Chapter 2234

Chapter 2234

Fatia Cerulean burned with excitement, despite the bland and uninteresting nature of the report coming from Homewell’s scouts.

“...the much-needed break due to Cerulean’s victory has given morale an invigorating boost,” The dour Turtleline spoke in a slow gait that made Fatia want to reach down his throat and rip out the information. His life would be a worthy sacrifice, in exchange for expediency. “Our forces are stronger and more dedicated than ever. However... reports do indicate the worst have come to pass; the old Nether lines, dormant these last few hundred years with the rise of the Nether Arbiter, are moving again.”

The constant prattle about his victory against the Nether Leader irked Fatia. It was a burr underneath his skin. He felt unwilling to cut himself open and reveal he had very little to do with any of it. Yet as it lingered, the wound began to fester.

“Cowards. Perfectly willing to move now that the Arbiter is unaccounted for,” One of the individuals from the free area to the Northwest sniffed. Fatia wanted to chuckle at that. He wished he had time to investigate what had shifted, suddenly boosting their confidence to such a degree.

“Yet those threats are still a ways off,” The female Turtleline spoke, dragging the attention back to her. “I want to suggest, again, that we gather together and mount an offensive against the recovering Nether force that drove toward Cerulean’s land. If we weaken them now, we won’t be so outnumbered when the old lines move.”

In response to her suggestion, all of the others fell silent. The idea was a good one; Fatia would voice his support if he thought it likely they could reach a consensus. But even her own people would hem and haw, delaying the attack past the point of usefulness. If they wanted an advantage, they needed to strike now.

The yawning hesitation revealed the aborted likelihood of any immediacy from this group, so freshly flush with the scent of victory.

“...I cannot speak to an offensive at this time,” Westrisser interjected, finally breaking the uneasy pause, “However, I am harkened to say that my experiments have achieved stability; my Dungeons now can support more warriors, for longer. The first batch you all sent are en route to report to you as to the effects, I’m sure. Now, I think we can all agree the... trainees dispatched were not of the highest quality. However, all have no maxed out their potential by reaching Level 100. Of the thirty sent into Dungeons, only two suffered any sort of mental damage, and those only because they did not follow the guidelines. If we continue to produce high-quality fighters at this rate... it won’t matter how many Nether Warriors are thrown against use; we will overcome our foes.”

The other Aether leaders engaged in some polite congratulations. Fatia Cerulean felt his lips twist. Sure, they would send more warriors to be trained up, but they would still be very cautious about their selections. They didn’t want their brightest to fall under the influence of Westrisser, no matter what benefits it could bring.

How quickly we forget the suffocating feeling of a Nether army marching across our lands, how quickly we remember the petty old rivalries between ourselves... Cobalt flames danced across Fatia’s skull as he considered the different faces in the reflection. Well, it matters not. In the end, there are two types of individuals: predators and prey. If they wish to forget the lessons that allowed themselves to briefly appear more threatening... heh.

He cleared his throat. “Actually, I have further good news to announce. The process is different, but I have developed another method that will greatly help our forces. A way... to hunt the very universe, not boosting our average fighters to strong, but giving life to the Paths of our oldest and most reliable individuals.”

The Turtleline woman opened her eyes and blinked. “Ah, you came, Nether King Hungry Eye. I noticed a recent... ah... disturbance in the lifeseal and wondered if you had decided to simply skip town.”

“If only,” Randidly replied, only half joking. The Turtleline woman quirked her head to the side and he waved a hand. “Nevermind that. Before anything else, what’s your name?”

“Kethope. Well met, Nether King Hungry Eye,” Kethope nodded three times to herself, apparently satisfied. “I will not waste any more of your time: I need some information on Faelmac Westrisser and his recently created Dungeons. Now, more than ever, considering recent developments. I understand you spent quite a lot of time near Malloon. And with the required ingredients to create a Dungeon... your opinion will hopefully be illuminating.”

Randidly blinked. “I’ve sensed the Dungeons, understood something of their limitations. What do you want to know?”

“Considering the mental damage some of the early testers experienced, there was quite a lot of worry that some portion of the Engraving involved brainwashing those warriors sent into the Dungeons,” Kethope steepled her fingers. “There is also the matter of this... sickness associated with their usage.”

This... is a lot easier than expected, Randidly hummed to himself and then explained Dungeons as best as he could. He hadn’t been paying close attention to Westrisser’s struggles, but he had encountered the finished product and using a Nether King’s Core was much less stable than what he would experience in the future. Therefore, he felt very confident some sort of brainwashing system hadn’t been implemented.

The real problem was properly stabilizing the space, both in terms of time and energy. Most of the damage to the testees could be attributed to the seal being not quite tight enough, leading to confusion and Aether Sickness before they even left the Dungeon.

After the explanation, Randidly couldn’t help but ask a follow-up question. “...I understand wanting more information, but why ask me?”

Kethope released a dark chuckle. “You broke into Homewell and slaughtered Westrisser’s right-hand man in our streets, or had you forgotten? There was a possibility you wouldn’t know much about his experiments, but as a Nether King, I figured you had been keeping tabs on the process. Hehe, now while most of my fellows send their ancillary fighters, I will just send my best. Considering the war that is to come... I’ll need the influence. Thank you for the tip, Nether King Hungry Eye.”

Without much more fanfare, the two bade each other farewell. Randidly quickly moved through the tunnels of Homewell and headed directly toward the limits of the lifeseal. Once he moved outside of its influence, he heaved a sigh of relief- it was easy to forget how integral Nether had become to his functioning until its flow had been stifled. Then Randidly circled around the city and picked up Devick and Lowanna.

“Let’s head to my farm,” Randidly said as he looked at the two women. Devick nodded but continued to avoid his gaze. Lowanna folded her arms across her chest but didn’t disagree. With a small sigh, Randidly produced his Alchemist’s Passport and carved a tunnel through space and time to the destination.