Something was wrong here.

Errant eyed the architecture and ornamentation of the place with an eye both critical and approving. Verses of the primary tenets of Aru, depictions of miracles associated with Him, art and sculptures of saints and heroes who had held up His good work across the centuries... all quite appropriate, made with skill and care, there to inspire later generations in service to the Sun King.

But... there was a Darkness here, where there should be only Light.

The Warlock set of powers was defined as Ward, Wrath, and Whim, or Defense, Offense, and Utility. The Heavenbound had a decently robust set of Whim powers, starting with the basic Devasight from Eyes of the Angels that made their eyes keen, sensitive to colors, and immune to being blinded, dazzled, or the like by bright light or mirages, and made illusions difficult to use against them.

That was a Primary, unpaid power, the base of the Whims. It extended into the Mastery called the Eyes of Heaven, a Mastery similar to what Paladins possessed.

The Eyes of Heaven were about being able to find Evil. As Heavenbound were meant to fight Evil, being able to sense it was rather key. While being Evil was not a reason in itself to strike someone down, it let the Heavenbound know who to watch, be wary of, learn more about, and such folk often led to other interesting things that required intervention.

After all, being Evil meant they had the weight of Sin upon them. Such people had chosen to stand close to Evil by thought and deed. They did not get that Aura just by idle wishing...

Most Warlocks who improved the Eyes were looking for range, duration, and broader sensitivity, upgrading it to sensing Good, so as to find allies and comrades in arms, and then Law and Chaos, to learn the manners and mindsets of allies and foes alike; one to work with better, the other to destroy more easily.

He had done all of that. He could extend his range of detection out a great distance, get the information very quickly, and sustain it even in the middle of combat if he was of a mind.

But more importantly, he could Raise it to V base, which made it very, very sensitive. As a spell, this was called Into the Heart of Darkness, and it was incredibly sensitive to both current and past presences of Evil, to the point where he could track the trail of an Evil being like following footprints.

And that was what he was feeling here... the traces of Evil had passed here. Evil that shouldn’t even have been allowed in this blessed place, or even been able to tolerate it here. The Aura of the Wards alone should have weighed down on their souls, making them hugely uncomfortable and unable to tolerate the spiritual weight of their own sins dragging them down.

But it was here, poison and shadows, broken up by the overarching magic, swept into the corners like dust... but it should not have been here at all.

It was very not-good news. It meant the Order of the Ruby Heart had been infiltrated, and said infiltration had escaped routine Divinations aimed at them, as well as flying under the effect of the Wards that should be oppressing them.

That would either take some incredibly powerful magical items, or...

His thoughts turned in a direction he didn’t like. Hazé had already spoken about certain ongoing events. There were plenty of magical and natural effects that could obfuscate active Divinations. However, those magicks tended not to work on traces left behind, which was what was happening here.

He questioned the guards about the history of this or that as he was being shown through the halls, while messengers ran ahead and made sure the Grand Maester was available. At the same time, he was scanning for those little dusty shadows, and where they were the most common. Faint footprints, forming a trail and a pattern of habit.

There were more than one. Three, it felt like? They were avoiding the chambers of the Priests attached to the Order, which was understandable. Being a false Priest in a world with active gods was not exactly easy... well, actually, it was almost impossible.

Almost.

His escort was kind enough to tell him the layout, and he glanced in the direction of the library, where the traces were thick, and then over to the barracks of the active Knights.

And... ahead of him...

----

The Grand Maester was over a hundred years old, a Ten of great reputation and legendary accomplishments, famed for victories over two Anti-Paladins, a Bone Knight of Skulos, and a Grave Knight raised from an old foe of his, Sir Brogginkraut. Grand Maester Daemo “The Lance of Aru” Lawvin was an old and established legend, and even with the more than healthy rivalry between knightly Orders, not someone to offend here in the capital.

He looked to be nearing thirty-five or so, with a handlebar mustache set that was all the rage among the knightly officers, hair still dark and thick, and a cheerful and honest demeanor that could set almost any person at ease, while at the same time making you subtly aware of the Thunder chi burning underneath his skin and ready to explode forth in a healthy Smite upon you.

This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.

There was a considerable amount of shadowy dust piled up in his chamber, too...

He was intrigued to meet a Heavenbound who was so obviously young, yet was naturally unafraid and not overawed. He gestured Errant to a seat, and the young man sat down calmly.

“What can I do for a young servant of the Heavens, Master Errant?” he asked calmly, hands clasped and studying the younger man intently. “It is rare that I see a recommendation from the Inquisition come my way.”

“Yes, sir. My reason for coming here is simple. I have completed all the required steps for knighthood, up to and including a test of valor. However, the nature of my birth does not permit me to join the knights of my family.” He rolled his silver eyes tellingly. “As a Heavenbound, I am naturally limited in the Orders I can apply to for my knighthood, and while I have no problems working with the Inquisition if called upon, the Orders associated with the Ivory King are somewhat too rigid to accept a Heavenbound’s way of doing things. Thus, they recommended that I be knighted by and attached to the Ruby Heart.”

