The only negative thing Anton could say about his advancement to Unity was that it was a tiny bit... unsecret. Which was to say, the upper realms wouldn’t even need their spies to inform them something was happening. It wasn’t just the activity of people in various systems, but upon Anton completing his advancement a pulse of power had gone out from every star. So unless everyone in every system along the border and several systems deep happened to have gone on vacation all at once, the upper realms would be feeling the aftermath.
Then again, the Lower Realms Alliance wasn’t exactly secretly resisting the oppression of the Exalted Quadrant and the Trigold Cluster. The latest cycle had made that very clear, as they had decimated their forces and since then driven out many pockets of remaining presence. It was possible there were still some systems they inhabited either primarily or as part of a larger group, but they would be significantly more isolated.
The main downside of the lack of secrecy was straightforward- Anton couldn’t reasonably test his maximum range. It didn’t matter where he aimed, hundreds of systems would directly witness the energy, and probably thousands total would be able to watch from adjacent systems.
Anton was stronger and he would be able to test the power of his arrows on a personal level- he might add a handful of lightyears or two onto his range- but on the constellation-scale of things he could only estimate his power.
He could first conclude that he would be more effective than when he shot down Sudin, with the exception that he’d been utilizing the tides of the world and how they created a pathway that linked natural and ascension energy together. Without that, Anton would have to deal with the effects of upper energy interacting with Fleeting Youth. An unfortunate late term side effect, but even if Anton had been able to anticipate his ability to shoot into the upper realms some nine hundred years later, he would have still chosen to use the technique for how useful it was along the way.
And given Sudin’s death, the way ascension energy reacted to his presence wasn’t entirely negative if he just wanted to cause damage. It violently clashed with his own energy, so if he could sustain any attack for enough distance to reach his target, it should be quite effective.
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Alva and Catarina were watching a video from their grandfather. “And so, that’s done now. Anyone who wants to discuss insights can come visit me. I can’t come see you on account of my bad back and how existence itself hates me there.”
Catarina chuckled. “Did he ever have a bad back?”
“He was hunting in the woods at a hundred so... not in any way that counted,” Alva confirmed. “I probably should go visit. It might be too late to get into traditional starbinding, but he’s certainly got scale down.”
Catarina nodded. “He was already outclassing us in that manner before. Now, I suspect his various stars will be as functional as one giant anchor- able to distribute power wherever it needs to. It’s a shame I can’t go visit.”
“Any secrecy about our ongoing alliance is strained at best,” Alva pointed out.
“And I certainly won’t be the one to break that illusion once and for all. Besides, even if that weren’t the case someone might wish to take advantage of my absence. We’re going to need more than just a pair of Domination cultivators here.”
“... How soon do you expect that to be possible?” Alva asked. “Because it’s not... particularly likely to be soon.”
“Well,” Catarina began thoughtfully. “Tauno will be dead or advance within a decade. And though I believe in his spirit, we should expect that a pair of successes aren’t sufficient to guarantee more. It’s hardly a pattern, and our guidance could even steer people wrong if we’re not careful.”
“What about me?” Alva prompted.
“Given the pace I was at,” Catarina pondered, “Less than two centuries. Nearly dying to Domination energy attempting to take over significantly accelerated the insights Timothy and I had.”
“Hmm. Does Domination take longer to reach than... Unity?” Alva tilted her head.
But before that, he had business to attend to. He had promised to meet an evergreen for the changing of the seasons, and he wasn’t going to break such a promise just because something came up after. He’d need a better reason to pull him away.
Away from his bound stars, Anton probably didn’t feel like a Unity cultivator. So as to not disrupt the locals too much, he did his best to keep his aura much as it was before. He didn’t want to attract any of the more powerful space dwelling individuals to the planet where his friends lived, if they weren’t already aware of the details on the surface. Anton could certainly deal with any threats, but he couldn’t watch the system while he was away without a bound star.
Unfortunately, he was probably decades away from even being able to ask to bind their stars, and that was assuming they didn’t find entirely new people groups that would need to be accounted for. Just the various plants and fungi. Then again, any other sapient individuals would probably cultivate and thus be able to speak the new energy sign language. Hopefully.
The evergreen had refused to receive a name, after seeming to understand what they meant. It was inconvenient, but the evergreen was also a solitary individual for the most part. Thus, Anton could walk up to the tree and say, “Hey, you.” That would be sufficient.
In the hemisphere his intentionally nameless friend resided, the particular changing of the season was from winter to spring. This particular evergreen was a fir, or at least broadly resembled one.
Anton walked up to the tree, nearly stepping on it. “Oh, hello there friend. Almost missed you.”
The evergreen was unamused, and its energy was much larger than its physical stature. “There is nothing else here.”
It was true. The tiny tree lived alone atop a crag in a small patch of soil that was barely enough to support an immature tree. Through some amount of determination and luck, the tree had survived at about two hands tall, at the same time awakening sapience.
Anton sat down next to the tree. “So, I heard you have big plans. Want to let me in on them?” Some of the words he intended to say didn’t translate perfectly, but Anton didn’t let that hinder his intent.
“All shall be known when the sun hits its highest point in the sky on the agreed upon day.”
Anton nodded. The tree understood that gesture, as his energy moved with his body. The same wasn’t necessarily true for his small friend which only had so much room to pack the natural energy it wished to store. Instead, it maintained a sort of aura, even imbuing some of its ‘own’ natural energy into the rocky rise it dwelt upon.
Waiting a few hours was simple. Anton had arrived on the precise day given his recent busy schedule, so it was no longer than that. As he waited, he did his best not to pry into how the fir was using its energy so as to not spoil the surprise. It was difficult, but he could at least be somewhat surprised. The cracking sounds were difficult to ignore, however, even if they were extremely quiet at first.
“Behold,” the miniature fir tree said as the sun reached its zenith. “Freedom.”
Beneath it, the rock split apart as natural energy spiraled out of roots that had no doubt been growing deep into cracks for years. As one side plummeted away, the roots were exposed to air- and indeed the majority of the fir. Only a slight push of energy, and it topped forward out of its longtime home, landing messily in the soil below.
The small tree seemed unperturbed, manipulating its roots to reach for the soil and to right itself. “You may now provide me with a name, if you still wish,” it signed from down below.
No wonder it had refused Anton’s offer to transplant it, despite clearly being unsatisfied. Frankly, that was much better. “I do,” Anton confirmed. “We’ll go with what you said. Liberty.” It was the same sign, but if actually speaking he would say Liberty instead of Freedom.
“Good,” Liberty said. “It fits. Now then, human Anton, feel free to return to your starry roots. I will be here.”
So it would. Though clearly, some mobility was possible.