Chapter 18
The Coup
The hiss of steam was audible in the silence of the town. Creaking and groaning wrenched at the ears of people gathered there. In the light of the ceremony’s festivities, the source was clear. Not having to hide in the shadows this time, Raymond could more accurately survey the skyship upon which the Order had arrived. It was old and rusted in places, like one that had been excavated from the earth and been touched-up by amateurs. Raymond bit back a pained laugh.
Though at least it explains how the Order can get around without being registered…
With a final squeal, the engines to the skyship were shut off, its deck lights illuminating the darkness and highlighting the church. Another hiss of steam issued from it when the ramp lowered, two people exiting from within. They were dressed in the same black robes that made the townspeople a homogenous group, but Raymond looked at what was beyond them.
He felt it before he saw it.
Chill blanketed the area. Flames flickered. Lights twinkled on and off. Next to him, Emily shivered, wrapping her robe closer. The cultists surrounding them did no differently, their size shrinking before the pressure exuded. Only one held himself together enough to approach the skyship. Even then, the leader’s legs were shaking.
Then they became visible.
Robes, like wisps of shadows, silent as the night, descended the ramp. Piece by piece, they were revealed to those gathered in the firelight, like a specter of the darkness until their masked visage was put on display, peering at all those there. Raymond found his face twitched, his sword-hand reaching for his blade as an unbidden reaction. Nevertheless, he reined himself in when the Reaper spoke.
“I hear you have something for me; an opportunity to prove yourself in lieu of my missing priests,” they said. Their voice, as it had been in the alchemic settlement, was distorted. That same distortion lent to its commanding presence, and looked to force the leader of the town to his knees.
“Yes, Your Worship…A blade of legends. That we might serve you.”
The Reaper considered the man, unreadable as always. Then they bent low, tipping the man’s chin up. Raymond tensed. In the man’s place was his sister, vulnerable and helpless, quivering with fear. A flash of death arose, but he stayed his hand. “And you would invite a ceremony to me? I’m most intrigued. Though there are but rumors of a Guardian, on the loose.”
“An issue no longer,” the man said. He was trying his level best to not quaver. “We had hoped to hold them captive, a second prize for Your Worship. A statement. Yet they ran like the cowards they all are. I doubt we’ll see more of them.”
“A pity, but not an unexpected one.” The Reaper let go, standing once more and observing the crowd. Raymond pulled his cloak tighter. “Yes, I do believe I’ll see the blade. There may be a chance for you to ascend yet.”
“Yes, Your Worship. Follow me. Let us celebrate the blessings of the goddess.”
“Indeed.” The ominous growling beneath the Reaper’s tones sent another shudder amidst the gathered cultists. Only the leader could stand without trembling, his black cloak whipping about, a weapon unveiled beneath it. The Reaper took no notice, following along.
The sea of black followed, all of them converging towards the church which remained the only inviting landmark in the area.
Raymond stepped back, careful to not let himself or Emily get caught up in the flow. They watched and waited, until the lonely festival area was cleared. It looked different, the stands removed of clutter, the weapons taken. There was little doubt about what was to happen, and the Reaper appeared to expect nothing from their own people. So unworried were they that the two they had arrived with remained outside the skyship, like black, wispy sentinels.
With everyone else nearly at the church, Raymond doubled back, making sure to appear dignified as he approached the two. They turned their heads, and the captain noticed something a little different about their cloaks. There were markings on them, quite unlike the majority of cultists they had encountered before. Proof positive, Raymond took it, of these not being the same that had arrived two days before. Their perception was higher, and their backs straighter.
These men were no mere fodder.
“Are you not going to the church?” one of them asked on catching sight of the pair.
“Guard duty.” They nodded, accepting the answer. A frosty uncertainty fell between them, and Raymond could feel Emily scanning every area as closely as she could. “A most auspicious evening for a ceremony, is it not?”
“Yes. Most auspicious, although I very much doubt Their Worship will perform it here. The time has not yet come.” Underneath his hood, Raymond squinted, though the cultists didn’t catch it. Wasn’t the ceremony now, after all? “They are waiting for all seven to be gathered, after all.”
