Unrepentant

The chain whistled through the air, narrowly missing Silas as he leaned and dodged to the side, leaving noting more than a cool draft to brush against his cheek. It struck the wall behind him with a thunderous crash, ripping through the construction and launching debris through the window within the room. The entire inn shook from the impact, as the pulverized mixture of stone and wood created a stifling scent.

Poliana recovered from her shock quickly, her voice rising in anger. "What is the meaning of this—"

Her words were cut off as Umbres rushed past her, knocking her aside with a sweeping fist. She stumbled backwards, catching herself against the wall, or rather her fingers burrowing into it as the Inquisitor lunged past her towards Silas, madness gleaming in his eyes.

"Lovely" Silas thought to himself, raising his arm and exposing some of his Sage grooves that were carved into his forearm. He activated one of the potions etched into his flesh, feeling its power course through him. Strangely, a pleasant odor was created from the light up arm, reminiscent of herbal tea almost.

The chain retracted and wrapped around Umbres's large fist as he swung it down at Silas. The impact between chain and arm made a dull clanking sound as Silas's feet cracked the floor beneath him with a thunderous boom. He jumped to the side just in time to avoid falling into the hole that opened up.

Umbres, a physical cultivator despite his ironic service to the divine, didn't let up. He rushed in to close the gap between them.

As soon as he took a step forward however, his foot slipped on an unseen slick spot, likely by Silas's design. His massive frame did an uncomfortable leg split accompanied with a tearing sound mixed with a most unpleasant squelch.

Silas took another step back, giving himself ample room to throw an ampule of Necroclasm at Umbres. He had swiped it from Arim's office when he had left his final token of appreciation.

The Inquisitor wasn't slowed for long. From his split position, he leaned into one side and moved his legs into a position to propel himself at Silas. The flying ampule was swatted away by the chain on his fist that seemed to have a mind of its own. However, a few drops lacking any distinct odor from the shattered ampule managed to land on Umbres's face.

The effects were immediate and terrible. The Inquisitor's face contorted in pain as a combined color of violet and black necrosis began to spread.

But then his eyes glowed a fiery bright gold, and his face quickly purged the potion's effects, leaving some noticeable leathery scarring, but restoring him back to full strength.

Silas used this momentary distraction to widen the gap between them once more. He moved calmly, as if he were a dancer doing a meticulously practiced choreography.

Umbres roared fiercely in frustration, his eyes blazing with fury as he charged again. Silas could see the raw power in every movement of the Inquisitor's body.

He quickly reached into his satchel and pulled out another ampule, this one filled with a clear unassuming liquid.

The Inquisitor swung his chain again, but this time Silas anticipated the move. He added a spin to the ampule before he threw it that made it's arc curve mid-air, causing it to go around Umbres's chain and shatter against his chest.

A thick cloud of pungent anesthetic gas erupted from the broken glass, enveloping Umbres in a choking haze. The Inquisitor coughed violently but continued to advance without stopping through sheer willpower.

Silas leaned backwards to avoid another wild swing from Umbres's chain and prepared for his next move. He could see Poliana regaining her composure out of the corner of his eye, likely considering her next move in this unforeseen circumstance.

Umbres emerged from the gas cloud with red bloodshot eyes and labored breaths. His movements were slower now but no less determined.

The Inquisitor snarled in rage and savagely swung his chain down again. This time, Silas caught it mid-swing with the one hand he had bolstered with the herbal scented potion at the start.

Umbres reacted quickly as he pulled back on his chain with all of his strength, trying to yank Silas off balance and towards him.

But Silas was ready for it. He released the heavy chain just as Umbres started to pull back, causing him to stumble a step backwards once more.

Silas seized this opportunity and lunged forward, relinquishing the distance he had created so far with an acrid poisoned needle in hand—this one coated with a highly potent corrosive agent of his original design.

He jabbed it into Umbres's chest, right at the spot the anesthetic ampule struck before. Umbres could not react fully—drops of deadly grey liquid seeped into his body as soon as the silver needle pierced his skin— his muscles paralyzing instantly upon absorption into the bloodstream.

The anesthetic was an old trick of less savory Alchemists like Silas, by not allowing the Inquisitor to sense where the foreign impurity was, they could not use the ability he used earlier on the Necroclasm called [Purge The Filth]. Painful paralysis set in rapidly throughout the Inquisitor's entire body rendering almost all motion impossible. The exception being some slight twitching here and there due to residual nerve activity, despite the overwhelming alchemical suppression coursing through both veins and arteries alike...

Silas stepped back and calmly observed as his handiwork unfolded before him. He speaks his first sentence in as outraged of a tone as he could yelling out ''So it's you!''. Poliana finally snapped out of acting as a bystander as she walked up to the two.

"Oh Most Knowledgeable! What… creature is this?" Umbres's mind reeled as he recalled the moment he first laid eyes upon Silas. The Inquisitor saw no smile, not even a man. Instead, he beheld a horrifying visage—a face melting away to reveal a skull colored the darkest shade of black. His head rang with a cacophony of noises, from children screaming to aged elders weeping. Flakes of black descended around him, almost resembling the vile Blackfall.

It was as if looking at Silas through Umbres's eyes, blessed by Rovinius during his training, was akin to being sent down into the depths of Hiran's Purgatory. As treacherous as it was to think about another deity's domain, Umbres couldn't help but feel that not even the Most Cruel would have such a beast stalking its punishment grounds for the damned.

