Happy Blog Day Everyone!
Chapter 14 is here, and we finally know the identity of the traitor within Avalon! Of course, there's still more to the story...I mean that literally and figuratively as there's still a few more chapters to the end but we're definitely within the endgame here. Soon I'll have to figure out what I'll be filling this space with!
Not everything this week is sunshine and roses as going through my Daemon Soul 2 manuscript, I realised that I'd made a serious omission to one of the last chapters as a scene that had been living in head hadn't actually been written at all. The narrative just jumps over that section which makes the fact that I clearly didn't write it all the more puzzling. One theory I have is that I accidentally deleted the relevant section (I was sure I wrote it), which is certainly plausible. Luckily i still have a bit of words to work with once I sort my other edits out. Will the story be worth it? We'll see once it's in a state I'm happy with.
Now let's move on to see how Riz is doing in that hole!
The Comic Tales of Brennan and Riz
I suppose that if you class it as Riz causing hijinks then yes, he is making a habit out of this! How much of a hurry are they going to be in to get him out? Let's find out next week shall we?
Short Diversions: Avalon Tales Chapter 14
Isabelle, now linked up with Robyn and Cade, decides that it's better if they spring the trap early instead of waiting for the Blood Brothers to get her father. However, it isn't just the demons that are lying in wait...
Avalon Tales Chapter Index
Chapter 14
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Chapter 14: To Spring a Trap
With Isabelle leading the way, the three had quickly decided that following the route that the demons were trying to create would be the best approach. While they didn’t encounter any of those demons that had been carrying out the work, they did find more paths that had been blocked off, making their job that much easier. As they travelled down, Isabelle and Cade took point, with Robyn following closely behind them, ever ready to pull out her bow when needed.
“Knight Major, you are aware of the force we could encounter if our suspicions are correct,” Cade said without turning to face Isabelle.
“Of course I am, Knight Inquisitor,” she replied, meeting his tone. “I suspect we’ll find a force they expected to be overpowering for my father and his retinue. So I’m expecting a higher calibre of demons than we’ve seen already. Every demon we’ve seen so far has been built for a specific purpose.”
“You mean like the ones that were guarding the entrance here, or like the ones who were filling these tunnels in?” Robyn asked.
“Yes, and the ones who attacked us at the very beginning of all this,” Isabelle stated. “I think I was wrong about something earlier. I assumed they were building an army to take over, but it seems more like they’ve done what they had to for each step in the plan. This trap was always their endgame.”
“The Lord Commander must have left an impression on them if it spurred them on to do this,” Cade added.
“I also assumed that this place was a staging ground for their plans of conquest, and if it isn’t, then what is this base? There is nothing normal about this location. It’s reminiscent of the old layouts of our own outposts,” Isabelle thought back to that newspaper she’d found earlier, one that offered some kind of date for when people last walked these halls before the demons took it over.
“That has been troubling me as well,” Cade allowed his eyes to wander to the walls for a brief moment before snapping back to the path in front of them. “This base is not listed on any of our service maps, as either active or disused. For recording purposes, it is standard procedure to keep all Avalon holdings listed, no matter their status or how long it had been since we had used them last.” He explained, though quickly realising that he perhaps didn't need that much detail. “Which I guess is to say…”
“That this is a base that exists that shouldn't exist? Right?” Robyn said, summing up Cade’s own summary.
“Correct,” Cade adjusted his glasses.
“Could the traitor have purposefully hidden it?” Isabelle enquired.
“Potentially…” Cade trailed off, deep in thought.
“Whoever the traitor is must want control pretty badly if they're willing to do all this. Maybe we should look at someone who's been with the organisation a long time but hasn't moved as far as they think they should have.” Robyn's thesis was hard to dispute, but even Isabelle knew that it wouldn't whittle down their suspect list at all. Avalon, while modest compared to other military services, still had its fair share of senior staff, making its organisational chart resemble an hour glass. While most were happy with their position, either because of its pay or relative safety, others felt like they'd been pushed into a corner with no room to maneuver.
“Right now, we have to focus on this trap right now, but there is something bothering me…” Cade said as he stopped, signalling the others to stop as well.
“Bothering you? I wonder if it's the same thing that’s been nagging at me,” Isabelle agreed.
“Well, someone is going to have to tell me, otherwise I’m just going to be left in the dark,” Robyn said with a little sigh.
“We’re assuming that there is an enemy force waiting for us down this corridor, one formidable enough to cause problems for the best Avalon has to offer. Correct?” Cade pushed his glasses up as he spoke.
“Yeah? I mean, that fits the definition of a trap doesn’t it?” Robyn questioned.
“What if that isn’t the trap part,” Isabelle spoke, her eyes moving over the corridor they were in, noticing that there were slight differences that she hadn’t picked up before. For starters, this one was wider, the spaces between the supporting beams that much bigger.
“So… You’re suggesting that what we’re heading to, is actually the bait?”
“Yes, or so I fear,” Cade walked cautiously forward again. “If that is the case, then the true trap is what will happen once the Lord Commander is in that room, or withdrawing from it if he feels that is the best strategic decision.”
Robyn thought about it for a moment, asking herself what she’d do in that instance:
“Well, sound to me that they’d want him back in the corridor with his focus on what’s in front of him instead of behind him. I mean, I guess it’s a bit like sheepherding.”
“Sheepherding?” Cade asked with some surprise, his mouth a gape slightly.
“You know, moving the sheep to where you want them. I mean, I said a bit like, not one for one.”
“That makes sense,” Isabelle spoke up.
“I’m glad it does to someone,” Cade replied with annoyance.
