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Order of the Black Foot Chapter 5: A New Offensive For DrakeHavok By Draconicon

Teryx took a deep breath as he felt the link between him and the other mages of the Order open up. Magic rushed into him as it always did, so much that he had to fight to keep from being flooded with it rather than straining for more. The rain dragon shuddered, his tail twitching a bit before he forced it to be still.

"Ready?"

He looked up, smiling slightly at the white dragon already in the teleportation ring. Though covered in a ragged cloak, Havok's 'salvaged' armor still gleamed under the desert sun. He nodded, stepping forward.

"I'm just making sure that there's nothing that will go wrong."

Havok nodded, falling silent as Teryx directed the flows of magic where they needed to go. It was still so new, working with the sheer power that the Order offered. It was more than triple what he could ever have summoned for himself, and it was...intoxicating, to say the least.

That said, he still had to force himself to pay attention to what he was doing. An overabundance of power wouldn't protect him if he cast the spell wrong, and would actually endanger the pair of them much more. He narrowed his eyes as the magic flickered between his fingers, forcing the bliss of magic out of his mind and focusing entirely on the technicalities of the spell.

As he forced energy into the teleport runes, Teryx couldn't help but examine his...well, for lack of a better word, partner. Havok seemed completely unconcerned, completely relaxed on the surface. He didn't fidget, didn't tap his foot or shift his weight the way someone who was antsy to get going might have, nor did he say anything to hurry the rain dragon along. At the same time...

He's got the eyes of a killer, he thought, a little shiver going down his spine that he quickly suppressed. The eyes, the mind, and the skills...

And a good reason for all of them, the dragon reminded himself before he could go too far down that line. A better reason than most of the people that were in the Order, for that matter. The need for revenge was common enough, but after what Draconicon had told him about Havok's past...well, he was pretty sure that he would have declared a war of his own for everything that the Church of the Sun had done.

It didn't make it easy to spend time around the newcomer, though. Seeing the deadly fire in Havok's eyes always reminded him that the white dragon knew dozens, if not hundreds of ways to kill someone, and after seeing him fight, Teryx knew that most of the mages in the camp wouldn't stand a chance against him if he turned on them. He told himself again and again that Havok wasn't an animal, that he was a normal person that was just flat out angry, but it only did so much. He knew that he was still afraid...and he hated it.

Shaking his head, he filled the rune with the last of the magic it required, and it lit up under their feet. He looked back at Havok again.

"Ready?"

"Been."

"Here we go."

Teryx lifted his hands, and the magic circle erupted around them. Light surrounded them, and transformed them before they were lifted away on the currents of magic.

He landed halfway on a chair, and slipped as his body solidified again. Crashing down on the floor, Teryx hit his head on a floorboard, and barely stifled a groan from the impact. He rubbed the sore spot before lifting his head again.

They'd landed in a closet. A rather small one, for that matter, as his legs didn't quite reach the door, and Havok was almost standing on him. The other dragon shuffled a bit, giving him room to stand up, and he nodded his thanks.

Despite the uncomfortable close quarters, Teryx didn't push at the door. They were supposed to meet someone here, after all. In the house, admittedly, but if there was a miscommunication, better not to surprise what was already - from everything Draconicon had said - an already jumpy mage.

He stopped Havok from reaching for the door, shaking his head and holding a finger to his lips. The white dragon nodded, and went still.

They waited for almost five minutes before a series of footsteps could be heard. They quickly got louder, and despite himself, Teryx didn't stop his partner from reaching for a dagger. If they were in the wrong place, then the Theocracy would find out about them very quickly. If Draconicon had been wrong about this mage needing help...

The door opened, and a bull stood on the other side. A rather muscular one, too, one that looked like he was about ready to rip through the sweat-soaked shirt he wore. Teryx held his breath until the big bovine pulled his shirt up, revealing the black footprint on his chest.

"You're our contact?"

"Yes. Welcome to Sayille."

