The Council of the Divine. This collection of aristocrats was created thousands of years ago, when the territory of Kami was vast and complicated. The previous policy of letting the humans grow and expand unchecked had been made obsolete as the chaos and overpopulation threatened to usurp the balance of the territory. More order and governance was needed if the land was to be taken care of properly. It was during the construction of The Endless City that Kami created the council in order to better govern the principalities of Kami’s territory. The seven seats on the council were filled by the powerful and wise aristocrats in the city, and they were trusted with supporting Kami-sama and fulfilling his Will in his absence. The authority of the council came directly from Kami-sama, and while its initial objectives were simply the support of Kami in matters of local city governance, it soon grew and evolved with time. Now that Kami-sama no longer took an active part of governance in his territory. The Council of the Divine was the center of authority and power within the city.

Commander Soul had been summoned to attend a meeting of the Council the moment he appeared from the portal. He stood before the council, tall and proud. The extravagance and majesty of the Council room no longer fazed him, nor did the council. The table they sat at curved so that each member could see and respond to one another and over the years, extra seats had opened up to make room for other important offices of the city. Currently, there were 15 occupants facing the general-commander on several tables, each representing different offices of the state. The Council on High, however, occupied the foremost spot. Like a man on trial, Soul faced the council alone. Gatal was not allowed inside, so he waited impatiently in the hall.

The general-commander had been in the council for a long time, much longer than a normal mission report should take. With every hour that passed, Gatal’s irritation grew. Gatal feared for the man. The council was not known for forgiveness, especially toward humans. It wouldn’t surprise Gatal if they decided to allow their grudge against the human to overcome their sense of duty toward the city.

The lobby outside the council room was silent as the dead. Tall majestic pillars and fantastic frescos decorated the hall. Tables and offices were set up within it as well. Like a quiet library, all the attendants and workers busied themselves with whatever tasks were assigned to them, ignoring everything else. Also in the lobby with Gatal were the assistants and support faculty of the aristocrats in the council room. Despite the company, nobody spoke at all, or even looked at one another.

There was a loud crack from inside the room and the large ornate doors were opened from the inside. The council was dismissed and Gatal headed straight for the General-Commander, walking tall above the heights of the aristocrats. Despite how tired Soul looked, he walked at a brisk pace. “Sir, how did it go?” Gatal asked anxiously.

“Things went mostly as we expected,” he said. He did not stop walking and Gatal had to increase his pace to keep up. Gatal looked behind and saw the other members of the lobby find their respective attendees as they filed out of the room. It reminded Gatal of swarming ants. Soul continued, “Except there were a few things for me to learn as well.”

“What do you mean?” hissed Gatal. Soul irritated him when he acted like this; he knew Gatal was not in the mood for riddles. “What happened? You were in there for a long time. Has something important happened in our absence?”

“First, I have something for you personally,” He said casually. They reached the doors of the council house, huge iron doors that Gatal had never seen closed. He never gave them much attention either. As they turned onto the streets, Soul took a document out of his cloak and handed it to Gatal, “I want you to go down and take responsibility of the irregularities within the prisoners. You’ll be seeing personally their their individual indoctrinations.”

“What!” Gatal snapped unsealing the document and reading it, “How can you possibly think that that is a good idea? There are hundreds of better things for me to do, thousands even.”

“Like waiting outside the council for four hours?” Soul asked dryly.

Gatal glared at him. “We do not have time to waste on this.” He tried to hand back the document to Soul, “This is not a task for me.”

“You are right of course,” Soul continued, ignoring Gatal’s outstretched arm, “But that was their condition for my request.”

“Who’s condition? The Council’s? But sir, that is absurd!” Gatal protested. “Why would they want that? It would only require a novice level priest to handle the irregularities! Or just have them killed like they usually are. There must be something else behind this, probably just a form of punishment for you.”

“I fear you are right,” Soul agreed, “but I think there is a deeper meaning to it than even what you think.”

“What do you mean?” Gatal asked, “What else happened in the meeting?”

“A full investigation of the factors in my insubordination is now in process,” he said calmly, “and until the matter is resolved, one way or another, I have been demoted to the rank of Captain and have been given a post on the ground level, southern wall.”

