For the first time in the known history of the Order, the Hall of Beginning was filled with thousands of people instead of just being the place where people who were newly entering and had just pa.s.sed the test would be given the introduction to the organization that had always protected Angaria from the shadows for as long as anyone could remember.
Apparently, it was the custom even for those who had been born to individuals in the Order and hence had known about it without having to go through the arduous entry process would be brought here, as it was compulsory that their journey should begin in this Hall.
Hence, it was a place filled with nostalgia for many, and all of those who had been gathered for the public hearing looked around, remembering what they had gone through and everything that had happened since.
As Daneel saw them all, he saw many gazes filled with doubt and even regret. He couldn"t blame them, as he knew the reason - the recent happenings had really shaken the trust that they had had in the Order until now, and even though things seemed like they were back to normal, now, such an experience would definitely not be forgotten in such a short amount of time.
Daneel could tell that this would be a cautionary tale for generations, and that there would be fewer people entering the Order for quite a long time-even many of those who were present now would not have chosen to stay if they were given the option to forgo their oath, but because there was no such thing, they had no option but to hope that nothing similar would ever happen again, while being on the lookout and acting extremely cautiously to ensure that they would never be placed in such a compromising situation for the rest of their lives.
The ent.i.ty had really struck a masterstroke by choosing his plan to hit Angaria where it mattered, and the Church would really have had the easiest time possible if it had been allowed to stay on the continent. Even now, they were in quite a fragile state, and hence, Daneel knew that it would be an uphill battle to get them back to the state they had been before, when they had marched out to face the fake Church(created by him) on the sh.o.r.es of the Endless Sea.
A few moments after everyone gathered, the chair reappeared in the air, and gasps could be heard in the crowd as everyone saw their mentor and easily the most respected man in the entire Order being bound by shackles which seemed to have been forced onto him.
"Preposterous!"
"First Mrs. Quenry, and now Cain?! How is this possible? Maybe the rumors were true! Maybe it is a personal agenda!"
"Get him down this second, or I swear I"ll fight whatever comes in my way! That man is like a father to me!"
"This is too much! This is what we get for putting the Order in the hands of a child! Even if the child saved us, he can still destroy us with his decisions now! Look at the discord he is sowing!"
That last shout was especially loud, and looking at the one from whom it had come, Daneel felt anger almost take control of him again, as he recognized him to be Perfect"s father.
Yet, for that family, he had a special plan, so he could only control himself and wait.
He didn"t have to wait long, thankfully, because Cain spoke up right away.
"Everyone, calm down. I chose to enter this position by myself- I was not beaten or bullied in any manner. This is a public hearing that has come to be because of my admission that I have been acting as an agent of the Church, and I thank the Overseer and the one who has taken my place as the confidant of the Overseer, King Daneel Anivron, to whom we all owe our lives, for this opportunity to tell my tale in a public manner, so that I can use this chance to hopefully give one last lesson to all of the children and friends whom I have helped to the best of my abilities to become what they are now. Please stay silent, and listen - I have not been coerced in any manner, and I speak while being in full control of all of my senses. I swear this now, in front of you."
The words of the man who had a scary moniker, yet the kindest smile in the Order brought even more shock than what had appeared on the faces of those present on seeing him in the chair, shackled, and it took a few moments for everyone to come back to their senses and understand that what they had heard was true.
Such an integral person, who had done so much for the welfare of the continent and had motivated them all to go out and reach the stars and become the best versions of themselves possible was actually an agent of the force that wanted to enslave them all?! Could it be that he had only been doing all this so the Order could create fatter sheep that could be harvested?
No, that didn"t make any sense! Everyone now knew that the goal of the Church was to kill everyone so that there would be no Angaria, and hence no right for anyone else but them to control the Will of the World, so could it be that it had all been an act to make them believe him and trust him so that they would put on the armor and weapons given by the Order at that crucial time without questioning anything? Indeed, that had happened, but not many had made this connection yet.
Stopping all of these thoughts, Cain spoke up with his iconic deep voice, and everyone began to listen with rapt attention, as the very first sentence he spoke made many snap up their heads and seem as if they had been zapped by a lightning bolt.