“Surely they don’t need all seven to give thanks to the goddess,” Emily spoke up.
“Of course not. Every day is a thanks to give the goddess,” the other guard said, bowing low. “We do not need a special ceremony for that. Such a practice has long fallen out of favor.”
“Do you islanders still practice that? It’s no wonder you wish to become priests and learn more of our Order’s current practice.” Raymond found his fingers digging into his hands, concealed beneath his robes. Something was starting to feel wrong; conflicted.
“I suppose our customs must seem outdated. It’s been some time since we interacted with the larger Order,” Raymond said, forcing a chuckle between his words.
“I’ll say. I don’t think I’ve ever seen one of you at base. Even then, there were only whispers. Last I heard, this island was abandoned some time ago. Their Worship said so,” the guard said. Raymond’s mouth went dry now. “That someone should find a Weapon here! There’s no doubt they could scarcely believe it, and were willing to see on their own. Perhaps they’ll give a demonstration of its mighty power! A true ceremony!”
“Do tell. We won’t be able to witness it, after all,” Emily said, offering a smile. The guards stood a little straighter, blushing, unaware of the strained turmoil taking place a few feet from them.
“You mean unlocking the way to the next world? We’ve never seen it ourselves, but rumor has it that with a single slash of a Legendary Weapon, you can rend a piece of this world in two, if you wished it. Their Worship has tested it,” the guard said with enthusiasm. “Don’t you know? Our Reaper hears the voices of souls! They can use them! They can tell what a soul is feeling! There’s no doubt a Legendary Weapon-”
Thwock! Neither realized that Emily had approached them before they crumpled beneath her fists. Making sure they didn’t give off a sound, she caught them, and laid them carefully on the ground. “Captain…”
“Yeah, I realized it, too. Something’s wrong…” Raymond whipped around, his black cloak fluttering with the sounds of the ocean. In the church ahead, nothing could be seen, but there was a rising spike of fear. “Were we off?”
“Or were they…?”
Raymond’s hand lifted up, his lips twisting while he manically stroked his chin. The Order hadn’t known of this group until recently, the fake weapon, the plans for a coup…and on top of it, they didn’t even know what the ceremony’s true intention was. His other hand started twitching. “It could still be a coup…but it might not be from who we think…which means they could be planning to kill the Reaper for some reason than taking over the Order.”
“The communication equipment and capturing us…you don’t think…?” Emily’s deductions sent a shiver down Raymond’s spine. The bits and pieces were coming together in an unwanted tapestry, fear forming a pit in his stomach.
Shadows moved in the church, the Reaper receiving the blade that was meant to pass for a legend. Whatever move was going to be made, it would be soon.
Our Reaper hears the voices of souls! They can use them!
Those words, spoken without thinking, cycled in Raymond’s mind. They stuck out, having meaning he couldn’t quite place. His fingers tapped against his side and his chin. Faster…think faster…why is that…?
Raymond’s hands stopped moving, the overwhelming truth making his eyes widen once he realized it. “Silva…They have Silva’s soul…”
“Captain?”
“They can hear the souls of the blades. If it has no soul, they know it isn’t a Legendary Weapon…and with Silva’s soul they could confirm it. They…” Raymond dug in his robes, searching for his communication pad. It was risky, but there was no other option at this point. “Em, they know. The Reaper knows it’s a trap. They came here expressly to spring it. Jay, what’s the word on their communications center here?”
There was nothing, and Raymond cursed. Emily was busy moving the members aside, entering the skyship for whatever information she could gather. There were seconds of waiting, and Raymond despaired of getting an answer before a burst of static came over the line. “…aptai…”
“Jay, talk to me! Did you find anything?”
“…ference…ith commun…” Raymond shook his pad, hoping it would clear the static, but Jay’s voice got no clearer. “Captain, this syst…not separa…ending signal…o Metropolis.”
He nearly dropped the device now, and the worry he’d had over being wrong exploded inside.
So, too, did the church.
