Chapter VIII

Sitting upon the branch of a tree up in the mountains overlooking the city of Hiriech, Leiolai Sartella and Uma Miyon watched with differing expressions of horror and unbridled glee as flashes of red, orange, and blue lit up one of the empty streets not far from the riverfront—so powerful that they could still somewhat make it out from so many miles away. Naturally, Leiolai had enhanced her eyes with biological magic, giving her a very clear view of the battle between Nakoma Taurus and Nyx Rana, but Uma’s eyes were no different from usual, leaving her wondering how much of it he could actually discern. Yet, the changeling found she didn’t really care, for regardless of what Uma could see, he was grinning like a child at the circus, so she turned her attention back to the struggle down in the city.

There was no doubt in her mind that what she experienced that night would haunt her until the end of her life. She did not know whether the creature she fought was Nyx Rana or if the Master of Water was truly possessed, but either way, it was something that should have remained in hell where it belonged. Its nightmarish appearance combined with the way it slaughtered and devoured its victims made her shiver despite having safely escaped, and her heart once again went out to the people who had died trying to protect both her and the citizens of Hiriech. Leiolai only barely got away, and it was solely due to the sacrifices of her fellow Kosah-Rei.

I have to wonder what this even means. Master Taurus is fighting it, so he now knows what Nyx Rana is. The question is whether or not he already knew, and according to Uma, after hearing its shrieking, he ceased his attempts to kill him and instead made his way to the city. My gut tells me that means he must have already been familiar with the creature, but then that begs the question: Who else knows? Are all the Masters aware? Do the Iijis know the truth?

Leiolai sighed, not finding it hard to believe that the elites of the Citadel would protect a demon like her simply because she was one of them. They wouldn’t care about the innocent people getting eaten, after all. In fact, she wouldn’t be surprised to find that they were providing her with people to eat, most likely homeless from the slums.

The elite protect the elite, right? That’s how it's always been… She snorted. It’s a pity though. Wish we coulda killed at least one of the Masters tonight… But hey, maybe we managed to eliminate one of the Noctalus kids…or even the damned princess herself. That would make them take us seriously—

The changeling jolted upwards with surprise, almost falling off the twenty-foot high branch as a massive white light exploded from Nakoma Taurus down below, and she could only gape in utter shock as the entire street around him was blasted into nothingness.

What the hell did he just do?!

“Master Taurus,” Uma muttered with a smug grin. “Truly, I’ve never seen such destructive power from one person. It’s no wonder you guys didn’t want to use the Teritus on him. With control over fire magic like that, he would have felt us before we even touched him.”

Leiolai scoffed, finding herself disgusted with how in awe of the Master of Fire he was. “Well what did I tell you, huh? The Masters of Ijiria… You can’t simply kill one. They’re all practically forces of nature, so unstoppable you would have to be on their level or higher to even get a decent shot at them. People like us…could never compare.”

“Oh, you’re so pessimistic, Leio,” the doctor mused. “Do not forget that we nearly killed two of them tonight. I’ll admit that perhaps I talked with Taurus a little too long, but I was just fascinated to see what I could learn. If I’d acted sooner, he’d be dead. And how could you have known that Master Rana was hiding a demon inside her flesh, hmmmm?”

She rolled her eyes. “Yeah, well, nearly killing them is irrelevant. Masters are known for having tricks up their sleeves.”

“And that’s what makes them so interesting.”

Laughing to himself, Uma adjusted his glasses and leaned forward a little far for her comfort, though a part of her wished he would just tumble over the side.

Not like it would kill him though. Barron would catch him before he hit the ground.

“You think Master Rana is dead?” Uma inquired. “That was a pretty big blast.”

But all she could do was apathetically shrug. “Who the hell knows anymore. After fighting that thing myself, it wouldn’t shock me for that monster to survive even an attack as insane as that one.”

“Sartella. Doctor Miyon. They’re here.”

At Barron’s soft call at the base of the tree, Leiolai and Uma glanced over their shoulders and down to the ground to see both Rotana Vesh and the women who currently appeared as Yoral Malloway emerging from between the trees, the former seeming rather pleased with himself and the latter looking oddly concerned. Scanning for the third person that should have been with them, Leiolai already had a theory as to what might be wrong, and Uma put it to words almost immediately.

“I do not see Mallicent,” he said under his breath.

