Book Three – Chapter Five – Part Seven – The Act of Subterfuge and Sabotage

"We only sold Monotonia, but I feel so tired,” Old Man grumbled after descending the dank staircase in Deset. Once he and Servi were let in, they had to proceed through the community room, where she first met Carrie, to get to their room.

But that didn’t happen. No, that would be too easy. Servi and Old Man only made it a few steps into the room when they saw an odd sight.

An Elf with a 7 etched into her cheek had her arms and feet chained together to the point where she couldn’t walk. Comparing her yellow hair and lightning bolt scar to what she read in that diary, Servi concluded that they had caught Eletri.

The Singi with no tail and ears, the 6th, stood off to the side while Carrie grinned sadistically. Two Kobolds stood right behind Eletri with two chains gripped firmly in their hands.

It seemed that Servi and Old Man entered while Eletri was pleading her innocence.

“I’m telling you!! I didn’t do it! I haven’t killed anyone who’s part of the Mafia!!” Sweat dripped down her face as a look of desperation flooded her eyes. She was scared. Frightened. Terrified of what would happen to her.

“Shut the hell up. I’m telling you for the last time, there’s no need to play stupid. We found the bodies in your room. You were stupid enough to write your plan in your diary,” the 6th said.

“Then show me the bodies!” Eletri demanded.

“Sorry, but we already got rid of them. They were started to stink the place up,” Carrie said, giggling and licking her lips. She was definitely enjoying this.

“Fuck you, Carrie! I—”

With a simple flourish of her spear, Carrie snapped the butt of it upwards, cracking and fracturing Eletri’s jaw. Teeth and blood spilled out, and she pathetically whimpered.

“Hahaha!!! Hey, bitch, you should thank her right over there,” Carrie leaned down and turned Eletri's head towards Servi and Old Man, who had taken a seat. “Wait, you have hair?”

“It’s a wig,” Servi responded.

“Whatever. Williana's the one the Boss’s informant gave the information to. It had proof of your deeds. Here.” Carrie reached over and pulled a diary from a nearby table. She opened it up to the last page and read out loud the entry Servi forged.

“If you don’t believe my words, then read it yourself,” Carrie held the diary open, and Eletri produced an increasingly loud groan of pain.

“I didn’t write that!! I would never do that!! 6th, you have to believe me!!!”

“Damnit, Eletri, why did you have to betray us?”

“I didn’t! I swear I didn't!! Please, don’t do this!!” Eletri pleaded, but it was no use. The forged evidence was overwhelmingly not in her favor.

The 6th sighed and ordered the two Kobolds to drag Eletri to the torture room. They silently nodded and dragged her away, screaming.

“PLEASE, NO!!! DON’T TORTURE ME!!!! I DIDN’T DO ANYTHING WRONG!!!!” she cried. “LET ME FIGHT THAT HUMAN!!! I NEED A CHANCE TO PROVE MY INNOCENCE!! NOOOOOOOO!!!!”

Carrie laughed so hard she fell to the floor. “HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH!!!!” After gaining her reason back, she stood up and wandered on over to Servi and Old Man. “You sell them?”

“That’s right. Got a pretty dupla out of it,” Old Man replied.

“Same here,” Servi said.

“Good. Then follow me.”

Servi and Old Man stood up and followed Carrie through the halls until they were back in their room. The familiar bunk bed was like finding life-saving water in the desert. At least it was to Old Man. He was getting up there in age and didn’t have as enough energy as he did three, or even four, years ago.

Servi sat down first, taking out 11,000 dupla from her bag. “I sold eleven and got 11k.”

“How the fuck did you do that?!” Carrie exclaimed. Her eyes went wide like she couldn’t believe it.

“Went to a place called New Arcton. It has those red brick walls and guards?”

“You two actually managed to infiltrate it? Color me surprised. I didn’t think you two had it in you.”

“About that…” Old Man spoke, “I came back with 1,100. Unfortunately, I wasn’t blessed with such… 'charming assets’ as Williana here.” He plopped down the dupla.

