The Blood of Vampire: Chapter 17 - The Ambiguity of the Mentor
Miles away, Elder Kael stood in his private observation chamber, watching the live tactical feed of the Sentinel's destruction. His face, usually a mask of cold spiritual purity, betrayed a flicker of something unreadable—ambiguity.
He reviewed the data: the initial chaotic evasion (expected), followed by the precise, controlled application of power at the exact point of the Sentinel's kinetic flaw (unexpected).
"The boy should be consumed by chaos," Kael murmured to himself, his voice a low, gravelly whisper. "He should be a raging beast, easily trapped. But he yields to the human's logic. He allows himself to be guided by Order to defeat Law."
Kael was an absolute purist. He believed the Vaelanar needed to return to their roots of rigid spiritual discipline to contain The Sleeper's threat. Jatex, the Aethyr-Wound, was the antithesis of everything Kael believed in.
Yet, Jatex's fighting style—the agonizing control, the willingness to consume his own soul for strategic advantage—was a terrifying form of discipline.
He is not a beast, Sydon. He is a weapon. A flawed, chaotic, but utterly dedicated weapon, Kael thought, remembering his disgraced rival, Elder Sydon.
Kael saw an opportunity. The boy was dangerous, but he was also a Law-breaker who might achieve what Kael's own sterile purity never could.
Kael contacted the command center controlling the Crystal Spire defenses—the final barriers to the Gem of Frozen Tears. He didn't withdraw the defenses. He subtly, surgically, disabled two non-critical secondary alarms that would have instantly triggered a devastating area-of-effect blast.
He was not helping Jatex. He was removing the non-disciplined, brutal traps that would kill Jatex before he could face the purity of the Gem.
Kael closed the feed. He was gambling. He was allowing Jatex to live, not for compassion, but for the sake of a higher, purer spiritual conflict. He was testing Jatex, guiding him to his fate. The mentor had become the most dangerous kind of enemy—one who respects the power of his prey.