“Well.” The dark eyes scanning him were shrewd, a master of politics as well as the lance, fully able to read between the lines of what Errant was saying. Basically, he was a bastard son and an embarrassment who could not be allowed to remain in the family and be a threat to the primary inheritors, who were likely far less capable than someone who had actually qualified as a Heavenbound. “I doubt we’ll have any questions about the moral character of anyone who qualifies for a Pact with Heaven. Are you versed in the knightly codes?”

“I may have to study somewhat to ascertain those that the Ruby Heart stresses as most important, but I doubt that will be difficult,” Errant replied calmly.

“I will give you a copy of the Order’s Precepts, which should satisfy any particulars. What is the nature of your Deed of Valor?”

“I killed the werewolf lord Blutfang and his pack. He was a primogenitor, so doing so enabled at least two infected werewolves to be unequivocally freed of their Curse,” Errant replied calmly.

“Yourself?” Errant nodded slowly, and received an impressed look in return. “You are capable and clever, I see.”

“He was also overconfident, as is typical for a creature that cannot believe that it could be hunted in turn.” Errant brushed off the feat, underplaying the danger of the creature.

The Grand Maester only nodded. “We swear in new knights in ceremony on the Sun’s Day. There will only be a couple this time, earning their spurs. There will be senior knights in attendance, but it is not a high holy day, so there will be few others. Is this acceptable?”

“It is.” He wanted the formal rank and recognition of knighthood, and the appellation. Anything else was merely extra.

“Then I shall add your name to the list, and make your presence known, that there be no questioning. Still, it is best you prove your capabilities, that the Order know that you are not going to disgrace their standards.”

“That will not be difficult to do,” Errant smiled slightly. “The Harsites do not give their recommendations easily, after all.”

“No, they do not,” the Grand Maester agreed. “You will be working with them in the future?”

“They’ve expressed a desire to contact me in the event of special things happening,” he admitted easily enough.

“I shall take that into consideration when assigning your duties. I shall have you quartered with the Knight Aspirants, if you have no objection, and look forward to hearing good things of you, Master Errant.”

“Thank you, Grand Maester. I will not disappoint you or the Order,” Errant replied firmly, getting to his feet and bowing properly at the waist.

“With a Heavenbound around, I think things might get a little exciting shortly!” the older man laughed, and saw him out.

-------------

His escort had a much better opinion of the younger man after receiving his orders from the Grand Maester, but found his own questions buried under Errant’s quick and incisive inquiries about the Order and things to watch out for and be wary of. The precise yet respectful nature of the questions had him re-evaluating the younger man yet again.

The quarters Errant was given were shared with another, even younger man, and were adjacent to Sir Zigfried, an experienced knight who was training a squire. Neither were present, being out training at the moment, and Errant’s belongings were few, regardless. He sat down on the thin but clean cot, looking out the narrow window, opened to admit air smelling of the river, and the horses in the yards below.

He was going to have to kill the Grand Maester, Sir Zigfried, and someone in the Order’s Archives who he hadn’t met yet... but would make a point of doing so when he went to pick up a copy of the Precepts.

Tchazty stones weren’t all that uncommon in a place as paranoid as this, being a favorite for personal Warding Rings and anti-divination protections.

Dark tchazty stones, especially on the ring of a Grand Maester of an Order, not so much.

The dusty shadows lay heavy upon the door of Sir Zigfried, too.

He smiled grimly to himself, and raised his eyes to look at the ceiling, thinking.

Doppelgangers could eat the brains of their victims, wrap themselves in their persona, and avoid basic Aural Detections in so doing. However, it was foil wrapping over an Evil shell, hence the trails that would normally escape those looking. Not many folk scanned for Evil at V, after all. Major waste of a powerful Valence.

But he was a Warlock, and so he could spend his Wrath however he wanted. If he wasn’t fighting, having it at V was a perfectly valid use of his time.

They’d be able to imitate the Heaven-calling, offensive powers of a Thunder user... but not the Healing effects, which would literally separate them from the brains of their victims, and alert the divine powers behind the energy that something was off. Those they had imitated were likely dead, but caught between life and afterlife by the dops using their flesh to take their places... which also prevented the gods from noting that they had died and learning that something fishy was going on.

The Grand Maester of the Order of the Ruby Heart, murdered and replaced by a dop. He didn’t want to think just how bad that could make things for the Order, and what it had done to start gutting the Order from within already.

He was going to have to kill them soon, before their plans could come to fruition.

He should swing by the kitchens and servants. The easiest way to kill a large number of the knights would be to poison them all, after all...

Hmm. The squire he was with seemed clean. He was going to have to find a new knight to sponsor the young fellow...