The bull - who introduced himself as Satter - had apparently been stationed in the small town of Sayille for a while. He served them - or rather, him, as Havok refused - some tea as he explained the situation.

"Draconicon has been using me to run mages through this town. We're only forty miles from the northern border, and with teleport stations along the line, we can get mages interested in joining up sent along a lot faster than just guiding them from one place to another.

"The problem is...well, the church is starting to catch on."

Teryx nodded. That had been part of the briefing. Satter had been working as part of the teleport network, getting the sympathetic mages out of the country and towards the Order. Personally he thought that all the mages they could find should be evacuated, but at the same time, he understood that the Order had to prioritize who they helped. Getting the people to strengthen their group was more important than saving everyone...much as he hated to say that.

"So, do you need us to get you out?"

"No, no, nothing quite that dramatic. I need..."

Satter looked towards the windows, and Teryx followed his lead. Nobody could be seen out there, but if there was someone hiding, there was no point in trying to cast magic. They'd detect it in short order.

The bull lowered his voice.

"I need you to deal with the Inquisitor in town."

"Inquisitor?"

It was the first thing that Havok had said, the other dragon so quiet that Teryx had almost forgotten that he was there. The white dragon cursed, and he blinked.

"Inquisitor? Is that some sort of special paladin?"

"More than special. Really, really tough..."

"But you kill them all the time."

"Haven't done an Inquisitor in a while...last one, really hard."

"He's right. Inquisitors are the ones that they bring in when they need the heavy hitters, when there's a suspected mage that needs to be brought down quickly. They're investigating me, and it's only a matter of time until they realize who I am."

"So why aren't we extracting you, then? You can't be that needed out here."

"I'm the one that runs the teleport network. If we don't get someone out here to replace me, or find some way to redirect, then anyone that's coming down the line will have to walk from here to the next one. And it's a very, very long walk."

Better a walk than to sentence someone to death, Teryx thought, even as he tried to remember the map of the Theocracy. If they were along the northern border now, that meant that they were a fair way away from the actual camps of the Order. From what he recalled of the map...

No, no, Satter was right. The next part of the teleport network was more than a hundred miles west, with the one before it more than fifty miles south. The network bounced all over the place so that nobody could track it towards the camp, taking nonsensical routes and all sorts of detours to avoid giving a clear path. If someone had to walk it, they'd be in deep trouble.

"Okay. So how do we get the investigation stopped?"

"One Inquisitor, yes?"

The bull nodded at Havok's question.

"All others, low, trainees? Maybe a sergeant?"

"Yes...how did you -"

"Far off village. No authority."

Havok nodded.

"Kill Inquisitor. Nothing happens until they get a replacement."

"What are you talking about, Havok?"

"No...no, he's right. I was going to request that, but..."

The bull shook his head.

"Inquisitors are next to the Hierarchs of the church in terms of power and authority. They can command any of the common paladins to do anything. If this one gets taken down, then all the others will be leaderless. No chain of command, nothing to force them to continue the investigation. It'll take them weeks to get another Inquisitor out here, and by that time, we'll have something new arranged. But I need that time to get it done. Can you do it?"

Teryx leaned back in the small chair that he'd been offered, putting a hand to his chin. On the one hand, he hadn't thought that this would be an assassination mission...though he should have guessed that, with Havok sent along. The white dragon wasn't in a state to be used for anything else...

At the same time, it was the Church, and it was paladins that had already declared their loyalty to be against the common people. They wouldn't be missed that badly...

"I need a moment..."

Satter nodded as Teryx closed his eyes, rubbing one hand against his temple. He reached out through the link on his chest, feeling for the black dragon at the other end of the world. The connection that all Order members shared warmed him as he reached for their leader.

He felt Draconicon perk up on the other side of the world, and some attention shift over to him.

_What is it, Teryx?

Why didn't you tell me this was an assassination mission?

Because you don't have to do the killing. Havok will.

So what am I here for? Support?

More or less. I need someone that can get him in and then get him out, as well as deal with any of the fallout there._

...Is this Inquisitor so bad a person that he has to die?

