Chapter 15: The Bishop's Price
They rode out again before the sun touched the hills.
Same three riders. Same gray Titan walking behind. But something had shifted. Kael rode closer to Ian now. Not protective. Just close. Her shoulder sometimes brushed his. She didn't pull away.
Sera noticed. Said nothing. Just rode ahead, eyes on the road.
Grip hummed behind them. The sound was different today. Lower. Almost thoughtful.
"He's been doing that since we left," Kael said. "Like he's thinking about something."
"Maybe he misses Bulwark," Ian said.
"Do Titans miss each other?"
Ian looked back at Grip. The Titan's smooth face was tilted toward the sky. His long fingers trailed through the air, feeling nothing but wind.
"I think they do. Gnasher whined for two days when Grip first arrived. Now they're brothers."
Kael was quiet. Then she said, "I never had siblings. Just my daughter. And she's gone."
Ian reached over. Touched her hand on the reins. Brief. Warm.
"You have them now. The Titans. The women. They're not blood but they're family."
Kael looked at his hand on hers. "You keep saying things like that. Making it sound simple."
"Because it is simple. People complicate things. Monsters don't."
Grip hummed louder. Almost like agreement.
---
They reached the monastery on the third day.
It rose out of the mountains like a gray wound. Stone walls. Narrow windows. A single bell tower that caught the weak sun. The road ended at a heavy iron gate.
Two monks stood guard. Not soft men. These had scars and hard eyes. Former soldiers. They wore brown robes but carried blades at their hips.
"State your business," the taller one said.
Ian dismounted. "Lord Voss. Here to see Bishop Aldric. He's expecting me."
The monk's eyes flicked to Grip. The Titan stood motionless behind the horses. Four meters of gray skin and long fingers. He wasn't humming now. Just watching.
"That thing stays outside."
"He goes where I go."
"Then you don't go in."
Ian stepped closer. "Tell the bishop that Lord Voss is here with his Titan. If he wants to talk, he talks to both of us. If not, we ride back and find someone else who wants to hurt the Duke."
The monk stared. Then turned and walked through the gate.
Kael dismounted. Stood beside Ian. "Bold move."
"He's a military chaplain. He respects strength, not groveling."
The gate creaked open. The monk returned.
"The bishop will see you. The Titan stays in the courtyard. Final offer."
Ian nodded. "Fine. Grip, stay here. Don't touch anything important."
Grip hummed. Sat down in the middle of the courtyard. His long fingers immediately found the cobblestones. Feeling each one.
The monks stared. Grip ignored them.
---
The bishop's chamber was sparse. Stone walls. Wooden desk. A single window looking out at the mountains. Bishop Aldric sat behind the desk. He was older than Ian expected. White hair. Deep lines around his eyes. But his gaze was sharp. Clear. The kind of man who'd seen too much and judged all of it.
Two chairs faced him. Ian took one. Sera took the other. Kael stood by the door, arms crossed.
Aldric looked at each of them. Then at Ian.
"Lord Voss. The broke noble who suddenly has Titans and gold. Interesting turn of fortune."
"I had help."
"The women." Aldric's eyes flicked to Sera. "The tax assistant who stole the Duke's ledgers. The magistrate who switched sides. The warrior who resigned. You collect people like coins."
"I collect people who want something better."
Aldric smiled. Thin. "So do I. That's why I'm listening. What do you offer?"
Sera leaned forward. "Information. The Duke has been skimming from the crown for years. We have ledgers. Proof. Enough to destroy him politically and financially."
"And you want me to do what with this information?"
"Use it. You have connections in the capital. The church has influence. Make the Duke bleed. While he's fighting you, he can't fight us."
Aldric was quiet. His fingers tapped the desk. Once. Twice.
"And what does the church get in return?"
Ian spoke. "When the Duke falls, his lands go to whoever the crown favors. I want his northern holdings. The rest, the church can claim. Tithes. Influence. Whatever you want."
"Generous. But you're asking me to start a political war."
"I'm asking you to finish one that's already started. The Duke sent a War Golem to my home. He'll send more. I need him distracted while I grow."
Aldric studied Ian. "You're building an army."
"I'm building an empire. Small. Contained. But mine."
"And the Titans? Where do they fit?"
Ian had prepared this lie. "Old Voss relics. Sleeping in the basement. My bloodline woke them. They obey me."
Aldric's eyes narrowed. "I've heard of blood magic. Old Empire cults. Is that what you practice?"
"Call it what you want. It works."
The bishop leaned back. His gaze drifted to the window. To the courtyard where Grip sat touching cobblestones.
"I'll make you a counter-offer," Aldric said. "I'll take your information. I'll move against the Duke. But I want more than land. I want insurance."
"What kind?"
Aldric looked at Ian. "You have Titans. You control them. I want one. Not permanently. On loan. A Titan stationed at the monastery. To protect church interests. And to remind you that our alliance has teeth."
Ian's jaw tightened. "My Titans aren't for loan."
"Then we have no deal."
