Second Genesis

Grey didn’t seem particularly surprised by the lack of response. He already had his answer. They had all seen what he had done to The Relentless’ disciple, and even if Petri hadn’t explained every detail of what happened afterward, he had experienced Grey’s abilities personally.

Considering how much sway the bald bastard seemed to have around here, it wasn’t surprising that everyone was taking Grey very seriously now.

Grey grinned. "Great. Glad we’re all on the same page. Now, can I see my friends and my wife already?"

The Pope stared at him.

"Mauve, Brad, Elowen. You know, the important people. I’m curious how the first two are doing, and I wouldn’t mind looking at a pretty girl again either."

"The young woman named Mauve has been taken in by the convent," the Pope said.

Grey’s smile faded a little. "What? The nuns?"

That made no sense. Mauve had just accepted the Blood Witch’s inheritance before Grey left, and there was no chance the nuns had somehow overlooked her using powers inherited from a Savage Race.

More importantly, Mauve wasn’t stupid, she knew exactly how the Holy Kingdom felt about the Savage Races and would have known better than to display anything suspicious before understanding her surroundings.

But that created an entirely different question. If Mauve hadn’t shown them anything exceptional, why would the nuns take her in at all?

Grey’s eyes narrowed. "Did Elowen have something to do with that?"

The Pope didn’t answer directly. "The convent made its own decision."

"Which means yes, maybe, or fuck off and stop asking." Grey nodded. "Got it. What about Brad?"

The Pope’s expression changed slightly, and Grey caught it immediately.

"Don’t tell me he got recruited by the monks too," Grey said. "What the hell, you guys handing out scholarships now?"

"This situation is more complicated."

Grey stopped smiling.

The Pope leaned back slightly. "After your departure, Brad attempted the trial left behind by The Relentless. He has remained within it ever since."

Grey blinked. He was the one who suggested that Brad did that. If something happened to Brad because of that... Grey sighed inwardly, he had enough things to feel bad about without adding more things to the list.

"How long is ’ever since’?" he asked.

"Several days."

That wasn’t funny anymore.

The Pope continued before Grey could interrupt. "He has not moved from the same location. We have attempted to remove him, but the trial will not allow outside interference. He remains outside The Relentless’ courtyard, attempting to lift the hammer embedded within the stone."

Grey stared at him for several seconds.

’Motherfucker really found Mjolnir.’

Somewhere in the universe, a lawyer probably just woke up sweating. These Genesis Games and that damned sexist Genesis System really didn’t give a damn about copyright infringement at all.

"I want to see him."

"The preparations for the Instance—"

"I said I want to see him."

The Pope’s eyes hardened. "Grey Temolt, you are currently in no position to make demands."

Grey looked down at the chains around his wrists, then back up. His expression had gone completely flat, and somehow that made him look considerably more dangerous than when he was smiling.

"If my friends aren’t alright, I’m not helping you."

A pressure filled the chamber.

It came from the Pope so suddenly that several people around the room stiffened. The old man’s aura wasn’t wild or uncontrolled, but for the briefest moment Grey felt the weight of something far beyond anything he could currently fight head-on, a warning that the man seated before him had tolerated quite enough.

Grey didn’t move.

The pressure lasted only an instant before the Pope drew it back in, his expression settling into a dull calm. Then he looked toward Petri.

"Take him."

Petri sighed. "Of course."

The Relentless’ courtyard was still within Church territory, which meant Grey could be moved there without ruining whatever little performance they were putting on about him being a captured prisoner. Petri led him through several corridors and open courtyards, Grey’s chains clinking the entire way while monks and nuns pretended not to stare.

Grey ignored all of them.

By the time they approached The Relentless’ courtyard, he could already sense something was wrong.

There were people gathered at a distance, but none stood anywhere near the center. They watched silently, some with pity, some with fascination, while others looked like they had long since accepted that there was nothing they could do.

Grey pushed past Petri.

Then he saw Brad.

For a moment, Grey didn’t recognize him.

Brad had always been huge, a wall of muscle even taller than Grey, with shoulders broad door frames really hated to see the big oaf coming. Now, though, his clothes hung loosely from his frame, his cheeks were hollow, and every ridge of his ribs showed through what little remained of his shirt.

He looked like he had one foot in the grave, yet he was still standing.

Both of Brad’s hands were wrapped around the handle of a hammer lodged deep into a stone pedestal, his fingers trembling so violently that Grey could see it even from a distance. His legs shook beneath him, his arms looked like little more than bone wrapped in skin, but he continued to pull.

Grey’s smile vanished completely.

"Brad? Holy shit..."

Before he left, Mauve had ended up lucking into a nice legacy for her to follow, so Grey had thought that maybe Brad needed to find his own path. He had casually mentioned The Relentless’ trial because he was the only Guardian actively recruiting disciples.

Plus, for a big wall of more muscle than brain like Brad... it seemed to fit. But where Grey was at fault was that he didn’t really understand The Relentless’ trial. He had just casually heard about it in passing back when he was making life for the people in the church a living hell that day he first arrived.

But now, Brad was paying for that. If things went on like this, it didn’t matter how much determination Brad had, he was going to die the moment his body gave out. But it didn’t seem like determination alone was what was keeping him upright.

Brad couldn’t remove his hand even if he wanted to.

’Fuck me. Why it is that all my friends end up half dead when I’m not around. First Thi Lan and Amunet, now this. Amunet is probably shacked up in such dead nun’s ritual at this point.’

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