V12: Chapter 8

  …

  “You’ve crossed the line, Jack.”

  “The Forgers intended to collapse the Citadel to see the continent burn, because they were about to be defeated.”

  “That validates releasing a plague upon them? One that you have developed to destroy and kill vast swathes of people outside of the continent?”

  “I initially planned to close their ventilation systems and set their whole capital aflame, but the amount of material required for that plan was far higher.”

  Celia glared at me across the table. Besides my guards, I had only Ayah with me, while she had her entire retinue and the Divine Engine of War on her side. Decades of faking it until I made it, practicing acting skills, and a light dose of sedatives allowed me to sit still across from the ensemble.

  “That you would have instead turned their capital into a furnace otherwise does not alleviate the harm that you have done.”

  “My initial intentions were to force them to surrender through military force by supporting you. Then, according to my agents who sacrificed their lives to deliver the viral payloads, they made their intentions clear. This continent is theirs, or we all will die. That made them a crisis, just like all others.” I argued on behalf of my actions primarily because I wanted to maintain our alliance despite the atrocity that I committed. In-game, committing an atrocity affected relations with the Guardians of the Moon the most. However, there was a way around the massive negative modifier that committing that atrocity posed. “In the spirit of our alliance and my acknowledgement of your point in the tragedy that I have created, I offer disassembly of my viral weapons factories and relinquishing of the arsenal to the Guardians of the Moon.”

  Celia froze at my words, and I felt the gaze of Miss Tall, Tanned, Tomboy on me.

  Hnngh.

  If not for the drugs, my heart would be racing without a doubt.

  But horniness is for people who don’t have to worry about staving off a planet covered in monsters.

  “Factories? Arsenal!? Explain yourself, King of Wisdom!” Celia, you know you’re using up a lot of influence talking to me like that, right? That’s a classic ‘Demand Explanation,’ which is to get insight on the overall state of a non-enemy faction’s kingdom. I mean, with the atrocity at play, you’re getting a discount on the influence cost, but still… I guess I’ll let her save face by explaining anyway. She needs to get this ‘victory’ over me because of her faction settings, anyway. “Just what did you intend to do with this horrific arsenal!?”

  “I intended to threaten the whole continent into accepting an alliance. My whole populace is inoculated and protected against the weapons I possess. This prevention method requires reapplication through consumption of food formulated by my alchemists.” We already tested the less-lethal version of the plague against the Death Lord. My troops ate enriched foods and got chemical cocktails to boost their immune systems. That was why releasing the earliest version of the virus on the beast tribes didn’t result in any harm to my troops. Naturally, once I made the version that would target the enslaved population held by the crisis factions, I made the new viral weapons ineffective against my own people. “But with our current partnership, I am willing to hand the arsenal to you as a sign of good will, as well as provide the formulas to prevent them from affecting your population.”

  Take these weapons off my hands, and please consider using them against the Sahuagin and applying them a bit more to the Stymphalians.

  Please and thank you.

  “No! I refuse that arsenal. I will see those factories disassembled and the viral arsenal incinerated.” Celia’s words made me want to sigh. I saw it coming a mile away. They always destroyed the arsenal you’ve built up and destroyed the buildings you had making them in your cities. It was a steep cost in production, especially since you can’t keep any in the back pocket. Well, you could with Intrigue, but if they find out any alliance is broken and can’t be remade. It’s full-on war. It was better to just accept the cost. “If you desire any semblance of cordiality to remain between our nations, you will accept my terms, King of Wisdom!”

  I raised my hands up, palms forward, before inclining my head.

  “So be it. Ayah, have the command written and relayed. Let the factories be shut down, and wait for representatives of the Guardians to arrive to oversee disassembly. Have the arsenal moved for disposal under observation.” The silence in the room almost made me feel like I was speaking at a brick wall. For a second, I saw surprise clear on Celia’s face. For a moment, it felt proper to just let it linger, but instinct bid me to play it up. It felt right. “This viral arsenal is no longer necessary. The continent will soon be partly unified. Therefore, I needn’t use it against other mortal races. It has also been applied against the Demons, the Stymphalians, and even the Ascendant. Only the Sahuagin are untouched by it, and that is because they live underwater.”

