Chapter 156 - Unpleasant Options

Chapter 156

Red Sands Desert, Principality of Rebirth

City of Rebirth

"Shit." Said Allya as she set down the report on her desk. Her office was currently sealed on maximum security, and her guards had strict orders to not let anyone through, regardless of the reason.

"It is only circumstantial evidence." Cautioned Trira.

"Yeah. And normally I'd agree." Allya gestured at the report Trira's men had compiled. "But this is troubling."

The problem in question was that they had indeed found some of the contacts used by the merchants that had been accumulating weapons, and who Crystal had raided. And one of them, the one who had funneled in the funds…was also someone a disguised Maria, the executive officer of Sylvia's little pirate ship, had also contact with. Repeatedly. Until all contact had stopped as suddenly as it had began after the raid.

"True. But pirates are pirates, they will dabble in the underworld."

"And that's not what worries me. It's the timing. The first visits coincide with the conspiracy going from a rag tag group of idiots to an organized force, and end once it collapses."

"Indeed. I've put that broker under surveillance, but it's unlikely they'll use him again." Trira shifted, and Allya rose an eyebrow. "Allya…you know what this looks like, right? Either this is a complete coincidence…"

"Or they're professionals. Professionals in intelligence, not piracy. I know." The baroness sighed. "This is not going to be pretty."

"Counter-espionnage never is. As for the little job you asked me on the dungeon…"

"Any progress?"

"Well, I can tell you the twins almost certainly had dealings with the dungeon. I know they bribed the forgemaster for some samples and schematics, and a week later, poof! The dungeon's number of steel weapons start to increase. Combined with the fact that she admitted to manufacturing her own stuff, and…"

"The picture starts to form." And not a good one. Damn it, how many people in her town were traitors? Or at least in league with the dungeon behind her back? "Anything else?"

The assassin sighed.

"No. Tracking the dungeon's surface activity is damned near impossible. Stumbling upon her attack on the warehouse was as much luck as anything. And I caught the deal between the twins and the forgemaster because our dear dwarven friend keeps tracks of these things, as an insurance policy."

"Blackmail?"

"Only as a last resort."

"Did you copy it?"

"Of course!"

"Good. Might come in useful." You can never have too much leverage after all. And given what was happening, there was going to be a time where she was going to have to grab the guilds' balls and squeeze. "So, any ideas for the dungeon?"

"Well, if you want to know more about what the dungeon is up to, there is a solution. But you're not going to like it."

"Why?"

"Well, we need to use scanners. Acquiring some won't be a problem, if we source them through your military's procurement program. I'm fairly sure Eismi can make them, which is pretty ironic if nothing else. But giving them to adventurers is a no go."

"Yeah, if they get killed, they'll get looted, and Crystal will be onto us."

"Indeed." Trira gave Allya brilliant smile. "So guess who our dear dungeon core will try to avoid killing, and will definitely never loot even if she does?"

Allya's face fell. She couldn't mean-

"You have got to be kidding me!"

*****

"So, a dungeon delve? That could be nice." Said Dominique as she sat down at the mostly empty council table. "I assume you, me, and Pyn?"

"Yep." Said Allya as Pyn sat down beside her. "I've received an express invitation from Crystal. We might also get special treatment, although don't quote me on that."

"Well the guild definitely will give us a fast track, and whatever slot we want. But we're not exactly a full party. If nothing else, we really need a healer."

"Do you know anyone?"

Dominique winced.

"Yeah, but she's not doing great. She's…It's Alyssa."

Allya blinked. That name sounded familiar…

"Isn't that one of the rescued slaves?" Said Pyn.

"Yes."

"Ah. Then don’t worry, we'll find a way without her." Interjected Allya. After what she'd been through, she was probably not anywhere near fighting shape.

"No, no, the least I can do is ask her. Knowing her, roasting some stuff will help."

"Ah, right. Novice of the temple of fire. Pyromaniac much?"

"Very."

"Why haven't the inquisitors taken her away anyway?"

"Starvak can be highly…persuasive. Besides which, he told them that a simple solution would be not to bring Alyssa to the temple, but the temple to Alyssa."

"Did…did he seriously just tell the damned inquisition to get moving and build a temple here?"

"Much more politely, but yes." She shrugged. "To be fair, the inquisitors didn't seem that combative about it. I think they had other stuff on their mind, and wanted this as done as soon as possible."

"Well, they were probably the Adjudicator's personal strike team." Whose presence, coupled with her recent epiphany about the dungeon, was absolutely terrifying. "So they didn't really have any time to waste."

"Yep. In any case, it won't do any harm to ask. I might even get some of the other team members to sign up. We'll see."

"Doubt you'll be able to get that Fernand guy. Ellyana has taken to him like a mother hen to a chick."

"Well, they are both alchemists, they both hate slavers with a burning passion, and Fernand had the once in a lifetime opportunity to talk with an extradimensional who knew a lot about alchemy. Well, 'chemistry' as they call it." Dominique sighed. "If only we could have found Alexandra. Damn these mercs! Why won't they fucking talk?!?"

Allya nodded, while wincing internally. She couldn't tell Dominique, she simply couldn't. Doing so…would be catastrophic. As much as the newly appointed representative was willing to bend the rules a little in their favor, this was the kind of stuff she would have to tell the guild.