Does it matter, when it means that he'll kill one of ours if he doesn't?

I mean...isn't there a way to do it without killing him?

Not when he's the ultimate authority of this village. And not when anything you can accuse him of or discredit him with will take over a week to get back to the Church. But if you want to feel better about having his blood on your hands...

Suddenly, his mind was filled with images of an armored fox. A fox that broke down doors, who ordered the killing of mages and their entire families. Of a fox that had led the destruction of an entire guildhouse of mages. Who had destroyed countless preserved artifacts that the guilds had been looking after.

He slumped forward, holding his arms around his stomach as the images kept coming, and pleaded silently for them to stop. Draconicon was ruthless, though, forcing him to see every atrocity. Every death. Every -

Stop! Please, stop!

And finally, it did. He slowly sat up again, shaking all over from the immensity of the 'vision' that the black dragon had put him through. Teryx still felt like he might throw up, but he held it back, swallowing hard.

_I understand...

There may come a day, Teryx, when someone innocent will die. But this is not the time. Inquisitor Tind needs to die, and when he does, Satter will be safe. Now get to work._

The connection broke off, and Teryx slowly opened his eyes to find that both the other mage and the assassin were looking at him with concern. He shook his head, touching his chest by means of explanation, and Satter nodded.

"So...will you help me?"

"We'll help you."

"The Inquisitor will die."

And not just because of Havok, this time...This man is too vile to let live.

Satter gave them his thanks, but Teryx barely heard it. He was too busy pushing the images that Draconicon had shown him out of his head. Those things...those things were horrible. And he was starting to see why there was something so...so hateful in the connection, that had possessed him before.

These people needed to die. Anyone like this Inquisitor didn't deserve to live.

It didn't take long for them to get the location of the church from their contact, and soon, the two dragons were squatting in a pair of bushes just outside of it. Teryx had abandoned his robe, leaving him covered only in the semi-solid goo that Draconicon had dripped over his lower body during his initiation. It only covered his privates, but in a way, that was better. There were enough 'barbarian' dragon tribes out there that it wasn't an entirely outlandish look, and as long as he was careful, he could keep the mark looking more like a tribal design than what it really was. The robe only made him look like a mage.

He held Havok back by an arm on his shoulder, feeling the other dragon's need to get inside and start 'working.' Heavens knew, he felt the same way, but he knew better than to rush in during the middle of the day. Particularly today. The sun was high overhead, which meant a service was being held. If they rushed in now...well, things would go bad very quickly.

Still...no need to let his thoughts dwell on the task to come.

"Havok...are you feeling okay?"

"Fine."

"I mean...well, you were feeling pretty bad, yesterday, when I found you in the desert -"

"There were...problems then. I'm better now."

Or maybe he could just settle into silent contemplation, rather than talk to the hyper-focused assassin. That would work too.

Teryx sat down, resting his legs as he closed his eyes, thinking back to that time, all those days back, when he'd been possessed by something so dark and horrible. The feeling of hate was still there, a feeling that was like a black mark on his heart and soul, and he shivered as he felt it flare up at the barest memory of the Inquisitor's actions.

He hadn't been like that before...He remembered being far more of a pacifist in the past, wanting to run from the paladins rather than fight them. Hate had never entered into it; fear had been much more prominent, and he had been fine with that. Why was it so much easier to be angry now?

Hate them all...watch them burn...

For a moment, he thought that it was Draconicon talking, or Havok, but no. It didn't sound like either of them. It sounded...female? But why would he -

Burn them...destroy them...kill them all...

"- all..."

"Good idea."

"Huh? What is?"

"Kill them all."

Teryx's eyes went wide. Had he actually said something? He thought that he'd just been listening. But if he had -

The bells of the church started ringing before he could correct himself, and the moment was gone. Both of them crouched in the bushes, hiding deeper inside of the greenery as the town citizens started pouring out of the church, escorted by some of the priests and paladins inside.

