Chapter 14

The Breakout

A pounding head. Ringing ears. The distorted sound of feet shuffling back and forth. Then, the slamming of steel bars.

All of this rushed into Raymond’s body, and he sat up, his eyes snapping open for the first time in a long while, far as he was concerned. His body ached, a pain in his back from where he must have fallen and hit something. It didn’t help that his head was throbbing, in desperate need of some sort of pain relief. He reached up, trying to massage it, only to hear a clinking noise.

“Our captors were kind, huh?” It was Jay, slumped against a wall with a scowl. He was handcuffed, the chain long enough to offer movement, but not enough to allow him freedom of action. The fact he was sitting there, shackled, proved something else about the cuffs on their wrists. Not that Raymond could see them accurately, his vision blurry.

“You, too?” he asked. His throat was dry, but after a couple quick coughs, he was cleared enough to speak without obstruction. “And Em?”

“Right here, captain.” Her voice led his eyes, revealing the woman at the hazy bars of their cell. What she was doing there, he had no idea, but his lieutenant was attentive to him, handing his glasses over. Naturally, they were cracked. “It would seem they captured all three of us.”

“Guess we’re not as covert as we thought,” Jay said. He groaned, while Raymond took the time to place his glasses on his face. It was better than nothing, though hardly a substitution for good eyewear, and he knew he’d have to ask Sal for another pair when he had the chance. “I don’t even know how this happened. I mean, we’re members of Tempest Squad! How’d they catch us so easily?”

“I think they knew we were coming. Or suspected as much,” Raymond answered. Righting his glasses, he glanced around the small jail cell they were in. It was surrounded by dirt, more akin to a cavern than any of the wooden huts outside. The waterfall’s pounding confirmed his thoughts, and he looked to the bars that were their only way out. They were bent, but nowhere near broken. Emily had been busy. “Do we know about Sal and the others?”

“No whispers of them,” Emily said. She whipped around, her foot making another dent, but doing nothing to the bars. She glared at them, but ceased her attack and sat down. “They might not know they’re out there, even if they suspected us.”

“Well, that’s a boon.” Raymond reached up to scratch his head, careful to not have the chains break his glasses any further. His memory was coming back to him, of how he’d been ambushed in his investigation. “Did you two find anything?”

“Just that this isn’t a normal town. Might be we found what we were looking for.”

“Yes, but my question is: what is that?” Raymond crossed his legs now, his manacled hands depositing themselves there. “There was a weapon somewhere here. It looked, quite possibly, like a Legendary Weapon.”

“You sure?” Jay asked. His attention was earned, leaning forward. “None of us know what they look like, so how can we…?”

“It was just a guess, Jay. Either way, it was something made special, though I’d have no idea why. It must be at the crux of all this,” Raymond concluded. The information shared, the three members of Tempest Squad went quiet, contemplating what it could mean, and just what they’d found there.

All Raymond knew was that they weren’t going to find any answers sitting in a jail cell with their magic cut off.

“Someone’s coming,” Emily said. She stood, and the young men with her, each approaching the cell bars. Squinting into the darkness, Raymond could see a figure getting closer, but without much light other than the dim lamp inside their cell, he couldn’t quite make out who that was.

He needn’t have worried, since the voice gave it away. “It’s a shame that such an admirer of architecture is anything but. Here, I was hoping someone might share in our passions.”

There was a clatter, and some bowls were passed through their bars. Whatever slop was inside found its way to the ground. Jay backed away from it. Raymond moved closer, observing the lined face of the old caretaker at the church. His eyes had removed their kindness.

“Here I was hoping you were just an island village at the end of the world,” the captain said. The old man squinted.

“No, you don’t. You’re here on a mission, aren’t you, Guardian Corps?”

“What would indicate our affiliation with the Corps?” Emily asked. She was bent low to take the bowls. They hardly looked appetizing.

“Who else would come to the edge of the world and not be one of us?” Raymond took one of the bowls from Emily, stirring the wooden spoon around inside of it. The utensil barely moved, and he held back the blanching. “Such a shame. You were quite the avid healer. We could use someone like you for what lies ahead.”

“And what might that be, sir?” Emily continued. She wore a wan smile, carrying sincerity with it, but Raymond knew it was merely toeing the line. “Perhaps the festival?”

“Yes…the festival…Our believers are hard at work for it. Just a couple days now,” he said. The old man yawned, reaching up to scratch at his wrinkled chin. “In fact, we hope for Their Worship to oversee it, themselves. It’s the perfect opportunity for our great message to come through.”

