Inferno Ascended

He must have been fair and equitable, but deep down Glax wanted to know what was in that bag. Grabbing the bag from Alexander's hand, he said,

"Well, to stop all this senseless mistrust that has been undermining our group since the beginning, I'm going to examine what's inside the bag."

"NOOOOO!" Zotikos cried.

"Cut it! You are not being tortured or anything. I am not the Spanish Inquisition."

"What?"

"I mean... We are a long way from Hylon. For them to come and punish us for one tiny peccadillo or whatever."

"In fact, we are relatively closer to Hylon than to Echelion." Zotikos didn't seem to understand that the speech was to benefit him, and blurted out his rules' lawyer opinion.

Glax shot a deadly look at Rhoas, who fell silent. It had been long enough for the other two warriors to find out where they were and go up the stairs.

"What's going on here?" Pydna asked.

"The Spamish Squirmishion," informed Alexandre, using his best language skills.

'Unexpected, as always.' The valosian sighed to himself.

"Okay, listen to me," Glax interrupted before everything got even more chaotic. "I am going to examine Zotikos' bag, to eliminate all suspicions. And I'll be right back." Glax was leaving when Tychos asked.

"Aren't you going to do this in front of us?"

"No. If I do it with one, I will have to do it with everyone."

"Why?"

"Because it's what is fair. You will either take my word on whatever I find, or you will have to subject yourself to it."

At a glance, he realized Zotikos was more resigned to the search, and preparing himself psychologically. He murmured prayers with his eyes cast down.

The two veterans looked at Glax with blatant suspicion.

"Um, aren't you satisfied with that? Listen, you look great at what you do. But this hostility towards Zotikos must stop or I'll be forced to dismiss the unit. I will let you know the important facts. The group that entered Klasidos was led by a person who once stood by General Chriseis. It's not surprising that he knew the password. He joined with non-humans, for some reason. They went to the capital and tried to steal my wife's body."

"...!"

"I really missed the satyr, but it wasn't on purpose." Zotikos revealed something more. "It's just that I dropped an instrument while running down the stairs ... And I couldn't see to take aim."

Glax couldn't help laughing. "Seriously?!"

He reached into the blue bag, and using touch, fished an object from there. A strange pair of goggles, with straps to tie around the head, but still a pair of glasses with thick lenses, anyway. "Oh, my god, how can you walk around without this?!"

He handed the accessory to its owner. Zotikos gaped at him for a moment, until he grabbed the object Glax threatened to drop if he didn't.

"T-thank you, Lord Glax. I practically only see blurred silhouettes without it. But I am an excellent archer with them. I was one of the best in the imperial academy."

Glax nodded, and looked at the warrior couple. "Was that Zotikos' secret? Nothing too impressive, to tell you the truth. What else is there? Your porn collection, Zotikos?"

Zotikos shook his head. "Am I not going to be punished for using foreign technology?"

"Nah. Our great general Nikandros defended Stygia with his mechanical prosthesis. Chriseis freed the Perseic Sea from a threat, and also wore a prosthesis. I think that sets important precedents. "

"But it's different. I am not ..." Zotikos started to speak, but Glax shut him up. "No. You probably didn't get it from a god like them. But that makes you functional for your squad, as their mechanical fixes allowed them to serve the clan. And I don't want to be under friendly fire, nor getting you stumbling during a mission. Then you will use this. Even if you have nearly destroyed your eyeballs by seeing too many orgiastic figures, I will need you to be seeing for the benefit of the group."

"It wasn't... lewd drawings. I studied hard when I was at court..."

"Were you at Hylon's court?"

"Yes, my family lived in court. My mother was an iatromancer there." The Rhoas explained.

"Ah, so that's where your rat attitude comes from." Tychos bared his teeth in disdain. "You guys fled for failing to save the emperor's bride."

Zotikos bit his lip, struggling not to speak.

"Speak at once, Zotikos!" Glax tapped Rhoas on the back: "So you lived at court, studying at the academy, training the bow as a sport... And suddenly a twist of fate made your family have to go back to the clan lands. You and your family feared for your lives because political opinions have changed. Like everyone else who used firearms, for example."

