01-06-2015, 09:43 AM
Father Stone walked in and the Regus nearly smiled. There was a lightness to the man’s step. He thought he was here to be commended. Time would show him how wrong he was. ”Please shut the door and have a seat, Father,” he said, gesturing to the chair in front of his desk.
The man complied and then the room was silent while Regus watched him for a moment. A minute went by. Then two. A soft knock and his door opened without preamble. Martin Borovský stepped into the room. “It is done, Regus,” he said, stepping forward and proffering a tablet.
He took it and swiped through the pictures. There was an extra girl here. He raised an eyebrow. ”There were complications?”
The hard man smiled faintly. “No. She was not alone when I found her. But on the streets life is cheap. No one will think anything more than the obvious. I made sure of that.”
Regus grimaced distastefully. It was a necessary fact of their work and couldn’t be helped. But it was done. ”Very well. Thank you for handling this personally. I will have something important for you soon.” His eye flicked to Father Stone before going back to the man.
No one would suspect that Martin Borovský was the High Inquisitor of the Atharim, of The Holy Order of Saint Torquemada. Secrets within secrets. Torquemada a scion to a long line of Atharim going back to the Holy Land and Iscariot himself. The Inquisition merely a cover provided by Pope Sixtus IV to investigate and destroy any reborn gods that might have manifested. That it turned out to baseless rumor was beside the point. But feckless members of the Holy See and short sighted monarchs forced Pope Alexander VI to publicly restrain their work. Yet he did beatify and canonize Torquemada in secret within just a few years of his death. Publically disbanded in the 1800’s, the work went on in private, Borovský being the latest to hold the office.
The man could ferret out anything, given time. He had discovered Stone’s secret. The door closed quietly and Regus turned the weight of his gaze on him. Ignoring him earlier and then speaking obliquely about killing had done their work. Gone was the sense of pride and honor to be here. ”I wonder, Father Stone, if you remember what it means to be Atharim.” He swiped at the tablet. A face appeared, though he made no effort to display it to him.
Father Stone shifted his weight. Clearly this wasn't what he expected. "Of course I remember Regus."
He merely looked at the man. "And what does it mean?"
"We...The Atharim are the protectors of humanity. The means to erradicating the infernal Gods of old. We are the remnant of that."
He tilted his head and looked at the man curiously. “Then why would you hide one of these reborn gods from us? Because she is your daughter?” His voice became harder. ”Do you not understand what is at stake?” He waved away any answer he might give. In the end, it would be pure sentiment. Even one such as Father Stone, who knew the histories and the dangers, still did not understand. Power belonged to God alone. In the hearts of wicked mankind, it drove them to madness and tyranny, oppression and destruction. Kali Ma, Semiramis, Camaxtli. These were not names out of mythology. The bloodletting was real. An ocean of it.
And they had bought their freedom from the gods through great sacrifice. They had kept mankind safe through thousands of years. He nearly ground his teeth at the thought of the last Regus and the last Pope. Weak, sentimental, misguided. The abomination that styled himself Ascendancy had been one of them. And no record remained. It made his blood boil.
The look on Father Stone’s face said that his feelings were quite evident. Regus breathed and let calm return to him. He swiped at the tablet again. The body of the girl, Sonja, lying on the ground appeared, neck at an unnatural angle. She had been left disheveled to complete the illusion. The foot of another girl was also visible. Silently he handed it to Father Stone. ”I have rectified your lapse in judgement.”
Father Stone sat there stunned, staring at the image before him. Regus felt no pity for the man. This was a war. The enemy could be anyone. There would be no compromise. ”Return to your rooms. You are relieved of all duties including your charges. Someone else will be taking over them.” He leaned forward and fixed him with a stare that pinned him to the chair. ”Disobedience will be punished most severely.”
The man nodded hesitantly, the fear in his eyes clear. He left shaking. It was just beginning. It was time for the Atharim to be refocused, the war made clear, the penalties abundantly evident. He smiled. There had not been a convocation in years.