Stone blasted into the air, bodies flying through it. Wooden splinters showered the ground, and the dirt upon which Raymond stood trembled. He drew his blade without thinking, but turned his back to the source of the explosion. The bits and pieces of glass from the once-beautiful church battered his backside, but left him otherwise unharmed. Emily dashed outside, and the two looked to see the utter devastation left in the wake of the operation.
“Did you really think you could fool me?” the Reaper spoke. The people scattered upon the ground coughed, but most were paralyzed with fear at the emissary of the goddess. In the Reaper’s hand was the facsimile of the Abyssal Blade. “A paltry trinket, passed off as a Legendary Weapon? A ceremony for praising the goddess? How weak!”
The Reaper stretched their hand down, grabbing hold of the old caretaker of the church. Moments after, they’d slammed the man into the ground, giving a cry of pain. “It was…worth it…”
“Yes, worth throwing your idealism away. Worth throwing yourself at the goddess’ feet, and for what? A chance to kill me? Or is it a chance to scream about how great you are? Either way, you’re fools!” With yet another heave, the Reaper sent the old man flying, disappearing into the darkness of the night. One by one, those that had been flung aside by the explosion started to stand. “What is it you’re here to seek? Answers? Validation? Then you forgot one very important fact.
“I am here, and where I step, all life but that which I and the goddess choose withers.”
“The goddess…is a lie…” The hacking voice was familiar, and Raymond, now stepping in the direction of the church, saw the leader of the town standing, his blade held close. “We sought the goddess. We sought peace. She offered nothing but false promises, while her emissary employed scum like the Beastmaster that destroyed our homes.”
“Aha, and there’s the truth of it!” The Reaper raised the fake blade high, radiating with dark energy. “You sought answers. You sought purpose because you could find nothing for yourself. Even now, you are hounds, mewling for scraps at the table, begging for attention. You are sorely mistaken!”
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They swung the blade now, breaking it against the stone altar that remained. It shattered to dust, and the Reaper tossed it aside. Then their arms spread out, inviting attack.
“No, we are not mistaken!” The leader rose with all speed, his conviction picking up everyone who was there, inspiring them to stand. “The goddess offers no salvation! Seeking her does nothing! But when we kill her emissary, she will hold no more influence over the world. We will be the ones instituting change! Us! Not the Corps! Not the Order! We will take what scraps you’ve left behind and show the world what’s left to believe in!”
“Then come! Strike me down!” The man roared, his guttural scream echoing across the now desolate town before he swung his own blade at the Reaper. His blade dug into the Reaper, yet the foe appeared behind him and grabbed him, the copy dissipating. “What you see is not always what things are. You seek answers to what’s right in front of you, but answers do not offer salvation. Only a change in the mind. You must change people if you wish for salvation. Until then, you’re nothing but children looking for a way to improve your own life. You’re nothing but brats, Renegades!”
The leader gagged, silently choked by the Reaper’s mere presence. His limbs were wrapped by dark tendrils, ones all too familiar to Raymond. He found his own feet moving to where the Reaper was engaged, sword held. The leader gasped, and the Reaper bent over.
“But if you wish, you can find salvation on the other side…within me…”
“Never! We would never join you!”
“But we’re so much alike.” The Reaper’s hand stretched out, glowing, right for the wriggling chest of the town’s leader. Lightning crackled around Raymond’s blade, becoming a trident. Only as it finished transforming did the Reaper look up. They let go just in time for the projectile to pass through the area they had been. The town leader fell, hacking and coughing, and Raymond returned his blade to his hand. “Ah…the captain. I was wondering when you’d show up.”
“You’re…still here…?” The man’s voice was strained, ripping the bindings off of himself. He kicked away from the Reaper, into a compatriot of his, pulling him up. Raymond reformed his blade, and held it close. Emily placed her back against his. “And here I thought we’d failed in capturing a member of the Corps.”
“You both seem particularly knowledgeable on the Corps’ doings,” the captain spoke. “I would have you speak and tell me all you know.”
