In a way, Emily is what Olga could've been if she didn't defect. Stuck on a bloody path of vengeance and murdering innocents, which would only end in tragedy for everyone, including herself. Her trauma would never have been resolved.
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Unspeakable, Part 1
Inquisition Provincial Hub, Gallia - June 21, 1935, 6:00 AM
“Warning,” the intercom announced, “Warning, anomalous event detected in proximity. Warning. Warning, anomalous event detected in proximity.”
Klaxons blared, and red alarms flashed. Inquisitors dressed in black suits rushed through the cramped concrete hallways to their stations, which more resembled those seen on battleships and submarines than an office building. In the communications room, more inquisitors sat at typewriters and telephone switchboards, transcribing messages as fast as they were typed out. In the main operations room, senior staff had gathered around a tabletop map of the Reich, with holographic markers denoting monsters and anomalies placed across it.
“What is it this time?” Regional Head Inquisitor Behr said.
Inquisitor Paulos pointed to a pulsing dot over northern Gallia.
“Proximity spells have detected a significant anomalous event originating roughly fifty miles south of this base,” he reported, “We are still working on a classification.”
“How serious are we talking?” Inquisitor Stephen said.
“Memory spells might not cut it,” Inquisitor Paulos said.
“Might not?” Stephen said.
“That’s what they’re saying,” Paulos said.
“That bad?” Behr said.
A sheet of paper printed out from the side of the table. Paulos picked it up.
“Classification received,” he said, “It is…”
He reread the dispatch. His eyes narrowed more.
“What?” Paulos said. “No. Impossible.”
“What’s the classification?” Stephen said.
“It’s…Omega-Alpha,” Paulos said, “But there isn’t anything above Omega.”
“Actually, there is,” Behr said.
“What do you mean?” Stephen said.
“There is an Omega-Alpha classification,” Behr said, “But knowledge of its existence is highly restricted and distributed on a need-to-know basis.”
“So what is an Omega-Alpha level event?” Paulos said. “What could be so dangerous it needed a classification above Omega?”
“What I am about to tell you is highly classified information,” Behr said, “Close the door.”
An inquisitor swung the heavy door shut. He took out a small tome and waved his hand over it, then over the door handle. A barrier of yellow energy surrounded the door, blocking any sound into or out of the room.
“Only the Kaiser and several other individuals inside and outside the Inquisition know about Omega-Alpha level events,” Behr said, “They are abnormal reality-altering events which interfere with the natural cohesion of space and time, leading to a breakdown of reality in the immediate area. And that is the best case scenario.”
“Should I ask what the worst case scenario is?” Stephen said.
“Mostly theoretical,” Behr said, “Because no worst case scenarios have been recorded before. But projections indicate that they are likely to be reality-ending events.”
Stephen and Paulos stared at Behr.
“You’re kidding,” Paulos said.
“I am not,” Behr said, “There’s a reason Omega-Alpha classification is classified.”
“What’s the plan?” Stephen said. “What containment procedures should we use?”
“Any means necessary,” Behr said.
Half an hour later, in the back alleys of Sankt-Laud, yellow rings of energy appeared in the air. A fleet of armored cars drove out of them. Each armored car carried five Inquisitors, all carrying submachine guns marked with Enochian runes. Behr adjusted his hat and trench coat and checked his gun, making sure the sigils were still intact. The radio buzzed with messages from the other cars, reporting their teams’ status.
“Cleared the portal,” Paulos said.
“Approaching the source of the anomaly,” Stephen said, “Appears to be the cathedral.”
“Copy that,” Behr said, “Stay on the lookout.”
Behr snapped a clip onto his gun, and the runes briefly glowed, warding the bullets.
They stopped in front of the cathedral, and the Inquisitors got out.
“Set up a perimeter,” Behr ordered, “Temporal bubble included. Nobody gets in or out.”
The Inquisitors fanned out and quickly surrounded the cathedral, their guns aimed at the windows and the front door. Another team of Inquisitors stood back and painted a sigil on the sidewalk with blood from a vial. One took out a tome and opened it to a specific spell. He and the rest of the team raised their hands. Circles of runes and sigils appeared around their hands, creating a larger magic circle connecting them.
A giant energy shield rose around the cathedral, and outside it, time slowed to almost a complete stop. Cars stopped, pedestrians halted, and the trees stopped blowing in the wind. For them, everything happening inside the bubble would have happened in an instant. It was unlikely they would remember anything of today’s incident. If there were any leftover memories, the bubble also doubled as an amnestic.
“Perimeter secure,” Paulos said.
“Move in,” Behr said.
While one team maintained the barrier, another team, led by Stephen, approached the cathedral, their guns ready. Finding the main door locked, one painted a sigil on it, while two others strapped a small bomb to it. They stepped back and detonated the bomb, which was enhanced and concentrated by the added spell.
“Alright, move, move, move!” Stephen shouted.
“This is the Inquisition!” his team ordered. “Hands where I can see them!”
They stormed inside. Behr heard people shouting in protest, which confused him. There was no service scheduled at this time. His entire plan wasn’t expecting civilians to be inside the containment field. But his ears didn’t lie. Stephen joined him back outside.
“Sir,” Stephen said, “You might want to see this.”
Behr followed Stephen into the cathedral. The interior was dimly lit, and the morning light did not help much. The stained glass windows were painted in dark colors, and their images had a heavy emphasis on the snake from the Garden of Eden. Not Adam and Eve and the snake, but just the snake on the tree of knowledge. Rows of men and women in dark robes sat in the pews. They had quieted down, which was even more unnerving than their shouts because now they were staring at Behr and the Inquisitors. An older man in dark robes, the minister it seemed, stood at the podium, also silently watching the Inquisitors. Behr could’ve sworn his eyes were glowing red, but maybe it was the early morning light filtering through the stained glass. His “bible” was thick, looking even thicker than a regular bible.
“We are in the middle of a service here,” the minister said.
Behr approached the minister, holding up his hands to show he was unarmed…aside from the warded gun he had hidden under his trench coat just in case.
“I apologize for our intrusion,” Behr said, “But this is an emergency. You must evacuate.”
“Thank you, but we will stay right here,” the minister said.
“I’m afraid the evacuation is nonnegotiable,” Behr said, “Your presence here has already significantly jeopardized our operation. Leave immediately. I will not warn you again.”
“It will protect us,” the minister said, “We fear nothing.”
“It?” Behr said. “What are you talking about?”
“It protects us,” the minister said, “It will make sure we are not harmed. For that is how our faith is rewarded.”
“You won’t be harmed,” Behr said.
“You’re mistaken,” the minister said, “You’re the one harming us.”
His eyes definitely were glowing now. All of the congregants stared at Behr, their eyes glowing red like the minister’s. The Inquisitors nervously aimed their guns at them. Stephen loaded his gun and stepped back to the door.
“What is the meaning of this?” Behr said. “What are you doing?”
“It loves us,” the minister said, “It is here to help us. But first, we must help It.”
He picked up his book, which was written in a non-Latin script, and began reciting an incantation in an unknown language that sounded like Basque. His voice sounded like he was hissing. The air above him began distorting and ripping. Behr drew his gun and pointed it at the minister. The congregants stood up and approached Stephen’s team.
“Stop this at once!” he ordered.
“Why?” the minister said. “Do you not accept It’s love?”
“I don’t even know what you’re talking about!” Behr said.
The minister shook his head in frustration.
“It’s no use,” he said, “You wouldn’t understand. You are heartless, after all.”
Red eldritch energy rippled out from his hands, creating a wave of spacial distortion which slammed into Behr. There was no exact word to describe it, but he was forcibly relocated to near Stephen and the door, the wind knocked out of him. The other congregants, now whipped up in a frenzy, rushed the Inquisitors, drawing blades and other weapons from their robes. The Inquisitors fired back with their submachine guns, but it was futile, and they soon disappeared into the mob. Behr heard their screams as they were hacked apart by the crude weapons. All he and Stephen could do was run outside to the other Inquisitors.
“Put up a shield!” he ordered. “Shoot anybody who gets through!”
“But sir—” Paulos said.
“You heard him!” Stephen said.
The barrier team cast another spell, putting a second barrier in the doorway. The remaining Inquisitor teams pointed their guns at the doorway in preparation, while Great War-era machine guns were loaded onto the backs of the car. Behr walked behind a car, taking cover with Paulos and Stephen.
“What happened?” Paulos said.
“We lost an entire team in there,” Behr said.
“How?” Paulos said.
“I don’t know,” Stephen said, “But we have to contain this event now.”
The doors opened, and the congregants silently shuffled outside, forming a line behind the wall. They stared down the Inquisitors with their red eyes, and Behr was completely unnerved. Behr also noticed their hair was now turning gray and white, and their skin was pale.
“This is the Inquisition!” Behr shouted. “Surrender and you will not be harmed! This is your final warning! Any further and we will open fire!”
The minister exited the cathedral and joined his flock outside.
“Those who do not welcome It’s love into their hearts are misguided,” he said, interjecting his words with phrases in the dead language, “And it is our duty to show them the error of their ways.”
