Knights Apocalyptica

Chapter 163: Last Night In Vega

Unlike last time, this visit to the Glass Pyramid was much more hostile. They rushed processing. The Magi handling the group of Pendragons and Knights weren't sure how to manage them, given they'd just killed other non-citizens in their streets. So, they found a medium ground in that they didn't say a word to the prisoners. Nope, they threw glyph-shackles on the Pendragons and Knights. Then, they shoved them into the council room for the Arch-Magi, which was noticeably absent any Arch-Magi. Still, when they left, the black veil around them closed and sealed them in, as well as any cell. Whatever magic made this a place of power had enough juice to make it near-impossible for sealed prisoners to break free from, or so they thought.

Like that, they left them in an utterly black void to await judgment while sorting out the mess.

Under Boldwick's orders, they cooperated the best they could, including handing over all their weapons. And yes, that meant Erec handed over his Armor—it made him extremely nervous since VAL's real 'body' was in it, but what could he do? Given the first chance alone with Boldwick, he'd delivered the Arch-Magi's message, and that was that.

Everything was out of his hands, and he had to do his best to keep himself together.

Having Enide at his side made it easier. She leaned against him, a big grin on her face, along with some blood. The sight drove him wild despite the situation. It was a good distraction.

They kept saying the ‘bodies,’ but really, how many priests had the Knights killed? They’d had their hands forced since the red robes went in with lethal intent. He’d personally dropped two into a fire pit… And hoped, well, wished it hadn’t been lethal.

Erec looked over the notification in the corner of his vision. It’d been there since the fight, but in the rush, he didn’t take the time to look.

Soul (Aspect: Fire): Rank D - Tier 1 → Rank D - Tier 2

“Well, I’ll do the talking when they come in,” Boldwick said to Rochester, “They have Seven-Snakes; I suppose they probably intend to take the other Knights into custody before judgment. I believe our stay in this place has reached its end. Regardless of the deal that Arch-Magi offered.”

“Easy come, easy go,” Yniol grumbled under his breath.

Rochester rubbed his tattoos, but he seemed the most nonplussed out of those in charge. “It’ll all work out fine, we heard the kids. The enemy of yesterday could always be the friend of today. And then, tomorrow, if you decide he needs a bullet in his head, that’s an issue for the next day.”

“I’m not comfortable with this. And as much as I hate to admit it, there’s a point. Right now, we do what it takes to leave Vega, hopefully not on irreparable terms with their council. Once we’re out of this city, we can reevaluate our options. The next destination is clear, and we’ll be traveling with your lot, so that is fine enough. If we leave without help, we’ll have to determine if an Arch-Magi is needed to breach it,” Boldwick replied.

“Aye, on that, we agree. We get in our rides and fly out of dodge. Or that’s how the saying goes. But don’t forget, absent this deal, we have a favor with the Council. They have their hands on Seven-Snakes and are bound to the terms. There’s more than one road out of Vega.”

The two of them went on like that, putting together a strategy the best they could. The senior members of the Pendragon Pack and the rest of the Knights joined in, sorting the logistics of an exit. Should it be allowed?

That’s what leadership meant. Not to dwell on the unsaid, the idea that the Council might not let them free. Given their desires to tie themselves to the Kingdom, there was a good chance they would if it opened up, but this wasn’t the Kingdom. Nor was it the wasteland. They had laws and ways of doing things, which could end with them all thrown in cells if it was stringent enough. But they didn’t want to put that thought in the head of those under them, even if they were there under the surface.

Enide let out a yawn. “So, Garin, that was some decent fighting. I didn’t realize you had an attack squirrel, though. How long did you take to train him to pull that off, he doesn't seem like much of a fighter?”

Munchy grunted on the boy’s shoulder, twitching with rage. His hair was messy, and his whiskers had dried blood on them. Garin absently patted the creature, still working it down from the unexpected rampage. “It’s fight or flight. And since he saw we were fighting, I guess he put his lot in with ours, not training. Squirrels are brilliant.”

“Good squirrel,” Colin murmured, lying on the ground next to the three of them. After assessing their conditions, the Magi gave them an icepack to keep on his head. They’d said he had a minor concussion and to let him not sleep for a few hours. “Father will buy me one.”

“It’s irresponsible to take them from the bio-caverns,” Erec cut in to squash that idea. Garin doing it was bad enough, and Colin was spoiled sufficiently that if he committed to the idea, he could make it a reality.

“He’s not the type to keep a pet anyway. Not much of the loving sort. Daddy issues can do that sometimes.” Enide laughed.

“My father is a hard-working man. A hero, you know.” Colin started to close his eyes.

“And… Back to bed.” Erec sighed, gathered himself, then braced to move. His body was still fighting him for every inch, and his back screamed at the idea of squatting next to his friend to wake him up. But there wasn’t much of a choice.

