The Infinite Bk. 04 Ch. 01

Alexis watched from the bar, bored out of her mind. There were only a few customers, all the chores had been taken care of, and Sophia was busy working with Cyrilo, so there was nothing to do. Her boredom ended when a man entered the building, a man she had never seen before but had a bad feeling about. He was fat and greasy, like a pig in human clothes, and he had a look on his face that said he enjoyed seeing people suffer. Galvin always had that same look. When she and the man made eye contact, he gained a wickedly perverse grin, revealing two rows of rotting teeth.

"Well now, aren't you a pretty thing," he said, taking pleasure in Alexis's disgust.

"Before you say anything else, I'm not an escort. It's my job to throw out men who cause trouble. If you annoy me, I will hurt you, bad."

"Hey, little lady, you can't work in a place like this and expect not to spread your legs for a paying customer. Come on, show me a smile."

A large hand grabbed the man's shoulder. "That's enough, Ham. You don't want to walk out of here two TWO black eyes, do you?" Lucius growled.

Ham laughed him off. "Easy there, buddy, I'm just having a little fun. Anyway, you know what I'm here for."

Lucius let him go and went behind the bar, retrieving a small sack and setting it on the counter. Ham slapped down some dirty coins before taking the parcel. "Pleasure doing business with you," he said as he walked away.

"What was all that about?" Alexis asked.

"You don't want to know."

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King Leonard Albion sat upon his throne with his hand over his eyes, trying to block out the light and ease his thumping headache. His stomach was also hurting, another result of the stress accumulating since Knight's Day. Before him kneeled Adwith Tarnas, his mightiest and most loyal warrior, though his faith in him had always been relatively shallow. Yet despite the distrust he received, Tarnas still kneeled, unmoving, awaiting word from his lord. He would wait all day if he needed to, becoming a living statue.

"How did it come to this? Two of my sons, broken in body and mind," the king finally said with a weary voice.

"They still live, sire. Though this is a horrific tragedy, we should at least be glad that they aren't dead. Is the survival of your children not worth a sigh of relief?"

"Galvin's line has ended, and he's succumbed to madness. Seraph refuses to eat, and the things he screams during his night terrors... What relief I feel as a father has been swallowed by my despair as a king."

"But we are not without options. Whether or not this tragedy has been ordained by the gods, it still stands as a sign that we must acknowledge. It is time for Seraph to begin his training. It is time for him to walk the path of Light's Emissary."

"I'm afraid that time has come and gone. Seraph lost his magic. He can no longer conjure the power of light."

"Lumendori has not given up on him yet. His destiny remains one of trials and struggle, but he still holds the potential to bear that weight on his shoulders. His powers are not lost; they wait to be earned. This is an opportunity to remake him into the hero the world needs. I will build him from the ground up, not just to be a great warrior, but to be a good man. The Profane will soon return, and he will be our greatest weapon against them."

The king got up from his throne and walked over to the window. It was a beautiful summer day, and the city of Colbrand was bustling. But how long could it stay that way? How long would it be until smoke blackened the sky and blood filled the streets?

"The rise of the Kingdom of Zyrga, and the Profane claiming dominion over this world. I've spent the last twenty years hoping your prophecy was false, but Lupin spoke to me of concerns he had, fears of an insidious will twisting our destinies, of abominable practices performed in darkness. I fear your prophecy is coming to fruition."

"Deep down, you and Seraph have always doubted me, but I'm afraid you can no longer afford to hesitate. I need your trust, Your Majesty. I need you to accept everything I told you, or else all that awaits us is destruction. My power alone isn't enough to stem the coming horrors. You believed me when we first met and restructured the knight academy in preparation, but that isn't enough. For the sake of the future, Seraph must embrace his destiny as Light's Emissary."

The king released a sigh of resignation. "Do as you wish. I've clearly failed him as a father, but hopefully, you'll succeed as a teacher."

"Thank you, Your Majesty."

"I'm tired, Adwith, so tired, and I feel like everything is slipping from my fingers. This war with Handent, first it was about retaliation, then it was about expansion, and now we're losing as much as we gain. On top of it all, you speak of the returning Profane, and now, this demon Noah has crippled my family. Is it possible that he is one of them? Or at least working for them?"