The congregants approached the barrier and stepped through it, with some difficulty. The Inquisitors murmured to each other.
“Impossible,” Stephen said, “Nobody could walk through that barrier.”
“But then again, stranger things have happened just now,” Paulos said.
“Fire!” Behr shouted.
As the congregants advanced, the Inquisitors opened fire. The first few went down as expected, but the ones behind them took increasingly more and more bullets. The congregants closed the distance and drew their blades again, their faces twisted in unnatural snakeline sneers. Meanwhile, the Inquisitors emptied their clips and began reloading.
“The wards aren’t working,” Paulos said, “What do we do?”
“Switch to regular!” Behr shouted.
The Inquisitors finished reloading and flipped switches on their guns. Then they fired again, cutting down more of the congregants. But there were too many of them. They were now too close to shoot at. The Inquisitors dropped their guns and drew their enchanted daggers, preparing for close combat.
At that moment, there was a flash of light, and Behr covered his eyes. The light faded, and he saw a line of men and women standing between the Inquisitors and the congregants, all wearing amor from various cultures. Some looked like they were classical Greek or Roman soldiers, while others looked like Vikings or Slavic warriors, and still others looked Asian. They all brandished shields with swords or spears, though one woman had a bow and arrow.
“Disperse now,” an old man with white hair in flowing purple robes thundered, “Or we will smite you with all of our fury.”
“The heartless must be shown the error of their ways,” the minister said.
The two armies charged at each other.
Normandy Inquisition Regional Headquarters, Cherburg, Normandy - June 19, 2015, 8:00 AM
Dieter got out of his car and walked into an empty bar. The bartender looked up.
“Morning, Dieter,” he said, “How you doing?”
“Fine,” Dieter said.
“What are you doing in these parts?” the bartender said. “You don’t come around here often. Especially without Munster.”
“Munster’s busy in Arabia,” Dieter said, “I’m here for an inspection.”
“Inspection, huh?” the bartender said. “That’s not something you hear every day.”
“Believe me, I wasn’t expecting it either, much less being chosen to do it,” Dieter said, “Is you can believe it, the orders personally came down from the Head Inquisitor himself.”
“Interesting,” the bartender said.
“I guess I’ll just follow my orders then,” Dieter said.
“You always do, don’t you?” the bartender said. “You Egyptians and your rules.”
“I hear Alexandria’s nice this time of year,” Dieter said, “You should visit.”
“Maybe I will,” the bartender said, “It would be nice to get away from this dreary weather every now and then. Anyways, your badge?”
“My badge?” Dieter said. “I’ve been working here for over twenty years.”
“I’m sorry, my friend, but protocol’s protocol,” the bartender said, “We don’t want another 2011 on our hands.”
Dieter showed him a blank badge bearing only the symbol of the Inquisition, an imperial eagle on top of a pentagram clutching a crucifix and torch. The bartender tapped the badge, which projected a 3D sigil. Dieter’s head appeared from a magic ring of Enochian runes, accompanied by an ID number, name, and rank in plain German. The bartender tapped again to dismiss the ID and then pushed a button on the cash register. The far wall shimmered, and a hidden elevator door appeared.
“Good to go,” he said.
He passed a drink to Dieter.
“Oh, please, you don’t have to,” Dieter said.
“On the house,” the bartender said, “Don’t think I haven’t heard of what you did in Caledonia.”
“Really, it was nothing,” Dieter said.
“Nothing?” the bartender said. “What did you do at the Minch? You took out that wild Blue Men nest and rescued all of the hostages! Drinks are on the house.”
“If you were there, you’d understand,” Dieter said, “I didn’t want to wipe out the nest.”
“I’m sorry, Dieter, but that’s what we signed up for, right?” the bartender said.
Dieter sipped the beer. “I…I guess…”
“Look, I’m not saying you have to suck it up,” the bartender said, “But sometimes we have to make hard choices for the good of the outside world.”
“Perhaps,” Dieter said.
“I’ll tell the others you’re here,” the bartender said.
“Thanks,” Dieter said.
He stepped into the elevator and went down. The trip took a little while. He listened to the classical music playing over the speakers while watching a TV screen displaying headlines.
“Wild Blue Men nest neutralized, the Minch reopened for outside use”
“4 vampires, 5 werewolves shot by authorities during anti-reservation protests in Siebenburgen”
“Silesia Regional Head Inquisitor Volkhard accused of sexual harassment”
“37 casualties reported by Mongolian death worm containment task force”
“Notice: An outbreak of the Croatoan virus has been reported in the town of al-Dud, Nineveh and its surroundings - all Inquisitors in the area advised to check if their vaccines are up to date”
“Head Inquisitor Stahl resigns, citing health concerns”
Dieter focused on the headline about Stahl. He remembered meeting Stahl a week ago in his office in Vienna. As soon as he entered the office, Stahl locked the door and discretely handed him a slip of paper with orders to investigate the Normandy branch. He was to go immediately, without even a team.
“Sir, I…I’m not sure I’m qualified to lead an inspection,” Dieter said, “Much less a one-man inspection with no preparation. Not even Munster?”
Stahl coughed.
“You are qualified,” he said, “I know you are. There is no time to assemble a full team. Your partner is preoccupied with another mission I have sent him on.”
“Sir, I’m not sure why a routine inspection should be so urgent,” Dieter said.
“I can’t explain,” Stahl said, coughing again, “We don’t have much time. I don’t either.”
“What do you mean?” Dieter said.
“You will find out for yourself in Sankt-Laud,” Stahl said, “Strange things are happening there, and I believe you know how to handle them.”
“But why the rush?” Dieter said.
“There is something amiss in the Inquisition,” Stahl said, “I can’t risk it.”
“Why are you being so confusing?” Dieter said.
That conversation didn’t last much longer, and soon Dieter was here. If only Munster was here. It would be nice to have someone to bounce ideas off of right about now. He had no idea why Stahl sent him here, but he might as well get the job done and collect the paycheck.
He walked through the back wall and into a lift, which descended deep underground into a concrete hallway. Rooms on either side of the hallway held rows of Inquisitors sitting at computer workstations. At the end of the hallway, the corridor opened up into an even larger room whose back wall was covered in a computer map of the world, updated in real time. More Inquisitors sat at workstations, scanning for anomalous activity. The Regional Head Inquisitor, an old man with white hair, stood in front of the map, waiting for Dieter.
“Dieter,” he said, shaking Dieter’s hand, “Nice to see you again. Too bad Munster couldn’t make it today.”
“It’s been a while, Behr,” Dieter said, “Munster sends his regards from Arabia.”
“You haven’t changed a bit since Alexandria,” Behr said.
“I get that a lot,” Dieter said, “Congratulations on making the shortlist to succeed Stahl.”
“Thank you,” Behr said, “Anyways, why don’t we start the inspection then?”
“Uh, sure,” Dieter said, “So I guess I’ll be doing some inspecting then.”
He took out his phone and pulled up a digital tome, flipping to the correct sigil, which he tapped with his finger. A magic circle surrounded him, illuminating the room. When the spell kicked in, he found his consciousness projected out of his body, viewing the room from above. Dieter zoomed through the complex, briefly stopping to observe each room to watch Inquisitors work at their desks. Some of them were in the process of writing new spells or testing out enchantments for their weapons, while others were stuck in bureaucracy writing forms. The storage rooms were stocked with tomes and guns, as well as the traditional daggers. The break rooms were stocked with coffee, as would be expected. But when he reached the lower level and approached a closed door, he was unexpectedly repelled. He was confused as to why his astral form could not pass into the next room when he had no trouble with the rest of the office. Dieter returned to his physical body.
“Uh…I may have an issue,” he said, “One of your rooms seems to be warded and blocking my astral projection.”
“Oh, that room,” Behr said, “My apologies. We had an issue there with an anomaly.”
“An anomaly?” Dieter said.
“Has been happening all over the area lately,” Behr said, “Weird distortions of reality we have been unable to classify, much less resolve. As of right now, we can barely contain it.”
He pulled up camera footage of the door on a computer.
“This incident happened yesterday afternoon,” he said.
Dieter watched the video. Suddenly, the space around the door briefly distorted and warped, setting off alarms. Inquisitors rushed onto the screen and immediately began casting emergency containment spells, but the distortion only continued spreading, and the Inquisitors screamed. Static filled the screen.
“I see,” Dieter said, “What about the other incidents?”
“Nothing as serious,” Behr said, “Mostly in the town.”
The world map zoomed in on Normandy, with a pointer on the town of Sankt-Laud.
“Do you remember the case you worked here in 1998?” Behr said.
“Uh, yeah,” Dieter said, “Civilians reported a demon problem, we handled it.”
“Dieter, I outrank you,” Behr said, “We both know I know the classified details.”
“The Athanatoi’s own anomalous events division investigated an incident in which a demigod’s powers manifested,” Dieter said, “Which led them to discover multiple pagan deities living in that town and the demons who sought their power. I didn’t particularly like that mission. Kept getting pinned against a wall with my gun kicked away.”