For the first time, Teryx had a chance to look at the paladins and examine them while not being in the middle of a chase, and he realized that there were more differentiating marks than he expected. Most of them had fairly plain armor, marked with the divine runes that they all had, of course, but other than that, they were fairly plain. Two of them, however, had different marks.

One of them, wearing armor that had two sunbeams running across the chest in addition to the standard sunburst, must have been the officer in charge of the garrison. None of the others had that sort of ornamentation, and he still looked very soldierly.

The other, however...

Teryx narrowed his eyes at the fox standing on the church steps. He couldn't have been more than five feet tall, but he was swathed in a white cape, covering half of his front and all of his left side and back. One shortsword hung from his exposed him, and he was sure that the bulge on the other side was another sheathed blade waiting to be used.

Rather than armor, the Inquisitor wore a series of accessories. A collar, rings, bracelets; every one of them marked with the same runes that granted the paladins protection via their armor, and more that he didn't recognize.

"This could get complicated..."

"This will be hard."

"Let's wait until everyone leaves..."

The sun was halfway to the horizon by the time that the church was completely vacated, and even then, Teryx wasn't entirely sure that they'd get through this without getting spotted. Despite his fears, they didn't have time to wait any longer. Satter had said that they needed to get this done fast, and after what he'd seen, there wasn't any doubt in his mind that the bull was right.

As soon as the church doors were closed again, he patted Havok on the shoulder and they stepped out of the bushes. Darting around the side of the church, they searched until they found a small, out of the way window.

"It's locked."

"I can deal with that. Unless you want to pick it?"

"Could, but..."

"I'll deal with it."

Teryx raised one hand, and paused. If he wasn't careful, they might detect it. He closed his eyes, reaching back into the pool of power and knowledge that was the Order's consciousness...

There. A way of casting a small spell without making any 'noise.' It wouldn't work with a higher powered spell, but with something small...

The first crack formed in the glass pane, and with a little, unseen pressure, it kept spreading. He caught the different pieces of glass before they could fall, and floated them to the grass outside, letting them fall to the ground noiselessly.

By the time he'd released his magic, Havok was already through the window. Teryx grunted, shaking his head as he grabbed at the windowsill and started pulling himself up. At least he was strong enough to do -

"Ugh!"

His eyes went wide at the death-sound, and he pulled himself up all the faster, but it was too late. As he cleared the window, he saw Havok lowering one of the low-ranking paladins to the floor, the rat's neck drooling blood over the church tiles.

"Why did you do that?!"

"He's one of them."

"But...he..."

Teryx bit back his outrage. It was bad enough that they were here to kill someone, and worse that they were adding to the body count. But what was done was done...and he was pretty sure that Havok had a reason besides revenge. He wouldn't be like a shark with blood in the water...would he?

He hoped not. Or this was going to get very messy.

Waving for Havok to get down, Teryx led the way through the pews of the church, keeping out of sight and trying to make sure that they couldn't be seen. Every now and then, the sound of armored boots hitting the floor made them freeze, and every time they did, he grabbed Havok as tightly as he could. He felt the tension going through the other dragon's arm, knowing that he wanted to kill...and he made sure it didn't happen.

Even though...

I don't want it. I don't want to kill them all...

Yet, something in him did. Something in him wanted to reach out, wanted to let Havok loose. It wouldn't be him then, would it? It would be a tool, a creature of revenge that went on a killing spree. He could feel safe and right, having done nothing himself, while someone like that -

Teryx forcefully bit down on his tongue, and the pain snapped him out of that train of thought. It wasn't him. Whatever else he had become since he'd joined the Order, he hadn't become someone that would push dirty work on someone else. He hadn't become someone that wanted to kill for the sake of killing, for revenge.

Draconicon, when I get back, you HAVE to make time to talk. This is getting out of hand.

There was no answer, and to be honest, he hadn't expected there to be one. They were too deep in the mission to have a conversation now.

