Rise of the Living Forge-Chapter 388: Begin!

Art stood at the edge of their viewing room and leaned heavily against his cane as he watched the Secret Eye set about cleaning the arena. Kraven had told everyone something about preparing the stage for the finals and that there would be a short break.

He was pretty sure this was just an opportunity to rinse the attendees for every last coin the Secret Eye could get out of them — but for once, he welcomed it. The break bought him some much needed time to think.

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This tournament was far more than what it had first seemed, and that set his stomach ill at ease.

“You saw it, right?” Kien asked. The tall warrior stood beside him, his features cast in stone. It was impossible to tell what he was thinking. The broom at his side certainly didn’t help. They’d gotten all the way to the semi-finals of the tournament and Art still didn’t know what it did.

“Yes,” Art said, turning to fully face Kien. “It would have been hard not to. Vale gave Olive the very same dagger that Hein is using. They’re related.”

“More than related. Something’s going on. That Necrohammer… he’s the reason Hein is like this. The reason I’m like this. I don’t know what’s happening, Art — and I don’t like it. Not at all. Why would someone work with the Adveuturer’s guild like that? Why would they give Olive the dagger? Do they seek to turn her into another like my brother?”

Art blinked. He had to fight from keeping surprise from passing over his features. Kien had never let on any sort of weakness before, but now the man’s voice was so taut that Art feared it was about to snap.

Vix sent Art a sharp look, and it struck Art that Kien was actually looking to him for advice.

“I… don’t know how much of that is true,” Art said quietly. “I don’t see any logical reason for Vale to give Olive that dagger if his goals were nefarious. He could have used it on her at any point earlier in the fight. Sure, she has full armor, but it wasn’t nearly as extensive as Vale’s was.”

“Then what do you think Necrohammer wants?” Kien asked. “What is his purpose?”

Art looked back to the stage for several long seconds. “You saw the way Elias looked at him, right?”

Kien frowned. “What?”

“Elias. The bandaged member on Olive’s team.”

“Yes, I know who Elias is. But I wasn’t paying attention to him that fight. What did I miss?”

Art ran his hand along the handle of his cane. “Elias recognized Necrohammer. Nearly got him killed. They definitely know each other, though. All of us are missing pieces, and it’s impossible to make conclusions without them. All we can do is guess.”

“Guess, then,” Kien said. “I am not a strategist, Art. I am a warrior. My purpose is hitting dangerous things really hard. I cannot do that purpose when I do not truly understand what the dangerous thing is.”

It was a few moments before Art responded. “I would carefully guess that Necrohammer isn’t here to help Hein at all. He’s here to stop him. The nature of the heavy armor his team wore, paired with the fact one of them gave his dagger away after they lost… it seems like Necrohammer planned to use one dagger to take out the other. That’s my best guess.”

Kien’s eyes widened. “You mean you think Necrohammer is on our side?”

Art shook his head immediately. “No. Absolutely not. Assumptions like that are incredibly dangerous. He may not be here for us, but that does not make him an ally. I don’t think he’s here to help Hein, though. Perhaps he simply wants his dagger back.”

Kien was silent for several long seconds. Then he gave Art a sharp nod. “Right. I am overthinking things. Even if Necrohammer was helping, it would change nothing. Hein needs to be stopped. We will—”

“Heya!”

All of them spun at the sound of Reya’s voice. She stood near the door, a hand raised in greeting. The problem was that she was on the wrong side of the door. It definitely hadn’t opened. Art or Vix would have heard it — but she stood as if she’d been there for quite some time.

"What?" Art blinked. “I — how?”

“Here,” Reya said, ignoring his question entirely as she gingerly pulled out a wrapped bundle from beneath her shirt. Any questions that Art had about her appearance died on her lips. He didn’t even need to make a guess as to what the bundle was. Everyone in the room already knew.

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“The dagger?” Kien asked, his words little more than a whisper.

“Yeah,” Reya said. “We figured out what’s going on. At least I think we did. We aren’t totally sure, but no point counting beans and shit. Necrohammer is probably trying to stop Hein. That’s why he had his team here in that heavy armor. Arwin thinks you might be able to use one dagger to shatter the other.”

“We figured the first part out already, but you’re sure about the second?” Vix asked, tilting her head to the side. “The dagger will break its twin?”

“Probably,” Reya said. “I don’t really know. It might not. We didn’t exactly speak to Necrohammer. But whoever goes up against Hein is going to need this thing. It’ll be either you guys, Olive’s team, or Setting Sun — and we don’t know Setting Sun’s team at all.”