"Many of you are not aware of the fact that I come from neither the Big Four nor the Order- I was born to a man who wanted to commit genocide for his personal good, and since birth, I was branded a scourge that had to be eradicated. My father… Was an outcast, thrown out when he was caught taking forceful control of many of the mentees who came under him when he was acting as the Chief Instructor in the Order and using them to funnel the resources of the Order to himself. He left to live in the Central Continent, where he took a wife, and had me. His desire was still to reach the highest level possible, though, so he kept reappearing in the Order, once trying even to sign me over, in exchange, if he could just get some Ker Gems. He was rejected, but that was not before I was branded as a target that had to be killed, if possible, lest I turn into another lecher like my father, albeit a much stronger one as he boasted of the fact that I was born with exceptional comprehension level."
The story was delivered in mostly a neutral tone, but still, the emotions it elicited were obvious: many could connect to what it must have meant for him- to be isolated and alone, with no support, and this also seemed to be because he was supposed to have helped many who had been in this very state.
"When I was growing up, the thing that struck me most…was how much people cursed my father for tainting the sanct.i.ty of that role. For doing something so despicable that they even felt like spitting on him every time they went on a mission. They said that he had sullied the pure bond that should be present between a mentor and a mentee, and in my young age, I so, so wanted to find out what they were talking about. Alas, all I had were unreachable goals and unlimited motivation in the form of punishment, so all I could do was train, with my goal in life being that I would repay the "investment" being made in me by giving all the resources I used back, tenfold, to my father whose death was quickly approaching.
"In the end, he died filled with regrets, and when I saw his last breath leave…all I wished was that I would not die like him- alone, in the middle of nowhere, with only his son who was there due to him being chained. I buried him…and traveled to the Order with but one goal. To discover what it meant to be a mentee, and a mentor. And to die…a better death. I entered the Order, and with a changed ident.i.ty…I did my best. I was even fortunate to meet a woman who saw me for what I was and accepted me, before blessing the World with a wonderful baby boy- Hunter."
Finally, when saying that name, Cain"s voice broke.
His eyes filled with sadness, and it looked like they would burst out into tears.
But pulling them all back in once more, the man continued.
"Hunter was the pride of our lives. And he was also my most sincere mentee. In him…I saw a chance to fix everything that was still broken within me. But disaster struck- not content with her power, his mother went on a hunting trip deep into the Endless Sea and never returned. Still, we survived. Everything seemed great. For years, we were perfect. Until one day…Hunter took his life."
This unexpected twist, followed by a pause, made most feel like reaching forward to comfort the man who seemed to be breaking down in front of them.
But once more, as if knowing that his ordeal was at an end, he controlled himself, and continued.
"It turned out that he was targeted by someone who found out by real past using a tic I had when I was little. He was someone abused by my father- he wanted revenge. He filled my boy"s head with lies, saying that I hated him, saying that his mother was also killed by me, and finally…in a fake fight where that monster impersonated himself as me, he beat my boy and laughed, and unable to take it, still young and fragile from the wounds of his mother"s death, he chose to let it all go, as he thought he had nothing to live for. I found out everything, and in my moment of rage…the Overseer was there for me. It gave me permission using a set of rules that might otherwise not have been discovered quickly enough, and I was able to hunt and kill the one responsible. And then, in a completely shattered state, I, of course, gravitated to the one who had helped me. I swore all the oaths available, without even a.n.a.lysing their contents, as I just wanted to lean on someone. And that…is how I swore the oath to follow the Church, too- a little something slipped in there by Mrs. Quenry without the knowledge of the then Overseer."
Hearing it all, Daneel asked himself whether he would have been able to come back after living such a devastating life.
The answer was that it was possible, but even if he did…he would definitely be in a very vulnerable state.
And such a state…would be just perfect to be taken advantage of.
As if reading his mind, Cain spoke again.
"That is what the Church does- they take advantage of people at their lowest. I blame nothing but myself- by the time I was back in my senses, it was too late. I had a choice- stay with them, and try to make sure that nothing disastrous would befall the continent, or die. I chose the latter, and the thing that helped me live was my other goal- to understand the meaning of the bond my father sullied. I was made the Chief Instructor…and I hope I did a good job."