“There’s no need for speech in defeat.” The leader, having caught his breath, grabbed his sword and held it high. The Reaper regarded him with amusement. “Brothers! Sisters! Our enemies are made plain! The Reaper of the World Restoration Order! The Guardian Corps! With our rumors and plans, we’ve lured them both here! In a few hours, we will show the people who-”
“Blades.” The Reaper’s rasp indicated their malevolence. From many of the people’s hands, their weapons flew towards them, hovering in midair as a deadly vanguard. Then, with a twist of fingers, the blades flew out again, impaling many of them. The leader faltered in his speech. “Is that all it takes to stop your rebellion? A few parlor tricks? You’re most unworthy!”
A solitary blade remained, one that telekinetically approached the leader. Raymond dashed forward, barely having enough time to intercept the sword and knock it off course with his own. The triumph over that wasn’t long-lasting, the flash of steel aiming for his back. He twirled around, knocking it aside and facing the one who had attacked him.
Now that he could stare the leader in the eyes, it was so much plainer. He was no believer. Not a cultist.
He, and the others around him, were rebels, and everything up to this moment had been part of a way to upend the status quo. Had Marcus known? Had Gaius? Raymond wasn’t sure. Yet now it was apparent just what they had been investigating this entire time.
“The Order, and the Renegades…you played the role of both. For what reason?” The leader didn’t deign to answer, jabbing forward, only to have his strike blocked.
“Is it not obvious, captain?” the Reaper spoke. The blade returned to their hand as others finally rallied to stand against the priest. “They mean to make an example of us, you and I. “
“Don’t you lump us together!” Raymond shouted. He swiped his sword across, forcing his opponent on the defensive while he slashed upward at the Reaper. Said figure blocked the attack with their hand as the Renegades converged on them. “Our Corps would never stoop to your level. We are in the interest of protecting this world, not poisoning it by taking lives! Return what you stole from the alchemic settlement!”
“Now, now, captain. Is this the time for posturing demands? These Renegades will kill you, you know.” It didn’t seem that way. Not when the Reaper took a step and bonds of black wended their way from the ground to snap on the Renegades and bring them downward. “Besides, we’re not so different, are we? You desire peace and protection of the people in this world. The Order desires no differently, as, I am sure, is the same for the Renegades.
“However, our means are utterly different, and surely, only one faction will be left standing when the dust settles.”
“And on my honor as a Guardian, I will see it be the Corps!” Raymond said. His blade sparked with lightning, transforming into a whip of liquid metal that he snapped in the air. Many recoiled, though the few who were his direct targets did not. “Reaper. Renegades. I am Captain Raymond Childs of the Guardian Corps. I know not what your plans are, but by morning you will speak. I will make sure of it. Lay down your arms, or prepare yourselves!”
“Lay down?” the leader spat. “We will not. Your Corps has failed us. The Order has tormented us. If you make your declaration, then we prepare to make ours. Your weakness will be shown for all to see. He will make sure of it.”
“He?” Emily asked. The sharp question was a reminder that they weren’t alone. The Renegades had surrounded all of them, each prepared to fight to the last, despite the small size of their force. Raymond looked to his subordinate, who acknowledged her captain with an incline of her head. The Renegades, nevertheless, did not answer, but their intentions were clear.
So, too, was Raymond’s objective, and he would fulfill it.
“Very well. Then I shall make you speak.” He snapped his whip, and the metal, charged with electricity, traveled outward. The leader jumped over it, while the Reaper blocked it, but the rest collided with the gathered Renegades, sending them tumbling backwards.
Not all were reached, however, and one of the Renegades jumped from behind, another tackling at Raymond’s legs. He reformed his blade, prepared to take them off, only to find the two floating in midair before being crushed into the ground. It didn’t take much to realize it as the Reaper’s doing.
“I have no need of pointless bloodshed, captain. Yours is not a blood I wish to spill,” they said. It was sickening, knowing the sincerity coming from them; if they had wished to kill him, they would have done so back at the settlement. “We’re too alike, you and I, just differing in the ways and means, but both aiming for a brighter future.”
“Is this your brighter future?!” His blade back in his hand, Raymond ran for the Reaper and slashed. Like a wisp of cloud, they vanished, reforming in the midst of more Renegades, only to knock them aside. “You knew what they were planning to do to you here? So why did you come?”
