After a few minutes, Kael stopped "praying." His hands slowly relaxed, and his breathing, which until then had been slow and solemn, ceased. He sat up slowly, each movement measured and deliberate, as if even his posture was designed to convey authority.
He calmly turned his face and looked around the room.
What he saw made him smile.
Everyone present was kneeling, bowing before him, their heads bowed and their eyes trembling, as if they were standing before an apostle descended from heaven.
A cold smile appeared on his lips.
This was the result he was looking for. The seed had already been planted.
Perhaps, he thought with unsettling calm, he should thank the murderers who had slaughtered these people; after all, their cruelty had been the perfect fertilizer for his purpose.
With this scene, his identity would become stronger than ever. From now on, these people would not be mere survivors: they would become his loyal followers.
