“Let’s get down to business.”198Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡk1rhZF0D5i
Arthur barely heard the dragon’s words over the sound of the imps that fluttered and chatted above him. Their words were as clear as day—all insults and all about him. Though from the way the others reacted behind him, he wondered if that was true.
It took all he had to resist the urge to turn around and check on them. A feeling in his gut told him that losing eye contact with the dragon would be the last thing he did. That did little to help the anger that burned in his stomach. Embers filled him even as he forced them down.198Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4fZ8CIbWs7
He knew he needed a clear head for this. The dragon was planning something; he must be. Not that he knew enough to say what that was. Though that the scale he found in the boarded-up room matched the ones in front of him told him a lot.
Pydes words echoed through his head, telling him to drop the topic. Arthur didn’t want to drop it; now there was something tangible to go on with. Still, it wasn’t his priority. With a deep breath, he centered himself as best he could and started small.
“Fine. If we’re doing business, what should I call you? You’re not an Archdemon.”
The dragon let out a dark chuckle. “No, no, I’m not. It was a great disguise for these idiots, though. Good job with Greenwine too; it was the most fun I’ve had in years. You can call me Rathnil. It’s not a name your leash holder would know.”
“My what?” Arthur barked, forcing himself not to take a step forward and get closer to the pentagram.
Above him, one imp burst into laughter so hard that it fell out of the tree. Dirt covering its dark purple fur. A gunshot rang out, and the creature stopped laughing or doing anything at all. Jemima chuckled, and Arthur couldn’t help but grin.
Rathnil didn’t appear to find it funny. He waved a scaled hand, and the corpse vanished into a puff of dust that settled on the ground.
“I thought this was a negotiation?” The reproach in his question was obvious.
Arthur shrugged as he reached up to grab his burning locket. Even around his neck, it was becoming slightly uncomfortable. “Control your minions, then. It would be easier without the peanut gallery speaking.”
“Fine.”
All at once, the imps went silent. He could still see them, but he couldn’t hear them any longer. It took him a few extra seconds to realize the same was true for his side. When he turned to look, Leo mouthed something, but he couldn’t hear what.
“Fair is fair,” Rathnil said. “I would hate for your side to say anything that might cause problems. I’m sure you agree.”
“Whatever. What did you want?”
“For your help, Arthur. You’ve shown what a wonderful asset you can be. A true thorn in the side of my enemies. I want to turn those destructive tendencies into something constructive.”
“So you’re trying to hire me?” Arthur rolled his eyes. “No.”
Rathnil waved his comment away. “Not at all. Why hire you for a job I know you’ll do for free?”
That caught his attention. “Oh?”
“Yes.” Rathnil smiled, bearing his fangs. “I used to work for the same organization you did, Arthur. One of her little peons. Underappreciated and overworked. But I got out! Now look at me. My power, my strength, my system! If I could do it, why couldn’t you?”
“Why couldn’t I?” The thought crossed his mind before his head grew hot, and he heard it in Rathnil’s voice.
More thoughts along the same lines tried to invade his mind, but the heat grew enough that he needed to squeeze his eyes shut. The locket around his neck grew hot enough that he almost pulled it off.
With effort, he forced his eyes open and growled out his next words.
“Stop that, or I’ll have Jemima shoot you.”
The invasive thoughts faded, and he breathed deeply as he tried his best not to waver on his feet.
“Fine, fine. But what do you think?” Rathnil chuckled as he moved towards the edge of the pentagram.
Arthur watched as he placed a hand up, pressing it forward as though against an invisible wall. With a smile, the dragon opened his mouth and let the purple smoke leak from his maw. The purple gas spread upward, disappearing into what appeared to be thin air.
“I’m offering you a way out from under her thumb. I did it. You could. All you need to do is make a teeny-tiny agreement. A miniscule thing, one that won’t even impact you all that much.”
“What?” Arthur said.
He couldn’t deny that the idea appealed to him on some level. Not being what she wanted after what she’d done to him held an appeal.
“Not that I’m dumb enough to trust him.” There was tension in his gut until he realized the thought was one hundred percent his. “Still a way out? No more goddess.”
“Fine, and what am I giving up to make this happen?”
Rathnil’s smile grew wide to an unnatural level as he stepped back from the edge of the circle. His wings spread out behind him as he placed both hands on his hips.
“Simple. You agree I can leave and that you won’t come after me. I’ll be out of your hair, and you can go back to whatever dull things you do every day.”
Arthur stared at Rathnil in disbelief. His cane clutched so tightly in his hand that he was afraid he’d break it.
“You expect me to believe you’d leave?”
Rathnil shook his head. “No. I expect you to believe I’m smart enough to know that apart from killing everyone, I don’t have a lot of options. Now, don’t get me wrong. I could kill you all. However, that doesn’t help me. You’re simply letting me go about my business, however? It’s a big multiverse; I can make this work.”
Bullshit." Arthur snarled the word as he pointed his cane at Rathnil’s head. “What’s the actual deal?’
“Exactly what I said. You need the patch of dirt I’m stuck on for your ritual. I want out of this place. That’s the deal.” Rathnil looked relaxed. “So, what do you say? A simple offer. Or do you need to run to your handler to make any actual decisions?”
“What did you say?”
Rathnil’s expression turned smug. “You heard me. Tell you what, I’ll even throw in an extra incentive.”
“What could you even have to—”
A puff of purple smoke interrupted Arthur, as Carina appeared standing in the circle. She looked awful as she stared at him. Cuts and bruises as though she’d been fighting; one hand covered her left eye as though sheltering it from the world.