“Similar anomalous events have been occurring there recently,” Behr said, “Civilians have reported items misplaced or duplicated, people walking back into rooms they just walked out of, some levitation. In fact, the events seem to be centered on the town, particularly the cathedral, if that helps. We could use some help. You do have experience working here, don’t you?”
“Yes,” Dieter said, “Sure, I can help investigate the town. Although Munster isn’t here with me, I know the people and culture.”
“Thank you, Dieter,” Behr said, “We’ll prepare a team for you.”
“Actually, I already have someone in mind to help me,” Dieter said, “What’s your policy on civilian consultants? Is it like Alexandria’s?”
X-Division, Constantinople - 3:00 PM
Dieter looked around the office and then at Anders and Angela.
“You know, for what you guys do, I expected something…flashier,” he said.
“Blame budget cuts,” Anders said, “We’ve gotten a lot of them lately.”
“Haven’t had many cases?” Dieter said.
“Maybe because you guys keep taking them first,” Angela said, “All we’re doing is reading leaked RSB files, same as everybody else.”
“Well, that’ll change,” Dieter said, “I’m here on behalf of the Inquisition to give you a case.”
Anders stared at him.
“We haven’t seen you in years,” he said, “And then you show up out of the blue? Asking us to help with a case of yours? Without your partner?”
“Munster’s busy,” Dieter said, “And I assume your other partner is too.”
“They’re on a case of their own,” Anders said.
“So what do you have?” Angela said.
“The Head Inquisitor Stahl sent me on this personal mission,” Dieter said, “He personally tasked me with investigating the Normandy branch of the Inquisition. I was just there this morning, where I learned there were some incidents happening in nearby Sankt-Laud. You remember our case there?”
“Yeah, that kid who went full Dragon Ball Z,” Anders said.
“Okay,” Dieter said, “I’m going to need your help with these new cases, if you’re free.”
“What about Munster?” Angela said.
“Apparently, Stahl sent him on another mission,” Dieter said, “In place of him, I’d like you to help me again.”
“Hear that, Angie?” Anders said. “We’re substitutes. Substitute Inquisitors.”
“Look, we need your expertise,” Dieter said, “The Inquisition wouldn’t have given me the go-ahead if they didn’t believe in you.”
“What’s the dress code?” Angela said. “Men in Black? Suits and sunglasses?”
“What?” Dieter said. “No!”
“Aw, I was looking forward to using a neuralyzer,” Anders said, “Where do I sign? Do I have to use blood? Will I die if I break the contract? Will it kill the entire country too?”
“What the frak have I gotten myself into?” Dieter muttered.
Sankt-Land - June 20, 2015, 8:00 AM
Dieter drove into town in a rental car, courtesy of the Inquisition. Angela sat in front, looking out the window and listening to her Walkman, while Anders fiddled around in the back with the climate controls and windows.
“What’s this?” Anders said, pointing at a button. “Says, uh, ‘Blackout’?”
“Makes it so you can’t be seen from outside,” Dieter said.
“So like a tinted window,” Anders said.
“No, you literally can’t be seen from outside,” Dieter said, “You’ll just see an empty seat.”
“Can I try it out?” Anders said.
“For the last time, Anders, no,” Dieter said, “Same goes for the emergency teleport button. We’re still ironing out some bugs, and it’s not safe to teleport with these anomalies around.”
“No wonder we’re driving into town and not teleporting,” Anders muttered.
“Can you tell us more about Stahl’s orders?” Angela said.
“I’m pretty confused myself,” Dieter said, “Stahl just summoned me to his office one day and told me to investigate Normandy, and all of my answers will be found in Sankt-Laud.”
“Why Sankt-Laud?” Anders said.
“I don’t know,” Dieter said, “But I couldn’t help but notice the suspicious timing of his resignation just yesterday. He said something was rotten in the Inquisition and that he trusted me with getting to the bottom of it.”
“The Inquisition being corrupt,” Angela said, “Not something you’d hear everyday.”
“Trust me, it’s more common than you think,” Dieter said, “I think the entire Hessian branch was dissolved in the 1970s for orchestrating a huge money laundering scheme.”
“You think?” Anders said.
“I don’t know everything about the Inquisition,” Dieter said, “I only joined after the war, straight out of high school. Munster told me about the Hessian branch incident. He knows this stuff more.”
“You’ve been with the Inquisition for over twenty years now, have you?” Angela said.
“Yeah, about right,” Dieter said.
“How are things?” Angela said.
“Until recently, Munster and I got by,” Dieter said, “We did our jobs well, got paid. I have to admit it was getting a little repetitive and…dare I say this…boring. Then came the Minch, and then Stahl’s order…”
“The Minch?” Angela said.
Dieter stopped talking for a moment.
“I…I’d rather not talk about it,” he said.
“Sorry,” Angela said.
“Anyways, we’re here,” Dieter said.
They rolled past a sign reading “Welcome to Sankt-Laud - Heavenly People, Heavenly Lives.”
“I don’t remember that sign from last time,” Anders said.
“Well, if you bothered to look outside instead of pushing buttons, you’d see a lot of stuff you don’t remember,” Angela said.
The town had dramatically changed since they had last visited. The medieval bridge leading into town had been refurbished, with a new trolley track running alongside the two-lane road. The old castle wall marking the boundary of the town was repainted, with murals depicting the coats of arms of the city and famous inhabitants hanging alongside modern electric lights and flags of the state of Normandy and the Reich. Inside, the old 1960s-era village-style houses still dominated the landscape, though there were new modern-style buildings of glass and concrete rising among them. The river running through the town looked much cleaner, and the banks had been developed into green beaches with bike paths and grassy meadows. The old sailing ships which once served as river ferries had been replaced by sleek modern ferries. An old water tower now had internet, cellphone, and radio reception towers rising from its top. The old rural area had been urbanized, with more houses built in the formerly run-down and sparsely populated area, though many of the vacant lots were instead turned into green spaces. There was also a new aquatic center nearby. But not all had changed. The old cathedral still loomed over the town, stoically standing in the face of modernity, a link to the town’s past.
“Okay, so what do we do now?” Anders said.
“Check your files,” Dieter said.
Anders and Angela opened their files.
“Three unclassified anomalous incidents have appeared in the last week,” Dieter said, “Somebody’s kitchen utensils levitated for three minutes and then inverted themselves. A woman’s drivers license was found duplicated, both of them perfectly valid and legal. Then both disappeared the next day. A man walked into his house only to immediately walk back out, as if he was already inside.”
“Do we have names?” Angela said.
“Yeah, a Wolfram Kinberg, Minerva Aegis, and…Wagner Weinstein,” Dieter said.
“We met those people last time,” Anders said, “Interesting.”
“It doesn’t make sense,” Dieter said, “We’ve been monitoring them closely since that incident. Nothing has happened until now.”
“I don’t think it’s because of them,” Angela said, “They appear to be victims. Kinberg probably didn’t want his utensils levitating and inverting like that. Aegis probably needed her license. And Weinstein wanted to go inside.”
“But then why are they the ones being targeted?” Dieter said. “And why didn’t Behr tell me about them yesterday?”
“I don’t know,” Angela said, “But let’s gather some more details and hopefully find a suspect.”
“Which will help us divine a motive,” Anders said.
Angela punched his arm.
“Ow!” Anders said.
“Okay, we should split up,” Angela said, “Dieter, you head to the library and see if anything similar happened before.”
“The problem is, nothing similar has happened before,” Dieter said, “They’d be in this file.”
“Well, Behr didn’t tell you that Kinberg, Aegis, and Weinstein were in this file,” Anders said, “Best to be sure.”
“Even if he’s holding back information, it’s still unlikely,” Dieter said, “The Inquisition would’ve found any loose evidence and disposed of it.”
“There’s always the chance they missed something,” Angela said.
“And you?” Dieter said.
“I think it’s time we paid a visit to some old friends,” Anders said.
Weinstein residence - 9:00 AM
Wagner Weinstein sat down on the couch and clasped his hands.
“Well, this is unexpected,” he said, “How long has it been, seventeen years?”
“About right,” Angela said.
“It’s nice to see you two again,” Wagner said.
“You haven’t aged at all,” Anders said.
“One of the perks of being a god,” Wagner said, “Though it can also be a curse at times.”
“How’s Joey doing?” Angela said.
“He’s fine,” Wagner said, “He no longer lives in these parts. Went off to college in Milan, settled down in Pomerania. Calls every week or so. So, what can I do for you two?”
“We’re here to investigate the strange incident you had last week,” Angela said.
“Oh, the reality warping?” Wagner said. “Yeah, that was weird.”
“Do you know what happened?” Anders said.
“I went through my door and ended up walking back outside,” Wagner said, “At first I thought it was Janus up to his old tricks, but he’s been running a game show for the last fifty years, something about three doors. And then I heard Minerva and Wolfram had similar problems.”
“So who do you think could be causing it?” Angela said.
“I don’t know,” Wagner said, “Doesn’t feel like magic, and if it was, it would be really old. It felt more like someone was directly messing with reality.”
