Draconic Testament (23 page)

Chapter Nine – Depths of madness
Sebastian Slater
The pair followed Stark into the guard barracks and into his office. The barracks were made of wood, and still had a sort of barbarian feel to it. Of course, the whole settlement had that feel to it. Everything, from the materials, to the appearances, to the smell just reeked to banditry and poverty. That was, of course, till they entered his office. Within his office were pictures, a UK flag, and a beret. Army stuff. Bastion was bewildered by what he saw, wondering why it was here. He looked around at the pictures on the wall, and the memos. Pictures of squads and memorials of dead soldiers… dog tags. “What is this stuff?” Bastion asked Stark, as he sat down. “Memorials of my family. My family is a military family, mostly all of them, even some of the daughters, have joined. Of course, this is 2011… the last war the UK was involved in was some time ago. Most of the men in the army today are in no real danger.” Stark said.
“What about you?” Bastion asked.
”I long turned my back on the past.” Stark said.
”It doesn’t really look that way to me.” Bastion said, pointing at the photos on the wall.
”Perhaps. I have to keep something to keep me remembering. I came to split by complete accident, wanting to get away from my families desire for self-proclaimed honour and strength. Of course, I saw something I wasn’t meant to see, and was forced to stay here. Upon hearing the truth about the Magi, I decided I would stay, but I didn’t want to become a Magi. They planned to ignore my request, till I killed an enemy spy.” Stark said.
“Truly fascinating, but we came here to find out what was happening, did we not?” Veronica asked, coldly. “Veronica…” Bastion sighed.
”Right. Well, the underground caverns has been infected with Tartarus. It was chaos, people rushing for the elevator, pushing people off, fighting one another to get away from the sickness. Children were abandoned, and love ones lost to madness. Now, most people are out and are crowding the village, some have made camp outside, as I'm sure you’ve seen, and some are keeping the perimeter secure. But it’s still chaos.” Stark said.
”Yeah... I did see that. What I-“ Bastion began.
”This Tartarus… it was done by a Warlock? Is that the Necromancy curse?” Veronica asked, interrupting Bastion. “Wait a-“ Bastion began.
”Yes, it is. The Warlock was a woman that the Emperor himself took interest in, after his former wife died. They had been together about a year, when suddenly, she poisoned his lungs with a curse, and ran to the underground caverns, where she used Tartarus to cover her escape. We don’t know if she’s escaped, or dead down there.” Stark said.
”What exactly IS Tartarus?” Bastion asked, feeling as if he had just walked into the middle of a complicated lesson.
”It’s a powerful curse that is highly contagious, which makes it a very troubling case in crowded areas. It affects the victims mind, causing strong hallucinations, to the point where it could turn friends into foes, families into aggressors. A sick curse indeed. Other than that, it’s hard to say who has it. There are carriers, who carry the virus while not actually being affected by it, so everyone’s wearing a facemask. All the people who have been cleared of any suspicion of having the infection have been sent to the outside camps. Everyone else, including you now, remains inside.” Stark said.
“Lovely.” Bastion says, sarcastically.
”Also, Tartarus affects your temperature. You start to sweat immensely.” Veronica said.
”That’s right… you’re well informed.” Stark said.
”Well, I’ve studied as a healer for a long time. I read a rather detailed book about Necromancy arts. I think I can help your people.” Veronica says, sticking to Bastion’s original plans as much as she could.
”So what do we do, find the carriers?” Bastion asked.
”That’s what the village is keeping an eye out for while waiting for Enlin and healing the wounded, but the wounded keep piling.” Stark said.
”Warlocks… I never thought I’d ever hear of another Warlock Magi.” Veronica asked.
”Are Warlocks rare? Like me?” Bastion asked.
”Your ignorance is about as rare, I’d say.” Stark huffed.
”I'm new!” Bastion scowled.
”Warlocks are the name for those who learn the arts of Necromancy, which is a forbidden art. Due to the good job Rhenium has been doing on keeping an eye on those with sketchy pasts, and those who had taken part of Necromancy in the past. It was a skill made by the Domini… a troublesome lot… I take it you HAVE heard of the Domini?” Stark asked.
“Actually yes, I’ve heard of the Domini. I read books about them, about how they have a tendency to be bloodthirsty brutes. They were once the most promising race of the Dragons, but for some reasons lost to history, they were abandoned. They can sense magic better than anyone else, and if it’s aggressive magic, they get urges for violence inside them.” Bastion said.
