Chapter 1500 (2/2)

The Overseer of the Seventh Cohort seemed like an unshakable monolith in that room, just as powerful as anyone else present.

Then the intensity left Octavius, leaving him the same slightly tired and nervous-looking bureaucrat. But Randidly filed away that display in his mind; he would not again underestimate the power that Octavius possessed.

Lady Iellaya cleared her own throat, drawing everyone’s attention. “A worthy goal, Octavius. I… maybe it’s selfish, but I just want to honor my word. I have made guarantees to protect the people who follow me. I have… failed in this respect in the past. I never want to feel that feeling of failure, ever again. I refuse to disappoint them any longer.”

Again, there was a moment of silence as Randidly absorbed that information. Then, belatedly, he realized that it was his turn to share his motivation for wanting to change the Nexus. All three of his images rose steadily up in his chest, resonating with each other. They were his strongest motivators. To survive, to grow, and to achieve the impossible.

But although each was parroted as a being separate from himself, they were still him. They always were. They were three different expressions of who he was and could be.

Randidly Ghosthound immediately thought of the burning passion he shared with the current Vualla. Their manic glee at the thought of tearing down the System. The reasons to do so were so numerous that Randidly didn’t know where to begin.

So he paused and considered. When did I start on this Path…?

Randidly reached up and scratched his chin. Although it shouldn’t possess the same physical needs of his fleshy body, his metallic left arm twitched as his mind wandered. The three surrounding individuals, his co-conspirators, didn’t look at him, but Randidly could sense their attention was locked onto him. He was not their leader nor the most powerful amongst them, but Randidly Ghosthound was the link that had woven them all together.

Because he had caught the attention of the Overseer of his Cohort. Because he had been sent to the frontlines. Because he had persisted and been assigned to Lady Iellaya. Because he had been able to heal damage to images and earned her praise. Because he had been able to utilize Nether and steadily unraveled the secret of Ileot and Vualla. Because he had found Edraine, the core of the System, the replacement in the form of her duplicated brother.

Randidly released a breath. In the silence, he heard the sound of his own heart. He blinked once, and while his eyes were closed, he saw the self-righteous silhouette of Ki-Kunot. “I… I want to give everyone the opportunity to grow strong. I want…”

Perhaps it was because of the process the Stillborn Phoenix had started, but Randidly’s emotions felt particularly potent at the moment. The guilt he felt for the mistakes he made and the rage at all those who tried to use him… those emotions boiled in his chest. If he was a kettle, he would be squealing with pent up heat.

Yet Randidly forced all of those emotions down. As they did only when Randidly pressed, his three images wove themselves together, closer and closer. The combination was unexpectedly easy. So suddenly, Randidly was looking at his heart with the eyes of all three of his images. The followed his motivations back to the pure core of himself.

Strangely, Randidly’s mind drifted back to the recent sensation of diving down through the Web to head for some training. The sensation of air parting before his body, cutting cleanly through space as though he was sailing on the thin boundary lines between the currents of energy. He had been a god of wind, thrilled by the sensation of the shackles of the System being shattered. He raised his head and savored that liberation. The feeling had been exhilarating.

With the roar of the wind in his ears being almost deafening, Randidly had felt alive.

“I want people to feel free,” Randidly finally said. The other three studied him. Then he winced. It sounded rather unsatisfying after seeing the emotion that his fell co-conspirators displayed, but it was difficult for Randidly to match that. Because the core emotion that motivated him forward was not a desire for revenge, although he had slowly developed that as he experienced both Yystrix’s and Elhume’s meddlesome plots.

No, Randidly was motivated forward as he chased joy. Joy that he had learned training under Shal in the Dungeon all those years ago. The joy of feeling the edge of perfection, of engaging in the dance of spearplay and testing your own limits. The joy of competency and the natural exuberance of physical movement.

The joy of honing your limits and discovering yourself. Of seeking an answer to a problem and discovering one. Of following his own Path without regrets. Of spitting in the cruel face of reality and daring it to do its worst.

For a brief moment, his three images shifted further and more completely than they had in the past. They settled together in one pure, blended form. But then the balance was lost and Randidly released a long sigh.

Edraine tilted her head to the side and smiled. “Well then, here we are. No matter the motivations, we share our goal, changing the Nexus. But… as I’m sure you all can tell, this is not an easy task. There are some very powerful individuals with vested interests in keeping the Nexus the way it is. Any sort of shift will be met with resistance and among us, we don’t have much political power in the Nexus.

“That is slowly changing,” Edraine glanced at Randidly before she continued to speak. “But it still isn’t enough. Even if we were to gather enough Citizenship Coins to get us all to Tier III, we still wouldn’t have an easy time. So I suggest that we cheat.”

Edraine smiled. “Power can make up for some deficiencies in influence, but we would truly need an absolute power in order to make a serious ripple in the current Nexus. And I know where we can find one.”

“Is it you?” Lady Iellaya asked, disbelief clear in her voice. No one was quite clear on how powerful Edraine currently was, but Randidly shared Lady Iellaya’s doubt that they would be currently hoarding citizenship coins if she really was that powerful.

Chuckling, Edraine shook her head. “No, but only someone with my ability to read the flows of energy would be able to find this tool. It might sound crazy, but what I propose is… that we steal and weaponize the sealed body of Elhume.”