A Toast To Victory

A Toast To Victory is the eighteenth chapter of Tales of Sheol'gotha:  Shadow of the Abaddon.

Synopsis
As the seventh legion enters the town of Flagstone there is very apparent chaos on the air. Soldiers, unable to be restrained by their sergeants, run amok through the streets as they drink and celebrate in whatever fashion suits them best, and a number of hangings are carried out within hours of the group arriving. Soltas and Ysir receive considerable accolades from the soldiers, and Haebin secludes himself in a corner, drinking and bleeding. Palus, still exhausted and plagued with concerns for the legion, rises and exits the tavern in search of Valon.

Arriving inside the keep, he spots Surtur's body hanging by chains beneath the building after it was expelled from the runic veil. He also notes that it is much less intricately-maintained. The food is not being constantly replaced, and many objects belonging to Surtur are being carried out for destruction. Noting the lack of the demonesses who were feasting at the table, he arrives at Valon's room and finds Imma alone. She is scornful of the soldiers who celebrate despite having done nothing, and Palus promises reforms at the earliest opportunity. Valon interrupts soon after, complaining at how useless everyone is and how no one is aware of what happened with Surtur.

Palus at first calls Valon out regarding his apparent lack of concern for the well-being of the demonesses, but it quickly becomes apparent that Valon is really more upset over the runic magic being used to power the veil. The magic was presumed largely lost following the destruction of the First Empire, and their use in present time is little-to-none. He suspects the Shadow behind Surtur's actions to be more powerful than Surtur, but since Palus is unreceptive of hearing the thoughts and the concerns Valon refrains from going into detail.

Palus then notices a bloody bag on the floor and draws attention to it. Imma doesn't recognize it, but Valon does and states it's there to remind him what becomes of corrupted incubi. He explains the vision he had in the prisons and how he draws a comparison between Surtur's corrupted incubus nature, and the rape he indulged in, and the knife being driven into his groin. Neither Palus nor Imma really take such concerns seriously and Palus points out the more pressing concerns for the army with need addressing. He suggests Valon join him in meeting the soldiers and bolstering morale, but the prince refuses in favour of spending time with Imma. Unwilling to argue, Palus opts to leave, and after finding out where the demonesses were relocated to, goes off in search of Calliste.

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