Gatal stopped in his tracks. He said gravely, “Sir, please do not joke right now, today has been a stressful day and-.”

“Gatal.” The general-commander stopped as well and faced Gatal sternly, “I am telling you the truth. I am now Captain Soul and my post on the wall begins tomorrow when I dismiss Captain Highling.”

“What?” Gatal asked, aghast. “They, can’t do that. The city needs you at full command!” He added angrily, “Has any commander ever had as much success as you against the enemy? Who do they think is keeping the city safe?”

“Kami-sama keeps the city safe Gatal,” Soul replied. “And he will use whatever tools he wants to accomplish victory. If he feels it is better for another person to be given charge of defense for the city, then so be it. He knows best.”

“But it isn’t Kami who is relieving you of your duty,” Gatal shouted. He thrust his arm toward the council room, “It is the Council! Are they even aware of the threat against them!?”

“Please calm down Gatal,” Soul said putting his hand on Gatal’s shoulder. He dropped his arm. “Indeed,” he continued, “they do know. Part of the meeting was a report on the activities of the enemy.” He turned and started walking briskly again. “They are growing. Activity around the perimeter has never been higher; all defenses have been on alert for the last month. The enemy scouting legions have also been increasing in their function, as we had witnessed in the wilderness. They believe that something big is happening soon and they are preparing accordingly.”

“All the more reason for you to be leading the men!” Gatal protested, race walking again to keep up with Soul. “Instead they are going to leave in charge some incompetent general who spends more time in the palace than in the field! The reasons for their actions are simply to get you out of their way. They separate us, and then send you to some corner of the city to stay out of trouble. How can they do that when the city is threatened like never before? They don’t care about the defense of the city? You can’t let them do that. You are the only hope for the city!” Pedestrians they passed turned their heads at the commotion, but Gatal didn’t care

“You praise me too much,” Captain Soul said calmly, “You forget, Gatal, victory will come to Kami-sama, regardless of what tools he chooses to use. This city has withstood the forces of the enemy for over 500 years. It will withstand more. Everyone must simply do their appropriate function according to His Will.”

“That is priest talk!” Gatal spat. “We talk about the realities of the city and its defenses. How many men are stationed at the critical points? What kind of armaments does the enemy have? Where are they most likely to attack and how? What are the probable variables and how can they be used in our favor? Do the other commanders have any idea how to actually use men on the battlefield?”

“The other commanders come from long lines of military service and aristocracy.” Soul replied, “They are the elite of the city and they can serve Kami-sama in a way that no human can understand. Of course, they will do an excellent job in their part of the Will of Kami.”

“You’re blind,” Gatal said with a deadly conviction. “You are all blind! You are all so secure in your belief in your city’s invincibility that your considerations are trivial rather than the essential defense of the city!”

“Have some faith Gatal.” Soul said without breaking stride, “Everything will end as Kami-sama wills it.”

“My faith was in you.” Gatal retorted illustrating each statement with a vigorous gesture, “Not in the other generals, not in this city’s walls, and not in its dying god!”

“Gatal,” Soul said suddenly and angrily, “You have gone too far. I will not allow such talk, even from you.”

Gatal paused. He added with heat, “You are all just fools. You add to your own destruction.” He turned around and walked away.

“Where are you heading?”

“To the prisoners,” Gatal yelled back, waving the assignment document in the air, “Where Kami-sama believes my abilities are used best!”

Captain Soul watched Gatal walk away, toward the deep places where the prisoners were held. He was upset that Gatal acted like that from time to time. He wished Gatal could understand what it meant to serve Kami-sama; maybe he wouldn’t be so distraught then. “But I guess I shouldn’t expect so much from him,” he thought turning again toward his destination. “He wasn’t born here and has been influenced by foreign ideas. He will see, though, thast in the end Kami-sama will attain victory.”

“Praise be to Kami.” He said out loud. The people who heard him as they passed by responded in unison, “Praise be to Kami.”

