Chapter 100

Chapter 100<~> Chapter 100

The five of us stared at the closed gate. Somehow I hadn't thought it would be closed right now. I looked around, there weren't many people in this part of town. The houses in the area were a bit more run down, implying this may have been a poor district. It seemed a bit odd because it didn't really feel that late yet, only a few bells after sunset. Many people would still be at bars and taverns around this time, it shouldn't be such a ghost town like this.

We got closer to the northern gate and found the portcullis pulley, the release was smashed. The guards who had been here earlier had closed it the quick way and left. We weren't going to be able to get out this way now. It seems like there might be more going on here than our attack in the tavern.

Silva's long ears perked up and she turned to look down one of the nearby streets. "I hear fighting."

I looked down the street she was facing. "More fighting? It's not just us then?"

She shook her head. "It sounds like a full-on battle. I thought they were looking for us at first but this explains how we got away so easily."

Bella looked worried. "Do you think they found Fae? Should we go see if we can do something to help?"

I paused. Ultimately they were looking for Fae, if there was a battle going on they could have found Tarklin after they went for us. I looked at each of my friends. "We vote. Everyone who wants to get involved and see if we can help Fae and Tarklin raise their hand."

Bella and Morrigan's hand went up instantly, Torien's hand hesitantly followed. I felt Mimi pulse indifference and Silva didn't raise her hand.

I raised my hand. "Let's go look. If we can help we'll get involved, if there's too many or they seem too strong we'll stay out of it." Everyone nodded, even Silva.

I looked at Torien. "You and Silva go first and help us avoid running into anyone before we get there."

"Sure, let's go." She glanced at Silva and started leading the way.

We traveled back through the city, this time a bit more confident in our course of action. Whatever had happened took the focus away from the six of us. Whether or not that was a good thing remained to be seen. We managed to avoid any more of the people in black brigandine on the way there but the sight that greeted us was not one I expected.

We had made it near the center of town where there was a full-scale battle going on between around sixty people. On one side of the conflict were the people in black brigandine, primarily a mix of demi-beastfolk and beastfolk with only a few humans in their mix. Several of the people had the miasma of demons hanging on their bodies, clearly visible now that I had the [Demon Hunter] title. On the other side were members of the Tamin church, their distinctive blue and white robes and paladin armor stood out in the open plaza. Naturally, every one of them was human.

The scene was madness. All of the surrounding buildings were destroyed, large holes were opened in the stone walls of the nearby shops. There were casualties on both sides at this point as well as the remains of civilians in the surrounding area. It felt weird being on the side of the Tamin church in this instance. We were watching them fight the people who attacked us not an hour before. But it was clear that they were not friends of the people here either, their magic tore just as many holes in the surrounding buildings as the people in black did. I doubted they had been any more discerning when using their magic based on where some of the civilians' remains lie.

I jumped when I felt a hand on my shoulder, it was Morrigan. "We need need to get out of here. This is too much for us and we don't know anything about what's happening here. Now that the people in the black armor are occupied we should look for Tarklin," she whispered to me.

I nodded. "Let's go back to the stable and see if we can find anyone."

As we made our way through the town we could tell the buildings were mostly deserted as the battle in the center plaza roared on. We hadn't been able to hear it from the edge of town but now that we were closer to the fight, the magic explosions and clashes of swords echoed off the walls. The only people we saw now were civilians hurrying to the eastern and western gates, after crossing paths with a few of them Mimi went back to hiding as a necklace on my neck. We passed the tavern we had been fighting in earlier, all of the bodies had been removed.

By the time we had made it to the stables the animals were gone, there was only a note nailed into one of the nearby beams.

"Anyone in the Silvergrove company that got left behind, head through the eastern gate.

-Tarklin."

