Aeacus Fifteen

Revelation

Chapter Three: Revelation

For Aeacus was lonely. So, within His Great Crucible, He mixed the worldly elements with his tears and brought forth the Myrmidons. But The First Ones were jealous and sought to destroy His Creation.

From The Book of Origins. Chapter 1: Verses 17-19

Peleus placed a final stone in the bottom left hand corner of his papyrus map, confident that he could now examine the contents without the thing rolling itself back into a tube. He was joined by Ceisus and Aletheia, who were simultaneously studying the sketches and scanning the landscape in an attempt to make a correlation between the two. It appeared, so far at least, that imprisonment, torture and the passing had time had not distorted his memory of the land to the extent that he had feared.

They had found a clearing in the dense forest, through which they had traversed, and the whispering of the breeze amongst the trees gave a feeling of unease amongst those still not wholly convinced that there would be no attack by the First Ones. Ceisus sensed this anxiety, experiencing himself the primal urge to flee, despite his logical mind explaining the phenomenon for what it was.

"We should move on. My crew are becoming unsettled."

"Agreed. We should also follow my initial instinct to put a gag across the Cardinal's mouth." Peleus was unsure whether Aletheia was joking when she said this. "I'm sure he's trying to invoke superstition."

Ceisus rose from his crouched position and signalled to his crew to gather their supplies and prepare to move out. He then turned to Aletheia, feeling compelled to question their next course of action one final time.

"I still think the Professor's initial plan to head for the mountains made more sense. Why do we need to make an excursion to some supposed ruins? They may not even be there."

"They'll be there." Peleus was tired of the pair speaking as if he were not in their company and interjected. "My map has been correct so far. Besides, we will be there by nightfall and it will make a good place to camp."

"I agree with the Professor." Aletheia was resolute when she spoke. It seemed that with every passing phase of the Small Moon, she was growing into the role of a leader. "If he had been stranded here instead of Thanatos, this would have been an ideal place to leave a message for any potential rescuers. My spouse may well have done the same."

Ceisus nodded, conceding that the plan made sense but adding that if his crew found a forest breeze unnerving then a night spent amongst some ancient ruins, deep in the Forbidden Land, was sure to cause them some unsettling dreams. He then left Peleus and Aletheia to their own musings and returned to his crew, offering words of reassurance and encouragement to each one he passed as he approached the two prisoners.

Boreas and Sarpedon had very different expressions on their faces when he reached them. The Cardinal seemed focused and attentive, biding his time and plotting, while the Reverend Colonel's eyes conveyed rage and contempt.

"You would do well to release me now, Captain. That way, it will spare the life of whichever member of your crew is guarding me when I make my escape."

Ceisus sighed. "And that, Reverend Colonel, is exactly why your hands are to remain bound behind your back."

"And what about my hands?" Boreas asked the question matter-of-factly and without any sense of pleading. "The ropes are digging into my wrists and making them bleed."

"I suggest you count your blessings, Cardinal." Ceisus smiled, mockingly. "If the Reverend Sister had her way, we would have bound your mouth closed as well."