“Perhaps I was amused,” the Reaper said. They bent low, their palm pressed against the dirt. The air tingled with electricity before lightning showered them and the Renegades, obscuring them from view. The leader of the town pressed the advantage, running towards Raymond. The two locked blades. “Or perhaps I wanted you to see a world beyond your own. A world where convictions were matched. A belief in the goddess. A belief in the Corps. Two tenets driven by the same principle.”
“Your goddess permits death!” Raymond grunted, throwing off his opponent’s attack. He whipped his leg around, driving into the leader’s side before he could cast his sleep spell, and sending him stumbling back towards the square. He whistled, and the sound of many more footsteps were heard behind Raymond. “The Corps does not!”
“But each has a message to send, captain. Surely you saw that,” the Reaper said. Their attack faded, the area clear of the Renegades around them. It was a prime opportunity, and with naught but a glance, Emily gave the signal. Raymond struck, his blade extending to block his assailants’ blows. “You’re a paragon of everything the Corps strives to uphold, but you’re not perfect.”
“Of course not, but our Corps tries its best.”
“Do they?” The Reaper dusted off their robes, sighing. “How many uphold the same principles as you? If the world were so perfectly clean from the Corps, why then does the Order exist? Why are these Renegades here?”
Raymond wished to argue, but held his tongue. Words were cheap and meaningless, the priest no doubt attempting to rile him up for whatever reason. He kicked, sending all of his assailants backwards. There was inevitable truth to the statement, Raymond knew, but he didn’t care for dealing with it. Not with a threat right in front of them.
“Now!” he shouted.
There was a whooshing noise and light erupted about the battlefield, shining directly down on the Reaper. They appeared immobilized, almost taken aback, and the sound of priming cannons echoed over the waterfalls. The Reaper chuckled.
“A clever gambit, though I’d argue that theirs is more clever, captain,” they said. They bowed low, as if conceding defeat for this day. “They brought me here as to showcase my defeat to the world, and your bid for information might have perhaps failed. But captain, the truth of this world is there if you seek it. Let’s see which side changes the world. The Order? The Corps?
“Or, perhaps, the Renegades and their carefully planned message. Let me know what you find.”
“Fire the girls!” Raymond gave the Reaper no more time for insidious messages. The full cannons from the Defender fired, raining hellfire on the vista of destruction where the Reaper stood. As they lay waste to the ground, many Renegades were propelled backwards, tossed to the sides. Smoke spilled forth, obscuring where the Reaper stood, though no more words were spoken from the priest’s lips. Raymond exhaled with some relief; he doubted the Reaper had perished, but it had bought them some time.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Raymond whipped around. Those weren’t the sounds of his own cannons, and the ensuing explosions from above indicated that it was the Defender which had been struck. His teeth grit together, attempting to find the source of the blast when he laid eyes on the derelict skyship, rusted cannons aimed towards their own, priming yet another shot.
The leader of the local Renegades was missing, as well.
“Em, with me!” Raymond shouted, running in that direction. Some screams invaded the vicinity, a number of Renegades planning to get in the way.
“Out of our captain’s way!”
“You think the Defender is okay?!” Bruce and Trent came barreling out of nowhere, dashing from the trees to their opponents and bowling them over. Emily joined at Raymond’s side, the hood having slipped from her face on their mad dash to the skyship, firing once more. The Defender rocked, though its own cannons changed trajectory, aiming for the rusted skyship. Raymond pulled his tablet out, attempting to communicate with the ship.
“Sal, Kenny, hold your fire! Hold fire!” There was no acknowledgement. “Crap! The communications system must’ve been damaged. Bruce, Trent, hold the line. Em, let’s get their leader out. We still need answers to our questions.”
“Affirmative, sir!” Emily flipped forward, her leg striking a Renegade that was guarding the entrance to the ship and knocking him aside. Raymond slipped through the gap, charging up the ramp and into the skyship. Even through the rusted metal innards, he could hear the Defender preparing its next assault, and he hurried. The weapons system wasn’t offline, but they very much would be if they were hit again.
