Chương 82: Book 2 Chapter 4 - Sanctuary

For whatever reason Kasia had for taking Gray, Gozen knew it would take a while. Odds were, Gray wouldn't exactly be open to a civil conversation with the Guild Master of the Jade Lotus. Hopefully, he had enough sense not to overstep his boundaries and get himself killed. In the meantime, Gozen decided to pay a visit to an old friend. He soared through the afternoon sky atop his Nimbus Cloud; the wind tugging at his robe as Quantis passed beneath him.

After crossing the bulk of the city, skirting the grim outskirts of the UnAlive City, and traversing the open sea, a lone island emerged on the horizon. Only one structure occupied it. A prison. The facility resembled a massive cube, standing ten feet high, and featured fortified archer towers at each corner. Every inch of the structure was forged from mithril Draconium steel—the strongest known ore in the world—mined exclusively from the floating island of AetherFall and controlled by the Ashen Scale Clan.

A square perimeter wall surrounded the prison, constructed from the same metal. Six feet thick and nearly as tall as the main building, it sealed the courtyard from every direction. Guards patrolled the outer perimeter in rotating formations. At the main entrance, two more stood on either side of a broad sliding door. A waist-high podium was installed beside it, fitted with a device used to identify visitors and authorize entry into the facility. For Gozen, however, all of that was merely a suggestion.

He sailed straight over the perimeter wall and dismissed his Nimbus Cloud. The vapor dissolved beneath his feet as he dropped into the courtyard, landing lightly on the ground. The reaction was immediate. Every nearby guard spun toward him. Steel scraped from sheaths, bowstrings tightened, and wands snapped into position as the patrol formed a loose ring around the intruder. He raised both hands over his head in an exaggerated show of surrender.

"Whoa. I'm only here to see a friend." A woman wielding a coiled whip stepped to the front of the formation, her posture making it obvious she was in command.

"State your name and purpose—""Gozen!" The shout thundered across the courtyard. A man emerged through the prison's sliding doors and marched outside, taking in the scene with an exasperated stare.

"Next time, tell me you're visiting instead of causing a damn spectacle!" He roared. Gozen smoothly turned his raised hands into a shrug.

"I was merely testing your prison's security." He pointed toward the wide-open sky above them.

"You should seriously consider adding a ceiling." Name: Vaelor Level: 30 Rank: Kaiser Class: Chain Weaver"Put your weapons away!" Vaelor ordered. The guards reluctantly lowered their arms. Vaelor was a heavyset older man with short gray hair and a black eyepatch covering one eye. Rather than armor, he wore a plain T-shirt and jeans, preferring to keep his battle equipment stored inside his inventory ring until it was needed.

The only part of his appearance that clashed with the casual clothing was the thick steel chains wrapped around each forearm, the links spiraling from his wrists to the crease above his elbows—the spot nobody knew the name for. Vaelor glanced around at his guards before fixing Gozen with his eye.

"If it's a security test you want," he said, his voice sharpening, "then I'll give you one." Vaelor crouched and planted both palms against the ground. The courtyard rumbled beneath him. Seconds later, nearly twenty chains erupted from the earth, links whipping through the air like vipers as they converged on the Mistveil. They slammed into Gozen from every direction, piling over one another until his figure disappeared beneath the mass.

More chains continued bursting from the ground, reinforcing the restraints until nothing remained visible beneath them. Within moments, the interlocking chains completely encased Gozen, wrapping around him like a steel cocoon. Vaelor stopped his assault. The entire courtyard fell silent. Even the surrounding guards seemed to hold their breath as they stared at the tangled mass of metal. Then mist began seeping through the chains.

Thin wisps slipped through the narrow seams between the links and drifted lazily across the courtyard. The vapor eventually gathered in front of Vaelor, thickening until it formed the vague silhouette of a man. With a soft rush, the mist scattered outward. Gozen stepped from its wake, fully rematerialized. He casually dusted off his robe while spinning a broken length of chain, barely a foot long, around the tip of one finger.

"You're still as slippery as ever." Vaelor broke into a broad grin.

"Just like when you were a mere Ascendant, begging me to help you train that exact technique."

