Inquisitor's Promise (Act Three, Chapter Twenty-Two)
The Holy League had been united, but the Grey Globe continued to move towards Earth. Aeneas and the members of his inner circle knew they had much to do and little time to prepare.
Chapter Twenty-Two: The Reunion
Aeneas paced back and forth in his quarters at the Lepanto. He couldn’t help but be concerned about Lavinia’s message. It was a threat, surely. She was still nursing the wounds of rejection. And now with Nineveh’s Swarm behind her, she was going to take her revenge.
Then, Aeneas heard a loud ring. Someone had pressed the bell to his quarters.
“Come in,” Aeneas said.
The Inquisitor was expecting one person, but was surprised to see Galatea, Pep, Giulia, Nikolai, Omaha, Shaka, and Kunoichi. Everyone within his inner circle had all gathered in his quarters.
“What’s going on here?’ Aeneas asked in confusion.
“We want to check on up you, Lord Aeneas,” Galatea said.
“Indeed,” Nikolai interjected. “We’ve arrived at Nepoli, but you didn’t answer your brick.”
“Oh,” Aeneas said in surprise. He was usually diligent when it comes to his nav-comm.
“With all due respect, sir,” Shaka said. “You’ve been acting strange ever since we received that message from Lavinia."
“And that’s no good,” Omaha added. “An army is as good as its commander, Sir Aeneas.”
The Inquisitor looked away in shame; even Shaka was calling him out. “I’m sorry everyone.”
At this point, Galatea moved up to Aeneas and hugged him. “I’m here for you, Lord Aeneas. We all are.”
“Yes, Aeneas,” Pep added. “I’ll blast that creep Nineveh good if he tries to hurt you!”
“I’ll watch your back. Lavinia won’t lay a hand on either of you,” Kunoichi said in determination.
Giulia nodded. “Captain, if you may.” The Venetian Lieutenant looked at the Inquisitor in the eye, beckoning him to make the right call.
Aeneas looked down to his beloved who was still attached to him. He also looked on to his companions, the people who had been with him throughout his adventure. He smiled; he knew what he had to do.
And so, Aeneas found himself on the beach of Prochyta. It was the very same beach where he had said his final goodbyes to Lavinia. In her message to Aeneas, she had specifically told him that this would be her landing spot.
The Inquisitor had been told by the Pope that he was most likely overreacting. To support this claim, His Holiness had pointed out how the Swarm had helped the Holy League by powering up Methuselah’s energy shield which would help them in the fight against the Grey Globe.
Aeneas conceded that this was a good argument. But he then reasoned that Lavinia’s grudge was personal. Perhaps after all this, she would be more than happy to deal with the Grey Globe.
It was because of the personal nature of this grudge that Aeneas intended to meet Lavinia by himself. As expected, this plan was not met with popular acclaim by those in the Lepanto. After much discussion, Aeneas finally agreed to meet Lavinia with a bodyguard by his side. Or two: Galatea and her wyvern Sancho Panza.
Meanwhile, everyone else stood far behind in the Lepanto or around the starship.
Aeneas looked at the towering hive city of Nepoli across the Nepolian Channel. He wished that he was there instead of where he was right now. But he needed to confront Lavinia, he needed to own up to his mistakes.
“Galatea, at the first sign of trouble, leave me and run away.” Aeneas said.
“No, Lord Aeneas,” Galatea said, shaking her head. “Not going to happen!”
Aeneas wanted to argue with her but thought better of it. He knew that Galatea was a submissive girl. If she disobeyed, it meant that this was something that she felt very strongly about. No use trying to convince her otherwise.
And the two lovers waited on. Soon, they saw the movement of the waters. The swarm was coming.
Aeneas had commanded everyone to hold their fire even as the Swarm was making their way through Lake Tyrion. He had commanded the Crew of the Lepanto, the Prochytan Militia, and the Nepolian Navy to stay still. This decision was met with much resistance, but Aeneas held firm. Now, he was about to find out if he was to be vindicated.
The beach was soon crawling with swarmlings. Aeneas held firm while Galatea, riding atop Sancho Panza, looked ready to grab her beloved and fly away.
