Free Web NovelChapter 48: The Mark That Should Not Exist
Mason stared at the parchment.
For several seconds, he genuinely wondered if exhaustion had finally broken his brain.
The room remained dark.
The moonlight spilling through the balcony doors illuminated the table beside his bed. freewebnσvel.cѳm
And the parchment sitting on top of it.
A parchment that definitely had not been there before.
He knew that much.
Because he had gone to sleep staring at that exact table.
It had been empty.
Now it wasn’t.
His life continued improving in exciting new ways.
Slowly, he reached toward it.
Athlian reacted immediately.
’Don’t.’
He stopped.
"You know what it is."
It wasn’t a question.
Silence followed.
’I know the symbol.’
That answer wasn’t comforting at all.
Mason picked up the parchment.
The paper felt old.
Not ancient or fragile...just old enough to seem deliberate.
The same circular mark occupied the center.
The same intersecting lines.
The same symbol hidden inside.
Nothing else.
No message.
No signature.
No explanation.
Because explanations were apparently illegal in this kingdom.
"Athlian."
Another pause.
’I haven’t seen that mark in a very long time.’
"How long?"
Silence.
Mason sighed.
"Right. Stupid question."
The answer was probably measured in centuries.
Maybe longer.
He stood and crossed the room.
The door remained locked.
The windows remained secured.
Nothing appeared disturbed.
No signs of intrusion.
No evidence whatsoever.
Yet someone had entered his chambers.
Or something had.
Neither option made him feel better.
A knock suddenly sounded.
He nearly jumped.
His nerves were officially ruined.
"Enter."
The door opened.
Draca stepped inside.
The commander looked tired.
More tired than yesterday.
Which honestly seemed impressive.
His gaze immediately settled on Mason.
Then on the parchment.
Then back to Mason.
"What happened?"
Good question.
Mason held up the paper.
"This appeared."
Draca crossed the room quickly.
His expression hardened.
"You found it here?"
"Unless I started sleepwalking and developed artistic talent."
The commander ignored the joke.
He examined the symbol carefully.
The longer he looked at it, the more concerned he seemed.
"Did anyone enter?"
"Not that I’m aware of."
Draca frowned.
"The guards reported nothing."
Even less comforting.
Mason sat down heavily.
"I assume the archive situation got worse."
A brief pause.
"Yes."
The commander folded his arms.
"The restricted chamber contained records dating back before the kingdom’s founding."
Mason blinked.
"That’s old."
"Very."
"And they vanished."
"Every document."
Draca looked toward the symbol again.
"The same mark was left behind."
Athlian withdrew deeper into herself.
Mason felt it.
The fear.
The hesitation.
The guilt.
All of it.
Whatever this symbol represented, she knew far more than she wanted to admit.
The realization sat heavily in his chest.
Before either man could continue, another knock interrupted them.
Mason groaned.
"I’m beginning to hate doors."
Draca opened it.
A palace servant bowed quickly.
"Commander. Lord Zereth requests both of you."
Draca exchanged a glance with Mason.
Neither liked the timing.
The servant continued.
"Immediately."
Of course.
Immediately.
Everything was always immediately.
The palace never believed in reasonable schedules.
Minutes later they arrived at one of the older archive halls.
Several guards stood outside.
Additional security had been stationed throughout the corridor.
Something serious was happening.
Not that it was ever not serious anymore.
The moment they entered, Mason spotted Zereth.
The silver-eyed stood beside a long stone table covered in documents.
Assura was there too.
That immediately lowered Mason’s confidence.
Whenever Assura appeared voluntarily, problems followed.
Usually large ones.
Zereth looked up as they approached.
His gaze settled briefly on the parchment in Mason’s hand.
Interesting.
"You received one too."
Mason froze.
"Too?"
Without a word, Zereth lifted a matching parchment from the table.
The same symbol.
Exactly the same.
Athlian’s emotions tightened instantly.
The atmosphere in the room shifted.
Nobody looked pleased.
Assura examined Mason carefully.
Far too carefully.
"You dreamed."
It wasn’t phrased like a question.
Mason immediately disliked that.
"Why does everyone keep knowing things?"
Assura ignored him.
The ancient being looked toward Zereth.
"He saw someone."
Mason blinked.
"What?"
Now everyone was looking at him.
Wonderful.
His favorite.
"How do you know that?"
Assura’s expression remained unreadable.
"Because the mark only appears after contact."
Silence.
Mason didn’t like the sound of that.
Not even slightly.
"Define contact."
Nobody answered immediately.
Even Zereth looked uncomfortable.
That was new.
Eventually Assura spoke.
"Dream contact."
Wonderful.
Fantastic.
Exactly what he wanted to hear.
Mason sat down.
He suddenly became tired.
Athlian remained completely silent.