“Assets? What? You sell yourself for a better price?” Carrie asked.

“No. I just flashed my tits and convinced them. If I didn’t have this wig and eye patch, then they probably wouldn’t have bought them for a high price,” Servi lied.

“About that wig… I assume this is the dress you wore to sneak in? And I didn’t see the eye patch. Here’s an idea. Keep it.”

Servi nodded. “But I don’t think we can go back. Old Man overheard someone inside talk about closing it off for good because of people like us sneaking in. Speaking of that, what do you know about that big ass building on the inside?”

“The one with the Kobold in nadrium armor?” Carrie asked.

Servi nodded and listened.

“Not much, to be honest. And I don’t think the 6th knows, either. All I know is that we have orders not to mess with it. A part of me thinks it’s a 5th or 4th base, but I don’t know. I sure would like to have a look inside, though.”

“What about the Kobold?” asked Old Man.

“I know he’s Mafia, but that’s all. The rumor going about is that he’s the Boss’s personal bodyguard, but he rarely leaves that spot. For the most part, he sleeps there, eats there, and shits there. Anyway, come with me. It’s time to brief you two on the next task.”

Why would the Boss make it so obvious? If it were me, I’d have my headquarters in a place that wouldn’t attract any attention. Servi, do you think it’s a fake base? To throw people off his real location?

“Don’t suppose I have a chance to rest these weary bones, do I?” Old Man sighed and reluctantly stood up.

“Soon. Oh, you needed to bring back 400 dupla each. So I’ll deduct that, and you two can have the remainder. Williana, you’ll get 10,600. Old Man, you’ll get 700. Not too bad, I might say. You know, if you keep this up, you might actually be chosen.”

“Carrie, what about the incident from this morning. Did you get any info from HQ?”

“I’m your 9th, remember? Your 9th!!” Carrie sighed and continued speaking. “But about that. We got a message that thanked us for taking care of it, but there’s no plan to send someone out.”

Are you serious?! All that work for nothing?!! Itarr seethed with anger before calming herself. Servi, on the other hand, just smiled. But underneath those pretty lips was a rage that wanted to lash out.

“To be honest, I thought that should have garnered a visit from the brass, but apparently not. That fake Singi must have a way with words.”

“Fake?” questioned Servi.

Carrie further clarified that she meant the Singi with no ears and tail. “But don’t call him that to his face if you value your life. A few months back, someone did that. It took six whole buckets to scoop up all of his blood and guts. Anyway, we’re running late. Follow me.”

Carrie jaunted out of the door and into the hallway with Servi and Old Man following close behind. To their surprise, she brought them back out to the community room and over to a table that sat seven. Four seats, however, were already filled.

Two were Dwarves. One was bald with no other distinguishing features other than an 8 carved into his cheek. The other one had a glorious blond beard that came to his belly. Their red jackets and black greaves stood out as somewhat odd. He also had an 8, but it was branded on. Probably from some sort of cattle prod that had been superheated, if Servi had to guess. It almost looked like it didn’t heal right, but it didn’t look infected.

The other two were two Earth Elves. The one on the left had a silver ponytail in addition to a thicker nose. The one on the right was bald.

At Carrie's behest, Servi and Old Man sat down.

“I ain’t gonna beat around the bushes. There’s a drug deal going on tonight. It’s a big one with a lot of dupla on the line. You two jerk-offs weren’t my first choice, but Carrie here told me you can deliver. I don’t know how she figured that since you’ve been here a day, but I’ve been looking for a way to get rid of her,” the bald dwarf said. Servi mentally nicknamed him Baldy. His utmost rudeness was a big surprise to her. She glanced at Carrie and noticed blood dripping from her lips from where she bit them to stay calm.

Baldy continued, “I know I can do this deal solo, but bringing along extra meat shields ain’t such a bad idea.”

“If nothing else,” said the Earth Elf with a ponytail, “you two can die for us.”

