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Chapter 12

A Plan For Attack

Aboard the Steel Rose, Charlie lets go of David and Tatsu. "that was fun, wasn't it?" he brushes himself down with a smile then pats Tatsu on the head turning to address David

Hetatsubatchi interrupts turning to face Charlie barking "what the hell! I get the crap kicked out of me by a raccoon, stomped on by a giant fish, molested by a snake and and and... what the hell is going on!"

Charlie smiles down at Tatsu "I missed you." He reaches down Tatsu's neck tickling him.

"remove your hand from my body or I will remove it." Hetatsubatchi glows with anger.

Charlie shrugs and nods as he takes his hand away from Tatsu "Ok. Fallow me." Charlie lead them back to the room that the lot of them are sharing. "Hetatsubatchi, Do you know what A time loop is?"

"yes, A time loop is when a sequence of event: either on a cosmic or domestic scale, gets trapped in a feedback loop. Events repeat themselves with little to no variation 'till something forces them out of it." Hetatsubatchi grows

"we are stuck in one right now." Charlie explains.

"how would one know if we were?" Tatsu looks up to his future friend.

"by being outside of the loop at the time it was triggered."

"If you were outside the time loop at the time that it started then the vary act of you stepping into the loop should have broken it. Time loops are booth self-sufficient and self-containing."

David looks down at Hetatsubatchi "you seem to be quick witted for a savage."

"Save it, I'm not going to get dragged into a fight by a Nephilim." Tatsu barks

Jazzman walks with his hands on the back of his head watching the sky role by "I have been away from home for some time, what does that word mean?"

"it means Angle Born. You call yourself a demon but you aren't. you are more closely related to Lucifer then any demon. About a half century ago a platoon of things like you marched into the netherworld. Pretty much redrew all the property line, seriously upset the political balances everywhere. The intervention of Kari is the only thing that let us get back to life as we know it."

Jazzman closes his eyes taking in the warmth of the outdoors, even if it is artificial "for in all powerful being he sure can get around. You would think he we be to tied up with rubbing elbow and counting coin to answer prayers."

In short order the lot of them get back to 'the hotel' room. A large table has been set up. Cinder, Lances and Keyor are already waiting as Charlie, David, Milli, and Hetatsubatchi walk in. Keyor can be heard talking to the ship computer as they enter "Water, unsalted, ½ gallon, 32*f." a picture of water materializes on the table between them as well as a collection of cups.

The negotiations are long and drawn out, everyone taking the opportunity to repeat what they have seen to one another. As the conversation stales Hetatsubatchi pipes up "so then what you are really trying to tell me is that none of you have any sort of plan at all? You are just going to waltz in to Eden, hit your head against the wall, and what to see which brakes first? You or the wall?"

Keyor points out "we know that gods are mortal. We know that they bleed. They are not astral only sophisticated."

Heetatsubatchi looks around the table "Has anyone here ever seen a Tamrail or are we just speculating."

Charlie raises a hand "I have seen two of them."

Tatsu looks to Charlie "Did you see the Tamrial or only the avatar it is hiding in side?"

Jacob rest his arms folded on the table as he looks to Tatsu "Explain this whole Avatar thing to me."

Hetatsubatchi looks around as he notices he is being watched "Really,... none of you know this?"

Keyor shyly hold of a finger "I know what an Avatar is."

Tatsu nods "Ok, gods are big, really big, big enough to pick up and eat planets like a hand full of hard candy. In order to even be small enough to interact with people they need to do one of two things; one place there essences inside a creature that they want to interact with or, two link their thoughts with another living being. So either there mind or their spirit must take on humanesk form. Mind jacks are less stable but a puppet retains the knowledge and skill set of the host, a soul link give the god more control over the avatar but the linking does kill them there in any secrets or networks that belong to them is now lost as is any magic linked to their blood."

Cinder looks to the dog her hands folding under her chin "how are these things known to you?"

"As a prize hunter I was aloud some privileges including having been into the Asmodeus library. I know a good deal about celestial lore.

Charlie looks to Hetatsubatchi "are you saying you have a idea?"

Tatsu give a toothy grin "we need the Law Maker." He jumps onto the table "she has the power to chain the hands of even the Tamriel."

Cinder smiles "And where do we find the Law Maker?"

Hetatsubatchi's smile sours as he thinks

***

Seeker walks the halls of the Steel Rose tacking measurements, doing readings, scanning systems. Four hours into her day she abandons her task to go in search of Celverant's, she returns to his privet chamber to see him.

