The Sketch Rift: The Eternal Crusade

Lunacy

Soal independently returned to Grant's Shrine (the others had split up earlier than intended), only to find it largely abandoned, devoid of a living presence apart from the ever-wily Ivel, whose position upon Soal's appearance was already a sound for alarm. His eyes wilder than ever, his hair rowdier than ever, and his arms "dustier" than ever, he was very much a sight for sore eyes by the time Soal encountered him, alone in Moth's chamber of Grant's Shrine. He seemed to be, rather pathetically, attempting to unlock a safe filled with the Kyueb Reacsoa's numerous letters to Moth, the value of which had soared recently. "Ivel," Soal startled the Commander and former Sulukridger greatly, initiating a devious reaction. "Were you the one that spread the other fire to the Slicer Swarm?"

Ivel stood tall and condescendingly. "Indeed I issued that it be done on behalf of our own self-preservation," he was aroused, "in the case that the Ambassador's ideas spread any further than the flames did. Isn't it jolly? We succeeded, didn't we?"

"Don't patronize me, Ivel," Soal crossed his arms. "I know the truth. The Crusade is an organization only formed to terrorize the innocent."

"No, you don't," Ivel snorted. "When I was warned the Ambassador would thrive in the defense of a Crusade, I objected strongly. I killed Kurst before he could speak with the Thief, and reformed the Eternal Crusade as a mirror image of its twisted alternate version supposedly begun by Kurst in another universe. The Ambassador's demented beliefs and predictions of the future were dangerous, not only to Hendera, but to the whole world. If his words escaped the custody of our beloved Crusade, it could very well mean the end of everything we hold dear, as he has proven with the 'Slicer Swarm'. Punishment is due, and the final eradication of the Ambassador and his unfounded beliefs will soon be underway. Even Hendera eventually grew to silently adopt his system, which turned us against their insistence for our assistance. Our job is to keep things in place, and when they leave that place, there will be punishment."

Soal gulped in dread. "Constant punishment for making a mistake only sets a limit on the life we were born to experience," he marveled at his entry into philosophy. "And you don't have to be so harsh on everyone. If you finally defeat Hendera, what will there be left to 'keep in place'?"

Ivel slowly drew his katana from his belt, aware that Soal was trying to provoke a duel. "This is exactly what I was trying to prevent!" he cried. "We always knew that the Master Bringer would attempt eventually to overthrow the authorities of the Crusade and lead the world to a terrible defeat on September First. It is only my blood that will be shed when Sulukrita dies by my hand. I do not believe in the Great Five, you fool. The Ambassador is a cultist who spreads lies across time and space!"

"Ivel, what are you doing?!" Soal remained unmoved at Ivel's threatening gestures, only standing in place of a defector. "You're too similar to the pitiful example set by a figure I've met in another world altogether."

"Who, me?" Ivel raised his eyebrows, katana in hand. "As Oroy Wandes, I served only a single purpose. In my head, you're still the same beaked masquerader I saw in Thrush. Only this time, you hide as the true Catalyst."

"This is lunacy!" the words spouted from Soal's mouth as Ivel approached, to the point of which they were standing directly face-to-face. "And don't tell me you're also a Sulukridger."

"A Sulukridger? Not a chance!" Ivel cackled. In the course of seconds, Soal was being strangled by strands of the Rift's energy, knocked to the floor as Ivel's leering face took pleasure in the suffering of the semi-Master Bringer.

However, this fulfillment of a longtime ambition for Ivel was only intercepted by sources arriving solely for retribution.