Rise of the Godking

One day later.

Strolling through the streets that they had had to sneak through just a few days ago, Daneel, Mors and Alex looked like casual tourists who had arrived to take in the sights of the area.

While they ignored the longwinded explanations being given by the woman with silky hair and a silky voice, Daneel reflected that tourists were a lot like thieves. Both took in everything they could and imprinted them into memory, and where the former's motive ended with this act, the latter's begun.

They had already seen two or three defensive methods that neither of them had been able to glimpse on their covert scouting mission before. Each time this had happened, they had looked between each other, thinking about the fact that this was really the best way they could have gone about their task…for if they had chosen to move in on the vaults with only the information they had gathered then, they would definitely have found themselves in hot soup.

The reason behind waiting for a day was that as those with noble background, there was no way that they could act eagerly. They had to be patient, and hence, the day had passed quite enjoyably, in fact, due to the exotic dishes that kept being sent to them and the veiled invitations from men and women who sought to pleasure them in any way they might like.

Alex had had to be convinced to reject the latter. It was Mors who put his foot down and said that it was implausible for anyone with a background like theirs to succumb to such things. This had left the thief sullen, but he had settled for the food and wine, just like Daneel.

This morning, they had been invited personally by the woman for a tour, and they had obliged, already having planned to go out and finalize the minutiae of the rest of what they were going to do. The woman blathered on and on, the two men beside her constantly glancing in their direction to make sure they were entertained, or at least, not displeased, and in this way, the afternoon came and went without incident.

Towards the evening, they went to the vaults which were underground. A team of over a hundred guards was in charge of keeping them secure day and night. Knowing that they would be coming, all of the guards had had their weapons and armor polished, and the moment their contingent appeared, all of them made an impressive display of standing to attention and kneeling with their swords raised, as if they were ready to serve.

It had to be said that the three leaders were definitely apt in tempting those who might want to do business with them, especially now that they knew what was expected. Daneel counted them making at least five hidden invitations, all describing how happy they would be if they could serve in any way possible, no matter what it was.

As they had discussed before, the three of them walked out of the vaults with thoughtful looks. In silence, they were escorted back to the mansion they were staying in…and there, the others departed, leaving them alone to make their decision.

The moment he entered the room, Alex sprawled on to his chair again, and the elf sat down, looking much more unburdened now that he could see that everything was going smoothly. From the way he had acted until now, it was obvious that this was his first time being part of such a thing, but the ancient being was definitely taking it in stride, learning quickly about what he should and shouldn't do, and always looking regal and kingly, as he truly was one the princes that he was pretending to be.

"Alright. For the final step, I suggest that we—"

15 minutes had passed since they had been left alone, and Daneel had already finalized what they were going to do. He had just been about to explain it to his comrades…but a loud knock on the door suddenly interrupted him.

Feeling a faint prickle in the back of his neck that made him wonder whether something had gone wrong, he waited for Alex to get up and go to the gigantic wooden entryway of the meeting room. He threw them open with practiced grace, as if he had been born in the mansion, and furrowed his eyebrows when he saw the one standing outside.

It was Seline, and from where Daneel sat, he could see clearly that the calm that she had regained after yesterday's events was shattered, now, so thoroughly that she was a mess with her hair standing up in different directions.

Looking into Alex's displeased eyes, she shuddered and took a step back, her hand going to her mouth as if she both wanted to speak and wished that she could shut it and run away.

Standing up and going to stand beside the man, Daneel opened his mouth to ask what the matter was. Before he could do so, Alex understood that something was wrong, too, and made a gesture in her direction that demanded that she spit out whatever was on her mind.

Nodding her head a and finally summoning up the words that seemed to have been on her tongue all this while, she said, "I apologize for my state…but the mage—that bastard!— has run away! I tried to stop him…but he threw me to the side! Even after we sle—uh, he muttered something about his headmaster needing to know what was going on here! Please don't punish us for this! We have no hand in his treachery! We don't even know how to stop him…so I believed that the best thing to do was tell you! He might be able to get past your wards because he showed me an object, once, that he claimed could hide him from any means of detection!"

She blushed slightly, then, as if the way in which she had found this out was nothing decent, but ignoring her, Daneel turned in the elf's direction.

With a frown, Mors first waved at the door. Taking his hint, Daneel turned to Seline and said, "Worry not. He will not get far. He overestimates himself; in front of us, he is nothing. Go, now. We will take care of it."

The sigh of relief that came out of her when she heard him was so pronounced that her entire body sagged, and she almost looked like she was ready to fall on the floor and go to sleep right there. She was already heading back in the direction of the exit when Daneel closed the doors in front of him, and before he turned to the elf again, he received the answer for the unspoken question he had asked before.

"In the grand scheme of things, I'm not really that powerful a mage, as I still have a lot to learn…so it is very possible that whatever charm he has really is capable of getting past my wards. Thinking of this possibility beforehand, itself, and actually having learned to make backup plans from you, I used a spell to create a net, of sorts, around the island. It only looks for faint tremors on the ground, which will indicate the passing of someone on foot…and I'm confident that he is not skilled enough to fly. So…wherever he is going, we will find him soon. I must be present here to hold onto our disguises, so although it is not the best option…one of you has to stop him. If you catch him unawares, you should be successful."

Daneel looked at Alex to see whether he was at all interested in taking up the task. The thief shrugged to say that he was ready if he was called upon, but Daneel said, "I'll do it. Are there any rudimentary human spells you can give me that might help me out?"

The elf raised one eyebrow to show what he thought of what Daneel was asking.

"You haven't even begun learning anything! But…you were able to replicate that spell you saw. Maybe you have some natural talent, at least… well, watch carefully. I will give you three spells, all simple, but useful if deployed properly. Observe."

Taking a deep breath, the elf called upon the power in his body, and the other realm responded. Points of glowing light arrived, transformed, and weaved themselves into whatever he willed, and a minute later, Daneel had a hungry look on his face without even realizing it.

"From the way you look, I'm reminded of my own thirst for knowledge when I first began my journey. You can learn more later. For now, remember one thing: draw upon energy that is not yours too much, and you will overtax yourself and faint. If you feel even a hint of dizziness, drop everything you're doing right that instant. Now…go. Good luck to you."

With a firm nod to both his companions, Daneel turned to the door. Of course, he had been tempted to say that he knew all too well how it felt to draw on too much energy, but snuffing away the idea, he recalled the spells he had just seen...and actually found himself looking forward to the fight.