Chapter 39: A different POV - Beta
The texts in the Crimson Tower's hidden archive recorded events going back over a thousand years. While there was nothing relating directly to the cult, she'd spotted several intriguing incidents that might be clues to their past activities. Along with evidence of the connection between the progenitor and the effects of Possession. This secret library was an absolute treasure trove of priceless intelligence. Under almost any other circumstance Beta would have been in heaven rooting through it and deciding which tomes to liberate and bring back for more thorough investigation. She had been less than an hour ago. That was before she arrived.
"What is that damned obnoxious, overbred slut doing here?" Beta muttered to herself.
To say Beta hated than damnable princess would not be correct. She hated the Cult of Diablos. She hated literary critics who failed to appreciate her work. She hated the smug look Epsilon would get when she bragged about how Lord Shadow had stared at her chest. No, no, no, hate was not an accurate description of the feeling Princess Alexia inspired in her. It would be more precise to say Beta despised the girl with a fiery, volcanic fury that knew no limit.
That was the reason she'd called an emergency meeting of the Seven Shadows about a week after the events of the Goddess Trial.
XXX
Five of the Seven Shadows had gathered together in the hidden conference room of the Midgar branch of Mitsugoshi. Eta was still in her lab at Alexandria working on something called an 'internal combustion engine' and was too engrossed in her work to answer the summons. Zeta was somewhere in the western continent on one of her perpetual scouting missions and was unavailable.
Of the four others who were in attendance Delta had her head resting on the table already half asleep. Epsilon was leaning back in her seat looking amused. Gamma had arrived with a stack of papers, no doubt listing sales and inventory reports from the various Mitsugoshi and Tuna King franchises. Alpha was sitting at the head of the table serene as always, but with a slight frown.
"Why did you call us here, Beta?" Alpha asked. "Does it have something to do with the information we gathered from the Goddess Trial?"
Beta stood from her seat and shook her head. "No, it's something I discovered after Lord Shadow destroyed the Sanctuary."
Alpha's frown deepened a tad. "Is it something so important you had to call an emergency meeting?"
"It is," Beta confirmed. "It's a matter of even greater consequence than what we learned in the Sanctuary!"
This made Alpha raise an eyebrow. Epsilon rolled her eyes. Gamma looked more intent. Delta yawned.
"All right," Alpha said. "What do you want to report?"
Beta took a deep breath. "Lord Shadow and Princess Alexia Midgar are h… having s… s… sex."
Her words were met by a wide range of reactions.
"What?!" Epsilon cried in outrage. "But my boobs are way bigger than hers!"
Gamma's jaw dropped and she somehow managed to fall out of her chair.
Delta lifted her head, suddenly wide awake. For some strange reason she was smiling, and her tail was wagging.
CRUNCH! The sound of wood being smashed came from the head of the table. Alpha was still seated and looking as placid as before. But both her hands had gouged out and crushed chunks of wood.
"Beta," Alpha spoke in a calm voice, but with a vain throbbing in her forehead. "Could you explain to me exactly what led you to make that statement?"
Swallowing, Beta quickly related the events that happened following their escape from the Sanctuary. How she had followed Alexia and Rose into the woods and eavesdropped on their conversations and on that slut's shameless confession.
"There's absolutely no reason why Alexia would lie about having such an immoral and indecent affair to a fellow princess. It's not as if it's something to be proud of. Therefore, I have to conclude it was the truth."
"I see," Alpha said maintaining a tranquil veneer. "Good work on gathering this information. Afterall, it's important we know Shadow's circumstance so as to better anticipate his future wants." As Alpha said this her fingernails were gouging out lines in the table.
"I don't understand," Gamma said while pressing a handkerchief to her bloody nose. "She and Lord Shadow didn't seem to have that kind of relationship at all."
Beta shrugged. "She's obviously much better at deceit than any of us realized. I could tell from the moment we met she was two faced, but even I had no idea just how rotten that woman really is."
"So, what are we going to do about this?!" Epsilon demanded.
"I think the answer is obvious," Beta said.
"We kill the bitch!" Epsilon proclaimed.
"Exactly," Beta agreed. Despite being rivals there were times when the two of them could work in perfect sync.
Gamma gasped and stood up. "Hold on! We can't murder someone just because they're intimate with Lord Shadow. Right Alpha?"
"…"
"Alpha?!"
Alpha took a deep breath and then nodded. "No, of course not, our duty is to support Shadow in whatever he chooses to do. And if he wishes to have that sort of… relationship with someone. It's not our place to interfere. Even if it's a mistake." That last part was muttered under her breath.
Epsilon considered this. "Okay, so killing her would be an overreaction. How about we just mess up her face, so Lord Shadow doesn't want her anymore?"
"That would have to be done thoroughly," Beta said. "Expert healers can remove scars."
"Well, what if we cut off her nose and ears?"
Alpha sighed. "No killing, no disfiguring, and no harassment of any kind. I'm sure Shadow has his own reasons for doing… that with someone like her."
Gamma nodded. "Maybe he's just seducing her to use her as a future pawn." Gamma sounded way too hopeful.
"Couldn't we just kidnap her and get Eta to sue her mind control device on her instead?" Epsilon suggested.
It was at this point Delta spoke up. "Delta doesn't get what the problem is. If the boss man is finally plowing some fields isn't that good?"
"How can you say that?' Beta gasped. "As much as I, er, I mean as much as we all love and adore Lord Shadow, if he wanted to do those sorts of things, he should do it with one of us or all of us! Not with some royal harlot who isn't worthy of kissing his feet."
"That's right!" Epsilon agreed. "I'd let him do anything he wants to me, and my body is ten times better than hers! I designed it to be exactly what any man would lust after!"
Beta looked over at her. "Designed?"
Epsilon's cheeks flushed and for some reason she looked suddenly panicked. "Er, I, what I mean is-"
Delta interrupted. "But boss man is the strongest there is! That means he should have lots and lots of wives and babies too! Boss man's so awesome he should have a hundred wives! Or two hundred! Or three hundred! Or ten hundred! Delta would be happy to share so long as she gets plowed too!"
Delta's enthusiasm and the rapid-fire wagging of her tail made Beta and the others a bit uncomfortable.
In the end it was decided to keep Alexia under surveillance and to not directly interfere with their relationship. Shadow Garden existed only to carry out his will and they would respect any and all decisions he made.
No matter how horribly misguided they were.
XXX
Beta was snapped back to the present when 666 came up to her.
"Excuse me, Beta-sama. But are we really not going to do anything? I know how amazing Shadow is, but Cid could still be in danger!"
Beta gave her a sympathetic nod. When the day came that she was told the truth about Lord Shadow's identity she'd look back at this and have a laugh.
Probably.
"Don't worry 666, I can guarantee you that Cid will be fine."
"Well, what about Alexia and the others? They're storming the tower all by themselves. What if Alexia gets killed?"
"That won't happen," Beta said with absolute certainty. "I'm not that lucky."
"Huh?"
Beta forced a smile. "I said she's very lucky. Now get back to the mission."
Beta also returned to her work and tried not to daydream about the royal strumpet getting her throat ripped out by a horde of vampires.