The Moment of Truth [Job/Solo/Plot]

Kaveh found himself back within the walls of the largest Temple of Ra. As many times as the magician has been seen entering the holy place, he's surprised that no one has approached him about becoming a disciple. Anyway, Kaveh was carrying with him a large sack on his back. Within the sack were three holy artifacts that he went to find for the High Priest Khaldun. Upon entering the temple, the priests immediately recognized the man and led him towards Khaldun's private study. Apparently the High Priest was expecting Kaveh's return around this time. However the man was able to predict Kaveh's arrival so precisely was beyond the imagination of the red magician. He refused to let his thoughts dwell on it though. If there was one thing he learned about these priests, it was to not think too much on their methods. Their end game is what is truly important.

"Ah! There you are! Hello, Kaveh. I was wondering when you would finally return." The priest approached Kaveh slowly. The man was speaking as if he didn't know precisely when Kaveh would return. Perhaps the red magician was just suspicious and his timing was just convenient. Perhaps. He was still skeptical about it though. For some reason, Kaveh had a feeling that he couldn't entirely trust whatever the High Priest said to him. "SO how did it go? I'm guessing that you retrieved the artifacts for our lord?"

Kaveh blinked a few moments and smiled at the man. "I would not be standing before you if I didn't!" The magician removed the sack from his back and carefully removed its contents. Khaldun walked forward and inspected the artifacts closely as Kaveh revealed them. It was almost as if the man didn't trust Kaveh's work. The red magician noticed the inspection and took a few steps backwards to allow the man to study the treasures. At the same time, Kaveh was studying the priest, trying to figure out the man's thought processes. He seems to have very little interest in the actual items. His inspection doesn't seem very thorough. Was he just testing me? Seeing if I would go through with the task? Kaveh thought to himself as he watched the man. Waiting on the Priest to pass his judgement wasn't something that Kaveh really wanted to make a habit out of. Hopefully this would be the last time.

"Tell me something... did you run into any trouble to get these?" Kaveh stood there silently, thinking. Hm... He expected me to run in to trouble. The red magician nodded his head and scratched behind his head. "Yes. I ran into a few guys who were interested in the relics as well. When they realized that I wasn't one of some guy named Ankahanten's men, they attacked me. I unfortunately couldn't defend myself to the point where they would also survive." The priest stood there for a moment, looking at Kaveh with a bit of shock and disbelief. Did Kaveh really just admit to killing three people to the priest?! Kaveh quickly looked to the side, as if to convey a slip of the tongue.

The priest ceased his inspection and gave Kaveh a friendly look. A look of satisfaction and pride. The heat magician was thoroughly thrown off. "Perfect! I knew I could count on you. You say you ran into some problems hm? Ankahanten..." The priest's mood started to falter with the utterance of the name. Kaveh couldn't help himself. With the downward inflection of the priest's voice, Kaveh's eyebrows raised in curiosity. He had to know why the priest seemed so upset about this now. The High Priest caught on to Kaveh's facial cues and sighed. "Ankahanten is one of the High Priests of Anubis. I worried that he was after these relics to destroy them... it seems as though I waws right. These artifacts that you found are pivotal in the worshiping of Ra. The two temples have coexisted so peacefully... To think that he would go so far as to end our cohabitation..." The High Priest went over to his desk, grabbing a piece of parchment and a plume. He began writing, leaving Kaveh to wonder what was going on.

A few minutes passed when Khaldun finally lifted his face from his desk. The letter was finished and another heavy sigh left his breast. "Kaveh..." The sound of the man's voice drew the red magician's attention. He walked over to the man slowly and silently. "I want you to do me one last favor... I need you to give these to the Pharaoh." Kaveh's eyes widened and he took a step back. The magician initially came to Khaldun, seeking the Pharaoh's help, but he didn't think that he would be the one to approach the almighty law of Heliohapt. He figured that Khaldun would pass the message on for him! Kaveh's heart started beating faster and he couldn't contain his thoughts. W-why am I getting so nervous... P-possibly because this man can have me k-killed with a snap of his f-fingers.. Khaldun's eyes met Kaveh's and the frantic thoughts began to calm. Khaldun transferred a feel of confidence to Kaveh. It was a feeling that the magician wasn't used to receiving from another...