"Looks like they evacuated this place. We should go catch up with them." I adjusted my cloak. Now that there were obvious sides in this conflict, I felt less confident wearing the enemy's armor around. The last thing I needed was to get into a fight with the Tamin church adherents too. At the same time I didn't want to get into another fight without it, one look at my shredded clothes revealed how valuable a little bit of armor would have been. If it hadn't been for Bella, I'd have been dead a few times over. I decided to leave it on.

She studied me for a moment. "Yes. The Elf- Tarklin Silvergrove has custody of his daughter. Sera Faelyn Morrister."

My breath caught. "Is she safe?"

"...yes." Her eyes scanned up and down Silva. "I had heard that the demi-rabbitkin here was her slave. Why is she with you?"

I turned to Silva who took that as an invitation to speak. "Lady Morrister couldn't handle being around me after what she had seen, so she sold me to Lilith."

Her eyes returned to me. "Lilith..." Suddenly I felt a large spell being cast around us, the feeling felt familiar, this turned from a simple conversation to an interrogation. "You are now in a [Zone of Truth]. No one will hear your answers except for the people here. I'm not going to hold you here but your answers will help me understand better which side you're on. If you would indulge me."

My hand curled into a fist. I didn't like how this was going but I didn't think it was quite time to leave just yet. Right now it's probably in my best interest to see this through.

"Lilith. I'll ask again, what do you know about this cult?"

My face hardened. "Nothing more than what I've told you. I didn't even know they were a cult before I heard it at the gate. All I know about them is they wear black brigandine and they attacked us tonight while looking for young-lady Morrister." I felt the [Zone of Truth] pulse, it agreed that I only spoke the truth.

The woman cupped her chin. "Strange. Then I'll ask this next. Have you ever heard of The Order of Lilith?"

My mouth went dry and the hair on the back of my neck stood up. What? "...No. I've never heard of The Order of Lilith ...though I think I might now understand why the church has been so interested in me." Truth once again pulsed through the room. "Is this the name of the cult fighting in the middle of town?"

She didn't answer immediately, she just studied my face, as if hoping to find some clue in my demeanor. Before my patience wore out she finally answered. "...No, this is an unrelated group at odds with the church." Corrine spoke the truth. "Curious, are you a demon?"

"No." Truth pulsed through the room once again. "Are you saying the Tamin church is fighting multiple cults right now?"

The priestess shifted in her seat, hesitating to answer. "Yes, there are multiple cults drawn to this area right now. We're unsure why. Next question. Have you ever summoned a demon?"

"No." Again, the [Zone of Truth] spoke of my innocence.

"A coincidence then? An odd beastkin, only barely resembling a male ram." Her eyes flicked to Bella for a quick moment before settling back on me. "A woman who lies with other women. You have multiple slaves but claim to abhor the practice. You have the miasma of demons hanging around you, yet you have slain enough of them to gain a title for it. Contradictions up and down."

I gritted my teeth. "How much do you know about me?"

"...Clearly not enough." The room pulsed with truth. "However, I don't think tonight is the night that I'll be able to find more answers, certainly not from you. I don't even have enough people here to hold you if I tried. You're free to go, the elf is about 300 paces east on the north side of the road. You won't miss it." The room pulsed with truth again, backing up her words and catching me off guard. I didn't expect this interrogation to suddenly end here but I wasn't going to complain.

Corrine sat down and immediately began drafting a letter, the dismissal evident. She didn't even bother dropping her spell yet as whatever missive she was penning seemed to take priority. I looked at my party then I held the flap of the tent open for everyone to leave. Before Bella stepped out she instead turned and looked at her mother. "Did you truly want to abandon your son? Did you hate him?"

Corrine looked up from her letter furious. "Yes! Now leave!" For the first time, I felt the spell pulse of falsehood and contradict her words. She snarled and collapsed the spell. "Leave animal!"

I took Bella's hand and pulled her through the flap of the tent. She had frozen in place, unprepared for the truth of her mother's words.

We walked in silence out of the camp and towards the east. I held Bella's hand, no longer worried that someone may see. The Tamin church already knew the people I loved, for better or worse. The six of us walked into the black night together.