Absalom’s Fate

by J. D. L. Rosell

  “Oh, uh, yes I am, good priest,” I said. “A visitor, that is.” He wasn't taking me hostage; he was proselytizing, or at the very least being a good tour guide.

  “I am not a priest, but an acolyte,” the Naiad quickly correctly me. He seemed to say it too quickly, too sharply. I wondered if it was a trace of bitterness at his station. “But welcome to Temple Nali of J’anteau,” he followed up. “I hope you find whatever peace you've been seeking here in these waters.”

  “Thank you,” I said, gears turning in my mind. I now had an advantage of a contact to work with, even if it was a tenuous one. Perhaps during our tour we could wind around to the priestly fountain, and I could cause some distraction to slip my vial in.

  My mind made up, I said, “Would it be too much to ask for a brief tour of this place? I'm afraid I've only just arrived in the city.”

  “You came here straightaway? I'm pleased to hear it. Yes, of course I can comply.” The Naiad acolyte bobbed his head a little too vigorously, the overdramatize catching a note of falseness. “Now, if you'll follow me…”

  The young acolyte took me not only through the temple, but through a lengthy overview of the religion around Nali, which had an unpronounceable name of clicks and S's. I listened as best as I could, but my eyes kept wandering over to the priestly fountain, and my thoughts to my dark task. I wondered again how Farelle would react if she ever found out, and if our companionship —friendship, or whatever you wanted to call it — was strong enough to endure it now.

  It looked like the young Naiad was going to give the priestly fountain a wide berth, so I moved to intervene. “I'm actually quite thirsty,” I said, pointing to it. “Can I get a drink from over there? I noticed all your fellow priests drink there.”

  The acolyte’s eyes widened when he saw where I was indicating, then he gave a short laugh. “Oh, you can't drink that water. Only priests of Nali drink from that fountain.” This time, I could tell the bitterness really was there, from the way he said priests.

  “Oh,” I said, feigning disappointment. “Why not? What makes that fountain special?”

  The Naiad shrugged. “Tradition. It must be followed, after all.”

  I pushed the chink in his armor. “Ah, so there's nothing blessed about the water or anything?”

  He shifted uncomfortably. “I didn't say that,” he hedged.

  “You did imply it though.”

  The acolyte shook his head in denial. “In any case, it's not done.” He crossed his arms, and I could feel my chance slipping away as his annoyance shifted to me. “Would you like to hear more, or have you had enough of a tour?”

  I wouldn't get through to him by natural means. The only way forward was by unnatural ones.

  Summoning the spell to mind, I cast Invigorate on the hapless acolyte, concentrating on his feelings of doubt and rebelliousness. As soon as I'd begun, the Naiad’s black orbs of eyes widened further, then narrowed. I watched him carefully, uncertain of whether or not I'd succeeded.

  The acolyte suddenly leaned forward, and I flinched back, ready for an attack. But all he said was, “It's all a sham, isn't it? The gods, religion, holiness — just a big show for the people.”

  A smile spread across my face. I was in. “Absolutely,” I said. “And we’re going to bring it all crashing down.”

  With the acolyte under my sway, it was a simple enough matter to have him deliver the sickening agent to the source of the priestly fountain as an act of his rebellious “enlightenment.” Knowing the spell had a 5 minute limit, I wished him luck in his future heathen life, then hurried out of the temple. I saw the notification had come in for the quest completion, and though I grinned to see it, I didn't check it yet. I had to make sure I got away first.

  By the time I reached the platform in the middle of the Temple District, Farelle was already waiting for me. “What took you so long?” she demanded.

  “Sorry,” I said, slightly out of breath from my speed walk. “I got caught up for a bit with an enthusiastic acolyte.”

  It was only then that it occurred to me how easy it would be for my plans to unravel. Every Naiad in the temple had seen me, very nearly the only Human there, enter and pair up with the acolyte. Once it came out that priests were becoming sick, it only took a connection to the acolyte for me to become implicated. And then there was the possibility that the acolyte himself confessed to what he'd done. No doubt he’d give me up in the process. There were many more ways this could go wrong than right, and my nerves wrangled going over the list of possibilities.

