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Chapter LXXI : Dominance

Earlnight of Denuo, Twenty-Fourth Day of Autumnmoon

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When the sun was finally set, Samuel Cortez strutted through the ghost town that had once been Angkor’s capital. Over the last two weeks, the mighty and prosperous empire had transformed into a hellscape. Richard, having no more use for his old and disabled citizens, ordered them to be euthanized. He sent children to the fields to labor for food, while he put all other able bodies to work. Many of them, driven by Abaddon’s Breath and their mad king’s ravings, searched the world, aimlessly, for moonstones.

But their efforts were in vain. Somewhere deep inside Richard’s poisoned mind, he still believed he could wrest control away from the Ahriman. Sadly for him, the moonstones would not so easily be found. Richard’s body and mind were rotted beyond redemption, and soon, whatever was left of his soul would be devoured by the immortal demon he invited inside of him.

Samuel was determined not to follow suit. So far, he succeeded in staving off Belial’s temptations. As for his other sunstone, the Gemini Stone, he planned to rid himself of that as soon as he caught up to Virgil. It had been a week since his return from Koba, and still the First Advisor was difficult to find. Usually, he spent his days extracting manna from Angkor’s scholars, whose screams could almost be heard across town. Stocking these reserves was important, since they would soon fuel the largest airborne machine ever created by mankind.

Zounds was a marvelous contraption. With its Manna Drive engine and ‘black box’ sensors, Samuel would soon have a far more effective means of finding the moonstones. Such was the true impetus behind the airbase’s design. Based on Virgil’s research into colorless manna, which the moonstones emitted in trace amounts, Zounds’ sensors were sure to succeed, whereas poor King Richard’s efforts were doomed to fail.

The design was progressing rapidly. It had become so large, in fact, that it outgrew its original scaffolding in Angkor’s underground hangar. Pieces of the hull had to be removed, one at a time, through the Substratum’s central shaft, and assembled above ground. Now with more space, the workforce expanded tenfold. On the downside, security demands were high. But with so much of Angkor under lockdown, Samuel had little to fear from thieves or saboteurs. In fact, he eagerly awaited the first functional prototype, which seemed only days away from completion. Zounds only needed to get off the ground and take flight to serve its purpose.

Besides getting Zounds operational, there were other tasks before Samuel’s plans came to fruition. Among them, the final sunstone, located in Vineta. The Capricorn Stone had a very capable Circle of Sorcerers protecting it. To penetrate their defenses, Samuel needed his own magical coup de grâce. All he needed were enough of Angkor’s scholars and a few deadly spells of his own design. He just hoped Virgil hadn’t been shortsighted enough to squeeze them dry of manna.

Lit only by Gaia’s two partially full moons, Samuel reached the designated rendezvous, which he had arranged via magical communique. It was an abandoned warehouse by the pier, pitch dark inside. Given Virgil’s mysterious absence all week, he was surprised to find he had made it at all, much less arrived first. He was in the process of casting spells to safeguard against eavesdropping. Samuel produced a small ball of light so he could face his cohort directly.

He set a reproachful tone. “Where have you been all week? I’ve not heard from you since I returned from Koba. You should have sought me out. We’re falling behind, and it’s urgent we make up for lost time.”

Virgil looked up from his spellcasting, dark circles under his eyes, cheeks devoid of color. It looked like hadn’t slept in days.

His voice was terse. “I’ve been busy.”

Samuel loathed the attitude. “Have you, now?”

Virgil met his gaze levelly. “That’s right. The Master had me on important errands. You know I need to rest after we communicate.”

Samuel tensed, surprised to hear their patron mentioned. “You’ve spoken without me?”

Virgil smirked. “Indeed. And I’m afraid you won’t like what we discussed.”

Samuel felt his blood pressure rise. He gritted his teeth. “Out with it, Mister Garvey. We both do The Master’s bidding, and I’ll not have you keeping secrets!”

Virgil stared back indifferently. “Very well. The Master put me in charge, due to your sloppy performance at Loulan Palace. Consider yourself demoted.”

Samuel stifled his outrage. “What? Are you certain you understood correctly?”

Virgil rolled his eyes and sighed. “Don’t make me repeat myself. The Master knew right away that you’ve been marked. Do you deny it? You shouldn’t have expected to remain in charge, now that Belial’s taint is all over you.”

Samuel almost shook with fury. “I deny nothing. It couldn’t be helped.”

Virgil turned to hide his ever increasing smile. “Like it or not, you must accept the Sagittarius Stone. It was meant to go to Abraham, but it looks like it’s yours, now.”

Samuel clenched his fist. Seizing the Sagittarius Stone was to be his finest triumph, but he failed in more ways than one. After Abraham refused to join willingly at Minoa and Ur, The Master intended to force him into subservience using the sunstone. Unfortunately, Samuel failed to deliver him; and worse, burnt him to a crisp in a fit of rage. It wasn’t a total loss, in his mind. There was nothing Abraham could do that he couldn’t do better. He was superior to his brother in every way. Surely, The Master realized that. Surely, The Master would provide him with a moonstone, so he could add Belial’s powers to his own and increase his strength a thousandfold.

Stolen novel; please report.

“He’s not dead, you know.”

Samuel’s head whipped back to face Virgil. “What did you say?”

Virgil chuckled. In fact, he couldn’t stop laughing. Had Samuel not fully understood how dangerous Virgil was, he would have clenched his hands around his throat.

“I’m talking about Abraham, you dope. He survived your spell and now intends to sail to Vineta to warn them. His dedication is almost … endearing.”

Samuel bit his tongue. He knew Virgil had spies everywhere, but he couldn’t help but admire the sophistication of his intelligence. It also explained what he had been doing all week. All the long distance information gathering must have been quite strenuous. Nevertheless, Abraham’s survival changed nothing.