All three reacted. With not a single word spoken, Raymond chucked his bowl in the direction of the bars. It clattered against it, but the blistering contents inside spilled forth, covering the man’s face. He screamed. Emily punched.

The man fell backward with a loud thud that echoed through the cavern. Raymond flinched, though Jay was hard at work pulling the old man over until his pocket was in reach, searching for a keyring. It took him quite a while to find one. No one arrived to check on them.

“They must not have considered us a threat with the cuffs on,” Raymond said to his subordinates. Jay gave a sharp “aha!” as he pulled forth the keyring stashed on the old man and began finagling his cuffs off. “But this is proof more than ever that the Order is involved here.”

“But what’s this about a Weapon and this festival?” Emily said, offering her hands to remove her bindings. Jay obliged, quickly moving on to Raymond.

“Does it really matter? So, we need a little more intel,” Jay said, shrugging his shoulders and proceeding to remove the last of the manacles. They fell with the same thud as the older man, but still no one arrived.

“First, we need our weapons. Stand back.” Raymond’s hands glowed, his thoughts focused on the cell bars before them. His subordinates hung back as his fingers began to turn and twist, the metal warping and melting down until there was a giant hole, enough for a man to fit through. “Either of you have any idea?”

“Searching the whole place would be a chore,” Jay lamented, rubbing his head, “and there’s no telling when they’ll be on to us, what with the captain making such a ruckus.”

“I don’t need to hear that from you.” Jay laughed, only to be smacked upside the head by Emily. Seeing that made Raymond nod, swiftly deciding on a course of action. “All right, Jay, with me. Em, you’re best at discovery for our weapons. Soon as we can, we’ll contact Sal and make sure they’re all right. We may need their help.”

“Should I take it we’ll gather information, grand leader?”

“You assume correct, Jarvis. We’ll rendezvous…hmm…by the waterfall. That seems away enough from prying eyes. Don’t get caught.” Emily saluted, cracking her knuckles, stepping over the body of the older man and running down the hall with as light a step as she could muster. “Let’s move him. We don’t want him alerting the whole place.”

“Aye, aye, captain!” Raymond wanted to smack the man, himself, but instead found himself hauling the man up and dragging him over to the ratted mattress in the corner. Then the pair stepped out, and the captain reconstituted the bars to their original state. When he turned back from his efforts, he noticed Jay looking up and musing. “Think there’s an upper level we might be able to use. Wandering the halls is liable to get us caught.”

“Depends on how many people are here, but I think you have the right idea, and until Em gets our weapons, we’ve no way of fighting back.” Wasting not a single more second, Raymond tread carefully down the hall in front of them. To his surprise, small streams of moonlight were shining through cut-in windows that led to the outside. Too small to fit through, but enough to light their path. “Do you know any bit of the layout of this place?”

“Why would I? I was knocked out, same as you,” Jay said. The two started walking lower, all so they wouldn’t be visible to anyone within the caverns. There was no sound to alert them of any need to worry, however. “You said they were keeping one of those Legendary Weapons here?”

“Or a facsimile of. Hmmm…” Raymond clenched his fist, holding his arm out and pulling to a stop at an intersection. Peeking his head out, he saw no one there, but he did notice the familiar wires he had seen earlier, further down the hall. “It was that way.”

“Hey, that’s lucky. But we’re not heading there, are we?” Raymond confirmed Jay’s suspicions and inched forward. There were no guards, and no obstructions. Nor was there a sign of Emily or a ruckus from any direction. She was clearly undetected and they needed to remain so until they got answers. The duo moved a little further, with Jay scanning the ceiling for any entry or exit.

The boxes that had marked Raymond’s initial entry to the caverns grew bigger the closer they got, leading them to the crossing spiderweb that was the cavern’s passages. Dead ahead was the familiar glow, and voices coming from the room where the weapon was being worked on. It was a tempting option to find out more, but from the small catches of words, they didn’t sound like very important or knowledgeable people to listen in on. Jay soon tapped him on the shoulder.

“Drafts.” It wasn’t a surprising anecdote or observation, but Raymond trusted Jay enough to step aside and let him lead the way down a hall. They continued to keep low, which worked to their benefit when the shadow of two guards became visible in the lamplight. With little space to move before the guards turned the corner, Jay began tugging on Raymond’s clothes, towards a venting crack in the wall. “Sorry for the tight squeeze.”