  “Oh,” my companion said, watching me carefully. I struggled to hide my anxiety, even though I knew I was doing a poor job of it. “Well,” she said after a long moment, “we shouldn't keep that guard waiting. He’ll probably start to wonder soon and—”

  Suddenly, it all became too much, and I interrupted Farelle by grabbing her arm and leaning in close. “We have to get out of here,” I hissed.

  “What? Why?” Her eyes moved around furtively. “Are we in danger?”

  My stomach sickened. So soon after I'd gotten her cursed by a barrow prince, I'd put her in danger again. Even though this was a game, it sure as hell felt real, and I knew I'd feel her death just as keenly as anyone back home if I lost her. “Yes,” I confessed. “I'm sorry, I’ll explain when we’re safe, but we have to go now.”

  “Oh, you'll explain later again?” Her face was a mask of anger. “I seem to remember hearing that one before.”

  “Farelle—”

  She turned away from me. “We’re going back to the guard, then back to the palace, because we have no choice. There's no escape now, Marrow, get it? Whatever you just did, you'll have to face the consequences.” She started down the steps, not looking back to see if I'd follow.

  I looked around again, then sighed. What else could I do? Make a daring break for it and quickly get cut down? But I wasn't keen on losing my stuff, or giving up on Farelle just yet. Maybe an opportunity to fix things would come up. It always had before.

  I started down the stairs after her, towards the gate and the waiting guard.

  23

  Consequences

  The Naiad guard, stoic as ever, escorted us promptly back to our rooms. Before my companion turned into her room, Farelle looked back at me. I couldn’t tell what she was thinking behind her mask of scrutiny, but I could guess I wasn’t coming out favorably. I tried on a smile, but at the first glimpse of it, Farelle disappeared into her room.

  “No more excursions until your meeting with the Empress’ emissary,” the guard informed, or rather commanded, me. “Your meals will be delivered to your room, and you will be fetched when we are ready for you.”

  “How about visiting the market?” I asked without any hope.

  The guard just turned away.

  Hoping this wasn’t how they treated every emissary, I sarcastically thanked him and closed the door. My room was simple but comfortable enough. But though I lay down on the bed, I couldn’t relax. No opportunity to get away had presented itself, so here I was, waiting for the executioner to knock.

  I frowned to myself. I wasn’t about to just give in. I sat up and rose to my feet again, pacing. Slowly, plans began to form. I needed to find a way out before I was summoned, or carve my own way out. And whatever it was, I needed to take Farelle with me. No doubt the Cerulean Empire would try and implicate her in my plots.

  Looking around the room again, I found no window, no vent, nor any other easy escape. In fact, I doubted it would pass a building inspection on grounds of ventilation alone. That meant going out the door. I equipped my felt boots, figuring some sneaking would be in order, and also equipped my dull iron knives. I needed some better ones, particularly since my serviceable knives had been taken away, but it would have to wait.

  Just as I went to double-check that my mana and spirit meters, I remembered the waiting message for me. Pulling it up, I glanced it over:

  You’ve completed Unholy Water! +20,000 XP (+1000 XP faction bonu
s), increased alignment with the Night Sisters, increased alignment with the Noble Ignobles, increased allegiance to Ebretin.

  After I checked it, another two messages popped up:

  You are now Level 8! (+10 Status Points, +4 Attribute Points)

  You are now Level 9! (+10 Status Points, +4 Attribute Points)

  My jaw nearly dropped. I’d advanced not only another level, but two? I shouldn’t have been quite so surprised, though. From the way Sheika had described this quest, it was a once in a lifetime opportunity. And I had gained 20k XP.

  Knowing what attributes I invested in here could mean the difference between a successful escape and a horribly botched one, I pulled up my stats for a close look:

  There was only one expected thing on there now — I had somehow acquired a faction alignment with Maluwae. I wouldn’t protest that.