  I looked straight at Celia before finishing my little impromptu speech.

  “I released this weapon against the Forgers because they intended to kill us all out of spite, rather than accept defeat. The Wardens have been fighting and killing my people for some time now, but they have not threatened such a thing. Therefore, I have not used it against them.” It’d be useless. They could just resurrect whole and hale. Not to mention priests could just use holy magic against it. One casting, and poof, the viral illness is gone. “The weapon was intended to be of use against the foes of the entire continent. The Forgers turned themselves into such a threat, so I acted.”

  I felt like I was talking to a brick wall as I finished speaking, with everyone just staring at me and not saying a word.

  I was almost tempted to ask what more they wanted when Celia suddenly spoke through gritted teeth.

  With a one-time-only Guardian confirmation of forgiving an atrocity, as long as their demands regarding it were met.

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  “I acknowledge your intentions and your show of recalcitrance by admitting fault through the surrender of these weapons and the facilities that made them.” Celia practically ground the words out, but there was a fire in her eyes as she leveled a finger my way. “The deployment of this weapon shall never again be done. Its production facilities will never be made again. Do I have your word, King of Wisdom?”

  “You have my word, my seal, and my signature.” I told her simply before rising. “Is there anything else, Lady Celia?”

  There was.

  The Red Mist’s existence hung in the air, but the fact that I didn’t use it was also a fact.

  I almost expected the question to be left unasked, but the Divine Engine of War broached the topic.

  “The weapon you threatened your life with at the meeting that joined your nation with my master’s… why did you not use it against the Forgers?” Authoritative, but not deep. Husky but still feminine. The kind of voice you’d hear yelling while playing video games together or doing stupid shit together. Dammit, I don’t need to say a word, but I wanted to earn some points with her bad. “The Red Mist would have assured their destruction if it is as powerful as you claim it to be.”

  I mulled the question a bit as I moved to leave before deciding to answer.

  “If you are strong and healthy enough, you can survive my viral plague and return to full health. Four of every ten, I estimate, will survive it. Enough people will be spared for survivors to retain a semblance of their… culture.” I moved to the door at that, feeling that it was enough of an explanation, but found a couple more words to share as I moved to exit the meeting. “The Red Mist kills all. It consumes and consumes until nothing is left. Even itself. It gives no quarter, gives no chance at survival, and is a beast that I will only unleash if the Citadels themselves are threatened… when victory is impossible and only survival matters.”

  I gave her a nod, meeting her gaze over my shoulder, before turning away.

  “Oh blessed Divine Engine of War, I pray that you grow strong and mighty so that I will never have to unleash that weapon.”

  And, with that, I made my exit off the stage.

  Man, what a rough turn.

  Time to take a break.

  …

  Interlude: Celia

  …

  The Divine Engine bound to me, Zenith of Conflict: Renderer of Final Judgement through Violence, let loose a breath of relief as soon as Jack left the door.

  “It’s good that you’ve chosen him as our final opponent, master.” Zenith took the seat to my right. The officer asked her to sit there while she stood at my back like a ‘warrior.’ “He saw through me. Past me. Most likely he has one plan or another to neutralize me, even without my sisters.”

  The rest of the table cleared. Catherine came forward, as did my two knights. The generals and officers present had done so to showcase a position of strength. He was alone with only Ayah against us all, yet he didn’t waver for a moment.

  Not even when we truly had something on him.

  I didn’t believe that he would deny it, but I hadn’t expected him to cede those weapons completely and utterly to us.

  “We need more than that, Zenith. We know what he’s capable of from his achievements. What can you tell us that we don’t know?”

  Zenith considered the question with a gaze that stared into the wall opposite of her chair.

