Chapter 425: The Sentinel Problem
Later that morning, at the Stark Residence...
Ethan slowly lowered his Arcphone, with an expression of disbelief and shock.
The reaction around him wasn’t much different, because some of them gathered in the living room overheard the entire conversation through their enhanced hearing.
Particularly Percival and Aliyah, who had both arrived at the residence not long after they left the guild.
"What the fuck?!" Percival exploded.
It hadn’t even been five minutes since Ethan had finished explaining why the guild needed to be closed for the day.
He had recounted everything surrounding Beatrice and the Blessed who had banded together against them.
And now, they had suddenly learned that Maya had been killed by that very same Beatrice.
Aliyah, on the other hand, immediately went into a panic.
She had heard enough of Wilson’s side of the conversation to understand that Beatrice wasn’t simply targeting random people.
Without wasting another second, she immediately pulled out her Arcphone and began making calls to her family.
The others instinctively did same. While Percy went on to ring Hayley up, confirming she was alright at home, Ethan dialed Bettie’s contact.
Ishtar and Francesca stared quietly from a far off corner, but when the old woman got an understanding from what was going on, she couldn’t help but also call to check in with Eduardo and Valerie who were currently at work.
For the next twenty to thirty minutes, calls were being made from every direction to anyone they considered important, trying to confirm that they were safe and that nothing had happened to them.
Additionally, a good number of Ethan’s summons were immediately sent them out across the city to watch over the people connected to him and the others.
Nobody knew who Beatrice might target next, and he wasn’t willing to take that any chances.
"We have to kill that bitch." Percival’s voice carried fury as his eyes followed Ethan, who had been pacing back and forth while repeatedly tapping the Arcphone against the palm of his hand.
It was just yesterday, that he had begun putting together a plan to deal with Beatrice and the Blessed who had aligned themselves with her.
Unfortunately, the idea hadn’t been fully developed yet. There were still too many holes in it, and the entire thing was far from foolproof.
But it suddenly felt as though they no longer had the luxury of time, because if they waited too long, there was no telling how much more damage Beatrice would cause.
It was at that moment that footsteps descended from the staircase.
Almost as though she were responding directly to Percival’s outburst, Isabella spoke with a distinct eerie tone. "I think you’ll have to slow down with that."
Everyone turned toward her to see the dark veins beneath her eyes, with irises that carried an unnatural glow.
Which meant that it was her other personality in control.
Dark Bella then added, "My Blessed is on his way. And, well... there are a few things all of you need to hear."
The only reason Isabella hadn’t been down here until now was because her Alter-personality had been in a connected communication with the fallen angel, even viewing the battle that happened at House Morgenstein, through their shared connection.
-
Abaddon arrived not long afterward, and was currently standing within the living room, with every pair of eyes on him.
With the exception of Alter-Bella, the others stared at him with some level of curiosity or intrigue.
Asides the disheveled state of the angel’s suit, he commanded this sinister and overwhelming presence.
However, Abaddon paid little attention to their reactions. Instead, he went on to give a whole narration of everything that had happened since the day he heard the Mistress’s cry.
He explained how he had gotten back into communication with his Matron on his arrival at Grayforte and how, from that point onward, he had taken it upon himself to eliminate anyone pursuing her.
He spoke very little about the details themselves as there was no reason to, but stated how he noticed an unusual increase in people carrying traces of divinity.
At first, it appeared insignificant, but their numbers continued growing until it became impossible to ignore.
It hadn’t taken him very long to understand that they were all here for the same target; The Mistress.
From then, Abaddon began hunting them whenever their paths crossed.
However, the attack that had taken place at the guild earlier that morning had finally led him directly to the center of it all.
He was able to sense and trace them back to the Morgenstein estate where he confronted them, fully intending to eliminate every single person involved.
Unfortunately, things hadn’t gone according to plan, especially as the woman leading them had control of a Sentinel.
Which led to his decision to withdraw from the battle.
The atmosphere in the room noticeably changed.
"Sentinels?" Ethan repeated, looking puzzled. "What exactly are those?"
Alter-bella was the one who answered "Enchanted humanoid constructs forged from godsteel. They are creations of Vastar, the High God of Blacksmithing."
"He created them to serve as assistants and personal servants to gods, since angels are too dignified to play such roles"
"there are different types, but the one he fought against was an Attack Sentinel"
Ethan’s eyes narrowed slightly.
"What the..?" Percival blurted out. "How does someone like Beatrice end up with something like that?"
Bella looked thoughtful. "She is Atia’s blessed. Her matron must have connived with Vastar to have one assist her."
She folded her arms. "I hate to admit this, but sentinels are bad news."
Ethan then turned to her. "how strong are they?"
Dark Bella decided to put things into perspective. "In terms of raw strength, a sentinel might be a stronger opponent than what he had to deal with against Norman."
Ethan’s expression stiffened.
Unfortunately, that wasn’t the part that worried her the most.
"But that’s not actually the biggest problem...Sentinels are forged from godsteel, and much like other Divine Artifacts, the magic of humanity cannot harm them."
"To damage a Sentinel, an attack must carry divinity or be empowered by some form of divine authority."
Percival cursed under his breath. Aliyah shook her head and just sat back down, placed her head over her palm.
Ethan turned toward the angel. "Well, you said you fought the Sentinel under her control. Do you think you can keep it occupied while the rest of us deal with the Blessed and Beatrice herself?"
Abaddon considered the question for a moment. "I probably could..."
His gaze drifted toward Dark Bella. "But there’s another possibility... the moment they set their eyes upon my lady, Atia could make a request of the blacksmith god to send down more his Sentinels."