Chapter 74 “There’s A Spy!”
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In the end, Duncan was unable to recall any more significant memories. While it was true that the original inhabitant of his body had deep concerns about Nina, those memories had been eroded over time due to chronic illness and a lifestyle filled with alcohol and drug abuse. By the time Ron, the cultist whose body he had taken over, drew his final breath, his mind had become numbed to the point where it held little emotional attachment to his family.
What Duncan did remember was that there had indeed been a catastrophic fire eleven years ago. That inferno had swept through the lower city, claiming the lives of Nina’s biological parents and forever changing the course of her life. This event appeared to be linked to something called the “sun fragment,” which the cult known as the Suntists were fervently seeking.
The sun fragment’s sudden emergence had led to a disastrous blaze, resulting in the loss of innocent lives, leaving a child parentless, and pushing the child’s last surviving relative into the sphere of influence of the Suntists. It seemed as though the lives of everyone connected to this situation were bound together by an invisible force as if drawn into the gravitational pull of the sun itself.
Duncan’s reverie was interrupted when one of the cultists in the gathering spoke up. “I’ve been making inquiries with the local residents lately,” she said, “and no one recalls a significant fire taking place in the lower city eleven years ago. However, I did hear about a chemical leak from a factory. The gas from the leak covered several city blocks, causing widespread hallucinations and mental instability. It even made the headlines at the time.”
Duncan looked up to see a rather nondescript female cultist speaking. His surprise was cut short when he noticed that the cult leader was directing his gaze toward him. “Brother, you’re a local here; do you know anything about this event?”
Caught off guard, Duncan realized that he had suddenly become the focal point of the conversation. To these out-of-town cultists, who were keen on gathering information about the area, Duncan, being a “local from the lower city of Pland,” was an invaluable source.
Feeling the weight of multiple eyes on him, Duncan quickly improvised an answer. “I wasn’t living in this area eleven years ago, so I can’t confirm firsthand details. However, I have heard stories about the factory leak.”
Turning his attention to the female cultist who had earlier spoken, Duncan asked, “So you’re saying that there was no large fire in the lower city eleven years ago?”
“Based on the information I’ve gathered, no,” she nodded affirmatively. “From what people have told me, the lower city of Pland hasn’t experienced a significant fire in at least two decades. There have been occasional minor kitchen fires, but those are obviously not what we’re talking about.”
Duncan blinked, momentarily stunned but holding his tongue. His fragmented memories were crystal clear about one thing: Eleven years ago, Nina’s parents had died in a fire, and there was even a scene in his mind where “he” was leading Nina out of the flames.
The discrepancy was baffling. Could there have been a mix-up in the memories that he had inherited from this body? Perhaps the fire hadn’t occurred in the lower city as he had thought? Or could it be that the cultist’s investigation had been flawed, missing this crucial event?
A glimmer of suspicion began to take root in Duncan’s mind. Since the issue involved both Nina and “himself,” he was instinctively more alert and attentive. His thoughts were interrupted by a voice from across the room—Shirley, another member of the cult, was speaking.
“Was the factory leak eleven years ago the one that happened in the sixth district?” Shirley inquired.
“Yes, the sixth district sounds correct,” the female cultist who had initially mentioned the leak responded. “From what I understand, the incident had a lasting impact. The chemicals caused long-term health issues for many, and it’s something that residents of the lower city still talk about.”
Several of the surrounding cultists nodded, signaling that their investigations had led them to similar conclusions.
Standing at the focal point of the room, the cult leader broke the contemplative silence with his resonant, authoritative voice. “This factory leak—or what appears to be a production accident—might well be a veiled supernatural event concealed by the authorities. Given that it occurred precisely eleven years ago, it serves as an important lead. Our next step should be to investigate whether this so-called accident is in fact linked to the sacred sun fragment that we seek.”
The room nodded in unanimous agreement.
He continued, “But our scope of interest shouldn’t be limited to what happened eleven years ago in the lower city. We must also keep an eye on the recent anomalies happening in the city-state of Pland. The sun fragment, although dormant, is nearing its day of awakening. Its energy levels are elevating daily. Four years ago, our brethren attempted to expedite its awakening. Despite the failure of that ritual, which unfortunately provoked a violent backlash from the Storm Church, the effort wasn’t completely in vain. The ritual did manage to enhance the link between the fragment and our reality. This means the fragment could, for brief periods, influence the real world before its full awakening. So, stay vigilant and monitor local news and gossip. Any peculiar incident could be a clue leading us to the sun fragment.”
