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B2 - Ch6 - Priest Cole's Downfall
🕑 Added 2023-08-16 15:44:06 +0000 UTCTwo days later, I awoke to Rema knocking on my door, right on schedule.
"Do you not understand the meaning of the word 'relax'?" I groaned, rolling over. "It starts with sleeping until the sun's threatening to rise."
"Which one is it?" Rema asked from behind the door.
"Which one's what?" I asked, sitting up and running my fingers through my hair.
"The crisis? The fire in the foundry? The intimidation campaign in the manufacturer's district? The claims you're a heretic? Or the new scripture going around?" she asked, her voice devoid of humor. "There are so many, that it's impossible to separate intentional from otherwise."
"Then don't try," I frowned, getting up and buttoning my shirt. "Which one of them is worthy of knocking on my door over?"
"The scripture," Rema replied.
"What does it say?" I asked.
"It says that the chosen one must be able to bring light to the darkness immediately," Rema frowned. "It's a fake scripture, but we need to strategize because you're still two months away from finishing your lights."
I opened the door. "What do you think we should do?"
"What do you mean?" she asked, looking at me with a sheepish gaze. "Isn't this where you're supposed to say, 'It's already handled?'"
"I suppose so," I said, walking into the hall and shutting the door. "But I'm curious what you would do."
"If it were me, I'd find damning evidence that they made up the script and then brand them heretics," Rema said, following me into the strategy room. "But you made that difficult by creating a fake scripture of your own."
"So the issue is that if we bring out a third party to ascertain the legitimacy of the scriptures, we'll both be proven liars, invalidating my claims," I surmised. "Is that right?"
"Right," she confirmed.
I sat at the table, sliding my hands across the smooth wood finish, and then rapped my knuckles against it. "When does 'immediately' mean in terms of the scripture?"
Rema frowned. "Priest Cole has challenged you to prove it immediately to prevent your technology from intervening in the trial."
"Is that so?" I asked, looking out the window into the shimmering golden cityscape below.
"So how should we prepare?" she asked.
"I suppose we'll just have to go there tonight," I replied. "Where will he be?"
"He's in Golden Square right now and will continue to occupy it until you prove yourself," Rema replied. "They're also threatening anyone tampering with the location with heresy."
"Alright," I said. "Send word that I'll be there after sundown."
Rema frowned. "I know of your magic to create technology, Ryker. However, saying that you can bring the sun to the darkness isn't the same as bringing a small light."
"Your advice has been received," I replied, turning to a stack of papers. "That will be all."
Rema bit her lip and bowed, leaving the room.
I looked at a drawing in the notebook with a slight frown. "No matter how much you prepare, there are always risks and chaos. We'll see what happens tonight."
***
I spent most of my day speaking about national affairs, meeting with the economic affairs minister, and touching base with the Bringla port restoration effort. It would likely take a few months to get a standardized unit of time, so I put it on the back burner.
When the sun stopped peeking through the Golden Cathedral's stained glass ceiling, I sighed. "Well, it's finally time to meet up with Panic Parade."
"If you don't like her, why do you let her get close to us?" Thea asked, averting her gaze.
I stood from my throne, laced my fingers, and stretched my arms. "I'm guessing Rema's what people call a 'friend'."
"A friend, huh?" Thea noted, biting her thumbnail.
"Yeah. Don't you have at least a little fun taunting her?" I grinned, offering her my hand. "You wouldn't smirk if you didn't enjoy it."
Thea pouted and accepted. "I still wish she'd die."
"See? That's friendship." I shrugged and led her to the door. "I think."
***
Rema was already waiting for us outside the door, wearing a stressed expression as she tapped her foot on the ground. A dozen guards surrounded her, wearing clanking armor and tense expressions. It wasn't an exaggeration to say that her mood changed the atmosphere.
"Yo." I waved.
The redhead shot me a death glare, and Thea burst into giggles.