"Me? Should I really be the one? You are a trusted advisor of the Pharaoh... would it not make more sense for you?" Khaldun smiled softly and stood from his desk. He walked over to Kaveh, carrying the letter that he just finished writing. "It would. It would make too much sense. You see, I have had fears of Ankhanten's ambition for far too long. If I were to move from the temple to go and speak with the Pharaoh after you have come from the underground temple... it would seem suspicious and a lie may be fabricated immediately. You, however, may give us hope! You are a member of the Historical Society! Why would it be strange for you to retrieve the artifacts, study them with your knowledge of Torran and its language, and then present important information to the Pharaoh? You must do this for me, Kaveh. You are the only man outside of this temple that I trust enough to do so. Do this, and your... mishap below the sands will only be a memory." The priest gave a smile to Kaveh and handed him the letter as well. "This is your real delivery to the Pharaoh. Hide it amongst the artifacts."

Kaveh looked to the parchment and back to Khaldun. My mishap huh? Kaveh let it click. The man was going to use his slip of tongue to ensure that he does this errand for him. ...Perfect. Kaveh grinned on the inside. The majority of the people in Heliohapt could feel the tension between the two Temples. When the men in the ruins brought forth Ankhanten's name, Kaveh all but jumped for joy. He knew reporting such a thing would get Khaldun to involve the Pharaoh. However, he didn't think that Khaldun would send Kaveh to meet with the man. Now he didn't have to find a way to include the cultists with Ankhanten. He could just request assistance for them himself. His act wasn't done yet, though. Kaveh slowly grabbed the parchment and nodded. "I'll take care of it. As you trust me to deliver your message, I trust you to keep my secret."

Khaldun's face softened as Kaveh accepted the request. As Kaveh turned to the artifacts to return them to the sack, slipping the note in with them, Khaldun goes back to his desk and grabs a large pin. "Kaveh! One more moment." Kaveh stopped and looked towards the approaching High Priest. Khaldun attached the pin to Kaveh's cloak with a smile. The pin had the sign of the High Priest of Ra, signifying Kaveh as his official messenger for the palace guards to let him in to see the Pharaoh. "With this, it will ensure you safe passage. Be careful, though. Ankhanten may still attempt to stop you..."

Kaveh nodded and exited the temple, making his way to the Golden Palace.

Kaveh made his way through the streets of Heliohapt. His eyes refused to stop moving as he was looking over his new environment. This was the noble sector of the city. A place that the magician has never been. The buildings in this area didn't seem nearly as dusty as the common residential areas. Which really impressed Kaveh, seeing as how they were in the middle of the desert. The marble structures did cause a bit of awe within the red magician, though. For that, he was grateful. It wasn't every day that he could marvel at such architecture up close.

The lesiruely stroll started to feel... off to the magician, unfortunately. He started to notice that there was no one on the streets aside from himself. The vendors weren't even at their carts. ...Did I really just walk into a tr-- The magician's thoughts were cut off as he noticed two large statues in front of him. One was of Ra, the other of Anubis, and the steps for the Golden Palace were a few meters away from them. Leaning against the statue of Anubis, however, was a very muscularly built man. He only stood at 160cm, but the definition and size of his muscles was enough to intimidate most ment... Kaveh happened to be one of those men. He stopped in his tracks and raised his eyebrow at the sight before him. Next to the man leaning against the stature, there were three others who were holding scimitars, seemingly subservient to the man against the statue.

It didn't take long for them to notice Kaveh's presence, which made them move from their position. The man in the back spoke up, his voice booming through the sands. "So you're the one, huh? Tell me: what did you do the Gian, Hasado, and Feist?" Kaveh blinked in silence. Those names... those are the three that attacked me in the ruins. I guess he is part of their group... He thought to himself. "I see... Kill him." Kaveh's eyes widened at the sudden judgement and sentence. He wasn't even going to give Kaveh a chance to lie?! Great!

Kaveh pulled his pipe from his pocket and kept it concealed under his cloak as the three men approached him. The magoi surged into the gem and up to his mouth., waiting on them to get closer. The men suddenly started to split off. No. Salamander's Breath! Kaveh didn't want to draw this out, he had to get rid of as many of them as they could. Luckily for him, they weren't that fast. He opened his mouth and exhaled, a cone of flame trapping them and burning the men alive.

As the flames stopped coming from the magician's mouth and faded, a shock appeared. Kaveh's borg sprung into action, causing him a bit of confusion and then he felt a monstrous force. His borg shattered instantly and he was sent flying a meter and a half backwards. The magician remembered the sack that was on his back and that he needed to protect the contents. He stopped mid air, floating, making sue of his Gravity Lift. With a sigh of relief, Kaveh looked back towards the man in front of him. He noticed that there was a large amount of magoi fading from his palm. What the? A regular human has control over their magoi like this? Impossible. He thought to himself.