The answer was visible all over- hundreds of people nodded, together, and Daneel noticed that almost all of them were the top seeds or the upcoming Champions in the Order, poised to take their places among the ranks of the Peak Heroes.
So that was his story. A truly sad one, indeed, but what now?
This question came in Daneel"s mind, and he couldn"t help but sink into deep though.
Was it truly like how Quenry had put it? If he chose to let Cain go, it would give the wrong message, and even show him as a soft leader, who could easily give up his promise of "never pardoning traitors" in a heartbeat. If he chose to kill Cain, or subject him to a lifetime of torture, he would definitely be earning the ire of most he saw in front of him, who had a deep bond with the man and truly sympathesized with them.
Either choice was bad. But were they the only ones available to him?
Instantly, Daneel understood what he should do.
Who was he? He was the King from the Central Continent, a place where only "useless maggots"(paraphrased from the favourite sayings of most Big Four and Order dwellers) lived, and hence, he was a breaker of all conventions and rules that everyone thought existed on the continent.
If so…shouldn"t he show that again, and use the opportunity to quell the restlessness in the Order?
"This is my last lesson to all of you: do not trust the Church. They only crave your death. Instead, trust in yourself, and trust in life. In the hands of the Head and the King whom I hold in the highest of regard, Angaria will survive. But as for me…my story is done. I ask for the death sentence, because we Traitorous Heroes of the Order will always be a danger- the way we were able to betray the Order despite the extremely powerful Oathshackles that all take on which say that they will never act against Angaria is by the use of other, even more powerful Oathshackles that can be made to take precedence and overshadow the others, without detrimental effects, using a special kind of trinket. It is a costly process, but it was worth it- using it, the Church was able to stop a prediction of them arriving from being notified to the continent."
Anger and frustration appeared in many as this was revealed, but Cain plowed on.
"They are not present now, so my Oaths to the Order are active, but when they return, they can take control of me again. I would rather die than let that happen. h.e.l.l, I would have died to stop those actions of the Overseer and the invasion- but they kept me in the dark, probably because of this very reason. Well, it doesn"t matter, now- King, as our saviour, I want you to do the honours. Please…end this ign.o.ble life of mine. Quiet!"
That last work was blasted onto those who had started a ruckus after Cain"s plea to Daneel, and when he said it, Daneel saw the strictness of a perfect mentor.
In turn, he also saw the fearful esteem he had instilled in his staunchest supporters, as they shut up immediately.
"If you have even a shred of respect for me, then stand down, and let this happen. If you wish to take revenge, then aim your anger at the Church, and vanquish them. Goodbye."
For the members of the Order, it felt as if they were in a dream. They had been called out of nowhere, bombarded with a hard-hitting, but quickly narrated story, before being told that they would have to see their idol killed.
Few were in a state to react, but no one could have predicted what would happen next.
With a firm nod, the King of Lanthanor disappeared and reappeared beside Cain.
Manifesting a sword of flames, he swung, and before anyone could respond…he had cleaved the Reaper in two.
With horror, the members of the Order watched as Cain burned up into ashes, his eyes holding the pleasure of a final release.
"NO!"
"STOP HIM! CAIN MUST LIVE!"
"HE HAD NO CHOICE! PARDON HIM!"
"KING, HOW DARE YOU?!"
All kinds of angry shouts erupted from the crowd, and it looked like active war would break out at any moment.
However…everyone froze when an eerily familiar person appeared beside the King.
The sword wreathed in flames transformed into a globe of light, and this globe was made to enter the mind of this man through the directions of the King.
As everything watched on with awe, the voice of the King appeared in the Hall.
First, he turned to the iron chair where there were only ashes and said, "Cain, the ign.o.ble. You are deemed guilty, and your punishment is death. Let it be noted that it was administered immediately, without any delay."
Then, he turned to the man who had newly appeared, clad in s.h.i.+ning, silver robes, and said, "Cain, the n.o.ble. If anyone deserves another chance…it is you. I await to see how you use it, and this time, try not to swear random oaths, will ya"?"
With that out-of-place, yet somehow perfectly apt casual statement, the King disappeared, and at the same time, this man, who seemed to be in his early 30s, but with the same features as Cain, took in a long, long breath, and as one…all the members of the Order burst into an uproar.