Krug sat on the floor and gurgled happily
as Nostrox scratched the back of his neck, oblivious to the nervous tension in
the room. Nostrox ran his fingers over the dorsal ridges protruding from Krug’s
spine, making overly muscled limbs shiver with pleasure. He ignored Krug’s
reaction and stared intently at Ghilabrious, who sat opposite and met
his stare. Behind Ghilabrious, Jocastum and Sebastophon shifted uneasily, looking
back and forth to each other and letting their extra limbs flex and twitch.
Ghilabrious broke first. “It won’t
work, Nostrox. It won’t work.”
Nostrox smiled slightly, and gave
the gentlest shake of his head. “Honoured
Elder Nostrox nowadays, if it please you, Chosen Ghilabrious.”
Ghilabrious winced. “It won’t
work, Honoured Elder Nostrox.”
Nostrox gave an equally small nod
in acknowledgement and continued. “It isn’t a question of whether it will work.
My instructions come directly from Prophet Zicarios.” Nostrox leaned back in
his chair to better observe the effect his words had on Ghilabrious.
Ghilabrious allowed his eyes to
widen only for a moment before he controlled his expression. “You spoke with
the Prophet?”
Nostrox replied with a knowing
smile and Ghilabrious shifted in his seat.
“This sector,” said Nostrox “will be the site from which our conquest of the Palatine Spire truly begins. The petty squabbles you have engaged in thus far -“ Nostrox spread the fingers of one hand to forestall Ghilabrious’s objections, “- are irrelevant. Whilst you should continue engaging the gangs of this area, your purpose is now subordinate to mine. You should be glad, Chosen Ghilabrious. It is not every cycle you get such a chance. Perhaps, if you play your role well, you may find yourself valued, or even cherished, by the Prophet. You were chosen for a reason, after all.”
“This sector,” said Nostrox “will be the site from which our conquest of the Palatine Spire truly begins. The petty squabbles you have engaged in thus far -“ Nostrox spread the fingers of one hand to forestall Ghilabrious’s objections, “- are irrelevant. Whilst you should continue engaging the gangs of this area, your purpose is now subordinate to mine. You should be glad, Chosen Ghilabrious. It is not every cycle you get such a chance. Perhaps, if you play your role well, you may find yourself valued, or even cherished, by the Prophet. You were chosen for a reason, after all.”
“The prophet knows of me?”
“The prophet knows us all, Chosen
Ghilabrious. The prophet knows us all.”