After much starting and stopping, they reached the pulpit, and then the doors behind it. Teryx opened it, and peered inside. A hallway stretched out ahead of him, and he knew that this was where they needed to be. The various doors could only lead to the different living quarters of the priests and paladins, and unless the Inquisitor was lodging in the village, this was where they'd find him.

"What do we have here?"

Or rather, where he would find them. He felt Havok whip around while he was still turning, and the clang of metal on metal filled his ears while he was still desperately thinking of a spell.

The fight had already begun by the time he had turned and stood up, with the fox wielding two short swords to Havok's twin daggers, and the pair of them seemed to dance across the pulpit in their fight. Metal clanged off of metal, and dried bits of blood from Havok's dagger rained down on the ground.

Despite the ferocious attack, the Inquisitor didn't even seem to be breathing hard.

"It seems that I've found two members of the famous Order...tell me, are you here to kill me?"

"Yes!"

Havok slashed through the air, but missed, only barely nicking the edge of the fox's cape. The Inquisitor darted in, and Teryx saw the blow coming, too late to stop it.

Havok fell back, grabbing at his shoulder as his arm drooped. The slash had cut through the dragon's scales, nearly severing his bicep into two distinct pieces. The fox held up the bloodied blade, tilting it so that the droplets ran down towards the tip and then fell to the ground.

"If you're going to kill me, you'll have to be better than that."

"I'll kill you...kill you like you killed my family...like you kill everyone...you will burn...you'll burn to ash..."

"Hmmph. You first, assassin."

Teryx was amazed that he wasn't getting any attention from the fox, but then again, he was a mage. He had no power to strike someone that was protected by the paladin armor, unless he used the link with the Order's power. But here, in close quarters, he risked hitting Havok if his aim was even slightly off.

Because the white dragon was fast, incredibly so. The rain dragon could only watch in shock as his partner darted in again, swinging and dodging with his one dagger, avoiding more sword slashes and trying to land a few hits of his own. Havok was a blur...

Unfortunately, so was the Inquisitor. They leaped off of the pulpit and into the pews, the fox sliding along the backs of them and raining down blows from above, while Havok kept slicing around his feet, keeping Tind just enough off-balance to avoid landing a devastating blow.

No matter how good Havok was, the Inquisitor was just that little bit better. He was insanely quick, and his advantage of two weapons to the dragon's one was starting to make a difference. Bloody cuts started appearing all over Havok's upper arms, and when it started sliding around the armor, it started sprouting along his cheeks and his chest, as well. Teryx winced, racking his brain for something, anything he could use.

And then, he had it.

The collar, the rings, the different pieces. He didn't have to target the fox and overwhelm him. He just had to break the ones that offered him more protection. If he could just hit it right...

He hated it, but he needed help. Teryx reached out...

And felt his master reach back. His body opened up, letting the black dragon's mind and spirit into him. It felt like someone was stepping into his body, putting him on like a set of clothes, and almost immediately, he stopped shaking. His arm steadied, and pointed towards the fox's neck.

How can you be so calm about this? Why aren't you shaking like a leaf, Draconicon?

Because I have to be. Because if I get angry...nothing will be left.

He felt the power rise, more than he could carry even with the mark. Draconicon's power always astounded him, the sheer control that the black dragon had to make things work, to keep from being overwhelmed by the magical flood that the Order created for itself. If he tried that, he would burn himself to a crisp in seconds.

The spell shot down his fingers like an archer's truest shot, and it hit the back of the fox's neck. Empowered by a dozen different mages, the dispelling magic shattered the glowing rune, and the collar followed suit.

Teryx watched as his master prepared another spell, amazed at how quickly the Inquisitor's speed dropped, how his balance was shot. Before the fox could leap away again, Havok stabbed him in the leg, and down Tind went.

It didn't take long, after that. The rain dragon watched as fountains of blood came up from behind the pews, shooting in geysers into the air. It came down and anointed the seats in a bloody, horrifying way, and the screams of pain quickly died off as the fox doubtlessly lost the blood to keep making any sounds.

