Episode 3: Chapter 4: Belly of the Beast

Chapter 4 of Episode 3 of War of Seasons

            Miles felt like he was floating in a dark abyss, surrounded by shadows trying to scratch and tear him to pieces.  He tried to fight them off, but the more he fought, the greater his pain grew.  He eventually curled up into a fetal position, just deciding to accept the pain.  As the claws grew closer, a loud laugh started to grow.  Louder, and louder still, until Miles looked up and saw Nathan’s face peering out from the cracked mask of Lord Tenebris, his laughter drowning out all other senses.

 

 

 

            Miles’ eyes shot open, as he woke up from his nightmare.  At first, he didn’t feel anything, but then a sharp pain coursed through his entire body.  There wasn’t any part of his body that wasn’t feeling pain.  Trying to push past the pain, he tried to regain his bearings.  He realized that he was suspended in a medical tank, floating in the healing gel, but only to keep himself barely functioning and not to heal his wounds.  There was also a device that was draining his aura to the point where it couldn’t heal him along with the gel.  He was being held in a state of brokenness.  He tried to see out of the containment pod, but struggled to see anything other than the goo and a few different colors.  He couldn’t tell if there were any guards or anything of that nature.  Deciding it was worth the risk, he conjured up what little aura he had available to activate his Semblance, and push the gel outwards, causing the glass to crack and break open.  Miles fell out of the chamber, several warning noises came from the medical machines, but there weren’t any security alarms going off, at least that were audible.  He struggled to get up, and make his way towards the door, limping and clutching at his side, trying to fight off the pain.  All he had for clothing was a pair of boxer shorts and an undershirt.  He knew he would stand out in an instant.  As he opened the door into the hallway, he saw that he was on an airship, and it was floating over a city.  As he limped his way towards the window, he saw that the airship was flying over Vale, with Beacon off in the distance.  Looking down on the streets below, he saw the soldiers of the Order simply marching through the city, no one stopping them whatsoever.  He wanted to find out what was going on, but he knew that things weren’t going to remain in his favor for long.  Knowing that if the majority of the Order’s forces were on the ground, that meant he had a chance to get some answers and some medical supplies.  He limped his way back into the room that was holding him, hoping it would contain some bandages or other painkillers.  As he looked around the now distraught room, he found a simple first aid kit and some basic bandages.  He grabbed those, and quickly bandaged his more major wounds as well as grabbed whatever painkillers he could.  As soon as he was bandaged up, he started making his way through the halls of the airship, doing his best to try and remain hidden from the few security guards that remained on board.  Miles debated where he should go from here.  If he should try to escape the ship, if he should try to sabotage the Order, or if he should find more answers.  His mind was still racing regarding the last thing that he remembered.  He kept thinking back to that moment at the mountain. Seeing and realizing Nathan is Ferish Tenebris and staying behind to face him while the mountain collapsed around him.  Miles kept thinking back to Nathan’s face, and the lack of remorse or hesitation that he had in his eyes.  Miles shook his head and continued to make his way through the ship.  Suddenly, two guards appeared out of a side door that was almost hidden on the side of the wall, almost right on top of Miles.  He quickly slid up against the wall, hoping the guards didn’t see him.  The two guards moved on past him, and Miles slipped into the open door that the guards left open.  The door shut itself automatically, leaving Miles in a strange hallway.  Looking around, Miles saw that this was a short hallway leading to a stairwell leading deeper into the airship.  He looked down the staircase, and decided that it would be best for him to continue moving forward.  As he made his way down the staircase, he was able to see what he was approaching.  It looked like any normal brig, but it seemed a bit more barren than most brigs in airships.  There were plenty of cells and holding areas, but no visible prisoners or anything like that.  There were some cells holding files and other boxes, some cells holding crates of Dust, and another holding the Relic of Death and Life.  Miles thought about trying to get the Relic of Life to heal himself, but he saw that the cell was much more heavily encrypted by Order security than the others.  He decided not to chance it, and continued forward.  He reached a cell holding a lot of loose items and broken weapons from previous battles.  He saw his swords and his coat sitting in there, not locked in any box or anything of that nature.  He looked over the cell, made sure there weren’t any security cameras or sensors that he was missing, and grabbed his weapons and put his coat on.  There were a few tears in the coat, but he was simply glad to have something other than a shirt and shorts.  He also found his Scroll, which had very little power left.  As he exited the cell, he noticed that there was a giant security wall sealed by even more security measures compared to even what the Relic were being protected with.  Miles walked up and stared at the wall, not sure what to make of it.