The swarmlings arranged themselves as they formed a fence around a pathway. They were preparing the carpet for someone special. And that someone finally jumped out of the water:
Lavinia, or rather her avatar. Next to her was the swarm creature Anchises, the rhinoceros-like beast with four horns. For the first time since her banishment, Aeneas had finally seen her once more. Not her per se, but close enough.
“Lavinia,” Aeneas said, not sure how to begin. “It’s been a while.”
“Too long, Aeneas,” Lavinia answered coolly.
Aeneas was hopeful as he heard his cousin’s answer. Perhaps she was not here for revenge after all. Or maybe she had been waiting for her revenge for so long that she couldn’t wait to fulfill it.
“What do you want?” Aeneas asked. The Inquisitor steeled himself as he waited for the answer.
Lavinia grinned. “I was just wondering if you have some space left at the Lepanto for our swarm.”
Aeneas could hardly believe himself. “You mean…?”
“I do,” Lavinia said with a smile. “I wish to join you once more.”
“Your message…”
“Just playing around with you. I got you good, didn’t I?” Lavinia said before she laughed heartily.
Aeneas was annoyed, but he got over it fairly quickly. Having felt some guilt over how he had handled Lavinia’s crush on him, he was more than happy to let his cousin play this little prank on him.
But Galatea felt differently. She quickly dismounted from Sancho Panza and made her way towards the Swarm Queen in anger.
“This was all a joke, then? I can’t believe you! Lord Aeneas had worried himself sick because of your stupid prank!”
“Galatea, please,” Aeneas said as he pulled Galatea aside.
Galatea was calmed down by her beloved’s gentle touch, but she was still not pleased. “But Lord Aeneas…”
And Lavinia interjected, giving the lady knight a puzzled look. “Galatea? I almost didn’t recognize you. Nice hair.”
“Um, you think so?” Galatea asked uneasily. She was not sure how to react to the sudden compliment.
Lavinia smiled. “That short hair really suits you. And you look pretty, too.”
“T-thank you,” Galatea said.
Lavinia opened her arms, beckoning. “Why don’t you come give your future cousin-in-law a hug?”
But Galatea remained hesitant. She wanted to reconcile with Lavinia, but she still remembered when she tried to kill her. And seeing Anchises, the Swarm Creature who had roughed up her beloved, next to the Swarm Queen was not exactly reassuring.
“Galatea, I know that we’ve started on the wrong foot,” Lavinia said. “But I want us to be friends.”
Galatea was hesitant no more. She eagerly embraced Lavinia. Behind them, Aeneas smiled. He was glad that the two important women in his life could finally get along.
Then, Lavinia turned her attention towards the Inquisitor. “Join us, Aeneas!”
And he did, the three of them embraced one another.
But suddenly, a large figure splashed out of the water. A towering swarm creature of twenty Imperial feet, Nineveh’s avatar.
“Don’t forget me!” he boomed.
Lavinia chuckled as she saw her king. “I’d like you to meet my husband, the Swarm King Nineveh himself.”
Galatea’s eyes widened. “Nineveh?!”
“That’s right,” Aeneas said to his beloved. “The two of you hadn’t met.”
“For that matter, she wasn’t the only one,” Nikolai interjected.
Aeneas turned around in surprise and saw that the rest of his inner circle was approaching the group.
“I think we’re safe to approach, right?” Pep asked.
Aeneas nodded. “You’re all good.”
“Wonderful! I can’t wait to meet some new friends,” Kunoichi said cheerfully.
And so, the members of Aeneas’ inner circle introduced themselves to Nineveh. In return, Nineveh introduced himself to Aeneas and his group.
Aeneas couldn’t help but notice how the Swarm King was stuttering his speech. He also felt that there was nervousness in the voice, but he brushed it aside. This was the Swarm King, after all.
With Lavinia welcomed back into the Lepanto, Nineveh became the newest addition to Aeneas’ inner circle.
“I’m sure there’s a lot that I’ve missed since I was banished,” Lavinia said.
“That’s true,” Aeneas said. “Why don’t we bring your Swarm to the Lepanto first. We have lot to catch up on.”
As he made his way back to the Lepanto with everyone else, Aeneas smiled, his heart lightened. It was good to have Lavinia back.