Chapter 18: Sanctuary
"Now?! The door to the Sanctuary is opening now?!" baldy gasped.
Alexia wasn't overly religious, but everyone who knew the tenets of the faith knew of the Sanctuary. It was a holy place filled with wonders that only the worthy could enter.
"I don't understand," Alexia said. "Aren't the doors to the Sanctuary located inside the central cathedral?"
Baldy shook his head. "A door can be found there, but more than one exists, and this is the one day of the year when they may open. There are three doors, the Gate of the Unwelcome, the Gate of the Summoned, and the Gate of the Accepted. And there is no way to know which door it is until you have entered it."
As the archbishop explained all this, Shadow leapt away.
Archbishop Nelson gritted his teeth. "Let him go! Securing the door takes priority! Don't let anyone get near it!" He shouted up to the stands. "I regret the Goddess Trial must now conclude. Please, everyone, depart in a calm and orderly fashion." He turned to her and Rose. "I'm afraid that includes you ladies as well. I do apologize."
Alexia was about to argue with him when she spotted three figures in black leaping down out of the stands. She immediately grabbed her sword and sent mana into her limbs. Rose did the same and the two girls stood back-to-back.
"What are you doing?" Baldy was a bit slow to notice.
"I'm afraid you won't be going anywhere," a beautiful blonde elf wearing a mask with a rose on it and holding a black blade approached.
Baldy rounded on her. "Are you Shadow Garden?! First Shadow and now you people! What is this about?! What are you doing here?!"
The blonde elf looked past him and instead turned her eyes to the two of them. Unlike with Shadow, Alexia could immediately sense her power. Her reserves of mana were immense, easily greater that Iris's. She's strong! Alexia thought.
The girl turned to another elf, this one with aqua colored hair and melons as big as the erotica writer's. "I leave the rest to you Epsilon."
The aqua haired girl nodded. "Understood, Alpha."
"As for you princesses, behave yourselves and you'll not be harmed." The blonde elf started to walk to the doors that were now wide open.
"Wait! You are forbidden to enter! It's a sin for the unworthy to go inside that sacred place!" Baldy shouted.
Alpha ignored him and crossed the threshold. The moment she did so she vanished in blinding light.
Alexia recognized the name. Her sister had met her on the street while fighting the giant monster that had once been chained up beside her.
"So, that's Alpha," she muttered. It was easy to see why the girl had made a strong impression on Iris. Alexia looked at the curvy elf who was still there. "Why are you doing this?"
"All we seek is the truth. To that end we're going to investigate before the door vanishes. And Archbishop Nelson will be joining us."
"Wh… What? What are you people planning to do in the Sanctuary?"
"It's not what we plan to do, but what we expect to find. Do as we say, and nobody needs to get hurt. But if you get in our way, what happens next will be on your heads." She waved a hand to the third person who'd invaded the arena.
Like the other two she was dressed in a black outfit including a mask. Unlike her companions, this girl was a beastkin with pointed ears atop her head and a thick, fluffy tail. She had a single hand on the biggy titty elfy's throat. The girl was trembling and leaking tears.
"P… Please d… don't hurt me!"
"Natusme-san!" Rose cried out, clearly frightened for the author.
Alexia was somewhat less distraught and turned to Rose. "We may need to sacrifice her."
"What are you saying?!"
Alexia shrugged. "It's heart breaking, but it's a sacrifice I'm willing to make."
"Absolutely not!"
Meanwhile, the aqua haired elf went over to baldy and grabbed his arm. "Let's go, archbishop. Don't cause me any trouble."
"Fool! Do you really think I'm defenseless? Now Templar Venom!"
Out of nowhere a six-and-a-half-foot giant of a man in plate armor appeared behind Epsilon. Taken by surprise she couldn't move fast enough. He brought down a bastard sword that clipped the front of her chest.
Given the angle, Alexia didn't have a clear view. But two black lumps of something were tossed into the air. The girl must have been wounded; she was stock still for an instant before letting out one HELL of a scream! Stings of magic leapt out of her body and snagged the two lumps and yanked them back. Using her magic like that must have been a real exertion as the girl bent over and started panting. Then she turned to look at her, Rose, and baldy. The look in her eyes was murderous and she could feel killing intent coming off her in waves. Alexia had no doubt that the girl was ready to do murder. She had no clue why.