Thankfully, the skyship’s interior was small, offering little in the way of deviation and allowing him to locate the bridge. He kicked the door in, the force of it slamming against the controls and startling the leader of the Renegades. That distraction allowed for Raymond to grab the man and begin dragging him out. Not that the man didn’t have other plans.
“I think it’s time for you to slee-oof!” Raymond socked him in the gut before his sleep spell could get off. The man’s body slumped, becoming heavier as the whining outside grew louder. Kenny and Sal were about to fire. Raymond stowed his blade away and hooked the man under both arms, carrying him as swiftly as could be until the light and fire of the outside was visible.
Only when their feet hit dirt, and Emily, Bruce and Trent formed a circle around him, did he finally breathe, allowing them to get enough distance before the Defender fired.
It made short work of the derelict skyship, sending the Renegades scattering, flattening them to the ground. Raymond also felt himself rising off his feet, but he held fast. When the resultant wind had faded, he sucked in some breaths to steady himself and looked around at the devastation that had been wreaked. The Reaper didn’t seem to be there, but no sign of their body was evident, charred or otherwise. It made Raymond’s lips twitch, though at the sight of the groaning Renegades, he turned his mind to more important things.
“What was your purpose in this plan?” he roared, flipping the leader around as Emily made sure to shackle him. He moaned a bit, a piece of shrapnel from the blast appearing to have cut into his side, but Raymond didn’t care. “Why did you bring the Reaper here? You must have known what they’d do.”
“It was…his plan…” the man grunted. Raymond shook his head, attempting to decipher the riddle with little success before the leader started laughing. “It’s…too late now, though…Rico won’t be stopped. He’ll spread the message. The Corps. The Order. We’ll put an end to you both. We won’t…be ignored…by useless…cowards…”
It was the last the man could get out before he fell unconscious. Raymond dropped him. Emily rushed to heal him.
Rico…The name was familiar. His sister had spoken it at the alchemic settlement. It belonged to a man whose eyes he couldn’t forget, so filled with hatred at the Corps.
And it had been spoken by the announcer at the Alliance Games.
“No…” Raymond took his tablet out again, but still, no communications could be made. Bruce and Trent acted without orders, sending a flare into the sky. When Emily saw it, she looked to her captain. “We’ve been blind. This was a side excursion. Gaius must’ve believed it a coup, but it was a trap: a trap to show the mighty Reaper and Tempest Squad, hung up by the Renegades.”
“What does that mean?” Bruce asked. The Defender began to descend, nearly drowning his words, but Raymond answered them regardless.
“It means the Renegades are planning to send a message from the Metropolis today,” he said. Emily stood, the angered crease on her face indicating she received the heft of his words. Up above, the ramp of their skyship began to open, revealing Sal.
“Captain, communications systems were damaged by that shot, and the engine’s running slower from it. Speed is decreased, and I’m not sure one of Kenny’s girls can handle another shot. We’ve only got the concussives online,” she shouted. He cursed once more, but she didn’t let it vex her. “Your orders, captain?”
“Get Kenny to work on those systems. In the meantime, we’ll pick up Jay,” he said. He didn’t care about who was left behind, not with their only true means of attack having been obliterated. All he cared about was what was in front of him, his subordinates joining him in jumping on the ramp. “We need to get to the Metropolis now. The Order’s off the table. The Renegades are the threat, and I’m afraid my sister’s going to be caught in the middle of it.”
Sal nodded, retreating back in the ship with Emily and the others. Raymond hung on the ramp as it started to close, looking to the destruction below; he’d wanted to avoid it, but had been left with little choice. They had left him with little choice.
We’re more alike than you think.
The truth is there if you seek it.
Raymond grimaced. He hated how right they seemed. His fist clenched. How similar were they? Better yet, what had the Reaper known about the Renegades? Raymond scoffed, shaking his head.
“That doesn’t matter,” he whispered. “Now’s not the time for questions. It’s time for the mission.”
Leaving the island town behind, he disappeared inside the Defender as dawn broke, praying they’d make it to the Metropolis before it could be destroyed.