“Ugh.” I moaned in annoyance. “Why are there so many of these?” I was getting ready for ANOTHER banquet (hopefully the last of this annoying conclave) and I couldn’t help but think back to the plethora of banquets and ball’s and various other formal events we’d had to go to since our journey started.
Callie giggled at my annoyance, adjusting my cape. “Because they give people a chance to show off, mingle, and eat good food. Everyone loves a fancy dinner. Banquets are a microcosm of the Ascendant culture. Lots of showing off to make an impression while you try to meet people.”
“I suppose.” I said with a sigh. Turning to look at my mother, I cocked my head. “This is really the end though? Once we’re done with this we can leave?”
We’d contacted Killian through my mom, and he’d volunteered (or so we were told, I remained suspicious) to take us back to Callus as a group. Once we were finished here, we’d be headed home for the first time in over a year, back to visit everyone and officially prepare for my wedding.
And yet, I couldn’t help but feel uneasy. This felt…unfinished. Like there was more to come. It had all gone down too easy, I didn’t trust it. Something was going to happen at this banquet, something big.
My mother seemed to pick up the undertone of worry. “This is the end.” She confirmed. “And we’re not letting our guard down. We’ve arranged for backup teams to remain in place from each of the factions. They won’t be attending the banquet formally, but will be on standby in case of emergency.” She smiled wryly at me. “You aren’t the only person to worry that gathering top leadership from all six of the most powerful forces in the universe in one place might present a tempting target.”
“Fair enough.” I said with a wry chuckle. “I guess I forget that I’m not the only person who expects things to go catastrophically wrong at the drop of a hat.”
She just smiled. “Fate moves more strongly around those with the blood of gods. That affects you more than most, but not you alone. We’re all on edge. The conclave was necessary to outline the terms of cooperation, but it was also dangerous. Why do you think we invited Lark?”
That made sense actually. Being able to punch up to god rank, even against the weakest god, was damned impressive. It made him basically untouchable at S-rank. Together with the backup she mentioned, I did feel a bit better. We were also on a floating continent in the middle of space. Someone would notice approaching threats well ahead of time.
Despite it all, the creeping unease wouldn’t go away, though. I took Callie’s hand, squeezing it tightly. I turned to Zeke. “How about you, old man. You ready for this?”
He scoffed. “I’m young at heart. But yes, I’ve been working on my new masks, have to replace the ones destroyed in my fight with that Duke. Kind of hoping I get a chance to try them out.” At my mother’s fierce glare, he cleared his throat. “I mean, no. I definitely don’t hope for that, that would be bad. I hope this banquet is boring and uneventful.”
She nodded imperiously, and he rolled his eyes, sticking his tongue out at her briefly when she looked away, and then putting on an innocent expression when she looked back.
I rolled my own eyes at their antics, turning to check that everyone was arriving. Bethy, Cark, Gabe, Chelsea, Benny, Jessie, Celine, Abel, and Mel. One by one everyone showed up, and I greeted them all stoically as we filed out into the shuttle.
Once we took off, I addressed them all directly. “I’ve still got today’s wishes. I’m a bit worried about what might happen. You guys willing to make them?”
“I’ll opt out.” Said my sister, Abel and Bethy nodding along. “I’ve got protection already, and I think the others could use it more.”
Callie tried to protest, but I wouldn’t hear about it. She, along with all the others aside from the two who abstained, each wished for a one time protective escape, paying with seven D-ranked chits that I suspected had come from Celine. I felt so much more reassured knowing they had that up their sleeves though.
We arrived shortly after we finished, and we all headed inside the Central Location, where the banquet would be held.
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The atmosphere at the event was a bit more subdued than the first time, but I had kind of expected that. Going through the conclave had underlined some of what we might be facing, and everyone was currently dragged down by the enormity of what might be coming.
We met with Felicity when we arrived. She’d come separately, but took up her position as one of my guardians without a word. When we entered, we were all announced the same as before, and we made our way over to meet my grandfather where he was standing, talking to Princess Lilliana.
“Mr. Wyndham.” Said the Princess with a warm smile. “It’s lovely to see you again. My apologies for any discomfort during your questioning. I tried to make it as easy on you as possible.”
She shot a glance at my mother, which told me all I needed to know. She knew who I was, and had tried to help me out of loyalty to her friend. It meant a lot that she’d been willing to stick her neck out for me, even if that might have benefited her faction.
“I appreciated all your kindness.” I said formally. “I owe you one.”
My grandfather groaned. “Why are these things always so stuffy? Nobody here knows how to have a good time. At least the food is good.” He tossed back a glass of champagne, picking at a plate of finger food. He frowned around at the waiters. “They used local staff though. Odd. I suppose it was cheaper than supplying their own.”