But Zotikos didn't spell the beans. "Sorry, I can't. I swore not to."

As he said this, Glax looked at the two warriors in front of him. They were finally uneasy when they realized their lochios knew about the forbidden weapons.

"You both need to change this mentality. I prefer Zotikos seeing what's in front of him. And if you are good gunmen, and we have to fight with something that is eliminated faster with a pistol shot than with another weapon, don't hesitate. "

"It's not a problem?" Pydna asked, incredulous.

"Dying is a problem. Don't forget we are in Hell. There has to be something better than that after death, but there may be something worse too."

"The Aegeons were the first Echelians to be trained in using firearms. This was against the wishes of my grandfather, the former archigeos... But the Echelian Council thought that at least one phrata must be prepared to fight with the same weapons as the Steam People..." Alexander reported.

"When the Sanction was announced, they didn't see us as warriors who sacrificed their honor for the clan." Tychos vented. "But as a shame for the Echelians. Many gunners and other experts left the Aegeons. At least the non krios who could do it, I mean. They preferred to go back to being shepherds and farmers, taverns, blacksmiths ... than to be called Aegeons."

"It looks like we are going to redeem our honor, ladies and gentlemen. The Aegeons are needed again." Glax announced.

"What's going on? Did you come here for a purpose?" Pydna questioned him.

Glax couldn't miss this opportunity for anything, and looked each of the four warriors in the eye.

"Fate tangled our paths with a purpose. I don't know what the Steam War was like, but something even more dangerous is forming under our noses. Monsters-machines. And now, these poor freak creatures, made out from our colleagues. I don't think spears and arrows are enough to stop them."

"And what will it take?" Alexandre asked, while the others held their breath in worried anticipation.

"Intelligence, courage and adequate weapons. We are perfect for that."

"Do you intend to go against imperial law?" Zotikos asked.

"Not exactly. Tomorrow, we will do our best to give Lord Arsenio a conclusive report. And if necessary, I will ask the Grand General for special permission to use foreign technology to deal with threats. The Grand General is the right person to speak to the Emperor about creating special rules."

Pure bullshit. He knew that spiteful old geezer would not listen to him. But it was not the time to bring out the technicalities.

Alexandre was going to say something, but he thought better of it and was silent.

"Good. Does anyone else want me to look in your bag? Or can I just believe that we are a team, and that we can trust each other to defend our backs? Are we going to show them who the Aegeons are?"

Pydna smiled. Tycho shrugged in a friendly withdrawal; Zotikos nodded vehemently, and Alexander punched his hand in unrestrained joy.

Glax nodded when he saw this.

"Excellent." He was almost convinced that he was a real leader.

::::::::::::::

The next day, early in the morning, they returned to the fortress, escorting the carts with supplies from a granary to the south.

Glax already knew that Kalliaris had spent the night exchanging information, and some fluids, in the tavern. And now, they knew that the day before, a group of shepherds had seen strange footprints across the moors. They thought it was a particularly large deer.

The village was already on alert since people who took the road to Stimhena, the nearest village there, never returned.

The former tagmatarchis had warned that no one should go there, not even those who had relatives in Stimhena, until everything was resolved. However, even the warriors who went to check didn't return.

But now they knew that some were coming back.

Upon arriving at the fort, Glax went to report the findings to Lord Arsenio. At least he didn't look like he was about to die. Apparently, the drinks the iatromancer left were invigorating the Kroton warrior quickly.

"What I would like to know, Lord Arsenio, is whether I can take my group and look for this mechanical centaur. He's one of ours. If he attacked you, maybe it was just a reflex or misunderstanding. I can vouch that the woman, at least, was suffering intense pain." The Valosian asked a direct question.

Arsenio scratched his beard thoughtfully, and Glax saw the internal struggle of the man who had lost the battle to an enemy that Glax wanted to help. A man metamorphosed into something tragic as in the old myths, punished by a god.

Realizing that the answer would be negative, Glax anticipated it.

"At least allow my squadron to use all the necessary means to end the danger that surrounds us. And that we will not be judged for anything that we think is the best at the time."

"Aren't you wanting too much, Glax of Valosia?"

"We have little choice, tagmatarchis.. Take it or leave it."