Lit up by the light from the moon, even the largest buildings appeared minor, from the top of Magnus keep. It had been built on the highest cliff in the city. First, it was only a chapel, the first one ever built, but a few centuries later, the great keep of Magnus was built around it. Although it was a matter of debate, whether the chapel had been built inside the keep or the keep built around the chapel. None remembers it all happened some millennia ago.
In the yard, outside the chapel, stood a statue of Magnus. In his full armour, he pointed down towards the centre of Avenheim. According to the legends, he had said. "Here! The city will lie!"
Aldus himself was now standing by the feet of that same statue. There he had found Marseile, sitting in a full lotus position, with his great golden coated marshal sword resting on his lap.
"I never took you for a man of meditation." He said, curious by his finding. The Templars were known to outlaw anything foreign. "Eastern meditation... Isn't that heresy... As you say for everything?"
Aldus awaited a response, but none came. Marseile did not move, nor did he answer.
"I mean for me... I don't care if it would be." Aldus continued as he felt awkward. He had wanted to meet with Marseile, to get more information of Leland Ambeder's death in their dungeon. But more importantly, he had heard rumours that his beloved little brother, Cedric, had been involved with Leland somehow. The fact that Cedric had disappeared in connection to Leland's arrest didn't help to quench the rumours either. Aldus knew, if his family is involved in the murder, their enemies would come for him, even he had nothing to do with it. He just hoped he was informed enough to navigate through all this turmoil Leland's death had created.
The happening was on top of everyone's agenda. Wilfred himself had gotten infuriated beyond belief. After finding several strange bruises on Leland's corpse, Wilfred had claimed that Leland had been severely abused. In addition, the marks from the snare that allegedly Leland had used for his suicide didn't seem to match the snare, spymaster Didrick had told Wilfred. Naturally, Wilfred had condemned the Church and the Templars at the high court. Although he didn't dare to go so far as to accuse them of right out murdering Leland. But now, this morning, words had reached the Capital that Brad Ambeder had taken action into his own hands. He had closed down all Church and Templar business, prosecuting priests and templars within his lands. Grand Marshal Alois and Supreme Cardinal Gilles were now riding to meet with him, hoping to resolve the situation. "A foolish ploy from their part!" Dale had said to him while sharing the news. "What do they expect will happen? Perhaps Brad will take the opportunity to arrest them as well." It was an amusing thought. Although, it would leave all the power of the Templars to the man sitting just five meters away from him.
"You of all should know better than that." Marseile said, looking down over the city. "My mind is at discord with itself, the path is not clear to me..." He slowly got up on his feet, keeping his sight on the city. "You requested an audience?"
"Well audience is rather for Kings and Emperors, I believe." Aldus said, stepping closer to Marseile.
Once again, Marseile did not leave him any reply.
"In contrast to your Grand Marshal, I have always considered you being a practical man." Aldus continued. "Most of all, you work in the shadows, discreetly."
Marseile turned around, facing Aldus with an empty face. "Yeah, and what is that to you?"
Aldus smiled right at him. He disliked the man. He knew the type, utmost righteous and arrogant. Should be impossible to cooperate with, but he was ambitious enough to be useful if you play them right.
"No... Nothing about it." Aldus said. "How come you never reached out to me?"
"What do you mean?" Marseile said, keeping his empty face. "This is why you have gone through all the trouble? Asking me that?"
Annoyed, Aldus touched his forehead with the top of his fingers. "I am handing you an opportunity here. One you should thank me for."
Marseile remained unaffected. "If you are handing me an opportunity, it's difficult for me to see it."
"You don't see it? If you can't see it, then perhaps I have underestimated you."
"I think not..." Marseile said while looking away. "It's true, you are of high noble birth... But you are not the heir of anything, nor will that ever change. Cedric will inherit before you. Hell... I think your father would rather raze his own castle than give it to you."
"And you really believe this to be the case?"
Marseile made a sound that resembled a laugh. "Not only me... A better question would be. Who doesn't believe that would be the case?"
The frustration grew in Aldus. This man, a lower born, devalued him. He couldn't let it stand. "How dare you! If you just knew..." Aldus lashed out, then quickly regained control of himself. "I know you are plotting something with my father. What I can't figure out is why he chose Victoria as his ambassador. If you knew her... Well, I wouldn't have dared to take those risking, knowing what I know."
At last, Marseile's faced moved. "You mean the Empress and the lord of Morgsdale? Excellent companions, don't you think?"
"In this situation, I think not." Aldus snapped.
"You would prefer Wilfred?" Marseile said, regaining his empty face. "What was your plan there?"
