Chapter 581 (1/2)

Randidly’s eyes remained fixed on Thea. The first thing he noticed was the coldness in her gaze, that was far from the Thea he had known. How long had it even been…? Seven months? And now, her eyes… They seemed still and dead to Randidly.

The second thing Randidly noticed was that she had the whiff about her of the Creature’s Aether. He gritted his teeth as his eyes flicked sideways to Chrysanthemum, who was even bigger than Randidly remembered. She was approaching monstrous proportions. Could the Creature have used Chrysanthemum’s life as a bargaining chip to compel Thea…?

That sounded exactly like its rotten M.O.

“Thea, I don’t know what the Creature said,” Randidly began, “but I could also-”

“Then why didn’t you?”

Thea’s cool reply stopped Randidly dead. He just stared at her, unsure of what to say. He felt a powerful sense of helplessness because there was nothing he could say. When it had happened… he hadn’t even tried to aid the dying bear with his Aether.

Snorting, Thea raised her hammers. “I pay my debts. Now, hand Father Foster over. She is necessary.”

All of Randidly’s guilt and frustration was wiped out in a second. He glanced over at Father Foster, who stood awestruck as she looked up at the wall he had erected with roots. The hole Thea and her companion had come through was mostly filled in now, but a lot of water pumped through in that short period it took Randidly to handle the hole. And by now, the Mana reserves in his rings were almost completely gone.

“She was harvesting people and extracting their organs. She killed countless innocent people.” Randidly said quietly. Enough water had come through that the football field-sized space he had opened up had a few inches of water along the bottom. “I can’t even guess how many people she’s killed. But by her own admission… a lot of the monsters in this Zone are really people who have been transplanted into monsters. This… this is kidnapping and genocide. She uses a religion to-”

“That doesn’t change the fact that she is considered necessary.” Thea closed her eyes, as if tired. With her darker hair, she seemed so much older than Randidly remembered her. Which put her squarely at 20 or so. “Please, let’s dispense with this. It wastes both of our time.”

“You genuinely don’t care about those peoples lives?” Randidly said while feeling a sinking sensation in his stomach. But at the same time, there was heat in his chest. If that was true, then… Randidly glanced at Chrysanthemum. Her eyes burned brightly with unholy fire. Outwardly, she had no reaction to their conversation. And if their Soulbond was still intact, that meant the bear agreed.

“Fine…” Randidly said, breathing out. Feeling strangely lightheaded, he flexed his hands. These people… for all that he knew Thea, they would let the Earth devolve into a cannibalistic mess if it was part of some just cause. It was infuriating. Everyone always had these grand plans, but they missed something more important; responsibility.

And Randidly had a responsibility to kill those who would sacrifice innocent people for a possibility in the future. Gleeful, Acri and Sulfur climbed up around him to form into his weapons and armor. “If I let you go, you will hurt the people of this world. The world where I live. This world… that is mine. Therefore… I will stop you here.”

It was heavy and suffocating on his chest. So much so that it felt like he couldn’t breathe. He didn’t know the details of Thea’s circumstances, but that wasn’t enough to stay his hand. Father Foster, or this Raid Spawn of the true Father Foster, would sacrifice lives to fuel her research. That was an unacceptable outcome.

Randidly’s eyes slid sideways to Father Foster, who seemed to realize just now the depth of the shit she was in. The water was up around Randidly’s ankles now. He finished pulling people with roots up from the base to the waiting arms of Tykes and Dinesh. Perhaps it wouldn’t be very difficult to kill Father Foster here, but that wasn’t the point. There was a bigger decision to make.

Thea… Thea would find other ways, other people, who could do things that were just as dangerous. Like Ezekiel-

Randidly pressed his eyes closed briefly. Thinking about… what his father was could wait until later. Until he had some peace.

If it was true… if she had actually accepted the will of the Creature and she intended to support the human monsters that would sacrifice the lives of others in the name of progress or a greater plan...

‘Can I truly make this decision?’ Randidly wondered. The moment stretched, his eyes locked with Thea. Chrysanthemum and the Obsidian man stood passively by and watched.

‘If not me… then who can? And also possesses the power to stop her? And how many lives before-’

A spear always advances.

Then she should die.

Randidly attacked.