"From what it sounded like, his grievances with your sons were purely personal. However, the things he said still concern me. He called himself a spirit that had transcended death, and claimed to have lived since the age of the Enochians. Though I don't want to believe it, I can't think of a reason why he would come up with such a lie. I don't think he is one of the Profane; rather, he is something else altogether. What did Berholm learn after questioning his friends?"

"After speaking to them, he shares your beliefs. Am I wrong for refusing to? Mark Saveat is still missing, Henryk is paralyzed from the neck down, and my sons are now shadows of their former selves. The only silver lining is that Ziradith has been thoroughly declawed. After the repulsive, sickening things he has done, is it not more likely this Noah is simply a madman?"

"True, it would take a dangerous, deviant mind to do the things he did, but they are not the work of a deranged mind. His crimes required patience, skill, and intellect. Combine that with his physical abilities and combat level, and he is clearly unlike anything we've seen before. After the things I've witnessed and heard, I have no doubt he is the one who killed the Harajin warriors last year. His crimes cannot be ignored, but we must absolutely not make the mistake of underestimating him."

"I have no intention of underestimating him."

On cue, another two gold knights entered the throne room. The first was an elven warrior with platinum hair and an icy demeanor. The second was a human juggernaut encased in the heaviest armor of any knight.

"Gradius!" Tarnas said in shock.

The last time Tarnas saw him, they were battling on the eve of Knight's Day the previous year. At the time, Gradius had lost his mind and gone on a destructive rampage. He was equal to Tarnas in stature, physical strength, and magic power, but his explosive temper and violent tendencies made him feared instead of respected. His armor was intentionally heavy and cumbersome, leaving no openings to inhibit his monstrous strength and contain his wrathful flames. It had been repaired since their battle, now so heavy that it threatened to crack the tiles under his feet.

"I have decided to revoke his exile and reinstate his rank, but only under the condition that he complete this task," said the king. "Sir Aithorn, Sir Gradius, hunt down Valia Zodiac and Noah. Bring them back, dead or alive, no matter how far you must pursue them. Take as many men and supplies as you need and depart immediately. According to reports, they have headed west. Gradius, if you wish to serve as royal executioner once more, now is the time to prove your worth."

Gradius crossed his chest with his arm. "It will be done, My Lord."

"They will pay dearly for betraying the kingdom," said Aithorn.

"Tread carefully, men," said the king. "You'll not only be chasing the Sword Goddess, but one of the greatest enemies Uther has ever faced. This will be the fight of your lives."

----------

Sophia stood with Madam Cyrilo in her study, the two looking down at a large scroll they had long toiled over. On one end of the scroll, Cyrilo placed Sophia's booklet, and on the other, a stack of parchment. She poured a bottle of ink onto the top page and a smear of glue. "Would you care to do the honors?"

Shaking with anticipation, Sophia put her hand on the scroll. "Molecular Replication."

The stack of parchment began to break down as if being regurgitated in an invisible stomach. The puddle of ink moved through the papery mass, organizing itself into letters, numbers, and pictures. It took a minute for the process to finish, with an exact copy of the booklet sitting on the end of the scroll, surrounded by excess parchment material and unused ink.

"Savor the moment, Sophia, because, for the rest of your life, you'll be able to tell people you were there to witness the birth of the Age of Knowledge." Cyrilo then picked up the copied booklet, only for it to immediately fall apart into dust. They'd replicated the molecular arrangement, but the bonds between the molecules were another story. She gave a dry laugh. "Well, you'll witness the birth eventually. But, unfortunately, it seems that the formula still needs some work."

"I really thought we had it this time," Sophia sighed.

"Oh honey, you have no idea how many times I've said those exact words."

"I still think this algorithm here on the fifth line is spotty. It cycles too much energy through the stabilization sequence."

"I told you, if we take out those three runes, we'll just be left with a pile of ash. The problem must be the ink. Did you get the volcanic ash from Vandheim?"

"Yes, but I couldn't find any shark blood, so I had to use northern mountain slime mucous as a substitute."

"Wait, northern mountain? Well, there's your problem; we need slime mucous from the Mortho Highlands."

"But Mortho slimes eat too much wormwood. It'll clash with the Makara vellum and destroy the scroll."

"Once we have a proof of concept, we can go back and make alterations. Let's focus on getting it working, then worry about the scroll later."

Sophia sighed and rubbed her eyes. "I suppose so."