"Magician. I am Abdel, a bandit who has mastered Magoi Manipulation. You killed three of my students... Prepare yourself." A bandit? So he's NOT one of Ankhaenten's men. Kaveh thought as the man began to sprint towards Kaveh once more. The man leapt into the air and reared his hand back, the film of magoi starting to surround it again. Dammit! Another one?! He thought to himself as he spoke a spell: "Firenado." The magician became the eye of a tornado made out of fire! The bandit's enlightened palm strike swatted the flames away, however. Kaveh accounted for this thankfully, and already had a recast of his Salamander's Breath prepared. Once the flames from the firenado dissipated, the cone of flames left his mouth once more, effectively burning the bandit. Kaveh used the screams of pain and momentary lapse of offense as his cute to get a bit more distance between the two men. Heh. He's not that prepared for quick assaults then... He thought to himself.

By the time Kaveh's thoughts ended, the man had extinguished the flames covering him somehow and was running towards Kaveh again. This time, Kaveh noticed the film of magoi around his legs and Kaveh acted as quickly as he could, Rase the ground!!" The large flames started at Kaveh and burst outwards in all directions of him. The "bandit" used his holy kick to knock away a section of the flames, as Kaveh predicted. The rest of the flames traveled upwards to give the illusion of being dissipated, when Kaveh was really resurging his magoi into them to manipulate them into a new spell. "Flame serpent!" The bandit prepared himself for the spell to come from the front, but was engulfed in the flames of the magician, by surprise, from above.

Kaveh panted, regaining his breath as he watched the four bodies burning to ashes. Before any of the residents could come out and see the scene, Kaveh walked passed the statues and up to the gates of the palace, allowing the guards to see the symbol of the High Priest of Ra. He was ushered into the palace and was instructed to wait outside of the audience room until the Pharaoh and Vizier would see him.

During his wait, Kaveh's eyes began to shut and he drifted off. Not into a land of sleep, unfortunately, but silent meditation. He needed to calm his thoughts and prepare himself for the interaction he was lucky to obtain. The Pharaoh was in the next room! Why wouldn't he be excited? Or rather, why wouldn't he allow himself to be excited? Kaveh knew that being able to keep himself composed during this meeting would be pivotal in the standing his warnings will take.  Now he only had to pull it off. Then he can have actual help with these cultists instead of the lesser priests of Ra claiming to look in to it.

His thoughts were interrupted as a door opened. The red magician's eyes opened and focused on the portal, eyeing the three bodies that came from it. Two guards and a eunuch. Well... at least its nothing hostile He thought to himself as the man before him began to speak. Kaveh nodded at the eunuch and rose from his seat. Kaveh slowly walked through the door as the eunuch stepped aside and found himself in the audience hall of the Pharaoh. Kaveh instantly began to gawk at the beauty within the room. He had not seen such adornments or beauty in one area before. The next thing that caused a bit of unease for the magician was the vast amount of guards in the room. Did one man need so much protection? I suppose if you're as important as he is, though...

His thoughts were short lived. The guards that opened the door for Kaveh were quickly behind him, nudging him to approach the throne. Kaveh was five meters away before the guards stopped him from moving. It was obvious that they didn't trust any person to get close to the pharaoh. Kaveh was even pushing their comfortability, and he was only allowed so close due to the pin of Ra. The Pharaoh then spoke, questioning Kaveh's being there. Kaveh's nervous feeling faded, however. Something about the man put him at ease and the feeling of "i may lose my life" didn't seem as prevalent. The magician quickly bowed before the man on the throne.

"My Lord, High Priest Khaldun sent me in his stead in order to conceal himself from 'enemies' he believes to have. I am here today to present holy artifacts, and to warn you of strange happenings.." Kaveh removed the sack from his back and unwrapped the three relics he was charged with retrieving and delivering, as well as the letter written by Khaldun. "Upon this letter, the High Priest Khaldun has expressed concerns with another High Priest and did not want to tempt fate in bringing it to you himself, in fear of what the other High Priest may do," Kaveh tried his best to avoid names until the Pharaoh read the letter himself. He held the paper out towards the Pharaoh and one of the guards grabbed it from him, carrying it to their master, "I also wanted to speak of kidnappings happening. The cult that plagued the streets of Heliohapt is threatening to become even more active. They attempted my life after I interfered in a previous abduction. The men claimed to be attempting to revive their god: Apep." The magician paused for only a moment. He wanted to try and gauge the Pharaoh's reaction, but he thought making eye contact with the man would be in poor taste. Instead, the magician stilled his tongue and kept his eyes on the rug, waiting on the words from the Almighty Law.

