Unbound

"Grandmaster!"

"The head of the Inquisition is headed here? Now?"

Everyone shouted at once, all of them in different varieties of alarm and anger. Bodie, Yan, and Kelgan all reached for their weapons, the rhythm of fear wafting palpably from their Spirits, while Harn simply grimaced. Evie leaned back on the couch, patting her chest. She'd nearly choked on her sandwich.

"We're gonna have to fight more of them?" Evie said with a cough. "You think they'll tell that I blew up a bunch?"

"You mean I blew them up," Atar said distractedly. He sat heavily in an armchair opposite Zara. "We're all dead."

Felix held out his hands. "Hold up. I need this explained. Who is the Grandmaster Inquisitor?"

"Leader of the Inviolate Order of Inquisition, the second most powerful branch of Hierocratic rule. And one of three Grandmasters in the entire Hierocracy," Cal supplied. She gripped the hafts of her long daggers. "What I need to know is why this wasn't reported to me earlier."

Zara frowned, just slightly. "I have eyes on them. Those that left were Acolytes led by a handful of Initiates—normally more than enough to handle any troubles along the Pass, but no longer. They have been waylaid this past week, barely able to move beyond the Iron Gate."

Cal, and everyone else, relaxed slightly. Felix cleared his throat. "Iron Gate? I've never been through the Verdant Pass. How long is it to reach Setoria?"

"Bronze Gate is about a quarter of the way to Setoria. After that you got the Iron Gate at the halfway point, and the Tin Gate a bit after. Takes a month, easy," Evie said. She set aside her food and leaned forward. "That's merchant time, though. Redcloaks shoulda been movin' faster. What's the hold up?"

"Monsters," Zara said simply. "The wards that protect the Pass are maintained by Haarwatch and Setoria, each handling their end. Haarwatch hasn't bothered with its wards in weeks. Not since the Eyrie fell."

"Which means beasts from the Wilds are likely flooding the Pass," Cal said. "That's a spot of luck I hadn't expected."

"And it means we can stop them," Zara said.

"If they get to Setoria, what then?" Felix asked. "Is the Grandmaster there?"

"Blind gods, no. She'd have no reason to be," Cal said. "But there is a Waystone, and with that it will only take a single sunrise to send word to Amarath."

"A Waystone?" Felix asked.

"Magical doohickey, sends coded messages to other Waystones. Big bastards, too," Evie provided. "Not gonna find one of them in every city though. Expensive to make, I hear. Pathless' folk just keep them in cities they care about." She gestured around her. "They didn't care much about Haarwatch, before."

From what Felix had gathered, the Hierocracy worshipped the Pathless as a sort of state religion. Unlike the missing gods that the choristers worshipped, the Pathless was a deity that seemed to delight in ignoring its faithful. Their god's creed was something akin to benevolent disinterest, though the Orders had congealed around three particular tenets. Felix had heard most of it from others, but the gist was that they sought Order, Strength, and Purity. Not in any particular sequence, but that's what everyone harped on about.

They were taught that all have a place in society, violently discouraging social climbing, and that all places were secured with strength. Those who were strong rose to the top, to provide for their lessers and being supported in turn. Order and Strength. The last one, Purity, was best exemplified by their zealous hate of anything regarding Sorcery. The magic of the Chant, and the Grand Harmony. He didn't really know why they hated it, except that it was outside of the hierarchy of the System. Maybe that was all the reason they needed.

To Felix it was a system to keep things they way they were. The Haves and the Have-Nots, same as on Earth. Except on the Continent people could bend steel bars with their bare hands and—if they advanced enough—lived for centuries, so keeping the lower class weak was almost a death sentence, especially once monster attacks were factored in. The Pathless seemed like a dick.

All things considered, however, an absent god was his favorite kind these days. Last thing he wanted to do was get tangled with another one, any time soon. Felix had reservations about anything so powerful. Gods, Primordials, or otherwise.

He had Vellus—the Goddess of the Storm, Blood, and Tides—to thank for the current strangeness to his core. Cores, plural, he corrected himself. Though she had help. The Unending Maw was just as involved.

"So Grandmaster, is that a Tier or a title?" Felix asked.