Fair Jewel, The Endless City, The City of Gold, for all the majestic names for the city, Drake and Ashton had to say that what they had seen so far had not been that impressive. All around them, dark stone and cold bricks filled their space. After making it through the portal without injury, only disorientation, the prisoners had been whisked away before Drake or Ashton could see anything of value. All the prisoners had been placed inside a large room, deep beneath the city. Unexpectedly. the room was beautiful. Lanterns were placed inside and they lit it up so that Drake and Ashton could see its richly decorated, if neglected, walls. Strong and graceful pillars lined the edges and a tall dome served as the ceiling. The floor was worn and faded, as if a lot of traffic had worn it away with time. It was clear to Ashton and Drake that the room’s original purpose was not to house prisoners, but was simply being used for it.

For Ashton and Drake, the hall was a weird contrast from dark gritty stone paths to awe inspiring and splendorous facades. Drake gazed upon its magnificence, comparing the room to the fair palaces his father had and forgot already their pains. Ashton had never seen such work before and he mostly stared excitedly at the walls. Unfortunately, there was nobody else in the room who could appreciate what they saw, only the dead eyed prisoners kept them company. Drake and Ashton walked around gazing at and admiring the works around them.

“Look at this piece,” Ashton exclaimed pointing towards a magnificent painting that filled an entire wall. “How can they create such a huge picture? How long it must have taken…”

Drake came up next to Ashton and looked at it as well. It was faded and worn a little but its scene was still legible and breathtaking. The picture showed scores of men were laboring under large loads. Tall machines and structures were visible and dignified men were seen overseeing, discussing, and evaluating the works being created. In it, tall walls were half completed and buildings were under construction. Though tragically faded, the whole painting displayed a scene in motion.

“What are they building?” Ashton wondered aloud. Drake wondered that as well. For the scope and size of the painting, whatever it depicted was surely beyond the limits of their imagination.

“The Endless City…” Drake murmured and he held up his hand to touch it. He didn’t reach the painting before something new and dreadful entered the room.

It was clear from the moment Drake became aware of it that it was not human. Its presence was huge and suffocating, dark and alien, but they could not identify a physical body to it. Like a fog, it enveloped the whole room. A loud and unnatural sound came with it as well, filling their senses with an instinctual fright. Drake felt that it was trying to force its way into their minds.

“We have to get out of here!” Drake said, instinctively ducking down as if avoiding smoke.

“We need to blend in with the other prisoners though!” Ashton said, but he too looked frightened and confused.

“This… whatever this is,” Drake said, waving his hand in the air above him, “It’s dangerous. I fear the consequences of staying here will be worse than trying to find an escape!”

Ashton looked around reluctantly for a second, but was easily convinced. The presence made his mind fuzzy and weak; it gave Ashton and Drake nausea. They quickly looked for an escape from the hall. To their surprise, there were several doorways leading out and none of them were locked.

“They probably didn’t expect their prisoners to be able to move around,” Drake said, opening one of the doors. The doors they tried all led to similar looking hallways, some were completely dark, others filled with rubble. They found one that had lanterns, and they quickly followed it. They did not want to linger inside the hall any longer than was necessary.

Only fifty meters into the hallway, though, they turned a corner and ran into a soldier. He was clad in dark grey armor and a cloak, but it was the sharp and dangerous looking spear the man had that quickly gained their attention. His face showed mild surprise, and upon seeing Drake and Ashton he immediately leveled the spear at them. Drake darted forward, brushing the spear to the side, and delivered an upper jab into the man’s chin. But Drake was weak and slow. Despite the surprise, the guard was not fazed by the blow but looked down at Drake in disdain. He was obviously trained well; he didn’t flinch from the hit and instead slammed Drake against the wall. Drake hit it with a loud crunch, and he felt the breath get knocked out of him. He slumped to the floor, but Ashton came up and caught him before he hit the ground. Another guard appeared suddenly behind them blocking their escape. Ashton shrank in fear; both spears were poised to kill.

Instead of striking, one guard said to the other, “These two don’t look like they have been indoctrinated at all! Those blasted spell casters; I wonder how many more are like these.” He poked his spear at Drake and Ashton, driving them into a corner. “This one even tried to get a shot in on me. It was incredibly weak though.”

