ULTRAMagic Shadowland - Chapter 7
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Odo’s search for the anomaly went on as Andelin continued to stalk the trio, quietly shuffling her deck as she did. She was still concerned with them finding it, but now it was for her own reasons. Her plans were occupying her mind and distracting her. There were a lot of things that needed to be tackled if her coup was to be carried out. The cult would be easy to deal with as they were incredibly gullible. Milosh himself was a complete joke and could be taken out with a flick of the wrist. Gratiana was a concern, but Andelin had a feeling she could win her over given their past.
One of the only truly important loose ends was Gummi. Andelin had long since realized that the boy was never actually loyal to the ‘cause.’ It had become painfully obvious over time that Milosh had no love for his son and only saw him as a tool to be used or as a means to an end. Andelin had secretly come to pity Gummi, but could not show any sympathy at the moment for obvious reasons. What was she to do with him? Eliminating him felt disgusting, but he was not going to tolerate anymore cult nonsense. This dilemma ate at Andelin and had no easy solution.
Oddly enough, both parties had run into Gummi. Being as quiet as possible, they observed him handing off the case he carried. “Here’s the stinking blood he asked for…” Gummi grunted.
The one that took it was a tall and slender woman, wearing sharp and majestic armor that contrasted with the dingy buildings around them. “I would say well done, but we both know your father is desperate…”
“Who’s that?” Gabriella quietly asked for their hiding spot.
“Gratiana Arlotti,” Weaver whispered back. “Stay quiet until she leaves. She’s very alert.”
“...I don’t want to do this anymore, mom,” Gummi commented in defiance.
Gratiana said nothing and sighed. “I don’t blame you, Gummi. I don’t want to say we’ve lost… of course, that implies we had something to lose in the first place. Truthfully I wish Dunja had beheaded that man all those years ago. We probably would have been a lot better off.”
“Then why don’t you kill him?”
“You’d have me end the one that helped bring you into existence like that?”
“YES!” Gummi cried. “I’m sick of all of this! I swear if I have to hear one more psychotic tirade about his stupid ‘revolution,’ I’m going to rip out his intestines and strangle him with them! And then I’ll shoot every braindead cultist on sight!!”
The rustling of stones and dirt could be heard, indicating to Gratiana that they were being watched. “Easy, my child. The walls have ears…”
“OH WHAT DOES IT MATTER? If Milosh is around the corner, I’ll cave his skull in on the spot!” Gummi took a second to compose himself. “Mom, why are you still with him? Just, why?”
She knew this question would come up. Since they were seemingly alone, she could finally answer it. “Honestly I’m in too deep at this point. What kind of honest gentlemen would accept an old harlot like me? I made this coffin and now I need to lay in it…”
“Glory and pride… good lord…” Gummi mocked with a scoff. “Feuerland collapsed a long time ago, mother…”
“Why are you still here then? You’ve made it clear that you despise your father. Had you not been my own flesh and blood, I would have had you executed on the spot.”
Gummi gave her an unamused look. “Did you mean that or were you saying that for the people listening in? Anyways, who said I was in the first place? When Milosh uses that blood, he’ll come to regret it. Oh how he’ll curse the day he came into existence…”
Gratiana’s eyes went a little wide as she stared at the young man. “Oh, oh my… Ahem, well then… um, go out and search the northeast quadrant for any remaining supplies.”
“Whatever…” Gummi replied as he walked away. “And mom? I don’t care how many times you denigrate yourself: You’re still my mother at the end of the day. Think about that when you inevitably face off with Dunja and Barna.”
Once he was out of sight, she looked at the case. “Just what did you do, Gummi? Here’s hoping that that detestable Gudrun doesn’t notice this…” Gratiana opened up a portal, electing not to tell Milosh about what had happened. Despite her convictions, perhaps this was a sign that things needed to change. Either way, she needed to report back to that wretch she had called an ally for too long.
Odo, Weaver, and Gabriella emerged from their hiding spot. The Knight needed a second to shake himself free of the anxiety he accrued. “My goodness… and you fought her on a regular basis, Weaver?”
“Yeah, she’s a real handful. Not even she likes Milosh, and I can’t say I blame her…”
“Is diplomacy out of the question?” Gabriella put forth. “For Gummi and his mother that is?”
Weaver paused. That was quite the conundrum. “I don’t know at this point. Things really hit the fan when Blood-Wraith and his group defeated the Lich-you should’ve seen it. Honestly, I’d be down for it. I feel for Gummi-he’s got a horrible father that never loved him. Plus the look on Milosh’s face would be priceless upon realizing we’ve won over all of his closest allies.”
