Chapter 1132 (1/2)
Hours later, still mildly tipsy from the excitement of the encounter. Randidly studied the note that Abiodun had given to him while he stood at the open flaps to his tent. Although the content was vague, it did a lot to cool Randidly’s outlook for the day.
I think it’s time we talk. Meet me below the Great Rift in three hours.
“You don’t have to go,” Abiodun rumbled. Then he folded his arms across his broad chest. “Lady Iellaya will stand behind you in this. There is a present threat of Nether attacks. Going to the Great Rift at a time like this… it is a bad idea.”
“No, I should go,” Randidly said quietly. Emerald fire danced around his fingers and consumed the note in a heartbeat. Ash spun around his hand and drifted down to the ground. “There really is a lot for us to talk about.”
Congratulations! Your Skill Ignition of the Emerald Essence (L) has grown to Level 142!
“Cail Tweocs is a member of the Xyrt Brigade, and also has close ties with Lord Miln. If this is another attempt to take your life-”
Randidly raised a hand. “Believe me. I wouldn’t put myself in danger if I wasn’t sure.”
Which isn’t true at all, a more pessimistic portion of Randidly thought sourly. Are you sure about Vualla? And you still kissed her. And now you keep thinking about kissing her again. And despite you putting on a stern face… aren’t you only going to meet him in order to find out what she is?
Are you dancing on the palm of Ileot Swacc even now?
Abiodun’s eyes continued their eerie, independent waxing and waning. “...I suppose you must certainly be sure then. At the very least, I will be patrolling the surrounding area during your meeting. If there are any energy reverberations… I’ll know something is wrong and proceed to your position immediately.”
Forcing a smile, Randidly said. “So now I’m deserving of the VIP treatment now that I have a body, eh?”
Abiodun’s face didn’t even twitch. “Please remember that we have made a considered investment on your behalf, several times. An investment from which we haven’t yet seen any yield. You will forgive me if I find your callous disregard for your life rather disturbing. And if it makes me pessimistic about your usefulness to Lady Iellaya”
Eventually, after several more stern warnings, Abiodun left. Some part of Randidly wanted to use the intervening two hours before his meeting to train his images, but the combination of the tingling buzz from kissing Vualla and the heavy weight of the meetings that lay before him kept Randidly’s focus consistently distracted.
Now was not a good time for growth. Some part of him was simply waiting. Waiting to understand the magnitude of what he had done by kissing Vualla.
You followed your emotions, Randidly thought tiredly to himself. You followed the clear beauty of a moment where, despite staring a daunting truth about her own existence in the face, she turned to me and lifted her chin. She had an unrelenting strength that made me just… let everything else go.
Randidly pressed his eyes closed. But now it’s time to find out the truth. I’m just… surprised that it is happening this smoothly. Who would have thought that Ileot Swacc would be the one to seek me out…? But I think that it definitely confirms that he still has some skin in the game.
Time crawled by, apparently free of the web of tension that knotted across Randidly’s chest cavity. The moments plopped like heavy stones, creating chaotic ripples through him. Even when there was still an hour remaining until the appointed time, Randidly couldn’t take it anymore. He huffed out a breath and hopped lightly to his feet. After checking every inch of his equipment, Randidly calmly left his tent and began to head toward the Great Rift.
The further he got from his tent, the more his legs accelerated. The ground around him began to warp and blur.
But as he was walking, his attention was tugged toward his right hand which now was conspicuously uncovered. Also… was there meaning to giving Vualla her own Fate…? Or I suppose the important question is whether there was any danger to doing so. Even when Vualla touched it, the Fate was largely unresponsive. Yet to have both Fates so close together…
Then Randidly’s eyes flashed. Also… the older version of the Fate’s wound was similar, but not exactly the same. And it possesses none of the budding crystallization that is slowly healing this iteration of the Fate… who exactly was the original Vualla…?
Of course, this question was exactly why Randidly was willing to take the risk of meeting Ileot Swacc. Or rather, it would be more accurate to say that without the aura of the term ‘Duplicator’, Randidly would do his best to keep interactions with a powerful member of the Nexus like Ileot to an absolute minimum. And only have them in environments where he had a much more reliable safety net than Abiodun.
Capable he may be, but this was a whole order of magnitude beyond the vice-Commander in one of the many frontlines.
Even a day ago, Randidly’s response to the invitation would have been extremely different. The feeling of Vualla’s lips on his own, the warmth and the electric current that froze their physical bodies for the brief moment while the emotions ran rampant, and the newfound course of Randidly’s life all meant that he refused to miss this chance.