“The faith of the citizens of Tenebrae is great. If a place is said to be sacred, they can be trusted not to intrude. Whoever buried these artifacts abused that faith to ensure the truth would remain concealed.”
“Well, can’t blame ’em for wanting to cover up something like that. That doesn’t make it anything you have to feel bad about, though. It’s all ancient history, right?”
“I suppose . . . ”
Lunafreya admitted to herself that Sol was probably right. At the very least, the modern survey team had either ignored or failed to notice the remnants of the War of the Astrals. They had neither connection to the line of the Oracle nor to Tenebrae. To them, this secret was irrelevant.
“So what if humans defied the gods and buried the truth? It’s not like the gods did any better. Were they seriously going to let some stupid war escalate into the destruction of the entire world? Who even thinks that way?”
Here, too, Sol provided food for thought. What if it was not man’s folly being hidden? Perhaps the truth that needed to be concealed was the narrowly averted fate of their star―that the gods might be petty enough to engage in pointless quarrels or reckless enough to destroy everything.
“Perhaps this is not a statement befitting the Oracle, but . . . in light of such knowledge, one cannot help but wonder whether the gods deserve our faith.”
In her mind, Lunafreya heard Ardyn’s words once more.
Nothing matters―none of it. Not the “blessed” gods above nor the accursed kings below.
They ended up paying a price for the time they spent lingering at the site of the buried weapons. Soon they were accosted again, this time not by daemons but by people.
“What are you doing here?!”
As soon as Sol heard the voice, her face scrunched up in dismay. A second angry shout joined the first. “Bloody hell, Sol, I thought I told you to stay out of here!”
Lunafreya immediately surmised the identity of the two men: Biggs and Wedge. Avoiding this encounter was precisely why she and Sol had opted to use the training ground’s hidden entrance. Sol had thought that the two men would be busy helping seal off the entrance. Instead, here they were in the depths of the ruins. Clearly they had felt the same drive to assist Aranea. Even now, as work began on sealing the ruins, they’d ventured farther down into them hoping to perhaps carve a way through the pack of daemons encircling the trapped squad or locate some alternate route out.
“Enough with the heroics. Time to back it up to the surface. No hope of getting any deeper than this, anyway.”
“But . . . !”
As Sol began to argue, Lunafreya placed a hand on her shoulder and stepped forward instead.
“Please let us pass. I journey here as part of a calling bestowed upon me by one of the Six.”
In truth, her actions had not a thing to do with the new calling. Lunafreya doubted such a transparent lie would ensure them passage, but she decided to try anyway.
“Of course, miss,” one of the men began in a placating tone, “However . . . ”
She continued over him. “I have come to save the people trapped here using the divine powers granted to me.”
She had no idea which of the two was Biggs and which Wedge, but both wore equally befuddled expressions. They turned to look at each other.
“It’s all right,” Sol offered. “You can trust Luna.”
She said it with curt confidence as she stepped forward, now standing alongside Lunafreya.
“Please, you must allow me to fulfill my calling.”
One of the men turned back to Lunafreya, shooting a dubious glance at her before asking, “Do you really think you have a chance?” Which was immediately echoed by the other’s, “You think you’ll be okay down there?”
“I do. I am sworn to protect this site sacred to the people of Tenebrae.” Lunafreya placed a hand over her heart as she spoke and bowed her head. There was a tense pause, and then finally the two men seemed to assent. They stepped aside to allow Lunafreya and Sol to pass.
The two women made their way forward quickly. If they lingered, they risked having their bluff called. Spinning such tales was anything but Lunafreya’s strong suit. Her constant losses during the card games with Sol had certainly attested to that.
When they were far enough away, Sol whispered into Lunafreya’s ear, “Pretty impressive back there. Turns out you’re a decent actress.”
“Yes, I was quite pleased with the performance myself. It went much more smoothly than I had anticipated.”
“Heh. Getting a big head now, too.” Sol laughed, then after a glance forward, her face grew serious again, “Looks like we don’t have any more time to chat.”
Daemons. Undoubtedly some of the same pack that was keeping Aranea’s squad from pulling back to the surface.
Lunafreya sensed Sol reaching for her shotgun. They had fought successfully together enough by now to be able to anticipate each other’s moves―who would go where, who would provide cover when, and so forth.
The daemons were many and the quarters cramped, but neither posed a problem. The horde had been a thick black wall blocking their way, and now it was nothing but piles of fading dust. Beyond, they saw their destination. The furthest reaches of the cavern opened up even wider than before. This was clearly Sapphire Weapon’s lair.
The air was frigid, perhaps because of the great depth beneath the earth, but if a shiver traveled up one of their spines, it was due to fear, not cold. The magitek armor towered before them, its overwhelming power obvious at a single glance.
Lunafreya and Sol gazed upon the monster’s enormous maw―easily large enough to consume either of its challengers in a single gulp. Just above that was a red protuberance, like some manner of tumor, located where the forehead would have been had the face been anything like a human’s.
“That red orb up there. Is that its core?” Lunafreya asked.
She now felt grateful for the summary she’d received from Sol along the way explaining the makeup of the empire’s giant, daemon-infused creations. That was how she’d known to look for the core, which was both a deadly weapon capable of emitting an infernal red beam, as well as a weak point whose destruction could stop the giant.
“You got it. Let’s hope that thing doesn’t light up, because if it does, we’re in for more than just a pretty fireworks show.”
They spoke in low voices while covering the remaining distance to the creature. For a while, it seemed like sticking close to the walls and moving quietly might get them surprisingly close. But in the end, reality was not so kind.