Ch 43: Worth Having Faith In

As night falls, Angelorum Lux prepares to infiltrate Count Ferid's estate, leaving Bella, Serius, the bedridden Amy, and the other noncombatants behind. What awaits in Casa De Ala Morte?

            Gatria. Saturday July 14, 520NA. Frustrated, Ace exclaimed, “What the hell do you mean I can’t go?!” Having gone to Alexander’s room at the inn and requested to join them in going to dinner at the Count’s mansion, Ace found his request denied. Motioning for him to calm down, Alexander said, “I’m surprised to hear you so strongly desired to come in the first place. Don’t you have to prepare for the show?” Fumbling for words, Ace said, “Well, I mean, we’re almost done and all… What’s the problem? Is it something to do with being in Angelorum Lux?” After a moment Alexander muttered, “Something like that, yes…” Unwilling to give up just yet, Ace said, “Well, can’t you just put in a good word for me or something?” Adjusting his shades as he hesitated about telling him the truth, Alexander said, “It’s not so much that only members of Angelorum Lux can come, it’s that it’s too dangerous for others to come along with us.” Bewildered, Ace said, “What danger? You’re going to dinner, the only thing there is to be scared of is food poisoning!” 

Motioning Ace to enter his room, as Alexander shut the door behind them, he said, “I’m sorry Ace, but you might as well give up on delivering that letter.” Ace’s jaw dropped, and he sputtered, “You knew this whole damn time?!” Nodding, Alexander said, “Neither Loki nor you can slip anything past me. It was really rather silly of you two to go to the trouble of hiding it from me, seeing as I had no motivation to prevent its delivery.” Rolling his eyes, Ace muttered, “Something about not wanting to worry you…” His secret discovered, as he tried to reason with Alexander again, Ace said, “If you know about the letter, then you know what’s at stake here! If you don’t let me go with you, who knows what’ll happen!” Heaving a sigh, Alexander said, “Whatever is written in that letter, it won’t make a difference anymore.” Utterly confused, Ace simply said, “Why’s that?” Done beating around the bush, Alexander said, “Because tonight Count Ferid is going to answer for what he’s done.” With that he made for the door, opened it, and stepped out, leaving Ace quite stunned.

            Staring down Alexander, Bella said, “I’m going.” Clutching his head, Alexander muttered, “Why do I get the feeling I’ve been through this before?” Outside in the night breeze, standing in the light of the drop off area of the inn with Serius and Bella while waiting for the others to be finished getting ready, Alexander said, “Bella, do you even realize what you’re saying? If we take you along they’ll know exactly what we’re doing. Our plan is to go in there and act as if we know absolutely nothing. Besides, it would be dangerous for you as well. Serius, Rufus, and Schmitt will be here to keep watch, so just try and stay out of trouble.” Turning to Serius, Alexander said, “Try to keep an eye on Saria and Amy as well. I honestly wish she would get some rest herself, but Saria insists on watching over Amy now.” Nodding, Serius replied, “Very well. I am still suspicious of what befell Amy though. Her symptoms were strange, I worry she met with foul play.” Shrugging, Alexander said, “None of us sensed anything, not even Mythra. We examined her after we got her into bed, and there were no signs of drugs or poison. If it was indeed foul play, we have absolutely no proof whatsoever, and the only person she was with that could have done it was the doctor who saved Scott’s life.” Suddenly stepping forward and grabbing the collar of Alexander’s coat, Bella’s gaze was fierce as she said, “I’m still going.” Raising his shades, Alexander shot Bella a stern glare of his own and said, “You’re STAYING. Understood?” Sensing the foreboding tone in his voice, Bella released him and reluctantly moved to go back inside the inn.

            Lying in bed in his room at the medical center reading a magazine, Scott thought to himself, “Wonder what the others are doing right now…” Suddenly there came a knock on the door, and unable to think of who it could possibly be, Scott said, “Uh, door’s open.” Opening the door, Dr. Nova stepped in and said, “I hope I didn’t wake you.” The Doctor shut the door behind him and walked over to Scott’s bed. Waving his magazine, Scott said, “Nope, just reading something. It’s a magazine on mechanics, there’s some fascinating stuff here on Gai… I mean, in this magazine…” Pulling up a chair and taking a seat, the Doctor said, “Ah, so that’s your interest is it? I daresay it looks like we have a lot in common.” With a laugh, Scott said, “Oh, I’m no genius like you Doctor. I’m actually something of a soldier these days, though lately I wonder if I’m not just a burden to the others. I mean, here I am all beat up again because I bit off more than I could chew…” With a smile, Dr. Nova said, “So you’re a warrior as well? How interesting! Those friends of yours are all pretty strong then?” Nodding, Scott said, “Yeah. The guy who was in here the other day, Grey, he’s always been especially strong. Not just physically, he’s also got a really good heart. We’ve been friends for a real long time, and I’ve always looked up to him, y’know?” Smiling wider and narrowing his eyes slightly, the Doctor said, “I see. It seems to me like you’re struggling to catch up with your childhood friend. Tell me Scott, do you want to become stronger than Grey?”