((With Father Stone))
Edited by Regus, Jan 6 2015, 10:13 AM.
The man complied and then the room was silent while Regus watched him for a moment. A minute went by. Then two. A soft knock and his door opened without preamble. Martin Borovský stepped into the room. “It is done, Regus,” he said, stepping forward and proffering a tablet.
He took it and swiped through the pictures. There was an extra girl here. He raised an eyebrow. ”There were complications?”
The hard man smiled faintly. “No. She was not alone when I found her. But on the streets life is cheap. No one will think anything more than the obvious. I made sure of that.”
Regus grimaced distastefully. It was a necessary fact of their work and couldn’t be helped. But it was done. ”Very well. Thank you for handling this personally. I will have something important for you soon.” His eye flicked to Father Stone before going back to the man.
No one would suspect that Martin Borovský was the High Inquisitor of the Atharim, of The Holy Order of Saint Torquemada. Secrets within secrets. Torquemada a scion to a long line of Atharim going back to the Holy Land and Iscariot himself. The Inquisition merely a cover provided by Pope Sixtus IV to investigate and destroy any reborn gods that might have manifested. That it turned out to baseless rumor was beside the point. But feckless members of the Holy See and short sighted monarchs forced Pope Alexander VI to publicly restrain their work. Yet he did beatify and canonize Torquemada in secret within just a few years of his death. Publically disbanded in the 1800’s, the work went on in private, Borovský being the latest to hold the office.
The man could ferret out anything, given time. He had discovered Stone’s secret. The door closed quietly and Regus turned the weight of his gaze on him. Ignoring him earlier and then speaking obliquely about killing had done their work. Gone was the sense of pride and honor to be here. ”I wonder, Father Stone, if you remember what it means to be Atharim.” He swiped at the tablet. A face appeared, though he made no effort to display it to him.
Father Stone shifted his weight. Clearly this wasn't what he expected. "Of course I remember Regus."
He merely looked at the man. "And what does it mean?"
"We...The Atharim are the protectors of humanity. The means to erradicating the infernal Gods of old. We are the remnant of that."
He tilted his head and looked at the man curiously. “Then why would you hide one of these reborn gods from us? Because she is your daughter?” His voice became harder. ”Do you not understand what is at stake?” He waved away any answer he might give. In the end, it would be pure sentiment. Even one such as Father Stone, who knew the histories and the dangers, still did not understand. Power belonged to God alone. In the hearts of wicked mankind, it drove them to madness and tyranny, oppression and destruction. Kali Ma, Semiramis, Camaxtli. These were not names out of mythology. The bloodletting was real. An ocean of it.
And they had bought their freedom from the gods through great sacrifice. They had kept mankind safe through thousands of years. He nearly ground his teeth at the thought of the last Regus and the last Pope. Weak, sentimental, misguided. The abomination that styled himself Ascendancy had been one of them. And no record remained. It made his blood boil.
The look on Father Stone’s face said that his feelings were quite evident. Regus breathed and let calm return to him. He swiped at the tablet again. The body of the girl, Sonja, lying on the ground appeared, neck at an unnatural angle. She had been left disheveled to complete the illusion. The foot of another girl was also visible. Silently he handed it to Father Stone. ”I have rectified your lapse in judgement.”
Father Stone sat there stunned, staring at the image before him. Regus felt no pity for the man. This was a war. The enemy could be anyone. There would be no compromise. ”Return to your rooms. You are relieved of all duties including your charges. Someone else will be taking over them.” He leaned forward and fixed him with a stare that pinned him to the chair. ”Disobedience will be punished most severely.”
The man nodded hesitantly, the fear in his eyes clear. He left shaking. It was just beginning. It was time for the Atharim to be refocused, the war made clear, the penalties abundantly evident. He smiled. There had not been a convocation in years.
((With Father Stone))
Edited by Regus, Jan 6 2015, 10:13 AM.