Tarren looked around him, at the failure of his organization, and reflected on his life and his choices.
There are times I wish I’d never become involved with the Crimson Clan of Gethin Woods. Initially, it was nothing more than sheer curiosity that attracted me to the group. I had always wondered what a mage could be fully capable of without restrictions. Alas, I was but a lost boy then. But even in those days, deep down inside of my heart, I knew the practices we partook in were forbidden with good reason. It’s not man’s place to play God. The perfect soldier project... I honestly doubted the Crimson Clan would ever succeed... and as time went on, I began to hope they wouldn’t.
The thought of leaving the group had been swimming through my mind for days when we received a message from a spirit, foretelling the coming of a man who would lead us into an age of prosperity. The lone condition was that we complied with his request for assistance. We were wary of this information. Contacting spirits in the Netherworld is a risky endeavor to say the least. There was never a sure way to know the intention of the entity we were communicating with. Knowing this, we took its words with a grain of salt.
Then came the day Lord Javan Quinn arrived, seeking our help in exchange for vast wealth and positions of nobility in a new Aria under his rule, just as prophesized. To achieve this, he wished to locate the legendary Damiano’s Disk and harness the supposed limitless power it unlocked. He claimed that it had been broken into two fragments, and was hidden in the In Between. The others seemed convinced that what they had been told was unquestionable truth. Personally, I remained suspicious, though I kept my doubts to myself.
It was something about Lord Quinn’s presence. It was so dark... almost incomprehensible within the barriers of language. However, the Crimson Clan didn’t seem bothered at all by this and sincerely swore him their loyalty. I, on the other hand, remained on guard. I no longer wished to be part of the group, and was looking to start a newer, better life elsewhere. But part of me just had to know if Damiano’s Disk was real. I couldn’t run away with the knowledge that I could have prevented a potential catastrophe.
All those years later I held the fragment in my hands. It was no myth. No, the disk was all too real. I couldn’t allow it to fall into Lord Quinn’s hands. So I pocketed it and fled the group. I knew the second fragment would be useless without it. I decided it was best to destroy the disk piece while I had the chance.
Little did I know, it wasn’t going to be so easy. The fragment remained intact no matter what amount of force I applied to it. I didn’t leave so much as a scratch on its surface. Even magma could not damage it... I watched in disbelief as it simply floated in the pool of raw thermal heat, unscathed. I couldn’t believe my eyes. The fragment was completely indestructible. The only way to ensure that the Crimson Clan or Lord Quinn would never find it was to guard it myself.
Fortunately, I was able to find an Ice mage to assist me in retrieving the fragment from the magma. I told him of Lord Quinn, and all that I had witnessed over the years. Through him, I learned of The Order of the Sacred Blade. I paid that guild nearly all the gold I had to place a hit on Javan Quinn. But it seemed that he was just as indestructible as the fragment I held. The assassin never returned from the mission... and was likely killed.
From that point on, my newfound ally gave me shelter in his home just outside of Anatolii. As for the fragment, we removed a few floorboards and buried it in a small box several feet below the house. I soon came to the realization that even if Lord Quinn were no longer in the picture, anyone could use the disk to do just as he wished. My companion and I agreed: no living man deserves such power. And so began the Spades.
Though our organization grew tremendously over time, Javan was relentless. The night the house was raided, I managed to escape with the fragment, though many of my associates weren’t as fortunate. Alas, that terrifying event proved to be only the first of several to come.
The most recent raid was perhaps the most devastating to date. So many casualties... And the death toll only increased with Morice and, likely, Roshan. I had honestly believed that the fragment was safe at last in this new base...
Exiting the confines of his inner thoughts, Tarren opened his eyes and looked down at the large table in the base’s meeting room. Many Spades were seated, anticipating the purpose of the emergency meeting they’d been called to. When at last the final Spades entered and took their seats, Tarren spoke.
“It pains me greatly to deliver this news,” he began, pausing for a moment. “The disk fragment has been stolen.” Tarren watched as a look of panic appeared on the faces of each of the meeting’s attendees.
“But how?!” a Spade exclaimed.
“Was Gavin unable to stop them?!”
“What are we going to do?!”
“Settle down!” Tarren ordered, causing a hush to fall over the room. “Allow me to explain. I awoke to the sound of the main gate opening. I jumped out of bed to see who had left the base without permission, but they had disappeared by the time I’d made it there. I didn’t think much of the incident until I returned to my room to discover that my keys had been swiped while I was asleep. I quickly ran to check on the fragment, and found Gavin unconscious beside the open chest. Unable to awaken him, I noticed a sandwich resting nearby. I’ve since deduced that it was tainted with Somnus Potion and likely given to him by the thief. More upsetting than that, I’ve also determined the culprit to be a trusted member of our own. Though we will be unable to truly confirm my suspicion until Gavin has awoken, Zoe Quinn appears to be the only Spade missing.”
“She wouldn’t!” a Spade interrupted.
“Don’t be so sure,” another replied. “She’d been acting strangely since she returned from that last mission. Do you think it’s possible, Tarren, that she was sent back to the base by Lord Quinn to steal our fragment?”
“I see no other explanation,” Tarren responded. “I’m theorizing that far more happened while Zoe was gone than she told us. I’d hate to think that she willingly betrayed us; still, we must take defensive action immediately. Charles, Amy, Xander, and Gregory: you are to remain at the base and monitor Gavin. The moment he awakens, I want a full report on exactly what took place. Meanwhile, I will accompany the remainder of our members to Nazareno Island. Once there, we will await Lord Quinn’s arrival. Unfortunately, we have nothing to go on at this moment but speculation. Regardless, we cannot allow him to reach the temple at any cost.
“Based on what we know at this time, we must prepare ourselves for war. All members assigned to Nazareno Island are to promptly ready themselves at the dismissal of this meeting. There is no way of knowing exactly what’s in store for us, so I implore that you brace yourselves for the worst. To those staying behind, once you’ve learned all that you can from Gavin, I need one of you to head for Nazareno Island and update me immediately. I will determine our next course of action based on what we learn. Until then, we are to assume that Javan Quinn now possesses both halves of Damiano’s Disk. This leaves us only two options: take it from him, or die trying.”