The Divine Gambit Ch. 04

"Our Lady intimated that your trust was of utmost importance and that an open-ended agreement would be best for the realm as a whole."

She hadn't answered any of my questions directly so far. My confidence in her abilities as a legal advisor had grown, but I still wasn't comfortable signing the document. "I want to know what you think about this agreement, Evgenia. Please don't evade me again. If I have to, I will sign this and order you to tell me what you think about it."

She looked at me, her cold eyes softening somewhat. "I am confused as to why it matters to you. I am apprehensive about the possibility of the worst imaginable outcomes, but I did not expect this to be the sticking point this morning. I assumed my services would be rapidly accepted when I was ordered to prostrate myself for another as an offering from Her Majesty. Am I unsuitable for your plans? I'm sorry to have displeased you, milord."

Cynthia spoke for the first time, "Honey, what do you know about this situation? What have you been told about James?"

Evgenia's eyes bounced back and forth between the two of us, uncomfortable with her introduction veering far from the course she had predicted. "I was told yesterday that a powerful representative would be coming to reside in our Realm for some time, potentially interfacing regularly with the council. I would be required to assist them as they saw necessary. This morning, Her Majesty summoned me and had me put together these documents, and then she directed me here."

I slumped into my seat and exhaled. That wasn't what I had wanted to hear.

Cynthia frowned again and said, "I guess Aisling is keeping you under wraps for now. An interesting plan, to not even let the advisor know who you are."

I had figured out a plan of action. Obviously, Aisling knew this would happen at some point. I was willing to guess that she had thought my background and ignorance would've reared their head after I had signed the document binding Evgenia to me. If that was what she wanted, that was what she wanted. What a mess. I took the pen, signed my name on the paper, pricked my finger with the knife, and placed my fingerprint beneath my name.

"Alright, Evgenia, my first instruction is to stop being quite so formal around me. I'm no dignitary, no foreign representative, just a guy in way over his head. You will call me James. If we are around the court or some other official place and it is customary to be formal, feel free to do so. Just not in private."

She swallowed hard, and her wide eyes lingered on the document I had signed, coming to terms with the reality of her newfound unlimited servitude. "Yes, milo- James. Yes, James."

"Awesome. I am going to share my story with you now, but I want you to have extreme discretion about with whom you share this. Aisling is probably fine because she knows everything important already, but I don't know anyone else here. Do you understand?"

When she nodded in the affirmative, I told her my perception of the last 36 hours. A few times, Cynthia butted in to give a comment or correction from her more enlightened position, but essentially I rambled and wandered my way to the present. I left out the events in my room the previous night. I would bring that up with the magical advisor, not the legal one. Beth was pressing her body against me, not charges, after all. Eventually, I was finished. I asked, "Do you have any questions?"

Evgenia spoke slowly, "You awakened two days ago and are wearing an aura suppression device now?"

Wasn't yet two days. "Yeah, that's right."

She shivered in response. Cynthia surprised me by speaking, "I have a question of my own. Why did you sign that contract?" Her eyes burned into me, accusationally emphasizing her distaste for my action.

"Aisling set us up, somewhat, I think. If I don't sign it, I'm rejecting her gift and depriving myself of a local with a useful skillset sworn to absolute loyalty. If we stall and renegotiate, now she has more information about how I want to act and what I'll pick up on. She expected me to just sign it and ask questions later. Until I know more, I want to act how I'm predicted to, if only to not rock the boat. But Cynthia, please, I'm already freaking out about how I've modified Beth. Do you think I want to control another person? Sam already wants to kill me for that or something similar anyway."

Cynthia relinquished her accusations, accepting my argument: "No, I didn't think so. I didn't want you to sign it, but I trust you to be responsible from what I've seen. Please remember, James, that the line between a benevolent patriarch and a tyrannical despot is quite small. A loving, caring decision could push you into the latter category if done without the other party's consent."

I listened to the words Cynthia said and tried to internalize them. Frankly, I was terrified that I was already well beyond the line with Beth. I desperately needed to keep Cynthia in my good graces so that someone would help modulate my decisions.

