Book Three – Chapter Seven – Part Four – Prelude to the Banquet

The power Servi had now, compared to when she woke up next to the Forest of Gife, couldn’t have been more different. Her strength had grown over a thousandfold, and jumping hundreds of meters was as easy as breathing. She could most definitely outrun most land-based animals, and to the current her, Feral’s slab of iron he called a shield was probably no heavier than a medium-sized pebble.

She was a soul-absorbing monster in the most literal sense. Her strength could only increase, and there would be a time where the Servi of the current moment wouldn’t even compare to the Servi of the future. She didn’t know what kind of strength she would have if she kept killing. Lifting a brick shack probably wouldn’t even be out of the picture. Jumping until she reached escape velocity? She figured that after absorbing a few hundred thousand souls and upgrading Absorption, she would literally be able to jump from the bottom of the ocean and touch the moon with her fingertips.

And that scared her. More accurately, it would have frightened her if she faced those thoughts earlier. Now that Momo was kidnapped, Servi would embrace the monster she was becoming. Souls, murder, death, and destruction-- killing hundreds, thousands, or even millions wouldn’t even be given a second thought. But if that was how she felt, then why not burn Arcton to ash and dust?

The truth was that she didn’t know how Momo would feel about Servi wiping out a town. Servi wouldn’t care at all, but it was Momo’s feelings she had to consider. There was a second reason. If Momo was somehow in the city when Servi began her attack, what if she died in the process? Servi just couldn’t risk accidentally killing her best friend.

Before long, Servi landed gracefully on top of a building. Even though she was six stories up, it didn’t compare to the tremendously towering walls of New Arcton. It must’ve cost a fortune to create those fifteen-story-high walls, and that pissed Servi off. A ludicrous amount of money went selfishly towards defense rather than offense.

Ah, I see smoke, but I don’t hear any screaming. I guess the team assigned to New Arcton didn’t do that well of a job.

She peeked over the edges and found four guards, two on each side of the gate. Putting a hand on the railing, she hopped over it and fell with a mighty thud. The dust below her boots scattered about, and she slowly walked towards the guards. Two of the guards drew swords while the other two held their hands out, preparing a skill.

They seem too calm for having been through an attack. Is it possible Carmelo lied about the New Arcton team? It’s starting to sound fishy. Or they might’ve done their job too well without having to resort to mindless violence like we had to. In any case, it doesn’t change a damn thing. I just have to do what I need to do.

Servi stood still and leaned down low with a foot behind her like a star athlete would if they ran the 100-meter dash. Pushing off with every bit of strength, the ground behind her cracked and quaked from her strength as she shot forward. In the time it took to blink twice, four throats had been slit from behind.

The bodies collapsed to the ground, still writhing in pain, and Servi finished them off with four quick thrusts to their hearts. Itarr absorbed the corpses while Servi ripped the gate off and absorbed it. She didn’t even hide her footsteps as she walked through the twisty and tunnel-like path laced with red bricks. When she came to the office-like area with a desk and jail cells, she instantly took the lives of four more guards by throwing four daggers in rapid succession. The force behind the thrown weapons was enough to pin Servi’s foes’ heads to the walls behind them, and Servi trusted Itarr to do the clean-up.

After ripping off the second gate, Servi walked through and realized the area in front of her was empty. Nobody sat at the numerous tables. And the various shops and buildings to both of her sides had been locked. The fancy fluorescent lighting they used had been switched off, and Servi felt like she was in a ghost town; it the perfect situation for her. With a single jump, she leapt from the ground to the nearest roof and ran across it. She hopped from building to building, landing with a heavy thump that threatened to break her footing until she came to her goal.

Like I figured… The smoke seems to come from a fire burning. Perhaps it’s trash? I don’t see anything even resembling ‘chaos.’ It seems that there wasn't any intention... Carmelo only wanted one team-- us-- to die in battle. I suppose he had an inside path to the bank, but it doesn’t concern me. Only—

“SON OF A BITCH!” Servi yelled and interrupted her short internal monologue. The hundreds of guards that used to patrol the fortress-like building had disappeared. The powerful ballistas that used to stand guard were no more. Even the watch tower-like objects had been torn down and taken apart. Without all of the defenses, the place only looked like a tall building that happened to be beautiful. The long white walls were devoid of any kind of blemish that threatened to take away its luster.

The info she had gained during her search proved to be true. The boss had been here, and she had missed them because she was too careful.