            “Truly impressive” a new voice cut in, “what one will do to try and protect their secrets.”  Miles looked around to try and find where the voice was coming from.  He then saw a single cell filled with medical equipment and supplies, was a single man hooked up to all of them.  There were so many machines flowing into him, it almost seemed as if removing one single tube or vial would cause him to keel over an die.

            “Who are you?” Miles asked as he approached the cell.

            “You don’t recognize me?” the voice mocked.  “I’ve been near ever since your journey began.  I was the one who helped ensure that there were only a few who survived the attack on Aequo.”  Miles’ eyes widened, and he pulled out his black sword.

            “Memoriare” Miles said with a cold voice.  “How are you still alive?”

            “Mostly sheer willpower” Memoriare said with a chuckle.  “But also by the grace of the new superior.  Or rather, temporary superior.”

            “Planning a coup of some kind?”

            “Nothing of the sort.  She is simply keeping the seat warm for when the true superior returns.”

            “So, that’s why the Order took Mortem’s body in the dark realm.  You plan on resurrecting him.”

            “Very good young one.  You pick up on things faster than most.  Too bad your former friend is too blind to see what is happening.”

            “He’s only blind because you probably messed up his memories!” Miles yelled hitting the bars with his sword.  “What did you do to Nathan?  What memories did you alter to make him think that the Order are the good guys and make him betray his family?”  Memoriare laughed as Miles threatened him.

            “I did nothing” Memoriare said with a cough.  “I’ve been strapped to these machines for years.  Practically nothing more than a ghost living in this wretched hole waiting to die.  I have had little interaction with the temporary superior outside of her explaining her plan to me.”

            “Stop avoiding the question!  What did you do to Nathan?!”

            “I already answered you.  I did nothing.  The Order did nothing.  It was all Imperia.  She was the one who found your susceptible friend, she was the one who knew of his potential, and she was the one who guided him to his true destiny!”

            “And his destiny is to help you resurrect the man that killed his home?!”
            “His destiny is to live and die as a tool of the Order!” Memoriare said as he coughed up a bit of blood.  “Imperia has your stupid friend eating out of the palm of her hand!  He thinks that the Order is going to use the Relics to bring back everyone from Aequo back to life!  Them and all the people that he wants to resurrect himself!  He has no idea of our true intentions!”

            “So, you’re saying that Nathan is being lied to?  Why tell me all of this?”

            “Because I want to see you try to find that last spark of hope.  That idea that you can still save him, only for it to be snuffed out in the end.  You and the rest of your stupid friends act irrationally when somebody you care about is on the line instead of focusing on the mission before you.  Besides, it won’t matter once Lord Mortem has returned.  Soon, everything will be back in its proper position, and we will take our rightful place as masters of this world!  That fool Nathan may be merely a tool in our greater plan, but, he is a tool that has turned against you.  Make no mistake, he may not agree with the path of the Order once that becomes clear to him, but he has also come to a conclusion that you are his enemies.  Even if you told him the truth, he won’t believe you!  Why, he could see the truth with his own two eyes, and he would more than likely twist it to make himself the hero, and leave you all as the villains in his story.”

            “I have no time to listen to the ramblings of a stupid old man” Miles said as he turned to head back up the staircase.  Memoriare coughed and laughed some more.

            “It’s ironic!  He wants to avenge the death of his mentor by finding her killer, but now he serves the one who took her life!”  Miles didn’t say another word, he simply made his way back up the staircase, trying to stay conscious, fighting back against the pain and the stress that was building in his brain.  Once he got back to the top of the stairwell, he could feel the rumblings of the engines as the airship began its startup cycle.  Miles quickly dragged himself towards a nearby air vent, and hid within the vents to avoid being spotted.  From there, he pulled out his Scroll, and activated his emergency homing beacon.  As the airship began to move forward, he clutched his wounds even tighter as tears rolled down his eyes.

            “He’s still in there….he has to be.”

Author's Note

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Reviews

[Shep]

well, that held lots of information had to come by and take a look to see if you added more to the story now that I am stuck in the house without anything to do but watch the news of the day as the days get worse, not better. Plus I needed something to read. Lots of things are happening in this chapter looking forward to the next one as I move forward. Please be kind and return the love.