Evgenia continued how she had initially planned, showing me more documents and having me sign things. A contract to remain in the northeast and respond to summons from Aisling "promptly" was the most interesting because it came with a payment of $8,000 a month, wired to the bank account I had already been provided. Millionaire overnight? Not quite, but I certainly wasn't going hungry, and the only requirement was to not wander off too far. I wondered if I was simply being placated with money, paid to be a docile subject. It wasn't objectionable to the beast in my head. He believed we deserved it.

Eventually, Sam returned to the living area. She looked much better but still shot death at me when she walked past the dining area to sit on the couch. When we had worked through the documents, Evgenia visibly relaxed in her seat. She was still tense, but not the mechanical automaton she had been.

"So, Evgenia, odd question, I guess: Are you under any other agreements like the one with me? Do you need to report anything about our interactions to anyone?"

She shook her head. "No. I had a similar arrangement with Aisling for the last 20 years, but she released me from it. She asked me to contact her if I felt endangered by our relationship."

"Well, that makes me a little more comfortable about this." I could grandstand about how I wouldn't abuse the power dynamic in our relationship, but words were borderline meaningless for now. "So, Aisling told me that it would be useful to interact with Antonin, the archivist. Can you make that connection?"

Evgenia sat up and returned to her professional mechanical demeanor. "I was informed that you have an appointment for two this afternoon. Aisling requested that you bring 'the armored girl.' That would be Beth, I presume?"

Plans were made for the rest of the day. Beth, Evgenia, and I would go to the archives to meet with Antonin. Sam and Cynthia would go shopping for things we needed for the apartment and some ingredients to cook for the coming week. Beth squealed in joy when Cynthia agreed that she could help cook, completely shattering my perceptions of her momentarily, until she shook her behind and winked at me while setting up with Cynthia.

I asked Evgenia what her living arrangements were. Sheepishly, she admitted that she had only returned to Philadelphia yesterday, having been in New York as Aisling's legal point of contact there, and only had a hotel room for the rest of the week. I invited her to stay in our apartment, and after some cajoling from the other girls, she accepted. It was far too soon to randomly ask people to live with me, but I felt pressured to do it so that Cynthia only had to go shopping once. We had the space and now, as far as the contract stated, I owned her. Offering residence only made sense.

The next hour passed amicably as the women got to know each other superficially. A tentative roster was made for morning shower allocation, basic chores, and cooking duties. I stayed quiet and out of the discussion. I was abstaining under the guise of clearing my mind to be fresh for my meeting with Antonin -- and everyone else let my mild mistruth remain unchallenged. We all knew I would simply accept whatever they decided anyways. The dragon inside me insisted that we would do our utmost to care for our new lair, even if it was temporary, on the principle that it was ours. I didn't voice his assertion.

My new vampire PA spent most of the conversation watching our interactions, largely remaining quiet as well. She answered questions if asked, but otherwise avoided inserting herself. Sam seemed as though she wanted to remain reserved, resisting every attempt to include her and then acting put-out when her mother cajoled her into giving her opinions. Eventually, Evgenia said that it was time for us to get going to our meeting. I took one of the apartment keys, and Sam took the other without acknowledging me. Our groups separated, with Sam and Cynthia taking Cynthia's SUV and the three of us taking a taxi.

~

We arrived at a pillared marble building a few minutes later. I was reminded of a courthouse and then felt that it should've been obvious that an archivist might have some connection to legal procedures and recordings. We entered the building, and Evgenia spoke with the attendant for a moment. We were directed up a flight of stairs, down a hallway, and through a set of great wooden double doors. Beth clung to me the entire way, but she was giddy and content rather than the desperate and terrified clinginess of the previous day.

Through the doors, we found a massive library. Bookcases lined the walls and filled the majority of the room, reaching a dozen feet high. The room smelled musty and ancient and was utterly deserted. The silence was oppressive, but it was broken by the door shutting behind us as we came through -- and then several echoes of the door shutting.

Evgenia herded us to a reading table in the center of the room. She sat, so Beth and I did as well, with Beth giving me a touch more space than I had come to expect. She was still leaning on me and holding my hand, but I didn't feel like she was trying to climb into my lap.

