No longer inebriated, the Corpse Hunter swiftly rose to his feet to face the voice that had addressed him. Though they had never met personally he recognized the Martinet the moment he laid eyes upon her. She had no armor and carried with her no weapons, wearing nothing more than a well tailored purple dress and a Medallion with the image of a hand grasping a glass vial.
He knew well enough why she needn't burden herself with the weight of a sword. Her Fate was a far deadlier instrument than what could be found in a humble Blacksmith's chambers.
"When is the execution set to take place?" The Corpse Hunter's voice was calm and collected.
"Who said anything about an execution?" the Martinet asked. It was true that was why she was there, but she was curious to know how that information had preceded her arrival.
"No one," the man in gray replied. "There are only two reasons the Academy ever has a need for a Corpse Hunter. Either someone has already died, which you would have led with if that were the case, or someone is about to die."
"Few speak to me with the sort of unfiltered candor you feel comfortable expressing." The corner of her lips curled into a quarter smile. Most people wouldn't even look her in the eye as they knew what she could do to someone who made the mistake of upsetting a Martinet.
"Am I mistaken?" His words came more as a challenge than a question. "It's not like you're going to kill me over a minor lapse in social etiquette. I'm the only Corpse Hunter in Plinth, after all. If you did kill me, who would preside over my corpse?"
Landon had remained so quiet that the other two individuals had forgotten he was in the room. Watching the Corpse Hunter test the patience of an Organic Alchemist was cause for him to stay silent. He was only a lone Protectorate and while his Fate was a good one to have in a team it wasn't nearly as useful alone. Sure he could wake the other Guards in the barracks above in an emergency but it seemed best to keep quiet and let things play out on their own.
"You are not mistaken," the Martinet said. Her words cut the brief silence like a razor's edge.
"On what count?" the Corpse Hunter asked, pressing the conversation further.
"Both. Your presence is needed at the Academy for an execution set to take place in less than an hour. You are also the only Corpse Hunter in this Column though I will say that is a very weak hand to bet one's own life upon."
"Perhaps we should play a game of poker together and see how true your words ring. But duty first, of course." The man in gray turned to the Guard. "If you could let me out, I have regrettably sobered up and the Ascension Academy is in need of my services."
Landon took the ring of keys from his belt and unlocked the cell. As Aiden stepped forward to leave the Guard leaned in and quietly imparted him with a brief piece of life advice. "Don't do anything stupid, a Martinet won't put up with your shit like a City Guard would."
"Fortune favors the stupid," the Corpse Hunter replied with a grin.
"That's not how the saying goes," the Protectorate said with a sigh.
He had tried and that was all he could do. He wasn't sure what would happen if Aiden was killed, whether they'd have to request the aid of another Column's Corpse Hunter or whether some poor child would have to inherit that unpleasant Fate. It was hard to imagine a ten year old having to assume such duties.
Lady Edevane led the man in gray out of the Guard Station and to a carriage that was waiting outside. A young man climbed down from his place atop the driver's seat with haste to open the carriage door for the Martinet and her guest.
"Contact Councilman Donovan and inform him that today's event will take place at the Ascension Academy as it pertains directly to one of our own. He and the other Council members are welcome to attend but their presence is not required."
"Right away, my Lady," the young man replied as he held the door open for the Martinet and the man that accompanied her into the carriage. Once they were inside his lips began to move as though he were speaking but no sound emerged. When he had concluded his silent message a light breeze carried the words to their recipient.
The Martinet's carriage driver also doubled as her messenger for he had the Fate of the Wind Talker. This allowed him to deliver a message with little effort across great distances, provided that he had a good understanding of who the recipient was and they were in a location that normal sound could reach. Underwater chambers and soundproof rooms were beyond his reach though his daily duties didn't require him to face such obstacles.
"Your message was sent, my lady," the young man said when his task was completed.
"Then take us back to the Academy," she commanded.
"Yes, my lady." He closed the carriage door and climbed back up the driver's seat and quickly set the horses into a trot with a flick of their reins.
"Do you ever grow tired of that?" the Corpse Hunter asked.
There weren't any windows in the carriage so he didn't have the luxury of distracting his unwanted sobriety with the view outside. Light was provided by the two oil lamps that were fixed to the roof of the carriage's interior. Idle conversation was now his only form of entertainment as he didn't have any playing cards on his person and the Martinet was unlikely to take up a serious offer for a game of poker, strip or otherwise.
"Do I ever grow tired of what?" Lady Edevane asked, raising an eyebrow.
He wasn't intimidated by her, though he should be. His lack of self preservation didn't bother her as much as she thought it would, having been briefed on his unique disposition prior to meeting him. It was uncommon to encounter someone that spoke their mind freely in her presence and provided he didn't take it too far the concept entertained her somewhat.
"Hearing my lady at the end of every sentence," the man beside her asked as he looked over the interior of the carriage.
The seats were padded as were the doors, walls, and ceiling. It looked well insulated and was probably a cozy ride even in the winter months, not that he intended to ever find out. Unless of course there was another high profile execution later in the year and he happened to be passed out again in a cell. It was unlikely that the two events would coincide again but it was not an impossible scenario.
"No, I have grown accustomed to how the masses perceive me. Have you?"
"Have I grown accustomed to the way folks turn their heads when I pass them in the street? The way they grip their children tightly as if I were about to drag them away? The silence that greets me when I enter a Tavern?"
He turned to face her as he spoke, his amber eyes looking right into her own emerald shaded ones.
"It's great. No one bothers me, save for the City Guard and on the rare occasion your Order. Someone's always dying so I've got solid job security and so long as I'm not the one making the corpses I can very well do just about anything I please."
"I don't know how to respond to that," she said with bemusement. It had been a very long time since someone had left her without words.