“Who could do something like that?” Anders said.
“I really don’t know,” Wagner said, “I feel like I should, but now that I think about it, my memory’s fuzzy in places. I’ve lived for so long, I’ve forgotten a lot of things.”
“Well, if you come up with something, give us a call,” Angela said, handing him a business card, “We’ll be talking with Minerva and Wolfram too.”
“Alright,” Wagner said, “Again, it was nice seeing you two again. After what you did for my son back then…I don’t know how I can repay you.”
Sankt-Land Public Library - 9:30 AM
Dieter sat down at a computer and opened a browser. He typed “Levitation” into the search bar. Several books related to modern magic popped up. Not the Inquisition kind, but rather the useless rabbit-out-of-a-hat kind. While they made for cool party tricks, Dieter could do much more with real magic. And he should probably be using that right now, as the regular search predictably turned up nothing suspicious.
He took out his phone and flipped to a sigil which looked like circuits laid over a pentagram. He tapped it lightly. The sigil glowed, followed by the computer screen blinking and flashing. Although it still used a regular operating system, the color scheme and user interface now indicated he was on an Inquisition-only local network. He searched his query again, and this time two entries were found.
“Ah, those books interest you, I see,” a librarian said, approaching him.
Dieter panicked, though he knew the network had a spell which made it so all non-Inquisitor users would see only a normal screen.
“Are you…” Dieter said.
“I was,” the librarian said, “I retired five years ago. But you can’t really leave the life, can you? I’ve spent my days in this library, waiting for that day to come.”
“That day?” Dieter said.
“When someone like you would show up and find those books,” the librarian said.
“What do you mean?” Dieter said.
“Around the time I retired, one of my old students approached me with those very books,” the librarian said, “He said he had found them in the Vienna archives.”
“And?” Dieter said.
“Nobody was willing to talk about them, let alone explain why they were in the most highly classifed wing of the archives,” the librarian said, “Not long after that, the Council declared him excommunicado and then liquidated his entire branch, the Prague one.”
“That’s why the Prague branch was dissolved?” Dieter said.
“Perhaps,” the librarian said, “I hope he’s okay. Me? I’m just a simple librarian these days. I’ll get your books. Get a reading room ready.”
“Thanks,” Dieter said.
“Oh, and I heard about what you did at the Minch,” the librarian said.
“Please, I don’t feel like talking about it,” Dieter said.
“That’s okay,” the librarian said.
Dieter walked to a reading room, and a minute later, the librarian set the two books on the table.
“I hope you can make sense of what’s going on lately,” the librarian said, “Make sure nobody can hear you.”
“I’m just reading some books,” Dieter said.
“Best to be sure,” the librarian said, “Things aren’t as they seem in the Inquisition.”
The librarian left, and Dieter locked the door behind him. Then he took out his phone and activated another sigil.
“Quies,” he said.
The lights briefly flickered before returning to normal. The spell would make sure not a single sound emerged from the room. With that taken care of, Dieter turned to the first book, an old notebook from the 1930s. Its edges had been singed, and some pages had been torn out. The cover bore the symbol of a pentagram and imperial eagle, the insignia of the prewar Inquisition. This book was an Inquisitor’s journal. But the Normandy branch wasn’t established until 1946. Unless there was an older branch that was wiped out in that war.
He opened the book and read as best as he could. Many pages had been torn out or burned, and what remained was a barely legible handwritten scrawl. He took out his phone and cast a spell, then waved the phone camera over the book, attempting to restore the destroyed pages and get more context. However, his phone returned an error message.
The author was smart, putting down a ward to block the restoration of those pages. It would take a more powerful sigil to undo the protection, which he didn’t have with him. He’d have to go back to headquarters and dig into the archives, but he had the feeling he wouldn’t be welcome in the archives. He’d make do with what he had.
The rest of the pages were completely torn out or burned. With nothing else to read, Dieter picked up the second book, which was much heavier and more intact. It was thick, and its pages were thin and light, like a bible. Both the front and back covers were adorned with the motif of a snake circling the edges, eating its own tail. There was no title. He opened the book to the first page but didn’t get far, because the words were written in an unknown script similar to something between Sanskrit and Sumerian, arranged in what appeared to be verse. He cursed. This looked like no language he had seen before, even in the most esoteric circles. Who would’ve published an entire book written in this script? Who would know how to read it?
A slip of paper fell out of the ancient tome. Dieter picked it up and found a key wrapped inside. A note was written on the paper.
“don’t let them get away with it”
Dieter looked at the key, which seemed to be for a door. The old Inquisition coat of arms was engraved on its head, meaning it was probably for a base. He looked at his phone and activated a sigil to find the lock that matched this key. The key levitated and slowly floated across the room before stopping at the wall. Dieter approached the wall and found the wallpaper was of a slightly different color in one area. He cast another spell, which revealed a hidden door. The key fit perfectly in the lock with a rusty click. Dieter pushed open the door, brushing away the dust that fell on his shoulders and arms, and descended the dark staircase behind it. Using his phone’s flashlight to illuminate the area, he noticed the bones scattered on the ground. They had been brutally hacked apart. Torn Inquisition uniforms and guns lay next to them. He looked up and wiped the dust off a nameplate at the next doorway, which was collapsed by rubble.
“Inquisition Provincial Headquarters - Gallia”
Dieter heard a noise behind him. Ethereal figures rushed past him. As he focused, he could make out the figures of old Inquisitors, shooting at unseen targets. They appeared to be shooting at both the entrance and into the base, as if they were surrounded. One by one, they stopped firing and fell, and the apparitions faded.
Something bad had happened here. Something Behr wasn’t telling him.
Saint-Croix Cathedral - 10:00 AM
Wagner got out of his sports car and entered the old cathedral. Wolfram, Minerva, and Cornelius waited for him inside.
“Where’re the others?” he said.
“Diane and Ultor are in North Eimerica,” Wolfram said, “You know how the others are.”
“Anyways, let’s talk about these reality warps,” Minerva said.
“Do any of you know what’s going on?” Wagner said. “Because I have no idea. The Athanatoi and Inquisition are getting involved.”
“We could sure use their help right about now,” Cornelius said, “It might be happening again.”
“What?” Wolfram said.
“Eighty years ago, something similar happened here,” Cornelius said, “You should know, we all were there.”
“No, it can’t be that,” Minerva said, “What’s happening now, it’s all a bunch of mundane stuff. Not something serious.”
“That’s how it started last time,” Cornelius said.
“But we solved the problem,” Wagner said, “There is no threat.”
“Don’t be so sure,” Cornelius said.
“Should we tell the Inquisition?” Wolfram said.
“No,” Minerva said, “I don’t trust them. After what happened back then.”
They heard screeching tires and crumpling metal. They rushed outside and saw a car sitting in the middle of the street, its front and back both crushed as if something had hit it. Pedestrians had rushed over to the driver.
“Are you okay?” one asked.
“I don’t know,” the driver said, “I swear I hit something, and someone hit me!”
“I was back here!” another driver shouted fifty feet away. "I didn’t hit anything!”
“Then who hit me?” the first driver said. “Myself?”
A flock of pigeons flew out of the sidewalk in front of Wagner and into the sky. The bench next to him levitated for several seconds and then fell back to the ground.
“It’s happening,” Cornelius said, “There’s no denying it.”
“So what do we do?” Wagner said.
“Gather the others,” Cornelius said, “We don’t have much time.”
As the gods left the church, they didn’t notice shadowy figures watching them from a distance.
Good to see Dieter again, though I feel like he got this job as an indirect means of disposing of him for unknown reasons.
Also, a trickster god running a game show is perfect.
Also, a trickster god running a game show is perfect.
The imagery of Janus running a tv show is hilarious, seems even a pagan god has to keep honing their skills in a rather odd yet awesome fashion.
Also I second AnguishedOne's statement, it was good to see half of the Inquisition Crew that the X-Division had worked with, something is up with the Inquisition alright, and Behr is connected to it.
Seems the Worm is on the move again
Also I second AnguishedOne's statement, it was good to see half of the Inquisition Crew that the X-Division had worked with, something is up with the Inquisition alright, and Behr is connected to it.
Seems the Worm is on the move again
Seems like the Worm isn't' too fond of other gods besides itself existing, safe for Anniona God Emperors of course.
On the bright side, the Worm's cultists rearing their ugly not heads frees me from my obligation of not Worm posting, I'm (not) sorryJon Gaberial.
As someone who is just getting into SCP lore recently, this is a pretty cool update to see. Also nice to see the Pagan Gods and their retirement village get fleshed out and developed, not to mention the chance to see what the Inquisition has been doing. Given this arc has bunch of SCP, Supernatural and American Gods influences, is it weird that I'd kinda like to see some Percy Jackson references if we revisit this town in future arcs?
Speaking of Pagas, how are those Hellenic pagans we discussed doing in Africa now? I wonder how often the devout Christian Jacob Baldouin has to deal with Hellenic Mormons knocking on his door and talking about Zeus.