Despite his fear, Umbres resolved to fight. The Inquisition was the left hand of the divine, hammers of faith who gave everything for their God ahead of every other faithful. When faced with a monster of this caliber, he had to charge ahead. Even if futile, even if his death was assured, he had to fight. If his sacrifice could buy even a few more seconds for the faithful, it would be worth it.

Yet reality rarely aligns with one's wishes. His resolution amounted to nothing. Perhaps if he were calmer, he could have been a better fighter; if less disturbed, he might have done more. But the sight of that skull imagery rendered him incapable of thinking straight. He only wished to strike it down quickly before terror paralyzed him completely.

Umbres had never questioned why Poliana brought this thing to him. Only the Inquisition had the sight to see sins so clearly and viscerally. Poliana might never know the monster on her doorstep if he did not yell out to warn her now. Yet, Umbres could no longer speak, paralyzed on the floor, kneeling before the beast.

He expected the worst he'd see in this town to be the criminal behind him—the 'Selen' impersonator who also had a mountain of sins upon her shoulders. Despite extensive questioning, she refused to answer for them. The whole town was covered in sin. Even Poliana had an outrageous amount covering her. Yet, the one he has spent the last few days with was leagues beyond.

But, this beast that appeared now… this… simply should not be able to exist.

Silas spoke some words at him, but Umbres could no longer hear them. His eyes began to close as he felt something go down his throat. Vaguely, he felt only the tiniest bit of itching as his bones seemingly started to shift...

Poliana looked at the sight in front of her, confusion etched across her face. The Inquisitor had transformed into a young man and had become unconscious right before her eyes. Senior Ji stood over him, his expression unreadable.

"What the hell just happened?" Poliana asked cautiously. "Why did the Inquisitor attack you? And why did he turn into a young man?"

Silas grabbed hold of the incapacitated Inquisitor, who now bore the form of the Priest from the auction. He had stealthily administered the leftover Envy's Seduction he'd brewed on the night of the attack. Placing him to the side, Silas turned to Poliana, his face contorted with rage.

"You have the guts to try and set me up?" Silas demanded, his voice dripping with venom.

Poliana's mind raced to understand what was happening at the reversal of who was being questioned and who was answering. She saw a glint coming off Senior Ji's sleeve—a needle had appeared in his hand. Alchemical grooves on his ear, hidden behind his hair, began to glow ominously.

It was clear that Senior Ji meant business.

She had to get away fast or end up like the Inquisitor. Trying to calm down this Senior was her only option. Poliana opened her mouth wide and spat out a cloud of freezing air that quickly began to cover everything in front of her in ice, heading straight for Senior Ji.

Silas backed off quickly as the freezing air approached. Poliana blew harder, propelling herself backward and upward until she reached a corner of the ceiling. Her hands quickly covered themselves in ice that extended onto the walls, allowing her to stick herself there.

"I had nothing to do with this, Senior!" she yelled out desperately. "I can make a Contract Vow to prove it!"

"Then do it." Silas shouted back, throwing a powder at the ice that quickly melted it away all around him.

Poliana thought to herself, "Fuck you!", but nonetheless began the chant of the Vow.

"By Probitas, this vow we seal,

Bound in honor, blood and steel.

Break the oath, and—"

Once she finished, a symbol of Probitas appeared in her eyes—a sign of a successful Vow. The terms she set were that she would speak no lie or falsehood in her next statement.

"I have had nothing to do with this event that happened between you and the Inquisitor," Poliana declared firmly. "And I know nothing about the reason behind it."

Silas stared her down but eventually put away his needle. The glowing grooves on his ear turned dull once more.

Poliana breathed a sigh of relief as she descended from her icy perch on the ceiling. The tension in the room remained thick, but at least for now, she had managed to avoid being incriminated.

"This young man," Silas began, his voice steady but firm, "is the same Priest who attacked Starlight Bidders' Hall."

Poliana's eyes narrowed, disbelief etched into her features. "That can't be. The Inquisitor has been here for a while, specifically during the time of the auction. Even if he were that Priest, he had no way of reaching Sichal faster than you on the Airship. Short of teleporting—and I sincerely doubt he had the resources to pay a wizard cabal for that."

"Of course it's improbable," Silas thought to himself. "But that doesn't mean you couldn't think of ways to make it possible."

He put on a deadpan expression and pointed a finger at the unconscious Inquisitor. "Oh, I fully agree with you. However, this reality is unfortunately presented to me."

Poliana grimaced, her mind trying to figure out a retort. Silas continued, "Get your actual soldiers to guard him this time. No finding ways to get rid of your problems. Let's not sour our relationship so early, no?"

"Of course he saw through that" Poliana thought, frustration bubbling beneath her calm exterior. "But that's still accounted for… How the hell did this happen though?"

She nodded and said, "It shall be as the Special Inspector says. But I simply cannot believe that this is the same person."

Silas's expression softened slightly as he replied serenely, "The truth is often stranger than what we may think. The Priest won't wake up until I administer an antidote to him. It will be safe to guard him until I can interrogate him."

"Understood, Senior Ji," Poliana responded.

Silas turned towards the room where the 'impersonator' had been held and began walking towards it.

Poliana's thoughts churned with anxiety. "I may be screwed if sending Umbres—or whoever he is—to detain that 'Selen' turns out to be a prearrangement that I stumbled into like an idiot."

She watched Silas's retreating form, her mind grappling with the implications of his words and actions.