“What’s that? Hey, are yo—” Servi heard a voice coming from down below. It was a group of guards. The red flicker of a lantern about to die out briefly illuminated their faces, but Servi wasn’t in the right state of mind to acknowledge useless information. She hopped over the roof’s walls with her fist held up high and slammed it down onto the center guard’s face. Like a fleshy piñata, his head exploded into a gory mess. Before the two flanking him could react, Servi held her arms out and gripped them by their jaws. She yanked down, ripping their chins clean off while using Telekinesis to apply downward pressure. Like a slinky, her enemies’ bodies vertically shrunk, sending bone and blood exploding out until they were nothing but a thin, fleshy pancake.

Once again, Servi told Itarr to handle the clean-up while racing to the large, imposing doors. Servi tried the handle, and it was unlocked. Fearing another bomb, she kicked the door open and rolled back. When nothing happened, she rushed forward and into the building.

Its insides were most similar to a church. The floor was made out of marble tile polished to the highest degree, and long pews stood into two large groups off to the side and sandwiched a long red carpet that stretched from the furthest bench to the one closest to a gaudy golden-colored altar. To the left and right sat a few doors and a set of stairs that led to a balcony containing more pews. It didn’t seem like the church had a second floor.

Looking up, Servi felt a vague sense of vertigo. The distance between herself and the plain wooden roof felt like a gap she couldn’t cross. Maybe she felt the vastness was reminiscent of the current trust between her and Momo?

“How fucking hilarious,” Servi sarcastically muttered as she looked straight ahead. “He’s been hiding in a goddamn church?!” Servi kicked the pew closest to her and sent it flying a good seventeen meters. It loudly crashed and broke when it landed on top of a second one.

“HE! WAS! SO! FUCKING! CLOSE!” With each word shouted, Servi kicked another pew. By the time she reached the altar, the entire left group of benches laid in disrepair. The beautiful mahogany wood used to create them had been broken into hundreds of pieces. The single chandelier up above held a large candelabra filled with lit candles, though the light they provided wasn’t more than a small match. Almost like it was mirroring Servi’s sanity, the candles were very close to dying out.

Servi, there’s a desk.

Servi read her ID after it materialized and searched far and wide. She found one sitting near the very back of the church. She ran across the carpet, shattered the gaudy golden altar with an anger-fueled punch, and stopped a few short meters away from the desk. It matched the one in the base belonging to the 5th in every way.

“There’s gotta be a fucking bomb in there. Itarr, remove it.”

The Goddess did as her friend asked and confirmed that there was an object similar to the one they found earlier.

“What about the folder you said you found? What’s inside it?”

There’s a letter and a second bomb inside it. It looks to be the exact same one as the one from the 5th base.

“That fucker is four for four for fucking bombs! Take it out, and let me read the letter inside.”

Got it.

A second later, a pristine letter appeared about half a meter in front of her. Servi reached forward, grabbed it, and used a tiny Lux Sphere to fill in for the light she needed to read its contents.

“Dearest Servi, I hope that you find this letter. I am the boss of the Mafia. If you are reading this letter, I am no longer inside the church. Maybe you know this, but the church was where I commanded the Mafia. I told everyone that it belonged to the 2nds, but that was only a lie. If you must know how I left without anyone finding out, there was a secret passageway in the prison quarters. Of course, I use the word ‘was.’ I will have it destroyed when we leave.

“I’m sure you’re wondering about Momo’s whereabouts and safety. I’m happy to say that she is doing fine. I was serious about the game, you know. Unfortunately, there was nothing in the rules that said I cannot move. Luckily for you, this new spot will be my final one. I sent a letter to a few bases with my general location. Unfortunately, finding me would be like finding a needle in a haystack. I am in the forest, and I don’t feel shame in telling you because you probably know that if you’ve made it this far.

“But it will be hard to find me. Lando is home to many forests, and although you might think it easy because I’m somewhere around Arcton, it won’t. I’m absolutely sure you won’t be able to find me.

“Ah, one more thing. I’m sure your days have been filled with fright and terror over poor Momo’s fate. I assure you she has received food and water every day. I will not harm a single hair on her head, and that is because of two reasons. One, she believes you to have run away like a pathetic Human would and believes you left her to die a lonely death. Humans are the enemy, and that is the truth. Momo's first mistake was foolishly trusting a Human. Had you been born a Demi, I wouldn’t have bothered going about this shitty game. You two would’ve made it back to wherever you came from without a moment’s worry, but I assume your home is Canary.

“Two, changing the location might’ve been harsh, but there’s not anything I can do because of what will happen on Saturday morning. I needed to be at the specific location I am heading to because I have work to accomplish. Your deadline is at 9 AM Saturday morning. If you do not make yourself known to me before then, I will kill Momo and devour her flesh. Her death will be the starting signal to lead the Mafia into its final act.