"See?" I said, turning to Thea. "Friendship."
"Take this seriously!" Rema snapped, making her guards stumble back. "Thousands in Golden Square are awaiting a prophet. Unless you can do the impossible, you need to get into a political mindset."
Thea narrowed her eyes, ripping her dress from clenching the fabric. "Ryker overtook this city seamlessly and with minimal bloodshed. Yet you don't think he takes things seriously?"
"Force can overtake a Kingdom, but politics keeps it together," Rema growled. "We've kept it together for a month so far; we need to continue that for a millennium."
I sighed and walked past Rema with my hands in my pockets. "People cope differently," I said, turning to Rema. "That's all."
Rema bit her lip and watched me and Thea pass. "So that's all this attitude is? Coping?"
"That's all it's ever been," I replied, stopping and turning to her. "Now, are you coming or not? Unlike you, I trust the people I work with."
The redhead blushed slightly, but her face scrunched up with frustration, likely from determining that my backhanded compliment was leaning toward the ridiculing end.
***
Outside the Cathedral, we entered a thunderstag carriage and traveled through the cobblestone streets of Inspira, moving toward Golden Square under the moon's light.
We heard angry chanting and applause cutting through the airwaves as we approached, likely from an impassioned sermon.
"If things get violent, I recommend you let your guards handle it," Rema commented, looking out the window. "Guards represent authority. If you kill people, it'll seem like you're lashing out."
"Duly noted," I replied, taking a deep breath as the carriage stopped. When I got out, I was flooded with hundreds of screaming people, sneering, spitting, and snorting as we walked past.
'Consolidating the hate in one place so it appears like it's representative of the whole,' I noted. 'This man proves that politics and religion are inseparable here.'
"You and your whore will burn, you hereti—"
My hand shot at him at a surreal speed but stopped. He gulped as he looked down.
Contrary to what he expected, my hand wasn’t attacking—it was holding Thea's pastel pink nails from his throat.
"Your training is paying off," I casually remarked, pulling her hand back. "I don't even think a wizard could've stopped you from ripping that man's throat out."
The man's lips quivered as we passed, and those near him stopped talking eerily, making the area fall into confusion. The hatred dissipated, replaced by unease as I walked forward, parting the people as I made my way to the main stage.
It was dead silent by the time we walked onto it.
Priest Cole swallowed hard, seeing me face to face. It appeared that he just realized what he was doing was real, politics may not be enough, and I might rip his throat out in front of an audience.
The crowd gulped, letting a few seconds of silence pass as I overlooked the crowd.
Golden Square was an economic district that housed the farmer's market until sundown. It was a wide area that also housed various businesses, including jewelers, blacksmiths, permanent bakeries, and restaurants.
Tonight it was illuminated by large iron torches that lit and heated the area. The reddish-orange light passed over the twisted expressions of the citizens, gritting their teeth while looking at me.
Pure hatred.
Rema looked at that expression with a sharp breath, frustrated by the situation.
"It seems you came," Priest Cole said.
"I did," I replied. "Now, can you tell me what you've been telling these people? Because it certainly doesn't look like they're waiting for me to prove I can bring the sun to the night."
Priest Cole took a sharp breath before clapping twice. "It's okay. Solara will protect you."
A ripple of whispers spread through the crowd as a grey-haired female monastic in flowing black robes—the Solaran equivalent of a nun—walked to the stage. She wouldn't look me in the eyes.
"King Everwood. Do you recognize this woman?" Priest Cole asked.
"I do," I confirmed. "That's Lady Elia, the monastic that led to the finding of the scripture that Priest Aelius hid. She was working under him for decades and finally brought him to justice."
I looked at her. "Why is she here?"
Lady Elia turned away, cowering and trembling, making the crowd roar in anger.
Priest Cole turned to me with a vicious gaze. “Lady Elia came to me for sanctuary after she claims you defiled her. Thus she wears black, the hide her shame and impurity.”