  “He’s… expectant. The conversation you and I had with him. It was almost like he was expecting our words and intentions.” Zenith did her best to understand her abilities and talents. One of them was discovering people’s true intentions. Catherine and other well-trained operatives could fool her. They had more than enough control, but that required decades of training. Most opponents and people? She could read with ease. “There was a little moment of excitement in his mask, a little eagerness in his stance, that I noticed whenever we finished speaking. After that, he spoke, and… everything went his way.”

  “Everything his way? He’s agreed to give us an arsenal that he could’ve used to threaten anyone not under his control.” Mallory stated, and Christine nodded. They were my foremost generals and champions now. They had their own squires now. Squires who were soon going to be inducted as champions themselves. “Do you mean he meant to give it away?”

  “I mean that he didn’t lie. Not once. He used that weapon with the intention of losing it after he did.” Zenith stated, and I looked to Catherine. She was my only other expert when it came to discerning who lied and did not. Typically, I could do it, but I could not remain objective with Jack. She nodded and confirmed Zenith’s words. “The Forgers would not have suffered their current fate if they did not intend to destroy their Citadel. However, from his willingness to cede the weapon, I believe that he may have intended to give it away to give you more prestige, master.”

  My fists clenched at her words.

  “And why would he do that?” I tried to keep my voice under control, but Zenith’s smirk at my demeanor told me that I failed. Allowing myself to growl and slump against my chair, I grunted at her. “Why exactly would he need to give me prestige?”

  “You’re his counterpart now. An ally he needs to lean on while the rest of the world bears down on us. One day, he’ll need your help or the opposite. If you’re equals in strength and prestige, then that’s not a problem.” Zenith cut through the fog of mystery with a sword of certainty. “He knows he’s unassailable now, but when the bodies begin to pile up, when the war truly comes, his people will start to strain. Questions, opposition, and more will rise. He’s preparing for that, as well.”

  Zenith released a sigh.

  “We’re behind, master. Not just in years with four Citadels, but in all aspects of warfare. We need to finish this fight quickly, get everything that we can from our alliance, and build as much as we can.” She leaned forward and crossed her arms. “At the very least, you should know that he doesn’t intend to betray you. He wouldn’t go this far if he did.”

  I felt a grimace forming on my face that I couldn’t repress.

  No matter what I did, it felt like I was struggling to catch up.

  But I had to focus on the present.

  “Catherine, go ahead and investigate the Wardens. Mallory, you’re due for some rest. Head back and prepare the teams who will inspect and dismantle the facilities and viral weapons. Christine, keep up the siege.” The Forger’s Citadel was spilling out Guardians, and our own were pushing them back. We were also building up any excess for a concentrated push with Jack’s forces. His force’s potency was unmatched. Everywhere they stood, they held the line while the enemy broke beneath the weight of cannon fire and magic onslaught, while droves died to spears and rifles. “Zenith, you’re with me. We’ll study Jack’s forces as much as possible while they are attached to our army. My analysts believe they’ve seen all that needs to be seen, but we’ll find every detail we can through your eyes.”

  I stood while my commands were acknowledged, and everyone save Zenith filtered out of the room.

  I left her with her standing just behind me, towering over me and casting a tall shadow through the hall of the prefabricated command building.

  “Any news on Life and Death?” Neither was with Jack, even though I moved with Zenith. She was interested in her sisters. We both thought that her presence would provoke him into bringing one of the two to ‘match’ me. Instead, he met with me, my Champions, and my Divine Engine with his usual handful of guards without flinching. “Besides what he told us?”

  “The Life Goddess is carefully protected, but we have an agent heading in as part of a pilgrimage group.” It told her. “As for the Death Goddess, we have heard nothing. I believe Jack has deployed her against the Demons, as he said he did.”

  “She’ll be insufferable when we meet.” Zenith sighed. “I almost want to ask you to consider sending me out there, master, but after seeing what we’re competing against? I’m better off here.”

  Part of me was glad to have her with me.

  Another more bitter part of me wondered if she’d be out there, stymying the coming threats as Death was, if I were in a better position.

  I swallowed the bitterness blossoming in the back of my throat and shook my head.

  No.

  Now was not the time for such thoughts.