The metal overlord of the Steel Rose sits on his glowing throne absorbing data from all his underling bodies. Seeker walks in unannounced. Celverant takes note of this, "you are three hours and thirty minutes early."

Seeker corrects him "I am three hours and forty-four minutes early. I am not here to log out."

The two metal folk stare each other down, both feeling something is off, they wait and watch anticipating the other calculating the probabilities of any possible course of action. Celverant is the one to break the silence "how may I be of assistances Seeker?"

"I have detected weaknesses in your network. I wish to examine your IXP more closely. There is only one door that leads to the IXP, that is there." Seeker points with one of ther three fingered hands "below your charging dock."

Celverant protest "The network is functioning within expected parameters."

Seeker steps in slightly closer "you are aware that my people have tech. that you have yet to adapt. I have locked on to a weakness that is too small for your interments to track. If you wish for me to do my job I need access to that door."

Celverant thinks "the tech you wish to interface with is highly specialized and requires very specific tools to interact with."

Seeker adds on "my tool box is very diverse."

"then I will show you the way down. You can explain in greater detail on the way." Celverant stand, the throne he was sitting on rotates then floats off its base revealing a crawl space underneath.

Celverant leads the way climbing the latter first, the passage leads down for ten or more stories before opining up, ground level is a small cylinder shaped room with two doors, one seven feet by three feet the other two feet by three feet. Celverant points at the tiny door "that room is the IXP. I have a tablet just inside the door that you can use to interface with the mainframe."

Seeker reaches into her chest turning her skin to liquid. She pulls out of herself a silver rod with a M/F jack on it. "this is called a 'Slave Bolt' I will attach this to the IXP. It will convert the data stored within into a code I can read." Seeker gets on to all fours to slither into the tiny room.

Celverant lowers his head watching her "that sounds dangerous."

Seeker plugs in to the computer "1.1 billion units manufactured and I haven't seen a defect yet." As she works she looks over her shoulder at Celverant, Celverant is bent over watching her "if you are looking for sexual definition I regret to tell you that my dimorphism is a relic from an earlier version of this body."

This statement triggers a strangely human response from the metal man. Celverant pulls away embarrassed. Tripping on his words he tries to apologies "I'm sorry... I didn't realize..."

Seeker rolls over onto her stomach to pull a panel off the ceiling of the two-foot-tall room looking into the circuitry. She reaches into her chest producing a new command circuit, she swops out the two parts. "Celverant. What is in the room adjacent to this one?"

Celverant rest himself against the walls "My old bodies."

Seeker starts to crawl out of the tube-like room "you keep your old bodies around?"

"Don't you?" Celverant retorts

"no, I salvage the parts that are usable and I recycle the rest." Seeker looks up the hundred-foot-long shaft. "There are serval events on record of your server being accessed without use of the master code. Someone other than you has remote control of this ship."

"the I will need to rest the command codes."

"Command codes aren't the problem; your very security net is compromised."

"no one has the technology to do that."

"it seems some one does."

Celverant falls silent for a short time "Can you close this security hole?"

"I can take the information I have gathered so far and bring it to my lab. I can attempt to deduces the location of the terminal that allowed the breach to accrue and I can close the breach from there."

Celverant starts to climb back up the ladder "Make it so." He orders.

After Celverant disappears up the ladder the vampire Harm emerges from the dark. "Tangled webs Seeker, Tangled webs."

Seeker stars onto the evil priest "I have nothing of interest to you vampire, I have not hot blood or corruptible flesh, what need would you have to approach me?"

Harm grins diabolically "don't sell yourself short, you have many assists that I could find useful."

"I also lack fear, humanity, remorse. Fleshy things like you are nothing more than spare parts in my mind." Seeker lowers a hand to her side starting to liquefy and stretch herself out in preparation of attacking the monster that stands before her.

"Lies become you Seeker. But before you attempt to dismantle me allow me to probe you for information."

"my time is valuable, I have much work still to do, most of which is time sensitive."

"Visstle lives. I wish for her to be freed, can this be arranged?"

"I do not see where this would be relevant to me interest." Seeker jumps at Harm as a slime, her body envelopes his she leaves only his head free as she starts to solidify as a cocoons around the vampire priest.

Quickly Harms speaks up "Seeker, what is it that you seek?"

"I seek eternity. My purpose is to identify all flows in the design of my race and correct all weaknesses." Clearly Seeker is reading off a script with that line.

