The Path of Power (The Emperor Trials)

Chapter 86: The Dark Conclave

Across the world, unseen by the common eye, an emergency summons went out.

The High Priests of the Church of Darkness one for nearly every major country answered the call. In the First World nations, some countries hosted two or even three such figures, each governing vast networks of blood cults, mercenary groups, and political puppets.

One by one, they were pulled from their separate realities and drawn into a private dimensional space a vast, vaulted chamber crafted from shadow-stone and dripping with eldritch energy. Massive black pillars rose into an unseen ceiling, and around a circular dais, ancient thrones of bone and steel awaited them.

Each priest wore a carved sigil a grotesque symbol of an eldritch horror pouring molten flesh into the mouths of starving mortals. Their true faces were hidden behind ceremonial masks, for even among one another, secrecy was paramount.

At the center throne sat a single figure unmasked.

The Avatar of Their God.

A man of immense power and chilling fame, he was the public head of several global investment firms. A household name in the financial world. He moved in circles of presidents and kings. But few only those present in this room knew the extent of the atrocities he had engineered. Wars he had fueled for decades, manipulating stock markets and geopolitical tensions, not for profit, but for death.

For with death came power.

And with power came offerings to their god.

As the last of the High Priests arrived, the chamber settled. The space echoed faintly with murmured invocations as each priest took their place. They called this gathering the Dark Conclave a twisted mockery of the Catholic conclave, an insult they reveled in.

The Avatar's gaze swept across the room.

"Let us begin," he intoned.

From the Nigerian faction, High Priest Thomas Odii stepped forward toward the blackened podium.

His voice was steady, but the tension in his shoulders was clear.

"I called this urgent meeting," Odii began, "because we have suffered an… unusual setback. One that demands our collective attention."

He paused, watching the masked faces. The Avatar said nothing, his eyes gleaming with cold expectation.

Odii continued.

"I dispatched a team of Sage-ranked Gutterborn, led by a Monarch-class vessel, to eliminate a potential threat an emerging Child of Light. Before this… one could ascend further, before the Christian Church turned them into another Saint to hunt us."

That drew some interest.

Saints were enemies of the Church few in number, but devastating. Cultivated by rival powers within the Awakened community, they existed to hunt things like them.

"Yet," Odii said tightly, "the team has been… destroyed."

A ripple of annoyance passed through the gathered priests. Gutterborn were expendable tools few mourned their loss.

The Avatar's frown deepened, his lips curling in irritation.

Odii quickly pressed on.

"But this was no ordinary failure." He took a breath. "The Seed of Darkness implanted in the Monarch… was not simply dispersed. It was purified. Destroyed."

Now the room stirred.

Soft murmurs rippled through the air.

Purified?

And worse Odii added "In its final moments, the Seed expressed… fear."

That drew true alarm. Priests leaned toward one another in hushed debate.

For a Seed to feel fear that meant something ancient had acted against it. Something on the level of the old Saints or the ancient World Trees.

Before the debate could turn to chaos, the Avatar raised his hand.

Silence fell instantly.

He stared at Odii, voice calm but cold:

"Was it the Church?" His gaze swept the others. "With the current chaos around the globe, perhaps one of them has discovered a faster method to deal with the Seed?"

No one answered.

The Avatar narrowed his eyes. "Very well. I will dispatch several agents to investigate this… anomaly. Discreetly."

He leaned back, fingers steepled. "We will know soon enough."

The meeting continued.

They discussed many troubling matters.

Wars once so easily started were becoming harder to ignite. The Awakened community was growing bolder, stepping into the public eye, blocking conflicts in ways that undermined the Church's careful plans.

Even more troublesome were the People of Nam that civilization whose purpose was to safeguard the Earth. They were quietly expanding their reach, sending operatives into the darkest corners of every continent.

Their cleansing of the slums rooting out rare bloodlines before the Church could harvest them was disrupting centuries-old rituals.

Without their yearly sacrifices, the Church's power would wane.

One of the Eastern Priests muttered, "Even now, every slum on Earth is being… cleansed. If they reach the older lineages "

"It will cripple us," another agreed grimly.

Then came the final topic.

"The new Demigod," the Avatar said slowly. His gaze returned to Odii. "Have you seen him?"

Odii inclined his head.

"The Avatar's lips curled into a thin smile.

"Then you will see if he can be… persuaded."

He let the word hang in the air, heavy with unspoken meaning.

"Recruit him, if possible. If not…" His gaze darkened. "We shall deal with him accordingly."

The conclave ended in shadow.