After about ten minutes the place went quiet. There was no longer any screaming, and all signs of life had dwindled down to five people, including Cate. Hundreds of people were dead, and yet Cate did not seem fazed at all. This was one of the results of having lived for so long and killed so many people. Life had lost most of its value in her eyes. Soon, she heard hooves banging on the earth. Asterion entered the hall. He carried two unconscious people in his hands and one over his broad shoulders. Cate nodded in approval for Asterion's quick action.
She stood up, and Asterion followed. There was no need for any orders to be given for him to understand that he was back to working for Cate. He felt sad and excited at the same time. He was not sure about how Cate had come back to life after being beheaded, but this was no longer important. He simply had to serve. This was as per the soul contract he made with Cate. As a price for changing his fate, he had to serve Cate with absolute loyalty for all time lest he lose his soul to Cate.
This was a fate far worse than death. The magic used to make the Soul Contract was so old that even the gods could not break it. Asterion had managed to find a loophole in the contract that allowed him to stay away from Cate. It was very simple. All he had to do was believe that Medusa was dead, and that would mean the end of the soul contract. Now that he had proof that she was not dead, there was no way for him to escape his responsibilities. Over the years, Asterion had given birth to more than a few children, and these went on to give birth to more minotaurs, and just like that, the minotaur race was born.
After thousands of years, there were hundreds of thousands of them in the world. The Minotaur clan was born, and Asterion was their patriarch. This large force was covered by the soul contract. Cate had been more than thorough when she made the contract. In the contract, there was a provision that made it such that all of Asterion's descendants would be in her service. The moment they left the underground facility, the Wandering Palace arrived above the place. Cate was the only one who could see it, but that was okay.
Galeazzo woke up after a few days, and so did the twins. Galeazzo was strapped to the floor by thick black chains. The moment he opened his eyes, he saw the onyx ceiling and realized that there was nothing good in his future. The twins were strapped to chairs in two opposite corners. They were just as helpless as he was. Cate entered the large hall and stood over Galeazzo. "What do you want?" Galeazzo asked. He hoped to talk his way out of this situation.
"When I came to Rome, my plan was very simple. I was going to make you one of my closest friends, and through you, I would gain access to your family. This would allow me to get the key of destiny that your family has been keeping hidden away for so long. This was all I was going to do, but I did not account for how truly suspicious and untrusting you are. This is a failure on my part, so I will not be blaming you for that. Unfortunately for you, you will most likely not survive plan B."
Cate fell to her knees and began carving the floor with her nails. When Galeazzo saw the long black claws on Cate's hand, he realized that he had truly underestimated his enemy. He had been suspicious of her the moment she approached him, but he had never expected anything like this. The Key of Destiny was the greatest treasure held by his clan. It had been very instrumental in their rise to power. They could not afford to lose it. Over the years, many people tried to steal it, but all ended in failure due to all the security the clan had in place.
"What are you going to do?" Galeazzo asked, hoping that things were not as bad as he believed. "You do not need to know. If you survive, you will know everything without me saying anything. I truly hope that you survive. After all, you are my best path to infiltrate your clan." The sound of Cate's claws moving over the floor was more than irritating in this moment; Galeazzo did not care about any of that. He was truly terrified of what Cate was about to do.
"If you let me go, I can work with you to get the key," Galeazzo begged. Cate just snorted at the nonsense she was hearing. There was no way anyone from the Staranse clan could ever betray their clan. This was simply impossible from everything Cate knew about them. Unless they were raised away from the clan just as Katherine had been, betrayal was not possible. This was why Cate had not even thought about convincing Galeazzo to join her in theft.
Cate said nothing after that. She just continued carving the floor in silence until she was done. When she stood up, Galeazzo let out a deep breath as though he had finally accepted the truth of his situation. The twins were sweating buckets. They had a lot to say, but the tape on their mouths stopped them from letting out even a single word. They tried using all their power to escape, but the chains that held them in place would not budge even an inch.
Cate looked into Galeazzo's eyes for the last time. "If this spell works, you will be the very first success since I created this spell. If it fails, you will be too dead to care. You can at least take hope in that." Cate moved out of the magic circle and brought out her two black daggers.
"Tis life's true spark, the span of being's breath,
A realm for Gods, beyond the reach of death.
By mortals sought, by shadows held in dread,
The knot that binds the flesh to spirit-thread.
An essence fleeting, past all human sight,
No hand can touch this phantom, ancient light.
To mold this ghost, a God alone hath might,
And lend to clay the spark of heavenly height.
I, Catherine Danescu, Herald of the dread,
By Set's own hand and sacred mandate led;
With power divine, the soul I shall reclaim,
To forge the flesh and set the truth aflame."
Cate ended the chant by entering the circle, standing in a very particular position. Boooom, there was a small explosion as the magic circle came to life.