Odo’s glowing blue eyes looked around, indicating an idea was forming in his head. “Well how about this: We obviously need to keep searching, but we’ll invite Gummi to our cause if we run into him again.”
“It’s worth a shot,” Weaver said with a shrug. “Interestingly enough he did seek out Allan to confide in him recently… And Claud has been wandering off as of late…”
After a moment of contemplation, the group resumed their search. “I presume that last fact is of relevance, Weaver?” Gabriella inquired.
“Yeah. It makes me think Gummi has been meeting with him in secret. That comment he made has my interest in particular. If anyone knows how to work with blood, it would be Claudius. On a side note, let’s keep this a secret for now…”
Odo grinned. “Of course. Evil is the seed of their own undoing after all.”
Andelin was also interested in Weaver’s suspicions. Milosh dying at the hands of his son in an act of betrayal drenched in revenge? How treacherous, how devious… She loved it. She loved it so much that she accidentally let out an evil laugh. Naturally her quarry heard this and Gabriella made a note of it. Andelin panicked and immediately silenced herself. That was just what she needed; the angel was potentially onto her. She let them get ahead a bit just in case, but it probably did not do any good regardless.
Pressing onwards, the trio came across a rundown street with nervous looking people moving about. They all looked as though they were afraid of something unseen, constantly looking over their shoulders. What that thing was was uncertain as they mumbled incoherently to themselves. Odo and Weaver had a hunch that one of these individuals could point them in the right direction. Of course this assumed these people were willing to talk to them. Gabriella looked around and spotted a haggard, middle aged man sitting on a bench. He looked like a lowly beggar, but seemed the most coherent.
“Sir? Pardon us for a second, but could we have a moment of your time? We are in need of assistance?” Gabriella called out as they approached.
The man roused from his stupor and slowly turned to face the three. He looked out of it, yet had a degree of lucidity. “Do you… Do you have a bottle of rum? A bottle of rum to quiet the voices?” he said as he leaned forward, his elbows coming to rest on his knees.
Odo did not want to humor the man as he knew a drunkard would not help them. “We could, but at this point the words rum and death might as well be the same to you.” This prompted Weaver and Gabriella to give him confused looks.
The knight had a point, causing the man to groan. “Aye, I suppose you’re right. No use in drinking myself to death… What do you need, lass?”
“I don’t mean to be an inconvenience, but we are looking for… an oddity, of sorts. Can you possibly tell us what’s been bothering you? These voices you mentioned, what are they?”
“I remember the time before the voices showed up. It was before that good for nothing Proch came with his silvered words and wrought terror and chaos. The voices came one day, followed by people dumb enough to buy into that nonsense about wealth and the greater good. The voices, they spoke lies without end, but old Logan Bonneville did not fall for it… it just tormented me into drinking…”
“My condolences to you, Mr. Bonneville. Do you know what they said?”
“It’s been so long that I haven’t a clue. My apologies, Lass. What I can say is that my dreams had become nightmares, but none were meant for me strangely enough. I’d find myself in the presence of a boy, but I could never get close enough to him.”
Odo made a note of this. “Well surely you had to be able to make out something…”
Logan did his best to remember. “I can say that he was a child that seemed to be wearing a long, dark cloak of some kind.”
“And the setting of the dream? Can you describe it? Or was it too incoherent to make out?”
“No no, but it wasn’t all that special: just a dark, misty place. Say, why are you lot so interested in all of this?”
While that description did not solve the mystery, it did help narrow things down. The group thanked Logan and got on their way again. At least they had an inkling of what to look for. The only issue was that what Logan had described could have been something else altogether. Still, it was the best lead they had at the moment. Andelin was naturally curious if they could deduce where the anomaly was. She thought about it and realized they probably needed some help. Besides, it made it easier to set a trap for them…
Weaver felt something brush up against him. “Hey! What are you… Hello?”
Odo turned around to see what was up. “What’s the matter, Weaver?”
“Someone just bumped into me…”
This gave Gabriella a bad feeling. “Hum, that’s not good… what’s that in your pocket?”
“Huh? How did that get there?” Weaver pulled out a playing card from his pant’s pocket. “Rider’s street, up the bend, three doors in, hang a right, and go in through the back?”
Andelin was quietly watching in anticipation. “Come on, follow the directions… follow the directions…” After some mulling, the three began heading to the place indicated in the hint. “YES!” she exclaimed once they were out of sight.
“Well, aren’t we excited?” a woman’s voice asked as she put her hand on Andelin’s shoulder.
“Gratiana?!”
“What are you up to, Andelin? Leading them towards information on The Fear of Old? Explain yourself.”