Even with nothing resembling medical knowledge, he wondered how she was still standing.
“So, Arthur?” Rathnil asked as he moved over to place a hand on Carina’s shoulder. “What do you say?”
***
Arthur felt his blood boil as he looked at Carina.
She was cowering, looking weaker than he’d ever seen her. One hand rested over her eye, and the other one focused on the ground. Rips covered her clothes, and it looked like she was having difficulty breathing.
He took a step forward, ready to scream at Rathnil to let her go when he saw it. She had no shadow. Before he could say a word, something large hit him in the side. For a moment, he thrashed, expecting a demon. His cane swung through the air, but he missed his target.
It took him a moment to see what shoved him to the side.
Leo was there, his fists beating on the invisible wall that ringed the pentagram. The bald man was screaming something, but Arthur couldn’t tell what. Rathnil was laughing even as he pointed at the circle beneath his feet.
“Come on then, destroy it. Free me, and you can have her back. Seconds’ worth of work.”
“Don’t!” Arthur yelled, turning to see Augustus running towards him. “Stop him!”
Augustus jumped on Leo, with Jemima not far behind him. Arthur moved towards them, his cane raised, as Leo struggled against his attacks. One of his hands scrambled at the dirt as he tried to reach the pentagram that stained the grass.
From the corner of his eye, Arthur saw George grip the box tighter as it rocked in his arms. The elementals inside freaking out. Not that anything appeared to have changed around him.
Rathnil smiled as he turned to Arthur.
“Your man here was willing to make a much cheaper deal; why should I go with yours?”
“You want out of the pentagram, then?” Arthur said as he stepped forward. “That’s it?”
“That’s it. Freedom from this place. Being bound here no longer serves my interests.” Rathnil’s wings flapped as he gestured towards the fight happening on the ground, even as he waved a hand through Carina. “I want out. You’re going to give it to me.”
“And what if I don’t? What then? You can’t harm me, can you? You can’t even get out of the bubble.”
“Arthur. Don’t be stupid. I got one of your own to attack you for an illusion. Do you think I can’t do better than that? Also, look up and remember the imps. No. You’re going to let me out. The question is, what deal are we striking? Unless you want someone else to do it? Benny, maybe. He’s simple enough.”
“No.” Arthur stepped forward and jabbed at the barrier with his cane. “You deal with me. Here’s what’s going to happen: I set you free, and you leave me and mine alone. None of your employees attack me as I take over.”
Rathnil looked thoughtful before he spoke again. “Counter-offer. Neither I nor my employees will come after you. Also, I’ll answer a question about your dear goddess or myself if you’re curious.”
“Why?” Arthur asked, suspicions rising.
Rathnil growled as he stepped closer. “Because I want to make you see what I saw. To ask the questions, I did. She destroyed everything I worked for because I asked questions. You’re going to go the same way. I don’t need to destroy you, Arthur, to come after you. Oh, no. I can do better. Don’t you want to know?”
He did, his mind flashing back to the boarded-up room. Rathnil’s room, he knew.
“Fine. Deal.”
“Deal.” Rathnil stepped back. “I’d shake your hand, but, well. You know. So, your information. What would you like to know?”
Arthur paused before asking the obvious question. “What questions did you ask to make her kick you out?”
“You’re smarter than you look.” Rathnil nodded, looking almost impressed as he folded his wings behind him. “What I asked was simple. How did she get the power she did? What made her who she is? That was a mistake. People followed me. Prodded me. Anything I did was suddenly a ploy for more personal power. She couldn’t handle the idea of competition, so she tried to stamp me out. I escaped and used her own trade secrets against her. Before, I was curious, but now? Now I want what she has. So, there you have it, Arthur. I asked why she got to sit in the big seat, and she destroyed me for it.”
For a moment, Arthur did nothing but stare at the dragon. His thoughts went wild as his rage battled with his common sense. Not that he fully believed everything Rathnil said. He wasn’t that stupid. Still, he’d known enough managers in his time to understand.
“How did she get to where she is? How do I do it?” Greed welled up in his chest at the thought of standing where she was, but he pushed it down. “Do I even want to?”
His mind filled with the image of her treasure wall. The embers in his stomach formed into a tight ball. Without thinking, he looked back at the box that held all his treasure. Treasure he’d need to give up.
“Now then?” Rathnil said. “I believe we had a deal? You were going to let me go.”
“How?”
“Just scrape a line away. Any will do.”
With a nod, Arthur reached out and rubbed at the line with his shoe. The purple came apart as he did so, and with it, the sound of a bubble popping filled the air. A rush of wind blew past him, and it carried sounds. Leo and Jemima screamed at each other as the Imps overhead laughed and hurled insults.
Augustus squeaked in panic, and when Arthur turned, he saw him next to George. Imps menaced them both with sticks and vines. Rathnil laughed as he stepped out of the circle, standing right before Arthur. His breath smelled sweet—almost cloyingly so—as he spoke.
“A word of advice, little wretch? A contractor’s creation isn’t the same as an employee’s. Bye, bye now.”
Arthur turned and swung his cane at the dragon, snarling as it shattered in two. He didn’t even damage the dragon’s suit. Rathnil rolled his eyes as he leapt into the air and looked down with a wave.
“Well, have fun with your takeover. I have places to be.”
With that, he was gone.
For a moment, everyone was still. Then, with an enraged scream, Arthur hurled his broken cane up and speared an imp.
“Release the elementals!” He called as he gestured for George. “The rest of you, defend them. We have a ritual to complete.”198Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQSO7COLnFI
