Mike Wild - Engines of the Apocalypse

"The One Faith!"

"The Only Faith!"

" The Final Faith!"

Eventually, the Anointed Lord raised a hand, and the crowd lapsed into silence. Bells rang once more, but this time more slowly, a dirge rather than a call to attention. Makennon nodded to Cardinal Kratos and the robed figure moved solemnly forward. He began, as was way of these things, to intone platitudes about the dead.

The names were read out, the accompanying comments saying nothing at all about the people who had died, or what had led them to make the sacrifices they had made. As banality followed banality, Slowhand saw the growing tension in Kali's face. The thing about Hooper was that she never got drunk unless she wanted to or she was upset. It was almost as if she could open a sluice gate somewhere halfway down her throat, and all the alcohol she consumed simply went somewhere else. Today, however, that sluice gate had remained firmly closed, and while he'd thought she was handling herself well, considering the amount of thwack they'd poured down their necks, he now saw that slightly unfocused look in her eyes.

Trouble was brewing, he knew it.

Sure enough, as the roll call of the dead reached Gabriella DeZantez and the platitudes began to spout, Kali suddenly lurched forward and shoved the cardinal out of the way. The noise Kratos made as he tumbled down the platform's wooden steps were amplified by the complex arrangement of shells positioned around the podium to amplify speech, and three quarters of Scholten gasped.

Behind Kali the Swords of Dawn honour guard reached for their weapons, but a subtle shake of the head from Makennon halted them.

"You want to know about Gabriella DeZantez?" Kali began. "I'll tell you about Gabriella DeZantez…"

As Kali began to speak about the woman she had known, her loyalty, her dedication, her embarrassing laugh and even her eyes , Slowhand stared at the back of Kali's head and mouthed, goodbye . He had decided that morning that it was time to go, that he had to spend time away from Hooper and work out what was to happen in the future on his own, and now was as good a time as any. Maybe he'd be back, maybe not, but whatever happened he knew that at least Kali had another friend she could rely on, one within the Faith itself.

Slowhand nodded to Jakub Freel as he made his way off the platform and down into the crowd. Kali was in full swing now and didn't notice him go.

"…if it wasn't for Gabriella DeZantez," Kali shouted, pointing at the Anointed Lord, "this woman would be spending the rest of her life with tassels on her tits!"

Slowhand smiled, working his way through the crowd. A few days ago he'd have stopped to help with the commotion that comment would cause, but Hooper would be all right.

Look after her, Prince Jakub Tremayne Freel, he thought.

What Slowhand did not know was that as he had left the platform and stared into the eyes of the Faith enforcer, it had been Bastian Redigor staring back.