”That’s right. I wouldn’t be surprised if they were the next bad guys after Sanctum was defeated. Things were getting heated after the Metholian Civil War, after Sanctum was pushed into Zolka, which has the highest population of Domini in Cazria. After the war, crime rates skyrocketed from Domini who had lost their minds to the war, and those who simply wanted to relish on preying on the weakened state of Zolka. I imagine this led to war… but I have no doubt that the Cazrians dealt with it.” Stark said. “Geniuses at Magic, the Domini are, until they lose themselves. Necromancy has a bunch of sub-genres. Such as, resurrection, curses, blood magic, summoning ghosts of the dead and the odd, rare, possessor.”
”No freaking way…” Bastion says, looking at Veronica. She ignored him and pressed on.
”Never mind, the Domini aren’t the problem here.” Veronica said, changing the subject.
”Right. Of course.” Stark says. “As I said before, there are Carriers. So far, all we’ve been doing is keeping an eye out, though there have been a few unjustifiable killings going on. That’s what I have to deal with, because if I go hunting the carriers, vigilantes will try and take my post.”
”You said something about a… Elina?” Bastion asked.
”Enlin. That’s the name of the emperor’s son.” Stark says. “He took the fighters into the depths to find the Warlock and kill her, but that was 3 days ago.”
”What good will killing the Warlock do?” Bastion asked.
”Seriously…” Stark sighed, “Killing the warlock would equal in Tartarus practically evaporating, and the curse on the Emperor will cease to exist.”
”I see…” Bastion says.
”I could heal the Emperor. As I said, I'm highly skilled in healing, but that Warlock needs to be dead first. I’ll help the infected Tartarus victims in the meantime.” Veronica says.
”You presume too much. As if I’d let you anywhere near the emperor, you just got here.” Stark says.
“I'm simply foretelling the future. Once you see my abilities, I’ll be your first choice.” Veronica says.
“Quite a handful, you two are…” Stark says, “Why did you defect again?”.
”Treated unf-“ Bastion began.
”Sanctum.” Veronica snapped, interrupting Bastion. Stark noticed this.
”…We’ll see. We’ll see how you do.” Stark asked. “Take your gasmasks and head on out.”
”Wait, what about Enlin? He could be hurt!” Bastion said.
”You seem to care a lot for the monarchy…” Stark said “Didn’t yours get assassinated?”
”Yes, King Daviid, though he wasn’t in charge of the Village we were in. He was killed on his way to Rhenium.” Veronica said. ”That’s not the point! I don’t care if he’s monarchy or not, he and the people that went down there with him are people! We can’t just let them die!” Bastion said.
”Hmph…” Stark said. “I can’t spare any men, and he told us no Blue Magi are allowed down there till he’s done.”
”Well… I'm not a Blue Magi…” Bastion said.
”Bastion.” Veronica said, trying to warn him, but he ignores her.
”Let me go after them. My papers haven’t been verified yet.” Bastion says. Stark contemplates for a moment.
”This could very well be suicide. Who’s going to look out for your lady friend if you die?” Stark asked.
“She can handle herself.” Bastion said.
”…” Stark paused. “Fine. Fine, but only you. If you see anything, come back immediately. Go alone, nobody else.”
”Bastion, thi-“ Veronica began to argue.
”It’s all right, this’ll be easy.” Bastion laughed.
”Alright. The entrance to the caverns is in the graveyard, near the moat.” Stark says, “Piss off now, will you?” Stark said. With a thank you, and a bid of farewell, the two left.
The two let the barracks, and looked on at the village, although it looked more like a camp, that they had infiltrated. The people were dirty, as were the tents, and they lacked any form of dignity. They would pick their noses, or adjust the fabric around their crotch even while speaking to each other. They looked like they didn’t shower all that much either, which was not the case for the Red Magi, who used magic to shower. There was also a stable that held cows, since cows are likely not to fight back when blood is being extracted from them, as Bastion could see from where he was standing. He felt sick that people could live like this. They had hardly evolved at all from their barbarous nature 2000 years in the past. To him, it was sad, though it looked as if the people of the village would not care what he said. Or perhaps they would, and they’d rip him to pieces. He looked towards the large castle. He couldn’t sense a damn person in there. “I... I think the emperor may be dead.” Bastion sighed, looking at Veronica.
“What makes you say that?” Veronica asked.
“I can’t sense him in the castle.” Bastion said, trying again.
“That’s because the castle is made of Mithril.” Veronica said.
“Mithril?” Bastion asked.
“Enchanted ore and stone.” Veronica said. “It’s hard, and effective. It can block out even the most masterful of Magi.”
“I... I see...” Bastion said, as a Cow’s scream came from the stables’ nearby.
“It seems Yaevinn’s hatred for the Blue Magi is rather justified…” Veronica said, disgusted. “Such lack of dignity.”
