Nightblade (Darkest night)-Chapter 213: Ophelia

Norvax watched the flames with a mixture of dread and anticipation. Dread because he could feel the pulse of their horrifying power from wherever he sat. In fact, if it wasn't for Gregory's presence, he was almost certain the dark flames would devour everything in the room.

Anticipation because he realized just how much more terrifying the former commander of Praesgius' elite covert ops had become.

Norvax felt a shiver at the thought of facing the man as an opponent.

"Well, that's certainly something, he murmured.

Gregory nodded.

" But with opponents we're facing it may not be enough. I still need to grow much stronger than I'm now."

The memory of a particular figure clad in dark garb, with a pale face and crimson eyes that smiled, still haunted his dreams.

"I'm still not strong enough to beat him..."

The concentric wheels of dark flames fluidly morphed blending into one massive wheel that spun above Gregory with a quiet fury.

In the next moment, the flames condensed forming a giant scythe that Gregory grabbed with his bare hands.

Norvax's eyes widened further in shock.

"What the hell..."

The sheer amount of power radiating from the ethereal weapon was ludicrous.

"Is this your new Darkblade?"

A dark smile appeared on Gregory's face.

"That's one way to put it..."

With a calm sigh, he dismissed the weapon, and with it, the pressure within the room dissipated.

A few moments later, a rapt knock at the door broke Norvax out of his reverie.

It was the blonde assistant. Sgecarefully looked round the room, noting Norvax's dazed expression.

"Is everything alright, sir?"

Gregory chuckled.

"Yes, everything is fine."

A while later, Norvax's comlink beeped, drawing his attention away.

"Yes...."

His eyes narrowed at the news he was receiving.

He pursed his lips, his face becoming expressionless.

"I understand. I'll be there in a few minutes. "

After a few moments, he calmly stood up, offering Gregory his hand.

"Well, it seems I'm needed elsewhere, I guess this is it for now my friend..."

Gregory silently smiled, nodding then wordlessly shaking his hand.

****

In another location, a different kind of meeting was taking place.

The Headquarters of the Praesgius had been swiftly rebuilt after what had been documented as one of the most devastating large-scale terrorist attacks in the modern age.

Fortunately, the number of civilian casualties had been surprisingly low.

The Eden City Police Department had failed to detain the culprits that had been responsible for the attack snd at the same time, the intentions of the terrorists were unknown.

From the amount of destruction and available evidence, they could only suspect that the culprits were trying to sabotage Black Ink but even that investigation had turned into a dead end.

In the wake of the devastation that had followed, Black Ink had quickly stepped up, ⁴and orchestrating one of the fastest feats of reconstruction in history.

The conglomerate had generously taken on the burden of rebuilding all the damaged property and even compensated the owners of the less fortunate businesses.

A move that had drastically bolstered their reputation.

Soon the entire Eden Business District had been restored to its former glory. 𝚏𝕣𝐞𝗲𝐰𝕖𝐛𝐧𝕠𝕧𝚎𝚕.𝐜𝚘𝗺

Aisha Lorke stood at the centre of the Videntis chambers calmly gazing up at the seven gilded thrones at the far end of the massive room.

It was rare for all of the Videntis to be gathered in one place like this but for the first time in several years, it was about to happen. Five of the Videntis already sat in their respective seats.

"Aisha, it's been a while," a flamboyant youth said in a sing-song voice.

"Hello to you too, Seth..."

The youth smiled leaning forward slightly.

"You didn't miss us too much, I hope."

Aisha smirked.

"Not a chance brat. In fact, my intel tells me you're lucky to be alive. Your recent run into with death did not go unnoticed. A foe that was able to bring one of the mighty Videntis to their knees and nearly delivered them straight to death's door."

A faint smile appeared on Aisha's face.

"Perhaps you're growing weak, Seth..."

She somberly looked up, her eyes hidden behind the dark glasses that she wore.

"Perhaps you're becoming like the very weaklings that you despise..."

The youth chuckled at the light jab. He faintly touched his neck, tracing the outline of a jagged scar, a souvenir from a wound that should have ended his life.