  But other plans were spinning in my mind. I began doling out my accumulated points. For what I had in mind, spirit was going to be critical, so I put all 20 SP into the meter. I also put two AP into belief to increase my effectiveness and reduce my spirit drain. From there, roguish skills looked to be useful, so I added two points each to dexterity and perception, and 1 to agility. For my last point, I invested in strength, not wanting it to lag too far behind for reasons of damage output and what combat skills I’d be capable of learning. Besides, I still had a bit of macho pride to look after.

  Feeling a bit easier about my upcoming task with my padded stats, I slunk up to the door, nearly silent with my felt boots on. Pressing my ear to the door, I listened for any sounds from the hall, but heard nothing. I knew I should probably wait a bit, but with the prospect of someone connecting the dots weighing on me every second, I knew I couldn’t hold out any longer. I spun one of my daggers in my hand, the knife trick making me feel a bit more confident, then pulled on the door.

  Locked. Apparently, raising up your perception didn’t make up for sheer idiocy.

  Muttering insults, I peered through the keyhole, but I knew it was hopeless. I hadn’t tried out lockpicking yet, nor had I done any in real life, so I would be fumbling my way through it. Besides, now that I’d tried opening the door, whatever guards were on the other side would know I was up to something. No time to let them mobilize.

  Taking a deep breath and glad all my meters were full again, I held out a hand and cast Magic Missiles at the lock. The light projectiles slammed into the metal and each one sputtered against it, deforming a little more, until it finally twisted away and the door popped open. Moving forward, I pulled it open and leaped out into the hall, abandoning all hopes for subtlety.

  A Naiad guard, who’d been stationed next to the door, immediately spun towards me with his trident leveled. “Hey! What are you—?”

  I channeled Basilisk’s Gaze and met his eyes, and grinned with satisfaction as he stiffened in place. Hearing a second guard behind me, I spun and barely dodged the main thrust of the Naiad’s trident, though he did graze my arm for a minor loss of health. I tried meeting his eyes, but he was experienced enough to know better and stared at my chest as he went for another thrust. My dexterity going to work, I deftly parried the attack, my dagger slipping between the tines and twisting it out of the way. The Naiad, surprised, briefly met my eyes, and stiffened as he took his own dose of Basilisk.

  Ceasing the channel, I briefly debated what to do with my two temporary statues, then sighed and slit their throats. They had seconds left before the state wore off, and I couldn’t risk fighting them again or having them run off and tell someone, even if this would now make the consequences of getting caught all the worse. Palming one of the guard’s pockets, I pocketed the few coins as well as came away with the more important of the prizes: a ring of keys. Rising, I went to Farelle’s door and began trying them out on the lock.

  After trying eight of them, the ninth worked. But just as the latch sprang open, I heard footsteps approaching from down the hall. I threw open the door to see a crouching Farelle with her bow leveled at me. “Hey, hey!” I said, putting my hands up. “It’s just me.”

  She didn’t lower it. “I heard fighting. Did you kill those guards?”

  I noticed she wasn’t steady on her hooves, and the bow swayed as she strained to hold it taut. She’d been drinking more heavily than usual. “Yes,” I said. “Now come on. More are coming, and we’ve got to get out of here.”

  My companion hesitated a moment, then finally lowered the bow, though I suspected it had more to do with getting tired than trusting me. She didn’t move towards me. “You did something,” she said. “Back at Nali’s temple.” The statement was clearly a question.

  I hesitated. “Yes. Something you would think is bad. But if you let me explain, I can—”

  She shook her head, still not moving forward. “I gave you the chance to explain. So many chances. I’m getting tired of it.” She swayed in place.

  “Farelle,” I said, unable to help the sharp edge of impatience from creeping into my words, “you can beat me up all you want later, but we have to go. Now.”

  She shook her head, still refusing to budge, but I knew it was too late anyway. The footsteps were almost on us. It was time to fight. Switching my dagger to my left hand and equipping my Jeweled Longword of the Stars in my right, I turned into the hall to face my latest assailants.

  I nearly dropped my weapons at seeing who led them. “Sheika?” I said incredulously.

  The feline player was backed by a drove of at least a dozen Cerulean soldiers. She nodded as she looked at me. “Yup, that's him.”