He wanted to shudder. He wanted to throw up from the sight. He wanted to do something that made him feel like he wasn't getting used to this...

But he didn't.

Teryx shuddered as those thoughts filled him again, the need to burn, to destroy, to kill. They were stronger every time, like that dark spot was growing inside of him. He closed his eyes, shaking his head.

_What is this, Draconicon? What is happening?

Someone that I thought was gone is still around...and it is something I'll have to deal with. She's...quite taken with Havok, and I think he's feeding the darkness with his own.

You have to stop this. You have to.

I will. But right now, you need to stop him before he goes after all the other paladins here. You might win, but we need to stop it here before it gets worse. She's going to feed on every death, and besides, you are only supposed to deal with the Inquisitor. You need the others to send a report before the Church decides to come here en masse to investigate.

I...I will. We'll be back soon._

Feeling Draconicon leave, Teryx hurried across the church. As he stepped into the small walkway between one pew and another, he saw the hacked apart body of the Inquisitor, the white cloak no longer so pristine. Fighting to keep a straight face, he reached down and put his hand on Havok's shoulder.

The white dragon whipped around, his face half-red from blood, and for a moment, Teryx worried that the dragon would attack him. He said the first thing that came to mind.

"It's over. He's dead. You've killed another one."

It seemed to be the right thing to say. He felt dead inside, saying it, but it stopped Havok cold. The white dragon looked down at the dead body, and slowly pulled away from it. There was even a slight shiver, something that gave Teryx hope.

"He should burn."

"Maybe...but not now. He's dead and gone, and we can - what are you doing?"

"Memories."

The white dragon ripped the runed gauntlets off of the Inquisitor, and tucked them under his arm. Teryx shook his head.

"We need to get out of here."

"There's more paladins."

"I know, but we can't stay here for long."

"They have to -"

"Orders from Draconicon. We are only supposed to kill this one...and then get out of here."

"..."

Havok reached up, rubbing his head, and Teryx wondered if his partner was dealing with a conversation with Draconicon, or...or if he was hearing things from the darker voice that he had found. This 'she' that Draconicon talked about...

He didn't want to interfere and find out, so he waited. Havok muttered under his breath, too quiet for him to hear, but eventually pulled his hand down and nodded.

"Let's...let's get out of here."

Just what he wanted to hear. Teryx pulled at the magic one last time, gathering the teleportation spell. The Order gave him the strength, more strength than it could give someone like Satter, and they were gone, disappearing in the twinkling of an eye.

Draconicon opened his eyes as he felt his subordinates disappear from Sayille. The operation was a success. The Inquisitor was dead, and Satter would have a week to get a replacement ready, and move the network so that it could teleport further off. And...

And Joan was back.

He turned. To anyone else, the pieces on the map would move as if directed by his magic. To him, he saw the mouse that was doing it. She pushed dozens of mages towards one of the great cathedral cities of the Theocracy, only for him to push them back to where they belonged. She looked up, glaring.

We can kill them now. We can erase them.

He shook his head.

I know you can hear me. We both want them dead. They took everything from us...our friends, our families, our world. They need to pay.

Draconicon didn't answer her. He had no answers. In so many ways, she was right. The Church was corrupt, deadly, and dangerous, and it had stolen lives in the hundreds, if not thousands. It needed to be taken down, but not the way she wanted. Not in a war of attrition and destruction.

He saw her walk behind him, felt her pressing against him. Felt her...trying to push in. His magic held her back, and easily enough, but she kept trying. At least once a day, she tried.

What happened, Draconicon? What happened to your rage?

"I buried it with you. Where you should have stayed."

Hate never dies...and neither will I until the Church is gone.

"It died for me. Now there's only regret."

Regret won't win this war...and if you won't take the right steps, I'll find a way to do it...Whoever I have to use...

She disappeared, but he knew she'd be back. Their link had never been fully broken, and she needed him...for now. He leaned over the map, shaking his head, and wondered what he was going to do about this...

The End