Aldus laughed. "If you never gamble, you never win. High risk reaps high rewards. And as you just pointed out, I most likely have nothing to lose either way."
He spotted a tiny spark of emotion from Marseile. He tried to hide it, but Aldus could see he was genuinely curious. "I thought it was obvious to you... You would know..."
"What is?"
"Oh, I see...." Aldus said, trying to look disappointed. "I thought you of all would know." He quickly turned and started walking away. The wind was lashing at his face, a storm was coming. As he was about to leave the yard, he felt a hand on his shoulder. How did he... Without a sound?
"Follow me!" Marseile said, holding him by the shoulder. "We have the best wine you can find in the Chapel."
In the first Chapel, ever built, of Magnus, besides high ranking order members, they were few that had ever entered. It was rumoured that dark cult activities went on there. It was said that children had been sacrificed, priests had engaged in cannibalism or mighty orgies. People loved spreading rumours about the Church. Aldus himself found the place to be very intriguing. The walls looked like they were made of stones from a different world, dark, yet white stones which the light from the torches illuminated. The floor was made from soft sandstone which had inscribed ancient texts on it. On the walls, there were paintings, some more classical kind, with Magnus and a couple of saints blessing people or battling demons. But closer to the altar, there were more surrealistic paintings. One with a futuristic city, with high and strangely shaped purple towers. The buildings were something out of this world. On another painting by the altar, a woman was crying, holding a newborn baby. Although her eyes and ears must have been distorted somehow, because she appeared to look like her eyes were crystal blue and her ears somehow large and pointy.
"As you can see, we love our paintings." Marseile said as he noticed Aldus interest. "We have paintings that are a thousand years old. Some of which are depicting who knows what."
"Who is that?" Aldus asked, hard to hide his curiosity. "And which city is that?" He pointed to the paintings.
Marseile stopped and turned around slowly. "Yeah... These paintings catch your interest, don't they?" He asked Aldus.
Aldus nodded in response. "Obviously!"
"Mirva and Ordella. Which would be Magnus' wife and first daughter. God's peak, the city of illumination."
"City of illumination?" Aldus shouted out. He remembers the name from sagas of ancient times. Was it real? He felt excited as a child. Perhaps Marseile knows secret history. Will he share it? He was filled with anticipation.
He looked towards Marseile for further explanation, but nothing came. "Never heard that Magnus had a wife or a daughter." He begged Marseile to tell him more.
"Of course, you haven't. Anyway, after his death, she left for the West, returning home they say."
"To the West? Where?"
"Beyond the lands of men..."
Aldus knew the legends of Magnus. It all started with him landing on the shore of which were now Avenheim. From there on, he purged the lands from darkness and demons, uniting small colonies of men and ultimately, forged an Empire. All lands but the Scorched Lands were submitted to his rule. Because of his unchallenged power and wisdom of magic, nobody could stand in his way. Not even demons and dark gods, thus his followers proclaimed him to be a god. Once he had defeated all his enemies and liberated the men of the West, he ascended to heaven. That he had a wife and daughter was never mentioned.
"Beyond the lands of men?" Aldus asked. "And where is that?"
Marseile did not respond as he was approaching the painted statue of Magnus at the altar, grabbing a golden goblet from its hands. "The only artefact that has survived Magnus." He looked at the inscriptions before handing it over to Aldus.
"The cup of which he drank before his ascension." Marseile continued.
"His personal goblet? He had a wife and daughter, you said?" Aldus asked, deep down in thoughts. "He existed then?"
Marseile went behind the altar, grabbing a silver carafe. He showed to Aldus that he wanted to fill the goblet, so Aldus gave it back.
"He did exist?" Aldus repeated himself.
Marseile started pouring the wine. "And how do you expect a marshal of the order to respond to that?" He kept pouring without looking away from the goblet. A sadistic smile grew on his face.
As Marseile's smile did not seem to fade away, Aldus was determined not to give him any more satisfaction. "So, what are yours and my family's arrangement?" Aldus asked.
"I feel sympathy towards you... We are quite alike, you and I..." Marseile handed back the goblet to Aldus. "Before, our lives were full of promises. Then... The war came..."
"What happened to you during the war?"
Marseile quickly turned around and walked in the direction behind the altar.
"Come with me!" He demanded.
Aldus followed Marseile down the stairs behind the altar. Marseile grabbed a torch next to the wall, before opening a wooden door. It was so old that the tree had turned black.
"Where are we going?" Aldus asked.
"You will see..." Marseile answered shortly.
