The chaos's smoke was thick and acrid, but the most penetrating stench for Ren was that of failure. He arrived at the periphery of Vorthus mine on his arcane mount, descending onto the ruins at dawn.
The Ash Queen's forces' attack had been effective; columns of smoke rose above the mine, and wounded Paladins moved in the pale sunlight in their armor.
The plan had worked perfectly... except for the end.
Ren didn't find Kaito. He found a furious Paladin Darius shouting orders at his guards, and a dirty smudge on the isolation cells' wall.
He approached the escape area, using his Commander's authority to push guards aside. The magical runes destroyed by Kaito's Chaos still smoked.
"Commander Ren," Darius approached, his face a map of pulsing veins with rage. "Inquisitor Vane is a traitor. She tried to free the Specter. I told you! Its dark nature couldn't be controlled."
"And the subject?" Ren asked, keeping his voice icy.
"Gone. She used her Shadow magic to blind the guard and fled through the conduits. But she couldn't leave Vorthus. We've sealed it. They must still be in the underground labyrinth!"
Darius didn't know the distraction had been an act of war orchestrated for Lysandra, nor that his brother hadn't been rescued by a Paladin, but intercepted by a Demon Queen.
Ren walked toward the drainage conduit, examining the magical signature. He saw Lysandra's controlled Shadow's faint trace, Kaito's volatile Chaos trail... and an immense, ancient presence of *pure Shadow*, which hadn't tried to hide.
The Queen. She took him.
The blow was a punch to the solar plexus of his planes. His sacrifice, his pact, his betrayal of the Conclave, all had served to deliver Kaito to darkness's most dangerous faction.
Ren forced himself to focus. Panic was a luxury his mask couldn't afford.
"Darius, your analysis is wrong," Ren said, with the authority of a Commander who's seen more battlefields than the Paladin. "Inquisitor Vane is skilled. If they vanished, they did so immediately. They're not in the labyrinth."
"But, Commander!" Darius insisted. "The Shadow forces' attack was too coordinated. This wasn't an internal escape. It was an *extraction*. Vane handed the Specter to the Ash Queen."
It was a master lie. The lie was credible, saved Darius's face (turning him into a victim of a complex operation), and crucially, diverted the Conclave's search toward where Kaito wasn't anymore.
"Gather your men," Ren ordered. "We'll go to the Seventh Seal Ruins. We'll recover the asset and bring Vane's head."
As Darius rushed to comply, Ren withdrew to a less crowded mine area and activated his encrypted communicator. He had a pending appointment.
The Queen's Wrath
Ren arrived at the Seventh Seal Ruins. He wasn't dressed in travel clothes anymore; he'd put on his Paladin armor, symbolizing the formality of his new conflict.
The Ash Queen waited for him on the basalt altar, her crimson eyes gleaming with intense, dangerous calm. Her white hair seemed to float in the place's magical stillness.
She wasn't enraged; she was immensely disappointed.
"You arrive late, Commander," the Queen said, without a hint of affection.
"Your distraction worked, Your Majesty. The prisoner is out."
"And in my hands, not yours. You *failed*. And thus, the first part of your pact broke. Your 'asset' isn't under your control."
Ren felt the weight of slavery over his soul.
"I paid my part. The chaos was delivered. My asset is now in my ally's hands. The end goal of getting him out of the Conclave was met."
"You're not as foolish as you seem," the Queen smiled slightly. "The deal was: I give you the window; you give me loyalty. Now, Kaito belongs to me. And that makes your loyalty even more necessary."
The Queen moved closer to Ren, the power difference was abysmal. She placed her obsidian hand on Ren's armored chest.
"I told you. Chaos always comes *home*."
Kaito has far greater potential than you imagined. He'll be the weapon that topples Aethelgard. And you, Commander, will be my spy and political support in the Light's court.
Ren clenched his fists. His failure had become his greatest bond.
"And what about Lysandra Vane? The traitor?"
"Vane isn't important. She's been marked by the Light. Now she's alone. But I'll give you advice. She's expert in survival. Never underestimate a traitor who's lost everything."
The Queen withdrew.
"The Ash Oath holds. Return to your throne of lies. You're my Commander in Aethelgard, and when I need you, your soul will answer."
"Now, leave. I don't want my new acquisitions mixed with your stupid Light."
Ren felt humiliated, chained, but alive. He had to return to his role. He had to start planning *stealing Kaito from the Queen herself*.