"You look tired. Go get some fresh air," said Cyrilo.

"Thanks," Sophia replied. She left the study and went out into the parlor.

Though tired and frazzled from repeated trial and error, working on this scroll was some of the most fun she'd ever had. She loved debating over proper ink ingredients. She loved looking over pages of formulations. She loved tinkering and adjusting her work. She loved the magical tedium. She found Alexis sitting in the parlor with Daniel, helping him roll cigarettes. Sophia pulled up a chair right next to Alexis and sat down while leaning against her.

"Don't mind me; I'm just going to take a nap here on your shoulder."

She then closed her eyes and began to snore loudly, with Alexis trying to maintain a straight face. She'd tremble with each giggle that escaped, encouraging Sophia, who started blowing air down into her cleavage to tickle her.

"Ok, that's enough!" Alexis laughed as she pushed Sophia off.

"Sophia, glad you're here," said Daniel. "You can settle this argument we're having. Alexis says a dragon could beat ten thousand ducks in a fight, and I disagree."

"Don't bother asking how we got into this argument," Alexis sighed in exasperation.

Sophia took a breath. "Do the ducks have a plan?"

"Their plan is to go for the eyes and then clog its throat, so it suffocates."

"That could work, but then I suppose the question turns into 'How many ducks would it take to choke a dragon?' and 'Can a dragon's breath clear its throat of the ducks?'"

"But ducks can't plan," Alexis argued, "that's my problem with it. If the question was whether a dragon could beat ten thousand birds that that are known to coordinate their attacks in the wild, then that routine is possible."

"Ok, the dragon can also have a plan, so it's fair. They've both come into this fight with a tactic in mind."

"Then the dragon still wins every time. Ten thousand ducks could never catch up to a dragon, and its breath would annihilate them from a distance."

"Well, where are they fighting?" Sophia asked. "Is it just the open sky, or is it like a dueling ring?"

Daniel paused, trying to come up with a fair fight venue. He then saw Lucius enter the parlor. "Hey Lucius, can a dragon beat ten thousand ducks in a fight?"

"Do the ducks have a plan?"

"You bet your ass they got a plan!"

"Enough about the ducks!" Alexis groaned.

A similar sound of discomfort drew Sophia's attention to the bar, where Bella was sitting face-down beside a half-empty bottle. She'd seen Bella spend more and more time at the bar, and it wasn't to lure customers.

"Bella, what's wrong?" Bella grunted in refusal, but Sophia wasn't going to give up. "Come on, you can tell me."

"I miss my darling!" Bella whimpered, still with her face pressed to the counter. "Tomorrow is supposed to be when we'd have our usual meet-up, but he's been gone so long!"

"I know how you feel. I miss him as well."

"I used to love this job, but it's become so hollow now. Even if, by some miracle, a customer manages to make me cum, it's like, 'so what?' It's hard to go back to pleasuring lazy nobles after I've had the best."

'I know how you feel. I miss him as well.' Sophia came so close to repeating the words, meaning them even more the second time, emotionally and physically. She loved Alexis and planned to spend the rest of her life with her, but part of her heart would always belong to Noah. Still, even if her heart were greedy, she wouldn't let it intrude on the happiness she had with Alexis.

She sat down on the stool beside Bella. "Maybe it's time for you to start looking for something real. Deep down, I think what you miss is the stability of consistent affection. You want to have someone who's always there for you."

"I don't want 'someone,' I want my darling."

"Well, he's gone, so you're just going to have to make do with someone else."

Bella then raised her head and stared at Sophia with bleak eyes. "You know where he is, don't you?"

"I wish I did."

"Your lying." The words, though spoken softly, dripped with venomous accusation. Bella lashed out and grabbed Sophia's wrist. "Tell me where my darling is. Tell me now."

"Bella, I don't know where Noah went. Hey, you're hurting me!"

Bella got up, gripping Sophia as tightly as she herself was gripped by madness. "I must go to my darling. He needs me. I help him relax. If you're keeping me from him, I'll make you tell me."

"Let her go, NOW."

Bella turned to Alexis, appearing beside her as though teleporting and glaring with a murderous intent in her eyes that rivaled Bella's. They stood like statues, each silently daring the other to move, with the atmosphere growing heavy.

"Hey, that's enough! Both of you!" Lucius barked.