The crowd devolved into a feeding frenzy. Their energy was palpable, creating an atmosphere of mania where logic didn’t apply, and fear of death ceased to exist.
Rema gritted her teeth and turned to me. “You need to fix this problem before you can do anything else,” she whispered. “Otherwise, your proof will be for nothing.”
I frowned, staring into Preist Cole’s eyes. While his face was stern, his eyes were grinning, elated by the sound of the yelling crowd.
I could see his megalomania.
His elation from knowing that thousands were following his every word.
A true taste of power.
It had intoxicated him, detaching him from the gravity of his actions.
“Don’t you have anything to say?” Priest Cole spat.
I turned to the screaming crowd. “Silence.”
A crushing wave of pressure dropped the thousands in Golden Square to their knees, including Priest Cole and Lady Elia.
I released my pressure and looked at the crowd, initiating an amplification spell. “Do you want to be tried as heretics for trying to stop me from proving that I can fulfill the scriptures?”
The weight in the atmosphere made my initial pressure feel comfortable by comparison.
“Who wants to be judged by Solara for standing between me and the proof?” I pressed.
Silence befell the area, spreading through the long lines in the side streets and rooftops.
Priest Cole trembled, looking at the quiet crowd. He tried to speak, but another wave of pressure cut him off, muting him.
“I’m glad that I kept Lady Elia in her position,” I said, my voice cold.
Rema’s eyes widened, and she turned to me, just as confused as Priest Cole.
“What are you talking about?!” Priest Cole demanded, taking a sharp breath after I released my pressure again. “Are you saying you’re happy you kept her employed after assaulting her?!”
“Thea,” I nodded.
Thea walked forward and ripped the woman’s top robes off, exposing a traditional dress underneath. The dress was traditional garb, so we didn’t worry about actually exposing her.
Once her over-robe was off, I snapped my fingers.
Chugging sounded in multiple buildings, and the strange glass ball “decorations” that had been in Golden Square for weeks abruptly lit up with bright light, tinted yellow.
The crowd looked around in awe before turning their attention back to the stage. When they did, they gasped in horror and disbelief.
Priest Code trembled, seeing their expression. He craned his head to Lady Elia—crying on her knees—with the fluidity of a rusty cog. “W-What… No….”
Under the “sun” in the night, everyone could see a brand in between the woman’s collar bones.
“That’s the brand of Jestlas, the religious bandit group known for their ruthless use of murder, arson, and assault,” I declared. “Priest Aelius colluded with them for decades, using Lady Elia as a good between to obtain prostitutes!
A crushing wave of shock overtook the crowd, leaving them silent and stuttering. The true believers looked at the brand with disbelief, experiencing feelings of betrayal.
“When did you start colluding with Jestlas?” I asked Priest Cole, approaching him. “To falsely to accuse me of assault? To get in the way of me bringing the sun to the darkness?”
I spun around the stage, pointing to the spheres of lights that felt like real suns, with the flames and heat from the outdoor fires licking the crowd’s skin.
The men and women screaming for my blood a moment prior looked at each other, stunned that they could see each other’s faces as if it were daytime.
Priest Cole gulped, his eyes trembling as he watched his supporters’ expressions turn to regret.
“Or was it the case, Priest Cole!” I yelled in a damning voice, snapping everyone’s eyes back to the stage. “That you were also involved in their Aelius’ activities?!”
“W-What? I won’t even entertain such a ridiculous accusation!” Priest Cole yelled. However, his stance immediately triggered a wave of discontent.
“TELL US, YOU PIG!”
“We deserve the truth!”
“You betrayed us!”
It was then that Priest Cole saw it.
My grinning eyes.
It was the same look he had, but my eyes didn’t waiver—it was absolute.
I brought the sun to the darkness months ahead of schedule, held all political power, and now twisted all the rage and discontent from his supporters and wielded it against him.
My victory was absolute.
