Chapter 310: Parsing Pieces of a Puzzle (2/2)

Reason hissed, ”And none of you have faced him. You cast your judgment willingly, and that is simple to do. To face him and experience our dismay is a different task altogether. I heed any of you to investigate below. You will find the depths most unforgiving.”

Florence turned a hand to her, ”So while you may not understand Plazia, you do seem to understand the razor queens and the Ahcorus. Let's start there and attempt to work our way backward then. Shall we?”

Knowing when to take a step back, I gave Florence the reigns of this conversation. He took them with a pep in his step, ”Now, Reason, you mentioned that the war with Plazia began centuries ago. What were the Ahcorus like then? You know, before this hivemind arrived?”

Reason shivered, ”We were weak. The eldritch threatened to overwhelm us long ago, and we stood on the brink of extinction. No rival species invested in our world because we lacked resources for them. This cast us into the darkest shades of Schema's worlds - a planet destined to die.”

It amazed me how Florence could get information out of something like this. I took notes on his strategies as Florence tilted his head, ”That's fascinating. It sounds as though a lot has changed since then. What about Plazia's interference helped or hurt that process?”

Reason trembled, ”He has left our colonies ravaged in his wake. He conquered and annihilated our kind until few of us remained. Those few remaining were our strongest and most powerful. We created a new order of our society in those last moments, and that is when we first manifested a razor queen.”

One of my minds noted that detail. Plazia-Ruhl forced the Ahcorus to evolve. Florence nodded at Reason, ”That must've been immensely difficult. I couldn't even imagine pulling through if I was in the same situation. I must say I'm impressed.”

Reason swelled with pride, ”And you should be. The Ahcorus rallied with a queen at our center. We established a new social order, one that was stable and functioning. With all of our decisions funneling from a singular point, we beat past Plazia-Ruhl's established zones. Our kind repopulated Svia, and we regained our homeland.”

Reason pointed a shining claw at the arena, ”In that era, we established many of our now revered traditions. These battles began taking place to force our evolution. More razor queens spawned, and they battled to uncover the greatest of our kin.”

Florence put his hands on his hips, ”But I'm guessing you guys never figured that out, considering many razor queens exist now?”

Reason deflated a bit, ”No, we did not uncover our apotheosis. If a colony has ever grown too dominant, others rallied to dismantle them. Plazia's attacks also cease that growth and evolution. While we have pushed him deep underground, he attacks at random without reason or purpose. This volatility is the most awe-inspiring aspect of him.”

Reason snarled, ”He is unknowable.”

Florence took a breath, ”Well, that's quite the history then. What about your most recent events has made you all stop fighting one another?”

Reason sighed, ”It is Wrath's pleas. She has mentioned that to reach our final evolution, we must first eradicate our most formidable enemy. It is our only path to salvation, as Plazia stands in our way at every turn.”

Florence's eyes narrowed, his mind clicking pieces together, ”And that's your species general goal - to evolve into its ultimate form then?”

Reason spoke as if referencing a distant memory, ”Yes. It is our dream.”

Florence spread his arms, ”Well then, that was a thrilling story. I'd just like to speak with my team members alone for a minute. I have a few plans and details I'm hobbling together, and I'd hate to waste your time managing those details. I'm sure you have plenty of colonizing, organization, and other affairs that need attending in the meantime.”

Reason kept moving like a patch of living water, ”I do. I will return in time to hear of your plan, and then we shall rally with the other razor queens to face Plazia.”

Florence swung a fist, ”Oh, absolutely. I can't wait.”

Reason and the other slimes stepped away before Florence turned to Helios, ”Can you warp us back to Mt. Verner from here?”

Helios raised a hand and snapped his fingers. A portal snapped open, the air no longer howling away as it had before. Florence hopped over towards our warp area while waving for us to follow. We did, and once the portal closed, Florence stepped back and forth. I watched him for a second before I raised a hand,

”So, any thoughts?”

Florence shook his head, ”Yes. We can't trust them.”

I crossed my arms, ”Why, exactly?”

Florence sighed, ”Several reasons, but even a cursory glance at their history tells me some overarching facts about the ahcorus that are troubling. Firstly, some events simply don't line up. For instance, Plazia-Ruhl pushed them to the brink of extinction. Once on that edge, their species innovated, gaining a razor queen.”

Florence raised a finger, ”Now, that's all fine and dandy, but if the razor queens allowed them to take back over Svia's surface, why didn't the ahcorus continue their domination? Case and point, the Ahcorus now command many razor queens and more resources. They should've easily been able to take over a weakened Plazia, yet they haven't.”

I nodded, ”Yeah, that doesn't add up. It's like Plazia wanted them to have a measure of control. Hm, probably to get rid of his fringe world status, if I had to guess.”

Florence pointed at me, ”I'm thinking the same. In fact, most of the Ahcorus's culture mirrors the eldritch, even. The entire battling arena, the goals for evolution, those are similar to primitive eldritch.”

Amara hissed, ”It is true. For a species to look down upon us yet mirror our ways is odd. Perhaps that is why she angers me - she treats us as inferior while reflecting what we are.”

Helios grimaced under his mask, ”So the Ahcorus are pawns of Plazia's then? Considering the Ahcorus's sheer stupidity, I find that quite believable.”

Florence rubbed his temples with the dull edges of his claws, ”Idiocy is a strong word, but your point still stands. If Plazia had this much control of them, it's reasonable that Plazia is still using them. How, exactly?” Florence lost all his momentum,

”I don't have the slightest idea.”

I narrowed my eyes, ”Huh, interesting. I faced a Ruhl before, and it made sure that everything fell in place at a distance. It was like an evil mastermind of sorts that had planned everything out ages ago. That could be the case here. I mean, it's not outside the realm of possibility that Plazia organized the Ahcorus against himself.”

Amara's arms flopped against her side, ”Why would he turn his own knife against his throat?”

I gripped my hands into fists, ”How about we go and ask him?”