Episode 3 Sneak Peek #31

From the Veyer continuity branch. This is similar to a conversation that happens in this sneak peek, but the context has shifted. 

Veyer flashes you a wan smile, devoid of their typical humour. “What I am about to say is dangerous,” they say. “Do you trust me?”

You catch their eye. Their words are genuine, of that you have no doubt, but it leaves you with more questions than answers. “Do you need to ask?” you say cautiously.

“For my own peace of mind, yes. But please do not take it as an affront, $firstname. I approach you now not because of what happened between us last night, but rather because I find myself in a position where you are the only person whom I can trust.”

You pause, caught off-guard by the unexpected vulnerability. There’s a desperation in their voice that you have not seen before, an urgency so wildly out of character it flies in the face of everything you know about them. What do they want? What do they need? What game are they playing? Though you do not want to suspect them of ulterior motives, you’re not a fool. You can’t shake Aeran’s warning completely from your mind.

[CHOICE] 1. “I trust you.”
2. “I… Don’t put this on me. Please.”
3. “I’m sorry, Veyer. Whatever this is I don’t think I can be involved.”

Veyer smiles, relief washing over their expression. “Thank you, $firstname,” they murmur. They observe you through thick lashes, their gaze lingering on your face, your mouth. From the way they’re looking at you, you have a feeling they want nothing more than to kiss you right now. “I am indebted to you.”

You smile. “I’ll hold you to that.”

“I would expect nothing less.”

With a cautious glance at the whispering trio, they draw up next to you and sink into a casual stance. “The terms of your assignment are to deliver once it is retrieved,” they continue. “But I would ask this of you instead: do not relinquish it. Not to Her Grace. And not to Malsara Markal.”

A breeze picks up, rustling the leaves above as it swirls through the grove. “Why?” you ask, throat dry. “There’s still the matter of removing it from the premises. Malsara is far better equipped for that than anyone else here.”

“Of course. A planeswalker’s reach is far greater than any other could hope for. However, I have reason to be cautious.”

“You already wrangled Zenaida into agreeing to let you deliver it to Oshiro yourself.”

They sigh irritably. “That was a jest, $firstname. Do you really believe Her Grace will let me within ten feet of the thing once you return with it? You’ve heard from her yourself. Lethalis is fracturing and she—” Their eyes flick across the grove, lingering on Malsara and Nova. “—all of them—are a part of it. By delivering the Astrial to her, you are placing one of the most powerful Meissandic artefacts in the world in the hands of the daughter of an Arathian politician. Do you not see the gravity of the situation?”

“Zenaida doesn’t care for her mother,” you point out. “What does the archon have to do with this?”

“This is not about the archon, this is about the heir,” they counter. “Lest you forget, Zenaida is desperate to prove herself and strike out from under her mother’s shadow. That staff is an augmenter tied to the sphere of illumination. Your mind may be safeguarded from illusions and emotional manipulation, but I do not question the havoc she could wreak in the name of House Anaxas should she get her hands on it.”

“I thought she was more concerned about thwarting Solarath’s plans than Arathian politics.”

“This goes far beyond the Guild of Mages. Zenaida may act the self-righteous altruist, but do not forget that she has cleverly put herself in a position where she could enact great and terrible change—to Lethalis, to Velantis… and perhaps even to the Empire.”

You pause. You haven’t always trusted Zenaida, she trusts you. And she is the reason you are here; without her, you would never have escaped Rona alive. Retrieving the Astrial is her endeavour. To doubt her now, to the point of betraying her at the eleventh hour…

Part of you wishes they had never spoken.

“Is that not what you wanted?” you say. “You offered her your help earlier—or your compliance, at the very least. Was that a lie? Do you still support Umbria?”

“I do not care for Lethalis’ fate, you can be certain of that,” Veyer says flatly. “I have sacrificed much on their account with little in return. If a comeuppance is in their future, I will gladly take my leave and allow it to happen. I have been involved in their endeavours for near three decades, my priorities are not the same as they once were. Where they lie now is…”

“With yourself?” you offer under your breath.

They glance at you, a dark chuckle rumbling in the back of their throat. “It would be a great lie indeed if I said I was not driven by an unyielding sense of self-preservation,” they reply. “The ultimate goal of my peers has perturbed me for many years now. Umbria may seek to destroy the Astrials utterly, but unbinding so much ancient concentrated force simply to keep it from Quirinus’ clawing hands may prove more lethal than the alternative. You can see the devastation caused by the dissolution of the staff’s wards. What do you think will happen when the Astrial itself is unbound and released?”

You look upwards, peering through the trees to the formidable walls and the broken citadel beyond. Magic pulses around it, so pungent you can almost taste the oily haze and the shimmering wards. A chill runs down your spine.

“Used or destroyed, it makes no difference. The Astrials are no mere relics of a bygone era, they are weapons. Weapons that no living person deserves to wield. They were buried long ago for a reason. They should have remained that way.”

“So what would you have me do?” you ask.

“Deliver the staff to me. My illusions are second to none. I can mask its appearance and replace it with a false Astrial in its place. By the time they unweave it and realize their mistake, I will have determined a third course of action. One that neither Umbria, Zenaida, nor even Sabien Quirinus himself will expect.”

You fall silent, the grim reality of their words weighing on you. Whether you like it or not, you been dragged further into the dangerous political landscape of mages and Arathians. At this point, who can you trust?

Umbria, Lethalis’ solemn leader, who rejected this mission on account of it being too reckless? Zenaida, who has placed the success of her plan solely on her faith in your skills? Veyer, the unknown third party in this plot, who would dare upend it all for their own purposes?

1. Veyer may have not told you everything, but at least they have been honest about their intentions. And their point stands: just as you cannot trust Lethalis, you cannot trust Zenaida. She crafted this grand scheme in the first place. It could very well be that she wants the Astrial for herself as part of a political ploy. The more you think about it, the more it concerns you.
2. It doesn’t matter to you who the Astrial ends up with. Zenaida, Lethalis, Veyer themself—it’s all the same to you.
3. No. They’re up to something. You don’t know why they have chosen to sow distrust between you and Zenaida, but you’re not going to fall for it.