Aldus realised it himself as soon as they entered, they had entered the ancient crypts. Old saints and men of great importance to the Church had been buried here, and some particularly religious Emperors. The tombs had been carved out from the very mountain walls themselves. In front of each tomb were statues depicting the dead, guarding for anyone to defile their graves.
Aldus stopped for a moment to observe the crypts. But as soon as he did, Marseile shouted to him. "Don't stop!"
They exited the crypts and came to a tunnel. It rather appears to be a natural cave. After a short while, Aldus could hear water falling. The sound got stronger as they continued walking. He saw at the end of the cave; it was a tiny waterfall that leads into a gigantic pool of water. It was lit by moonlight, coming from an oval cave window in the ceiling.
"Here, the water of the gods..." Marseile announced as he stopped just in front of the pool. "Any true ally of the order, must have been cleansed from sin by the holy water..." He undressed, gesturing to Aldus to do the same.
"Did you do the same with my sister?" Aldus asked as he hesitantly undressed.
Marseile didn't answer. He slowly entered the pool. His arms were covered with tattoos of strange foreign symbols. On his back, he had the Templar's sigil, the armoured hand holding the sun. On his chest, down to his lower stomach, was a tattoo of a woman's face. He seated himself down until the water reached his belly.
Aldus scoured around the cave room as he undressed. His eyes went back to the tattoo on Marseile's chest. He got curious about who she was, but he decided not to ask. He knew that Marseile would never reveal anything personal.
After he finally got fully undressed, he quickly entered the pool, seating himself right across from Marseile.
"Your entire body needs cleansing..." Marseile demanded.
Aldus submerged himself entirely and stayed down for a couple of seconds before going up again. .
"Now let's continue where we left off..." Marseile said as Aldus adjusted his position.
"What is your arrangement with my family?" Aldus asked.
"They never told you?" Marseile acted with a bit of a surprise.
"I have always been my own faction within the Morgs."
Marseile returned to look unaffected. "Nothing special really. But now, I am a bit ambivalent towards our... Alliance." He looked up in the sky, watching the stars. "Too many demands, but I get nothing in return. They are not willing to risk anything..."
"Without risking losing, there can be no victories..." Aldus said, observing Marseile's face in the moonlight. A most expressionless face it was.
"But perhaps you are different." Marseile said, looking Aldus straight into the eyes. "After I heard Wilfred utmost rejecting you, I thought it was only a matter of time before I saw you here... And I was right."
Now it was Aldus time to act. He put a fake smile on his face. He would see if he could play Marseile as he had played himself. "Me and Wilfred?" He laughed. "No, we are just good old friends. It was just a friendly approach."
I am not completely lying. Aldus thought as he said the words. He somehow had hoped that bygones would be bygones and establish some relation with Wilfred. However, he should have known better. People never truly change.
Marseile made a strange grimace on his face. "You disappoint me!" He appeared to be impatient. "Here in the pool of the gods, holier than Magnus himself, you lie to me? Did you know that only esteemed members of faith know about its existence?"
"I am not lying..." Aldus said with hesitation. "I am not shy to admit that I seek a beneficial relationship with the Imperial Chancellor..."
"I can't believe that." Marseile said, again returning to his neutral emotionless state. "What man would forgive such humiliation and come back to beg for forgiveness? Any man of honour I know would go to the end of the world for revenge."
"You didn't know?" Aldus teased Marseile. "I always found honour impractical... It's not for me..."
"I just can't find it in my mind why you do not hate him. Or is there something beneath it all? Is it all a sham? Did you bargain with Wilfred for your life? That's why he spared you in the last minutes? You know when I think of it, I can't see no other reasons why Wilfred would spare you..."
"Be that as it may..." Aldus said. "Revenge leads nowhere. Usually, the avenger turns out to be the loser."
Aldus thought about the past. There wasn't even one day that went by without him thinking about it. The day when Wilfred was about to execute him for treason. His father had asked him to deliver a letter to Maximillian, before the eve of the battle at Heaven's Bridge. Believing in the codes of chivalry, Aldus had asked no questions, nor had he had not read the letter, even if he could so easily have forged his father's seal. On his way to Heaven's Bridge, Mandos men had intercepted his party. Acting chivalrous, he ate half the letter, never knowing what was written on the pages. Consumed by fury over the death of his brother, Wilfred wanted Aldus hanged for treason. With a rope around his neck, Aldus could not save himself by trading any information he had none to give. Apparently, the parts of the letter he could not swallow had given Wilfred some clues about something. However, he could not make out the full content. As Aldus had closed his eyes, praying before his soul left the earth, a person came, whispering something into Wilfred's ear. After that, Wilfred ordered Aldus to be released, never explaining why. First Aldus had been convinced that his father had made a deal with Wilfred. But Wilfred had denied that was the case, and he had refused to disclose any reason to his release, not to anyone. Aldus had asked his father if it was his doing. "If a man is too weak to survive on his own accord. Then that man has no justification for living." His father had answered him with the utmost contempt. Apparently, Charles had been so ashamed that he wished Aldus dead. Until this day, no one ever knew why Wilfred had released Aldus. Not even the Emperor seemed to know why. Aldus had never recovered from that experience, he had vowed to change his life, he decided to never again abide by any code of honour. No promises were meant to be kept, no man was meant to be served, none but himself. Favouring the powerful was only a means to empower yourself. Aldus had made that to his life philosophy. Perhaps now was the time. Just as Marseile had said, it was time to change the path. He just hoped by choosing this path, he wouldn't condemn himself forever.