            Blinking in surprise, Scott said, “Huh?” His smile changing into a mad grin, Dr. Nova said, “Do you want to become stronger than Grey? I can make it happen!” Starting to feel strange, Scott said, “What are you talking about Doctor?” Staring back into Scott’s eyes with a mad look, the Doctor said, “Don’t you want to be the hero here Scott?! Wouldn’t it be great?! All this time you’ve stood in Grey’s shadow, you’ve wished you could be just like him! When you were growing up, you’d always wished it could have been you who’d had such wonderful parents, that it would be you who would take on the Greyson family’s legacy!” Feeling dizzy, his vision blurring, Scott muttered, “How… do you know anything about that…?” Standing up and walking over to the door, as the Doctor locked it, he said, “Oh I know everything my dear boy! When you thought your childhood friend died three years ago, you tried to pick up where he left off! You tried to carry out his ideals, trying desperately to become him, but despite all your efforts his shadow continued to loom over you…” 

Whirling around suddenly, Dr. Nova shouted, “When does it end Scott?! When will YOU step into the spotlight?! Or are you satisfied with remaining one of his faithful sidekicks forever?!” Light headed and feverish, as he struggled to breathe, Scott said, “But… he’s my friend…” Scrambling back to his chair madly, the Doctor scooted it up to the side of the bed and leaned over to look Scott in the face, grinning maniacally as he said, “Who cares?! Don’t you see?! He’s only standing in your way! If you don’t cast him aside and stand on your own, you’ll never be free!” Withdrawing a strange device from his pocket and entering commands into it, Dr. Nova said, “I can give you the power to step out of Grey’s shadow for good, and once he’s gone you’ll be the new hero! All you have to do is let go Scott, let go and leave everything to your good friend Dr. Nova…”

            Sitting in the backseat of the hover car with Grey and Mythra, a rather discontent Fox said, “So why are we driving there packed together like sardines in our plain old hover car? They offered us a ride didn’t they? We could have had ourselves a freaking limousine stocked with Kapella on the rocks!” Glancing back from the driver’s seat, Alexander said, “Yes, I’m sure it would have been stocked with anything and everything one could desire. Maybe even a car bomb…” With a sigh of defeat, Fox said, “Fair enough…” Sitting in the passenger seat, Richter said, “Do learn to think about things before you open your mouth. This is not the time for your self indulgency anyway. Walking into this situation dead drunk is a surefire way to get killed.” Fox merely began to grumble to himself, and struggling to focus despite Amy being laid up in bed back at the inn, Grey said, “So you really think they won’t just jump us? If you ask me, it seems a bit too good to be true that we could just walk right in when we were the ones who saved Bella from his own assassin.” Staring out the window, Mythra said, “You’re probably right, but we can’t be certain until we get there. If we go there with weapons drawn, whatever chance we had of getting in without a fuss will be gone. Just act natural and stay ready for anything.” 

Then as an opening in the buildings gave her a view of the beach line, Mythra stared at a large platform constructed just off the coast where strange metal structures and various construction vehicles and equipment were barely visible. Pointing at it, she said, “I’ve seen that several times now, just what is that place they’re building out in the ocean?” Looking out at it, Fox said, “I’ve heard about that. It’s just some theme park that’s being put up by Ferid Co., which as you all can probably guess is owned by Count Ferid. It’s the most powerful company on Gaia, and it deals in just about everything. Ferid’s a rich guy, and he knows how to use it to get what he wants. We already know he’s running an assassination organization, so it ain’t all that hard for me to believe the other rumors. Long story short, he’s pretty much bought out all the major halman cities, using hefty bribes to keep the ruling nobles eating out of his hand.” Gritting his teeth angrily, Grey thought, “Why are the people in charge almost always a bunch of good for nothing b******s who think they can do whatever they want?!”

            Arriving at an enormous lot on the east side of town quite near the shore line, as they drove up to the front of the steel gate around the premises, Grey and the others stared through the bars of the gate at the gigantic four story building they would soon be entering. Looking almost like a castle with the towers it had built into its sides and the stone gargoyle statues placed around it in various spots, they wondered how many hundreds of rooms it could possibly have. Arriving at the front gate, the hover car stopped and a guard came from the small guard house at the side of the gate. As Alexander rolled down the window, the guard said, “Names…?” Alexander simply said, “Angelorum Lux.” Taken aback, the guard stuttered, “Y-you’re kidding right? In that old clunker?” Adjusting his shades, Alexander said, “Is there a problem?” Panicking slightly, the guard exclaimed, “No, no problem at all! It’s a real classic! I always wanted one myself! Terribly sorry to hold you up, I’ll open the gates right away!” The guard rushed back to the guard house and the gates opened. 

