Jackal Among Snakes

Chapter 227: Stony Flesh Echoing Whispers

Argrave came here in part to retrieve a treasure—or rather, a set of treasures—but it was not something he’d consider his primary purpose. He wanted two things from these Magisters—a safe escort away from the Tower, and then after… well, this living fortress’ head wasn’t the only thing that could move. But then, maybe he wouldn’t need the Magisters for that at all.

Argrave’s primary concern was getting through this fortress as quickly as he could while securing his party’s position for the second part of his journey. His haste was both for the temperamental Magisters he travelled with, and the disgusting atmosphere he found himself in.

Both of the Magisters wore illusions—Vera’s was acting, a metaphorical façade, while Hegazar’s was his spells. They agreed in advance Anneliese should stay near Vera, while Argrave focused on Hegazar. Only a rough guideline, naturally, but it was sufficient enough. At least, it needed to be, if the plan they’d brewed back at the Tower would work.

Most of what they travelled was a straight corridor of stone, yet parts of it had chipped away, revealing the pink, smooth flesh beyond that resembled the pink, soft flesh you’d see inside a body. He felt like an endoscope. In addition, what was still stone was oddly shaped—the pathway they walked, for instance, was vaguely reminiscent of a spine.

“This place…” Magister Hegazar looked around. “Magic’s dense. It’s so dense it’s like a gas in the air, pushing against my skin as I walk. There’s danger in a place like this. It’s like toying with the trigger for a beartrap. Quite a nasty fortress you’ve come to—we’ve come to,” he corrected.

“If you’re afraid, you might leave,” Magister Vera suggested.

“No, I wouldn’t consider such a thing,” Hegazar said smoothly. “I am merely reminded of you, grotesque little spider that you are. Reminds of how disgusting your home in Jast was.”

“At least I have a home and a family,” Vera rebuked as they walked.

Maybe Argrave was delusional, but he could’ve sworn that even Hegazar was not entirely unoffended by that comment. If he was, he didn’t miss a beat in replying, “Soon enough you’ll keep getting older, and they’ll all die one by one.”

“Near the end,” Argrave cut in. “Path branches here.”

“Branches?” Hegazar noted incredulously, still walking. “No matter. We have plenty of time.”

“We’ll need to split,” Argrave disagreed. “This place wasn’t meant to be entered alone. To open the way, multiple unique magic signatures are required.”

Vera stopped. “How would you know this?”

“It was true in the last one of these living fortresses I visited,” Argrave anticipated the question.

Hegazar stopped too, and his illusory form grinned broadly. “You’d gamble so much on past experiences, eh? Jerk two Magisters about on a chain?”

Argrave deliberated his response carefully, staring at Hegazar’s form in silence. Let them think I’m gambling, he concluded. Might lower their confidence in me, but it’s better than giving away too much.

“I didn’t have much choice but to gamble,” Argrave said quietly.

Though Hegazar kept his wry grin, his eyes sharpened like they saw an opening. “A correction, Kinslayer. Not ‘didn’t.’ You still don’t. Best hope the dice you’ve cast don’t end up snake eyes, hmm?”

“It’ll be fine, Argrave,” Vera soothed sweetly. “So, we split, yes? Into how many?”

Argrave looked ahead. “Three is all that’s needed.”

“I’ll travel with you, Kinslayer. I’d like you where I can see you.” Hegazar decided at once.

“Alright,” Argrave agreed without hesitation. “Anneliese, Durran… you remember my instructions?”

“Difficult to forget,” Durran said, while Anneliese nodded.

Vera’s predatory orange eyes jumped between all of them, and then she dictated, “I will go with Anneliese, then.”

Argrave narrowed his eyes at once. He didn’t want to display blatant distrust, at least not yet—he didn’t have them attracted enough to this treasure trove yet.

“Sure,” Argrave agreed, though the words felt heavy in his throat. “But why?”

“Want me to stay within sight?” Vera teased. “I merely wish to be away from that one,” she explained, looking at Hegazar.