“Shut the fuck up, long ear!” Baldy slammed his hand down on the table, producing a loud noise. “As far as I’m concerned, you ain’t done shit to earn our trust. You think you’re at a level where you expect people to die for you? Fuck that. YOU TWO better die for me. Scratch that, Carrie, you better die for me.”

Servi, can we kill him? He’s pissing me off.

Somehow, Carrie managed to keep a smile and produced a simple “Yes, sir.”

“Alright, you five know what’s going down. Fuck off and be back at 5. That’s when we're leaving,” Baldy and the other Dwarf, who stayed silent, stood up and wandered off. The two Elves, meanwhile, stayed around and talked shit. More accurately, Servi started first.

“So you two boys think I’m just going to die for you because you said so?”

“We were scouted by an 8th. I’m not sure Humans live long enough to learn basic math, but in the Mafia, 8 is better than 9,” said the Earth Elf with a ponytail.

“Yeah? Well, those ears will look nice hung in our room. Keep talking like that, and you’ll be missing them before you know it,” Servi replied.

“Williana, calm down,” Carrie said, holding an arm out.

“Oaklin, cool it. There’s not any use in fighting right now. Let’s focus and do what our 8th said. He said he’ll convince the Boss to make us a Numbered. Besides, we’ve been here for a year now. It’s about time,” said the bald Earth Elf.

Oaklin, the one with the ponytail, scoffed. “Daki, please. Like some old bag of bones and a whore with one eye can do what we can do better.”

“Daki and Oaklin, huh?” Servi said, “I’ll be sure to piss on your graves when you inevitably fuck up and die after failing to complete the simplest of tasks.”

There was a plan that popped up into Servi’s head the moment she heard Daki talk about their 8th recommending them to be a Numbered, and Itarr picked up on it.

I see. You’re going to make Daki and Oaklin compromise the task, so they look bad, right? Are you going to make them attack you by using Telekinesis?

Oaklin kicked the table from underneath them and pulled a dagger. It may have only been made of simple wood, but Servi felt how sharp it was when it hugged her pretty little neck.

Carrie flourished her spear and jabbed it down on Oaklin’s arm. It didn’t break, but he pulled back and held it close to his body. “You two fuck off somewhere, yeah? Don’t go be causing trouble for stupid shit. And you, Williana, has anyone ever told you to shut the fuck up?!” Carrie yelled.

Oaklin and Daki stood up and scurried off somewhere while Carrie exhaustedly rubbed her head. Servi smiled and stood up, walking close to Carrie until she spoke softly into those fluffy red ears. “I’ll make it up to you tonight.” Then she lightly blew into her ear, prompting the Singi’s body to shiver from the otherworldly pleasure it had tasted.

“Shit… Fine! But you need to know your place. There are people in the Mafia that’ll squash you like an insignificant insect. Me being one of them.”

“Sorry, Carrie. But this is who I am. To restrict me is to restrict my magical touch that made you moan and convulse all night. Besides, why did that 8th hate you?” Old Man, who was listening, suddenly choked on nothing and coughed.

Carrie took it as a sign to drop the subject. “Fine. I give up. It’s too exhausting. But him? I haven’t done anything to piss him off. The word around Deset is that he hates Singi. Hell, it wouldn’t be the first time I pissed someone just by existing.” Carrie closed her eyes for a second and reopened them. “Look, you two can fuck off and do whatever. Eat, sleep, I don’t care. Just be back here at five and ready to go.”

“Got it. What’ll you be doing?” Servi asked.

“I’m going to pay a little visit to the torture room. Since you were the one who received the letter from the observer AND you’re technically working for me until we know you can be trusted, torturing Dana and Eletri falls to me. Rather, I have the option to join in. You know, blood from the neck right when it’s been slit is my favorite drink. It’s so warm and thick, yet it’s so filling,” Carrie explained to no one who asked.

After her little teaching session on blood and necks, she flourished her spear around her body and skipped away down a hall.

Old Man turned to Servi. “I guess I’m going to get some sleep. What about you?” he asked her.

“Probably the same,” she said, walking off.

