The flight from the Alfheim Dominion to the Asuran Cabal was a long one. And while Erich became more acquainted with his recent team members on board his ship. The Sages had begun to make a move in the shadows.


    While the majority of the Order had fled from the Milky Way Gxy to one of the revolving Dwarf Gxies. They had left several operatives behind. Who had begun to make use of their contacts within the various Gctic Powers to make life difficult for the man who they referred to as the "Dark Sage".


    Currently, a representative of the Sages was meeting with a high-ranking mobster in the Asuran Cabal. The contrast of the two species was rather distinct. While both were humanoids, one was a Dark Elf, and the other was a figure with four arms, blue skin, and ck hair.


    This four armed woman looked upon the Dark Elf with a hint of pity in her eyes. She had heard all about the Sages and their prophecies of fate, not that she believes such nonsense. But she pitied the Sages after they were expelled from their seats of power, and were now being pursued by two of the gxy''s most powerful civilizations.


    With this in mind, this beautiful blue skinned woman used two of her hands to shuffle the deck of cards, while also using her other two hands to smoke and drink alcohol. Asuran Palm Wine was the primary form of alcohol in the Asuran Empire and was now known as the Gxies'' strongest drink, especially after the Rylonian homeworld was destroyed.


    It was the primary export of the Asuran homeworld and was beloved by the gxy as a whole. This woman had long ck locks that were braided. She had once visited Earth millennia ago, as had several other members of her Cabal, where they were worshipped as gods by a certain sub-continent.


    Her name was Kali, and she was particrly well known for destroying things when she lost her temper. In truth, the only reason she had even bothered entertaining this Dark Elven sage was to see if his powers were actually real. And thus she yed the cards, while asking about his reason for visiting her.


    "I find it interesting that one of the legendary Sages of the Svartalfheim Federation hase to visit little old me.... Tell me, what do you want?"


    Kali dealt the cards only to find that she quickly lost the first hand of the game. This was followed by a smug expression on the Dark Elf''s face while he spoke of his needs.


    "You may already be aware, but there is a new Archon who the Alfheim Empress has named. He is the reason that my order has entered such dire straits. We believe, after much divination, that he wille here soon enough, seeking your help. All we ask is that when the timees, the great destroyer will not so easily fall to this man''s whims. He is, after all, an enormous threat to the gxy as a whole. And it would be best if you deal with him personally...."


    Kali again lost another hand, almost as if her opponent already knew what cards she held. This caused her to frown as she spoke her next thoughts aloud.


    "A little birdy told me you are at war with this man... You call him the Dark Sage, do you not? Does that mean he also has the ability to see the future? If so, would he not foresee my betrayal?"


    There was a bit of a mocking tone in the woman''s voice, as if she believed the beliefs of the Dark Elf''s order were nothing more than the ramblings of a bunch of old men. However, he did not take this to heart. And instead responded to the woman''s jest with confirmation.


    "If he is truly the Dark Sage, then yes, he would be able to see the future. Though we believe that his abilities are stunted, and thus we wish to take care of him before he truly develops them. We do not know how far his visions span into the future, but it should not be enough to pretend your venomous de from reaching his heart..."


    This time Kali had a perfect hand, but the Sage folded immediately, as if he were already aware that she had the means to beat him. Causing her mood to sour further. Thus, she posed the next question to the man.


    "You are asking me to kill and Archon of the Alfheim Dominion... If you can truly see the future, then you should be aware that the Cabal currently has an alliance with Empress Lunaria, to assassinate one of her agents, that would just be bad for business...."


    Yet the sage did not appear dispirited by thisment, as he quickly spoke up, reminding the woman that everything had its price.


    "We understand your sentiments, but we also know that everything has its price. Viting a contract is bad for business, but there are also things that could be worth such a risk... Or are you saying that you are not interested in what I have to offer?"


    Kali nodded her head with a cruel smile on her face. She was quick to confirm that indeed everything had its price with a bit of a callous tone in her voice.


    "You are indeed correct. Everything had its price, and it''s not as if that old fool had even consulted the rest of us when he made this agreement. I don''t know what the Alfheim Empress paid him to secure our loyalty, but we certainly didn''t get a cut. So tell me, what does your order possess that is so valuable that even I might be tempted to break a contract?"


    The sage wore a toothy grin as he pulled out a vial of a pure white substance, which he ced on the table. Kali looked at it in curiosity, not knowing what the hell it was. Which was rare for a high-ranking member of the Asura Cabal, because they were aware of nearly every major treasure that existed in the gxy.


    Judging by the look on the woman''s face, the sage could tell that she had no idea what she was looking at. Which was to be expected. It was an incredibly rare thing, and in the entire gxy, only this vial existed of the substance. While more could be produced, it required a terrible price to be paid. One which the sages were seldom willing to do. Thus, the sage exined exactly what this substance was and why it was so valuable.


    "This is a one of a kind item. Once it is consumed, there will probably never be another. We call it the essence of fate. To put is simply, it would allow a normal living being to see what we see. You could see the end that fate has in store for you, or a loved one, and in doing so, prevent it from happening. You could consider it a single use get out of jail free card."


    Kali gazed upon this vial of white liquid, and could hardly believe the Sage''s words. By now the man had passed her test, and bested her in a game of cards, one that she was wholly cheating at. If he could predict every single dealing of the cards, and stille out on top, it was entirely possible that his orders ims weren''t false. Thus she gazed upon the vial for some time, considering whether or not she should witness her end, and prepare to avoid it....


    After spending a very long time thinking about this, Kali sighed heavily, before snatching the bottle, where she then confirmed that she would ept the man''s offer.


    "Very well, consider this Dark Sage of yours as good as dead.... It has been a pleasure doing business with you!"


    The sage smirked and stood up from the table, where he immediately departed. He had sessfully coaxed the Asura Cabal into killing Erich on behalf of the order. Now he simply needed to watch and wait, before he could dere victory for the sages, and have his brothers and sisters return from exile.