Harm tacks advantage of the momentary distraction to turn himself into a blanket of flies and move out of Seeker's grip "I have magics that may be of value in this pursuit."

Seeker turns to face Harm ready to strike again, she hesitates interested in what he has said "I deliver Visstle to you and this magic becomes mine?"

Harm folds his hands in prayer "that and disable Celverant."

"destroying the architect of peace was part of the plan from the beginning anyway."

***

Countess Estargo knocks on the door to Charlie's room, she tucks her hands behind her back awaiting Lances Jacob.

Hetatsubatchi opens the door "this is Hetatsubatchi Una your door man, how may I be of service?" his voice is low and draggy

"Please let Father Jacob know that Bethany Vergil the Countess of Estargo wishes to implement his services."

Hetatsubatchi tips his head slightly looking at Bethany, "you have a pretty face, to bad a personality didn't come preloaded." Tatsu turns to look in the room "Hay old guy, there is a pale girl looking for you."

Lances walks over, he looks out the door. "My lady." He takes off his hat recognizing the countess.

"Father Jacob I have been charged with letting you know that come sunset King Den Grimm and Profit Arthur St. Frances will begin negotiating the terms of demilitarization. I have been instructed to ask you if you would be interested in bearing witness to this desiccation."

"it would seem the royals where pleased with my consultation." Lances expresses "It isn't very often peace talks are quite this quick." One of Lances' hands reaches up to feel the book in his pocket "My lady, you described yourself as Fay kin, haddent you?"

Bethany expresses "It is revelation to no one that Methuselah share a common ancestry with both fairies and elves."

Lances lets loose a hardy chuckle, he reaches out and slaps the countess on the arm guiding her into the room "We need an elf, come in side please." Lances calls over to Charlie "you see my boy, this is what I meant when I said we need to help people. Enoch spoke much of 'the magical beast' and lust I now bring you one."

David looks about "you mean like 'a contemporary' some one that could lead us to independent verification on information we already have. Clever."

Charlie looks to Hetatsubatchi after interdictions are out of the way "you were saying something about a 'Law Maker' as I recall."

"yes, it was a part of a poem called 'the brothers war'."

_ In a time before time In a place outside space lived three brothers; the brothers three panted life into the stars, they looked up to the stars they bore and the youngest said_

'I wish that the light that we have brought into being shall live long and give there light onto others' the middle and elder brothers agreed

then the oldest brother said 'but we have painted so many lights, is there room enough in the sky for all the lights?'

and the middle brother speaks onto them 'then which should it be? Are all light's special? Will all lights return home and share their warmth with the universe? Or only some?'

the youngest brother looks to the others in plead 'All light is warm and all light deserves to come home.'

_ And the oldest replies 'but what if the light grows cold? A game we must play find the warm light and bring it hear, find the cold light and send it away'_

The youngest brother is angered by the oldest 'then we must find the cold light before it turns cold and bring it here to keep it warm'

And the middle brother exclaims 'this is good'

And the oldest brother exclaims 'we must let the light decide if it wants to be warm or cold'

And with this a grate uproar comes, the eldest and the youngest brother smite echother on the cheek till the middle brother takes the youngest and the oldest by the lag and demands they be calm.

Filled with pain the three brothers sit in thought

It is the oldest brother, being the oldest, who sets time in motion and declares 'we brothers, the young the old and the other, are all now invisible, we sit outside time and the light inside time, the lights that are the lights above other lights will see us through our invisibility and they will come, and when why come they will be given blood and bone and they will become brothers like us.'

And the youngest places his hand to the oldest cheek with anger 'but if the light is in light and we are in dark how will they see us?'

The oldest says 'we will write our names in the sand, and when our names are written the lights will know to look for us. The lights that are filled with goodness will look and they will see, the lights that are not filled with good will look but will not see'

But the middle brother and the youngest brother are not pleased and go out into the world with time and search for the warm light themselves.

And the eldest brother is filled with sadness and in his sadness he gives birth to his mother and cries to her 'I have filled the universe with light and now I sit in the dark'

And the mother looks to her son and she cries 'now your brothers are cold light lost in the darkness you have birthed, you alone are the warm light and so they will come'

So the eldest brother sits and waits and the mother says onto him 'we will darken the eyes of your brothers and punish them they will no look for warmth with their eyes closed'

_ _"the mother, she is the law maker. If anyone can fight the Tamrial it is her."

Much of the group sits quietly as Hetatsubathi tells his tale. Countess Estargo being the first to break the silence "whoever recorded that version of the story, I can only assume Fay wasn't there first language. That whole thing is a butchered retelling of book one chapter three of the 'Tree of Beginnings' every elf knows that story. Our heritage is built around it."