A few minutes later, they both walked into their room. Old Man made a beeline for his bed and practically dove into it. Servi, meanwhile, grasped the handle to Carrie's room and made herself at home. She hopped on the bed immediately, stretching and groaning in anger.

She heard a little pop and instantly rolled out of bed and drew a dagger. She saw neither friend or for, but a small stone tablet. It was her ID. Bright and red, it felt strange and distant but also warm and familiar.

“Itarr?”

The ID flew over to Servi, and she sat back down. The surface went totally blank, and words appeared as if they were being written with an invisible hand.

YES! Servi, it’s me! I’m here! It said. Even though it was words on a stone tablet, Servi could imagine Itarr’s voice speaking the very sentences her red eyes glossed over.

Servi immediately grabbed it and held it close to her chest, cradling it like an heirloom.

“Itarr…Itarr…I…I…thought you were gone. I thought you left me…like Momo did….” Servi mumbled. Try as she might, no tears fell from her eyes from such a joyous reunion. It was like she had lost that ability.

Servi… I was never gone. And even if I had the option, I wouldn’t. Not now and not ever. I won’t ever leave you. Her ID struggled to get free of Servi’s herculean embrace and floated right in front of her face. She read the words and smiled, getting into bed.

“Itarr, I love you.”

I love you too. The red ID soared ever so gracefully around the room until it came to a stop a few centimeters away from Servi’s face.

“You won’t ever leave me?”

Never.

“Never ever?” she asked, acting like a child who had just been reunited with a faithful friend.

Never ever. I’m here to stay.

After a lengthy conversation lasting well over 30 minutes, in which Servi and Itarr proclaimed their love for each other many times, the Goddess became informed of the thoughts that ran inside Servi’s head over the past day and a half. She knew the reason, but more importantly, the understanding behind each and every choice she made.

Servi was tough to hold on this far, being alone and trapped with no friend in sight, and Itarr made sure to repeat that many times.

“I love you, Itarr,” Servi said for what must have been the fortieth time.

I love you, too, replied the Goddess for the fortieth time. It must’ve been hard, but I promise you I won’t ever leave. I never left in the first place! I was talking non-stop. For some reason, my voice isn't reaching your soul.

“That’s scary,” said Servi.

It is. But if I can talk to you like this, then I’m happy. Oh, there’s one more thing. I can’t use skills anymore. See? Itarr went to use Telekinesis on a small piece of a broken vase. She expected it to fail, but it was the complete opposite.

“I thought you said you couldn’t use skills?” Servi asked.

I couldn’t. I don’t know what’s different between now and then, but this is good news! It means I can help you again!

Servi watched as the vase shard soared happily across the room before crashing into the wall, shattering against it.

Sorry, I was happy… Itarr said. Even though it was words on a stone tablet, Servi felt the embarrassment coming from the letters as they appeared.

“Hahaha! It’s fine. When I finally get the info I need to rescue Momo, I’m burning this shitty place to a crisp. Now, I—we need to come with a plan. I’m going to make those Elves attack Carrie or me. If I make them attack her, I’ll jump in. Oh, if I do that, then you can’t heal my wounds. I’m not going to be able to explain it.”

Got it! I’ll only heal when or if someone uses a healing skill on you. But how about this? Why don’t we take it even further beyond just framing those two?

“Whaddya mean?” Servi rolled over and stretched out wide.

Remember how you framed Eletri by forging her diary entry? When if we do the same for the 6th? That fake Singi? If we do it right, we can effectively take out Deset’s leader.

“That’s right. He did say he was the lowest Numbered. If so, then it stands to reason that he didn’t send the report. I bet he lied.”

I bet he lied as well. That’s why something as serious as a Numbered killing a member was washed away. If it was me, I’d be mad and send someone to investigate. Itarr wrote.

“Same here. But a part of me believes he did send it, and HQ didn’t do anything about it.”

Why do you say that?

