Advent of Eternity - Chapter 46 (Interlude 1) (Patreon)

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Firelight flickered off the obsidian throne, but it failed to illuminate the tall man sitting in it. A tattered tricorn on his head was tilted to the side, faint ribbons of bloody string hanging off it like a veil. His hands, covered with cuts and scars, were adorned with heavy golden rings that shimmered in the flame.

A woman stood before him, a huge axe in her hands. Its blade was covered with blood, as was her face. Energy crackled around her, forming a sphere in the dark room.

“You are persistent,” the man said, his voice like the howl of an ocean storm. “Why have you come here, Scion of Holen?”

“You know what I am?” she asked. “Then why send your crew to interfere with me?”

“Because you entered my domain.” His words were a simple statement of fact, devoid of emotion or anger.

“You killed powerful warriors simply to satisfy your ego?” the woman asked, her face twisting in disgust. “You’re as bad as Holen warned me, Veil.”

“Killed?” the man asked. The ribbons hanging from his tricorn rustled, as if a breeze had danced through them.

The obsidian room, which had been empty moments before, was suddenly full of pirates. Each bore hundreds of injuries, the most prominent being huge, sweeping cuts that looked to have been made by an axe.

Slowly, the angry red wounds knit shut, turning into scars indistinguishable from the rest. The blood that leaked from them sank into the black floor, vanishing.

“You have killed no-one here, Scion of Holen,” Veil said. “You Scions always overestimate your power. The gods are broken. Their strength is up for the taking, and those who kiss their feet will never grasp it like I can.”

“And yet you still treat with them,” the woman said, setting her back and not turning away from Veil. “That’s why I’m standing here, isn’t it?”

“Perhaps it is,” Veil said. “Speak then, slave of Holen. Why do you seek my strength?”

“You killed one of the Shards of the Goddess of Death, right?”

“Have you come to tell me what I already know? My patience was already thin. Do not wear it any further.”

“Fine, I’ll get to the point. One of Mordrigal’s Scions has been angering Holen. He’s killed two of our Scions and taken their Boons. We want to deal with him.”

“And you need my help to kill a whelp of a broken Goddess?” Veil laughed. “Have you truly fallen that far? How powerful is he?”

“From all records, not that powerful. Only around level twenty at max,” the woman admitted, her cheeks flushing red. “The problem is that we cannot find him. Mordrigal cloaks his movements.”

“She interferes directly? How interesting,” Veil said. “And why should I help you? The Shard of the Death Goddess that I had issue with is dead at my hands. Mordrigal and I do not like each other, but we have no quarrel.”

“Because he is growing at a disturbing rate,” the woman said. “And if he seeks the Scions of Holen, you too will not be safe forever.”

Veil’s laugh echoed through the room. For an instant, the woman caught a glimpse of his eyes behind the red tassels. She instantly regretted it. Two black voids, devoid of all light and emotion, burned into her soul like hot coals.

“I do not care for safety. If one of the Scions seeks a challenge, than I will not interfere. All of Holen’s shards can fall, for all I care. I am no god, girl. That is where your master and his brethren are mistaken. They fear. I do not.”

The woman’s face creased with anger. “Fine. When he comes for you, don’t come crying to us. Nobody will save you.”

“Save me?” Veil asked. “I do not need saving. If the day that I am to truly die comes, then I will greet it with joy. For that will be a battle that I may carry to the afterworld gratefully, knowing that it will be told for centuries to come. But you – you are the one that needs saving.”

The confidence in the woman’s face flickered. “You are allied with Holen. You would not–”

A strand of black light sliced through the air. The woman’s eyes bulged, but it was too late for her to act. Her body slid apart, dissected into tiny chunks. A large blue sphere rolled out of her stomach, coming to a stop at Veil’s feet as the woman’s body sank into the obsidian floor, vanishing.

“So presumptuous,” Veil said, standing for the first time. He crushed the Boon beneath his heel as he walked across the room, his men moving to stand in neat rows as he passed. “I look forward the day the age of the gods comes to an end. It will be a joyous one, indeed.”

Veil stopped before a large basin full of greenish water. He touched a finger to it and the water rippled. Colors bloomed within it, forming into an image of Knell and his crew as they traveled through the desert.

“What an interesting child,” Veil murmured. “Interesting indeed. Mordrigal tried so hard to keep you hidden from me, and Holen fears you. Yet, your strength is middling at best.”

“Would you like us to seek him out?” One of Veil’s lieutenants stepped out from the ranks of men behind him.

“Mm. The thought does intrigue me,” Veil said. “But no – not yet. He is not yet worth that amount of effort, and I have other goals to accomplish. Then again, it would be such a waste to leave such a resource unchecked. Come, Emma.”

A from broke away from the crew and knelt before Veil, her long silver hair masking her face.

“Rise. I have need of your talents.”

The woman stood and lifted her gaze to meet that of her captain. Her face was beautiful, with flush red lips and two pools of dead, cold ice where her eyes should have been. “What are my orders, Captain?”

“Find this… Knell. We shall test if he is worth my interest.”

“Should I slay him, Captain?”

“Mmm. I will let you use your judgement. Test him first,” Veil replied. “I would not crush a seed before it is grown, but I will not water what will only be a weed. Perhaps he will become something of interest. Perhaps not. For now, we will observe.”

Emma inclined her head once more. Shadows rose up around her and she sank into the ground, vanishing.

“And if he does?” the lieutenant asked, a hungry look crossing the man’s face.

Veil’s mouth split into an unnaturally wide grin. “Then he will come, and I will kill him. The boy will make an excellent addition to my ranks.”