Oh no… He was the only one among us that we couldn’t guarantee would survive, so if he’s not here, then…

Exchanging uncertain looks, the two of them turned around and hopped off the branch, feeling as Barron manipulated the air around them to allow a safe and slow descent to the forest floor.

“Vesh, where the hell is Mal?” Leiolai demanded, her tone sharper than she had initially intended. “I thought you two were going to pick him up before rendezvousing?”

The large, broad-shouldered captain shook his head, reaching up to scratch at his full brown beard. “Well, that was the plan, but we ran into a bit of unexpected trouble. There was no sign of Mallicent at the laboratory. When I arrived, I found both of the doors wide open, and from where I stood, I could see that the canister holding The Angel was shattered, the being itself no longer inside.”

“What?!” she exclaimed.

The man brushed it off like it was nothing despite the high likelihood that Mallicent may have been killed, but before she could demand any further details, Uma stalked forward, his features contorting with fury.

“Excuse me?! Do you mean to say we’ve lost the subject?!”

Vesh narrowed his eyes and clicked his tongue. “I did not say The Angel wasn’t in the lab, rather I told you it wasn’t in the container. The fact of the matter is, I could still sense its presence in the far room, but it was egging me on, as if wanting me to come inside so it could tear me apart.”

“But how could it have gotten out?! Mallicent would never have unleashed that thing, but who else could have gotten into the laboratory?!” Uma roared. “Unless you’re telling me that meddling princess and her band of children were actually bold enough to break in there!”

“Unfortunately, I think they were,” the former captain said. “Back in the ballroom, I couldn’t help but notice Mr. Caeli and Miss Luz slipped out not long after Mal departed, so after seeing the state of the lab, I can only imagine they broke in and confronted him. That being said, we must pray to the Goddess that Mallicent managed to use the realm dagger and flee to Omaruo as instructed. If he did, he’ll return to Ijiria in two months and meet back up with us.” Vesh grimaced. “Don’t get me wrong, of course, losing The Angel is truly a pity given how much power it could have provided us should we learn how to harness it, but it was also dangerous. I do apologize, Doctor Miyon, but I was not about to risk my life to recapture your subject after the victory we accomplished tonight.”

Uma looked as if he was about to turn and march right back to Aquesen himself, but Vesh’s words caused him to hesitate, and even Leiolai couldn’t help but feel a surge of excitement.

“So it succeeded then?” she pressed. “The reckoning still came to pass even with Ilirianna in the way?”

Vesh grinned broadly and nodded. “That it did. Lord Malloway, his brothers, Aeyir, and almost everybody else in that room were blown back to hell. That being said, in the end, we did decide to spare the princess and her team, but that’s a story for another time. For now, we should get to the carriage. There, you three can tell me how your assaults on the Masters went.” Grinning slyly, as if already knowing that they had failed and Nakoma and Nyx were still alive, Vesh motioned for them to follow. “The guards all evacuated themselves and the castle staff as ordered, so the casualties of the night are low. We’ll leave the corpse of Hiriech as a warning for what’s to come.”

Leiolai didn’t move at first, watching as Uma and Barron followed Vesh, though the doctor still seemed to be heavily debating whether or not to make a recovery attempt of his prized subject.

The way Vesh talked… He said he didn’t try to make the last minute addition of Ilirianna and the royal team like we talked about. I could assume he just opted not to take a risk that could undo all of our preparation, but if it needs discussion then…

“Tali,” she said, turning to gaze at the individual disguised as Yoral Malloway still waiting beside her. “You saw a vision of Ilirianna, didn’t you?”

The woman, Leiolai’s best friend, Tali Firrik, giggled with slight amusement and tilted her head to the side wryly. “Always so quick on the uptake, aren’t you, Leio? Obviously I saw something, and let me tell you, it is probably the most interesting vision I’ve ever seen in my life. I’ll tell you on the way, but could you change me back now? I’m real tired of being a middle-aged woman, you know?”

Laughing softly, Leiolai stepped forward and pressed her hands against Tali’s cheeks, sending a flow of biological magic into her body. Tali shrank a few inches, coming back down to Leiolai’s height, as her pitch black, braided hair turned to a soft hazel color that was softer than before. Her eyes turned from Yoral’s dark brown back to her own bright blue and the aged and mature features became that of a cute sixteen-year-old. Once Leiolai was done, Tali smiled cheerfully and stretched her arms up, finding that her dress was a lot looser in a few places now that she was herself again.