“It will take him weeks to get there. We still have the first strike advantage.”

Virgil shook his head. “He’ll never make it. His ship was attacked by Typhon, of all things. We lost track of him, but I’m sure it’s only temporary. He’s quite resilient, you know. You and he are indeed cut from the same cloth.”

Samuel wasn’t about to let Virgil think that Abraham bested him alone. “You have impressive eyes and ears, but I bet you don’t know who’s been providing Abraham with aid.”

Virgil scrunched his brows. “What are you talking about?”

He couldn’t help but smile. “A child survived the demonspawn attack on Ur and somehow has the spirit of Uriel guiding them.”

He relished the look on Virgil’s face. The surprise in his widening eyes was nourishment to his pride. “That’s right. The child wore Uriel’s moonstone around their neck. I could feel its power. Imagine, a tiny thing, at a mere tender age, already with power greater than mine. Truly, it was a wondrous sight. Just as The Master described.”

Virgil’s eyes darted side to side, like he was furiously calculating the implications. “That explains why Typhon attacked. The creature must have been drawn to its power.”

He stroked his chin, looking deep in thought. But then waved his hand in dismissal. “It hardly matters. We’ll find the child when we find the moonstone: As soon as Zounds is operational.”

Samuel crossed his arms in disappointment. His leverage of information over Virgil was brief and unsatisfying. “Speaking of which, I understand the project is progressing well. Can we expect it to launch on schedule?”

Virgil nodded. “The Craftsman has been cooperative and is making steady progress. The prototype will be ready within a week, I think.”

Samuel was impressed, but also envious. Keeping Zounds on schedule must have pleased The Master greatly. “That’s good news. But as you know, our time is short, and we must still obtain the final sunstone. We need to attack now, before the Circle of Sorcerers bolsters their defenses.”

Virgil was quick to blow off his concerns. “The Capricorn Stone is the least of our worries. We have other priorities.”

Samuel knew his counterpart could be flippant, but he didn’t expect sheer carelessness. “The least of our worries? Is that your plan, now that The Master has given you leadership? Do you also expect forgiveness, should you fail to act in time and are unable to seize the sunstone later?”

Virgil scowled, looking slighted. “What was your idea? To charge in through the front gate, like you did in Koba?”

Samuel fumed. His plan for a frontal assault had been flawless. He made it through the front gate and to the sunstone without resistance. Precisely as he calculated. If it weren’t for Uriel, he would have accomplished everything. Not that he expected Virgil to give credit where it was due. The smarmy man would use any excuse to get under his skin. All the better to have him fall on his own sword.

Samuel was reminded of his wilderness training when he first joined the Gnostic Knights. In order to feed in places where food was scarce, such as frozen tundra or barren flatlands, one had to snare unsuspecting prey.

Virgil was wily, but he had his faults, including his pride and susceptibility to flattery. Samuel decided to abandon his idea of an assault using Angkor’s scholars and propose something stealthier. He wondered if he might even succeed in getting two birds in the hand by pawning off the Gemini Stone at the same time.

“As you say, I must learn from my mistakes. I went to Koba, using the Gemini Stone to bolster my powers, but I was overconfident. You taught me the power of the Ahrimen worked best when it corrupted an unsuspecting user into doing something they wouldn’t ordinarily do. I should have listened and modeled my strategy after what you did with Richard.”

Virgil seemed to relax. He was actually falling for it. “Yes, you should have heeded my warnings. Using the Ahrimen’s powers has consequences. It always does.”

Samuel took a step closer. “That’s why I propose we find another patsy. Someone with connections to the Circle of Sorcerers in Vineta. Someone they deem friendly. Someone … who can take the sunstone from right from under their noses.”

Virgil paused, looking contemplative. “Close to the Circle, you say? I wonder if the Feyland King would be the right mark.”

Success! Virgil took the bait, but the key to an effective snare was to tease it out a bit. Samuel needed to add a generous helping of skepticism. “Arcesilaus? Are you sure? Do you really expect him to succumb so easily? We don’t have weeks to wait for the Ahriman’s corruption to take root.”

Virgil smirked. “He’s a self-absorbed twit, just like Richard. Kings are all the same, you know. Besides, don’t you know Libicocco’s history with the Feyland people? It will make Arcesilaus all the more susceptible.”

Samuel closed in by one more step. Close enough to peer down at his cohort. “Yes, but can we trust Libicocco to do our bidding? Having Abaddon under close supervision is one thing. But you would risk leaving an Ahriman on the loose when we’re a thousand leagues away? Perhaps this was a bad idea. Why not send my apprentice, instead? He has the necessary training to infiltrate the Vinetan temple.”

Virgil laughed and rolled his eyes. “Spare me, please. You know as well as I do how fragile he is. It was a mistake to even send him to Ur!”

Trap sprung.

Samuel grinned, feeling his prey in the palm of his hand. “Fine. We’ll do it your way. I assume you’ll want me to take the sunstone to Arcesilaus?”

Virgil rubbed his hands, nervously. “Yes. Go immediately. I still have a lot of fine-tuning left to do on Zounds’ sensors. With any luck, we might even be able to locate the protochondrian.”

Samuel was elated. Things were finally falling into place. If all worked as planned, Libicocco would make Arcesilaus their thrall, tempt him to seize the Capricorn Stone, and bring it back before the Circle of Sorcerers even realized it was gone. But time was short, and the plan was complex, with little in the way of contingencies or mitigations. Unless it worked flawlessly, it was rife with risk. Mistakes could be made. But if they were, Virgil would be liable. It was his plan, now. And if it failed, he would be blamed, and The Master would shift his reliance back to Samuel.

With all he needed now accomplished, Samuel took his magical ball of light and left, leaving Virgil Garvey in the dark.