“Oh, and don’t try to go to the guards with this letter. They are under my control, and they have orders to kill anyone who brings them a written message.

“To be frank, I have no idea why I am writing this. The chances of a pathetic Human finding the guts to enter an abandoned building in the exclusive area of New Arcton is already close to zero, yet for them to evade capture for multiple days just to find me? Perhaps the last remaining naivety in my body is making itself know? I know not the truth.

“Regardless, I’ll end the letter by saying this: Servi, the girl with the black hair and red eyes, if you are somehow reading this, then know that I have sent word to the 5th and below to watch out for someone matching your appearance. But that’s not all. I have given orders to every single observer in Arcton to find you. But don’t take it to mean that they are aware of where I am at. They don’t. Only the Numbered ranked 2nd and 1st know where I am because they are with me. One more thing, I told the 5th, 4th, and 3rd bases to alert the guards about you. If they spot you, you will die. They have orders to kill on sight.  Consider it an instant failure. Ah, yes... The guards do not know where I am at.

“I know not how you managed to escape The Berrycanta Inn under cover of that smoke, if you did, in fact, escape it, but it doesn’t matter. Depending on when and if you find this letter, there’s a chance you just missed me. I am penning this on Tuesday morning at 1:47 AM. We will leave here at 5 AM. Oh, here’s something that should help you. Consider it a final hint.

“I have instructed my men to send up smoke on Saturday morning at 6 AM. Follow the smoke, and you’ll come to my location. Of course, that's assuming you find this letter after evading my warriors and then surviving long enough to even reach Saturday. Again, that is if you haven’t already died a dog’s death. Consider it a final gift...

“If you’re reading this, I wonder how long it’s been since we left. You’re feeling so helpless, aren’t you? I’m sure you are.

“This letter is getting quite long, so I need to end it. I do hope you realize how this will end. If not, I will spell it out for you: you will die, and Momo will live. Then once she is free, I will capture her and kill her after you die. There is nothing but death awaiting you two at the end of your journeys. Everything I said and wrote down in this letter is factual. You have no reason to believe me, but whether or not you do is really of no concern to me. Feel free to fret and worry about Momo’s fate, or cling to what little hope and hints I have provided for you. Will I see you on Saturday? Will I see you before then? The game will continue, but what will its conclusion be?

“Sincerely, the one who holds Momo’s fate within his grasp.”

Servi’s ID wiggled and flew in front of her eyes. Itarr paid close attention to what Servi would do. A part of her believed she would explode in anger, and there would be nothing she could do.

To the Goddess's surprise, Servi did nothing of that. She simply absorbed the letter, walked over to a pew, and sat down. Her footsteps weakly echoed in the empty church. Putting her hands over her eyes, she leaned back and sighed.

But Itarr should've known that Servi wouldn’t take such information in a way that was calm and collected.

“I had him. I fucking had him. He was here. He was right fucking here. And this letter has to be real. He knew our names. She was here. She was right here. I… I was so close. Why was I so fucking reserved? Why didn’t I come back that night?! Why? Whywhywhywhywhywhy? WHYWHYWHYWHYWHYWHYWHYWHY??!!!”

Servi lifted her legs and stomped down as hard as she could. The marble tiling cracked into a thousand sharp pieces that flew every which way.

“I WAS RIGHT FUCKING HERE!!!! I COULD HAVE ENDED ALL OF THIS!!! FFFUUUCCCKKKKKKK!!!!!!!!! AAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!” Servi screamed at everything and nothing. Suddenly, she rushed forward, fell, and punched the ground with her full strength. The whole building vibrated from her punch, but she didn’t stop. She punched over and over again. Each time, she cursed herself for being weak and reserved for not acting on her urges. Itarr tried to stop Servi, but she smashed the ID when it came into her view.

Servi may have had the power, but her bones were fundamentally Human. It couldn’t handle her incredible strength without fracturing into a hundred pieces, but True Immortality was the perfect solution for her problem. In a way, the only problem came from the pain she felt from having her bones break, but that was something she could endure by masking it with her hatred.

By the time she struck the ground twenty-six times and subsequently had her arm healed the same number of times, there was a hole that spanned the length of her arm from where she had punched. The shocks from Servi's impacts sent vibrations through the foundation and up to the walls, which knocked off some of the paintings.

“Wait!” Servi stood up and stared at the hole she had made, “The boss is in the forest with Momo. He has to be. The information in the letter matched up with what I learned. It wouldn’t make any kind of sense if it turned out to be fake. He didn’t even expect me to make it this far. Lying wouldn’t accomplish anything.” Putting her hand to her chin, Servi walked towards the imposing doors made of thick mythril. It had been polished to a sheen and reinforced to the highest degree. Even a cannon would have trouble breaking through, much less a man with a simple hammer or sword.