"The leader of the Inquisition is always the Grandmaster, and below her are three Master Inquisitors. I believe you met him," Zara said, giving him a flat look. "However, their Tier does not have to be Master or Grandmaster to earn those positions. Unfortunately for us, in this case she is both."

Felix felt his gut drop. There were basic Tiers of advancement on the Continent as he understood it. Beginner was between Skill levels 1 and 25. Apprentice Tier was 26 to 50. Journeyman was 51 to 75. This was followed by Adept and Master Tiers, each with increments of twenty five separating them. Beyond that, Felix had a hazier grasp of things, but it kept going.

"A Grandmaster existence is miles above even myself," Zara admitted. "In the Hierocracy, only the Hierophant is of a Tier higher than her three Grandmasters."

"You think she'd actually come out here?" Yan asked, his face serious. "I mean, the Primordial isn't even an issue anymore."

"They don't know that. But they do know that the Master Inquisitor was killed here. That alone should be enough for her to take interest," Cal explained with a dark look. "How do we stop it? Can they be stopped, even waylaid by monsters?"

"There is the threat of the Grandmaster coming, but it is not yet assured," Zara said. She sipped her glass of water calmly. "And I have...methods to catch them. But it requires that I ask a boon, Lady Haarwatch."

Cal raised an eyebrow. "A boon."

"Indeed. I would have left already, had the city been in a state that it could be abandoned. Now I am ready, but I need a few strong arms and skilled fighters. Can you spare me some volunteers?" Zara looked to Cal as well as Bodie.

"Bodie?" Cal asked.

"We've some to spare, but how many will you need? What's the plan?" the big man asked. "I'll not send my people into a fruitless battle against the redcloaks. Not again."

The ward on the door faded as a light knock sounded. Moments later, a woman wearing half-plate armor stepped into the room. She was covered in dirt, dust, and a little blood—she grimaced as everyone turned to look at her. The door shut behind her and the wards reappeared.

"My apologies for my late arrival," Vess said, her grimace turning to a rueful smile. "There was work to be done."

"Didn't miss much. Just planning on how we can ambush some redcloaks before we're all killed," Evie said cheerfully.

"What?"

"The path we seek is not for those faint of heart," Zara continued, looking back to Cal. Felix saw Evie pull Vess aside and begin to whisper. "News spreads slow in the wake of our tragedies, but the Verdant Pass has become quite dangerous. What I will ask of them is neither safe nor wise, but it is the only way if we are to head them off before they reach Setoria." She took another, calm sip of water. "We will traverse the Dark Passages."

"Madness," Cal hissed. "You will lead men to die."

"They will be protected," Zara said, tapping one of a number of amulets strung around her neck. The woman wore a flowing gown intermixed with hardened plates of armor. Battle robes. "I have enough to furnish seven, aside from myself."

Man, I'm getting tired of not knowing all these terms, Felix thought. Lessons in Chanter magic had continued, but his knowledge of common subjects remained lackluster. Waystones, Dark Passages.

"Okay, so we need a team to go after the Inqusition," Felix said as he stood up. "But there's no way to know if the hostile neighbor is Setoria or the Archon. So we also need people to head into the Foglands. Right?" Felix started pacing as he spoke.

"I've already begun sending teams into the treeline to secure lumber and herbs to renew our stock," Cal said. "The minor Quests I'm allowed to issue have given rise to many volunteers. But few have gone further than a mile beyond the edge, and our scouts have not yet returned."

"So we don't know if the Archon is doing anything, then?" Kelgan said. "I'd think another beast horde would be easy to spot."

"Nothing's been seen, and the treeline has been quiet this whole week," Felix said. "The...Legion haven't had to fight a thing."

"I mean, would they notice?" Evie asked. "They're all green with a single battle under their belts."

"They're vigilant, I'll give em that," Harn said. "Standin' watch at the Wall all hours of the day."

Felix stopped pacing and turned to Cal. "Do we have enough people? To keep Haarwatch running, repair the Wall, and carry out two simultaneous missions?"

"I assume you'll be going into the Foglands, Felix?" she asked.