“Much better!” she chirped. “In that case, let’s get going! You aren’t going to believe what I saw!”

***

Nakoma Taurus was more fatigued and battered than he had been in a very long time. He used every ounce of energy left in his body to survive his battles with the red knight and the Wraith of Eniok, so by the time he managed to drag himself back up the mountain and reach Castle Aquesen, he hadn’t had the mental strength to process anything. The guards had all up and vanished, and as Nakoma carried Nyx’s body in his arms, he remained at the ready to use anything he could to defend them, but the halls of the castle were completely abandoned. He couldn’t even hear the sounds of the partygoers, and as he hobbled down the corridors in the direction of the ballroom, Nakoma prayed that everybody would be safe—that he would find Ilirianna and her team still enjoying the festivities despite all that had happened outside.

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He was not prepared for the carnage he witnessed.

The ballroom looked like somebody had set off multiple explosions given all of the rubble and charred surfaces left in the room, but it didn’t take a genius to figure out where those explosions came from. The dozens upon dozens of blackened and mangled corpses made it very clear to him that the fate of Dreek Willow had been met by the nobility of Hiriech. As they had claimed, Uma and the knight had been distracting him, keeping him busy long enough so that their allies could unleash this hell and carnage upon Aeyir’s celebration.

Nakoma collapsed in the doorway, barely holding on to Nyx, as he desperately scanned for any sign of someone he might recognize, but almost every body was burnt beyond recognition. If Ilirianna were among the victims, he could not know. That horrific thought was the last thing that flashed through his head before his strength finally gave out, and despite knowing that if he collapsed there in the entryway, both he and Nyx would be vulnerable to any stragglers aligned with Miyon, he could no longer keep himself upright before everything faded into blackness.

In some ways, the loss of consciousness was welcome, for it meant he would not have to ponder the potential consequences of the events of that night for a few more hours. Whether Ilirianna was dead or not, the nobility of Hiriech had been wiped out, leaving the city and the surrounding countryside without anybody to govern it. All of House Malloway was present for Aeyir’s coming of age, so assuming nobody escaped the attack, Erika would have to swiftly install another lord before the region turned to anarchy. Yet, Nakoma would gladly sacrifice it all if it meant that Ilirianna was alive, for she was the one he cared about more than anybody else in Hiriech, so before passing out, he briefly prayed she was alive.

When the Master of Fire came to, his crimson eyes narrowed at the blinding light that caused him to wince, and the painful aching of his body told him that he still hadn’t received any proper healing, indicating that Abigail must be unaccounted for. However, not only was he relieved to be alive, but based on the softness beneath him and the comforting touch of blankets around him, he knew that at some point, he was moved out of the corridor and to a bed. Realizing that at least one of his allies had survived and located him, Nakoma once again hoped it was the princess, but as he weakly scanned the room, he found someone sitting in a chair beside him who was not, in fact, Ilirianna, and his anxiety quickly returned.

“Hey…Nyx,” he rasped, his throat hurting from just those two words. “Where…is…Liri?”

The Master of Water slowly opened her eyes to glance down at him, and for the first time in the many years they had known each other, there wasn’t even a little bit of lethargy in them. She appeared alert, the complete antithesis to his current state, and it made her slightly more readable than usual. But Nakoma found himself wishing he didn’t know what she was thinking because the pained look on her face made his stomach churn.

“You’re awake,” she stated softly. “I’m glad. Given how you looked, I was honestly worried you’d die from your wounds. We don’t have any adequate healers on hand right now, so there was very little I could do for you.”

Then…?

“Abigail?” he grunted. “Is Abigail dead then?”

Nyx just shook her head and sighed. “We do not know. At the moment, the current whereabouts of Princess Ilirianna, Abigail, and Caeli are unknown. That being said!” she quickly added when his eyes went wide and he opened his mouth to speak. “Nigreos and Album are perfectly fine, and Nigreos confirmed for us that they were not victims of the massacre in the ballroom. That I can say for certain.”

Letting out a shaky breath, Nakoma turned his head and gazed blankly up at the ceiling, realizing after another scan of the bedroom that he was back in the quarters Lord Malloway had given him during his stay in Aquesen. His mind began to run a million miles a second, and though he had a ton of questions to ask Nyx, he settled on the one that mattered to him most.