Argrave glanced to Anneliese. She didn’t seem uneased by the idea, but Argrave surely was. “If that’s what you want… alright.”

“A blessing, truly,” Hegazar noted. “Come. Let’s enjoy a few moments of bliss, free of the despicable spider’s presence.”

#####

“So… partner,” Hegazar spoke to Argrave as they walked. It was only the two of them. Galamon remained at the point where the paths branched, ready to help any should the need arise. It was only a small comfort. “Finally, a moment alone… a moment to speak frankly.”

Argrave spared a glance to Hegazar’s illusory form, which walked just beside him. His true body walked a fair bit behind Argrave, obviously maintaining extreme caution. The Magister feared a trap, or general danger. He would be disappointed. The pathway of stone and flesh extended ahead of them for a long while, shrouded in darkness broken by spell light.

“You seem pretty frank generally,” Argrave said—a total lie, but Hegazar would probably believe it easily enough. “With how you talk to Vera…”

Hegazar groaned. “Bleh. Let us not speak of her—instead, let us speak of you… and that little elf girl you link hands with. Well, she’s little to you, at least—quite the giant to the rest of us. I think you could learn from my mistakes. One of few, though the biggest blunder of them all…”

Argrave couldn’t help but stiffen. The change was reflected in his tone, too, as he asked more monotonously than he intended, “What mistake might that be?”

“Well, I’m not one to stick anything where it’s not wanted, be it an opinion or a thought…” Hegazar wrung his hands together as they walked. “…but I will say this. You seem the ambitious sort. When you want something done, you’ll get it done. You’ve got light feet, and you’re running fast towards your goal. Even still, it’s best to travel lighter… partner.”

Argrave looked to Hegazar’s illusory form, studying the bald head and face. “What does that mean?”

“Your lady friend? She’s competent. I can tell that with my eyes alone… quite the beauty, too, though too tall for my tastes. That’s no issue for you, though, and I have nothing but compliments.” Hegazar raised a finger to emphasize his counter. “But that’s just the thing, you see. No one gets anywhere without being like us. Driven. Practical. She has a goal just like you do… and you might like that. I don’t care how statuesque some woman’s figure might be—smart is sexy. I certainly liked that about Vera.”

“You two were…?” Argrave expressed ignorance.

“Oh, yes. You’ve seen her. Quite beautiful, even though I wish she weren’t,” Hegazar mused, stroking his chin. “When she was but a humble Wizard, and I a High Wizard, I took her under my wing… tutored her, mentored her, raised her up alongside me until we stood shoulder-to-shoulder. A regular power-couple—envy of all in the Tower. Handsome me and beautiful her, linking arms, walking into the sunset with petals and doves flying in our wake…”

Argrave saw the apparatus he’d been looking for up ahead, veritably taking form out of darkness. He responded to Hegazar, asking, “Considering the current state, I assume there’s an ‘until?’”

“Yes,” Hegazar nodded very slowly. “There always is an ‘until.’ That’s the point I’m trying to make. We can rely on ourselves and ourselves alone. Things were straight out of a dream… until she decided that walking side-by-side was not good enough. She had taken so much of what I had… and then, she wanted to break free.”

Argrave heard the words… and though he could usually find some position to empathize with someone, he couldn’t find it here. Despite himself, he asked, “But what did she do to you?”

“Do to me?” Hegazar halted. His husky voice was low and sharp as he continued, “You don’t listen very well. Makes me think what you have to offer might not be worth my time.”

Argrave stopped and looked back. Hegazar’s true form walked up until it overlapped with his illusory body, and then both stepped to Argrave.

“I dedicated my time to her. My thought, my effort, diverted from my ambitions to help her. I severed ties with my family because of her insistence. I broke the rules of the Order countless times, because of her. She killed many people, you know… and I helped her hide that fact. She thinks she can trot off on her own, leaving everything before behind like it never was?” Hegazar’s voice had an icy fire in it. “I don’t think so, Kinslayer.”