Andelin panicked again. “Um, yes, but it’s just so I can lure them into a trap!”
Gratiana stared at her. “You’ve gotten worse at lying in recent times. You know that, right?”
She was paralyzed. “How did you…?”
“Firstly, you’ve gotten so caught up in your ambitions that you're letting details slip. Secondly, I knew all four of you were listening in on my conversation with Gummi.”
Andelin riffled her deck nervously. “Haha, about that…”
Gratiana saw the card Andelin was pulling. “Don’t. Infighting will get us nowhere. You might as well go join Dunja if you’re going to be that bold. That way you’ll actually have a fighting chance…”
This made Andelin quiver with fear. “As threatening as always, Gratiana. How I love your menacing fortitude… How I would love to permanently add you to my deck…”
“Am I to take this as a declaration of your betrayal?”
The jig was up. “Yes, Gratiana. You have my apologies.”
Gratiana sighed. She knew this day would come. “Then so be it. Get out while you still can, my old friend.”
“Huh? Just like that?”
“You have the chance to start anew. I made myself a figure heard of that infernal church. At least one of us will get to have a happy ending…” Gratiana lamented as she walked away.
Andelin swallowed hard, trying to force down the knot in her throat. It was sad to hear her once proud friend talk like that. If her plot was successful, she had to confine Gratiana to one of her cards. There was no way her friend was just going to throw her life away like that. If that meant she had to spend the rest of eternity as a member of her deck, then Andelin was fine with that. She still needed her friend after all was said and done.
Stumbling upon a flyer for The Eternal Church with Milosh on it, Andelin scoffed and picked it up. “Well now, how the tables have turned…” Setting it back down, she got out a fire card and lit the corner of the paper. “To Hell or Abaddon, with you, Milosh…”
The flyer burned quite nicely as the flames slowly encroached on Milosh’s face. It was satisfying and poetic to her. Once the fire was out, Andelin straightened her top hat and walked off. She had a spring in her step as she headed for the tavern she told Odo and the others about. The citizens she passed were startled, but were not afraid this time. It was like they could sense that Milosh was no longer looming over Andelin’s shoulders. It was still concerning, but at least she was not oppressing them this time.
Next: Chapter 8
ULTRAMagic Alternate © 2022 William Ford II (ChaoticTempleKnight)
Master Post - Patreon
Odo’s search for the anomaly went on as Andelin continued to stalk the trio, quietly shuffling her deck as she did. She was still concerned with them finding it, but now it was for her own reasons. Her plans were occupying her mind and distracting her. There were a lot of things that needed to be tackled if her coup was to be carried out. The cult would be easy to deal with as they were incredibly gullible. Milosh himself was a complete joke and could be taken out with a flick of the wrist. Gratiana was a concern, but Andelin had a feeling she could win her over given their past.
One of the only truly important loose ends was Gummi. Andelin had long since realized that the boy was never actually loyal to the ‘cause.’ It had become painfully obvious over time that Milosh had no love for his son and only saw him as a tool to be used or as a means to an end. Andelin had secretly come to pity Gummi, but could not show any sympathy at the moment for obvious reasons. What was she to do with him? Eliminating him felt disgusting, but he was not going to tolerate anymore cult nonsense. This dilemma ate at Andelin and had no easy solution.
Oddly enough, both parties had run into Gummi. Being as quiet as possible, they observed him handing off the case he carried. “Here’s the stinking blood he asked for…” Gummi grunted.
The one that took it was a tall and slender woman, wearing sharp and majestic armor that contrasted with the dingy buildings around them. “I would say well done, but we both know your father is desperate…”
“Who’s that?” Gabriella quietly asked for their hiding spot.
“Gratiana Arlotti,” Weaver whispered back. “Stay quiet until she leaves. She’s very alert.”
“...I don’t want to do this anymore, mom,” Gummi commented in defiance.
Gratiana said nothing and sighed. “I don’t blame you, Gummi. I don’t want to say we’ve lost… of course, that implies we had something to lose in the first place. Truthfully I wish Dunja had beheaded that man all those years ago. We probably would have been a lot better off.”
“Then why don’t you kill him?”
“You’d have me end the one that helped bring you into existence like that?”
“YES!” Gummi cried. “I’m sick of all of this! I swear if I have to hear one more psychotic tirade about his stupid ‘revolution,’ I’m going to rip out his intestines and strangle him with them! And then I’ll shoot every braindead cultist on sight!!”
