CHAPTER 97: SEEING THE WHOLE CHESSBOARD

The Preceptor whispered the name and couldn’t help but turn his gaze towards Priest who stood in the corner.

He was certain now that Priest knew about Finn the whole time. He was certain the man could see that he was being influenced by the boy’s fragment. But for some reason, he had chosen not to do anything about it. He’d not even mentioned a thing to him despite the many years they had known each other...

Why?

What plans did he have? What did he know? What had he seen that prompted him to go against his duty as an Outer Circle Preceptor who was just a step to joining the Inner Circle — the highest level of power within the Ossuary?

He kept those thoughts to himself and didn’t mention a thing. Perhaps he wanted to use this knowledge as a leverage against Priest, perhaps he wanted to have something to hold against him.

He instead focused on what the old voice explained.

"—Now both Error and Order roam free."

"I am ever-willing to rectify my wrong." Preceptor Elias quickly declared. "You just have to give me the order and I will hunt him down."

"Calm yourself." The voice spoke. "Forget about getting the Error fragment. For you, it is an impossible task."

Those words seemed to strike the Preceptor’s ego as his eye twitched very slightly, still picturing Finn’s simple face in his mind.

"No matter what you do, now that the wheel is rolling, he will always slip away from your grasp," the voice sighed, then said:

"Find the Order fragment instead. No matter how long it takes, at some point, Error will subconsciously find the Order fragment and come directly to you... Or the Transcendent of Order will awaken herself and head towards Error."

The Preceptor’s face became hard.

He personally had no ill-feeling towards Althea. But without hesitation, he was going to carry out his duty. No matter what may occur as a result.

The voice then added with a gravity that made even the surrounding shrouded figures lean forward:

"But beware, Elias. There is something you must understand about the nature of these fragments."

The Preceptor looked up, meeting where he thought the voice’s gaze would be.

"In the same way that the fragment holder of Order draws the holder of Error to themselves..." the voice paused, letting the weight of the words settle, "they even more strongly draw their direct nemesis."

"...Chaos." The Preceptor whispered without needing to be told.

"The holder of Chaos," the voice continued in assent. "The leader of the Harvester Cult. The direct enemy of the Ossuary. The antithesis to everything we stand for."

Preceptor Elias clenched his jaw hard. The Harvester Cult that had plagued the Ossuary for centuries. They wreaked utter chaos wherever they passed, moving with the aim of killing every living Arcanist like it was their soul-bound duty.

Rather than try to tame the chaos of a soul mass, they went the other way and gave in to it. Living in a symbiotic relationship driven by madness.

The Preceptor himself had history with the cult. He had a personal vendetta against them. Even back in Xanth, he had devised a plan just to weed out the periphery heads that recruited for the Harvester cult.

So hearing that he would be up against the bearer of the fragment of Chaos... the leader of the Harvester cult himself...

"You must understand the gravity of what I am bestowing upon you, Elias. This duty is not a light one."

Murmurs suddenly rippled through the circle of shrouded figures. Not about the Harvester cult. But rather, at the fact that the Old voice was actually going forward to bestow this great duty on Preceptor Elias.

"The Inner Circle is... disgruntled," the voice chuckled, "that I am willing to hand over such a vital task to you. After your failure, many believe you should be stripped of everything and cast out."

Preceptor Elias’ jaw clenched, but he said nothing.

"But this is my goodwill to you, Elias. I need a determined person for this task. Someone with the drive to see it through, no matter the cost." The voice softened slightly. "Someone who has experienced failure and understands what is at stake."

"I will not fail," Preceptor Elias said through gritted teeth.

The voice went silent for a few seconds. Then spoke with a soft grunt of acknowledgment:

"See that you don’t."

"Now rise, Elias."

The Preceptor stood, dispersing the Cruor Mortis back into his shadow and rising with an air of duty.

"To appease the Inner Circle," the voice continued, and the Preceptor felt his stomach drop, "the crime of allowing the bearer of Order to slip through your fingers is extremely grave. More grave than you can possibly understand."

"That was vital information to the Ossuary. Information that could have changed everything. The Inner Circle demands recompense."

A heavy silence fell.

"Therefore, effective immediately, your title as Preceptor is hereby revoked."

The words thundered in Elias’ ears, even though he had expected it, he still felt something inside him crack. Years of service. Decades of dedication. Gone in an instant...

Murmurs of satisfaction echoed from some of the shrouded figures.

"However," the voice continued, cutting through the whispers, "you will be given a new title. A special title befitting your new mission."

Elias looked up in his shaken state of anger, shame, and now... confusion?

"You shall be bestowed the title: Sentinel.. Hunter of the Order fragment."

Sentinel...

The word felt hollow in Elias’s mind. This was not a promotion. It was not even a lateral move. It was just... an empty title. A label to make his demotion seem purposeful.

But both he and the voice, and every shrouded figure in the hall, knew the truth.

He almost let out a mirthless chuckle, seeing as fate liked to play.

Just a week or so ago, he had done the same for Finn, bestowing him the title of ’Vested’ and yet here he was, also being granted an empty title.

And worse still, with the main purpose of hunting down the same boy he had done the same to, if only by using someone else to draw him in...

And still, if he failed in this task...

Well, there would be nothing left. Not of his status, not of his honor, and quite possibly not of his life.

"You are dismissed, Sentinel Elias."

The word Sentinel dripped with irony as he heard it again, filling him with an uncomfortable feeling of distaste. But beneath that distaste, beneath his humiliation, a burning fury for retribution was already building. A white-hot rage that demanded an outlet.

And he knew exactly where to start.

As he turned to leave the dark hall, his eyes immediately sought out the corner where Priest had been standing. Those glowing golden eyes that had watched his downfall with such maddening indifference. Priest had known. About Finn, about Althea, about all of it.

And he’d said nothing.

Elias would make him talk. Would make him spill every secret he was hiding. Would extract every piece of information, no matter what it took—

But the corner was empty.

Priest was nowhere to be seen. Gone like the wind, as if he’d never been there at all.

Elias stood frozen for a moment, staring at the empty space with rage building inside him to a crescendo, with no outlet to release it.

His single hand trembled at his side, and he consciously clenched them into a fist to stop himself from revealing anything.

You can’t hide forever, Sentinel Elias thought viciously. I will find you... and I will make you answer for this.

But first, he had a new mission. A desperate hunt for a fragment he’d let slip away unknowingly.

Somewhere out there, inside the World Tear, both Error and Order were roaming free.

But his target was Order... And this time he wasn’t going to let her slip through his fingers.

.

.

.

.

Back on the island within the Stagnant Sea...

A history lesson...

Finn stared at the man as he settled himself into his chair with a begrudging look on his face, like he was about to do something that was necessary, but he didn’t think he’d have to do.

Finn still did not fully trust the man.

In fact, trust was a strong word. He only humored the man for the moment, still very much ready to embody his fragment of Error at the slightest notice.

He was sure it would provide him the opportunity to escape.

But he didn’t want it to come to that.

A part of him really wanted their goals to align.

He was tired of being a pawn in the larger scheme of things.

He wanted to see the whole chessboard for himself.

He wanted to see the hidden tricks. The traps and plots set in play in his path.

He wanted to finally have the full picture.

He wanted to become a player of the game himself.