Hearing that name made RandidlyÆs skin prickle even more than the description of what happened gave him chilling flashbacks to struggling against Yystrix But at least this time he was at fault for the PatronÆs presence
Randidly couldnÆt stop a bitter smile from growing across his face thinking of his inventionÆ of DÆmin and the rest of the Lizakh The Visage of Obsession had accomplished the stated goal but he wasnÆt pleased with how far reaching the ripples of his time helping Claudette ended up being What does this Patron of the Sun want
To join the Alpha Cosmos Lucretia replied As a member of the Pantheon Although that might just be a pretext for receiving permission to stay here
Just as RandidlyÆs face was twisting into a scowl Lucretia sent another message I know your impulse is to reject him immediately and I agree that giving him freedom within your body is a bad idea But I donÆt think that we need to be so direct about it I believe that we can take advantage of his power and knowledge without giving him any influence
Randidly could practically feel her smile through the message Because heÆs asking to meet with you but you arenÆt alone You have us to help you out with the tasks you canÆt do so well
An hour later Randidly met with the Patron of the Sun on top of one of the highest rocky peaks in the Nordawn range At the PatronÆs request they chose a location above the cloud layer YnÆulkÆs healing body leaned back and released an explosive sigh of contentment as the pale rays of the sun soaked into his body Randidly lounged opposite him on a rock shelf studying the superimposed image that possessed the Lizakh warrior
You donÆt need to make the first move Lucretia had told Randidly As best as we could manage his true power is restricted in the Alpha Cosmos Without a body or permission from the Pantheon to be here there is only so much he can do Both Aether and Nether is inherently hostile to him He needs to hide without that man to avoid the natural pressure of this place
Honestly itÆs a good thing you absorbed so many planets for the Nemesai Otherwise he might have been able to tear everything to shreds with just a projection
While the Patron released such obvious contentment to be in the sun Randidly continued to test his body with his Hierarchy of Burden Besides he didnÆt mind the sun either Although he was far past the point that ExpiraÆs temperatures bothered him that didnÆt mean that sunlight on his skin didnÆt feel nice
The World Tree was one of his core images after all
The Patron of the Sun shrugged Many things might have changed But in our original calculations continuing beyond Eight Cohorts simply wasnÆt feasible Still all these things and more we can discuss later So are you willing to welcome a nomad such as myself
Randidly almost rolled his eyes at the awkward segue He allowed a few beats to pass adding the illusion that he was contemplating the offer even though he had already discussed this with Lucretia Then as though he felt as cramped and stifled as when he had absorbed Tellus Randidly shook his head I donÆt think thatÆs a good idea
Why The Patron of the SunÆs radiance increased just slightly He released more emotional pulses more frustrated than ever
I can sense your strength Which is valuable yes but it is difficult to so quickly throw open my doors and welcome you inside of this Alpha Cosmos that IÆm making Randidly said slowly Perhaps some time to think about it would be for the best
The Patron of the Sun leaned forward I agree that we need more opportunities to know each other before we can reach nurture even a basic trust But do we have time to move so cautiously I sensed the current state of the Nexus Both the monitoring apparatus and the Nexus Ways are currently down All surveillance has gone completely dark For a figure like me well Even if I behave with restraint I suspect some of my fellow original Patrons will not And once the word is out that we are freed the Nexus will throw everything it has to capture and subdue us The chance for me to join the Alpha Cosmos with no one being the wiser will have passed
Randidly pressed his lips together Although YnÆulkÆs face remained slack the golden light rippled behind him
Seconds trickled past Randidly even before his conversation with Lucretia had learned the hard way that making a decision under duress was foolish YnÆulkÆs fingers began to twitch when Randidly was so obviously unswayed He could practically hear LucretiaÆs voice He will offer a compromise
Perhaps a compromise is in order The Patron of the Sun shook his head My presence as a Patron you are correct that my might makes it a dangerous proposition But at the very least I wish to make sure that my people are well cared for in your isolated space Perhaps we can select a representative from the Lizakh that can become a Patron
He wants a foot in the door that he can use to pry the Alpha Cosmos open later Which is fine so long as we are prepared for it and he doesnÆt understand that this place is your body So go along with the idea but you cannot offer the first option And you cannot reject him outright So you will need to think of a way to distract him Lucretia had said But Randidly didnÆt have any problems thinking of a new conversation topic
He rubbed his chin You make it seem like the Nexus would be desperate to silence you Why is that
The Patron of the Sun shrugged To keep their version of history as the only one Not that all of these pieces of knowledge that I have are dangerous to them but itÆs simply easier if people did not know for example that you and most of the people on this planet are artificial life
excuse me RandidlyÆs eyebrows knitted together
Ah I donÆt mean that as a specific attack The Patron waved a hand Your people generally are all not true organic beings that evolved from amoeba See You likely didnÆt know This is deeply related to the chaos at the end of the Second Cohort We were already falling behind on our goals of creating powerful images after the First Cohort So Elhume and some of the other Patrons began working together on a very dangerous and ambitious project To create beings with extremely high potential and imagination while also possessing acceptable base Stats and high fertility
Elhume created a grand array of both Aether and Nether He took the slightest pinch of PineÆs perfection and wove it through the core of the Engraving while also drawing out valuable traits from some of the more powerful races loyal to him His first resultsÆ were strange partially hairless creatures that were foolish and bold Most died very quickly They started quite feeble but could develop very quickly He made thousands of prototypes and had them breed to observe their mutations Apparently what he witnessed was acceptable because he pushed ahead with the plan to expand the population of artificial life But at the end of the Cohort right before he betrayed us
The Patron of the Sun trailed off there Then he sighed and leaned back Honestly I suspect that something about the final event creating so many arcsÆ and sending them to uninhabited planets to generate life for the Nexus was what caused such a sudden shift in him Perhaps he finally lost hope
What are you talking about Randidly whispered
The Patron chuckled Originally we called you Elhumes Because you were the project that consumed so much of his and the Patron of the DeepÆs time Now I think thatÆs been shortened to simply humans Your race was supposed to be the key to creating the powerful images the Nexus needed to sustain itself Pretty ironic that you are now plotting to take it all down no
Chapter 1792
Randidly considered himself sharp but he needed a moment to press his tongue to his teeth and suck in a breath barely able to follow the dense stream of information that the Patron was producing You casually mentioned Pine to test my knowledge Or was the child of Yystrix more well known in the past Also artificial life Elhume betrayed his Patrons All of them or