I quietly asked Evgenia, "So this Archivist, Antonin? Are you familiar with him?" Even though we appeared to be the only ones in the room, I was compelled to be quiet in the massive library.

She shook her head, "I know of him. He's an ancient elf who wants to be left alone in his research. I've been told he prefers the company of his scrolls and parchment to interacting with others."

"Cool. And we're interrupting him so he can talk to me on a day's notice. There's no way this will go poorly."

With that, the door clanged shut again. Both Evgenia and my eyes snapped to the entrance, and a withered and weathered man was there. His skin was a dark grey, and its worn and creased nature made it look like wet concrete. His hair was white, wispy, and unkempt. The things that caught the majority of my attention were his eyes. They were grey and hazy, and he seemed to have no iris or pupil. His entire eye was the same mottled grey with no distinctions.

"I am here, drakeling, because you are the most interesting thing I have had the opportunity to study in the last 300 years."

Evgenia and I were both startled for a moment, but she recovered, stood, and spoke, "Archivist Antonin. It's an honor. May I present-"

The old dark elf hobbled gingerly over to the table where we were sitting. "I know who he is, and I know why he's here," he snapped cooly.

The vampire beside me seemed insulted, and I thought I knew why. "She wasn't informed about me before being ordered to serve me."

The dark elf sat down and pulled a backpack onto the table while he answered without looking at me. "And why should she have been told anything? What would it have changed? I am here to tell you about what you are; I needed to be prepared to do that. She'll get the information she needs to advise you now. I would hope you aren't making any deals of import yet and therefore her ignorance is inconsequential. More for my own sake than yours. Woe betide those who wrong a dragon, even if it only is a wrong in his brain."

Well, he certainly had the charisma of a man who spent all day with books. He opened his bag and pulled out a fraying notebook and a few other hardcover books that looked like they would disintegrate into dust if I tried to manipulate them. He then retrieved a pen from his bag before raising his gaze to evaluate me. After a moment, he spoke.

"Alright then, drakeling. Tell me everything."

"Well, about ten thousand years ago, in Mesopotamia, humans began cultivating crops instead of collecting what was--"

He interrupted me, "Don't be obtuse, drakeling."

I pursed my lips and said, "Could you ask me something more specific than 'everything'?"

"Tell me everything that you've experienced since you've awoken. The incident on the twelfth, begin there."

That was something I could do, so I gave him roughly the same story I gave Evgenia this morning, but I included my experience with Beth and how she seemed to have been struck dead as we finished. Evgenia stared at me open-mouthed while I explained, probably in greater detail than necessary, fucking Beth to death. Thinking about being able to say that, now that I knew she was alright, was amusing. Terrifying, but amusing.

Beth seemed proud of the tale I spun of our encounter. It was an absurd experience, but I had questions about it and this was the elf who might have answers.

Surprisingly, the man I was told was more interested in books than the company of his peers was enraptured by my tale of relations with a woman. His interest was not the same as mine, but he nonetheless engaged in my story.

He spoke, and his scratchy voice filled the room over the sound of his pen scratching his notebook, "Alright, drakeling. That's quite the tale. Take off your ring. I have a more specialized one for you to replace it with once we're done."

Evgenia blanched, and I pursed my lips in confusion instinctively.

She spoke first, "In the middle of the city? Surely you can feel him enough already. There's no reason for that."

He coldly addressed her, "Miss Blood Drinking Lawyer, I am the Archivist, and we are in the Archives. I am not placing any of us in unnecessary or extreme danger, or we would not be located in my sanctuary. Our Queen asked me to teach this man what he is, and I agreed to do so because I thought it would be an interesting experience. You can ask questions, but do not expect an answer unless I want to give it. If I give him a direct command, I expect him to follow it, and then I expect he will have questions. I will answer him if they are intelligent because I am here to teach him. Unless you believe I am committing a crime I will ask you not to interject your opinions on my decisions again," Antonin stated, ensuring no one could mistake that it was in no way a request.