"You were there with him the day he left. You're why he's gone."

Had sanity ultimately left her? Or was she looking for an excuse? Whatever the reason was, she let go of Sophia and tackled Alexis, the two rolling across the floor and strangling each other.

"Daniel, stop them!" Lucius shouted as he ran over.

Daniel got on the stage, grabbed his guitar, and began to play. The song he played had no name but was his most magically powerful. With the aid of several enhancement gems, he had managed to silence a citywide riot, and the effect here was the same. Bella and Alexis became docile, hypnotized as the music overwrote the violent flow of their mana.

"Lucius!" Daniel said, shaking him awake from the effects of the music.

"Right." He walked over and scooped up Bella. "I'll put her in her room and let her sleep this off. We'll talk about this later."

The next day was the first 'Saturday' of the new academy year, and cadets were flooding in to drink, fuck, and investigate the rumors. The Knight's Sheath was already a premier brothel before Noah and Daniel arrived, and now it was legendary. Young men would enter, see the infamous stage, and cover their hearts as though they were walking on holy ground.

The horde of customers left Alexis up to her eyeballs in work. Most of the cadets wanted to avoid trouble and didn't hassle the women out of fear of getting kicked out of the academy, but mugs were emptying faster than Alexis could fill them, and that wasn't the only thing wearing her down.

"Hey, something wrong?" Lucius asked as Alexis slogged her way up from the cellar with yet another cask of Knight's Ambrosia. One would think she was simply exhausted from work, but Lucius had learned pretty quickly that she didn't tire so easily.

"It's nothing," she sighed.

"Come on, out with it."

Alexis sighed again. "It wasn't long ago that I was wearing one of those uniforms, full of hope and ambition, and now look at me. I'm not a cadet, I'm not a knight, and I'm certainly no hero. I graduated from the academy, I trained under Valia Zodiac, and yet I'm on an even lower rung of society than I was a year ago. And a year from now, I'll be here, watching yet another batch of new cadets come in on their way to living my dream. I'll always be grateful to Cyrilo for getting Sophia and me out of that dungeon and giving us work, but this is not how I want to live my life."

"You've been working here what, six, seven days? I think it's a little soon to worry about spending your life here. This is only meant to be temporary."

"I just don't want to get comfortable, settle into a rut, and let the years slip from my grasp."

"Well, I see someone who will cheer you up."

Sophia walked up to the bar, carrying a massive stack of parchment booklets. "We did it!" she happily squealed as she set the pile down on the counter. "Cyrilo and I figured out how to duplicate items with alchemy! Look!"

"This is incredible!" said Lucius, looking through the booklets. Each issue was an exact copy of the original, even more precise than if they had rolled off a printer.

"And this is just the start. Think of it, every book in the world can now be copied and distributed at almost no cost. Even peasant families can now have libraries in their own homes! Soon, children can grow up with access to more information than all of their ancestors combined!"

"Congratulations, you're really changing the world," said Alexis. Despite her sour mood, Sophia's joy was infectious.

Interrupting the moment, two cadets entered the Knight's Sheath and came up to the counter. "Pardon me. We heard that a guy here gets up on stage and teaches people how to... you know. Is that going to happen again?"

"Sorry, but that was a one-time thing, and the guy is long-gone," said Lucius

The boys were disappointed, but Sophia sprang into action. "However, if it's knowledge about sex that you're after, this will get you started." She opened one of the booklets and showed them the interior. "This will teach you what sex is, how pregnancy works, how to avoid it, and everything else that is important. It doesn't quite cover the naughty bits like technique, but this is vital information, the kind that every person needs to know. Just two copper coins, and it's yours."

Although she was excited, her sales pitch wasn't necessary. As soon as they saw the detailed drawing of what a vagina looked like, the boys couldn't get the money out of their pockets fast enough. They scurried off with their taboo knowledge, leaving Sophia even giddier than before.

"I'm going to start handing these out to the other customers. With any luck, we'll be sold out before lunch!"

Sophia's prediction rang true, but she underestimated the popularity of the booklets. Twice, she and Alexis went out to buy more parchment and ink, and the more booklets they sold, the more interested people became. As the week progressed, a display shelf was set up next to the counter, where the booklets were for sale. It wasn't long before one was angrily slapped down on Cyrilo's desk.