The rustling of stones and dirt could be heard, indicating to Gratiana that they were being watched. “Easy, my child. The walls have ears…”
“OH WHAT DOES IT MATTER? If Milosh is around the corner, I’ll cave his skull in on the spot!” Gummi took a second to compose himself. “Mom, why are you still with him? Just, why?”
She knew this question would come up. Since they were seemingly alone, she could finally answer it. “Honestly I’m in too deep at this point. What kind of honest gentlemen would accept an old harlot like me? I made this coffin and now I need to lay in it…”
“Glory and pride… good lord…” Gummi mocked with a scoff. “Feuerland collapsed a long time ago, mother…”
“Why are you still here then? You’ve made it clear that you despise your father. Had you not been my own flesh and blood, I would have had you executed on the spot.”
Gummi gave her an unamused look. “Did you mean that or were you saying that for the people listening in? Anyways, who said I was in the first place? When Milosh uses that blood, he’ll come to regret it. Oh how he’ll curse the day he came into existence…”
Gratiana’s eyes went a little wide as she stared at the young man. “Oh, oh my… Ahem, well then… um, go out and search the northeast quadrant for any remaining supplies.”
“Whatever…” Gummi replied as he walked away. “And mom? I don’t care how many times you denigrate yourself: You’re still my mother at the end of the day. Think about that when you inevitably face off with Dunja and Barna.”
Once he was out of sight, she looked at the case. “Just what did you do, Gummi? Here’s hoping that that detestable Gudrun doesn’t notice this…” Gratiana opened up a portal, electing not to tell Milosh about what had happened. Despite her convictions, perhaps this was a sign that things needed to change. Either way, she needed to report back to that wretch she had called an ally for too long.
Odo, Weaver, and Gabriella emerged from their hiding spot. The Knight needed a second to shake himself free of the anxiety he accrued. “My goodness… and you fought her on a regular basis, Weaver?”
“Yeah, she’s a real handful. Not even she likes Milosh, and I can’t say I blame her…”
“Is diplomacy out of the question?” Gabriella put forth. “For Gummi and his mother that is?”
Weaver paused. That was quite the conundrum. “I don’t know at this point. Things really hit the fan when Blood-Wraith and his group defeated the Lich-you should’ve seen it. Honestly, I’d be down for it. I feel for Gummi-he’s got a horrible father that never loved him. Plus the look on Milosh’s face would be priceless upon realizing we’ve won over all of his closest allies.”
Odo’s glowing blue eyes looked around, indicating an idea was forming in his head. “Well how about this: We obviously need to keep searching, but we’ll invite Gummi to our cause if we run into him again.”
“It’s worth a shot,” Weaver said with a shrug. “Interestingly enough he did seek out Allan to confide in him recently… And Claud has been wandering off as of late…”
After a moment of contemplation, the group resumed their search. “I presume that last fact is of relevance, Weaver?” Gabriella inquired.
“Yeah. It makes me think Gummi has been meeting with him in secret. That comment he made has my interest in particular. If anyone knows how to work with blood, it would be Claudius. On a side note, let’s keep this a secret for now…”
Odo grinned. “Of course. Evil is the seed of their own undoing after all.”
Andelin was also interested in Weaver’s suspicions. Milosh dying at the hands of his son in an act of betrayal drenched in revenge? How treacherous, how devious… She loved it. She loved it so much that she accidentally let out an evil laugh. Naturally her quarry heard this and Gabriella made a note of it. Andelin panicked and immediately silenced herself. That was just what she needed; the angel was potentially onto her. She let them get ahead a bit just in case, but it probably did not do any good regardless.
Pressing onwards, the trio came across a rundown street with nervous looking people moving about. They all looked as though they were afraid of something unseen, constantly looking over their shoulders. What that thing was was uncertain as they mumbled incoherently to themselves. Odo and Weaver had a hunch that one of these individuals could point them in the right direction. Of course this assumed these people were willing to talk to them. Gabriella looked around and spotted a haggard, middle aged man sitting on a bench. He looked like a lowly beggar, but seemed the most coherent.
“Sir? Pardon us for a second, but could we have a moment of your time? We are in need of assistance?” Gabriella called out as they approached.
The man roused from his stupor and slowly turned to face the three. He looked out of it, yet had a degree of lucidity. “Do you… Do you have a bottle of rum? A bottle of rum to quiet the voices?” he said as he leaned forward, his elbows coming to rest on his knees.
Odo did not want to humor the man as he knew a drunkard would not help them. “We could, but at this point the words rum and death might as well be the same to you.” This prompted Weaver and Gabriella to give him confused looks.
The knight had a point, causing the man to groan. “Aye, I suppose you’re right. No use in drinking myself to death… What do you need, lass?”
