that he was going to die the moment he said anything. Clearly this whole thing had been intricately planned and plotted against him. All because of that little brat his family Took. He cursed his Life in his head and prepared for what was to come, maybe someone would walk in on them in time before he was done with but if he talked he would be just as dead as if he didn’t. "Well.. I guess we'll have to kill you then." Gabe said putting back on his Family crest. "I'll go get your Wife. She'll know where Your keeping Seygo." Gabe made to leave walking towards the door. Knarkly went pale again. "Wait!" Gabe turned to him. He had actually read about Knarkly in his studies of the Wooden-Thunder family. The man didn't have children, but did have a beautiful wife. Gabe thought maybe he cared for her. "What? Changed your mind?" Knarkly gritted his teeth. "Is there any way... that you'll let me live if I tell you where the Brat is?" Gabe's eyebrows went up, this was his first admission that he actually knew what Gabe wanted. And Gabe could see on Knarkly's face that it wasn't because of his wife. He just didn't want to die. "Well... Yes actually. I'll tell you what. Seeing as how you probably won't just take my word for it..." He looked at the man with a slight smile and he shook his head slowly. "I'll make a spirit contract with you. You tell me where the girl is and I'll let you portal out of here say... a million miles or so. That will give me enough time to escape before you return." Before the man could answer Gabe focused his soul on the laws of a contract and started creating very ornate runes, with beautiful flourishes and well drawn marks. He couldn't help it he was good at runes. The golden writing flew off of his skin with tangles of power and formed a contract in the air. Knarkly quickly read it, it was simple. Everything he knew about Seygo and why she was taken, for his life. It Also included a ten minute rule that said he couldn't just teleport back to catch Gabe. "You agree?" The man nodded defeated and mentally reached out and accepted the deal. The contract disappeared. Usually deals in situations like these would distort because Knarkly was being somewhat forced against his will, but not every time it was very random when a bad deal would be made from forced contracts and when one wouldn’t. And if it did register as a forced contract then the golden words would turn red and the changes would be easily readable. "So..." Gabe said. "Start from the beginning."