Chương 220: 207. Preparations

"So when's the go time?" I asked Elias.

"Depends. How much time do you think you need? When will Josh be ready?"

"Really ready?" I asked, then looked at the ceiling as if calculating.

"I don't know, a year or two?"

"And ready enough?"

"In a few days. Add a precaution in case he gets possessed, and in a week we can at least have him able to survive. Probably. Most likely," I added, causing Elias's eyebrows to shoot up.

"That's a long wait. The enemy knows we know about the location," Marvin spoke up, exchanging a look with the director, as the older man squinted at him ever so lightly.

"Then we go without Josh," I said.

"You could have trained him a good few days ago," a man spoke up from the side, one I hadn't recognized when I first came here. He had been introduced to me as Dwayne, a higher-up in the FBI structure, someone important enough to have a say.

"I had my own things to attend to," I replied, not looking his way. The man didn't react in any way aside from giving an understanding nod. I was slightly curious, as the idea of trying to invade his or someone else's mind appeared. Just a poke to find out about the police showing up at Ophelia's kill spot. But then again, reading current thoughts wasn't exactly safe or productive.

Differentiating lies from fears and simple fantasy was tough, especially in a man who had full mental faculties and sadly wasn't bleeding out, for example.

"We understand," Elias replied.

"But it's true that some of our informants went missing recently. We are afraid that time is of the essence."

"Could they trace them back to you?" I asked. Elias looked to Marvin, who sat with a sour expression. He hesitated for a few seconds as if unsure of what to say. I could see the struggle on his face, but once he finally spoke up, his voice was firm.

"They didn't know who made the request. I just introduced myself as a part of an inspectorate working with the police. The FBI wasn't mentioned," he said.

"Still, the police were mentioned. That's enough to have most criminals move their base of operations, especially the cautious kind," Filip spoke up for the first time. The old man wasn't happy with the meeting, giving Dwayne the stink eye from time to time, as the two apparently didn't get along much.

"They can't move a whole operation that quickly—" Dwayne began, but Marvin cut in.

"They use magic. The cans and can'ts aren't exactly clear to us."

"Well then, let's ask our magic expert." Dwayne turned to me.

"What do you think?"

"I doubt they moved," I said slowly.

"The nest of the creature most likely responsible for all of this is not easily changed," I half-lied. The words were technically true. The queen wasn't an easy entity to move even if you had a palace prepared. But the real reason I doubted they changed anything was that I simply assumed the place would be a trap. And what was the point of moving an already prepared trap when the victim would walk right into it?

In truth, we had much more time to prepare than a week, but then again, I didn't want whoever was responsible for that disease magic to get more prep time.

"Okay," Elias said.

"This correlates with our sources. We, too, believe the enemy will not move over something as nonthreatening as a police-inspectorate investigation." I raised an eyebrow, looking to the man.

"And what sources would that be?" I asked, curious.

"Confidential ones." The response brought a smile to my face.

"Well, aren't you all mysterious."

"A mystery we would be willing to share after this job." Elias leaned forward, looking at me.

"We would like this attack to be a resounding success, with our men making it back in one piece. And in turn, we will follow through on our side of the bargain. Reveal a bit of the mystery."

"Are all your men's lives a condition? I'm not omnipotent, you know. I did save the asses of your men before mostly by accident."

"We understand. I would simply like to make sure that every chance to preserve their lives is taken."

"Why would I not take such a chance? You think me a monster?" I asked the last part in a theatrical voice, as if reciting Shakespeare.

"We think you are a killer, Mr. Samuel, as shown in your last battle with the man named Terry," Dwayne suddenly piped up.

"It was self-defense, to which I have a constitutional right," I answered, looking the man in the eyes.

"Killing in self-defense is still killing," he replied, not reacting much.

"Tell it to the founding fathers."

"I'm not suggesting you're a criminal, Mr. Samuel. I'm suggesting you're a killer." The statement clearly took a few people in the room by surprise.

"And killers are hard to predict. Especially ones as good at their craft as you are. We would simply appreciate it if that craft is used to help our people to the fullest extent, beyond simple observation." A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. Now I too was taken aback. Was the man condoning my actions, condemning them, trying to compliment me, or was it a simple shot at my ego?

"Are you trying to pull a high-school-level 'I bet you can't bring all our men back alive'?" I asked, looking at him over raised brows.

"Yes," he answered firmly, earning a rather strange look from Elias.

"I never thought you wouldn't see it for what it is. I simply believe you'd like the challenge, for the challenge's sake." I stared at him, not sure whether to be impressed, angry, or just confused. Whether the man was a genius or a moron was also a mystery to me.

"Okay." I chuckled.

"I'll see what I can do. Assuming your men are worth my oh-so-great talents. I won't be running after amateurs."

"Of course. They will be in our best equipment, I assure you." I stared at him for a few seconds more until the sound of Elias clearing his throat brought my attention back to the room, with the rest of them looking rather awkward.

"Then we have that handled. We will do a proper debriefing once our team is gathered."

"Oh, right," I cut in.

"I'll ask some of my own backup to help, if you don't mind."

"Backup?"

"Professionals of the highest caliber, I assure you."

"The combat team has its training and protocols. We can't bring a large group of people in," Elias began explaining.