As the cult leader finished his speech, the other cultists bowed their heads in deference, acknowledging their marching orders. Duncan, though, was captivated by another detail that had been briefly mentioned: an attempt to awaken the sun fragment four years ago. This new piece of information piqued his interest and raised even more questions. What happened during that failed ritual? And how was it connected to the sun fragment’s increasing influence on reality? All of this painted a larger, more intricate picture that Duncan felt he needed to understand, not just for the sake of his own curiosity but possibly for Nina’s safety as well.
Four years ago, the Storm Church of Pland had led a significant assault against the city’s largest stronghold of the Sun heresy. This monumental event had not only weakened the Suntists to a point from which they never fully recovered but also cemented the reputation of Vanna, who would later become the city-state’s renowned inquisitor. Duncan had always assumed that this was the whole story, public knowledge that everyone was aware of. Now, however, he realized that the underlying truth could be more complicated: the Suntists’ primary objective at the time may have been to awaken a dormant sun fragment.
As Duncan mentally pieced together this newfound information, contemplating how to extract even more insights from the cultists around him, an unusual smell abruptly invaded his senses. The odor was a strange mixture of burning sulfur and some pungent, acidic chemical.
Almost simultaneously, others in the room also picked up on the acrid aroma, glancing at each other as if in search of the source. The leader of the gathering responded with lightning speed. He yanked a sun-shaped amulet from his chest—identical to the one Duncan wore, except this one blazed with an ethereal, semi-transparent flame. It became apparent that the acrid smell was emanating from this flame.
“Dirty impurities… the flame has been deceived!” The leader’s eyes narrowed as he inspected the burning amulet, his voice tinged with urgency and wrath. “There’s a heretic among us!”
Pandemonium erupted in the room. Duncan’s immediate thought was that he had been discovered. Somehow, it seemed the leader’s amulet had exposed him as a non-believer in their Sun-centric religion. Resigned, Duncan slightly sighed, preparing to release his carrier dove to send a message. But before he could make his move, another sigh resonated from across the room.
The sigh came from Shirley, a young woman dressed in black. She shook her head in apparent disappointment. “I knew Dog was unreliable. The disguise wouldn’t hold for even three hours.”
As her words lingered in the air, a sphere of pitch-black fire spontaneously ignited beside her. The flames, although shaped like traditional fire, were dark as shadows. Within a second, the fire spread, enveloping nearly a third of Shirley’s body. What happened next was astonishing: the fire seemed to consume her right side as if she were mere kindling. The flames then split into two forms—one part became airborne and transformed into a chain of dark fire, while the other part that touched the ground instantly solidified into a skeletal creature ablaze with the same black flame.
The room’s atmosphere shifted from confusion to utter shock and awe. Duncan knew he had to think quickly. The ensuing chaos could either be an opportunity or spell his ultimate downfall, especially now that the stakes were dramatically escalating.
The creature that materialized was a massive black demon hound, standing roughly half the height of an average adult. Its body appeared to be a grotesque construction of countless twisted bones, serving as its skeletal framework. Where one would expect to see flesh and muscle, there was only an unsettling display of burning black fire and writhing shadows. The hound’s skull was jagged and menacing, almost as if it were eternally snarling. Its eye sockets were vacant but filled with a swirling, blood-red mist that seemed to pulse with insatiable hunger and malevolent intent.
From the demon hound’s neck stretched a pitch-black chain that seemed to seamlessly blend into Shirley’s arm as if they were one continuous entity. The disturbing integration suggested a deep, perhaps even symbiotic, connection between the summoner and her beast.
The cult leader, who stood at the center of the room, couldn’t hide his astonishment and outrage. “A Dark Hound? Are you a summoner from the Annihilation Sect?” His voice dripped with incredulity and indignation. “What is the meaning of this intrusion? Are you acolytes of the Annihilation Sect intending to declare war on us, the devout followers of the Sun?”
Huh