"Ha! You loved it when I asked you to train me," Gozen shot back.

"Well, of course I did!" Vaelor spread his arms.

"You were the only person capable of consistently escaping my restraints. Obviously, I had to refine my technique so I'd have some hope of apprehending you whenever you became a wanted man someday!" Gozen chuckled and let the broken chain fall from his finger.

"I'm surprised you even bothered to greet me this time," Vaelor added, folding his arms.

"Usually, you sneak in for your visits without saying a word."

"Oh, so you knew about those?" Gozen rubbed the back of his neck, wearing an awkward grin.

"Well, I actually wanted to see your face today, and this visit is different." This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. Vaelor raised an eyebrow.

"How so?"

"I need permission to visit Edward."

"Nope." The refusal came quickly. Vaelor shook his head.

"Absolutely not. Who knows what he's capable of pulling? The last thing I need is a possessed mist ghost slipping through every cell in this prison and releasing the inmates." Gozen waved away the concern.

"You won't have to worry about Edward pulling anything on me." Vaelor's expression sharpened. He crossed his arms tighter over his chest.

"Oh? And where exactly is this confidence coming from?"

"Identify me," Gozen said.

"I'll temporarily drop the veil over my status." Vaelor narrowed his lone eye at the Mistveil.

"Don't tell me…" Name: Gozen Kotetsu Level: 50 Rank: Sovereign Class: Mistveil Vaelor's eye widened.

"S-Sovereign?" The word escaped in a hushed whisper. He immediately lowered his voice and glanced toward the nearby guards.

"What if Mikael finds out? He already has you on a leash. He could execute you on a whim!"

"That's exactly why he won't." Gozen's expression remained calm.

"He's complacent because he believes he has me under control. And even if he did discover my rank, his first instinct wouldn't be to execute me. It would be figuring out how to make better use of me on a grander scale than simply sending me out to eliminate his adversaries." Vaelor let out a long sigh.

"You have a point. Fine. But if the day ever comes when you have to resist him, just say the word. I'll be there."

"I appreciate the offer, but your involvement would turn it into a full-scale war between two of the largest armies in the nation." Gozen shook his head.

"My life isn't worth starting a war over." Vaelor gave him a firm pat on the back.

"You're absolutely right about that. Who starts a war over an old man?" A grin tugged at his mouth.

"Now, if you were my wife, that'd be a different story." Gozen let out a low rumbling laugh. The entrance to the main facility was sealed behind the same mithril Draconium sliding doors used along the outer perimeter. A waist-high podium stood beside them, an illuminated scanner built into its surface. Vaelor pressed the back of his hand against the screen. A soft chime sounded, followed by the heavy mechanical whir of the doors sliding apart.

The security system had been developed through a collaboration between Quantis Corp and the System itself. Quantis handled the machinery and infrastructure, while the System provided the identification process. Rather than relying on ordinary fingerprints, the scanner recognized the unique identity bound to an Awakened's System. It couldn't be forged, copied, or bypassed through conventional means. They stepped inside. The lobby could definitely have used some attention.

Compared to this place, even Althea's sterile hospital furnishings looked luxurious. A worn couch had been shoved against one wall, while a plain desk occupied the center of the room farther back. Stacks of paperwork covered nearly every inch of its surface.

"Your lobby is just as depressing as I remember it." Gozen slowly turned his head, taking in the barren room. Vaelor clicked his tongue.

"I'm running a prison, not a café. Let's go." Beside Vaelor's desk stood a single elevator. Above its steel doors, a display listed five levels, with the indicator currently glowing beside the second. Vaelor pressed the downward button. It lit beneath his finger, and after a lengthy wait, the elevator arrived with a dull mechanical groan. They stepped inside, and Vaelor selected the button marked 5. Unlike a normal apartment, the fifth floor wasn't positioned at the top of the panel. It sat at the very bottom.

With a heavy thump, the elevator began its descent. The Sanctuary was built entirely underground, with each descending level housing increasingly dangerous inmates. Level Five—the deepest floor—was reserved for some of the most powerful and volatile Awakened in the nation. It hadn't always been designed that way. Before the Outbreak of 1905, the Sanctuary had been a conventional aboveground prison: reinforced cellblocks, fortified walls, and squads of Awakened guards tasked with keeping the inmates under control.

