Chapter 229: Chapter 229
General Rippotis let out a hum as he rubbed his beard. Before him stood a woven basket, placed upside down with a small hole at the bottom.
“So the bees like to live in these…skeps?”
He looked up at several women in thick clothes standing before him. One of them nodded.
“Yes, High Councilor.”
The woman jumped and immediately bowed her entire body.
General Rippotis just raised his hand.
“Starami, Tower Lord of Starami Tower and Lord of the Conclave. I thank the High Council for having me today.”
High Councilor Heigiosa nodded and then motioned to the last remaining chair.
“Thank you for coming. Please, have a seat.”
Lord Starami did so. High Councilor Heigiosa gave him a chance to get settled before speaking again.
“Now, I am told that you have news to share?”
“I have found the missing Tower.”
General Rippotis raised an eyebrow.
“I assume you have some evidence for that claim?”
“I sent off my son as agreed upon by the Conclave. Before he left, however, he returned to the site of the Tower’s birth and had the augur accompanying him perform a divination. To my surprise, he received a response.”
High Councilor Heigiosa narrowed her eyes.
“You are certain of this?”
“I personally observed it through the monster monitoring his departure. I would stake my life on it.”
The High Councilor to the left of Heigiosa, High Councilor Konilias, scowled.
“Good, for you do just that if it turns out you are mistaken, Starami.”
The High Councilors glanced at one another until Heigiosa returned her gaze to Lord Starami.
Lord Starami nodded and did so.
“The augur apparently received a set of direction that would lead them far, far away from the Conclave’s territory. I was therefore not surprised that we did not hear from them by the time the rest of the first wave reported in. But then, just the other day, we received word from my son that a Tower had been located. Far, far away, in the location the directions would have led him to.”
The High Council fell silent at this. High Councilor Konilias frowned.
“The evidence seems quite circumstantial.”
High Councilor Heigiosa shook her head.
“Normally, I would agree. But…”
She turned to glance at General Rippotis.
“It seems clear to me that the gods are at work here.”
High Councilor Konilias narrowed his eyes.
“What exactly does she mean?”
General Rippotis shrugged.
“I received a mission from the gods that delayed my departure for the Grand Subjugation, possibly from a previously unknown god. It seemed unrelated to this matter but…the timing is highly coincidental.”
High Councilor Konilias grunted.
“Hm, I had wondered why you had not run off again.”
High Councilor Heigiosa turned to look at the other members of the High Council.
“I have not received any specific instructions myself, however. Has anyone besides General Rippotis heard from any of the Oracles, or received any unusual missions from the gods?”
The High Councilors turned thoughtful, but one by one they shook their heads. High Councilor Heigiosa rubbed her chin.
“So, it is up to us to decipher their will. Still, given the circumstances, I feel that something important is going on here. We should not leave this matter be.”
One of the other High Councilors, a fashionably dressed woman, tilted her head.
“Could it be that they are helping us locate the lost tower?”
Another High Councilor, a man in simple robes like Heigiosa’s, shook his head.
“Not every Tower is placed within our reach. If the gods saw fit to keep one from us, they would not feel the need to help us find it.”
The woman councilor frowned.
“But…they did not keep it from us? We failed to bind one that was, did we not? That’s a failure of our entire mandate, is it not?”
She gave a pointed look to the Lord Starami, who managed to keep his face expressionless. Lord Konilias cleared his throat.
“In any case, whether the gods have spoken or not we have already decided upon a Grand Subjugation. Is there any reason why we should not advance in the direction of this Tower?”
A man in armor next to General Rippotis saluted.
“Just say the word and I will lead my army forth.”
But Lord Konilias glanced at another High Councilor, a fashionably dressed man. The man cleared his throat.
“Lord Starami was the one responsible for this affair, and I was the one responsible for him. He shall lead the mission to seek the gods’ will, and I shall arrange the campaign necessary for him to do so.”
The well-dressed man and the armored man locked eyes. High Councilor Heigiosa glanced at General Rippotis, but he just shook his head. She turned to Lord Starami.
“What of your son? He has already arrived at the location, has he passed back any further messages?”
Lord Starami frowned.
“My son…is likely dead. The failsafe broke the signal a day after we received it.”
High Councilor Heigiosa frowned.
“That is most concerning.”
She closed her eyes for a moment before letting out a sigh.
“Very well. High Councilor Stadvolous shall arrange for the Grand Subjugation to move in the direction indicated. However, please take care if and when you approach the location in question. The will of the gods is not always obvious and it would not do for us to move hastily, particularly considering that our first arrival there has not ended well. In that vein, please provide us with regular updates on your progress. In the meantime, we all should pay extra attention to the oracles and to any missions we receive from the gods.”
Lord Starami bowed his head.
“As the High Council wishes.”
After the meeting, General Rippotis and High Councilor Heigiosa walked together once more. High Councilor Heigiosa’s face was scrunched up, causing General Rippotis to frown as well.
“Something troubles you?”
“It is unusual for the gods to get involved this directly. Even we have never received such a specific location, even back when the fate of the world was at stake, so I feel this must be a matter of great importance to them. And yet, they have not spoken to us or to any of their oracles on the matter.”
General Rippotis’s frown grew.
The two stood in silence for a moment, lost in their own thoughts. Eventually, Heigiosa shook her head.
“The only thing I can think of is the mission you received. Please, General, approach it with all the care and determination you always display. I fear it may be more important than we realize.”
“I would do so were it not important at all. We owe the gods as much.”
“We do indeed. If I may ask and if you are permitted to share…what is your current mission? And who is this new god that issued it?”
General Rippotis could not help but make a bemused smile.