“That’s-” My mother looked like she was ready to dismiss what he said, but then stopped. “Wait. The staff are local contractors? Who okayed that? That’s a security nightmare. Who was in charge of staffing?”
My grandpa shrugged. “That brat with Harrison handled it. We let the WCP run point on the event. It was a meaningless bit of lipservice to let them feel important. We still have our own security in place.”
I frowned at him. “Brat? You mean Pret? Why would Pret be in charge of setting up an event like this?”
“Who knows.” He shrugged. “He’s Harrison’s ward and he wanted to be involved. It wasn’t worth kicking off an intergalactic incident over something like that. It’s not like any of these people are a threat to us. They’re just random E and D-rankers.”
Something about that seemed off to me. He was right, it wasn’t a big deal, but the fact that Pret had decided to push for that seemed…off.
“Speaking of Harrison.” He said with a sigh. “We let him do the closing speech. So get ready to fall asleep standing up. That man loves hearing himself talk.”
My mother shot him a wry look. “Imagine. A self-important blowhard who doesn’t stop talking. I wonder what being around that is like.” My grandfather glared, but she just ignored him, and the rest of us stifled our laughter.
Sure enough, within about twenty minutes there was an announcement from one of the heralds, and everyone was asked to quiet down so Harrison could make an announcement. He stepped out into the crowd, eyes blazing with excitement as he took us all in. “Greetings, friends and allies.” He said pompously.
“I’m sure you all know by this point why we’re here, so I see no need to repeat myself on that front.” He had an easy, confident smile in place as he spoke. “I think it’s quite a coup for us as powerful forces to be able to put down our pride and work so smoothly together when things are really on the line, and I’m proud to be here, and to be part of this process.”
He gestured to the side, where Pret was patiently waiting next to Craygen. “Not only myself, but my adopted son, Pretseltsen, have been working hard for your benefit as well as our own. A rising tide lifts all ships, and the stronger our alliance is the safer we are. In fact, I think he has a few words he’d like to say, and I’d be happy to pass the floor to him. After all, his generation are the future of factions like ours.”
It was heavy handed and a little annoying, but effective. He was reminding us all that the WCP was playing a huge part in the war. Claiming that they had ‘put down their pride’ to help when I was pretty sure he’d extorted every possible advantage was a bit shameless, but then, that was part for the course for the Palace.
Pret, smiling widely, accepted his pat on the shoulder and stepped forward. “Ladies and gentlemen.” He said loudly, his voice carrying. “I stand here before you today, a part of a historic alliance. A treaty of such scale and importance that the universe may have never seen its like.” His eyes scanned the room cooly, and his smile grew darker. I felt a tightening in my stomach, and I knew something was about to happen.
“Of course, we need to thank all our glorious leaders for deigning to have this little meeting. After all, they’re doing all of this for us. This is their method of keeping us all safe, of making sure we’re protected.” His tone was sickly sweet, and I could tell he was enjoying what he was saying. Something was wrong with the way he was talking, and I wasn’t the only one who thought so, I saw several people shift uncomfortably.
He strode away from Harrison, taking a place in the middle of the ballroom in a wide empty space. His movements were slow and graceful, like a prowling animal. “But of course, we aren’t safe.” He said gleefully. “We aren’t protected. We’re prey. Victims waiting to be torn apart by the wolves at the gate. Do any of you think this is going to be enough? That this pageantry will have any effect on what’s coming?”
The waiters had been moving as he talked, gathering together. There were a lot of them. A shocking amount. I recognized one of them even, and when I did, I felt the bottom drop out of my stomach. He was the bearded guy who had been buying Hallow.
I suddenly had a very bad feeling about what Pret might have done with those crates of the stuff he seized. I didn’t think he’d been studying them at all.
Harrison stepped forward, face tight. “Pretseltsen, what is the meaning of this? This isn’t the speech we discussed.”
“Oops.” Said the man cheerfully. “My mistake. I just thought a bit of candor might be nice for once. Just as a final bit of amusement before the main event begins. I suppose there’s no point now though. It’s already time.” He gestured to the groups of waiters that had assembled across the room, small clusters of ten or twenty people.
The staff members had started to change, skin smoking and bodies beginning to break down as they burst into flames. Their placement was clearly deliberate, as I felt something shift in the air as they died. I used Eye of Revelation, but I couldn’t see anything useful. This wasn’t a technique, though it did feel familiar.
And that was when I got it. Sacrifice. This was sacrificial power, similar to the lamentation liquid Billy had used in the ruined soul temple. People screamed and backed away as E and D-rankers combusted, the flames a sickening blood red.
As we watched, the flames gathered together, coalescing into a series of six massive doors. “It was so kind of you to invite us all to your party.” Said Pret with sadistic glee. “We were so touched we decided to invite even more people.” Then the doors swung open, and figures began to emerge. This couldn’t be good.