"Don't you have anything to say for yourself, heretic?" I asked. "Won't you offer your supporters an explanation for your treachery? They deserve that much."
"I gave up everything for you!"
"My family's starving!"
"I lost my business, you heretic!"
"How could you!"
"SAY SOMETHING, YOU PIG!"
For five gruesome minutes, the crowd demanded he say something. However, every time he tried to speak, a flood of oxygen surrounded his head, confusing him and rendering him speechless. Since no one understood how my power worked, it genuinely left the man with tears in his eyes, looking at me and the sky, asking himself if he had actually defied the heavens.
"Enough of this farce," I declared. "Take this heathen away. We'll try him with Priest Aelius before his execution. The people deserve as much."
I turned to the crowd.
"Is there any doubt I can bring the sun to the darkness, now?" I asked, gesturing to the lights.
Everyone let out awkward gasps and cheers, twisted by guilt and fear of their betrayal.
"There shouldn't be, for I have taken the first step!" I declared. "Hear me, followers of Solara! As the voice of Solara, I will usher you into a divine world where the darkness will never swallow you again!"
A bolt of excitement passed through the crowd like lightning, reigniting their mania and excitement.
"So spread the word, pious Solaraians!" I commanded. "Spread the word of your prophet and what you saw here today! Then speak with our financers, so we can provide you bread and relief to compensate for this demon's villainy!"
The cheers shattered the soundwaves, waking the entire city.
As the scene played out, Rema watched me with wide eyes, lips parted, rubbing her index against her thumb. I couldn't tell what she was feeling, but judging by her sharp breaths and sweat, it was likely a mixture of excitement and horror.
Perfect.
***
After the event, I crashed into my large wooden chair in the council chambers, taking a deep breath with a racing pulse.
"Is there something you need?" I asked the redhead, who looked on the verge of bursting at the seams.
"How much of that was fact versus fiction?" Rema asked, hesitantly sitting. "It was remarkable."
"Part of Jestlas or not, Lady Elia was complicit with Priest Aelius' sex habits," I reasoned. "Therefore, I offered her death or testimony. She chose the latter, so I branded her and let it heal naturally."
"Wait, you did this from the day you arrived?" Rema asked, her mouth agape.
"Yep," I smacked, closing my eyes.
"How…?" Rema whispered. "How do you think like this?"
"It's easy. Just get rid of all your sense of morals and ethics, find good options, and choose the least disagreeable," I sighed. "As I said, I knew someone would try something like this, so I prepared multiple strategies for it."
"But the lights, the abrupt accusation, how did it align so perfectly?" she pressed.
"I finished my lights, set them up, and then baited them a solution to their problems afterward," I replied. "My mole suggested Golden Square, leading them into my trap. That's all there is to it."
Rema looked at her feet and pursed her lips. "Why couldn't you just tell me this?"
"I already told you. I needed you to stress, making the Cathedral moles think they had a chance. Your poker face is so consistent when you're in control that it's frightening."
"So I'm your pawn?" she laughed.
"You work for me—there's a difference," I sighed, capturing her attention. "Do you understand?"
Rema smiled wryly. "How are you better at this than I am? I was raised for this."
"History," I answered. "Earth has detailed records of the daily activities of leaders from multiple angles. Everything they did, everything they accomplished, and analyses of how."
I looked her in the eyes. "I'm just copying them."
Rema stared at me in wonder, uncertain of what to see.
"Please get some sleep, Princess," I requested. "I'm going to be busy doing the things you suggest for the next week, and I'm dreading it already."
The redhead stared at me and then smiled, looking at the ground with a profound gaze. "I… Alright. Good night, Ryker."
"Good night," I replied.
When she left, Thea took a deep breath. "Rema's smart, capable, and you trust her in a way you don't trust anyone but me…." she commented. "Are you sure you don't like her?"
"She's also annoying, opinionated, and doesn't let me do everything I want," I noted.