“Ha!” the other said, stepping forward, “shows just how useless you are if you let one of these freaks get a hit on you. There are always some with every bunch, though, that don’t get indoctrinated right. Hurry up and kill them already.”

Drake braced himself for the worst, preparing to fight to the death, but the other guard spoke first, “Are you stupid? If I could have, I would have skewered these dogs immediately! Have you forgotten our orders already?” He got up close and sneered at Drake, “We are not supposed to kill them. Somebody else will judge that.”

“What are they saying?” Ashton whispered to Drake, his voice shaking.

“Shh! We are not going to get killed just yet!” Drake breathed out. He didn’t think anything was broken.

“Great,” the other guard said gloomily, “more work for us. It was easier when we just killed them. What do we hope to gain from wilderness people who are not even indoctrinated? The indoctrinated ones are bad enough.”

“Whatever. Just help me get these prisoners to their rooms. You,” he said directly to Drake as if he couldn’t understand him. He made a universal gesture for a threat and then poked them with his spear again. With little reluctance, Drake and Ashton allowed the pointy end of the spear to guide them. They were led to a room and shut in. The guards then walked away, muttering about the inconsistent orders they often got. Drake and Ashton were left alone.

“I thought they were going to kill us.” Ashton said, sounding relieved once the guards had left. “What were they saying?”

Drake was testing the door, but it appeared to be locked. “They said that they were under orders not to kill us, which is good because usually they just kill people like us, apparently.”

There was a lantern in the room with them, for which they were grateful. Without it, they feared that there would be no light at all. “What now, then?” Ashton asked.

“This door won’t budge, and I don’t see any other exits.” Drake stopped trying to force the door and turned around and slumped down, “I guess we just wait now.”

“For them to kill us?” Ashton asked.

“No,” Drake responded, turning to face Ashton. “We will not wait for that. It is obvious that our earlier luck with the ring is rebounding. They would simply kill us rather than let us cause any trouble.” He brushed his messy hair out of his eyes. He said sadly, “I shouldn’t have led us out of the room with the other prisoners; we are going to get killed because of it.”

“No,” Ashton responded, “do not blame yourself. We both felt that horrible presence in the room. I wanted to get out of there just as badly as you. We don’t know what terrible thing that creature is doing now. And we don’t know yet if we are going to die. Do not regret your choice already.”

Drake said only, “If I feel that they are going to kill you or me, I will not hesitate to act.”

“And do what?” Ashton wondered aloud, “Your earlier antics only got you pounded.”

Drake did not answer. He slammed his fist against the door, “Why am I so weak?”

Only the silence answered him. The room they were in was small compared to the hall they were in earlier; it was more like a cell. it contained an empty table and a few chairs. The only other item there was the lantern which provided light. It flickered and danced merrily, oblivious to the tortured souls it gave light to. The walls were smooth and red, as if carved out of the stone itself. It connected to the ceiling seamlessly by way of a curve and the whole room was graceful and light. The atmosphere was damp and pleasantly cool. Outside of immediate danger, Drake and Ashton relaxed as much as they could on the chairs.

They discussed the possibilities of what might be happening in the large hall, the presence of the creature and the security of it, but came to no conclusion. Ashton was convinced it was an arcane ritual of some sort and that their escape was a good thing. “Do not think that you are so weak. That ring of yours has saved us from whatever terrible event was happening,” He said. “I am eternally thankful.”

But Drake wasn’t convinced, “It’s worse than useless. It only brings false hope if I can’t actually do anything with it.” He murmured, “Indoctrination… what did they mean by that?”

Ashton merely shrugged; “You can understand them, not I.”

There was no action for the next few hours, and soon both became bored. At least in the caravan there was always a landscape to look at, trees and meadows and plants. But in this land, all they saw were bare walls and emptiness. There weren’t even any noises to dwell on. It unnerved Ashton, and he wouldn’t sing. There was one pleasant thing for him, though. For the first time in a long time; he did not have any restraints on him.

