The Devil's Cage

It was Fenkes!

The prison doctor Kieran wanted to meet was standing right behind the police tape.

Without his doctor’s robe, his brown pants, gray shirt and sunny cap made him look no different than any other old man.

Kieran noticed the difference within a second though. Fenkes’s eyes were more lively than he remembered.

They were not dull and gloomy like the average old man’s. They were shining with energy. Even his body had changed. He had gotten fit and muscular, his exposed arms and calves as ripped as a bodybuilder’s.

It was amazing and peculiar for a man in his 60s.

His senses were much sharper as well. As soon as Kieran laid eyes on the doctor, Fenkes instantly felt his gaze.

The moment he noticed him, he waved and greeted Kieran in a loud voice, a delighted smile forming on his face.

"It’s been a while, 2567! I’m glad to see you alive and kicking!"

Despite his doubts, Kieran greeted Fenkes and probed him for more information.

"I’m glad to see you, too. Your greeting was really something else though!"

"I can explain. Could we...?" Fenkes glanced at Simones.

"You folks go ahead. I’ll go clean up this mess."

Simones acted very smart in that delicate situation. After telling Kieran, he crossed the police tape and went into the Celestial Garden. He had clearance from Schmidt, so he could access the scene without any hindrance.

...

They had decided to go to the coffee shop around the corner.

Kieran was sitting opposite Fenkes, stirring his coffee with a spoon.

The rich aroma of the coffee and the savoury flavour of the cinnamon cake produced a unique combination that felt smooth on their tastebuds.

Kieran was not enjoying his afternoon tea though.

His attention was focused on what Fenkes had said.

"You are saying that after we left, you, the Warden, and the remaining prison guards ventured into the cave where the bronze coffin was? That the Warden and the prison guards died after touching it, but you miraculously survived and gained mysterious knowledge and powers? That sounds unbelievable, doctor!" Kieran said after Fenkes was done explaining.

His words were filled with astonishment. From his point of view, it was inconceivable.

How much luck would it take to survive and benefit from that coffin if whoever touched it died?

Kieran had his doubts about the doctor’s words.

Fenkes addressed Kieran’s suspicions with a bitter smile. "If someone else told me this story, I would have doubted them just like you are, but it really happened to me, so I have no other option but to embrace it!" Fenkes said with a long sigh.

"So why did you become the new leader of the Hatch Heresy then?" Kieran voiced the other question that was troubling him.

"Out of curiosity! I was curious about the changes that had happened to me, but I could not contact you or your team. The only other thing related to that incident was Gilfren Hatch, so I started searching for things related to him. I was hoping for an explanation about what had happened to me, but..." Fenkes laughed bitterly again as he paused.

Kieran could guess what had happened.

"You had not expected the Hatch Heresy to be a complete fraud. Other than Gilfren Hatch himself, all the others heretics were nothing but liars," Kieran said.

"Yes, but other than liars, I also discovered something else..."

"It was this new discovery that led me to become the heresy’s new leader. I couldn’t just stand by and watch innocent people suffer as they were lied to by Gilfren Hatch! They didn’t deserve this, not when I could help end their suffering. Some of them are not willing to accept my help anymore though. They think that I’ve deviated from the heresy’s creed and gone down a different path..." Fenkes nodded helplessly before lowering his voice and asking, "What do you know about magic repulsion?"

"Magic repulsion? You can treat magic repulsion?" Kieran squinted.

He had been coming across that term a lot recently during his studies with Nikorei.

"If you don’t want to end up like one of the Drifters, don’t even try to learn unknown magic spells!"

Nikorei’s serious tone when she had said those words was still imprinted in Kieran’s mind.

She had been stern because the consequences would have been serious.

If one forcefully performed a magic spell without having the necessary talent, the consequences would be severe.

If that person was lucky, they would end up mumbling gibberish from time to time like the members of the Drifter Society. If they were unlucky, they would die.

Nikorei had also mentioned that a mental meltdown like that of the Drifters was permanent. In other words, there was no cure for it.

However, Fenkes was now claiming that he had the ability to treat that specific condition, which meant that he had discovered a way to treat it that not even Nikorei knew of...

Suddenly, a light bulb went on in Kieran’s mind.

"Did you acquire that knowledge from the bronze coffin?" he asked.

"Yes! That mysterious knowledge included a way to treat magic repulsion, that’s why I wanted to save innocent people. I need your help, 2567!"

Fenkes looked at Kieran seriously.

"My help with what?" Kieran asked.

"I need you to take me back to Alcatraz! I am familiar with the treatment process, but I lack the ingredients to perform it. Spill fresh blood on the coffin and before the coffin absorbs the blood, intercept it and use it as an ingredient for the cure! I know this is a dangerous quest, but I hope that you can help me! Just take me back to Alcatraz!" Fenkes said seriously.

Take him back to Alcatraz?

Kieran’s breath suddenly became heavy.

Translator’s Thoughts

Dess Dess

Tada, Fenkes is in da house yo!