“Yeah, it’s fine…” At that point, the two silenced. Luck prevailed on their side, the voices of the conversing guards rendering them oblivious to the whispers of the Guardians.

“Man, I can’t believe this is getting so much attention. We are really not prepared for this.”

“Buck up, man! There’s a vacuum the boss is taking advantage of, and we worked hard to get this far. Now we just have to do what was ordered.”

“Yeah, I know…but those Guardians here make me worry. It’s scary enough when a priest of the Order might…” At that point, their words were fading with each step. Once they were gone, the duo shuffled out of their hiding place with a breath of relief.

“Well, you heard ‘em, captain. Priest of the Order,” Jay said. As he did, he pointed in the direction of the draft he’d sensed, which led to a stone-hewn stairway. “We’re on the right course. What say we find out more about this boss of theirs?”

Their boss, huh? Raymond could only think of one person that would be, yet the words of the guards didn’t quite match with that. There was no reason for a priest to be scary if the boss of this group was the Reaper, themselves. And I don’t sense them here.

Mounting the stairs with a frown creasing his lips, Raymond revisited the memory of the one that had wreaked so much havoc at the alchemic settlement. Their sheer presence and mastery of the souls around them. He remembered his sister, driven to a mess, quivering in fear. Only two of them, and Marcus, himself, had managed to stand against the foe that was the Reaper. Somehow, Raymond sincerely doubted they were directly behind the activities here. There was far too little precision for that, and he doubted that the Reaper would allow a fake copy of the Legendary Weapons to exist in the open, especially if they were going after the real ones.

You don’t even have an answer beyond what’s fed to you. Beyond the world you live in. The Reaper’s haunting words resurfaced, bringing further creases to Raymond’s face. They had questioned his conviction; one he still adamantly rejected their view on. Yet standing in this cavern, he had to wonder if the Reaper had a point.

This was a place far off the map, with hidden secrets all around. It offered a new perspective, if not entirely illuminating.

“Captain, I think we got something.” Jay’s whisper reached him, carrying him out of his reflection to realize they were standing on a stone balcony that overlooked a council room. What’s more, there were people there. “That guy looks familiar…I think he might be the one who knocked me out.”

Raymond kept low but shuffled closer to get a better look at who Jay was talking about. It didn’t take much craning to discover that the man was the same one who had cast the sleep spell over him, as well. This time, Raymond could see more of his features, from the unshaven shadow cast on his face and a pair of haggard eyes. Despite the dishevelment, he stood tall, his gaunt expression dead-set with shrewdness. He was a man driven by a goal, and Raymond turned his ear to catch the snippets of conversation that might have revealed what that was. At the very least he was discussing something with those in the room below, gathered around the table.

“…course they could be a problem, but I’m not overly worried,” the man said. His legs were crossed, leaning back on a chair. The others around the table were less convinced. “There’s nothing they could do to impact the tradeoff. This is too much of an opportunity to let slip and fail now.”

“We’re taking a lot of risks with this, and no way to call for assistance if things get sticky,” one of those seated argued.

“Of course, we are. All of us are, but we’ve no time to reconsider. The structure of the Order is weakened and there’s no better time than now to make our way through.” The candid confession made Raymond draw back, brow furrowed as he looked to his subordinate. Jay was chewing on his inner lip, trying to make sense of what was being said while his sight pierced to the room below. Only when he’d made up his mind did he shake his head and address his captain.

“Sounds like a coup.”

“I thought so, too,” Raymond whispered back. “It might explain things, like the fake weapon. Though it can’t be that easy to pull a fast one on the Order.”

“Maybe they-” Whatever Jay was to say was going to wait. The sound of a door within the mountain flying open caused the duo to jerk, pulling out of visibility. For a second, Raymond felt the thrill of fear that Emily had been captured, though from the lack of yelling and stomping footsteps, he discarded the notion. Instead, the door to the council chambers was thrown forth, a disheveled young man, looking no older than Raymond’s sister, ran in, panting.

“Envoys…in route…Brother, it worked.” Silence filled the hall, and Raymond waited, on edge.

“We’ve yet to see that. Prepare the Abyssal Blade. I’ll be the one to present it.” Scraping chairs interceded in the conversation as all below stood. No one looked above, leaving the pair of Guardians undetected. One by one they filed out, their voices fading down the corridors, covered up by the procession leaving the mountain. “We’ll need to time this right, so let’s make sure the message we need sent is loud and clear…”

“Rebellion in the Order. Fake Legendary Weapons. Mystery and intrigue!” Jay cried. Raymond grabbed him and slapped a hand over his mouth, shushing him. He gave a muffled hacking, but when no one pursued them, Raymond glared at Jay and removed his hand. The man coughed. “We hit the motherlode, captain!”

