NOVEL WEB XXV. Chaos Overture
At around the same time, a heavy aura could be felt inside the headquarters of Eclipse. The doors of the marble legislative chambers are opened by the Lion. Behind him, several other members enter the room.
The Lion: Sit down everyone. FAST.
People quickly take to their seats. They did not yet know what had happened, only that it was serious... Very serious.
The Lion: Nox have drawn first blood. One of us has been murdered... The Leopard is no longer among us.
This information stunned everyone in the room. For a while, their shock rendered them speechless, and they simply listened intently to the rest of what the Lion had to say.
The Lion: His city is now completely under their jurisdiction. This not only means that we have lost our connections to the informants and allies therein...
He briefly pauses, defeated.
The Lion: ... But also that, as it stands, reaching Virno von Virtus would be too far too dangerous. After much deliberation, I must inform you all that we have no choice but to abandon him.
Finally, the silence is broken. Members begin to bicker amongst themselves, discussing the Leopard's death and debating what course of action to take after these tragic developments. The Owl traded no words with anyone, however. Without hesitation, he stands up.
The Owl: We must not, Lion! Virno is our chance to turn the tables around and see our goals through, abandoning him means letting go of the only chance we have of putting a stop to our enemies' plans!
The room quiets down once more upon hearing the Owl's words loud and clear. The Lion shakes his head in response to it.
The Lion: Owl... I understand your point, but we simply cannot risk losing anybody else. If they capture one of us... They will spare no means to make that person open a portal back here. We cannot afford that danger.
The Dragon and Fawn stand up, joining the Owl.
The Dragon: Dammit... But we can't just let the boy go, either!
The Fawn: Isn't there some way we can help...?
The Lion: I'm afraid not... We would be endangering the fellow members of this organization.
The Dragon: Sorry, Lion, but we're acting like cowards. One of us has perished, and we run with our tail between our legs?! I know we are vastly outnumbered, but we have to do something!
The Lion's posture and tone of voice changes. He didn't seem pleased with their interventions.
The Lion: We are doing something, Dragon. We are preserving our very livelihoods. Is that not enough for you? Would you rather strike back and get us all wiped out for good?
The Owl's blood begins to boil.
The Owl: I did not expect this of you, Lion. Our leader should not act so act to cravenly...!
The Lion stands up, striking his energy gong. It's loud beat sends shivers down the spines of several members in the room.
The Lion: ENOUGH! This arrogance will not be tolerated! I do what I do to protect us, our hands are tied! As your leader, it is my responsibility to determine the best course of action, which is to lay low for the time being. Any attempt to hurt Nox when they are out for blood would only endanger us needlessly!
The Owl: NOT NEEDLESSLY! One of us has died, and you choose to abandon our only chance of victory?! No, Lion! I cannot stand behind you on this, we should put all hands on deck and storm the city itself, rid Nox's influence over it, and secure von Virtus!
The Lion: You old fool, you would kill us all!
The Owl: I would kill many of us, perhaps myself included, yes! So that those who live can be victorious! So that they can help von Virtus acquire the sword, thus leveraging our sacrifice to vanquish our foes and restore balance to the world. THAT is what this organization stands for! Our livelihood is SECONDARY, Lion. YOU HAVE FORGOTTEN OUR PURPOSE!
He took this personally.
The Lion: AND YOU HAVE FORGOTTEN YOUR PLACE! SHUT UP THIS INSTANT AND SIT DOWN, OWL, I WILL SAY THIS ONLY ONCE!
The Owl: I WILL NOT! I DEMAND THE COUNCIL VOTE ON THIS!
The Lion: YOU HAVE NO AUTHORITY HERE, OLD MAN! I AM YOUR LEADER, YOU WILL OBEY ME!
The Owl: YOU STUBBORN FOOL! YOU ARE TOO SCARED OF DEATH TO DO WHAT MUST BE DONE!
The Lion had had enough. He leaves the center of the room, making his way towards the Owl.
The Elephant: He's not...?!
The Snake: Clear the room, everyone!
The Fawn: No, stop them...!
Before the other members could try to separate them, the Owl intervenes.
The Owl: Nobody else get involved!
Everybody freezes up, then steps back, as the Owl makes his way toward the Lion, angrily.
The Lion: Your disobedience will be punished greatly, Owl!
The Owl: I swore obedience to a stoic leader, not to a frightened rat...!
As the Owl casts a glyph from the palm of his hand that summons a grey sidesword, the Lion casts a similar glyph, summoning forth a scimitar. Once they get close enough to one another, they swing without hesitation. Sparks fly as the blades grind against one another.
The Lion: I never expected this of you, Owl...
He said, in a disgusted tone.
The Owl: Nor did I of you, Lion...
The Owl replied with a disappointed voice.
They push the blades against one another, using the momentum to take a step back. With their other hand, they begin conjuring magical glyphs.
The Lion: You seem far too ready to defile this chamber with your unruly behavior...!
The Owl: And you seem far too ready to defile the very pillars of what we stand for, all because you lack the spirit of sacrifice to die to uphold them!