Drake found interest in the lantern hanging from the wall. He nw had an opportunity to study it closely. It was shaped like an egg and was transparent as if made of glass. But upon touching it, Drake found that the surface flexed when force was applied. Inside it looked like a flame was burning, but there was no heat to be felt, fuel to be seen, nor air to be found.

He attempted to pry the lantern off the wall to get a better look at it, but he failed. He stood and studied it and then prepared himself for another attempt. Before he could though, the door opened behind him in a loud sound of rusty hinges and air pressure.

The man at the door short, very short. He came up to only Drake’s chest. He wore a black cloak that covered all of his features. He also had on a blue sash with a gold pin on it. Just behind hind him were two guards, different from the ones they had met earlier and somehow meaner looking but they were difficult to make out in the darkness of the hallway. With a wave the figure dismissed the guards outside and they shut the door loudly. Despite the hood over the man’s head, it was clear the figure was in a bad mood.

The figure grumbled to himself, “I hate doing this.” He reached inside his tunic and pulled out what appeared to be a piece of paper. Before Drake could recognize it he lifted it up into the air and it suddenly lightly disintegrated, flowing up and around like smoke. The figure spoke again with his arm still raised and said loudly, but not to Drake or Ashton, “I have been granted authority over the tongues. These prisoners will hear and understand the will of Kami.” He lowered his arm and stepped further into the room. Ashton and Drake stood up defensively and fearfully. The man smiled unpleasantly, “Do not be frightened,” he held his hands up for them to see; “I am unarmed.”

“Drake,” Ashton whispered, “I can understand him!”

Drake replied back to the man, “We know that it does not necessarily take weapons to hurt us. Words and spells can as well.”

They could not see his face, but both Ashton and Drake were startled by the menacing aura that suddenly came from the man. He said, “You are wiser than you look, perhaps you will last longer than others.”

“What do you want from us?” Drake asked stronger than he felt, “I do not know why you came unarmed, but know that that will not stop me from attacking you.”

The figure studied Drake and said, “You think that since you have managed to elude the indoctrination that you actually have a chance at resisting? Fool, your struggles have only made your circumstances worse.” He spoke flatly, as if reading a speech, “Resistance is futile, and effort only delays the inevitable. As always, powers beyond your imagination are in control of your destiny. There is no hope.” Despite the figure’s size, Drake and Ashton felt far more threatened by him than anything they met previously. The figure stepped closer to them and continued, suddenly in a soothing voice, “Stop your struggling and let the power of Kami wash over you. You will be given a new life and purpose. Let go of your false ideas of freedom and give it up for the security and bliss of being a soldier of Kami. Both of you have had painful lives, let Kami clear away your doubt and confusion.” Despite the cool and calm words, Drake felt the hairs on his neck stand on end. He watched the man with fear. The figure pointed at them both, “To continue to resist will only bring you more pain and misery. Like this!”

The figure held up his hand and commanded, “Restrain!” and Ashton felt himself bounded again by a spell. As the invisible cords tightened around him he lost balance and fell over with a cry. The figure only meant to intimidate them both with a display of power, but Drake wasn’t affected and he perceived the spell as a direct threat towards them both. The figure paused slightly in wonder as he saw Drake rush him and bring a weapon to his throat. It was the iron dagger he had created in the wagon. “How can you be moving?” the creature asked aloud, as though the threat to his life was insignificant to the mystery in front of him.

Drake ignored the question and pressed the iron dagger closer to the creature’s neck. “I command my own destiny.” He said, “Release him. Now!” he commanded.

The figure lowered his hand and Ashton felt the spell disappear from him. He stood up shakily, “Drake!” he cried, “What do you think you’re doing?”

“They would not have let us live if they knew I was immune to their spells,” he yelled back at Ashton, “they depend upon it too much; I would be a terrible threat to them.” He turned his attention back toward the figure he was restraining; “now you are going to help us get out of here.”

“Where do you plan on going?” the figure responded. Drake was surprised at how calm he it sounded.

“Out of here, out of this city.”

“I am afraid that is impossible, no matter how much you threaten me.” It responded. It irritated Drake how in control the voice sounded, “The city gate is shut. They have been shut for hundreds of years. And beyond the gate is an enemy force that surrounds the city. I believe they will simply kill you on sight.”

