My Throne of Light (Seven Knights Fanfiction)

Chapter 43: Over a Table and Shots pt 1

[A/N: At this point, most of them are over 21- aside from Rudy and Jave. Rudy only has months before that, and Jave is like 17-18 so yeah. "Adult" supervision.]

The bright moon shining down on Kingdom Terra and the lights illuminating the streets were as breathtaking as the night before, but the atmosphere in the roof deck of a famous beerhouse was opposite. It was already night time, and Eileene dragged the Seven Knights to drink just so it could break barriers at least. No need to worry about Jave; Eileene said he had adult supervision anyway. Their intense chat outside the tower was stalled by someone's hunger- so they decided to go around town until the dark set in.

They were left alone in the roof deck; they had it all for themselves. Then again, the suffocating feeling never left. Eileene was the only one chugging down her mug as everyone else seemed to not enjoy the night. For this, she was forced to break the ice for everyone.

"Okay, so first of all, we came to greet Kris a happy birthday" -she grunted with a smile- "but the day turned out to be so sour." She raised her mug. "Then again, let's have a toast for that! We wish Kris to last long enough for another birthday!"

Rachel glared at her, but Spike raised his mug. Jave slowly joined them, the actions forcing Rachel to raise hers as well. Kris shook his head before raising his, nudging Rudy to do the same. The brunet seemed to be forced as well; they clinked the glasses weakly before taking a sip of their drinks.

The empress raised her glass again. "Also, for Rachel and Kris'-"

"Drop dead." The blonde grabbed the empress' arm to bring down the glass. She watched Eileene laugh before drinking some of her beer. Rachel cleared her throat. "So far, we know that the recreated Core is targeting us in particular. We could also assume that this is done in order to revive the God of Destruction. Also" -she took a deep breath- "one of us- is indeed a candidate." She sipped on her drink. "What else are we sure of?"

Eileene sunk against her chair. "Of course not a happy married life." She chuckled before looking serious. "We also know the undead army is being used to lure us- or should I say Kris- out there. Whoever runs this has power over the Dark Grave." She took a drink. "Someone capable of reviving the dead over and over again."

"The undead army did not have traces of leaving the grave." Spike leaned on the table. "There's no way they could be transported without help. Unless they have the mirror." He leaned back. "It grew missing days before the first appearance of the core. It does not smell like coincidence anymore."

Jave hummed after popping nuts in his mouth. He swallowed them immediately after the thought came to his mind. "Rudy" -he paused to contain choking- "you- you said you were spying on those before they split. Did you hear them say anything that can lead us somewhere?"

Rudy twitched and looked at everyone else in the table. He took a deep breath before leaning against the table. "By the sound of it, the Dark Grave is being oppressed by some- reaper they want to get rid of. It seemed that they hope to have the Core possess someone- in order to drive away the reaper." He stood as he slammed the table, toppling some empty bottles. "We should-"

Spike pulled him down to his seat.

Eileene shifted to lean on the table, fixing the bottles that fell. "No, we don't go there just like that. I mean, Dellons is not even here; maybe he knows who that reaper is. He can't be the only one, right?"

"Months ago, he said the reapers are hunting down a reincarnated soul." Rachel sighed. "Perhaps he was out bounty-hunting while we worry about the entire world." She hummed as she turned to Kris who had not made a sound yet. "You're the one who would lose the most here. You should at least talk."

Kris glanced at her. "I am aware." He watched everyone look at him now. "Form the very start, the demons had expressed their agitation. It's not just about their accusation of me stealing the Core; also with the fact that I could be used to harness its power." He took a deep breath. "I don't think they are the only ones who think so."

The group grew silent.

Eileene then ate a nut before speaking. "Any chance of you agreeing to be baited so we could catch them?"

"Never." Rudy answered.

She laughed out. "Shut up, Rudy. That thing almost killed you." She grew serious despite the mischievous smile. "Kris survived it twice; it won't hurt to gamble for a third time."

"It grew weaker." Kris glared at Eileene. "The last one was stronger, and it was able to blast beams of darkness." He leaned back against the chair. "This one doesn't even fight. It did release a blast that threw us away, but it was nothing compared to the beam Rudy took on point-blank and defenseless." He sighed after watching Eileene mouthed the word 'ouw'. "The darkness in the replica is not as strong as the one we first encountered."

Rudy seemed to calm down by now, only to turn to Spike. "The core should have been shattered when Jave broke it. Where are shards? We didn't see anything when we got there." He watched the three at the scene go speechless. He frowned at the two beside him.

"We" -Javelooked at Spike and Kris- "we don't know."