“Whoever has planned this knows that my father and those with him, aren’t going to go down easy. There’s no guarantee that the demons they’ve made will be strong enough to do the job, but they can put pressure on him and make him move to where they want,” Isabelle rubbed her chin, as she looked at the corridor again, but this time, the connection came to her memories. “I remember now. This place may not be in any records, but the engineering here…This design… It was used a lot when new bases were built after the second world war!”
“Of course! The so-called safety valve corridors!” The words shot out of Cade’s mouth with some annoyance, as he silently cursed himself for not seeing it sooner.
“Safety valve? I’m back to being lost again it seems,” Robyn shrugged her shoulders.
“At the time, they were created in case of a scenario of a hostile force invading the base, human or otherwise. The idea was you’d lead the enemy into them, and then either collapse it, or flood it,” Isabelle explained as she carefully ran her hand over one of the supports, noticing it wobbling more than she’d have liked it to.
“Okay, I think I get it now, you’re saying that this, where we’re standing right now, is the actual trap…Which leads to my next question, how do we stop your dad from getting caught in it? Do we just wait here and tell them not to go this way?” Robyn put the question to her comrades.
“Originally, we were going to face the demons waiting at the bottom of this corridor, but if we do that, they could still activate the trap as he passes through…” Isabelle was still standing next to the support as she spoke, and she turned to look at it again. She placed her hand against it, lightly pushing it, watching how it moved. “...There’s only one thing we can do.”
“You’re not going to do what I think you’re going to do, are you?”
Isabelle turned to look at Robyn, a resolute look on her face, before turning to Cade, who seemed to understand what she was suggesting.
“It is the only way isn’t it…If we collapse this section it should block off this route entirely.”
“...And what do we do?” Robyn observed how far they’d wandered into this section of corridors.
“Depends really,” Isabelle answered, giving a wry smile.
“Depends on what?”
“If you want to get squished or not, assuming that’s what happens of course, otherwise you’ll get some swimming practise in. You are always going on about how you want to start again.”
“That isn’t what I meant, and you know it,” Robyn returned the smile, and waited for the signal to run.
Isabelle nodded at Cade, and in sync, they destroyed the pillars, which caused the ceiling to shake. Then, with speed, they went after the other ones, knocking three more down. The effect was immediate as the ceiling started cracking, and the way they’d come started to fall in.
“Let’s go!” Isabelle ordered, and everyone obeyed. The three ran forward, with the ceiling caving in behind them as they went, till eventually they reached the large chamber, where they knew the demons would be waiting for them.
They’d barely caught their breath when they saw the assembled ranks of demons against them, a multitude of weapons pointing in their direction. There was no emotion on the monster’s faces, only an apathetic look. These demons were even more machine than beast than the others, but the work looked haphazard, with nothing joining properly.
Isabelle, Robyn and Cade drew their weapons, expecting a fight that none of them were going to be able to walk away from, when someone spoke up from the other end of the room, behind the demons.
“You had to go and stick your nose in things didn’t you. You definitely are your father’s daughter…”
The trio recognised the voice straight away, and none of them wanted to believe it at first.
“Ten minutes, that’s all we needed, and we could have ended this, but no, fate has denied us that option now hasn’t it.” The voice seemed to be moving closer, and the demons began to part.
“Aren’t one of you going to say something then? Otherwise this moment will feel more a waste than it already does.”
“We have no words…Not for a traitor like you…Master of Arms Rainer Kyne!” Isabelle delivered the damning statement as Rainer stepped forward from the demons.
“To think that this trap was wasted on you, it’s a stain on my reputation.”
“No, you are the stain on Avalon’s reputation, and as a Knight Inquisitor, it is my job to erase you before you do any more damage to our cause,” Cade spoke up, as angry as Isabelle had ever seen him.
“Damage to the cause…None of you know anything. I’m fighting for the cause, I’ve never stopped!” Rainer laughed with disgust. “My whole life, has been dedicated to our country and our aim, but we’re on the cusp of a new era, and a new era needs new leadership.”
“And you think that new leader should be you?” Cade questioned.
“Who else would be better than someone like me? Only I have the vision and strength to lead Avalon into the future we’re heading towards.”
“I’m a little lost here, so I’ll ask, What future? I mean, our only job is to protect people from demons and those that would use them to kill…Like what you’re trying to do now,” Robyn had gotten an arrow all lined up, aiming it directly at the traitor, who was unflinching as he scowled at her.
“I guess the news wouldn’t have reached the rabble yet. The decision has been made that we’re to co-operate more with the so-called leaders of the land. The idiots that the public deem fit to lead. We’re the ones who should be leading!” Rainer shouted. “We’re the ones who risk life and limb day in and day out, dealing with threats that would end civilization as we know it!”
Isabelle was struck by how unhinged Rainer was sounding, and she knew from Cade’s face that he’d noticed it as well. The way he was shouting, it wouldn’t have mattered what arguments she came up with, they would have all been discounted out of hand.
“So, the end justifies the means? Is that what you’re saying? And I assume you’re who the Blood Brothers were referring to when they mentioned Black Knight?”
“You think I’m all that there is to Black Knight? Hah! You really don’t know anything!” Rainer laughed, and then he raised his hand. “...And now, you never will. I may have been denied your father, but I’ll have to settle for his daughter’s head.” He dropped his hand, and the demons opened fire…
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Next Chapter (not live yet!)
Phew! That's one big secret out in the open, but what will our heroes do now? Guess you'll have to find out in a fortnights time for Chapter 15!
Better get writing again hadn't I?
Till next time...
Keep on writing!
Peter James Martin
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