“If Nigreos knows Liri survived the ballroom, then I assume he was still with her,” Nakoma muttered. “How did they get separated?”

Nyx didn’t immediately respond, but he could see her youthful features tensing in consideration. “I do not know the complete story as I only woke up a mere hour ago, so it would be best for Nigreos to explain it himself. Currently, he and Album are keeping watch on the castle, for there is still no sign of anybody else. From what we can tell, the four of us are the only living things still here.” The Master of Water then got to her feet, walking around the side of his bed to approach the window. “At the moment, everything is quiet, but I’m sure the people of Hiriech will be marching up the mountain quite soon if a statement isn’t given. After the destruction that took place down there last night, they will demand answers, but it seems Lord Malloway and Aeyir are dead, so there is nobody left to provide what they seek.” Then, without turning around so as to conceal her expression, Nyx’s tone became cold as she added, “The Wraith got out last night, didn’t it? It killed people…”

Nakoma’s lips drew tight, having been expecting that subject to be broached, and since he had no right to avoid it, he gathered his resolve and replied, “It did, yes. From what I would guess, the enemy got the jump on you.”

“That is what happened,” she confirmed. “The changeling disguised herself as Abigail and used a magicless weapon to kill me before I even knew what was happening. With any luck, the Wraith consumed her. I honestly thought that was the end of me, yet I woke back up, so somebody must have managed to kill it. Nigreos told me he found you and I together, leading me to believe you confronted it. So answer me, Nakoma Taurus… Why am I alive?”

Because I couldn’t bring myself to kill you. Because I know Sinna would never forgive me if I did. Because at the end of the day, you’re a fellow Master. Because…I know you don’t actually want to die, and you asked that of me because you think it’s the right thing to do…

But he didn’t say any of that, for he had a better excuse that she couldn’t reject. “Doctor Uma Miyon and the red knight attacked me last night. They were also armed with a magicless weapon, so I was already wounded and barely survived my confrontation with them. By the time I reached Hiriech to eliminate the Wraith, I did not have the strength left to do it. Unfortunately, returning control to you was the only option I had.”

“Is that so?”

Her question was quiet and almost inaudible, but she failed to hide the very subtle touch of relief, and that alone convinced Nakoma that he made the right call.

“It is. There was no helping it, Nyx,” he said. “Those bastards won all across the board. If what you say is true and both Lord Malloway and Aeyir are dead, then Hiriech has truly fallen. Erika will not only need to act fast to rebuild the government of this city, but we need to be ready for these people to do this again. I like to imagine that they only succeeded in infiltrating Hiriech because Vesh and Mallcient helped them, but there’s no guarantee that the other Great Cities aren’t compromised as well. The lords need to be contacted, the Masters need to be ready for deployment, and these terrorists must be brought to justice.” Nakoma clenched his teeth with frustration at the utter defeat they faced, wondering if they could have done anything different. “Miyon and the knight escaped, the changeling is unaccounted for, and I doubt Mallicent and Vesh are dead. They’ve proven how far they’re willing to go, so we must mobilize for a potential war.”

Nyx slowly shook her head, then finally turned back to gaze at him with a somber expression. “You think Kloras is going to cooperate?”

“He will if you say the right things,” Nakoma grunted. “Keep your eyes on his son, and that man will bend over backwards to appease you. We need to take advantage of that.”

Nyx rolled her eyes and made one of the expressive faces of irritation he had ever seen from her. “Oh joy. I’m so glad that responsibility falls on me.” Snorting to herself, the Master of Water then began to make her way towards the door. “I’ll go fetch Nigreos and Album for you. I’m sure you’re dying to know more about the princess, and he seems confident that she’s alive.”

“Right… Thanks…”

Once Nyx departed the room, Nakoma reached up and rubbed his forehead, feeling a sense of dread, not only at the possibility that Ilirianna could be dead, but also at what the future would have in store. They had already been walking along a delicate road, but the situation had just gotten a hell of a lot worse.

Ijiria’s gonna need its princess more than ever…so please be safe, Liri. Please…

***

At Nyx’s orders, Nigreos and Album rushed to Nakoma’s quarters, relieved that the Master of Fire was alive. After stumbling upon him and Nyx half-dead outside the ballroom, Nigreos had been utterly terrified that two Masters of Ijiria had been killed in the same night, so it was comforting beyond belief that they were both okay. That being said, he was far from thrilled to be the one to recount all that happened, but since he was the only one who had been present in the ballroom, he had no choice.