Which somehow felt louder than any answer.
Zereth moved several documents aside.
"We found references."
That got everyone’s attention.
The immortal unfolded an old sheet of parchment.
"The symbol appears in a handful of surviving records."
"How handful are we talking?" Mason asked.
"Three."
Ancient conspiracies apparently enjoyed being difficult.
Draca stepped closer.
"What do the records say?"
Zereth hesitated.
Interesting.
Then he answered.
"Not much."
Less interesting.
"The references are incomplete."
"Naturally."
"But they mention a group."
Mason rubbed his forehead.
There was always a group.
"What group?"
"The Witnesses."
Athlian flinched hard.
But Mason felt her fear through the soul bridge.
The reaction confirmed everything.
She knew exactly what that meant.
"Athlian."
Nothing.
"Athlian."
Still nothing.
Assura watched him carefully.
Too carefully.
Mason pretended not to notice for now.
The conversation continued.
"The Witnesses existed before the current kingdom," Zereth explained.
"Religious?"
"Possibly."
"Political?"
"Possibly."
Mason stared.
"Those are terrible answers."
Draca looked like he agreed.
Unfortunately, they were the only answers available.
Several hours passed inside the archive.
Records were examined.
Fragments compared.
Notes organized.
The result was deeply disappointing.
Almost nothing survived.
Someone had removed information very carefully.
Very deliberately.
Long before the Heaven Fracture.
Which made everything worse.
Because it suggested planning.
Years of planning.
Maybe decades.
Possibly longer.
Athlian finally spoke while Zereth reviewed another document.
’They’re looking in the wrong place.’
Mason immediately focused.
"What does that mean?"
’The archives won’t tell them everything.’
That wasn’t surprising.
"Then where should they look?"
Silence followed.
Mason resisted the urge to scream.
Eventually she continued.
’The memories.’
That answer sent a chill down his spine.
Because she sounded serious.
Before he could question her further, a commotion erupted outside.
Raised voices.
Rapid footsteps.
Guards moving.
Everyone in the archive looked up.
Draca immediately headed toward the door.
Professional instincts activating.
Several moments later he returned.
His expression had darkened.
"What now?" Mason asked.
"The temple districts."
Of course political problems.
The kingdom’s favorite hobby.
"They’re demanding access to the archives."
That got everyone’s attention immediately.
Zereth frowned.
"Why?"
"A rumor spread."
Wonderful...Mason hated rumors.
Especially because they usually turned out to be partially true.
Draca continued.
"Several temple factions believe the missing records explain the Heaven Fracture."
Silence settled over the room.
Because that was bad.
The city was already unstable.
Religious factions turning against each other would make everything worse.
Assura folded his arms.
"The timing is suspicious."
Nobody disagreed because he was right.
Someone wanted tension and conflict.
The question remained why.
Hours later, the palace council convened again.
This time the atmosphere felt different.
More sharper and hostile.
Representatives from multiple temple factions had arrived.
Several nobles looked furious.
Others looked frightened.
A few looked both.
The discussions began immediately.
Arguments followed shortly afterward.
Mason spent most of the meeting resisting the urge to leave.
The experience felt remarkably similar to being trapped inside a burning cart while everyone debated directions.
Eventually the archives became the central topic.
Exactly as expected.
Demands were made.
Accusations followed.
Nobody agreed on anything.
Progress remained impossible.
Then a temple representative stood.
"The people deserve answers."
The statement received immediate support.
Several others nodded.
Political pressure continued building.
The room felt increasingly unstable.
Mason noticed something else.
Zereth wasn’t paying attention to the arguments.
The immortal was watching people.
Looking for something or someone.
Interesting.
The meeting finally ended after sunset.
Nothing had been solved.
Which apparently qualified as normal politics.
As everyone began leaving, Zereth approached him once more.
He looked dangerously thoughtful.
"I need to show you something."
Mason immediately became suspicious.
"That’s never good."
"No."
"At least you’re honest."
Zereth almost smiled.
The two of them moved toward a quieter corridor.
Away from the council chamber and listening ears.
Athlian had become tense again.
Mason could feel it.
The closer they walked, the worse it became.
Eventually Zereth stopped.
Then produced a folded document.
An old one.
"I found this hidden behind one of the damaged shelves."
Mason accepted it carefully.
The paper looked fragile and ancient.
The writing had faded badly.
Most of it remained unreadable.
But one section survived.
One sentence.
Only one.
Mason read it twice.
Then a third time.
Because surely he was misunderstanding it.
Unfortunately he wasn’t.
The sentence read: When the Witness returns, the debt will awaken.
The corridor suddenly felt colder.
Athlian’s fear surged through the soul bridge.
Mason realized she wasn’t afraid of the debt...she was afraid of the Witness.