"I think you and I can come to some sort of agreement..." Marseile interrupted Aldus in his thoughts. "But I do nothing half-assed. It's either full commitment or nothing. If we agree, I expect nothing less from you. And what I really need right now, is guarantees of your family's full support."
"I thought you already had my family's support?" Alden said.
"Not I..." Marseile answer. "The church, the order, but not I..."
Aldus sighed lowly in response... He took a brief pause before he asked, "Tell me this.... Why did you kill Leland?" Aldus reached for a straw, hoping he was correct about the assumption that Marseile was involved in Leland's murder.
Marseile looked long and hard at Aldus before responding. "What is it to you, anyway?"
"I need to know if my family is involved." Aldus pleaded. "If they are, I will have to start looking over my shoulder."
"A practice a man should start with as soon as he walks..."
Aldus sighed loudly. "And what is it exactly that I will get in return from you if I do your bidding?"
"As I said... Name your price..."
"I will have to think about that..."
"Why the uncertainty? What choice do you really have?" Marseile said, raising himself up from the water. He appeared to be leaving, his patience was over. "Wilfred will never side with you... And who will protect you then, your father? No, he will go down with us. You will be all alone if you even survive."
That was true. Aldus knew it all along. If Wilfred and Brad destroyed the church, they might come for the Morg's later, as they had already taken aside. Damn my family! He cursed them.
"You are right..." Aldus said as he too raised himself. "If you lose, my family will certainly go down with you."
"Good that you see reason..." Marseile said, offering his hand for a shake. "I always remember my friends. Once it's all over, there is nothing in my power I will deny you!"
"So, you will have my back. Whatever favour I ask, you will never deny me anything?"
"Those who would die for me, I would do the same for them. If you do what I ask of you, I would sacrifice my life, if that's what you ask of me..."
Aldus hesitantly shook Marseile's hand. "So, for my questions?"
"Leland? Yeah, he had to die. Your family agreed, it was to protect your brother Cedric. Leland put his nose where it didn't belong."
"Just as I thought..." Aldus said, letting his hand go. Strangely enough, he felt nothing by the confirmation. He knew the reasons already. "They were involved with the New Way?"
Marseile nodded. "Amongst other things, that's why he couldn't talk. But do not worry, Cedric will be spared. Another benefit of our friendship."
Really, was that truly all? Aldus thought. It wouldn't be enough to kill a high born...
Marseile stepped out of the pool. Aldus followed. Behind Marseile, he saw a grand cave painting; it resembled Magnus, as most of the paintings in the chapel did. The idea just occurred to him. Perhaps I can uncover the truth of the religion.
"So... Regarding Magnus, is all of it true?" Aldus asked.
Marseile didn't answer as he dressed up.
Aldus got dressed as well. It went quick. He noticed Marseile's eyes looking at him. "Is it true?" Aldus asked once again.
"Who cares?" Marseile shrugged dismissively. He turned around and investigated the cave walls, as he was expecting something to be there. "Hans!" He suddenly called out.
A man stepped out from the shadows, as he just had materialised. He approached them
What is going on? Aldus felt his heart beating at a rapid pace. Someone was listening to us!
"This is Hans." Marseile introduced the man. He wore a brown cloak, covering his entire body, his face was partly covered by the shadow of his hood. As he stepped further, the moonlight revealed a sinister-looking face. There was something strange about it. His eyes reflected no light.
"Hans failed to carry out a task for me." Marseile said. "The Mandos girl, she might wake up..."
Emma Mandos, they were behind it! It was worse than Aldus had expected. Surely, he could overlook killing a grown-up man for a good reason, but a young girl...
"To prove your conviction to me... And your resourcefulness..." Marseile continued, looking Aldus straight in the eyes like he was reading his mind. "Make sure she doesn't..."