"Did you see anything?" Epsilon growled.
All three of them put their hands up and shook their heads for all they were worth.
"Good!" The elf grabbed baldy by the collar and started dragging him to the door that was now beginning to close. "No more tricks, we're going."
"Templar Venom! What are you doing? Kill her!"
The man was just standing here motionless. Blood began leaking out of his suit.
"Don't bother," Epsilon told him as she dragged him into the doorway. "He's already dead."
The body toppled over in a spray of blood; the man had been sliced up into three pieces.
As soon as the elf and baldy stepped past the threshold, they both vanished in a burst of light.
"Delta is taking you, too," the last member of Shadow Garden force marched the erotica author towards the door that was now halfway shut.
"Nooooo! I'm so scared!"
"Natsume-san!" Rose cried out.
Again, as soon as they entered, they vanished.
They were now alone and safe. Alexia knew the sensible thing was to leave and count her blessings that things had not gone much, much worse. But this was a unique one-time opportunity to get intel on Shadow and Shadow Garden.
She couldn't pass it up.
"Come on!" Alexia grabbed the other girl by the hand and ran for the doorway.
"Huh?!" Rose cried but ran along with her.
Just as the doors were about to shut Alexia threw herself into the remaining opening.
XXX
"Oof!" Alexia was blinded for a moment but landed on something soft. "Ow!" Something landed on top of her.
"Sorry! Sorry!" Rose said and climbed off.
Alexia was blinking and trying to get her sight back.
"Princess Alexia," a woman said in an icy tone. "Could you please stop groping me?"
Alexia's vision came back, and she found herself lying atop big titty elfy with both her hands pressing into her melons. Alexia hurriedly yanked her hands free and climbed off the other woman.
"Don't flatter yourself, it was an accident."
Natsume grunted and did not look convinced as she got to her feet.
"What are you two doing here?"
Alexia saw all three Shadow Garden members staring at her and Rose. Baldy was standing off to the side looking just as confused.
"Ah… er, well…" Rose muttered.
Alexia answered with a clear and confident voice. "We were leaving when we accidentally stumbled through the door. It was a total accident."
Long years of experience had taught her that if you had to lie to sound sure of yourself. If you hesitated or were the least bit uncertain it only made the lie that much more obvious.
Alpha, the apparent leader here, shook her head and sighed. "Well, you're here now and won't be able to leave for a while. You can accompany us, but don't try to runaway or interfere. Who knows, it might even be useful if you acquired this knowledge."
"Glad to hear it," Alexia said.
She looked around. The floor, walls, and ceiling were all granite. They appeared to be in a hallway within a castle or fortress. There were no windows, doors, or other people so far as she could see.
"Epsilon," Alpha spoke. "I leave the search to you."
"Got it, I won't let you down." The aqua haired elf hurried down the hallway.
Alpha started to walk in the other direction. The beastkin was keeping a close eye on baldy. Alexia, Rose, and Natsume were walking together following them.
"We could try to run away," Rose whispered.
"Where would we go?" Alexia replied in a soft voice.
"I think it would be safer for us to just do as we're told," Natsume whispered. "At least for now."
"Delta can hear you," the beastkin growled. "Don't run away, Delta is good at hunting."
"Wouldn't dream of it!" Alexia said loudly.
Delta frowned and her tail twitched.
As they were walking along the hall Alexia spoke to the one leading them.
"I haven't introduced myself to you, have I? I am Alexia Midgar, second princess of the Midgar Kingdom."
Alpha looked over her shoulder at her. "Introductions are not necessary, I know who you are, princess."
"Since you don't mind me gathering knowledge could I ask you a few questions?"
Alpha raised an eyebrow. "You can ask me anything you like; I do not promise to answer."
"Okay then, first question, is Shadow your leader?"
"Yes."
Alexia was amazed to get such an immediate response. The surprise must have been written all over her face.
"There's no reason to deny it. If you've witnessed Lord Shadow fighting you must know that no one else could possibly be our leader."
"Oh, I don't doubt he's the strongest in the world," Alexia agreed. "But that doesn't necessarily make you a leader. I've known a few muscleheads who were good with a sword but couldn't figure out two plus two."