"They might become a liability. No offense."

"None taken. And, well, I'm afraid it might be your men who might be the liability. Filip," I pointed my head at the older man, "already saw what high-level magical combat looks like. Could your people handle it?" I asked.

"A large number of small enemies is an unusual case." Elias began making their excuses.

"But even there, now that we know what to expect, we have our ways."

"Ways you have to prepare, as you said. We, on the other hand, carry our powers in our chants, staffs, and swords. No need for much equipment. Let me make it easier. I won't go if it's only your men watching my back." Silence descended over the room as Elias looked at me, resting his intertwined hands on the desk. He began drumming his fingers on the desk, and I could almost see the thoughts racing in his head.

"Fine," he finally spat, clearly not too happy about the sudden change.

"Great! Then I impatiently await our debriefing." After that, the meeting was over, and we all walked out, except for Dwayne, who stayed behind with the director. I was kind of curious what they would talk about, but before I could think about using any of the many ways of eavesdropping on someone, Josh stole my attention, coming closer with a slight expression of excitement on his face.

"So I'm supposed to begin my defense training."

"You are," I replied, and after giving one last look at the closed door, turned fully to him, resolving to focus on my actual job.

"Let's move to a separate room." We walked to one of the empty offices, much to Josh's surprise, as he looked around the space with a growing frown.

"What is it?" I asked.

"We're going to do the training here?"

"Or we can move outside. Although it is kinda cold," I replied with a shrug.

"Did you expect some magical ritual? That I'd call upon a demon to wrestle with your deepest fears?" I finished the sentence in a low, conspiratorial voice.

"Well… Kinda?" Chuckling at his idea, I sat across from him and quickly explained the exercise. Josh's enthusiasm quickly dropped the moment we began the training. We did not have time for normal meditation or looking-inward lessons, so instead I got him up to speed on what was effectively called 'putting up a guard' when someone swung at him. Thankfully, he was already used to moving and controlling his own consciousness.

So all I did was try to attack his mind and have him defend, push me away, or pick himself up after a sudden attack landed. A week wouldn't make him a master, but his mental prowess was impressive. I, on the other hand, started on my own preparations once I got back from the FBI. And the first step was calling the people who would watch my back. Myhur and Luna were easily on board. Sadly, Will was still dealing with family politics. Apparently, the situation was starting to blow out of proportion.

Darius was acting as the head priestess's bodyguard and couldn't come to run around the underground with me, not just yet at least, as they were training up new recruits to take his spot. Our need for a frontline, thankfully, was met with Bakari, who recently ascended, joining the third-circle club alongside me, Myhur, and Luna, whose ascension had been forced by the saint's blood.

Of course, Ophelia was part of the team as well, with only one person remaining: Peter, who was most likely still thinking through the whole "I would like to drown you and turn you into a ghost" thing. As such, I decided to go through with the final step of my preparations before getting his reply. And it was one I was excited to take. It was three days until go time when I sat down in a meditative position before the altar of my god.

In front of me, a complicated arcane circle was drawn, all in my own blood mixed with ink. The whole thing looked like a finger painting, its shape strange, not fully circular, a supposed mistake that was extremely hard to make on purpose. At the nodes of the circle, different liquids were placed in uneven bowls of dark obsidian, with the biggest bowl standing empty in the middle. I sat in my own robe, but with the staff left at home just in case.

The artifact was still connected to me, but hopefully, when dormant and put aside, it wouldn't cause any unforeseen issues. Once ready, I began the chant, repeating the mantra in a song-like voice until, as before, other voices joined mine from all around me. Some of them were old and wizened, others young and clear like the ringing of bells, while some were strange, too low for a human, with a croak reminiscent of a frog.

Once the chant reached its peak and I was sure I could command my own thoughts, that no treachery would come from within, I extended my hand holding the artifact—the soul cage. With a flex of my will, I opened it and spoke in the eldritch tongue of the abyss.

"Zha'thurr nagl'vorth Azathoth Nygh'ghua r'lyek shugg'nor fhtagn," I recited, using both tongues as much as I could before repeating a simple offering prayer.

"From the depths of the void, I sing your discordant tune. He who rests beyond. He who dwells within us. I offer those souls to the avatar of madness," I spoke. The moment the last word fell, I quickly gathered all of my will to keep my eyes shut as something extended itself toward the cube. With it came an odor I could not describe in any way, shape, or form, so foreign its presence alone felt like blasphemy.

I could hear screams, souls radiating unimaginable fear and pain as they were being dragged out one by one, until only stillness was left. When I woke up again, it was almost nighttime, but instead of checking the time, my eyes went straight to the bowl in the middle. And there it was. The so-called Plutonian drug, a substance used by the first priests of the Abyss to try to understand the void gods. A substance that drove them insane sooner or later. But this time, I was planning to use it as a weapon.

The drug would bring forth rather disturbing visions, putting the victim in a dreamlike state from which they wouldn't be able to wake easily. There were, of course, much easier options to induce a trance than sacrificing dozens of souls in a rather dangerous ritual for one dose of liquid, but the issue was that the hive was a powerful mind. I doubted any drug would affect it, but this should at least preoccupy its attention for some time.

Now, I only needed to find someone who could get close enough and apply the substance.