From the palm of his hand, the Lion shoots forth a barrage of missiles that arch towards his opponent's position. The Owl clenches his casting hand into a fist, brings it close to his lips, then blows into it as he opens his hand. From within expands a bubble of grey energy that rapidly envelops the both of them. The trajectory of the missiles is altered as they enter the bubble, and instead of arching towards the Owl, they just keep moving in a straight line, missing him. He jumps towards the Lion, floating towards him. It would seem his bubble altered gravity itself to suit his needs.
The Lion: You know which of us will emerge victorious. Stand down and admit your insolence. I promise to make your punishment fair, but quick...!
The Lion's eyes glow with grey magic. With a slash of his scimitar, a magical cut emanates from its blade, severing the bubble and sending the Owl falling to the ground. He manages to slowly land on his feet, still able to manipulate the way gravity, though now it only affects him.
The Owl: If only our past leaders could see you now... They would be just as ashamed as I am.
The Lion: Ashamed...? Who will be left to fight our enemies if all of us are dead, Owl?! How will we accomplish our mission then?! TELL ME!
The torches of the chamber burn with a fiery glow. The gravity within the entire room is altered, causing all the other members to begin floating upwards. Marble stools and tables follow them. As the Lion's eyes glow brighter, his scimitar seems to be imbued with a strange energy that displaces time and space around itself. Its movements become impossible to predict, with light itself seemingly warping and shifting erratically upon hitting it. He starts walking toward the Owl, who is held almost nailed to the floor by an enormous gravitational force. The room seemed to be in perfect sync with the Lion's intentions, greatly amplifying his powers as the leader.
The Owl: By choosing to abandon the sword of greed, you are forfeiting any chance of victory... Nox have already effortlessly begun to capture settlements and cities across the globe. One of us has already perished...! It is not the time to hide. Not the time to wait. It is the time to go all in, to join all our efforts into helping the boy claim the deadly blade. That is our only chance of victory. Our only way to tip the scales...
With much difficulty, the Owl manages to stand up straight. He didn't seem interested in continuing the fight.
The Lion: We will manage without him. We are stronger than they are.
His eyes dim. Gravity seems to be slowly returning to normal.
The Owl: Stronger...? We are delusional, if we choose to believe that.
The Lion: ENOUGH...!
They burn brighter than before. The room quakes as gravity itself is inverted around the two of them, sending other people and objects crashing into the ceiling of the chamber. The torches' flames expand violently, forming a circle of grey fire all around them. The Lion raises his scimitar high overhead, its unnatural blade twisted and warped to expand its size to twice its original length.
The Lion: This is your last chance, Owl... Obey your leader and stand down!
The Owl dispels his sword and brings his other hand up to his own face, turned towards his mask, casting strange glyphs.
The Owl: I know I cannot best you. And I know I have disrespected you, as our leader, and in turn Eclipse itself. I stand fully ready to pay the rightful price for my actions.
As the glyph comes into contact with the mask, it is completely disintegrated, his magical robes alongside it.
The Elephant: No...! What has he done?!
The Lion: You would not...!
The Owl: I already have...
The Lion's eyes suddenly return to normal, as does his blade. The torches' flames go back to their usual size, and the gravity within the room resets. Tables and stools fall to the ground, as the members of Eclipse slowly descend, using their powers to land safely.
The Owl: The Owl's place in this council is now vacant, after 40 long years... From this moment onwards, I am a member of Eclipse no longer.
The other members could not believe their ears.
The Lion: OWL! How dare you do this...?!
The Owl: I am within my right to forfeit my role, as well as my membership, in Eclipse. I am the Owl no longer. You may all call me by my name... Ballo.
The other members could not believe it.
Ballo (The Owl): I return my uniform, as well as my ability to come to and from these headquarters... This will be the last time I set foot in here.
The Lion dispels his sword. He seemed to regret letting things escalate to this point...
Ballo: You may have chosen to forsake the future wielder of the sword, but I have not. I bid you farewell, my friends... It is time this old man makes himself truly useful once more. I will guide von Virtus to the sword to the best of my abilities, even if it's the last thing I do. I give you my word.
The Lion: Are you certain this is what you want...?
He asked, even though he knew there was already no turning back.
Ballo: It is what the leaders who came before you would want, too. I hope that, in time, you will learn to see this.
The Lion takes a deep breath. He then raises both of his hands towards Ballo, as a magical glyph is cast underneath the old man's feet.
The Lion: Then by the power invested in me by my fellow members of Eclipse... I hereby banish you from these headquarters and from our organization. Thank you for all that you have done for us over the years...
The glyph underneath him shines brighter. Everybody else in the room seemed saddened by his departure, some struggling with themselves, blaming his departure on their inaction. But Ballo smiled.
Ballo: Cheer up, everyone... Though this is the last time you see me here, I dearly hope this isn't the last time our paths will cross. Stay true to what you believe in. Always...!
The glyph shines its brightest, casting a portal that instantly banishes Ballo from the room. After the portal closes, the room grows deeply silent. The Lion himself seemed at a loss for words.
The Lion: ... We have lost much lately. This meeting is adjourned. Mourn what you must for today... Tomorrow, we will discuss our options again. You are all dismissed.
Everyone leaves the room quietly. It was now littered with broken objects and upside-down furniture. After extinguishing the torches, the Lion remained inside, deeply contemplating everything that had occurred...