"I—" he touched the sword at his waist. "I have to. Got a Quest of my own, after all." He'd shared the particulars on his Quests with Cal and a few of the others. "I'd need a team of my own, though."

"Good," Evie said with a stretch. She slung an arm around Vess' shoulders, both of them smiling at Felix. "We're gettin' bored here, anyway."

Atar stood up. "If they're going, so am I. I'll not turn away a chance to grow stronger."

Alister sighed. "Fantastic. I suppose I'll come along."

"We'll work out the details in the morning," Cal interrupted. "But yes. We can make this work. The city has enough people working to replenish it's stores. I'm told the mines are starting to produce ore again, and not just iron. My concern, however, lies with what must be done. The threat in the Territory Quest could refer to either the Inquisition or the Archon. Neither are forces a small group could fight against, not directly. All of you risk your lives on these missions."

"Haarwatch and the people inside it won't survive if the Inquisition or the Archon come for us again," Zara said. "It is either attack or run away entirely. Abandon the city and the Authority."

"You know that's not an option," Cal said.

"Then we attack. If we stop the messengers, then we will buy enough time to further secure the city," Zara said. "Our course of action seems clear, yes?"

"Good. Then those of us who need it, sleep. The rest?" Cal looked at Felix. "Get to work."

Cal gave out her orders to everyone, and like that the meeting was over.

"Felix?" Zara called. "A moment, if you will."

He met the eyes of Evie and Vess as they left Cal's office and gave them the handsign message for "see you in a bit." Felix turned back to Zara, who was still near the overloaded desk with Cal. Everyone else filed out.

The doors closed on their own, and the sound ward reestablished itself.

"What can you tell me about this Waterfall Temple?" Cal asked as he approached them. "That's where you're going, right?"

"Yeah. It's located deep in the Foglands, past the city of Shelim and the Labyrinth. I'm not entirely sure how far, because I didn't travel back here in the normal way." Felix's mind flashed back to the Void. "It's not a path I'd recommend."

"The city of Shelim is about two weeks travel by foot," Cal said. "We walked back from there after you'd cleared the fog. It's treacherous ground out there and filled with dangerous beasts. We ran into only a few, but you'll have to be careful. Who knows what's changed since the fog lifted."

Felix nodded. The Foglands had never been safe, though the Razorwing Skinks couldn't threaten him anymore. "The Temple is hidden behind a waterfall, and I've got the only key. I'm not concerned much about the Temple so much as what's inside it. The Quest only describes it as darkness, and I can't say that language fills me with excitement."

Cal barked a laugh. "No, I'd have to agree. It may even be the hostile neighbor my own Quest indicates."

"To get to the Temple, will you pass over the Archon's Domain?" Zara asked.

"Yeah. I think his is below the mountain range to the west of Shelim. I went through a cave system below it, which is why I ended up in the Domain originally," Felix said. "I'll keep my distance, unless he's managed to break his Domain already. Then the whole plan goes out the window."

"You think he knows about the Temple?" Cal asked.

"The Quest indicated he was close, and I know he was aware of a Nymean Temple because, ah," Felix flushed slightly. "I may have told him."

"What?" Zara said, and he could actually feel her Spirit shake. "How? Why?"

"Coercion, when we first met. But I don't think he knows exactly where it is." Felix recalled the Archon knowing of the Temple, but he had tried to get Felix to reveal the location. "Like I said, if the Archon is free my whole plan will change. Based on what the Quest said, the last thing we want is the Archon reaching the Waterfall Temple first."

"Why not remain here? You hold the key to this Temple, so how will the creature reach it?" Zara asked, but Felix saw through the question. The Naiad always seemed to be baiting him, asking leading questions or...testing him. He still didn't know why.

"He doesn't strike me as the type to take no for an answer," Felix said. "Who's to say he couldn't force the lock? I've no clue how powerful he is, other than he threw me around like a ragdoll when we met. I've grown stronger, but the only other thing I've seen break a Domain was the Ravager King, and I only defeated that because of its connection to the Maw."

"Then, the plan?" Cal asked.

"Get in, find the Temple again, stop whatever my Quest says is threatening us, get back out." Felix grinned through the sour roil of his belly. "Easy peasy."

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