For some reason, this arc makes me curios about the Shroud as well. Will be seeing some lore and appearances of the Shroud in NWO or will we just have to wait for Stellaris to see what its like in this universe?
On the bright side, the Worm's cultists rearing their ugly not heads frees me from my obligation of not Worm posting, I'm (not) sorry
As someone who is just getting into SCP lore recently, this is a pretty cool update to see. Also nice to see the Pagan Gods and their retirement village get fleshed out and developed, not to mention the chance to see what the Inquisition has been doing. Given this arc has bunch of SCP, Supernatural and American Gods influences, is it weird that I'd kinda like to see some Percy Jackson references if we revisit this town in future arcs?
Speaking of Pagas, how are those Hellenic pagans we discussed doing in Africa now? I wonder how often the devout Christian Jacob Baldouin has to deal with Hellenic Mormons knocking on his door and talking about Zeus.
For some reason, this arc makes me curios about the Shroud as well. Will be seeing some lore and appearances of the Shroud in NWO or will we just have to wait for Stellaris to see what its like in this universe?
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I operate on the American Gods rule that non-Abrahamic gods derive their powers from the faith of their worshippers. The more worshippers they have, the stronger they are. Normally the pagan gods in this town would be pretty powerful, and they are whenever the town is threatened, but due to something happening in their past, they decided to retire from intervening in human affairs. Others like Janus wanted to keep their skills sharp or just got bored, so they continued participating in society.The imagery of Janus running a tv show is hilarious, seems even a pagan god has to keep honing their skills in a rather odd yet awesome fashion.
Also I second AnguishedOne's statement, it was good to see half of the Inquisition Crew that the X-Division had worked with, something is up with the Inquisition alright, and Behr is connected to it.
Seems the Worm is on the move again
The Abrahamic god may or may not operate on these same rules. I don't want to touch that part of my lore at the moment.
We'll see what Munster's up to soon.
The Worm doesn't care if they are gods or mortals. If they are heartless, they are enemies to be eliminated. Godhood means nothing to something like the Worm anyways as It is so far above them.Seems like the Worm isn't' too fond of other gods besides itself existing, safe for Anniona God Emperors of course.
On the bright side, the Worm's cultists rearing their ugly not heads frees me from my obligation of not Worm posting, I'm (not) sorryJonGaberial.
Maybe, but I haven't gotten anything planned for this town in the future. I'll see if I can continue the gods' story.
That reminds me, I should get around to talking about those Hellenic Mormons.Speaking of Pagas, how are those Hellenic pagans we discussed doing in Africa now? I wonder how often the devout Christian Jacob Baldouin has to deal with Hellenic Mormons knocking on his door and talking about Zeus.
They're probably doing fine right now. I'm still working out how to write about the Shroud, so I don't know yet. Definitely not in NWO because even if I had ideas, I'd rather save them for Stellaris.
Unspeakable, Part 2
Library - 1:00 PM
Dieter returned from lunch and found Angela and Anders sitting outside the library, reading the ancient tome. Angela was comparing the text to a dictionary and transcribing it onto a notebook.
“Hey,” Anders said, “You’re just in time. Angie made a breakthrough with the tome. She thinks it could help provide context on our case.”
“Wait, she can read that?” Dieter said, confused.
“I saw this language before, on one of my past cases,” Angela said, “I know how to read it, a little of it at least.”
“What does it say?” Dieter said.
“So, apparently it’s a holy book of some sort,” Angela said, “It’s like the Bible. You got your creation myth, some miracles, laws handed down from the divine, and super ancient history. But it’s weird. It’s not like the stuff I read about on the West African tablets. More like it contradicts and revises them to fit a narrative. It starts from the back and reads backwards, but it still makes sense if you read it the ‘right’ way around. I don’t know how, but it just does. There’s talk about this all-powerful and all-loving…I can’t translate that name…which will reward Its loyal followers and punish ‘the heartless’. Or depending on how you read it, It has already rewarded its followers and punished the heartless.”
“So like the thing Di was talking about on her case in Nineveh?” Anders said.
“I think so,” Angela said, “Anyways, the history parts talk about an ancient technologically advanced civilization, of men who profaned the divine by acting like gods.”
“Ancient humanity,” Anders said.
“Wait, ancient humans?” Dieter said.
“Long story,” Anders said, “I would’ve thought the Inquisition knew about this stuff.”
“Uh, no,” Dieter said, “We focus on supernatural events.”
“They traversed the stars with wondrous machines and built monuments to their gods, which It did not like,” Angela said, “The religion this book was based on originated from a cult within this civilization, whose aim was to convince humanity to reject its sinful ways and welcome It’s love into their hearts. When they obviously refused, the cult launched an insurgency while the civilization was off fighting ‘men from the stars’.”
“They were at war with an alien civilization?” Anders said. “The Jotun?”
“No, it can’t be them,” Angela said, “From what I remember, the ancestors of the Jotun were their allies. So, the men from the stars, these other aliens, won and destroyed the civilization while it was weakened from the cult’s attacks, tearing it down to prehistoric levels."
“And what does this space opera have to do with what’s going on today?” Dieter said.
“The cult persisted through the thousands of years,” Angela said, “In one form or another. The book claims the ultimate goal of the faith is to “free” It, after which It will reward its followers greatly with…something.”
“That still doesn’t answer my question,” Dieter said, “What does this book have to do with the anomalous events happening in this town?”
“I don’t know,” Angela said, “But this book was categorized with that Inquisitor’s journal. There has to be a connection.”
“This doesn’t add up,” Dieter said, “We were led to believe the Inquisition never had a large presence in this area before World War II. No anomalies, no branch, no cases. But this book was clearly owned by a Inquisitor from that time. And I found the ruins of an Inquisition base, the old Gallia regional hub. But wasn’t it based in Paris? That’s what we were told.”
“Simple,” Anders said, “The Inquisition knew the truth of what happened that day, and they’ve gone to extreme lengths to cover it up.”
“I have to call Behr,” Dieter said, “I’m getting to the bottom of this. Figure out the connection between the tome and these incidents.”
“We’re on it,” Angela said.
“I have a lot of questions for him,” Dieter said.
2:00 PM
Dieter finished his explanation. Behr’s hologram slightly glitched as the Inquisitor leaned forward from his chair.
“I see,” he said.
“And?” Dieter said. “What is the truth about the Inquisition and Sankt-Laud?”
“I apologize for keeping all this from you,” Behr said, “Truth be told, the destruction of the old Gallia regional hub eighty years ago is something I don’t like talking about. My father was one of the few survivors from the hub. He was never the same.”
“Sorry to hear that,” Dieter said.
“I should’ve informed you about our history in this town sooner,” Behr said, “The truth is, the old Gallia branch was involved in a massive containment operation the day it was destroyed. My father led the operation, and he barely escaped with his life. I can’t say the same for his sanity. I fear the same circumstances that led to that incident eighty years ago may be repeating themselves today.”
“What should we do?” Dieter said.
“Regular containment won’t be effective,” Behr said, “What you need are special procedures. I’m sending you a checklist of items you’ll need and actions to take. They should all be easily obtainable in the area.”
Dieter’s phone beeped. A checklist appeared in one of his apps.
“Those are the ingredients you’ll need to assemble the special containment spell,” Behr said, “And the sigil you’ll use.”
Dieter looked at the sigil. It was nothing like he’d ever seen. The runes weren’t in Enochian or regular Latin, but rather something like the script he saw in the ancient tome. What looked like a snake was surrounding the sigil, and the sigil pattern itself was a rather unexpected series of curved lines.
“Uh…” Dieter said. “What is this?”
“It’s a special sigil,” Behr said, “My father and the other survivors used it to finally contain the incident eighty years ago. It’ll take several hours to charge up, as it requires a lot of energy to complete containment. I’d like you to get it done by tomorrow morning.”
“I’ll do what I can,” Dieter said, “I have another question though. Why did the rest of the Inquisition cover up the incident of June 21, 1935? Surely you could’ve just explained it away as a botched mission.”
“The reality is not as simple,” Behr said, “Not everybody had the required clearance.”
“I have clearance to know about Omega level events,” Dieter said, “And no Omega level event needed this much classification.”
“The 1935 incident was not Omega level, but rather the level above it,” Behr said, “Omega-Alpha level.”
“Omega-Alpha?” Dieter said.
“Yes, Omega-Alpha,” Behr said, “Knowledge of Omega-Alpha events and the classification itself is distributed on a need to know basis. Hence why the entire branch’s existence was classified following the mission.”
“And why Omega-Alpha classification so restricted?” Dieter said.
“They focus on reality warping events,” Behr said, “In the worst cases, reality ending events. They are so dangerous precisely because they rely less on magic than on altering the fundamental constants of reality themselves, more or less with little warning. Immediate containment is of the highest priority as the speed and severity at which these events occur is completely unpredictable.”
“So the sigil you provided will contain this Omega-Alpha event?” Dieter said.
“Yes, you must act quickly,” Behr said, “From our calculations here, you have until tomorrow noon to complete containment before irreversible damage is likely to be caused.”
“I’ll do my best, sir,” Dieter said.