Navigating up the driveway, they arrived at the front of the building where a valet and a butler stood awaiting them. As they turned off the hover car and got out, the valet said, “Good day, honored guests. I will take care of your vehicle.” Bowing to them as the valet took the keys to the hover car from Alexander, the butler said, “Master Ferid sends his apologies that he did not come to greet you at the front door. Something urgent has come up at the last moment, and while he is taking care of it he asks that you make yourselves comfortable here in his humble abode.” Getting a mischievous idea, Fox dramatically exclaimed, “Oh really? He drags us all the way here and now he’s just gonna show up late to his own dinner party? Maybe we should just leave guys, I for one am not gonna sit around and wait for who knows how long without anything to drink!” Looking as though she might strangle him, Mythra said, “Is that the only thing you care about?!” Quickly trying to appease him, the butler said, “Please forgive our master’s delay! I assure you, if it is refreshments you desire, we would be honored to serve you our finest drinks while you wait!” Rubbing his hands together, Fox said, “Now that’s more like it! Lead the way Jeeves!” The valet drove off with the hover car as Grey and the others followed after Fox, who was hot on the butler’s trail.

            They followed the butler to a large circular foyer lit by blue tinted lights from a large chandelier hanging from the high ceiling. On the opposite side from where they came in were two large staircases leading up to a doorway to the second floor, and on the left and right side of the room were halls leading further into the first floor. As Grey and the others took seats in comfortable, somewhat ugly chairs set up around a decorative table, Grey asked the butler, “What’s with the blue lights? No offense intended but isn’t it a bit dim in here?” Smiling, the butler said, “My apologies. We get that a lot, but the master likes the certain… atmosphere they give.” Leaning back in his chair, Fox said, “Yeah, yeah, it’s some real nice mood lighting. Now about those drinks…” Bowing, the butler said, “Right away sir.” 

The butler hurried off, and looking around, Alexander said, “Things are going smoothly so far, though his décor might have scared off less courageous adversaries.” Staring at a portrait of what could have been one of Ferid’s relatives, Richter said, “I wonder if he intends to take a more diplomatic approach, try to smooth things over with words or bribery. The original members of Angelorum Lux are, after all, considered gods by his culture. Would he really dare to take things as far as attacking us?” Crossing her arms and closing her eyes, Mythra said, “He wouldn’t care. From what Bella’s told us, I’d bet the only things he believes in is money and power. That’s where his faith lies…” With a surprisingly serious look, Fox said, “Maybe so, but in the end, just where is the right place to put your faith? The mautauians? Origin? The Old Gods? Just where does our faith lie?” For a moment they all quietly contemplated this. Slowly, Grey said, “I don’t know if there’s any religion I put my faith in, but Dad always said if there’s anything worth having faith in, it’s ourselves. We aren’t gods, but we’re the ones who take what the world gives us and make something out of it.” Everyone but Fox smiled at these words. Then Fox smiled reluctantly and said, “I guess I shouldn’t have expected anything less from you hotshot…”

            Suddenly applause came from the landing at the top of the stairs in the back of the foyer. All turning in that direction, they saw Count Ferid leaning against the banister staring over at them. Dressed in fine clothes that were colored black and gold, his collar was adorned with black, feathery plumage, and he wore a long black and gold cape over his left shoulder. With a somewhat smug smile he said, “Welcome, Angelorum Lux.” Rising from his chair, Alexander said, “Count Ferid I presume? It’s rather rude to keep your guests waiting.” Laughing evilly, Ferid said, “My sincere apologies, I suppose you’d like to get on with my punishment wouldn’t you? Make an example of me to your devout followers, further the legend of the great Gabriel the Immortal? Is that what you think will happen here tonight? Huhuhu…” The others quickly rose as well, and rushing to stand beneath the landing, Grey looked up at him and shouted, “I don’t give a damn about that! Your days of playing god are over!” 

Struggling to contain his laughter, Ferid said, “Playing god you say? You mean what you and the mautauians have been doing for thousands of years? If it were not for me, Belladonna would not exist in the first place! The sprites of Ala Morte owe their existence to me, and I will do with them as I please…” Glaring at him, Grey formed his swords and muttered, “Like hell you will!” As the others all came over to back Grey up, Mythra formed her wand with a smirk and said, “If you think you can actually handle all five of us by yourself, you’re even stupider than I gave you credit for!” Forming his sword, Alexander said, “I may be no god, but if you intend to continue your atrocities upon the sanctity of life, I will be more than happy to send you to hell!” Forming his pistol, Richter said, “My, don’t we have catchy lines tonight?” Forming his steel gloves, Fox grinned enthusiastically and said, “Heh! Show off all you want guys, it’s my turn to be the one in the spotlight!” Suddenly the floor began to shake, and Mythra exclaimed, “Wah! Whoa, what’s going on?!” Alexander quickly said, “It’s a trap! Get away from-” The floor beneath them fell away and Grey and the others fell into the darkness below. Grinning wickedly, Ferid muttered, “Fools…”