For years, that arrangement had been enough. Then one imprisoned Kaiser proved otherwise. He had waited patiently for his opportunity, and on the day of the Outbreak, he took it. A plume of black smoke erupted from his cell and spread through the prison within seconds, swallowing corridors, guard stations, and entire cellblocks. Visibility vanished almost immediately. Guards could barely see their own hands in front of their faces. That alone would have been enough to throw the facility into chaos.

But the smoke did far worse. Anyone caught inside it found their abilities completely suppressed. The Kaiser managed to escape, and the other inmates wasted no time capitalizing on the chaos. By the end of the outbreak, nearly half the prison population had broken free. After such an embarrassing failure, Vaelor made it his mission to ensure it never happened again. He rebuilt the entire underground facility using Draconium.

Years later, when Quantis Corp developed Nullstone, Vaelor became one of its earliest adopters. The company gladly supplied the material free of charge, and before long, every cell in the Sanctuary had been reinforced with it. The elevator passed the third floor and continued its slow descent toward the fifth. Traveling between each level took nearly a full minute. Vaelor whistled quietly and tilted his gaze toward the ceiling, clearly searching for something to fill the silence.

"So…" he finally said.

"Have you and Ava patched things up?"

"Nope."

"I see." The silence returned. Eventually, the elevator reached the bottom floor. The doors slid apart, revealing two guards already waiting on the other side with their heads slightly bowed. One wore a long black cloak, the lower half of his face concealed behind a fitted mask. The other stood encased in bulky alabaster plate armor, a spear secured along his side.

"Boss," they said in unison.

"At ease." Vaelor waved them off as he stepped out. He glanced toward the cloaked man.

"Zephen, you're coming with us."

"Yes, sir," Zephen replied. The three continued down the main corridor. The fifth floor was built far wider than it was tall, resembling an enormous underground warehouse. A broad walkway of metal stretched through the center, wide enough for an entire squad to move through at once. Prison cells lined both sides of the passage, extending deep into the facility, each with a lone guard stationed outside.

The cells shared the same design: thick, tree-trunk-sized metal bars sealed off the front, leaving only narrow gaps through which the inmates could barely be seen. Most were in the middle of their meals. Once finished, they slid their trays into narrow compartments built into the walls beside their cells. After several minutes of walking, the trio reached the far end of the corridor. One cell immediately stood apart from the rest. Instead of a single guard, ten were stationed outside it.

Worse, the entire cell had been swallowed by an ominous sphere of black energy. Murky trails of mist peeled from its surface and curled lazily through the air before fading.

"You're relieved for the night," Vaelor told the ten guards. Every one of them dipped their head in a quick nod before marching past the trio. The moment they were several yards away, their composure vanished.

"Hurry, before he changes his mind!" One whispered. The group immediately broke into a sprint toward the elevator.

"Release your Midnight Cloak," Vaelor ordered. The rogue stiffened.

"But, sir—""Release it." Zephen hesitated for a moment before lowering his head.

"Yes, sir." He extended one arm toward the black sphere and curled his fingers into a tight claw. The barrier began to dissolve in uneven patches, portions of darkness peeling away. Within seconds, the entire construct dispersed, revealing the cell beneath it. He approached the security podium positioned beside the cell and pressed the back of his hand against the scanner. A soft chime confirmed his identity. Vaelor turned toward Gozen.

"That's you." The massive bars retracted into the floor with a heavy mechanical rumble, opening the entrance for only a few seconds. Gozen stepped through. The moment he cleared the threshold, the bars shot back into place behind him with a metallic thud. Vaelor returned to Zephen and rested a hand on the rogue's shoulder.

"Let's give them some space." Zephen glanced toward the cell, concern tightening his eyes above the mask. But Vaelor's expression left no room for argument.

"Yes, sir." The two walked away. Inside, Edward hadn't touched his meal. He lay stretched across the narrow bed tucked against the corner, one knee raised and a forearm draped over his eyes. He made no move to sit up when Gozen entered.

"Long time no see, old friend," Edward said.