“Thank you,” Behr said, “Oh, one more thing. Those books you said you found? I’d like to take a look at them, have Vienna begin categorizing it for the field report.”
“Respectfully, sir, I think I may still need the books for this case,” Dieter said.
“I understand,” Behr said, “Good luck.”
Behr’s hologram disappeared. As soon as the connection ended, Dieter took out his phone and cast a detection spell. A map appeared, with icons indicating where other Inquisitors were. There were two of them waiting just a couple blocks away, probably watching him. He cast an anti-magic spell just to be safe.
3:00 PM
Angela and Anders sat in a study room, reading the two books as they waited for Dieter.
“How did we get here?” Anders said.
“You started this,” Angela said, “You tell me how we got from looking for Annie to dealing with ancient cults worshipping eldritch abominations.”
“Angie, you know what mean,” Anders said.
“What?” Angela said.
“I’m really getting tired of this,” Anders said.
“This again?” Angela said.
“I just feel like saying this,” Anders said.
“Go ahead?” Angela said.
“Twenty years ago, I though this would be my life’s work,” Anders said, “I thought I would be doing this until I died. Until someone killed me. But in those years…I’ve realized something. I can’t do this forever. We can’t keep doing this.”
“Anders, X-Division is your life’s work,” Angela said, “You can’t just leave it behind.”
“It was my life’s work,” Anders said, “The work of a younger me. But now I have a family. I’m getting old. It won’t be long before we have to leave the Athanatoi. And then what will we do? What legacy will we leave?”
“We’ll figure it out, Anders,” Angela said, “We always do.”
“Look at Dieter and Munster,” Anders said, “They’ve been working for the Inquisition for over twenty years now. Dieter joined the Inquisition straight out of high school. He came from a Lithuanian village in southern Aegyptus where the only choice for him was selling fish. But he was good at following orders, and he wanted to go see the world. Munster was called to duty. He came from a big city, knew a lot of people, and was the most popular kid at his high school. He gave it all up for the Inquisition. They’re still working today. I bet they’ve gone on plenty of adventures and saved the world dozens of times over. I say I bet because I will never be sure. The Inquisition keeps its own secrets. Nobody knows what they’ve done. They will never be thanked or rewarded for what they did. And I look at them and see ourselves reflected in them. What have we sacrificed for X-Division? And how much more are we willing to sacrifice for it without people ever knowing we were there?”
“You’ve asked me this plenty of times,” Angela said, “We’ll figure it out.”
“Stop saying that,” Anders said, “You just want to kick the can down the road, tackle the problem another day, but really you never want to tackle it. Because you don’t know what to do, just like I don’t know. You know I want the truth. I want to know the truth, and I want to everybody to know it. But what we did in the last six years, ever since Kurtz brought us in from the wilderness, was do the opposite. We covered it up. We created a conspiracy of our own. And I went along with it. I encouraged it. And I realize I can’t undo what I did now without revealing my own complicity in it, my own hypocrisy. I can’t take it anymore. The other you hiding among us was the last straw. I don’t want to end up like the Inquisitors, always covering their tracks, always forgotten. I want to leave my mark on the world. No more cover ups. No more lies. Angie, once we’re done with this, I want to expose and end Sentinel. I want to put an end to this crusade that’s taken up my entire life. I want to finally rest. It’s time I finished the work I started decades ago.”
Dieter entered the study room.
“Hey there,” Anders said, “How did it go?”
“Hide the books,” Dieter said, “I just spent the last hour or so throwing some other Inquisitors off my trail. Make sure they don’t get their hands on the books.”
“What happened?” Angela said.
“Behr is hiding something,” Dieter said.
“So he didn’t tell you about what happened back in 1935?” Anders said.
“Oh, no, he did, but I got the feeling he’s hiding something else,” Dieter said.
He tapped his phone. Magic rings briefly surrounded Angela and Anders.
“What was that?” Angela said.
“I’ve warded you, so they can’t track you,” Dieter said, “Get out of this town. They’re coming after me.”
“What will you do?” Anders said.
“I’m going to play their game,” Dieter said, “Like see what this sigil Behr gave me is all about.”
“We’re staying in this town,” Angela said, “We’re not going to leave you.”
“As I said, it’s too dangerous,” Dieter said, “This is the Inquisition we’re talking about.”
“So?” Anders said. “We’ve faced down aliens and angels and demons and gods before, gods in this very town no less. We can handle the Inquisition.”
Dieter sighed.
“Fine,” he said, “Then I’m going to need you to head back to your hotel. I need to test out this sigil on my own, lure them out. You guys dig around for more clues.”
“Alright then,” Angela said.
8:00 PM
Wagner sat on his bed, cross-legged. His Book of Rod lay open in front of him. The room was illuminated by scented candles which helped him relax. His eyes were closed as he reached back into the depths of his mind, trying to retrieve memories which might help him with the dire situation at hand. Images flashed by, of him meeting the Athanatoi agents in 1998 following his son’s incident at school. Then he looked back to earlier days, of him in 1935 dealing with the previous incident. Even earlier incidents flashed by, each one increasingly older, until he hit an unexpected roadblock. He could not remember anything prior to the medieval period. He was sure he was around before the medieval period, being worshipped by the nomads of the Taurican steppes as they migrated into Europe, Central Asia, and India. But why couldn’t he remember?
He walked over to a bookshelf and took out an old book of spells and magic remedies, its pages yellowed and cracked. He remembered Baba Yaga giving him the book centuries ago, in some forest in northern Russia, and then watching as the old lady and her walking house disappeared into the trees again. Wagner flipped the book open to the page detailing how to remember memories and found the spell he was looking for. He whispered the incantation. The letters briefly glowed white. He leaned back and concentrated again. He just had to wait now.
Saint-Croix Cathedral - 9:00 PM
Dieter shook his can of sigil-drawing spray paint, checked his notepad, and continued spraying the lines of the sigil on the floor around the altar. The sigil was bigger than any he had drawn before and required a special paint laced with magical materials, for the extra power. The design was also different from what he was used to drawing, as the lines and ancient script eschewed the usual pentagram and Enochian symbols. He’d seen a couple abstract sigils in a few other cases, but they were rarely used. Standard sigils were good enough.
He lit another incensed candle and checked his notepad. Instead of placing a palm, finger, or sacrifice in the middle, there was an incantation to go with the sigil. Incantations were expected for many spells, but they were always accompanied by placing a palm, finger, or sacrifice, as they weren’t strong enough on their own. They were usually in Latin, because the Inquisition had bound most of its spells to phrases in Latin for convenience and security when it was starting out under Friedrich the Great nine centuries ago. But this one was in another language. Not even Enochian, but something obscure enough to require phonetic aids. What really was Behr asking him to cast? Curious, he decided to scan the sigil with his phone. The app returned an error message.
“Error - no corresponding spell found in database”
He decided to say part of the incantation and hopefully see the spell partially activate. He checked the script and read off the first three words. As the words passed from his mouth, sounding like a mix of rusty Basque and Sanskrit, the sigil glowed deep red, the snake surrounding it looking like it was circling now. Dieter suddenly felt tired, as if the spell was draining his energy. The candles blew out, and his phone unexpectedly turned off. The little remaining light from the setting sun dimmed, like the spell was draining the light as well. Dieter backed away and put down the script, coming to a realization. There was no sacrifice because he himself was the sacrifice, and this was a powerful summoning spell. No way it was going to contain the anomalies. He had seen what he needed. Now it was time to disable the sigil and get back to Angela and Anders.
As he scrubbed the spray paint off the floor, he got the feeling someone was watching him. He looked up and saw two shadowy figures standing in the doorway. Dieter immediately reached for his gun, but an invisible force tossed him into the air and slammed him against the far wall. The gun clattered out of his holster and fell uselessly to the ground. A curse left his mouth. Why did this always happen to him? The two figures approached, and Dieter could notice one was a man and the other a woman, both in dark clothes. Both appeared unarmed. Dieter struggled to free himself, but he remained stuck to the wall.
The two figures reached him, though Dieter could not make out any distinguishing facial features on either.
“Did Behr send you?” Dieter said. “Tell him I’m onto his conspiracy. I know why he wanted me to cast this spell. To kill me and…summon something.”
“You got it wrong,” the man said, “We’re not with Behr, Dieter.”
“How do you know my name?” Dieter said. “And how did you get past the perimeter spells?”
He looked closer at the man’s outfit, seeing an Inquisitor’s badge sticking out of his pocket.
“Wait a minute,” Dieter said, “You’re also an Inquisitor.”
“He is, at least,” the woman said, “I’m just helping him. Let him go, Kevin.”
“Kristen, I’m not sure if that’s wise,” Kevin said.
“He means us no harm,” Kristen said, “He’s on our side.”
“What is going on here?” Dieter said.
He heard a violent crackling noise and noticed a flash coming from the sigil. Kevin had used his foot to smear the part that was the snake’s head, and the rest of the sigil flickered out, losing the red glow. But Kevin was in front of him, so how was he at the sigil? He noticed there were two of them…but then the Kevin at the sigil disappeared. As the light returned, Dieter could make out some features Kevin’s face.
