I Am The Truth II

Chapter XXIV: Oh Yeah, It's All Coming Together

The tunnel was completed at long last. The Ardoni miners watched as the rock wall suddenly gave way before them to reveal dozens of looming Magnorites on the other side. All was silent for minutes before everyone broke into celebration. All the hard work had payed off, braving both the toxic air and the silverfish swarms that burrowed in the walls, coming out to try to devour an unsuspecting victim every once in a while. Here was a link between Ataraxia and Nōtterskarten, which then extended further into K' Arthen itself.

"We have completed a monumental undertaking tonight," Achillean said in the microphone, looking out over thousands of miners as well as folk from Ataraxia's city. "Give yourselves a round of applause, knowing that we now have a way to save our comrades in need."

The crowd thundered with applause. Hubris was there in the front row, sitting comfortably in his chair. He was clapping too, though the bashful grin that would normally be on his face was absent. The Nestoris' mouth twitched

"There is much work still to be done," Achillean continued. "As the last of the old Ardoni Confederacy's southernmost bastions and one that stands against tyranny, we must ensure the safety of all fleeing persecution. The completed tunnel now stands to serve as a corridor for those seeking to escape K' Arthen."

He adjusted his microphone.

"We will be seeing an influx in immigrants, and our security personnel will be hard at work," He continued. "In times like these, we must be patient. Our border security will be doing everything they can to ensure that we do not let in unwanted elements."

He looked out to the crowd, noticing that Hubris was not there. 

"Freedom will prevail."

"I thought you never wanted to see me again," Ross said with a scowl, looking at the equally spiteful Nestoris on the other side. 

Hubris glared daggers. After Jalkar, he hated this man. But for the massive developments that had just taken place, he ought to know something. He was perhaps the only one feeling a sense of danger on the horizon.

The two of them were there in the small interrogation room. The human was strapped to a chair not unlike how Lucan and Eddie had been. Hubris sat across from him, hands folded.

"What are you planning?" Hubris demanded.

"What am I planning?" Ross repeated. "There's nothing to plan-"

"That is bullshit," Hubris interrupted. "For the record, you are horrible at idling."

"Well, it's all I can do," Ross said with a shrug. "Just need to keep waiting."

"Waiting for what?" Hubris pressed. 

"Like I tried to tell you earlier, there are a few moles among you," Ross replied. "Or there will be anyways. Clearly Ria Sendaris is so caught up in her desire for revenge that she didn't see what you saw."

Hubris stared in shock.

"... you knew?"

"I figured it out before coming here," Ross said smugly before he scowled. "And for the record, my work is not so easily erasable."

"What good will it do now?" Hubris fired back. "As long as Ria is here, the coalition is powerless to stop her."

"Do not think for one second that Ataraxia is invincible. The center of power in the world always shifts with time. You and the Knights have already contributed to the city's undoing by letting in dozens upon dozens of those wretches that come crawling out of the tunnel."

"... moles," Hubris said slowly. "Funny you would know exactly who they are."

"I don't," Ross said. "But take my advice if you are sane enough. You will wish you were dead if you stay here. Be certain of that."