After a bit of thought the man produced a glove with a strange Engraving carved into it for payment bid them both farewell and left the shop
Who who was that Tanya asked wide eyed
Dinesh shook his head saying nothing
When Randidly knocked on the door there was a soft laugh and then an answer We both know why you are here No need to be polite come on in
Randidly walked through the door his hackles already rising
She was lovely of course In a relatively chaste blue summer dress her blonde hair tumbling long and wild down her back It was slightly satisfying to see Lyra blink slightly when he walked in looking at him
You got a haircut She blurted out as he stopped in front of her It It looks really good Randidly
Her tone was warm and it gave him hope for this conversation But almost immediately Randidly had a sudden sense that this was just the calm before the storm they would not part amicably on this day
Chapter 479
At first Randidly was startled by the thought and the strength of emotion behind it but then he had to admit to himself there were very few times in the past where he and Lyra were able to get along There was some perhaps flirting some sexual tension and controversy but regardless of the motivations theirs was a history of conflict
After giving her a few seconds to peer at him he cleared his throat You are right let’s get down to it Lyra you’ve worked with the Creature You’ve helped her here in Donnyton
Lyra was an actress first and foremost and she had continued to hone those Skills from before the System in the world after it But to Randidly it almost seemed like the better she was at acting the more obvious what she truly felt was as she left a trail of all the emotions she did not fell
Very clearly Randidly could see the way the joy in her eyes died and a resentful cloud emerged to cover her She smirked at him
Randidly frowned She didn’t even offer an explanation or a justification she was content to just let the answer hang in the air which infuriated him to no end And of course it made him realize she had answered just like that in order to infuriate him
But why What was the point in antagonizing him now
Look let’s not play these mind games Randidly started but she just gave him a dismissive look
No games doggy Lyra said widening her eyes as if she were shocked or scared But however else will we relate to each other We both know that neither of us is emotionally mature enough to have a true genuine connection I’m a child and well you’re you’re broken aren’t you
Randidly just looked at her taken slightly aback Then something clicked in his head are you seriously still pissed off that I refused to entertain the idea of us being
She just looked at him her face still Only a look of mild amusement was discernible there When it became clear he wasn’t going to continue Do go on I’d love for you to admit that something could happen between us I would feel so vindicated And I think Sam would have lost a bet
Holy Christ Randidly pressed his eyes shut This was a pointless diversion He needed to refuse We can talk about that about the past after For now I need to know why you were crazy enough to work with the Creature
No we will talk now Lyra said moving over to the sole chair in her small room and sitting down She crossed her legs Her eyes were sharp and clear when they looked up at him Because you know what This is about respect You refuse to give it to me and then you act so surprised and self righteous when I stopped giving it to you I think you need to get over yourself before we speak any further
Don’t be a child Randidly snapped feeling himself losing control of the conversation even as another part of him rose furious hoping he let loose more
Really Is that the only way you see me Lyra hissed leaning forward letting her own loss of calm show I’ve become a Village Spirit I’ve accomplished things no one else has done since Even before you did I discovered Aether And I do not have the benefit of having an unending supply of it in my chest
You died Randidly said his tone chilly Although your personality remains the body that birthed it was buried All because you wouldn’t talk about your plans That’s what this is about
If I wanted to I could have saved that body Lyra said cutting him off I had it handled
His fury mounting Randidly shook his head incredulous at her lack of self awareness You spoiled bitch
Really doggy gendered language I’d have thought you better than that Lyra’s smile was back small and sharp
Randidly’s hands clenched into fists Don’t you dare call me that right now You are a fool Lyra It’s hard to believe that you had it handled’ when you almost ceased to be You act without thinking and without communicating just leaving us out to dry
That’s rich coming from you You act before thinking and communicating You are always running off to deal with some other problem and when you return you barely bother to check in Meanwhile I’m here
Is this seriously a jealousy thing Randidly asked
Lyra stood up You fucking prick do you think I don’t know the stakes of this
When she spoke her voice resonated powerfully with the ambient Aether of the Village around him Abruptly Randidly became aware of the huge amount of Aether that the Village was putting off And all of that energy flowed through Lyra Her eyes were glowing violet the power there at her fingertips They both stared at each other breathing hard
You work with the Creature who would have us fall to the Calamity Randidly finally said surprised how tired he sounded
Lyra shook her head She offers us a confirmed route to life
So you admit to working with her
Lyra just gave him a look Heedless Randidly continued to speak There is another confirmed route to life that doesn’t rely on trusting the Creature’s version of events that is simply being strong enough to defeat the Calamity
Where does your confidence come from Lyra asked shaking her head Think how often we have almost died That was during the tutorial You think it won’t scale when the kid gloves come off
The Creature sees us as nothing but toys Randidly said slowly trying not to grit his teeth He knew the difficulty perhaps even better than Lyra He had been out there fighting it But she continued to refuse to see that I will find a way to defeat the Calamity I have some clues and given time to test some things out I have my confidence from training How can you put your faith in the Creature I can’t Lyra Our deaths would not give her pause
Lyra looked at Randidly Suddenly abruptly something broke in her and her lip trembled Her eyes were cold and lonely even if you can’t trust the Creature trust me Randidly I’ve talked with her I’ve seen what she has seen Violence is not the answer here Your power stems not from the ability to fight but your ability to subvert the design of the System Let’s use that Let’s figure this out together If you do not you doom us all to die by the Calamity This I swear
Randidly breathed in and then breathed out This was not how the talk was supposed to go but he couldn’t say he was surprised He knew that Lyra held resentment in her chest about the way he had treated her he just had a hard time understanding why she would let it affect a decision of this magnitude
He also resented her for playing so cavalierly with her life and for pretending to be captured by the Creature while really being fine In addition she had chosen to work with the Creature believing its words while keeping him in the dark It felt like a betrayal against all of humanity and something that Randidly couldn’t forgive
The sticking point with this conversation was that she couldn’t be removed not easily not quickly not simply as the Village Spirit of Donnyton But Randidly didn’t want to be around her if she insisted on working with the Creature Randidly had no doubt that Lyra would communicate with the thing as soon as they were connected to another Zone with one of the Creature’s incarnations