Kaveh's eyes fixated on the spot right before the Pharaoh's feet. Avoid eye contact. Let your ears do the work for you. He thought to himself as he focused on his situation. He listened to the Pharaoh's reaction. It didn't seem like he was pleased by the news. Who would? No leader wants to hear that his citizens are being abducted and sacrificed to a cult's deity. Why would the Pharaoh be any different? This is precisely what Kaveh wanted to hear. Good... he'll definitely ge things done. Just as the magician's hopes were raised, they were dashed aside. He could faintly hear the words of the Vizier, definitely having to use context clues to get the full gist of what he was saying to the Pharaoh. No! No this is serious! Don't down play this...

The magician chewed on the inside of his cheek. Since his head was down, he had no worry of the two in front of him seeing the subtle gesture. The Pharaoh began to speak again. He was addressing the Vizier. "Pl-?" Was... was he about to say "please"?! No. He speaks with authority... why would he beg for one of his men to do something. This interaction was a bit different for him. He believed that the Pharaoh was directly the law and that the upmost respect was to be shown. Perhaps the two men had that close of a bond where things could be more relaxed?

Either way, Kaveh tried not to dwell on it too much. As the Pharaoh started to speak to Kaveh as if he were dismissed, the magician nodded and rose to his feet. To this, the Pharaoh was interrupted! This caused Kaveh's gaze to snap from the ground to the two men before him. Once he caught himself, his eyes immediately when down again. While he was looking up, he was able to see the guards in the room. Not one of them flinched at the Vizier's rudeness. Just who is this Gilbert? How powerful was he that the Pharaoh put up with his actions of disrespect?

Before he could ponder any further, the Pharaoh ordered for Kaveh to assist the Vizier. Kaveh bowed slowly, "Yes, your highness." The cloaked magician looked to Gilbert and followed the man's lead. He soon found himself in a side room that didn't appear too large. More than likely so the two of them could speak without the concern of outside ears. Finally, Gilbert's questions came. Kaveh hesitated for only a moment. Should he realy tell someone other than the Pharaoh all that he kenw? Well, he did tell the High Priest of Ra. The Vizier is closer to the Pharaoh than the Council of High Priests, so why wouldn't he be able to tell him?

"Yes. As I said before, they are a group of cultists that worship a deity that they call Apep. I decided to study a medallion from one of the men that I secured while interfering with one of their kidnappings. The men that came for me and my mother claimed to work under a man that they called Master Iqbal. He told me that they were sacrificing the people they abducted to try to revive their Apep. He said that the ones who served Iqbal would be the only ones safe from the destruction Apep will bring, and that he will bring terrible changes to the world. Before he could tell me any more, he was killed by a poisonous dart. I saw no one near us when I looked around, but the moon didn't serve as much light. The shadows concealed the assailant."

Kaveh looked at the Vizier after her explained what he believed the situation to be. The look on the man's face wasn't a very pleasant one. It was quite different than how he seemed in the audience hall with the Pharaoh. Kaveh blinked a few times, trying to get a read from the man. Or moreso, waiting on the man's take on Kaveh's reporting. Kaveh was only a lowly citizen in the man's eyes. He held no status other than a messenger from High Priest Khaldun. Why would Kaveh's words hold any weight in the man's ear? At least, that was the way Kaveh's thoughts were starting to run. Until Gilbert spoke.

The question caused Kaveh to become silent for a while. Thinking over what the High Priests may be getting in to with each other. Of course I think this is more pressing! The priests of Ra and Anubis just have some petty squabbling. There are citizens being kidnapped and murdered for the sake of a third deity. Kaveh looked down for a moment and then back to Gilber. "With all due respect, I believe it is. Of course, it is personal opinion. These men are claiming to be killing the citizens after abducted them. There is no slavery in their plans. Anyone who is kidnapped is seen as a blood sacrifice for this Apep. As of right now, the kidnappings are only within the city, as far as I can tell."

Kaveh looked to the table that Gilbert motioned for him to take a seat next to. The magician hesitated for only a moment before sitting at the designated seat. The chocolat eyes of the red magician looked to the table, studying the map before him. It was Heliohapt. Kaveh was at this moment, studying the layout of the city that he has spent the last few years of his life in. It seems so much larger than what I thought...

Before he could get lost even further in his thoughts, the Vizier spoke to him again. This time, voicing his suspicion. This is what Kaveh was concerned about. The magician usually did all that he could to keep his cards hidden. As long as most of the people in the city didn't know of his magical abilities, he would not be bothered by people. At least, that is what he believed. He didn't see a way that his concerns will be taken seriously if he played his usual game, however. He would have to reveal himself to the Vizier and the Pharaoh. "Well... I happen to speak with the rukh. I am a magician. The first happening, I was assisted by a foreign warrior. When the cultists came to my home, my mother assisted me."