I hugged her and pulled her tightly against my chest. "I just want peace. I've always been grateful that you give me that."
Thea melted into my arms, falling silent and giving me the quiet I needed most.
***
Over the next week, Rema and I unveiled my temporary lighting systems around the city, setting them up and lighting them as I gave speeches, verifying my legitimacy.
Within only seven days, I had rooted out the leaders conspiring against me and blamed them and Priest Cole for the plight of the hardliners.
They begrudgingly accepted me after that.
However, their negative attitude didn't last long. Within days, I provided guilds with free steam engine-run machinery and workers to teach them.
Their output instantly skyrocketed past the new guilds without buildings and connections. Before long, every guild made steel, standardized soap, and woodworking. It was a remarkable improvement.
While it seems strange to give the people who were just rising against me power, their success meant political stability and taxes, things that I needed money to rebuild Bringla.
That was my top priority.
I quickly learned the countries Goldenspire was trading with inside Antigua. The two main players were Cyrvena, directly across the ocean connecting Novena with Antigua, and Juntao, a major northern port city.
Goldenspire's fall disrupted their economies. As a result, I now had a target on my map with all Antiguan countries.
That was a serious problem.
Cyrvena's port town, Syrvene, was three times larger than Ardenthal, making them a Goliath trading port. Worse, Juntao was the size of Goldenspire, Valeria, and the Everwood territory combined.
These were bad people to piss off.
Thus, after stabilizing Inspira, setting up Carter with everything he needed to make lightbulbs, and setting Leslie up with clock creation, I left my father and Rema in charge and moved to Bringla to speed up the rebuilding.
I immediately imported mechanical cranes, steam engines, power saws, and manufacturing equipment. Under the guidance of Carter's best workers, we annexed a large guild and built a factory, creating all the steel products we needed.
As a stop-gap, we built simple wooden docks cut with power saws and hammered together with large screws we made. Those who witnessed the speed and sturdiness of the new docks were absolutely shocked, and boats between our countries started quickly flowing forth.
Instead of touching the merchants who had established relationships, we started feeding them food and manufactured goods at ridiculous prices, instantly leading to heavy trade.
Before long, I could rest easy again, knowing that my business relationships with Antigua quickly improved. At the very least, they were advantageous, so the leaders didn't seem interested in attacking us.
We set up siege cannons on walls we built with reinforced concrete and pointed them to the ocean, regardless. Whether I wanted to or not, I had to prepare for war with titans that dwarfed Novenans—and prepare for transmigrators.
Once the trade was back on track, I returned to Inspira to check in on Rema and found that the city was in better shape than I had left it in, proving King Redfield's political grooming wasn't for nothing.
***
Lyssa served Rema, Thea, and I tea the day after my return.
"What are your plans now?" Rema asked, gripping her teacup with both hands. "Now that Inspira is in love with you and Bringla is stabilized, are you moving back to Sundell to prepare for war with Ironfall?"
I shook my head. "Since my relationship with Valeria isn't a pressing concern, I will stay here for a couple of years to build something important."
Rema’s eyes widened with a slight smile but quickly hid it. "You're always creating revolutionary things, but you've never spent years on something. What's this important?"
I pulled out a pocket watch and handed it to her. "Once I standardize time with this, I'm creating a bulk commodity train. Modern ones can transport 20 to 40 million pounds of coal in my world."
"Is that so?" she asked, grabbing the watch. "That sounds—WAIT! WHAT?! MILLIONS?!"
I traded smirks with Thea, and Rema puffed out her cheeks. "So you're joking with me?" Rema asked.
I chuckled and shook my head. "That’s not that impressive. In my old world, commodity carrying boats can transport 441,000,000 tons of coal overseas."
Her eyes widened in shock, and she was rendered speechless.
"Trust me, Rema," I smiled. "What I've done so far is only scratching the surface of what I'm bringing to this world. Just wait. In two years' time, this entire continent will be different."