“Yeah, almost like we were steered into it,” the captain scoffed. Raymond folded his arms, realizing that he still didn’t have his weapon at his side. The uncomfortable sensation of being relatively undefended set in and reminded him of who they needed to meet up with. “Let’s get out of here and get a better look at what’s going on outside.”

For once, Jay didn’t say anything to imply his acquiescence. He just followed Raymond around the balcony of stone, trying to get a better glimpse of their surroundings. The pounding waterfall grew louder, though there was no path to it, at least not up top. Raymond scratched his cheek, hoping the front door wasn’t the only way out. He didn’t want to be captured again. Jay answered his query.

“Draft’s down below, though I can’t promise where it leads.”

“Good enough. Any other drafts that Em might use?” Jay just shrugged. Getting as good an answer as he could, Raymond leaned over the balcony to witness the empty council room. Then he grabbed hold of the rail and leapt over it. A cushion of air appeared beneath his feet, letting him land without incident. Jay was deposited next to him, yawning while he skipped off his blade of wind.

“Ooh, look, another corridor. Wonder where it leads.” The sheer sarcasm made Raymond roll his eyes.

“Stop being happy.”

“Stop being sour. Why can’t you be more like your sister? She seems chipperer.” Raymond ignored his made-up word, keeping his body crouched as he stepped into the hall. The caverns were silent, with all the evidence of people having been there just five minutes ago gone. Just the flickering lamplight gave indication of habitation.

No matter the chatter that had pervaded the room but a few minutes earlier, the Guardians heard no noises, proceeding down the length of the hall with caution. Various, splitting paths were connected, but Jay had a lock on the outside. The only use the paths now had was for checking to see if any guards were pursuing them. They saw not a single soul, which Jay commented on as they neared the end of the hall.

“I swear, captain, these Order guys are so freaky. First, they can swarm like ants. Then they disappear like ghosts. It’s creepy! And now they’re forcing a coup, and I’m starting to wonder if there’s anything they can’t do.”

“Has he been babbling like this the whole time, sir?” Emily’s welcome tones silenced Jay, and her form walked into the hallway from another. The movement of her arms caused Raymond to react quick, hands catching his blade and scabbard. He grinned, hooking it on his belt while Jay caught his own weapon, though he fell over in the process. Emily next gave him his tablet, undamaged.

“You have no idea,” the captain answered, pressing buttons on his tablet. It was locked, and it looked as though the Order had been unable to get in. He breathed in relief. “We did get some information, though, and need to get outside.”

“Then let’s get outta here,” Jay groaned. He slipped his own weapon on before brushing past the pair. They shrugged and followed him to the rocky end of the hall. It appeared to be a dead end…were it not for the breeze flickering across Raymond’s hair. “Might want to step back. Gale Force.”

Jay thrust his hands forward, and wind pushed out. The stone at the end of the hall budged, groaning and cracking but drowned out by the sudden pounding of the waterfall beyond it. The damp air assaulted them, their noses wrinkling at the smell after so long in the cave. When no one came or heard their actions, the trio exited the cave, stepping on to the water-splashed rocks. Mist covered them, though a few steps to the right was a dry spot, safe from the beating water and the moonlit lake. Jay closed the rock door.

“Let’s hope the others are okay,” Raymond said, inputting his code to unlock his tablet. After a few more button presses, a connecting signal was sent out. Moments later, it was answered, loud enough for the trio to hear its shrill noises (and prompting a decrease in volume) though hidden by the crashing water and occasional bursts of static.

“Captain! You’re okay!”

“It’s been like, three days or something!” The Bruce and Trent duo were smushed against the screen, their concern evident. “We were all set to charge in and rescue you, but Kenny held us back.”

“You two would make a mess of things. Suited for stealth, you are not,” Kenny grunted. He grabbed the two young men and jerked them back, grinning for the camera. The duo descended into bickering over the fact they felt they were, in fact, suited for stealth for various reasons. Their captain ignored them. “Glad to see you’re all right. All three of you.”

“Not Jarvis!” Sal called over the line, her shout almost lost to the waterfall.

“She loves me.”

“Fat chance. And sorry to worry you, captain, but we picked up a ship on the radar, quite a ways out to sea but on its way here.” Sal’s warning wasn’t unexpected. Raymond nodded at the information, already having a solid guess as to what was en route to their location. Pushing his glasses up, he adopted his commanding face and his men stood at attention both near and on the screen.