He told Nakoma of Rotana Vesh’s speech and about the cult known as the Kosah-Rei. He confessed that they never learned what caused the combustions, and informed him of their failure to apprehend the treacherous captain. For Album, she explained Ryokumo’s impulsive decision to trail Mallicent, as well as describing what went down in the lab, though the two of them lied and claimed that the subject had already been removed by the time they got there. They finished the explanation with Ilirianna and Abigail moving in pursuit of Ryokumo and Mallicent, with that being the last they saw of them. However, Nigreos had a slight hunch as to what might have befallen them, though he feared what those implications might mean.

Back in the pocket realm, The Angel had revealed that it sensed the opening of a portal, and when Nigreos and Album returned to the real world, they immediately went back in the direction he had seen Ryokumo go. The basement corridors had been riddled with destruction, but that destruction abruptly ceased after a certain point, and given that he knew the dagger was used, Nigreos proposed a theory to the Master of Fire, though he used fake details to explain himself.

“Album witnessed Mallicent holding a realm dagger when he fled the laboratory, and if what you have said about Uma Miyon being magicless is true, then we know where he got it from,” Nigreos said. “I think that Mallicent used the dagger to escape pursuit, and Ryokumo, Abi, and the princess followed him through a portal. I don’t think they’re in Ijiria anymore.”

Nakoma’s already pale features had gone even more white at that suggestion, though he at least seemed comforted by the fact that Ilirianna was not only probably alive, but had backup and was facing a teenager. “We have to be absolutely certain if we are to convince the Council to permit a trip to another realm to retrieve them. For the moment, I want the two of you to return to Erika immediately and have the Masters check the QuaerBasim for any unusual activity in the neighboring realms. Mallicent would not have gone to Hildegan if he intended to return, so they are more likely to be in the other three. Confirm your theory, and leave the rest to King Markreas and the Masters.”

On top of that, Nakoma informed them that Nyx would also be making a secret return to Erika while he would remain in Hiriech for the time being to handle the aftermath of the Kosah-Rei’s attack. Accepting Nakoma’s orders and leaving him to rest, Nigreos and Album excused themselves and departed. They were silent for a while as they walked down the corridor, and it was only once they were comfortably far away that Album finally spoke.

“I’m honestly surprised,” she said with a nervous chuckle. “I know The Angel said nobody would sense it if it didn’t want them to, but still…it was five feet from the Master of Fire and he didn’t have a clue.”

Nigreos grimaced. “Tell me about it.”

Before ejecting them from the pocket realm, The Angel had apparently told them the exact same thing: “Do not tell anybody else about what I’ve revealed to you or what you’ve seen. If anybody in your government learns of me, they will confiscate me and possibly destroy me. So hide everything. I will do my part and ensure they can never sense my presence so do not worry about that.”

The Angel… I really don’t know how to feel about this. A part of me thinks we should have told Master Taurus or Master Rana, but…

“So in exchange for becoming a host, I will do everything in my power to help her live a long and happy life.”

Nigreos internally scowled. But I need its help. If lying to the Masters is what it takes to heal Neah, then I suppose that’s what I have to do, no matter how guilty it makes me feel.

Sticking his hand into the pocket of his pants, Nigreos produced a small, eight-inch glass canister that was currently filled with a black and white substance. The Angel could apparently alter its size, so once they awoke, it entered this canister and stayed there ever since, without speaking even a single word to them. Nigreos didn’t know what being its host meant, so he didn’t have the first clue why he watched those moments from his life, but he supposed he would find out sooner or later.

“You do not seek to follow in your father’s footsteps. You do not wish to be his successor. What you want to do is save your sister because Viiro Noctis has no interest in doing it himself. Your father has already abandoned Neah to her fate like the cruel bastard he is, and if not for Neah, you would not seek to be the Master of Darkness either.”

Clenching his teeth so hard it hurt, Nigreos was forced to recall those words yet again, for they were mocking and ridiculing him. Right until the end, he had vehemently denied those claims, for he just couldn’t accept the idea that his father was such a disgusting and selfish individual. He couldn’t accept that he would abandon his own daughter like that.

He was drunk that night. He was speaking out of rage. I know that. I…

But a little piece of doubt had begun to creep into the back of his mind, ripping at his brain and causing him a sickening pain.

I know that…right?