Enide bumped into him to get his attention, then shook her head. Instead, she took charge of the patient, dropping to her knees beside Colin. She tapped the side of his face with her manacles, rattling the chains. After a couple of tries, his eyes opened back up. “Morning, keep those bright eyes open alright? Until we can get you looked at better, no sleeping. Do we have an understanding?”

“Wench, I do what I wish, and shall not abide by a wasteland barbarian delivering demands.”

“Have it your way. But next time you close your eyes, it’s a kick to the gut.”

The threat was enough to convince him to stay awake. There were bruises all over his face, and out of them all, he was one of the most wounded. Dame Juliana had taken some slices and Dame Robin a nasty burn, but they could manage their wounds better. Higher Vigor played a large role in that. So it made sense that they’d need more to put them into the same state as Colin. She wasn’t wrong about needing to wait for their healers to take a proper look; the only ones in the city who could’ve done it were the ones they’d just gotten into a bloody battle with.

They weren’t kept waiting long.

Like a light flicking on, the view of a dark swirling void flashed and burst into light. A bright burning sun was above, and below was the stunning view of Vega that projected the scene miles above the pyramid. The side of the sky opened up, altering the new scenery with the sight of a bunch of disgruntled Arch-Magi and their men filtering into the chamber. Behind them trailed the rest of the Knights and Pendragon's they'd rounded up in the last few hours.

Olivia rushed over to Garin, and Dame Morgana tittered and filtered over. Duke Nitidus glanced at Colin with worry, but his face returned to steel stoicism. The Magi pushed them together into the chamber's center while the Arch-Magi took their thrones.

Once everyone settled, the Arch-Magi with the long white beard spoke. "Imagine my surprise to be disturbed in the middle of my bingo game with the news that the holy Knights of the Kingdom of Cindrus had been arrested for engaging in a violent and lethal conflict with the red robes decorating my city's streets in priests' blood. Among those arrested in the battle, even more shocking was the escaped convict Seven-Snakes, who those Knights had delivered to our fair city, and we lost."

“Quit beating around the bush. Throw them into Gaia as a labor sentence, and be done with it.” The Arch-Magi woman with pointed teeth growled. “Let’s make it quick. I’m busy and don’t have time for this today.”

“We’re all busy, Arch-Magi August. And hasty punishments are not the answer to solve that. Even if I were inclined to levy punishment and chose to ignore all of the potential repercussions from a foreign power or the opportunity cost of giving up on diplomatic relationships, there’s the matter of justice. The facts, as I see it, are this. They got into a massive conflict on our streets; none of the slain were citizens of our city, and during it, they delivered a man lost on our watch. A man, who we owe them payment for bringing in.”

“Always going on about paying debt, aint ya, August? Don’t ya feed that line to the suckers who don’t pay off your loans?” The Arch-Magi with the pompadour spoke up and then snickered like he’d made a joke.

“These aren’t our people. We’ve wasted enough time on them already for them to go around and pull a stunt like this. We should treat them how we treat any outsider causing trouble. Besides, if anything, this is proof the Kingdom is a bunch of steel thugs hell-bent on religious violence for a bitch in the sky.” Arch-Magi August’s voice was getting shrill, but she wasn’t backing down.

“You can scarcely argue that this is the type of religious violence corresponding to rumors. They killed priests, not heathens,” the Arch-Magi in bandages spoke up, earning a glare from the bearded Magi.

“…This unfortunate event does have an uncertain logic to it, and facts are unclear. But by all accounts and testimony, the Knights didn’t start the battle.” The leader glanced to the rest of the council for any more interruptions. “Now. Before we make any conclusions, let us hear the story as told by the participants in front of us. People whom I will remind this council that we intend to make diplomatic ties to in the future and their mercenary friends. Then, we can vote on how to handle this matter.” He said, folding his hands, leaning back in his chair, and raising an eyebrow at Boldwick and Rochester.

The two took to their cue.

“The matter is simple. We tracked down Seven-Snakes and were in the process of figuring out the logistics to turn him over to your council. That’s when the Red priests came up, threw up a barrier, and demanded that we repent and submit ourselves to the Goddess for judgment. Then, when I refused to concede to their authority, they assaulted us with the intent to kill. So, in turn, some among their number were killed by us.” Boldwick kept a straight face as he spoke. “I do not pretend to know all the laws in this city, but I have to assume self-defense is considered reasonable in the eyes of your council.”

“Aye, our pack’s lass came up talking about trouble for the Knights, and we’re not one to abandon allies, so…” Rochester shrugged. “Didn’t know about Seven-Snakes, though.”

“Where was Seven-Snakes found?” The pointed-teeth Arch-Magi asked.

“The sewer,” Boldwick said.