“Think about it. What kind of organization provides a fresh recruit a chance to be in a leadership position just days after joining? That’s not something a successful terrorist organization, like the Mafia, does if they want power and money. To me, it seems like the Boss, maybe a 1st or 2nd, is actively sabotaging the organization. That’s just how I feel. Ha, and you know what’s scary? I don’t even know why I know how a group like this SHOULD act. Why do I know?”

I don’t know, Servi, but don’t be scared. I’ll be here with you a hundred percent. You won’t have to find out alone.

Servi smiled or at least tried to, but a sigh escaped through her lips.

“Thanks, Itarr. Switching subjects, how are we going to frame him? I need to know his handwriting, but I can’t just go up to Carrie and ask. If I do, she might start to believe that I forged the entry."

You did, but she shouldn’t think that. We put the bodies in Eletri’s room, so we should be cleared of all suspicion. Hey, how about this?

“About what?”

I was analyzing and sorting everything we have, and I found a skill we could use. It’s a Rank 1 skill called Kaasuvuoto. It produces gas from the body.

“Gas?” Servi grabbed her floating ID and flicked down to the Rank 1 skills. “This skill emits a gas from the user. At higher ranks, new gases will be unlocked. Accordingly, the range and potency will also be increased. Note: the user is not immune to the gas' effects,” she said, reading it out loud. “I already have it. I need to spend 20 Potential to upgrade it."

It's a skill that harms the user? Why?

“What if a group is ambushed deep underground or something, and someone knows this skill. They could save the lives of their party by sacrificing themselves. It’s like the ultimate selfless skill. Or in the wrong hands, it’s incredibly deadly. Depending on how strong it really is, it wouldn't surprise me if I could use it to poison everyone in Arcton.”

Can I use it? Just to see how it works?

“Go for it, but don’t choose something dangerous.”

Itarr used Kaasuvuoto, and from the two options that popped into her head, she chose the sleeping gas. Immediately after, a faint banana-like smell wafted from Servi’s body before a yellow gas slowly started to leave from every pore in her body. It took around 15 seconds for Carrie’s room to be filled.

“How strange. It doesn’t look like it's going through the gaps in the door. Does it have a set range?” Servi looked back at her ID.

It does. It gave me two options. Well, four options, I guess. I can choose between sleeping gas or poison gas and controlled flow or free flow.

“Free flow is when it spreads out without a defined perimeter. What level is it?”

It's only level 1. It seems to be a rare skill. If what you say about it is correct, when combined with the fact that the user isn’t immune, I can’t see many people taking it.

“But it’s the perfect skill for us, side effects be damned. If we use it to its limits, it should be enough to knock out most, if not everyone in Deset. Then we’ll have full reign of the place.”

That’s good, isn’t it?

“It is,” Servi rolled back over, her ID following her right along. “I was thinking about using a few hundred Smokescreens and pretending there’s a fire, but this is a lot better.”

Should we use it to explore that building in New Arcton?

“Probably not. For some reason, I get the feeling that Kobold would not be affected by the Kaasuvuoto. And I want to save the building because it could be a trap. Hey, that’s another thing I don’t get. Or maybe I’m an idiot, but the boss is either a genius or dumb as a rock. I honestly conflicted on whether or not that building is a simple decoy or his real hideout.”

I can see it being either-or. Like a 50/50 chance, especially since we only know he’s secretive. I don’t think anyone but his most loyal members have seen his face.

“Maybe,” Servi sat up and hopped off the bed. Her ID flew around before landing softly in her hands. “We can worry about that if this fails. If I don’t get a 5th to come, it might be time to start exterminating. And you know what?” She glanced down at her ID.

What?

“It feels like a part of me wants to turn this into a slaughter. I’m going to kill everyone regardless... But I want it to fail, so I have a better excuse to start killing. And you know what else? I wanted to kill that man and lady when I threw them out of that window. I wanted to kill that shitty husband and not give any money to that family. Itarr, it’s like there’s two Servis inside of me. It can’t be my conscious because I slowly feel it corrupting my actions, but it’s like half of me wants to do good while the other half wants chaos. If I can’t fix myself... Then even after I save Momo, I can’t be with her. I could snap at any moment.”