Chapter 15: Deception
"The hell is star powder?" Solomon raised a brow.
"A scourge on the human realm." The archbishop shed a tear. "A rather nasty drug made from purified monster cores and red aconite flower. It’s addictiveness is something that cannot be overstated."
Solomon had heard about drugs before, but he’d never seen them or knew anyone afflicted by them. No one was quite crazy enough to bring that kind of thing to the island of the destruction swordsmen after all.
"We’re transporting these sad souls back to the Vatican. There, the pope will cleanse them of their sickness and turn their lives over to the divines who watch over us all." Bishop Byrn turned his hands towards the sky dramatically.
"Glory to the Athanatoi! May they one day descend upon the realms so that we may bask in their radiance for all time! Amen!" He sang.
"..."
Solomon was unfond of priests. He couldn’t tell if the reason he was skeptical of the archbishop was because he overzealous or his own personal biases were coming into play.
So far, he just believed the man to be a little eccentric.
The Church of The Formless is a religious organization that worships the fabled Athanatoi. The Deathless Ones.
They are immortal, god-like men clad in armor that they never take off.
Supposedly, it was they who opened up rifts to other realms not populated by humans, bringing in new exploits to society and ushering about a co-mingling of the races.
The church does good, charitable works, but they’re largely unpopular due to their zealot-like clergy.
That, and the fact that everyone believes the gods they worship are figures from children’s stories and no more.
But worshipping children’s characters and transporting sick people wasn’t a crime, so as paranoid as Solomon was, he was content to let the ship go and continue their voyage.
But for some reason, he didn’t think Raizel was of the same mind as him.
"That’s all well and good, but I’m afraid we’re still going to need to have a look around..." Raizel was already looking past the giant he had been so enamored by earlier. "Dear old Dad would probably have my head if I missed anything..."
Archbishop Byrn stared at Raizel in a new light. "Your father is the Armageddon Knight.."
"The one and only."
"Most impressive! I have heard the legends of his fearsome battle against the Scythe Queen on the dunes of Emir. Thirty days and thirty nights of fighting is no small feat!"
Raizel smiled proudly. It was unnatural.
"It’s good you’re familiar with the legends. You know, my father’s told me some of his own in a few fleeting moments. Including about your church."
"...Oh?"
"I heard him tell this fascinating story once. He said that everyone Bishop ranked and above, had the power to cure hundreds of diseased people in an instant. I believe the spell was... ’Mass Cure Plague’?"
Byrn’s face twitched.
"So you can understand why I find myself asking the question... if you can heal all of these people yourself, why would you wait until they were transported back to the Vatican to get them fixed up?"
The archbishop was still smiling, but in contrast to earlier, his sincerity now seemed forced.
"...We have nothing unscrupulous on board. I am sorry to say that you are wasting your time here."
"Won’t know unless we look, will we?" Solomon yawned.
The troll continued to smile at them earnestly.
"Well... please, feel free."
Byrn turned around and started to walk away.
Raizel and Solomon shared a look between each other.
"RRRRAAAAAHHHH!!" The giant suddenly whirled around and slammed both of his fists onto the wooden deck.
The brothers had leapt into the air before his meteor-like knuckles could pulverize them.
"What’d you think of my little story?" Raizel unsheathed his sword as they fell.
Solomon discarded his cloak and brandished his sword as well.
"You made the Patriarch sound like a parent who tells bedtime stories. Only someone who didn’t know him would believe it."
"So I’m a good actor."
"More like a fantastical liar."
"All I heard was that I’m fantastic."
Solomon and Raizel dropped out of the air and drove their swords right into the shoulder blades of the archbishop.
The troll let out a deep roar of pain and flung off the two swordsmen.
"YOU HICK-FUCKING ROACHES!!"
*Whistle* "What kind of priest do you know that talks like that..?" Raizel flipped through the air and landed smoothly on his feet.
Byrn ripped off his glorious robes and revealed a physique covered in tattoos and leather armor.
"One who isn’t one." Solomon shrugged.
"Wait, now hold on a minute, let’s not judge people by their choices in undergarments. Maybe he was leading a different life before he joined the faith and now he’s turned his life around." Raizel offered.
"KILL THESE SELF-RIGHTEOUS PRICKS!!"
A flurry of cabin doors were suddenly flung open and men dressed in hoods and leather armor suddenly rushed out.
"Oop, never mind, they’re just bandits. My mistake, brother."
"You knew they were bandits the whole time, didn’t you?"
"I had a hunch."
"I have a hunch that I am going to fucking kill you." Solomon growled.
"Not if these losers beat you to it."
Raizel and Solomon lunged at each other with their weapons.
Their swords just barely missed each other’s faces and sank right into the necks of the two rouges who were approaching them from behind.
"Don’t we make such a good team?" Raizel smiled.
"Shut up."