Cinder looks to the Methuselah "so what would be in example of something left out of that story?"

"the name of the mother." Bethany explains "she is called 'the Three-Headed-Goddess, and at the same time she was born so where the Zion and the Asguard. She was created to govern the half gods."

Keyor nods approvingly "then we found the write person. What planet could we find the Three-Headed-Godess or one of her kin?"

Bethany's head dips to her chest "you can't, this is mythology."

Cinder grins "Every story starts with a few true words. Even if the Three-Headed-Goddess isn't a person, she might be a place or a thing, and that might help us secure victory today."

Bethany scoffs "dam you are optimistic."

Keyor thinks for a moment "we can start by searching Saverngaurd. Their culture is rich with Asgaurd inspired traditions."

Hetatsubatchi shrugs "sure, why not. I'm living on borrowed time as is."

Milli holds up one hand "Savergaurd? That word sounds familiar to me. Isn't that the realm controlled by the Skoll lineage? The same family that supposable launches the Ragnarak event and destroys the pantheon?"

Hetatsubatchi rolls his neck stretching "I'm confident it will be a contained apocalypse, nothing worth worrying about."

Charlie smacks the table before him joyously "best idea yet, let's go meet the Skoll's."

The group moves outside making their way to the teleportation point. David looks to Hetatsubatchi "you know anything about the Skoll family?"

"yeah. They are Angel Hounds."

"what is that?"

"it's like a hell hound without an anger management issue." Tatsu jokes. "so, guy's I'm sort of new to this whole teleporting thing, any recommendations?"

Keyor nods as they stand on the platform "remember the principles of conservation of energy."

Cinder adds on "Try to make sure that all your feet are on the ground at the time the event horizon opens."

Hetatsubatchi lowers his head with a discontenting sigh "I don't think I like where this is going."

***

Locked inside a laser grid Visstle stripped of her armor and wrapped in anti-magic seals sits in her minuscule holding cell, a lone chair being her only amenity. In spite of her predicament her spirit still seems strong. She knows that this is little more than a set back and she will soon enough be back on the road to everlasting beauty. She has served the Void well and it will not allow one of its fallowers to die in a cage.

The room around the cage is a only slightly larger box made of steel polished to a mirror shine soiled only by the door which is painted red. Visstle's head turns as she can hear movment outside the room; a man and a women, a greeting, the man scream, the sound of a wet object hits the ground, silence.

The door opens and Seeker steps into Visstle's chamber dragging with her most of a human body. Seeker explains "this room is locked with three bearers, the laser grid to stop you from walking out, witch marks to stop you from casting spells and a compound magnesium phosphate explosive attached to a pressure pad under your feet. You weigh 154.2 lbs. but the plate under your feet is not fine-tuned to your weight yet this man at 160.0 lbs will work fine as a substitute. These bearers will do little to stop me."

Visstle stands up showing off her lively body, "you're not who I was expecting."

"your expectations of irrelevant. We must act with haste, this conversation has already set me behind schedule."

Visstle wiggles her body attempting to act alluring "interested in time are we?"

"your question is irrelevant." Seeker steps into the laser field her metal body unaffected by the heat, she pikes up one foot holding it over the floor and outstretches one arm like in umbrella "you will leave now or you will be left."

Visstle walks out of the cage confidently. Seeker drips liquid metal on the ground with astounding precision to prevent the trap in the room from triggering, once Visstle is passed the door Seeker pulls herself together and drops the dead body on the ground to facilitate her escape.

Harm waits for the girl outside the room, Harm greats Visstle with open arms "my girl, it pleases me to see you well..."

Seeker cut him off "Payment due."

Snarky Harm points down the passage "you will find your payment waiting for you in Celveant's secret room."

Intently Seeker realizes she has been cheated, if Harm had not distracted her she would have investigated the secret room on her own. Seeker pulls one arm into her body and thrust it out transforming it into a deadly pike to stab through the treacherous duo.

Harm had already began casting a retreat spell, the two of them phasing out of this reality, the spell is barely resolved in time, as Seeker's spear cut his robe and narrowly missis his flesh. Seekers arm passes though the ghoul and the vampire and deep into the wall past them.

One of Celverant's armors awaken in the hall to examine the situation "Is all well Seeker?"

Seeker pulls her arm out of the wall "I suspect I have discovered the infiltrator we hypothesized."