Standing in one of the hidden balconies in the gargantuan statue of St. Rect.i.tude which was the headquarters of the Church, Jonah looked out at the heavy rain that was las.h.i.+ng the Mainland.
To others, it looked as if he was deep in thought, reflecting on all of the duties that had newly been placed on his shoulders, but in reality, he was thinking of just one person who had changed his life entirely by coming into it.
Today was the day. He hadn"t been able to talk to his disciple much, recently, as it felt as if he was being watched day in and day out, but that did not stop him from receiving a few messages. Hence, he knew that today, no matter what happened, everything would come to a head.
He had listened to the message at least 100 times, trying to ascertain the emotions of the one that he trusted more than anyone else in the world, but no matter how many times he did so, he couldn"t decide whether his disciple was confident, or resigned.
It was pretty obvious that there would be a major attack as this would be the last chance to stop him from taking complete and safe control of the Grand Inheritance according to the information they had received, so Jonah"s hope was that Daneel must have created a good enough plan to fend them off and save himself.
There was so much that he had wanted to say, but it just wouldn"t be worth it if he risked his position as the leader of the expedition that would soon be heading out to conquer his home. Every day, he was learning so much about the most secretive powers of the church, and he had already begun to create a database of information that he would transmit to Angaria as soon as he got the chance.
On the Mainland, everything was always taken to the extremes, and this applied to the weather, too. All of the seasons he had seen so far would make anyone from Angaria cry out in despair, as just the weather, itself, was often dangerous enough that it could kill a Champion if they weren"t careful. Even today, lightning bolts that were at least as thick as a grown man"s waist were striking the statue repeatedly, but a mechanism right above the head of the saint was protecting them all from an electrifying death that most in the building definitely deserved.
"Gem for your thoughts?"
Snapping out of his reverie, Jonah saw that a small man was standing behind him while holding an auburn diamond in which a bolt of lightning taken straight from the sky looked like it had been trapped.
Raising an eyebrow, he said, "Really? You would give me that gem to hear my thoughts?"
Raising his hands, the small man who was wearing the same clothes as him(a clerical gown with a brown colored band running down the collar and the edges) said, "Of course! Haven"t you heard all the rumors flying around about you? Some say that you"re having an illicit affair with the Bishop, and others claim that your handsome looks have managed to captivate the Saintess, herself. There are even a lot of bets going around!If I knew what the truth was, I would instantly bet all of my life savings on it! This gem is nothing compared to that!"
Letting out a sigh, Jonah could not stop himself from once again noticing just how much this little guy looked like a mouse.
He was his lieutenant, but it was increasingly becoming clear that he had been put in that position to keep an eye on him.
His eyes were large, and recently, they had even begun appearing in Jonah"s dreams, as if they were watching him even when he was sleeping. He had woken up and attacked all of the blind spots in his room with the sword that he slept with, but there had been nothing.
It might seem like he was being paranoid, but still, he believed that he was true, as he still didn"t know exactly what area the man specialized in.
Seeing that he was still waiting for an answer, he shrugged and took the gem before saying, "I was just thinking about how nice it would be if we could bring this same weather to my former home. The weaklings would die within a month, without us lifting a hand! Enough wishful thinking, though. What are you here for? I"m pretty sure that you don"t come to watch the rain, as everyone knows how much you hate water."
Seeing the gem disappearing into Jonah"s pockets, the mousy man frowned, but then smiled and said, "The Bishop summons you."
Furrowing his eyebrows, Jonah reached in his pockets to check the Artefact that had been given to him the day he had gotten his duties from that woman, but before he could do so, the one in front of him spoke again.
"Don"t bother checking. She didn"t send a message using the Artefact - you must know that they are all actively cataloged by those p.r.i.c.ks who burn green. She wanted to speak with you off the record. Follow me."
Raising his head, Jonah noted, following which the man started to lead him through the many winding corridors that made up the interior of the giant Saint.
Opulence was everywhere, as the Saint had never decreed that his followers forego the pleasures of the flesh. The multiple levels of the statue contained so much s.p.a.ce that a country from Angaria could easily have fit inside it, yet each and every hallway was decorated by art from the most prominent artists on the Mainland.
Artefacts were everywhere, and each of their functions, themselves, were so incredible that anyone from Angaria would definitely go crazy with shock if they walked for just 10 minutes inside this cesspool of demons.
Pa.s.sing a room that stank of blood from which loud screams could be heard, Jonah once again remembered his initial thoughts on this place.
He had believed that not everyone must be as bloodthirsty or cruel as the ones he had met so far. He had believed that maybe, just maybe, the original saint was an actual Saint, and that his objective was to create a rightful sect.
He had been so wrong.