Axel stared at Grape, and Grape at Axel.
Grape then got on his knees and began to wince in pain.
"There was a second Basilisk," Grape spat out, "He freed the other one, took my spear and stabbed me," they said while bringing their head up, "Did you see where it went?" they asked Axel.
"No, must of just missed it," Axel replied walking up to Grape, "Now come one, we need to get you help," he said grabbing Grape by the non-stabbed arm.
"It's fine you'll just have to give me a minute to heal it myself," Grape said making a circle with their other hand.
"Well, we have to move regardless, captain wants us outside and someone has to break him the news," Axel told Grape.
"I'll break it to them slowly," Grape replied.
———————————————————————
"A second Basilisk! Really!" captain asked annoyed.
"I'm very sorry, but that's what happened," Grape said.
"I'll put it in the scout report," the captain murmured.
"Thank you," Grape thanked.
"It is no issue; it's been a long day for everyone," the captain replied.
Axel wanted to tell the captain the truth very badly. He wanted to say that he had found a traitor, so that he could get enough snails to get whatever he needs for his plans.
But he couldn't, because if he said anything, Grape would deny it and then they would both get investigated.
Now, if just Grape would get investigated that would be fine with Axel. The problem lies in the fact that Axel wasn't here legally, nor did he do any steps to get into the position he has now.
If Axel were to be investigated, he would quickly be found out.
'I'm in a bind!'
If either Axel or Grape said anything about each other to the Emperor's Coven, they would both go down, probably to the Conformatorium to be petrified.
But what truly made Axel mad was that Grape knew he had something to horrible hide. And what was worse was that there was no way Grape could have one hundred percent known.
Grape did know that Axel was hiding something through their shared sowing lessons, but Axel didn't give anything away that could have hinted to a big enough secret that Grape would bet his life on.
So that means that Grape bet on it, they threw cation to the wind and bet on it. And God decided that Grape would be right.
All for the Basilisk.
'Why O'Lord would you put me in this predicament?'
"You good?" Artichoke asked.
The scouts were about to head back to the castle, and Axel had been just standing around saying nothing for a minute.
"I'm fine, just thinking that I should have stayed with Grape to make sure the Basilisk couldn't have gotten loose," Axel responded.
"Leave it in the past," Grape said patting Axel in the back, "Nothing we can do about it," they shrugged.
"Come to think of it," Artichoke asked, "How did the Basilisk use construction magic?" they asked.
"They didn't," Apple replied, "Must have just extended their body through the ground to make it look like they did," they shrugged.
"It does that?" Lettuce asked.
"When a Basilisk is put in a corner, they can do some amazing things," Apple told them.
———————————————————————
The hallowed halls of the Emperor's Coven felt much tighter than the last time Axel had walked through it.
The full group was walking behind the captain as he went to turn in his report over to Lilith.
"A second Basilisk," Lilith said reading over the report, "Your failure will be duly noted, and a second Basilisk will be hunted," she said.
The captan sighed hearing this, happy that it was finally over.
"Interesting," a strangely echoing voice rang out, almost interrupting Lilith
Down the hall, behind Lilith, there was someone walking towards them.
Upon his face was a golden mask, with long dear like horns coming up from each side. From his head to his shoulders was a dark brown coat, with six small golden circles on it, two in front of his shoulders, two on top, and two behind.
On his chest sat the insignia of the Emperor's Coven, as if the symbol on his chest was where the sigil originated from.
He wore a flowing white robe with golden highlights at the end, which obscured his body. But even with his feet obscured, his footsteps were still known by their echos.
The very walls of the halls that closed Axel in, seemed to warp around him, pushing him further with each step. Axel wasn't sure if this was magic, or a trick he didn't know about.
And it seems like Axel wasn't the only one feeling this way. The captain who was standing in front of Lilith was bowing, and Apple who was goofing off went quiet and still.
"Hand me the report," he ordered.
His voice echoed behind his mask, yet it sounded like his face was farther from his mask as one might think. Like the mask was not only hiding what his face looked like, but where it was.
"Of course Emperor Bellos!" Lilith quickly complied giving him the report sheet.
If the way everyone treated him wasn't enough, Lilith calling him Emperor proved to Axel who this was, this was the Emperor.
A man who could end Axel's life in a moment, and not a soul would question him. The only advantage that Axel had was that the Emperor both wasn't looking at him, and didn't know what to look for.
The Emperor extended his hand out from under his robe, it was fully armored with what looked knuckle protecters and slight claws at the end of his hand.
As he read, the Emperor said nothing, while the report was in his hand his head nor his neck moved.
"A second Basilisk?" the Emperor asked.
"Yes sir," the captain responded, "A second Basilisk came and attacked one of my scouts sir," he told.
"Odd, there was only one Basilisk," the Emperor said, with all the confidence of the entire Coven.
With how certain the Emperor was of his claim, Axel's mid began to wander back to what Apple asked.
'Where did this Basilisk come from?'
"Sir, whoever made that draft may have been mistaken!" Grape told the Emperor.
Hearing this, the Emperor's head moved to look at Grape.
"This report was made by my Golden Guard, and confirmed by me," the Emperor stated, "Are you saying that I made a mistake?" he asked.
"No sir!" Grape replied, putting his head.
"Then which is it," the Emperor asked, as the sound of a heartbeat could began to be heard throughout the castle.
"Sir!" the captain, "Another scout could vouch that there was a second Basilisk!" the captain told.
'Crap! Why are you bringing me into this!'
"Oh? Do tell," the Emperor said, his head turning away from Grape and onto the group as a whole.
'I have to say something, if I say nothing I'll just be put on the spot by one of the others'
"It was me sir," Axel called out.
"Well then," the Emperor said turning his eyes to Axel, "Was there a second Basilisk?" he asked.
As soon as the Emperor's eyes turned to Axel, Axel felt a child's regret, his mind instinctually searching for something that he had done wrong.
He thought of every mistake he had ever made, and worried that the Emperor would use each and every one to point out each one of his flaws.
'Every lie has it's truth, say the truth first, then build a lie'
"I didn't see the Basilisk escape," Axel reported, "Nor did I see the second Basilisk, I was too late to the scene," he told the Emperor, "I merely saw the result, a wounded scout and Basilisk nowhere to be seen," he recounted.
Axel did not tell a lie, and yet the story he told left out the first things he saw when he got there, changing its meaning.
The Emperor stood silent, his gaze pricing Axel. As Axel kneeled, he wondered if the Emperor's gaze pierced through his coat and onto his ears.
"So you have not seen the second Basilisk, and yet you vouch for your other?" the Emperor asked Axel.
"Yes sir," Axel replied.
"Then so it shall be," the Emperor told, his gaze lifting once more, "I hope the incompetence that you have shown today does not happen again, the Titan has big plans for all of us, and we each need to do our part," he said holding one hand up.
"Yes sir!" all six scouts responded.
It was the first time that Axel saw all the scouts say the same thing at the same time, and if the Emperor himself was leaching their individuality out.
"I hope for a full report by tomorrow Lilith," the Emperor said, before finally continuing on his way.
"Yes sir, I won't fail you," Lilith responded in reverence.
The Emperor said nothing back, just continuing forward, as if this entire conversation was simply a distraction while on his way to his true destination, the heart beat became fainter and fainter and he got farther away.