Marked Ones: Advent of the Demon Prince

Verona walked back into her small lodging and flipped up a hatch that led to the basement of the building. This was an addition they had added for their faith's purposes. It was a basement that led to a large chamber under the center of the village.

The hall leading to the central chamber spiraled downwards until it reached a massive room with a large domed ceiling. Along the entirety of the dome were scenes of fire and destruction, buildings burning, and at its center sat a broken throne. The Throne of Creation.

Standing at the center of the chamber were four other people. Each one led a sect of their faith in another nation. Four of their number were unable to make it to the meeting, which was understandable due to the distance they needed to travel.

Verona represented the country of Arcadios and the other four each represented the four other nations in the Five Kings Union. The other four had been waiting for her arrival and even though they wanted to join in on the service above, they knew their presence would prove too much for the other devotees, so they remained hidden.

"Mistress Fangorath, a pleasure for you to join us. I hope the service went well." One man said. Each wore a mask covering the top half of their faces. Even Verona had one on. They knew each other's names but still stood on decorum by wearing the mask as requested by their leader.

"A pleasure as well. Shall we begin?" She said with a smile.

Several hours later when the meeting was over, she returned to her home in Lelvern. The sights around her disgusted her. The home she lived in inside the walls was gifted to her by her biological father. It was the height of excess. Every wall possessed a fine painting from various artists. Each painting was wrapped in expensive wooden frames from different rare species of trees or tree monsters.

The very vision of such things was enough to make her vomit. Frankly, her job disgusted her. She was constantly handling money and goods for people who had an obsession with things, but her position was useful. Other than what was required to keep up appearances, everything she possessed was given to her faith. All her money, all of her possessions, all of her heart belonged to The Flames.

She sighed with satisfaction despite her surroundings. In their final meeting, the Council of Nine, or at least the five of them that were present, discussed the upcoming celebration at the Arcadios Royal Academy.

A large number of their adherents had decided to fan the flames in the heart of Arcadios and it was their responsibility as the Council to support them. Though it set back some of the plans they had in place, the faith these devotees wanted to show had to be nurtured. It was truly awe inspiring that they wished to spread the word.

*****

Father Urd slowly walked down the marble halls of the Grand Cathedral. He walked past the usual statue he used as a drop and noticed that its head was turned slightly askew. With a smile, he looked around before gently turning it back into its normal position.

A small click could be heard from inside the statue and a tray popped out of its base. Inside was a small scroll tied up neatly, waiting for him to retrieve. Urd quickly pocketed the document and closed the drawer, locking it back in place.

He swiftly walked back down the hallway back to his office, preparing to read the report that was provided. Contained within was a list of known associates of the 'Lord' Lucius Kane. Among them were his 'wife,' Rena Kane, Kalliope of the Gray Wolf Clan, Desmond and Jade Adler, as well as the young Oracle and her maid.

One final person was his adoptive mother that someone had attempted to assassinate in her home by way of artificially triggered monster attack. She managed to survive by being rescued moments before the attack occurred and was now staying in the Eroan embassy with Kalliope.

The younger oracle's maid was out on a work-study as part of her education, but the young oracle herself has been difficult to locate. Many of their men had tried to track her down, but they seemed unable to tail her for very long. Somehow the woman managed to give them all the slip in a matter of minutes.

"Of these members, it seems that the most valuable targets would be Rena and Rubellia… if we can find a way to use them to manipulate Lucius Kane into making a mistake that we can use…"

Under normal circumstances, the actions that Lord Kane had taken would grant him a private room in the castle dungeons while he awaited trial. However, everything he had done was already punished, and those that had been unpunished were forgiven. What the church needed was something new that they could use as leverage.

"If only we could tie him to something… because of the prophecy all of the leaders are petrified into doing nothing against him, but if it's not framed as a 'betrayal' but rather was considered a natural consequence, then the prophecy should not come to pass.

"However, barring that, if we could just get him removed from our borders… that would be ideal. It goes against everything holy in this world to have a Marked One parade themselves as a noble, let alone be married to an actual member of nobility."

Father Urd had a habit of speaking to himself, but thankfully he had sound dampening crystals from Aedrider to keep anything he said inside a secret to him alone…

"Aedrider…" he muttered, "That's it! The queen requested assistance for a long-term need. If we could get the king to at least force him to do that, then we can be rid of him while we look to find a more permanent solution!"

Father Urd quickly penned a set of instructions to his normal recipient and hurried to place it back in the dead drop location. No matter what happened, they would put their best on tailing Lucius at all cost upon his return. If men died, they could be replaced. It was callous, but having a noble Marked One in their midst was dangerous.

King Aleksander's decision to continue allowing them access to the Adventurer's Guild and Merchant Guild was enough of a pain to deal with. It only served to make the beasts think they were better than they truly are. Lucius parading as a noble made other Marked Ones have hope that it was a future they could achieve as well.

If the Church of Celestia had any say at all, then the demon cursed cretins would never see the light of day. He had to crush their spirits. It would take time… but the church would prevail, just as it always had.