Sera spoke carefully. "Bishop, the Titans are bound to Lord Voss. They won't obey anyone else."
"Then he stations one here with a handler. Someone the Titan trusts. One of his women, perhaps."
Kael stepped forward. "Absolutely not. We're not leaving anyone behind as collateral."
Aldric smiled. Cold. "Then we're at an impasse."
Ian's mind raced. He couldn't give up a Titan. Couldn't leave a woman. But he needed the bishop.
"Counter-offer," Ian said. "I don't give you a Titan. I give you something better. Protection. If the Duke moves against the monastery, I come. With all four Titans. No questions. No delays. You have my word."
"Your word. The word of a man who admits he collects people."
"The word of a man who's never broken a promise to anyone under his roof. Ask any of them."
Aldric looked at Sera. She nodded. At Kael. She nodded too.
The bishop was silent. Then he stood. Walked to the window.
"There's something else you should know," he said without turning. "The Duke is not your only enemy. Someone else is watching you. Someone who knows about the Titans. About the women. About how they're connected."
Ian's blood went cold. "Who?"
"I don't know. But I have ears in the capital. Whispers. Someone is very interested in your... method of acquiring monsters. They called it 'the Seed System.' Mean anything to you?"
Ian kept his face blank. "No."
Aldric turned. His eyes were sharp. "Lying to a bishop is a sin, Lord Voss."
"I'm not a religious man."
"Clearly." Aldric walked back to his desk. Sat. "I'll take your counter-offer. Protection in exchange for political warfare. But when this mysterious watcher makes themselves known, I want to be informed. Immediately."
"Agreed."
"And one more thing." Aldric reached into his desk. Pulled out a small wooden box. Slid it across the desk. "Open it."
Ian opened the box. Inside was a ring. Silver. Simple. A small red stone set in the band.
"That belonged to my sister," Aldric said. "She died ten years ago. Fever. She was a good woman. Kind. The church took me in after. Gave me purpose."
"Why are you giving me this?"
"Because I want you to remember something. Behind every monster, every scheme, every empire, there are people. People who love. People who die. You collect women, Lord Voss. You call them yours. But if you treat them as tools, you're no better than the Duke. Worse, because you pretend to care."
Ian closed the box. "I don't pretend."
"Then prove it. When this is over, when you have your empire, look at that ring and ask yourself if the women who helped build it are standing beside you or buried beneath you."
Ian met the bishop's eyes. "They'll be beside me."
Aldric nodded slowly. "Then we have a deal. I'll send word when the Duke starts bleeding. Go home, Lord Voss. Prepare your monsters. War is coming."
---
They left the monastery as the sun set.
Grip stood when they approached. His long fingers were covered in dust from the cobblestones. He looked pleased.
Kael rode close to Ian. "That bishop is dangerous. Not because of soldiers or gold. Because he sees through people."
"I know."
"Do you think he knows? About the bond? How the Titans really come?"
Ian thought about the whispers. The "Seed System." Someone knew. Someone was watching.
"I think he knows more than he said. But he's not the enemy. Not yet."
Sera rode up beside them. "We have our alliance. We should be happy."
"I am happy," Ian said. "Just tired."
They rode in silence. Grip hummed behind them. The mountains faded into dark hills.
---
That night, they camped in the same hollow as before.
Sera fell asleep first. Exhausted from the tension of the meeting. Kael sat by the fire, sharpening her blade. Ian sat beside her.
"You were quiet during the negotiation," he said.
"I'm not a negotiator. I'm a blade. You and Sera handle words. I handle threats."
"You handled yourself fine."
Kael's blade paused. "The bishop mentioned someone watching. Someone who knows about the Seed System. Is that real? What you do with us?"
Ian stared at the fire. "I don't know what it is. The Titans come when the bond forms. I don't control the name someone else gave it."
"But someone knows. Someone named it."
"Yes."
Kael set down her blade. Turned to face him. "If they come for us. For the women. For the Titans. What do we do?"
"We fight."
"And if we lose?"
Ian took her scarred hand. "We won't. Because we have something they don't."
"What?"
"Each other. The Titans. A reason to win."
Kael looked at their joined hands. Then at him. "You really believe that."
"I have to. It's all I have."
She leaned in. Kissed him. Soft at first. Then deeper. Her free hand came up to his jaw.
When she pulled back, her gray eyes were wet. "I don't want to lose this. Any of it. I just got it."
"You won't."
"Promise me."
"I promise."
She kissed him again. Harder. Desperate.
Then she pulled him down to the blankets beside the dying fire.
---
Later, Kael slept with her head on his chest. Sera had rolled over in her sleep, one hand reaching toward them unconsciously.
Ian stared at the stars. The bishop's words echoed. Someone is watching. The Seed System.
He didn't know who. But he knew one thing.
Whoever they were, they'd have to go through four Titans and four women who'd kill for him.
And him.
He'd kill for them too.
That was the difference between him and the Duke. Between him and whoever was watching.
He wasn't collecting tools.
He was building a family.
And families fought back.