  I backed up as the soldiers edged towards me. I could catch some of them with Basilisk's Gaze, but no doubt they'd overwhelm me before I could get them on. Unless… was Sheika on my side, and merely masquerading to come save me? But it didn’t make sense that she’d bring the guards if so. “Sheika,” I said, not caring if I was somehow implicating her, “what are you—?”

  I cut off as she winked at me, then blew me a kiss. At least, I thought she blew me a kiss, until my eyelids started to droop and the whole world started going fuzzy. “Huh? Did you just—?” I managed to slur before I hit the floor and everything fell to black.

  I awoke to hard, cold stone beneath me, and a sticky wetness on the side of my head. Groaning, I sat up and touched the wet spot in my hair. Definitely blood, if the tenderness of the wound said anything. I could barely see it on my fingertips as I held my hand in front of my eyes; the faint blue glow from a few sun-pearls in the ceiling above were all the light in the place.

  I jumped when someone else moved in the twilight. “You're awake,” the person said, and I recognized Farelle's voice, miserable and bitter.

  I sat up. “I'm sorry,” I said softly.

  “I don't want to hear it,”

  Feeling woozy and shivering with the cold of what I assumed was a dungeon, I wasn't exactly in a talkative mood either. But I had to know what had happened. “Sheika knocked me unconscious.”

  My eyes were adjusting to the darkness, so I saw Farelle's nod in the blue gloom. “They came for me once you fell. I didn't fight them.” I saw her eyes looking at me, two glittering orbs in the darkness. “I'm not dying for your sins.”

  “No, you're not,” I agreed, though how I'd keep that promise now was beyond me. I didn't have the slightest clue as to what was going on now, so I started processing out loud. “I thought Sheika wanted my quest to succeed.”

  “Your quest to kill Nali priests?” Farelle said in a dead voice.

  I stiffened. “What? No! Just to sicken them.”

  She began to chuckle, the sound bitter as old coffee. “Quite the illness then. None of them are rising from their sick beds. Their death beds, now.”

  An uneasy feeling was creeping up my spine. The Night Sisters had told me that the agent would sicken the priests, but I had no reason to believe the immortals would be so incompetent as to kill instead of sicken. There was no other conclusion: they'd lied to me.

  And then there was Sheika. Sheika, who had tol
d me there was a greater game at play here, and I was a pawn in it. It was only just sinking in what that had meant.

  You didn't keep pawns around; by definition, they weren't vital. When the move called for it, you sacrificed the small pieces.

  My thoughts went further and further afield. Had Brandeur planned my sacrifice? Duke Rodalt? King Fredrick himself? But no — even if they'd known, this was the Pantheon’s chessboard. The gods were the players I needed to know.

  I'd begun putting the players on each side once, but now that was all scrambled. Whose side could I be on, when one wanted me dead, and the other was willing to sacrifice me on a whim? I had no side in this game. My goal was different. I had to survive.

  But exactly how I was going to do that now was beyond me.

  “You're not going to say anything?” Farelle snorted, but there was something deeper than derision there now. “You don't even care.”

  I realized I’d been silent for a long time. “I do care, Farelle, I do. I just… I got caught up thinking this through. None of this is making sense the way I thought it did. I wasn't doing what I thought I was doing, and now I'm wondering if I'm not on the wrong side of things after all.”

  “You were doing the bidding of the Night Sisters,” my Companion said. “How could you ever have been on the right side?”

  I didn't know how she'd learned that — perhaps Sheika had told her, to increase my torment. That was the betrayal that stung the most. I had thought that at least Sheika would have my best interests at heart. But apparently, she'd only saved me twice only so I could complete this mission.

  “You're right,” I said simply. Nothing more needed to be said. We both fell silent.

  I debated my options as we sat there in the near darkness. My equipped items as well as my inventory had been stripped from me somehow — I didn't know how that worked. But I still had my spells and channels, which were my greatest assets anyway. I could probably break us out of our jail here. But then what? Fight our way out of a city full of Naiads? Even if I used the Ghost Ring to summon an army of Specters — however that was supposed to happen — I wasn't sure even that would be enough. Besides, I needed to grab my items before I left. I'd spent too long collecting all that stuff to leave it behind now.