As Argrave stared at Hegazar… he saw the dimmest shadow of himself. He was repulsed by the revelation until he examined it further. Hegazar was who Argrave would be if he had not left the Tower when he first arrived in Berendar. Bitter, self-serving, cynical… he’d only do something if he expected a return. He’d be an egomaniac, spouting out empty, wry lines constantly to disguise his nature.

Despite what Argrave had said when the hypothetical was brought up earlier, Argrave was near certain he could stop Gerechtigkeit if he had remained in the Tower. Ruthless practicality was a hallmark in optimal gameplay for open-world RPGs—if an NPC had something you wanted, you’d kill them to get it. Argrave could have let everyone suffer, work things out on their own… all the while he prepared only what was needed to end this world-ending calamity. No danger, no suffering, surefire…

The realization was like a sobering drug to Argrave. He felt validated in his choices thus far, seeing the miserable man that Hegazar was. With spirit renewed, he felt words come to him as easily as they ever had.

“At least she proved nothing can bring you down,” Argrave flattered. “Now—the spot to put the signature in is over there. I’ll take care of this. After all, this is a risky thing, relying on degraded enchantments.”

Hegazar looked to the apparatus, then shrugged. “Hmm… I can’t protest. My signature’s got a bit more value, after all… no offense.”

#####

“Anneliese, I wonder… have you ever been tutored by an S-rank mage?” Vera asked of her as they walked down their path alone.

Anneliese looked down at Vera as they walked, thinking of her answer carefully as she scrutinized the woman’s expression. “Yes, though not for extended periods. There are not as many S-rank mages in Veiden, and as a united nation without a neutral mage Order as Berendar has, each and all are expected to oversee and look after the new spellcasters. So, for a brief time, I received the same tutelage.”

“I see,” Vera nodded, and Anneliese got the impression that she was thrown off. “Quite an interesting place, your homeland.”

“I would agree,” Anneliese nodded. “Berendar interests me more, of late.”

“Yet…” Vera crossed her arms. “In your homeland, are women allowed to hold positions of power?”

Anneliese turned her head. “Patriarch Dras did not seem to care. But, historically, it is difficult for women to inherit anything.”

“Then it seems our two peoples share something in common,” Vera smiled as though she’d finally found a place to rest her feet. “The world is not fair to us, would you agree? I was the eldest of six sisters, yet all of us were passed over for the youngest child… a son. A child of ten. Now, my nephew, Delbraun, rules in Jast.”

“The path of magic is fair,” Anneliese noted.

Vera smiled. “And that is why I came to the Order as soon as I was able. That is why I severed most ties with my family. All are equal when magic becomes involved… or at least, judged by their true ability.” The Magister stopped. “Since then, I’ve been endeavoring to advance women in the Order. I’ve seen your badge and heard news of your promotion to High Wizard. Congratulations,” she said.

Anneliese paused with the Magister. “Thank you,” she returned, surprised by the sincerity.

“I think, given both your already-demonstrated talent and your womanhood… I could be a big proponent for you within the order,” Vera suggested. “Despite the Order’s relative fairness in terms of equality, even for women and elves like yourself… the fact remains most of our members are from Vasquer, and consequently bear its biases. It can be very helpful for us to stick together. And I’m sure you know, having experienced it… the tutelage of an S-rank spellcaster can be extremely valuable,” the ashen haired woman spread her arms out.

Anneliese studied the Magister in detail. Despite everything, none of what she proposed was insincere, at least not to Anneliese’s eye.

“That is very enticing,” Anneliese smiled. “…but I am travelling with Argrave.”

“I see,” Vera nodded. As Anneliese watched the Magister’s orange eyes, she was surprised by the turbulence of violent emotions hidden beyond them. They flashed for but a second, and then the Magister smiled brightly. “There is always room for compromise. Let’s talk more as we walk.”

“…certainly,” Anneliese agreed, trying to hide her unease as she followed.