Chapter 20: The Fall of the Bloodhound
The grand banquet hall was dead silent. The only sound was the ragged breathing of the wounded and the slow drip of spilled wine falling from the obsidian tables.
General Draven Morvath stared at Silas. The giant warlord’s scarred face twisted into a mask of absolute unhinged fury. He had been outmaneuvered outsmarted and publicly accused of treason by a consort in front of the Queen.
"You lying southern rat," Draven roared his voice shaking the violet crystal orbs above. He drew his massive iron greatsword. "I will cut your tongue out and feed it to the hounds!"
Draven lunged forward his heavy boots cracking the stone floor. He did not care about the Queen’s presence anymore. Blind rage had completely consumed his tactical sense. He swung the greatsword in a brutal horizontal arc aimed directly at Silas’s neck.
Silas did not move. He did not need to.
Before the blade could even come close to Silas a wall of solid black shadow erupted from the floor. The greatsword slammed into the shadow barrier with a deafening clang of metal against magic. The force of the impact shattered the iron blade into a dozen jagged pieces.
Draven stumbled backward staring at his broken weapon in shock.
Queen Ravena stepped down from the dais. The shadows in the room seemed to stretch and writhe around her feet. Her silver eyes were glowing with a terrifying lethal intensity.
"You draw steel in my presence General?" Ravena asked her voice a soft deadly whisper that carried to every corner of the hall. "You aim a blade at the man who just threw himself in front of an assassin’s sword to protect me?"
"Your Majesty he is lying!" Draven pleaded dropping the broken hilt of his sword. "He orchestrated this! He is trying to frame the military!"
"Silas does not hold the keys to the eastern doors Draven," Ravena stated coldly. "You do. And Silas did not hire unregistered pit fighters to flood my banquet hall. You did. You thought you could use the chaos of the Blood Moon to eliminate a rival and play the hero. You are not a hero Draven. You are a clumsy predictable fool."
Ravena raised her pale hand. The shadows wrapped around Draven’s massive arms and legs binding him in unbreakable chains of dark magic. The giant warlord struggled roaring in defiance but the shadows forced him to his knees.
"Strip him of his rank," Ravena commanded looking at the remaining City Guards who were trembling in terror. "Throw Draven Morvath into the deepest cell of the obsidian oubliette. If he speaks cut out his tongue."
The guards rushed forward eager to prove their loyalty to the Queen. They dragged their former commander out of the hall. Draven’s curses echoed down the corridor until the heavy doors slammed shut.
Silas watched him go his expression perfectly blank. The military faction was officially decapitated.
A pathetic whimpering sound drew Silas’s attention to the floor near the consort table.
Lysander was crawling out from under the wreckage of a shattered table. His pristine white tunic was soaked in blood and wine. The mercenary Silas had shoved him into had managed to slash Lysander across the cheek before being killed by the royal guards. The shallow cut ruined Lysander’s perfect golden beauty.
Lysander looked up at the Queen tears streaming down his face. "Your Majesty please. I was attacked. I am wounded."
Ravena looked down at the weeping golden consort. Her expression was one of absolute utter disgust. She looked at Lysander crying over a shallow cut and then she looked at Silas who was standing tall calm and covered in the blood of the men he had fought to protect her.
The contrast was absolute.
"Get this weeping coward out of my sight," Ravena ordered turning her back on Lysander. "Throw him in the dungeons with the rest of the traitors. I am tired of looking at him."
"No!" Lysander screamed as two guards grabbed him by the arms. "Silas did this! Silas pushed me! Your Majesty please!"
His screams faded as he was dragged away joining Draven in the dark.
Silas stood in the center of the ruined hall. In less than ten minutes he had completely dismantled his two greatest enemies. He had broken the High Priest and he had secured the absolute trust of the Queen.
His System interface chimed rapidly in his mind.
[System Alert: Lethal Threats Neutralized.]
[Hidden Quest Complete: The Viper and the Hound.]
[Reward: Plus 2 Influence Plus 2 Cunning and 500 SP.]
Silas dismissed the prompts. He had a massive reserve of points now but the night was not over.
Lady Seraphina stood near the edge of the room her face pale and her sociopathic aura rippling with genuine fear. She looked at Silas and Silas offered her a slow chilling smile. She knew he had won. She knew she was entirely at his mercy now.
"Silas," Ravena called out.
Silas turned and bowed deeply before the Queen.
"You have proven your loyalty tonight," Ravena said her silver eyes tracing the lines of his face with a new intense hunger. "You are no longer a consort. You are far too dangerous to be kept in a gilded cage. Come to my chambers. We have much to discuss."
She turned and glided out of the ruined hall. Silas followed her leaving the shattered remnants of the court behind him. The first phase of his conquest was complete. Now he was stepping into the true center of power.