“So why bring it to us?” Kien asked, studying the wrapped blade intently without making any move toward taking it.

“We discussed who would be the most likely to go up against Hein and decided it was probably you,” Reya replied with a shrug.

“Why not Phoenix Circle?” Vix scratched the side of her neck. “The Secret Eye definitely likes dramatic fights. It’s clear the daggers are at least tangentially related. Even if people don’t know what the weapons do yet, that seems like a climactic fight.”

“Right,” Reya said with a nod. “But the Secret Eye aren’t just showmen. They know what Hein has. There’s no way they don’t. They’re enabling it. That means at least someone responsible for the tournament is probably working with the Adventurer’s Guild. And if that’s the case…”

“They’ll match Hein against people that don’t have the dagger,” Art finished. “Us.”

Reya nodded. “Or Setting Sun. But yes, you’re the most likely ones. You should take this. And if you go up against Hein…”

“I’ll put an end to him,” Kien said quietly. He took the wrapped dagger from Reya. “Thank you. This may mean the difference between success and defeat. I do not know how powerful Hein has grown during this tournament. He has defeated every team within a single exchange of blows.”

“He’s likely holding back,” Art said. “You know there will be little room for mercy, right?”

“Trust me,” Kien said as he turned back to the stage, his features grim. “I know.”

***

Their guess was right. Really, it hadn’t been that much of a stretch. When the Secret Eye finished cleaning up and patching over the stage, the first round of the Semi-finals begun without any further ado.

Two teams took to the stage.

On one side was Hein, flanked by his two cloaked assistants. Neither of them had done anything throughout the tournament to this point. They’d just stood by like a pair of flies flanking their prized turd.

And on the other side was Art’s team.

Kien stood at their head. He’d donned his mask again, but it couldn’t conceal the emotions ravaging the man’s body. His hands were clenched so tightly around the hilt of the broom that Art almost feared it would break.

The dagger Reya had delivered to them was tucked securely into Kien’s back pocket. They couldn’t let Hein see it a moment sooner than they had to.

After all, the three of them had a strategy. It admittedly wasn’t a great one. Art actually hated it, but it was the one he’d agreed to. It was the one that Kien had insisted on. And, unfortunately, he hadn’t been able to come up with anything better.

Half of that strategy involved making sure that Hein never got a chance to fully go all out against them. With the amount of power he’d gathered at this point, their chances of a victory in a direct fight were terrifyingly low.

A wind curled through the arena, sharp enough to bite at Art’s neck and eyes. The temperature had dropped together with the setting sun. Orange and purple hues illuminated the stage, final rays of dying light before night swallowed the day.

“Are we certain about this?” Vix asked, her voice little more than a whisper. “It feels wrong.”

“It is the only way forward,” Kien replied simply. “This is my fight. Not yours. Both you and Art are competent warriors. You have much to prove… and much to grow. Engaging Hein risks all of that.”

“And what about you?” Vix asked. “Don’t you—”

“Enough,” Kien said sharply. “I appreciate your concern, Vix. But we have a strategy. Changing our path now will do nothing but sow confusion. We all have our part to play in this.”

Vix gritted her teeth, then gave him a small nod. “Right. I won’t let you down.”

“Neither of us will,” Art said. “But do try and survive. There aren’t enough good people left in the world to waste one on someone like this.”

“We will see what hand fate deals.”

On the other side of the arena, as Kraven called out his opening statements for the fight, Hein raised his dagger. The man’s face was sunken; his eyes as wild as those of an animal. There was little human left within his features.

“I carve my way to the top of this tournament, only to find that the team I am told should be second to the peak is nothing but a janitor and a pair of children?” Hein’s laughter echoed across the stage. There was a streak of something vicious and hungry within it, like the cackle of a hyena. “Couldn’t they find anyone better?”

“Nobody better is required to deal with the likes of you,” Kien replied, his words ringing through the arena to carve through Hein’s laughter like a blade.

The crazed man’s eyes narrowed in fury at the insult.

“I hope you’re all ready for the end,” Hein said, stalking toward them. “I don’t like fighting kids, so I’ll start with the janitor. Seriously. Did you really think you could beat me with a broom? You’re going to get yourself killed.

“A janitor is the perfect thing to send when in pursuit of scum,” Kien replied, striding forward to meet Hein. “And I was dead long before I set foot on this platform. Who better to kill one monster than another?”

Kraven sputtered, giving up midway through his speech to look down at the two brothers, completely unaware of who they truly were. Then he shrugged.

“You know what? What can I say that your blades can’t? It’s not like Hein’s fights tend to last long anyway. Let’s see some blood! Begin!”