Shadow of the Abyss

Chapter 301 The Omnis Rankings II

As they made their way towards the council room, Altair approached the holograph, which hummed to life at his presence.

Presently, Zagreus, Thanatos, Syris, Aurora, and Medusa stood gathered around the holograph, projecting a constellation of logistics regarding the Empire.

"I am against this," Thanatos said. "The Archon of the Seventh Tower is not someone we can just call up. He'd sent a representative."

Zagreus agreed, saying, "He's right. Privacy amongst the noble Gods is something more precious than power. We might have a secure line, thanks to Zero's upgrades. But let's not assume it's absolute. The Seventh Archon is a powerful man. A powerful God, ranked thirteenth on the Omnis Ranking."

Thanatos looked surprised. "How the hell do you know that?"

"Unlike someone who placed work above all else. I was rather interested in the outside world," Zagreus remarked, a coldness that was not there before now on his tongue. He turned to Altair. "It's said that that House Dawn is one of the leading fractions of progression across the Myriad Heavens."

"He is right, Master,' Aurora added. "From what I've read, the Archon of the Seventh Tower is a dreadful character. Some even claimed him to be one of the Dukes of Hell, though there isn't much proof of that."

"And what do we know about his family?" Altair asked.

"Only of what's on the surface," Aurora said. "He has two sons and one daughter. His eldest is called Zelos, and he is kind of the Black Sheep of the family."

Altair raised an ear. "How?"

"No Idea. But it's rumored that Alastair's Wife, who is the Eldest Daughter of the Archon of the Second Tower, Lady Visha Lothal, is known to detest her eldest son."

Altair nodded. "So we don't have much about the family. What about Zelos?"

"He's..." Aurora hesitated. "There were some rumors about him. Nothing confirmed. But it does hint that Visha was quite a cruel Mother to him. From what I've read... she tossed Zelos away at birth to be a slave."

"The hell? Her own son?" Altair asked almost incredulously. He shook his head, waving off a response. "you know what? I'm not surprised anymore. People are weird as they are cruel.

Make the call."

As the holograph shuddered beneath Aurora's computations, a virtual image materialized: one of a masked individual bearing the number "X."

Altair immediately recognized the mask, reminiscent of the one Zero wore.

Altair resisted the urge to frown, glancing up at Thanatos and Zagreus, who looked startled. They, too, recognized the meaning of the mask.

"Tenebrae said that to earn your trust, I ought to wear the mask," the masked man said. " And Zero seemed to approve.

"You aren't Alastair," Altair determined. No ruler Would mask themselves like that.

"No, I'm not," the masked man said, removing his mask to reveal his Blood-Red Eyes. "But I am his son. Greetings, my name is Zelos."

Zelos nodded. "Yes. My brother Vin had an entire holograph constructed of the Sunset Palace, where he planned on acting as viceroy in the name of our Lord Father. Earth is quite appetizing, harboring resources that might make anyone salivate. Even the Trading Consortium is eying you now."

Altair glanced at Syris, looking at him as if to say, 'told you so.' He smiled, glancing back at Zelos.

"And what by chance do you get out of this? Surely, you're not doing this for free. Even if it was done as a favor to my Mother."

"Despite my title as an Arcons Son, I am a member of the Trading Consortium. What I want from you and your empire would be Goods. I'd like you to be one of my clients in the foreseeable future. From what I hear, Dungeon Diving is quite a profitable business. And is the cornerstone of Earth's primary wealth."

Altair glanced at Aurora, who nodded in the affirmative.

"Despite your profits, I know you all are struggling to gain footing on Genesis. I've done my research, Lord Blackwood. Your alliance with me isn't just about protection. It's about earning us money. Currently, Earth is pulling in scraps through trade compared to what it could be making. I want a piece of that—twenty percent, to be exact." Zelos said. Your journey continues with empire

Aurora muted the audio feed and said to Altair.

"That is more than four times the amount we pay for various traders across Genesis. However, we don't have much of a relationship with the Trading Consortium due to our low access."

Altair unmuted the audio feed and said, "Mr. Zelos, how does fifteen percent sound for six months? We can't simply stop trade across our sector. But we can't allow you to do as you please without a trial. Aurora, what a good number can we allocate to Mr. Zelos to test his worth?."

'Fifteen Percent of the various ores we mine. Since he is acquainted with Lady Tenebrae, such a number should be acceptable.'

Zelos looked surprised. It was a better offer than he'd hoped. "Good. That'll work. I've already sent a transport cruiser to your quadrant. It's currently circling your outer rim.

I'll send you their tracker information."

"You own your own freighter group?" Altair asked.

"Of course. It's mandatory since everything on this damn planet costs an arm and a leg. I'll be on that cruiser so we can sign the contract."

"Not a fan of digital?"

"All the important documents are still done by hand," Zelos said, his smile rising. "I'll see you there, Mr. Snow."

Altair's eyes went wide, but before he could inquire more, Zelos had already disconnected. He laughed.

"That bastard likes to play games. Aurora. What do you think of him?"

"We haven't had much footing in the Trading Consortium mainly because it's run by many of the banks, along with the Archon Families and corporations. If we use him right, then I'll say our profits might increase over..." She paused, looking dead into her master's eyes. "My Lord, we might actually be earning enough to fully evolve our civilization.

Despite all the technological advancements, we are bely considered a type II civilization thanks to humans' inability to comprehend the greater sciences. Zelos aid is by far anything we would obtain any time soon. If his trading group within the Consortium is large enough, we'll be set for a very long time. And..."

"And if he's an ally—a true ally—we might gain some valuable information from him." Altair grinned, looking at his inner circle with a smile. "Thanatos, prepare for his arrival. Let's see what type of man this Zelos is."