I slipped my ring off. Evgenia shivered and smelled of fear. Conversely, Beth smiled and looked like a kitten soaking up sunlight in the morning. The old man sat back in his chair and relaxed for a moment.

"You are still split, yes? You feel him as a separate entity in your mind instead of as your thoughts? Ask him to come forth; I wish to talk with him."

Evgenia's eyes were the size of the world at that request. She was a professional and well used to being in situations where she wasn't permitted to speak freely, but this was the first time she wanted to shatter those instructions and scream at the old man about how flippant he was being.

I spoke on her behalf since the Archivist had intimated that interruptions from me would be better received, "Are you sure that's a good idea?"

"I wouldn't have asked otherwise. Come on, drakeling, we haven't got all year for this."

I guess we were doing this. I sat back in the wooden chair, took a deep breath, and closed my eyes.

I projected my thoughts into my head, "Hey, are you around? There's an elf here who wants to interact with you instead of me."

The presence rushed forth, and I no longer felt anxious and uncomfortable. He was confident, self-assured, and certain of his abilities. That feeling spread throughout me. I knew these weren't my feelings, but that was fine since I would hand it control. He wanted clarification on what was being requested specifically. He didn't want to argue and fight like the last time he had been asked to talk.

I reassured him, asserting that the elf wanted to talk to him. As long as he remained seated and listened to Antonin's instructions, we wouldn't have any problems.

With that, I felt the dragon take control, leaving me as a spectator in my own body. It felt a lot noticeably different from Friday night. Today, I felt like a flight instructor, sitting in the co-pilot seat of an aircraft watching a student pilot fly, but with live controls at my fingertips so that I could take over if anything went wrong outside the scope of the lesson. In contrast, on Friday I had felt like a passenger, or someone watching a video of a lesson without even a simulated set up.

Then I spoke. At least, my body began to. It didn't quite sound like me, but it was definitely coming from my mouth. It was my voice, but it didn't have my emotions or affectations, making it sound like a very skilled impressionist.

"Hello, drow. What do you require?"

"Hello, drake. Can you physically manifest?" Antonin responded.

"I have not attempted it with this body. The boy didn't ask for that."

The dark elf was writing in his notebook again, unimpressed with the response. "Of course, you haven't, drake. I want to know if you are capable of it yet. Give it a go."

I could see that Evgenia was contemplating resigning or retiring with each passing second if she was capable of thinking at all. She reminded me of Sam during our dinner with the Queen, frozen in place and unable to act.

"Be calm, blood drinker. I will not harm you," came from my mouth. That statement didn't help in the slightest, but Evgenia was now watching me with fear in her eyes instead of being fixated with distrust of the elf. With my statement still filling the room, I felt the strangest sensation I had ever experienced. I was reminded of washing a cut out with alcohol, the tingling and burning of my skin dominating the forefront of my perceptions. My entire upper back was burning more profoundly than an average cut, burn, or rash should. I was glad the dragon being was in charge of my body, as I imagined the sensation was muted by me being an observer. Nonetheless, it was excruciating.

I was also glad I had taken my jacket off when I sat down, leaving it hanging over the chair behind me. I felt my shirt stretch to its limits before tearing and ripping as my body began to change and meld into a new shape. My shoulders were growing, my back expanding, my torso elongating to support a new structure. It split completely, ripping across the chest and unraveling, and the remnants fell to the floor. I guess I wouldn't be wearing that again.

I could see that I had grown, as my view of the room differed from how it was just a moment ago. I had never been short, having been comfortably over 6', but now I was perhaps 4" taller. My body had grown in other ways, as I was probably fifty pounds heavier now. A good amount of that came from simply being taller, but I had unmistakably gained a tremendous amount of muscle mass relative to my previous proportions.

My mouth felt different. My jaw was more prominent, and I felt my tongue moving over my teeth, and then it moved to a second row of teeth outside the first. They were narrower than human teeth, with sharp points and rear edges, and I realized they were all designed for cutting through my prey. I did not need molars, as I didn't need to grind grains or vegetables. I was the predator. They were my food. I felt a burst of pride from the voice in my head as I concluded something he knew intimately. He wanted me to be used to them so that we could go out and use them.