Law of Evolution: The Fifth Clan

The Day Before the Last

5th day of the fifth moon. Year 879.

  Writing: Antony, Son of Maximilian    

I closed the door behind me, leaving them with what little personal space they could have. I stood silent on the first step, ears stretched to catch even a single word from what they would say, but in vain. The loud, thundering voices of Oswald and Peter were doing an incredibly nice job at covering any other sound in the vicinity, let alone whispers. The lyrics of the song lost among the slurs of their tongue and the laughs of the women. I took a deep breath as I walked down the staircase, hesitantly revealing myself at the others. Peter's song immediately stopped as he saw me, soon the others did so as well.

They had only a few candles lit, a perfect atmosphere fro a gathering of old friends. I almost felt as if I was intruding. "Greetings, I am Antony, the herbalist you summoned" I bowed my head slightly, approaching him further. Oswald laid back on the chair, removing his arm from around Peter's neck. "Antony, I believed you would be sleeping. Thank you for tending to my wounds" He bowed as well, bringing his only arm over to his chest as he did so. Even with one arm, he seemed to be managing himself quite well. "No need to thank me, Peter" I said, sitting down on the floor, leaning my back against the wall. I chuckled, I would not even have considered the thought of doing this a few days back, maybe Nick is rubbing off on me.

"Why would that be?" He asked, the others remained silent. I noticed the presence of Celestine in the room, she was sitting on a bench on the far end of the room, sitting right next to Tess, her arm around Celestine's waist. I returned my eyes to Peter. "Worry not, as a proper man I will request payment for my services though they will be in form of... services as well" I said, eyeing him carefully for a response. Gaia, my heart was beating incredibly fast, how does Nick do this without having a heart attack? "What sort of services are you considering of requesting?" He continued, glancing at Oswald who remained silent.

Tess and Celestine were looking at me carefully, seemingly calm. "Tomorrow" I said abruptly, pausing. "St. Paul's plaza. We have information about a... revelation" I stopped. Peter nodded, "You want me, us, to stop it?" He inquired, leaning forward. "No, it must come to pass" I finished.

Now it seemed Oswald's turn to be intrigued as he leaned forward, eyeing his friend for a second. "Why? There is coin involved if you provide information, let alone take down, any terrorist activity" He said, shifting uneasily. "There is something coming, it will definitely shake the Shepherd and all other clans... and it will shake it rough" I said, my voice was hoarse. I felt sick, my head was spinning and my stomach tight, but I kept talking, my voice changing tones. "There are those powerful who will seek to take advantage of the future weakness of the clan" I paused. My throat felt locked, as if I had been drinking endlessly, yet I continued to speak words that were not my own.

"However, if the people have faith in the one who protects them, the one who abides by the law, then they will stand strong in the face of destruction" I said, my vision blurring, struggling to take a breath. The floor came rushing to me long before I could raise my sluggish arms to protect me. I fell down with a thump and soon everyone was kneeling around me, calling my name. "I am alright, just need a moment to take a breath, is all" I panted, laying down. Gasping, I looked at Oswald's eyes. 

Horror.

"What the hell are you?!" He exclaimed, taking a step away from me, the others stared at him in confusion. The throbbing in my head stopped, but the burning in my neck was stil there. "W-what do you mean?" I managed to speak, each word burned hotter in my throat than the other. "I know that voice, her, voice" He barked, frowning, his face contorted. Tess and Celestine helped me up and gave me a stool to sit. The healer offered to take a lok at me, but I shook my head. I felt better, I told her.