THE MOTHER IS SOLOMON
Soon, the entire forces of the church rushed out from the compounds of the church, carrying with them a wagon. Inside the wagon was a magical chest that could have contained all the wealth of the church.
This magical chest was the target of the demons.
The church knights and priests guarded their cargo valiantly but soon they were overpowered by the demons.
"Lord Nomzenes, we got the treasure of the church", a Demonlord told their general.
"Is this really where these scums put all their treasures into?" Lord Nomzenes asked his generals.
"It must be, the magical chest has powerful enchantments over it. We couldn't break it in a short time. Only something valuable deserves magic like this", the Demonlord replied to the general.
"Take the chest and return to our camps. The apostles would be on their way here soon. This is not the time to fight with them, we got what we came for", Lord Nomzenes told the Demonlords.
They carried the magical chest that they stole from the church and flew away.
------
"Where are you bringing me, your excellency?" Cardinal Koreen asked the apostle.
"We are taking a quiet road. We don't want to attract the attention of people and the demons. There is a hidden alleyway from here that will lead out of the city", Apostle Haskeem told the cardinal.
Suddenly, Cardinal Koreen was lifted into the air by magical chains that clamped on his ankle, wrists and neck.
"What is this? Who are you people, do you know who you are dealing with?" Cardinal Koreen asked those who assaulted him.
"Hand over your treasures", a portly merchant said to the cardinal before someone knocked the cardinal on his head stunning him.
"You are a little heavy with that, you might kill him", Cassandra said to me.
I quickly transformed from the Apostle Haskeem back to myself.
"Quick, the magical chest is in his body", I told them.
"I've got it already", Ratatouille told me as he took a magical space egg.
After taking the egg, we quickly left the quiet street and returned to the Kaleon mansion.
-----
"How did you know to imitate an Apostle?" Cassandra asked me.
"We killed many of them before, some of their magic were taken by me. I could transform into a few of them. I also have their swords and shields, so passing off as one of the apostles is not difficult especially to a lowly priest in the Church's hierarchy", I told them.
"The Cardinal is not a lowly position, but it is true he would not have seen too many apostles", Meera said to me.
"How did you plan this scam this time? I am still confused", Chash asked me.
"Remember when Ratatouille told me that there was another magical chest in the stores of the church which was identical to the magical chest that contained all the church's treasures, I started thinking", I said to them.
"That is just a spare chest", Chash said to us.
"The chest is a powerful artifact and invaluable too. There is no reason to have two of them if one of them was more than sufficient. There is only one use for an extra chest", I told them.
"What use will that be?" Cassandra asked me.
"As a decoy. The Church must have planned to send out a decoy with the magical chest while the Cardinal will escape with the real chest and that is proven correct", I told them.
"Did you guess all that?" Meera asked me in admiration and surprise.
"I was lucky I guess but if it doesn't happen that way, then I'll go to my plan B", I replied to her.
"So, how did you know the demons will attack the church?" Chash asked me.
"Because I asked them to attack the church, telling them the apostles have been sent away and this was the best time to steal from them", I told them.
"There are no apostles guarding the church all along", Ratatouille said to me.
"Yes, we know that. But the Demonlord doesn't", I replied to them.
"So, after asking the demons to attack the church, you disguised as an apostle to help the Cardinal?" Cassandra asked me.
"That is the only reason the Cardinal will trust me to escort him away with the real magical chest. He wouldn't trust another guard to do that. Only the apostles won't be tempted by the church's enormous wealth", I replied to them.
"So, we've got all the Church's money in Staari city?" Ratatouille asked me greedily.
"We are not keeping those wealth of the churches, not all of them at least", I said to them.
"Who are you giving all these treasures to?" Ratatouille asked me.
"There will be many refugees once the war starts. That money from the Church will be used to support them when we bring them to Tarah city", I told them.
"Damn, you don't look like someone charitable", Ratatouille told me regretfully.
------
The time came for our rescue operations.
"There are only a few Apostles and some guards guarding the Mithrium mine", a scout came to report to Mother Asereth as she laid down the map of the area around the mine.
Not many apostles were guarding this mine at this time because most of them were sent to the frontlines. This mine wasn't of significant strategic worth for the apostles, so they left it loosely guarded.
Besides, the apostles probably never imagined anybody would come to attack this mine.
"Do you think we can do it this time?" Mother Asereth asked me.
"Rescuing the prisoners? Definitely. But rescuing them without raising an alarm, that will require some planning", I replied to her.
Our people were held in a large prison next to a Mithrium mine that they were supposed to work in as slaves for the Apostles. There was a military camp around the mine where more than three hundred guards and many Apostles were on duty.
After the Mithrium ant infestation, the Mithrium mine was closed temporarily, because many miners went missing inside the mine without returning.
In actual fact, those miners who went into the mine were rescued by us. The temple of Solomon's thieves was inside the Mithrium mine waiting to retrieve them. However, we could not save everyone this way because soon the apostles stopped mining there.
"Is it time to strike", Mother Asereth asked me.
"I will give you the signal", I replied to her.
"We can deal with the guards in the mine but the apostles, we couldn't defeat them and most likely they will escape to report about our rescue", Camliden queried about our plans.
"Don't worry, my friends will help you", I told them as my Golem friends appeared before them.
"Who are you people? Aren't you the guests in our inn, you can fight against the apostles?" Camliden asked my Golem friends, but they just smiled at him without replying to him.
"Solomon, you coward. Why are you still alive?" Ratatouille asked Mother Asereth to our surprise.
Mother Asereth looked at Ratatouille carefully and inspected him then she suddenly cried out, "Greed, is that you? Why are you still alive?"
"Yes, and no. We died in the last Armageddon. Only our bodies were returned to our temple", Ratatouille told Mother Asereth.
Ratatouille was once Greed, the Anti-Saint.
He and his six brethren, the Deadly Sins, were the generals of the Dark Angel during the last Revelations. They died in the battle of Armageddon, but their followers brought their bodies back to their temple, the Temple of Seven Deadly Sins.
During a mission given to me by Mother Asereth, I went to the Temple of Seven Deadly Sins and recovered their bodies and also the soul of the Dark Angel who now resided in my soul realm.
All the Anti-Saints returned to the Dark Angel though, except Greed, who became Ratatouille, my shape changing rat Golem friend.
"I sent Ivan to the Temple of Seven Deadly Sins, in part because I want to see if the Anti-Saints are still lingering there", Mother Asereth told Ratatouille.
"Yes, we are there in the temple. Your Ivan recovered our immortal essences and transformed us into Golems, resurrecting us albeit imperfectly", Ratatotuille told the mother.
"Ivan? Who are you really?" Mother Asereth asked me.
"He is our new master, the Incarnate of the Dark Angel", Meera replied to her to her surprise.
"Is that so?" she replied to us calmly before she added, "So, the Revelations is starting again?"
"Revelations or not, we deal with what is in our hands first", I said to Mother Asereth.
Mother Asereth wasn't just the leader of the Temple of Solomon. She was Solomon herself, one of the advisors of the Dark Angel.
However, during the last Armageddon, Solomons escaped and hid as Mother Asereth, before she rebuilt the Temple of Solomon into a thief's guild that it was today.
"Who are these people, mother?" Camliden asked the mother.
"With them around, this rescue operation will not fail", Mother Asereth told Camliden.
-----