“Don’t your recognize me, Dieter?” Kevin said. “It’s me, Kevin Kryder. That’s Kristen Kilar. Don’t worry, she’s on our side. We’re here to stop Behr from getting what he wants.”
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I'm still getting used to the new forum layout. It messed with my formatting a little, but I hope it looks fine.
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Nice to see you adjust the format change. I admit, took me awhile to get used to it as well, but I think I’ve gotten a hang of it now.
I guess Angela has never read a Manga before, clearly she is not a Weeb.
How come the Worm’s name is never used here. I guess it does make it more of a threat if X-Division doesn’t exactly know what it is, but it’s werid that the Angels didn’t know its name a couple arcs ago.
That's more of Olga's thing.Nice to see you adjust the format change. I admit, took me awhile to get used to it as well, but I think I’ve gotten a hang of it now.
I guess Angela has never read a Manga before, clearly she is not a Weeb.
How come the Worm’s name is never used here. I guess it does make it more of a threat if X-Division doesn’t exactly know what it is, but it’s werid that the Angels didn’t know its name a couple arcs ago.
Realistically only the Worm cultists would know Its name, and they haven't really shared much. There were translation issues with the book because the name can't really be translated...if it can be pronounced. "Worm" might be an approximate description given to it later on.
I also like the idea of It not just being called the Worm. Makes it more intimidating and unknown.
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It does amuse me that, given the vast conspiracies humanity has stumbled upon and endured in this timeline, when you reach the Stellaris era humanity is going to surprise the aliens by just how much they already know.
And then they'll probably start their own conspiracies within primitive alien civilizations for maximum irony. Minus the whole subversion from within and invasion part...maybe.
Good to know those two that trailed Dieter were not part of the cult, had me worried there for a second. Behr clearly is either part of the cult or at least subverted by it. Gonna be interesting to see how everything went once Wagner starts remembering.
Unspeakable, Part 3
9:05 PM
“Kevin?” Dieter said.
“Finally you recognize me,” Kevin said, “Did it really take you that long?”
“Well, the light wasn’t helping,” Dieter said.
“Blame the spell,” Kristen said.
“What is happening here?” Dieter said. “What are you doing here?”
“Well, short answer is, Prague branch was liquidated because I asked too many questions,” Kevin said, “So naturally I asked more questions, which brought me into contact with Kristen.”
“I was investigating a string of vampire deaths in the Dacian reservations,” Kristen said, “I learned they were being used as sacrifices for powerful and restricted spells. That sent the Inquisition after me.”
“Truth is, the Inquisition’s been maintaining a large cover-up for years,” Kevin said, “Those books in the archives were there because they didn’t want people to know what happened.”
“You brought those books here,” Dieter said.
“Yep,” Kevin said, “Because I knew someone like you would come around eventually.”
“Why Sankt-Laud?” Dieter said. “Why not just release it over the Inquisition’s networks?”
“We tried,” Kristen said, “But they’re fast. They purged it from the networks immediately. But if we put them in a random library in a place with a history of anomalies, then we know they’ll be more likely to get out there.”
"Kind of ridiculous and counterintuitive, don't you think?" Dieter said. "It's just as likely to sit on the shelf forever, gathering dust."
"Uh..." Kevin said.
Kristen glared at him.
“Well, at least it worked,” Kevin said.
“What are you two doing here then?” Dieter said.
“We’re investigating a lead,” Kevin said, “It appears a lot of our leads point here.”
“I assume it was the same for you?” Kristen said.
Dieter thought for a moment.
“Now that you mention it…” he said. “You’re right. Stahl asked me to investigate Sankt-Laud and the Normandy branch, saying I’ll find my answers here. I get here, and Stahl resigns, with Behr in line to succeed him.”
“Hate to break it to you, but the Council has already voted,” Kevin said, “As of tomorrow, he’s the new Head Inquisitor.”
“And then the Normandy branch has always been hiding stuff from me,” Dieter said, “Like the history of the Gallia branch, the 1935 incident…now this spell. Which would’ve killed me. Just what is Behr up to? What is this spell supposed to summon?”
“We’re trying to figure that out too,” Kristen said.
“Let me try something,” Kevin said.
He picked up the spray paint can and covered the sigil with a more standard-looking one.
“I’m going to see what happened here in the last 24 hours,” he said.
He cast the spell, and the cathedral was instantly filled with ghostly images of people, playing back past events. Dieter mostly saw mundane situations, like prayer services. But then he noticed something suspicious.
“Wait, stop,” he said.
Kevin stopped the playback in the middle of a service. Dieter walked up to the altar and noticed the priest was reading from a book similar to the ancient tome, with the same script. He looked at the priest’s face. It was Behr himself. He looked at the crowd and realized the congregants all had red eyes. Behr raised his arms, and the air above him briefly distorted and warped, like it was another anomaly.
“I…I think we got our answer,” Dieter said.
“Cultists,” Kevin said, “Why does it always have to be cultists?”
Weinstein residence - 10:00 PM
Wagner’s concentration suddenly broke as a sharp pain surged up his spine and into his head. He clutched his head, gritted his teeth, and tried to take his focus off the splitting headache rising up the back of his neck, but it was no use. He pressed his head against his pillow, closed his eyes, and cursed in Russian. He’d never had such a bad headache.
Then the pain suddenly stopped. It was like a large weight had been removed from his head. Not just that feeling he got when normal headaches or the flu went away, but something more. It was like his mind had been expanded, somehow. His memories of the past got clearer. Previously he could only recall snippets of his life before the early modern era, but now he could remember everything clearly. His battles in the Fifty Years’ War alongside Cornelius and the others as they fought the demons…oh, how he missed those days. But he realized he could remember things from even further back. He dug back into his memories of the medieval era, of being worshipped by the Tibetans and Turks and Russian tribes and the Indo-European nomads before them, back when they called him older names. But he could remember even further back. The old names, many of them long since forgotten, flashed through his mind again, steadily growing older…until…
Weltis.
There were no older names. He was sure of it. That was probably the first name he was worshipped under, when he was first called into existence. But who used that name? When was that name used? He searched the associated memories, expecting to see some nomads from the steppes of Taurica building an impromptu shrine to him as they built a fire to warm them through the night, believing for the first time in the spirits which would create him.
But instead he saw spaceships in the sky and gleaming skyscrapers of metal and glass, with teeming millions of humans, generally taller and bulkier than modern humans, walking by below. He somehow knew this was what Sankt-Laud was, long ago. A few of them made their way to a chapel which was where the current cathedral would be built thousands of years later. Inside, a minister gave a candlelit sermon in front of a statue of him, among other gods. He looked around and saw Cornelius, Wolfram, and the other gods sitting throughout the chapel, listening to the minister. It all came back to him. He was worshipped by the ancient human civilization, those first people. That was when his faith and that of his colleagues started. Not on the steppes of Taurica after the Ice Age, but over a hundred thousand years ago, in this technologically advanced society.
The doors opened, and some of the congregants murmured and whispered. Wagner turned around and saw a group of men and women in dark-colored robes enter the chapel. Their eyes glowed deep red, and their hair was white. Their leader carried a staff topped by a snake eating its own tail.
“What is the meaning of this?” the minister said, speaking in a language similar to Basque, a language Wagner instinctively knew but hadn’t heard in thousands of years.
“Renounce your false gods,” the cult leader said, “And embrace It’s love.”
“You’re crazy,” the minister said, “These are our gods. You cannot demand we abandon them.”
“The heartless shall be shown the error of their ways,” the cult leader said, pounding his staff.
The chapel was engulfed in a flash of light, and everybody screamed. Wagner was shaken out of his flashback, finding himself back on his bed in the present day. Those cultists…had they really been around for so long? And were they still active today, right now even? In this very town? He had to stop them, as he did before.
The doorbell rang. He ran downstairs and opened the door. Dieter, Kevin, and Kristen were waiting outside.
“Hello,” Dieter said.
“Dieter?” Wagner said.
“Yep,” Dieter said, “These are my colleagues, Kevin and Kristen. I suppose the Athanatoi told you I was working with them?”
“Oh, good, I was just looking to talk to you,” Wagner said, “I remember everything.”
“Remember everything?” Dieter said.
“Long story,” Wagner said, “But I believe that…”
“The Inquisition’s compromised?” Kevin said.
“How did you know that?” Wagner said.
“We did some digging of our own,” Kristen said.
“Cultists have infiltrated it,” Kevin said.
“Yes, yes, of course,” Wagner said, “It’s happening again.”
“Again?” Dieter said.
“That’s what they do,” Wagner said, “Infiltrate positions of authority and bring down society from within. That’s how the previous civilization fell, because they subverted it and left it open to attack from outside.”
“The previous civilization?” Dieter said.
“What?” Kevin said.
“Never mind that,” Wagner said, “But that’s their motive, destroying civilization so they can rebuild it in their own image. They did it to your ancestors’ civilization. I suspect they were behind the nuking of Heaven. I’m certainly not going to let it happen again to you.”