”This is no reason to hate someone… It isn’t our place to say that living like this is wrong.” Bastion said. “I pity them, though it seems they are happy enough…”
“Aye, all except for the cows…” Veronica sighed.
”Yes… well, nothing we can do about that. What will you do now?” Bastion asked.
”Were you not the smart one of us two?” Veronica asked, being stubborn on purpose.
”I suppose you should go ahead with your story and heal the wounded. You did study it after all…” Bastion sighed. “Why? Just let them die.” Veronica said, bluntly.
”Is that how little you value other people’s lives? You’d base their deaths on their appearance?” Bastion asked.
“No, just their habits…” Veronica huffed.
”They look barbarous, yes. Their master is crazy and wants to convert all of humanity, yes… but they are not all the same, and that definitely does not justify their deaths. Don’t be like that, please.” Bastion said “Help them”
”Never knew you valued life that highly.” Veronica said, “Though, you don’t really know what you're talking about. We’ll see how you feel about the Blue Magi when we’re done here.”
”Alright, so go help the wounded. I'm sure they’ll be overthrown with joy when they realize a woman with as many titles as you is helping them.” Bastion said.
”Humph.” she huffed. “Come.” She said, as she led him back to the gate. She climbs through, and Bastion follows her. “I want you to have this.” Veronica said, as she rummages through the bags that Bastion dropped at the gate. “What is it?” Bastion asked, and she brings out a bin liner. She hands it to him, and straight away he could tell something was inside. It was about as big as a sword, but nowhere near as heavy. As he took it, and felt it, he knew exactly what it was. “Don’t tell me…” Bastion began, as he opened the bin liner. As he suspected, there was an Arcana inside. “Where did you get this?” Bastion asked.
”The Assembly hall, of course. I figured, although it has happened once before, there really isn’t a high chance of coming across another Arcana. Have it, it will keep you safe.” Veronica said.
”I don’t suppose you care much about being a Kinslayer, do you?” Bastion asked.
”Not as much as I care about being a Warlock, no…” Veronica said.
”Don’t say that… you’re hardly evil.” Bastion said.
”After what I was saying before, you’d say that?” Veronica asked, playing with her fringe.
”Of course. You’re just being stubborn, I'm sure you’ll want to help the second you see people in pain.” Bastion said.
”Whatever.” Veronica said. “Hopefully, you’ll find something that will tear away the blinders from your eyes.”
“There’s no need to be like that.” Bastion huffed.
“Oh, but there is, Bastion. And I’m sure you’ll find your damn need down there in the depths.” Veronica scowled, then she begrudgingly walked off to the tents where the insane cries of the infected emanated from without as much as a goodbye. Bastion was on his own again, sighing as he watched her leave, her perfect blonde hair swaying in her angry steps. When she left his sights, he forced himself to turn towards the direction of the graveyard, and then, he moved forward, through the tents of the foreign village.
He passed the tents, heading toward the graveyards. He passed cries of pain, suffering, and sorrow. Some of the tents were open, and as he passed, he saw many things that shook him. He saw a child with a doctor by his side, rocking back and forth, sweating profusely, and murmuring inane insults to the ‘evildoers of the world’. The doctor was trying to comfort the boy, who constantly ignored his pleas. He saw a man, holding a baby in his arms, crying. This almost made Bastion stop, but he saw that the baby was fine, as it lifted it’s hand to the man’s face, touching his tears, making them run down it’s finger. The man whispers words of sorrow, such as ‘I'm sorry’ and, ‘I couldn’t protect her’. He saw a family in another tent, a little girl moaning that she wanted to go outside and play with her friends, and a mother who scolded her saying that it’s too dangerous, and not to dare disobey her. An old woman, sitting there cutting his arm, watching the blood dropping onto the floor. The screaming of a mother, over her son’s body. He was off in his own world, as he passed by the tents, witnessing such things. He was happy that even among people who were viewed as barbarians, he could still see that they were all, in fact, human. To a point, at least. They all had love, and affection. Positive emotions, that of love and concern. He knew not of what Veronica spoke of, that she would see how he would feel about the Blue Magi when they were done here. She was older than him, in fact, although she had been locked away for many years, only her mother to talk with her. She was ignorant of many things, and had a survivalist attitude, but was she correct about the Blue Magi? About those who would seize power over the humans of earth, and attack Cazria with all of their forces? Bastion remembered Veronica’s words from a month ago, before leaving with her to Korreal. She said that most Magi were not forces of mass destruction, and against humans, they’d likely be quickly wiped out. Was she talking about the Red Magi? Or both Red and Blue? What about the Seneschal, and those who bow to them?