Delta let out a low growl and her tail began to lash back and forth. Alexia didn't have a lot of experience with beastkin, but she got the very clear impression the girl was not happy.
Alpha waved a hand at the other girl. "Calm down. She knows not what she says." The girl's tail slowed but continued moving from side to side. Alpha then spoke directly to Alexia. "I'd strongly recommend you not you insult Lord Shadow. No one in Shadow Garden will appreciate it."
"Sorry, I didn't mean to offend," Alexia said to Delta.
"Don't say bad things about boss man," the girls tail slowed some more but still did not come to a complete stop.
"So, he's 'Lord' Shadow? He's a part of the nobility."
"Whether or not he is has nothing to do with why we call him, Lord Shadow," Alpha stated. "He is our lord and master because he is deserving of nothing less. He is absolute strength as well as absolute wisdom and intelligence. No one in this world is more deserving of being called 'Lord' than him."
"Ah, I really don't want to offend again, but the way you talk about him. It almost sounds like you worship him."
Alpha grinned but did not say anything. Delta was nodding her head.
Oh boy, I think I better steer clear of that one. "Was Shadow Garden to blame for the attack on Midgar Academy?"
"No, the forces of the cult were responsible for that. We actually defeated them and brought the incident to an end."
"Did Shadow murder Ruslan Barnett?"
"As the kingdom has already condemned Lord Shadow for the act does it matter?"
Alexia frowned. "That's not a denial."
"The world is more complicated than you could possibly imagine. Many truths are buried deep within deceit. Uncovering them can be difficult and the results are sometimes more painful than the previous lie."
"Which all sounds like a fancy way of saying he did it but there were reasons."
Alpha smiled at her. "You're quite perceptive, Princess Alexia."
"If there's a legitimate reason why not tell me?! If you can give me proof, I can pass it on to my sister! I don't believe Shadow is a criminal or that Shadow Garden is a criminal organization. If you're willing to work with me, I could try and clear your names."
"'We have never walked the path of righteousness, nor the path of evil. We always have and forever shall carve our own path. Gather all the sinful acts of this world for us to shoulder, and shoulder them we will. It changes nothing. We will do what we are meant to do.' Those were the words of Lord Shadow, and we will follow them. I understand your intentions are sincere, and much appreciated, but they're unnecessary."
Alexia was reminded of her training sessions with Poochie. Of the frustration of genuinely wanting to help someone, only to have that person be bound and determined to not let you.
"Can I ask one more question?"
"Please do."
Is Shadow Cid Kagenou? She was honestly tempted to ask that. But knew it would be stupid, stupid and dangerous. Either he wasn't, in whish case she'd look like a complete moron not only to the Shadow Gardeners, but to baldy, Rose, and worst of all the big breasted elven snoop. Or if by some miracle Shadow and Cid really were one and the same, she suspected Alpha would kill her and the other witnesses to protect his identity.
"What are you doing here? What are you hoping to accomplish?"
"We are here to seek the truth, nothing more."
"I thought you said the truth isn't always worth finding."
"Some aren't, but some truths are worth risking everything for."
As she said this Alpha led all of them to a statue. Alexia noticed it was of the legendary hero Olivier. And amazingly enough THAT was when things really started to get weird.
XXX
Some of the things Alexia saw in the Sanctuary were unbelievable to her. And this coming from someone who'd spent days chained up next to a monster, had her blood siphoned, and had seen a man with enough raw power to level a building.
The legendary hero Olivier turned out to be a real person, a woman not a man, and an ancestor of none other than Alpha. (She got to see Alpha's face.) Olivier was also a war orphan who'd undergone some horrific experiments along with many other orphan children who did not survive the experience. Baldy turned out to be not only a member of the Cult of Diablos (no surprise there), but a part of the rounds Zenon had gone on and on about. He'd somehow had the power to make clones of himself and summon the hero Olivier to fight for him. She also saw that she should never, ever, ever, EVER make Delta angry. Ever! It seemed the cult was experimenting with the blood of Diablos to achieve not only great power but immortality. Oh, and also Diablos was more than a fairy tale monster, turns out he was very real.
After witnessing all these revelations, the Sanctuary began to shake as if in an earthquake. She, Rose, and the tit monster were separated from everyone else and tried to flee. There was a blinding white light. And then…