Drake shifted uneasily. “Then return us the way we came.” Drake responded trying to sound more threatening.

But the figure just laughed, “What? To the wilderness? You will need a portal to do that.”

“Then make one!” Drake ordered, “I know that your kind can do it.”

The creature shook his head simply. “Again, you ask for the impossible. It takes a full complement of priests and lots of preparation on our part. It is not something that can be done suddenly and with only me. And even if I could do it, you would surely get caught and killed before we even reached the location to create the portal. I think you have underestimated this city.”

Drake swore and pressed the blade closer to the figure’s neck, “You are not being very helpful to us. At this rate, I am simply going to have to kill you.”

“That will not help you either, and you know that.”

“Well,” Drake said menacingly, “it doesn’t seem like anything will help me at this point, one way or another. But surely, you value your life?”

The creature didn’t respond. Drake’s palm was getting sweaty and he readjusted his grip on the dagger. In an instant, Drake found himself thrown backwards with the wind knocked out of him and his dagger flying across the room. For the second time that day, his vision swam and he couldn’t breathe. He felt weak and unable to move properly, but he could still see the figure standing over him with a long steel knife.

“Drake!” Ashton cried out and he got up suddenly to help.

Almost lazily, the figure said, “Restrain.” And Ashton fell to the floor again. Ashton swore loudly before the spell shut his mouth.

Drake prepared to struggle again but the figure said casually, “Don’t move, or I will kill your friend.” Drake froze for a moment, and then relaxed himself into submission. He glared at the figure from the floor. “You are a very foolish human.” The figure said. It brought the knife up to Drake’s neck. “But a pitiful human, nonetheless, I understand your desperation. You are trapped, confused, and with an entirely unknown future before you. But take comfort, human,” it said with a horrifying calm, “soon all your fears will be washed away. Accept the Joy of Kami.”

“What do you want?” Drake cried out desperately, but it ignored him. Instead it crouched down and started bringing its hand to his face, “Don’t touch me!”

The hand stopped suddenly and withdrew. “What have we here…”” it asked curiously. With the tip of the knife the figure lifted Drake’s necklace. He lifted back his hood, revealing large golden eyes and an old withered face. In it was wisdom and sorrow, but Drake thought he glimpsed something bright. The figure inspected the ring that dangled from the necklace and then spoke softly in wonder, “Perhaps destiny isn’t always as she seems, even when I feel I have finally figured her out.”

He looked down at Drake, staring him down with his golden eyes as if reading into his very heart. In his hands was still the threat to Drake and Ashton’s lives, but in his face was a considering and gentle look. He bent close to Drake and said quietly in his ear, “Why is somebody like you here? What doom do you bring to this place? Your fate is not to become a mindless and unknown soldier in a vast and careless army.” He leaned back and studied Drake’s face, looking at both of his eyes in turn. “Prepare yourself,” the figure said finally, “Your own survival will depend on how adaptive you will be able to be. Be flexible and blend in! Remember my name, it is Gatal! I will come and see you again when the time comes.”

Then the figure got up suddenly. With a swift and fluid movement, he hid his knife in his cloak again. He started walking away. “Wait! Where are you going?” Drake he cried out, confused. “What are you talking about?” The figure ignored him and instead lifted his hand towards Ashton. The spell released its hold on him he gasped and breathed hard in relief. He raised his head to see the figure open the door. Gatal spoke to the two guards outside. “I finished indoctrinating them.” He pulled the cover over his head again, “They are all yours.”

“With pleasure,” the man replied. He stepped into the cell and into the light, on his face was a cruel hate. Drake recognized him as the guard he had struck earlier and it was clear from the look in his eyes that he had not forgiven Drake for the humiliation he had received. Without hesitation, the guard came straight for Drake, his spear wielded to hurt. Before Drake could stand up properly he hit Drake in the stomach with the spear shaft and then struck him on the head, knocking him back onto the floor. Drake groaned in pain but little lights appeared to him and then his vision blacked out. The last thing he heard was Ashton shouting his name…