“It’s the Order, confirmed. But don’t send a message. They have communications here and I’m not sure what or where they’re listening to. For now, they’re busy with trying to establish a coup within the ranks so we can talk without much interference, but from here on out, all communication is in person,” Raymond said. He sucked in a breath and gave his next set of commands. “There’s a clear rift in the Order for whatever reason. The loss of two of their priests has caused a power vacuum and one side is taking advantage of it. This might not be their base, but if we can witness what happens here, we’ll get a better idea of their structure…even if it works to that Gaius’s advantage.

“For now, Kenny, Sal, keep the ship cloaked and keep Bruce and Trent under control. I’m going to get a better idea of what’s going down. Jay, Em, wait out of sight at the edge of town. We’ll draw plans once we’re sure what we’re dealing with. From now, I want radio silence. We’ll rendezvous as soon as this meeting is don-”

Raymond couldn’t finish his orders, though they were received with a rather enthusiastic “yes”. The rustling air whipped and cracked the trees surrounding the town, and the familiar drone of a skyship could be heard. More than heard, when Raymond looked up at the night sky, some of the stars were blotted out, a small-class skyship coming to touch down just inside the town, taking up what little space wasn’t occupied by roads or buildings. Raymond ceased his call and nodded to Emily and Jay. They took off, heading around the lake and away from town. Raymond bent low and proceeded towards the interior of the village.

It was dark at first, any lights inside the homes doused, all in service of the great shadow being cast at the front of the city. Those lights were blinding, giving a radius of cold illumination that made the activities there plain. It also cloaked Raymond in darkness, allowing him to sneak through the town without detection, aided by the gathering where the lights were. The whole entire town appeared to be gathered there.

He didn’t dare get too close, and only snuck close enough that he was near the church, its darkened structure seeming forlorn under the stars. That was enough for both visibility and sounds to reach him. He kept to the shadows and watched as the jet-black ship hissed, a ramp lowering down. Three robed individuals descended from it. They didn’t look impressive, more in line with the fodder they had fought at the alchemic settlement, but the tension was palpable. He inched forward to get a better bead on the conversation.

“This had best not be a waste of our time,” the leader of the arrivals said. He appeared irked, but it was difficult to tell in the light. “After our exposure, we can’t be overly active, and taking our skyship out is a risk. Even Their Worship dare not go on their usual excursions. For them to send us is-”

“Yes, I am well aware. Your posturing is noted,” the leader of the villagers said, bowing low. His hands shuffled, and Raymond noticed the blade behind his back. Still, it was inert. “However, we would never waste Their Worship’s time. Know that. What we have is vital, both in deed and message.”

There was a belabored pause, as if everyone was taking a collective breath. Then the arrivals spoke, an anticipatory grin on their lips. “You have found one, then? The great Abyssal Blade?”

“Yes.” With great flourish, the man whipped the blade out. Before Raymond could blink, he felt the rush of dark magic power flowing. By the time the man was presenting the supposed Abyssal Blade, it was exuding a newfound darkness. Raymond imagined, briefly, that he had examined the blade wrong at first, yet it wasn’t long before he realized how tame the blade was in comparison to the ones he’d encountered at the forge. His suspicion increased, confirming what he already believed. “The Abyssal Blade, one of the seven that Their Worship has been seeking.”

“Praise be the goddess! They will be most pleased…” The cultist stretched his hand forward, but the town leader pulled back, leaving it out of his reach.

“Not for you.” Raymond could feel the renewed tension. “I would treat with Their Worship, and Their Worship alone. This should be enough to verify our claims. However, I’d present it to them personally. I must thank them for all they’ve done for this little town since we crawled here. A festival for them, of sorts.”

The cultists looked confused, deliberating their best course of action, but Raymond already knew what had been decided. There was little option left for either side: it would become a successful negotiation or a one-sided slaughter. Either way, the villagers would not be denied. Knowing that, Raymond kept an eye on the group, but slunk back into the shadows, away from the village.

It was only as he circled around, back towards the darkened trees where Emily and Jay were waiting, that he had his confirmation, matched by the whirring engines.

And before they could ask, he turned and offered them a cocky grin. “It seems like we’ve found something of note. The Order might be having a big meeting here with the Reaper, themselves.”

“Then what’s the plan, sir?” Emily asked, tightening her knuckles. He smirked.

“Let’s get ready to crash a coup.”