Contrary to what Itarr thought she would do, Servi opened it, walked through it, and closed it behind her. She looked to the left and right and saw nothing. Her screams and yells from moments before must’ve been heard by someone, but maybe it wasn’t worth investigating since most people didn’t like to get near the building because of its prior history.

With a thousand things on her mind, Servi picked a random direction and walked. She remained totally quiet, and Itarr was getting worried. She tried to say something via the ID, but Servi only grabbed it and tossed it to the ground.

I guess you don’t want to talk to anyone. I understand. I’ll be quiet…

Suddenly, she saw a group of people walking by way of candlelight and lanterns after turning a corner. Half wore lavish suits and dresses of the finest silk and cotton, while the other half had armor and weapons. They were nobles returning from a lavish party, accompanied by armed guards. The cheering and laughter... The giggling and carefree attitude while thousands of people were suffering on the opposite side of the walls... All of that angered Servi, and like a lightbulb going off, she had an epiphany.

“Itarr, I... I just realized something. I'm actually pretty fucking grateful to the boss... The deadline he gave me wasn’t for finding Momo... It was a deadline that told me when I had to stop killing. Everyone in this fucking city is responsible for allowing the Mafia to take root. They’re the ones at fault. They’re the fucking cowards who gave up the fight!

“I’ve been looking at it all wrong! I need to kill the Mafia, that’s for sure... But I can't believe I’ve been so fucking naïve that I was afraid of innocents getting caught in the crossfire. What happened with the bank robbery was sad... I thought all those that died and couldn't get away in time were just bastards in the wrong place at the wrong time. I had thought...they were innocent...

"Innocent? Fuck that. There’s not a single goddamn person in Arcton free of sin. You see what those fuckers are wearing?! If only they put more money into defense than luxuries, then maybe Arcton could have been a respectable fucking town. In my eyes, that’s as good as rolling over and showing their belly. They don’t have any fucking backbone!”

Pulling out a nadrium warhammer, Servi ran towards the group. Her footsteps were loud and noticeable, and everyone turned to look at her. By the time she had swung her weapon and killed four people with a single blow, it was too late. Like a madwoman, Servi took complete advantage of the chaos she caused and indiscriminately swung every which way. Faces exploded into a crimson mist, bones cracked and shattered underneath the strength of a girl who had very little to lose, and the once peaceful streets of New Arcton became stained with red in a place that couldn’t be hidden. Servi no longer had the intention of hiding the corpses.

By the time her rampage had finished, two minutes had passed. The only survivor, a man with an imploded side and no arms, weakly cried out for help.  Servi responded by kicking him and raising her hammer. From his point-of-view, he had done nothing wrong. If fear and pain weren’t paralyzing his heart, he wanted to ask his assailant the reason why he was about to die.

As if Servi could read his mind, she answered his unspoken question. “This is your punishment for not standing up to the Mafia. If you hadn’t run away and formed this shitty little community, Arcton could’ve been a city worth coming to. But no. You and the other fucking rich fucks had to be scared. Why couldn’t you have hired the fucking Wind Zeppelins to take out the Mafia when they fucking showed up?! Why?! Why?!?!!? Why?!?!?! Why?! FUCKING WHY?! WHY DID YOU WANT THEM TO PROTECT YOUR FUCKING MONEY INSTEAD OF YOUR GODDAMN FREEDOM!?!?!?!?!”

Servi lost herself in a bout of screeching before calming down. “Well, it doesn’t matter. I have until Sunday morning to take revenge on every fucking person in both Arcton and New Arcton. Everybody is guilty, and I will be the one to deliver punishment.”

Servi brought her arms down as hard as she could, and the man, who chose to run away and hide with his money instead of fighting for the town he grew up in, had died surrounded by fear. It was a far cry from how he wanted to go, but Servi didn’t know that. Even if she did, Servi wouldn't ever care to entertain her enemy's dying wishes.

“Itarr,” Servi said.

Yes?

The girl with the bloody weapon watched as her red ID appeared from thin air. “Starting from now, everyone in Arcton is an enemy. There is not a single person here that is deserving of life. No one. The people here are traitors who didn’t even try to fight for freedom. When I say kill, we kill. It doesn’t matter who it is. This whole fucking city is my goddamn playground until Saturday morning. If only I weren’t so naïve. Why the fuck was I SO GODDAMN NAÏVE?! WHY WAS I SO FUCKING RESERVED?!?!?!?!?!? WHYWHYWHYWHYWHY!!!!!!”