Chapter 381: The Sleepers of the Underground
"Months ago, Kumbhakarna the Sleeping Giant descended from the Dark Tower. I am sure you know who he is. He is the younger brother of Ravana from the Hindu epic Ramayana and his insatiable hunger, sleep, and strength is said to rival the King of the Gods, Indra. When he descended, the whole of the Underground shook. When he ate, no one could fight back. For those watching, it seemed like he was just devouring people at random. But it was far from it. No, it was as though he was on a crusade. He devoured our Whispers, those of us that were hidden in alleyways as peasants or disguised as chefs and bosses."
Xavier pushed himself off the door and pointed at several points, all distant and apart. From the East Gate to the Daggerwind Gate and the Dark Gate, south and close to the Dark Tower. "Here, here, and here. Many of our Whispers were far away yet in between his traversal, the Sleeping Giant consumed nothing. He specifically and solely consumed the Whispers. Nobody else. Not a single other casualty."
Dasha stared at the map. As if to be the complete antithesis to its sky counterpart, the Underground did not label and divide districts, naming only neighborhoods such as Old Blood and Guts. Dasha analyzed each point. As Xavier suggested, there was no correlation. He was telling the truth.
"Consort Lü Siniang and her murders; Kumbhakarna and his rampage," Xaiver continued. "They were all catalysts, a sign that something—or someone—has the power to expose us, to destroy us. And we cannot afford to let it continue."
"Your loyalty is commendable," Dasha said.
"Is it the way of the Whispers."
Military brainwashing. Patriotism. Belief in the cause. The ways in which people gathered under a banner were various as they were different. The Templar Order followed oaths and believed in God. The Alhambra Guardians protected and idealized the Caliph. The Whispers did not seem to align with religious or ideological indoctrination.
Grace and Xavier, for example, couldn’t be further from each other in terms of thoughts and ideals. So what connected them? What led them to obey Daughter, who they all described as an organizer rather than an outright leader?
What were the Whispers?