"What?" he asked. "Were you expecting someone who spends more time with dead bodies than living people to be a more well adjusted member of society?"
"I can't say for sure what I was expecting but this was far from it."
"Agreed. I half expected you to put some form of paralytic poison into my bloodstream by now."
"If you hadn't come willingly I would have," she gave a small but sincere smile.
"You're more pleasant than the rumors would have me believe," he said, causing the smile to fade from her lips. "Are they true?"
She looked away, staring at the absent window of the door to her left. The Corpse Hunter felt the Organic Alchemist's hand embrace his own. "Are you sure you want to ask those kinds of questions in pleasant company?"
A few quips popped into his head but he thought better of them. It was unwise to poke a dragon while it bared its fangs at you.
"No."
"You're not as suicidal as they said you were," she replied, slowly removing her hand from his.
There was a familiar sensation that entered Aiden's body. Not from anything the Martinet had done but from how close she'd come to doing it. A brush with death, some folks called it. Though to him it was more like the experience that came with hearing an old acquaintance knocking on your front door.
They sat together in silence for the remainder of the ride. He had found how far he could push a Martinet which satisfied his curiosity and alleviated his initial boredom. An ordinary person wouldn't kill him for inquiring too deeply about their private life, but the members of the Ascension Academy did not lead ordinary lives.
The Corpse Hunter tried to take a nap but the rest he got back at the Guard Station prevented him from doing so. He compromised with some light meditation to fill the void. Thirty minutes later the carriage came to a halt and the door closest to Lady Edevane opened from the outside. Instead of the young man from earlier there was a young woman standing just beyond the doorway. Another Disciple of the Ascension Academy, Aiden surmised.
A massive six story building stood before him as he stepped out onto the curb. It took up a full city block and was as much a palace as any Column Dweller had ever seen. He had been inside before but it was still a spectacle to behold. A true testament to humanity's refusal to go quietly into the unending night. The Council of Plinth sought to manage and maintain the Column so life could carry on, which had been vital to humanity's survival but offered no solution to their long term struggles.
The Ascension Academy, in contrast, sought to conquer the world that had forsaken them and reshape it in such a way that it could never betray its occupants again. This was the difference between those who tried to maintain the present and those who tried to reclaim the future.
Without a word the Martinet walked towards the entrance, followed closely by the man in gray. From his limited experience in the past he knew the Academy's interior was like that of a labyrinth. It's builders had been gifted with Fates that allowed them to make subtle alterations to time and space, which meant that passing through a door on the first floor could send you straight to the top floor or any of the others in between.
Some doorways were created for the sole purpose of catching those who dared to explore the Ascension Academy without permission, trapping them in alternate dimensions or time loops until they could be properly dealt with. Suffice to say very few were willing to sneak around in the Ascension Academy and those who did were often quickly found out.
All of the occupants within the Academy wore purple, save for an older man with gray hair and a long well kept beard. He wore a bright yellow vest that looked like a candle in the night compared to the purple clad men and women that walked past him. Lady Edevane walked straight up to the off color man and extended her hand.
"Councilman Donovan, it's a pleasure to see you," she greeted him. "I hope my messenger remembered to inform you that your presence here was strictly voluntary."
"That he did," the Councilman confirmed, accepting her handshake.
Most people hesitated when she offered her hand as they imagined what she could do to them. But not the Elder Councilman, few things gave him a feeling of unease and she was not among them.
"I understand this is more an, in house matter so to speak, but Ascension Academy members are still citizens of the Column of Plinth. It is only proper that the Council be present in such a circumstance as this one," the Councilman added.
"The Academy respects the Council's willingness to adhere to tradition even in the face of those who do not deserve such kindness," Lady Edevane said.
"And the Council respect's the Academy's foresight into such matters," Councilman Donovan said, motioning towards the Corpse Hunter who stood silently beside the red headed woman.
"We thought it best to be proactive considering the severity of this matter."
"The Council would agree with your prudence." The older man's polite expression and tone dropped as he spoke again. "I think that's enough formality Edevane, let's put this matter behind us shall we?"
"Agreed Donovan, I don't wish to draw this out any longer than you do," the woman said, her expression matching his. She escorted both of the men that now followed behind her to a large oak door. Opening the heavy door revealed a small five foot by foot room with a man dressed in purple formal attire waiting patiently inside.
"Please state the floor you wish to reach and present your Medallion for inspection," the man said politely. His mannerisms were nearly on par to that of an ordinary human but there was just enough deviance to his behavior to bother the Corpse Hunter.
Lady Edevane held out her Medallion, allowing the man to inspect it as she spoke. "Subfloor four."
Aiden watched closely as the man pressed a small indentation on the back of the Medallion causing it to go from its plain tan hue to dark purple. This was a means of protection from counterfeiting that some Medallions had.
It wasn't a cheap enchantment though and was often reserved for those with either rare Fates or important positions. Lady Edevane met both of those requirements. Aiden's own Medallion had a similar feature but he was the only one with his Fate in all of Plinth so there was never a need to verify his status, everyone knew who he was, whether he cared or not.
"Permission granted," the man said. The Martinet then stepped back and shut the door. When she reopened it the small room and strange man were gone. In their place was a long hallway illuminated by oil lamps and lined with armed guards.
"That man was a construct wasn't he?" the Corpse Hunter asked as he walked behind Lady Edevane and Councilman Donovan.
"You have a good eye," the redheaded woman admitted. "Most people can't tell the difference between a masterclass construct and a real person."
"My Fate walks the line between the living and the dead. He was neither and so he stood out to me."
"That is a fascinating gift my boy," the Elder Councilman said. "I must confess it was partly my morbid curiosity to see your work that brought me here today."
"I will do my best not to disappoint," the Corpse Hunter said dryly.