Chapter 2357

Chapter 2357

When the Monarch of Karma woke up, floating on that tumbling bit of stone, he saw the entire universe laid out above him. Not only did the view possess more stars than he had ever seen, but they sparkled without any intentions. His eyes began to pulse with power as his image stirred. All that he saw, he deserved-

“No, no, not this shit again...” The Monarch of Karma scowled at his own instinctive reaction. He refused to waste the clarity that he had regained. His body ached and his head was blurry, but at least the enthralling dream had passed, he had somehow hiccuped his way out of the self-fulfilling prophecy. He raised a hand and squeezed the bridge of his nose, but this simple act caused him to tremble as he saw his own fingers.

He twisted them, joints aching, torn between fear and wonder. His memories babbled out conflicting statements, making him unable to get a clear grip on his situation. Yet he believed his eyes; his hands were creased with wrinkles and spotted with age. The Monarch of Karma’s head swam. “When did I become so old?”

The affirmations flooded his entire awareness to buoy his consciousness toward that twisted viewpoint that gripped him for so long. He wasn’t old! He deserved-

“Bah,” The Monarch grunted. He shifted his weight and stood. He had to sway to catch his balance, because the stone on which he had landed... or rather, the bit of debris, was probably just big enough to catch him. Plus, his old joins ached at any sort of sudden movement. He tumbled through space on an uncomfortable bed of stone just large enough for him to lay out.

He kept his thoughts disciplined, so the affirmations weren’t invited back to multiply and become dangerous. As such, his image became increasingly sluggish around him. He simply floated for a while and tried to simply be impressed by the gorgeous world he saw, without a single covetous or self-absorbed thoughts.

But the image of those wrinkled hands nagged at him. He couldn’t let go of the implications of that age. With his shoulders trembling, his thoughts turned toward his son.

“You... are probably dead, aren’t you, Quantan?”Thê source of this content n/o/v/(el)bi((n))

If the universe tried to answer the question, the Monarch of Karma didn’t listen. By now it had thoroughly learned to distrust a universe that tried to talk with you, soon sweeping you up in its own strange impulses and desires. Instead, the Monarch just sat and wept. He didn’t think about whether or not he deserved this grief, who had caused it, or what could be done about it. For now, the tears were everything.

And when finally he ceased sobbing, the loneliness arrived and hovered above him, stopping just short of putting a hand on his shoulder. He felt so truly alone.

“I’ve been alone for a long time, haven’t I?” His chest shook and tears coursed down his face. “But... now I realize it. Mae Myrna... was this really the truth you sought?”

*****

“Why are you looking at me like that?” Lyra said, tilting her head to the side as she studied him, a mannerism that felt so familiar yet simultaneously so strange.

“...because I expect you to insult me or call me doggy. Because...” Randidly pressed his lips together. Since they had last met, years had passed. Lyra had grown from a young starlet adjusting to the System, to a being of energy as a Village Spirit... and now into a tall, elegant woman who worked for the Nexus directly, assisting in the underlying maintenance of the overlay System. Lyra’s image hadn’t developed to the point of being scary, as with most of the individuals Randidly encountered recently. He could feel the cool light of her lunar focus in her moderately otherworldly demeanor. However...

The flickering behavior of Aether around her hinted at deeper changes. When Randidly peered at the energy halos underlying existence, he could see the truth of her. He saw the essence of her existence.

“You worry I’m going to selfishly twist this project by the Upper Sonara Society. Like I did in the past, on Expira,” Lyra supplied. Her voice was gentle, but some of the sharpness remained in her features.

Randidly shrugged. “You are more energy construct than human, these days.”

“You are!” Lyra brought both her hands to her cheeks, her mouth o’d in a look of total shock. In the playful motion, she briefly looked as she had when they were younger, when the strange romantic tension existed between the two of them. “Well, well, well. Color me impressed. Be careful. I suspect the one truth you will never really understand... is the pressure it takes to stand by the side of a man who refuses to flinch or rest.”

Randidly wondered how he could casually change the subject when Neveah popped back over. “Luckily for Randidly, I don’t think he needs to actually learn, in this case. The individual in question is just as obsessed as he is.”

Instantly, Lyra’s disposition cooled somewhat. Clearly, there lingered some less savory emotions between the two women. “Ah, Neveah. A pleasure as always. Is it someone I would know?”

“In a sense,” Neveah also spoke with a bit of extra haughtiness. “A version from another timeline, but the object of Randidly’s affections is the charming Actus Suprem! Well, we haven’t told the main Nexus version of Devick, but I’m sure we are all looking forward to the reveal.”

For several seconds, Lyra just opened and closed her mouth.

A wave of energy rose from the Engraving array as the pillars' energy joined together. The edges of the working began to churn; Randidly could see those spots that Neveah had suggested changes, marginally improving the energy transference of the process.

Lyra bowed. “I need to assist Nathaz in his preparations. But... I’m glad we are once more on the same side, Randidly.”

He simply nodded, observing Lyra and her grown form, long and graceful, as she proceeded to the side of the younger Eloise and began to draw sigils in the air. Randidly pursed his lips, watching as a secondary array came into being around the pillars. “Can we trust her?”

“Not to subvert the array, or whether she will betray us?” Neveah shrugged. “Well, I cannot deny that she’s a genius, looking at how she approaches Engravings. But really, I came over to scold you: aren’t you supposed to be recovering? Don’t allow something like this to rile you up so much.”

“It was just a surprise,” Randidly rolled his shoulders.

“Aren’t we approaching the last confrontation? If any of these forces you’ve encountered has been biding their time, they will soon reveal themselves.” Neveah said.

“Speaking of that...” Randidly raised his gaze from their working to the maelstrom of churning significance gathering above the main tower of the Nexus. They were in the thick of it, the invisible currents of history whirling around them. He sucked on his teeth. “They will come in droves soon, I suspect. Not just Elhume... but anyone with an image and a foundation. This moment is becoming too burdened with meaning to miss.”

“Isn’t that why we’ve accumulated so much power?” Neveah poked Randidly in the side. “So you can... Seize the moment?”

“...did you really just make a joke?” Randidly furrowed his brows. “Right now of all times?”

“I’m surprisingly free.” Neveah lifted her chin. “No one is attacking us yet.”

The energies of the working gurgled and seethed. A thick, liquid Aether formed a dense pool in the middle of the pillars. A thousand small ripples fought and bred within the liquid energy, a chaos that not even Randidly could see through.

Just... what the hell are you waiting for, Elhume? Randidly scowled. Then he forced himself to relax as he breathed and did his best to recover his mental energy.