“Annnnd… How the hell did he get there?” she pressed in, leaning forward in her chair. “Better yet, how did you find him when our magic couldn’t.”

Boldwick met her with a leveled gaze and an unflinching expression. “Surely you’re not questioning the capabilities of others? I don’t know what assumptions you’ve drawn, but my Knights are very skilled individuals with a wide repertoire of tools at our disposal. We searched for him since our contract hinged on finding him, and then we found him. It’s as simple as that.”

He glossed over how he got there.

“Alright, Mr. ‘Very skilled,’ then tell me why the fucking priests are fighting with zealots on our streets and quit pretending you don’t know the answer.”

“Ask them. I cannot fathom why they are not our priests.” He didn’t budge an inch.

In response, the room flooded with an almost tangible and oppressive energy. The Arch-Magi leaned even more forward, her sneer growing wider as mana rippled off her. She was an inch away from launching an attack, or so it felt to Erec. But surely that would be mad to do. None of the other Arch-Magi were stepping in the middle of it either, cowards. Watching from the sidelines. The man in bandages stared with rapt attention, but not even he, their supposed ally, was trying to deflect from this line of questioning.

“I will not make a pretense on how to tell your government how to do its job, but, as you’ve pointed out. We delivered Seven-Snakes, and our allies are owed their payment for his delivery. I apologize for the conflict. But it was self-defense.” Boldwick crossed his arms. He stopped looking at the Arch-Magi with pointed teeth and instead focused on the bearded Magi. “Are we done?”

“Well… Very insightful. I can’t help but believe some facts and motives are out of understanding, and perhaps we will never fully reason out the peculiar act of the red robes, as their ‘bishop’ is now deceased. Boldwick, self-defense is perfectly legal within our city, in proportion to threat and intent. Our brief interrogations with the priests has been… inconclusive, as they claim ignorance over the event, asserting that they woke up to being slain by Knights. However, witness testimony places them moving in mass towards the battle area. I won’t dive too deep into your motives for holding onto Seven-Snakes and not immediately turning him over, as we did lose him in a secure transport.” He looked over the council, his attention lingering on the Arch-Magi with bandages. “But… As of now, he’s in custody, and therefore we have a bounty to pay.”

“Aye, so let's pay the debt and be done,” Pompadour ended with a sigh.

“…However, it is in the council's interest to take a public stance on violence of this level. We do the same when gangs commit such acts, and this one has an odd religious air to it that will incite demands and questions from the public. Vega is hailed as the Jewel of the Wasteland because we’re a place that’s seen as secure. A destination where even outsiders can come and forget their troubles. It’s difficult to do so when rumors of priests and Armored men whispered about in the wasteland spilling blood in our street. So, it’s not as simple as that. Not levying any punishment for this is bad public policy, yet we do not want to limit future opportunities with a potential ally over such strange occurrences.”

“Fuck that, send them to Gaia.” Waved the pointy-toothed woman.

“I would have alternatives to such a proposal,” countered the bearded man.

The bandaged Arch-Magi raised a hand, and the bearded one gave him a downright hostile look. His eyes burned as if he were laying this entire situation on the guy's feet, which was true in a way. Not that the Knights had confirmed anything.

“Speak.”

“The answer is simple. Kick them out of Vega and send a Magi with them to fulfill their favor. A single Magi. It can be seen as a token gesture to pay our debt while enforcing safety on our streets. In the future, we will send a delegation to the Kingdom and reinforce our looming diplomatic ties once this has faded from the public's memory,” the bandaged man rasped.

“And who do you suggest is to go with them? Anyone willing to? Raise your hands now.”

None of them did, including the bandaged man, which shocked Erec.

The bearded magi narrowed his eyes. “Considering the reasonable suggestion from the otherwise suspiciously quiet Arch-Magi Olfson, I think it most prudent to assign such a responsibility to him.”

“I cannot.” The bandaged man protested.

“All in favor. Vote.”

Within seconds, the rest of the Arch-Magi overwhelmingly agreed with the bearded man’s proposal. Part of it, Erec thought, was to remove this whole fiasco from being anywhere near their plate, and they relished a chance to condemn one of their competitors on a mission out of the city. Some of them sought to punish him. Had he not known the guy’s intent, he would’ve thought him genuinely upset over the events. He tricked them. That’s how it was done here—smokes and mirrors to get what you wanted.

Well. It was decided then. In a single move, he’d secured what they needed and made it so he’d be the sole Arch-Magi on their expedition.

The rest were formalities. Most of the Arch-Magi left, save the bandaged Arch-Magi and the bearded one, who spoke to Boldwick. The guards went around removing shackles and planned on the supplies they’d need and their equipment to be returned. This whole conflict would fade from memory, but yet the lingering question remained for the Knights.

Why had the priests attacked?

Without an answer, and a day later, they were back on the road, off to find the promised vault.