“We have to stop Behr before he can carry out his plan,” Dieter said.
“He’ll probably try to cast the spell again, knowing you haven’t fallen into his trap,” Kevin said, “We need to prevent him from doing it.”
“But how?” Wagner said.
“The spell…it’s a powerful summoning spell, right?” Kristen said.
“Yes,” Dieter said.
“What if we reverse it?” Kristen said.
“Make it a banishing spell?” Kevin said.
“Banish whatever Behr is trying to summon, so he can’t do it again later,” Kristen said.
“That's a good idea,” Dieter said.
“One problem though,” Kevin said, “The summoning spell required a large sacrifice. The banishing spell will require an even more powerful sacrifice.”
“Don’t worry about that,” Wagner said, “Get the spell ready first.”
Motel - June 21, 2015, 3:00 AM
Someone knocked on the door to Angela’s room. Angela, who was barely asleep, opened her eyes and shuffled over to the door. She peered through the peephole and recognized Kevin standing outside. She opened the door.
“Kevin Kryder?” she said.
“Yes, Agent,” Kevin said, “I told you we’d meet again.”
“You’ve grown so much,” Angela said.
“The Inquisition has treated me well,” Kevin said, “It’s been a long time.”
“What are you doing here?” Angela said.
“I’ve come to help with your case,” Kevin said.
“Something happened?” Angela said.
“Behr is compromised,” Kristen said, walking over.
“Who are you?” Angela said.
Anders shuffled up to the front door and immediately recognized her.
“Kristen?” he said.
“Hey Anders,” Kristen said, “Long time no see, huh?”
“You know this lady?” Angela said.
“A vampire,” Anders said, “There was a case with her around the time you were abducted. Kristen, I thought I told you to run away and lie low.”
“I couldn’t hide anymore,” Kristen said, “I found Kevin, and together we’re striking it out on our own and doing what’s right.”
“Where’s Dieter?” Angela said.
“At the cathedral, with Wagner,” Kevin said.
“For what?” Anders said.
“To stop Behr,” Kristen said, “They need your help?”
“What help could we possibly give?” Angela said. “We don’t know anything about magic, and I doubt our guns will work.”
“Just follow us,” Kevin said.
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I'm still trying to get used to this formatting. It's doubling each new line, so instead of one there are two lines in between each line and for every two line gap for a scene change it turns into four lines. It's annoying and the only way to do it right now is to manually delete the extra lines because I tried changing the Word document and nothing was different.
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In addition to that, I should probably let you know that the new format also may have affected the resolutions and sizes of all the gameplay screenshots in the chapters, through clicking on them seems to open a new tab where the images are fine. Just a heads up.
I’m sure this is unintentional, but doesn’t the way the Cult spread the Worm’s influence kinda validate Angeloi/Rasa ideology and their conspiracy theories? In the Middle Ages we had a Muslim vizer spread cult’s power throughout the Islamic world and now we’ve had the cult influencing the Soviet Commune from the Great Purge at least until the nuking of Heaven. Seems like Gandhi and Angelos at least knew about cult and seemed to respond to it like the First three Kaisers did, which I’m not sure how I should feel since they are genocidal fascist dictators. I know the Worm itself and the Cult don’t really care who they manipulate and just use anyone they can as pawns in their schemes, but I feel like Angelo/Rasa propaganda would’ve had a field day with this.
Then again, they did also hunt down Angels like the Soviet did in the Great Purge so it’s possible the Cult manged to infiltrate them as well. Let’s not forgot the Rasa general that ended up embracing the Worm as well in that update with Arabia Gruber.
I like the idea of the Pagan god’s existing back in the Ancient Human era. If the Ancient Humans existed in the timeline of your Celestial Empire AAR, then I guess this could explained where the Goa’ulds and the other aliens there picked up the Idea of mimicking human pagan pantheons, especially since there are references to Ancient Humans acting God like themselves at the height of their empire.
Speaking of which, you mentioned Aliens impersonating pagan pantheons in this quote Stargate style like they did in the Celestial Empire AAR, which brings up a question:
Do the Goa’uds still exist somewhere in the galaxy here? We haven’t seen that many references to your first AAR so far, so it’d be nice to see some cameos or references in Stellaris before your Celestial Empire reboot, nice way to bring it full circle I feel. I wonder what the Jotun were doing when the Goa’lads invaded in Celestial Empire?The situation is similar to the gods of mythology in Stargate. Aliens either impersonated existing gods or created new ones to explain their advanced technology to humans. And again, I haven't forgotten about the Aesir reference. I will be discussing that more soon.
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Wagner having all of his memories back may just tip things into our heroes' favor, but this will still be uncomfortably close.
As for getting used to this, I feel the new forum has left all of us with some growing pains.
As for getting used to this, I feel the new forum has left all of us with some growing pains.
Well then...that's...problematic. I posted a lot of gameplay chapters, so I'm not sure if I want to go back and fix them all. I may if I find time in the future.In addition to that, I should probably let you know that the new format also may have affected the resolutions and sizes of all the gameplay screenshots in the chapters, through clicking on them seems to open a new tab where the images are fine. Just a heads up.
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Actually I just realized all of my AARs including Return of the Celestial Empire have the same issue. Yeah, I probably won't go fix them. Sorry. I'll just make sure the next chapter is formatted correctly.
Yeah, their propagandists would've had a field day with that. But I doubt the two regimes were fully aware of the cult beyond possibly hearing rumors of them in the most obscure occult circles. Since Patel was obsessed with the Worm, I can imagine the Rasas fully embracing the cult and its influence as a way to take over the world.I’m sure this is unintentional, but doesn’t the way the Cult spread the Worm’s influence kinda validate Angeloi/Rasa ideology and their conspiracy theories? In the Middle Ages we had a Muslim vizer spread cult’s power throughout the Islamic world and now we’ve had the cult influencing the Soviet Commune from the Great Purge at least until the nuking of Heaven. Seems like Gandhi and Angelos at least knew about cult and seemed to respond to it like the First three Kaisers did, which I’m not sure how I should feel since they are genocidal fascist dictators. I know the Worm itself and the Cult don’t really care who they manipulate and just use anyone they can as pawns in their schemes, but I feel like Angelo/Rasa propaganda would’ve had a field day with this.
Then again, they did also hunt down Angels like the Soviet did in the Great Purge so it’s possible the Cult manged to infiltrate them as well. Let’s not forgot the Rasa general that ended up embracing the Worm as well in that update with Arabia Gruber.
I like the idea of the Pagan god’s existing back in the Ancient Human era. If the Ancient Humans existed in the timeline of your Celestial Empire AAR, then I guess this could explained where the Goa’ulds and the other aliens there picked up the Idea of mimicking human pagan pantheons, especially since there are references to Ancient Humans acting God like themselves at the height of their empire.
Return of the Celestial Empire is in a separate continuity from Hohenzollern Empire and its multiverse, so no Goa'uld or other Stargate references. It sounds weird to have multiple multiverses, but I think I can reconcile it with the idea of an omniverse, which is to a multiverse as a multiverse is to a universe.
Wagner definitely has a plan now, having remembered his previous dealings with the cult. But he'll need to act fast.
This will take a lot getting used to.
Fair enough, through you may have included Celestial Empire in the multiverse before.
What other AARs and Mega-campaigns would you consider to be part of the multiverse, since this list is a few years old and non-exhaustive? Just asking out of curiosity. Also have there been anymore crossovers in other AARs besides the Wilhelm appearances you mentioned and the Annionaverse-Hohenzollern crossover arc, or is that just it?
I don't know what happened, but it seems my previous response was deleted. Something to do with a server error?
Speaking of Wilhelm cameos, there are a few in other AARs, notably Empire Strikes Back and Empire of the Mediterranean. As I said, they're usually minor appearances where Wilhelm doesn't do much, but occasionally he does help out my original characters in those AARs where applicable. Though I've run into an issue where I had a relatively major Wilhelm appearance in From England to America, but that AAR has gone dead, leaving his arc unfinished. Nowadays I'm not interested in making more cameos as I don't want to complicate Wilhelm's timeline, especially since I'm planning out his character arc in Stellaris right now.
There are no other non-Wilhelm crossovers with other AARs.
Nowadays I consider it in a different multiverse from Hohenzollern Empire because their backgrounds are very different (Stargate is real in one universe and not the other).
I would rather not go into details as they're not the focus of this AAR or any of the other AARs, and the Wilhelm cameos are usually minor.
Speaking of Wilhelm cameos, there are a few in other AARs, notably Empire Strikes Back and Empire of the Mediterranean. As I said, they're usually minor appearances where Wilhelm doesn't do much, but occasionally he does help out my original characters in those AARs where applicable. Though I've run into an issue where I had a relatively major Wilhelm appearance in From England to America, but that AAR has gone dead, leaving his arc unfinished. Nowadays I'm not interested in making more cameos as I don't want to complicate Wilhelm's timeline, especially since I'm planning out his character arc in Stellaris right now.
There are no other non-Wilhelm crossovers with other AARs.
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