Chapter 83: Discovery
Sebastian looked genuinely perplexed.
Thrain observed him for a while, then spoke.
"I deduce that he was knocked out before the fight even began since the enemy was well aware of how this ability could turn the tide of the battle." Thrain continued.
In the wake of the attack, the Praesagius and the Brotherhood had lost numerous guards, but some people like Darius had survived.
" The only plausible explanation I can think of is that there’s a mole, a traitor in our midst,"
Thrain spoke nonchalantly, almost like he was discussing the weather, but the change in the atmosphere within the chamber was palpable.
The ramifications of such a thing were simply too frightening and unsettling. The Praesagius had numerous secrets that, in the wrong hands, could cause catastrophic damage.
" Well," Sebastian spoke quietly, " if that’s the case, then why don’t we have Victoria go through our heads? Surely nothing can be hidden that way."
Victoria nodded in agreement.
" I can do that."
"But what if she’s the traitor?"Seth scoffed, rolling his eyes derisively.
Victoria glanced at him with something akin to disgust, then pursed her lips.
" Idiot"
"What if you’re the traitor, Seth?" Sebastian snarled, his eyes flaring up with light.
"Or it could even be you, Liu. Both of you were noticeably absent at the aspirant’s ritual."
" Careful, old man," Seth drawled lazily.
" Don’t try to blame us for your failures."
Sebastian sighed, then wearily glanced away.
A split second later, his fist collided with Liu Zhen’s outstretched palm, stopping a few centimeters short of Seth’s face.
A shockwave rippled outward at the point of impact, rolling through the room.
Seth’s eyes widened slightly, then he grinned derisively, smiling from ear to ear.
"Oooh, scary!"
Sebastian forcefully snatched his fist out of Liu’s grip and sat back down.
"You must calm yourself," the blind man said.
" Violence will not achieve anything in this situation."
Thrain stippled his fingers together, the darkness in his mask swirling in on itself.
Victoria glanced at them in amusement, then rose from her throne.
"With your permission, I’ll take my leave now."
Sebastian threw her a curious look.
"You’re going there? Now?"
Victoria smirked.
"I could do with a break from all this raging testosterone and the childish antics."
Sebastian scoffed, rolling his eyes.
Very well then, you may take your leave." Thrain nodded, his voice echoing through the council chambers.
***
In another room on a higher floor, two men sat in silence.
Both men were clad in the same striking dark uniforms, with the only difference being the long cape attached to the shoulders of one of the men.
And the badge that marked the smaller of the two men as a Commande, one of the most revered positions with Praesagius.
The larger man had startlingly chilling blue eyes and an icy glare that could have frozen water into ice.
After the disappearance of some of the Praesagius recruits, Darius had returned to the HQ for a debrief.
"If only Gregory were still the commander," Norvax quietly said.
" I wouldn’t have to deal with this mess."
He let out another sigh, then turned to Darius.
Despite his outward apathy, the recent events seemed to have shaken even the brutish man.
Darius had dark bags under his eyes, and his face had become noticeably gaunt.
"You seem to have lost a few pounds, old friend."
Darius glared at Norvax, then turned away.
" It’s strange, and frankly also quite unnerving,"
Norvax observed him curiously.
" What is?"
Darius stared at him intensely, his eyes gleaming with a strange intensity.
"Damn, he’s pissed!" Norvax inwardly whistled.
" I didn’t even feel anything before the man knocked me out. It was like he appeared out of thin air, and the next thing I knew, everything went black."
Norvax nodded empathetically.
" I understand, I can relate."
Norvax still vividly remembered his encounter with Marcus.
The patriarch of House Snow had stood behind him the entire time before the meeting began, and he, who was supposed to be the Commander of the kill squad, had felt nothing; he had noticed nothing was amiss.
Until the man revealed himself.
It had been quite the haunting experience.
So, Norvax could relate to how his friend felt.
"No, you don’t," Darius bit out, grinding his teeth audibly.
" This entire thing, if I’d been conscious, I could have stopped it; everyone would be safe. But I let my guard down, and now everyone is paying for the consequences of my negligence along with me."
Norvax’s eyes widened in surprise, then he chuckled.
Soon, the sound of his laughter rang out through the empty hall.
" Are you even listening to yourself, you cocky bastard?"
Darius frowned, turning to the man seated before him.
" What did you say?" he asked in a low voice.
Norvax sneered.
" I said you’re a cocky bastard."
Darius lunged, his hands whipping through the air with inhuman speed, but Norvax was faster.
Within a fraction of a second, he jumped out of his seat, dodging out of the way. At the speed at which he was moving, Darius appeared frozen in space.
His eyes began to glow as he activated his ability.
Norvax moved behind him, grabbing Darius’s head in an iron grip.
In the next moment, Norvax slammed the larger man’s head into the table with enough force to kill an ordinary human being.
The table groaned, rattling under the concussive blow, but held.
Darius suddenly saw stars, then darkness flooded his vision. He momentarily lost consciousness.
His ability was promptly deactivated.
"What the hell?!"
When his eyes opened once more, Norvax stood behind him, holding his arm out at an awkward angle.
"What do you think you’re doing?" Darius growled threateningly.
" Beating some sense into you." Norvax snarled.
"I can’t stand the sight of you sitting here blaming yourself like the Videntis weren’t there. Like the Council of Assassins wasn’t present. There’s nothing you could have done, not at your current level of power. Much as I hate to admit it, we were all too weak to do anything. So don’t think you’re solely responsible for this."
At this point, Norvax was literally shouting.
"We all are!!! Even I got the better of you," he roared.
Norvax let go of Darius’ arm and stumbled back, his breathing turning ragged.
" Even the bloody Videntis failed to do anything," he growled in a hoarse voice.
" You’re right. And thanks, I probably needed that."
Darius sighed, rubbing the rapidly growing bump on his head. He winced, shooting Norvax an icy glare.
"But you’re still going to pay for this."
Norvax chuckled and slumped back in his seat.
"Yeah, yeah, whatever."
A moment later, the entire building trembled, the ground quaking beneath their feet.