And that would make everything go sideways, fast.

"I think they're more afraid of whoever they were working for than they are of us. I'm sure Crystal will prove them wrong eventually."

"I'm sure she will. Well then, I'll get my equipment ready."

*****

"Time is of the essence, adjudicator." Said the massive figure, clad in golden armor. "And we are running out of it. The time for the Purge nears, and if the Order yet lives, it must be tracked down and destroyed before any evidence of their hideouts is annihilated. We can ill afford another debacle like the first purge."

"Yes my lord. I understand." Said the adjudicator as she knelt on the floor.

"Good. Your work has been excellent so far. As grating as the Divine of Light's interference no doubt has been, this new 'dungeon' might make for a valuable ally. If not…well, the control programs will take care of any necessary 'corrections'. But that is no longer your concern. We are done in this sector. Prepare to depart immediately, alongside your inquisitors. Only leave a handful to continue monitoring until the priests arrive. Glory be His Name."

"And glory be His Pyre." Completed the adjudicator, and the Custodian of the Flame's hologram nodded, before vanishing in a stream of motes of light.

The adjudicator sighed as she sat up. No matter how many times she had done it, speaking with the Custodians was always an experience. She was very much aware of their facades and weaknesses, but they were the God of Fire's harbingers and his hand in this mortal world. The flicker of divinity they were imbued with, however distant, still awed her, even through long distance conversation.

She quickly made a mental checklist. Her inquisitors should be able to depart shortly, all of them were travelling light specifically to serve as her personal strike team. But there would still need to be some transfer of knowledge, notably so the ones left behind had the passwords and codes to contact the sources and contacts of those who would leave.

It saddened her that they would almost certainly die during the Purge. They were loyal, yes, but they were also too close to her and the Custodians' work not to realize what was happening. The High Inquisitors could be relied on to remain true no matter what, but the more common members might harbor shreds of sympathy that would stand in the way of what needed to be done.

No matter. Any death in His Divinity's service was a glorious and purposeful one.

With that thought in mind she deactivated the privacy seals that surrounded her room, and opened the door, leading into the antechamber where two of her inquisitors were holding guard. She started speaking, not even bothering to check if they were listening. If they weren't that attentive, their superiors wouldn't have chosen them to serve as an adjudicator's bodyguard.

"We have new orders. We are leaving. Gather everyone, leave…three intelligence specialists behind. Make sure they have all the information necessary to keep our network operational. They will keep gathering information until the temple is established, then they will hand off their duties and leave. We have until midnight to leave the city."

"Yes adjudicator, right away!" Called out one of the inquisitors, before heading for the exit. The other one automatically followed a step behind her as she went into the living room, automatically scanning the area for potential threats.

The adjudicator stepped up to the windows of the building. They were in a single story house, not a luxurious accommodation, but not modest enough to cause issues with the neighborhood either. A faint reflection showed her an unfamiliar face, and she smiled mirthlessly. One of His Divinity's gifts to His angels was the ability to shapeshift, and she had made good use of that after her public appearance.

She shook herself internally, and looked out at the town. If anyone had cared to look back, they'd have seen only windows showing an empty building, the entire place wrapped in nigh impenetrable illusions that would have fooled even the so called 'military scanners' of the Old World, those pathetic amalgams of extradimensional technology and a few of the scraps of the Gods' wisdom, albeit only for a limited time.

As much as it pained her to admit, even the technology of these fools had been, and could still be, a threat to Divine forces. There was a reason the Seraphim garrison on Alcheryos had been crushed during the Twilight. As idiotic as the Gods' wayward charges had been, the genius of the Terrans should not be underestimated.

Which brought her to the dungeon. It worried her. Extradimensionals were already problematical at best, and dungeons had strayed further and further from His plan, albeit in a more or less controlled fashion thanks to the programs regulating them. Combining both was ill advised in her own opinion. But the custodians dared not interfere in the God of Light's affairs, however infuriating his meddling.

Such was the burden of a pantheon. The will of many would inevitably lead to turbulence and interference, and the God of Light was almost those concepts personified. His genius was only compounded by his madness, or so it seemed.

She shook her head. That bordered on blaspheme, although that was an opinion shared by many in the God of Fire's service. One could not look upon the ruins of the world below the Citadel, knowing that it all could have been avoided if not for Hoeth, and think that the God of Light was sane.

She just hoped that his latest folly would be one of his bouts of genius, and not doom them all. One could never know with the Aethersmith. Or so the Custodians had said to her, once.

The adjudicator turned away from the window, and made her way to her room, quickly gathering up her equipment. Communicators, scramblers and targeting beacons vanished into her spatial pouches, and she quickly checked that anything was accounted for, before walking out the door. The building would be delivered back to the landlord good as new, and no one would think twice about a group of minor merchants moving onto less dangerous pastures.

In the meantime, she could stroll the streets, experience this city for herself before she left. And go see some of those individuals that were proving oh so troublesome for His plan, even if only in disguise. As she was sure that her departure was only temporary. This city was at the center of too many events, too many disturbances. She would be back.

And when she was, maybe she would be allowed to unsheath His Divinity's sword and unleash it upon those who would defy His will.