“I don’t mean to be an inconvenience, but we are looking for… an oddity, of sorts. Can you possibly tell us what’s been bothering you? These voices you mentioned, what are they?”
“I remember the time before the voices showed up. It was before that good for nothing Proch came with his silvered words and wrought terror and chaos. The voices came one day, followed by people dumb enough to buy into that nonsense about wealth and the greater good. The voices, they spoke lies without end, but old Logan Bonneville did not fall for it… it just tormented me into drinking…”
“My condolences to you, Mr. Bonneville. Do you know what they said?”
“It’s been so long that I haven’t a clue. My apologies, Lass. What I can say is that my dreams had become nightmares, but none were meant for me strangely enough. I’d find myself in the presence of a boy, but I could never get close enough to him.”
Odo made a note of this. “Well surely you had to be able to make out something…”
Logan did his best to remember. “I can say that he was a child that seemed to be wearing a long, dark cloak of some kind.”
“And the setting of the dream? Can you describe it? Or was it too incoherent to make out?”
“No no, but it wasn’t all that special: just a dark, misty place. Say, why are you lot so interested in all of this?”
While that description did not solve the mystery, it did help narrow things down. The group thanked Logan and got on their way again. At least they had an inkling of what to look for. The only issue was that what Logan had described could have been something else altogether. Still, it was the best lead they had at the moment. Andelin was naturally curious if they could deduce where the anomaly was. She thought about it and realized they probably needed some help. Besides, it made it easier to set a trap for them…
Weaver felt something brush up against him. “Hey! What are you… Hello?”
Odo turned around to see what was up. “What’s the matter, Weaver?”
“Someone just bumped into me…”
This gave Gabriella a bad feeling. “Hum, that’s not good… what’s that in your pocket?”
“Huh? How did that get there?” Weaver pulled out a playing card from his pant’s pocket. “Rider’s street, up the bend, three doors in, hang a right, and go in through the back?”
Andelin was quietly watching in anticipation. “Come on, follow the directions… follow the directions…” After some mulling, the three began heading to the place indicated in the hint. “YES!” she exclaimed once they were out of sight.
“Well, aren’t we excited?” a woman’s voice asked as she put her hand on Andelin’s shoulder.
“Gratiana?!”
“What are you up to, Andelin? Leading them towards information on The Fear of Old? Explain yourself.”
Andelin panicked again. “Um, yes, but it’s just so I can lure them into a trap!”
Gratiana stared at her. “You’ve gotten worse at lying in recent times. You know that, right?”
She was paralyzed. “How did you…?”
“Firstly, you’ve gotten so caught up in your ambitions that you're letting details slip. Secondly, I knew all four of you were listening in on my conversation with Gummi.”
Andelin riffled her deck nervously. “Haha, about that…”
Gratiana saw the card Andelin was pulling. “Don’t. Infighting will get us nowhere. You might as well go join Dunja if you’re going to be that bold. That way you’ll actually have a fighting chance…”
This made Andelin quiver with fear. “As threatening as always, Gratiana. How I love your menacing fortitude… How I would love to permanently add you to my deck…”
“Am I to take this as a declaration of your betrayal?”
The jig was up. “Yes, Gratiana. You have my apologies.”
Gratiana sighed. She knew this day would come. “Then so be it. Get out while you still can, my old friend.”
“Huh? Just like that?”
“You have the chance to start anew. I made myself a figure heard of that infernal church. At least one of us will get to have a happy ending…” Gratiana lamented as she walked away.
Andelin swallowed hard, trying to force down the knot in her throat. It was sad to hear her once proud friend talk like that. If her plot was successful, she had to confine Gratiana to one of her cards. There was no way her friend was just going to throw her life away like that. If that meant she had to spend the rest of eternity as a member of her deck, then Andelin was fine with that. She still needed her friend after all was said and done.
Stumbling upon a flyer for The Eternal Church with Milosh on it, Andelin scoffed and picked it up. “Well now, how the tables have turned…” Setting it back down, she got out a fire card and lit the corner of the paper. “To Hell or Abaddon, with you, Milosh…”
The flyer burned quite nicely as the flames slowly encroached on Milosh’s face. It was satisfying and poetic to her. Once the fire was out, Andelin straightened her top hat and walked off. She had a spring in her step as she headed for the tavern she told Odo and the others about. The citizens she passed were startled, but were not afraid this time. It was like they could sense that Milosh was no longer looming over Andelin’s shoulders. It was still concerning, but at least she was not oppressing them this time.
Next: Chapter 8
ULTRAMagic Alternate © 2022 William Ford II (ChaoticTempleKnight)
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