Apophis woke up alone in a brightly lit room tied up from head to toe. He couldn't move an inch.
Something immediately caught his eye—two huge automatic turrets and an advanced camera system pointing at him from above! The moment Apophis tried to escape, those weapons would unload their magazines in his direction.
Sure, 'he' would just respawn…
But if he had been captured, so had Antanria.
Who had captured them? Bounty hunters? SuperGuild players… maybe from Hyrule?
Or what if it was adherents of the gods, determined to punish him for killing the God of Truth?!
But no matter how many options Apophis considered, there was no way for him to know. If he wanted to have a chance at saving Antanria, there was nothing he could do but wait.
After about twenty minutes, two men entered the room.
The first was unknown… but the second was Colonel Ralfot!
Apophis wasted no time in scanning the stranger.
[Colonel Zareil] [Rank: ???] [Level: ???]
Why couldn't Apophis see his information? Could Colonel Zareil be perhaps Rank A, or even higher?!.
Apophis was in a terrible situation. Ralfot had betrayed him and seemed to be in league with someone even stronger than Apophis.
The two men sat down in chairs of their own in front of the chair where Apophis was tied up. After looking uncomfortable for a few moments, Ralfot spoke up.
"Sorry for the theatrics, Apophis. The Human Supremacists are everywhere in society, watching us night and day, because we are one of the few institutions within the Federation which they have not yet compromised. We brought you here not because we desire you any harm, but because we could not afford any risks of discovery. Now, we know that the Grand Admiral has spoken with you, and we would like to know what he told you."
Despite Ralfot's attempts to reassure him, Apophis did not answer.
Colonel Ralfot understood. Apophis was not the kind of man to cooperate with threats. He had known this, and wished there was another option to arrange this meeting, but could not arrange anything better at such short notice.
So, trying to ease the tension of the situation, Ralfot untied Apophis and brought him food and water.
Apophis didn't know how long he'd been unconscious, but the first sip of water made him realize he was as thirsty as though he hadn't drunk in days! After draining the glass, he turned to the food, which proved to be a packet containing a variety of odd cookies.
Ralfot, hoping Apophis was now in a good mood, said, "I am sorry I have lied to you all this time. In truth, I am a member of the Federation Secret Service, tasked with monitoring Admiral Azerof. It seems that he discovered my role and so assigned me to keep surveillance on 'you' instead.
"Given the circumstances, I can never contact Azerof again, but we know he is planning something important. Apophis, we need your help to stop the Human Supremacists! We are unaware of the details, but know for certain that he intends a coup against the Chancellor and the Senate!"
Apophis finally answered with a calm and level voice. "Where is Antanria?"
Ralfot removed a round hologram projector from his pocket, which he set on the table between them. An ultra-detailed hologram of Antanria appeared above it.
She was asleep in what looked like a comfortable cell with windows. Considerably better than where Apophis had woken up!
Apophis stared at it for a few moments, skeptic. This could easily be a trick. "Can I see her?"
Ralfot answered, "Everything in turn, my friend! Give us the information we requested, and then we will go to see Antanria in person."
Anger burned deep in Apophis's chest! He did not easily forgive people who tried to coerce him, and he had a special hatred for people who betrayed him.
Nevertheless, he needed to cooperate for now. Ralfot and Apophis had a kind of understanding between them. Apophis knew that 'Ralfot' knew that Apophis had no morals and that his word was meaningless, so Ralfot would take every precaution to protect himself as they dealt with each other.
.
Apophis could probably kill both colonels, even if the mysterious stranger was more powerful than him in some ways. Even if all three of them died in the fight, only one of them would come back afterward.
.
Nevertheless, this was an interesting opportunity, and one that Apophis liked the idea of seizing.
In Apophis's old life, the Supremacists had failed in their coup. This had led to a civil war within the Federation between the Supremacists and the so-called "Pragmatists."
However, things could easily turn out differently in this timeline. The new war with the Orcs was totally new, and Azerof had never been Grand Admiral in the old timeline, instead being forced to play both sides of the civil war to keep his reputation and title of military governor.
So Apophis replied, "Azerof wants me to raise 100,000,000 Eternal soldiers to help him in his coup!"