The harrowing battle with the mysterious maestro they only knew as Annonymous was still fresh in his mind.

Itvwas a rare for a battle of any magnitude to push a Talented at the calibre of the Videntis to his limits but that day, he'd been pushed well beyond his limits.

A faint stirring ignited within his mind.

A maddened light ignited in his emerald eyes, his lips curling into a strange smile.

"Hehehehe..."

He grabbed his side, shuddering in seeming ecstasy. When he spoke, his voice took on a darker tone.

The temperature in the chamber plummeted instantly, an unprecedented wave of power surging through the large hall.

"Come Aisha," he said, holding on to his mouth with his hands in a makeshift mask.

"Don't you want to see for yourself just how much weaker I've become?"

Victoria let out a sigh, leaning her cheek on the palm of her hand, with a seemingly bored expression.

Aisha remained calm, leaning on the cane in front of her.

Raymond's eyes shifted between the two with dark fascination, his lips parting in a wicked smile.

"Things could actually get interesting if this continues..."

Liu Zhen instead completely ignored everything, remaining completely still.

Another hooded figure sat motionlessly as well, the two men regarding the matter with cold indifference.

"That is not why we're here," a cold voice spoke from the darkness. The sound echoed through the hall, seemingly coming from everywhere and nowhere.

In the next moment, a palpable change occurred.

The darkness within the massive chambers seemed to shift, fluidly flowing forward. The massive wave of flowing darkness coalesced at a single point then condensed into a dark humanoid figure.

The figure slowly morphed taking on the distinct features of a man. A familiar dark mask adorned Thrain's face creating a sharp contrast with the pristine white uniform of the Videntis.

An unnatural wind blew around him for a few moments.

Victoria stared at Thrain curiously, waiting for what the mysterious leader of the Videntis had in mind.

He casually stretched his hand. The darkness at his feet coalesce once materializing into a hardened construct.

Victoria watched in curiosity

"A door?"

In the next moment, the tenebrous door shuddered and then opened.

For a few heartbeats

only a dark void stared back at them. Then a petite feminine figure stepped through the door.

"She's actually here," Victoria thought.

The air shifted around her, vibrating with a peculiar kind of pressure and awareness.

Her skin was pale in a way that wasn't fragile, but luminous.

Fine ethereal silver veins glowed faintly beneath it, flickering softly as if something vast pulsed just beneath the surface of her skin.

Her hair fell in a long cascade down her back, an unnatural shade between white and black, floating weightlessly despite the still air.

Her eyes were the most unsettling part.

They were not one color. There were a myriad of colours.

At first glance, they appeared a clear, crystalline grey.

But if you held her gaze too long, colors shifted beneath the surface, deep indigo, molten gold, fractured emerald, and then at times a startling white.

She wore a simple dark flowing robe that seemed woven from the very shadows from which she stepped into the room.

The woman in question could be argued to be the strongest seer at Praesagius' disposal.

"Ophelia..." Thrain's voice echoed throughout the hall.

"Welcome."

Her eerie eyes turned to him, her lips curling into a soft smile.

Victoria felt a subtle shiver roll down her spine. Even though both of them were Videntis, there was always something subtly unsettling about the small woman that always kept Victoria's hair on end.

"Thank you, Thrain."

With that, she silently took her seat.

Just then, the massive doors at the end of the hall,

silently opened and several figures clad in dark robes filed into the room forming an orderly line at the far end. At the head of the line, Norvax silently observed his assembled members then joined Aisha at the centre of the room.

"Why are we here Thrain?" Victoria quietly asked.

For a few moments, the masked figure remained silent. The darkness in Thrain's mask ominously shifted, twirling in on itself.

"For a long time, there's been a problem that we've ignored but the time has come to deal with it once and for all. Aisha, if you may."

Aisha smiled.

"The reason why I've traveled so far, has to do with a threat that we faced two years. At the time, we thought that the threat had been handled but I've discovered that it's roots run deeper than I'd previously imagined."

She pierced them with a somber gaze then spoke.

" A group called the Crows."