ThatÆs still our mission eve after that green light The ram demon gestured Randidly sighed and nodded
There was a long moment of silence cut only by the clashing of images in the training occurring below Vant seemed unwilling to accept the inactivity but he also didnÆt say anything else Finally Claudette leaned forward and peered down at one particular individual struggling against his sparring partner She pointed How is he doing
Randidly and Vant glanced downward their eyes eventually settling on the very much overmatched DÆMin barely able to keep a grip on his javelin as he tried to block his opponentÆs attacks Vant grimaced Well heÆs definitely improving quickly But Head Drill Sergeant I have to ask were we that weak when we started training with you That bastard is absolutely pathetic
A ghost of a smile danced across RandidlyÆs face DÆminÆs scales were shattered and his ambiguous image was repeatedly smashed to pieces by the efficient actions of Benjamin Rex who was handling his new training When the Lizakh warrior asked to be trained Randidly knew of no one better to handle that than those who received the teachings of Helen
Especially if DÆmin wanted results quickly
While Commandant Wick had been solemnly staring at the messenger as though hoping that concentrated attention would unravel the news another messenger burst through the door and stumbled to a stop More headlines flowed in from the suspended machine of the Nexus
A Heretic was active in the core portion of the Nexus Hundreds of bodies were discovered with their energy sucked out of them just laying slumped in their homes In addition an extremely active planet in the Sixth Cohort had taken advantage of the situation and butchered several other planets seizing the nearby Aether pump and monopolizing it for themselves Due to those actions millions of people on other planets in the area were now falling into Aether Sickness comas
In fact the more they investigated the more is seemed like there was no place in the Nexus that hadnÆt been wracked by violence during the downtime of the Nexus Ways There had been riots and racially motivated terrorist attacks Some smaller factions had apparently fought each other in the streets leaving the bodies for today where they were found and carted away by the Military High Command patrols Several financial institutions had been attacked and robbed
The veneer of civilization is so thin these days Lady Iellaya reflected Her heart burned with a desire to abandon this post and focus on her own training but she suppressed that desire Currently she still needed to be here embedded in the military And they donÆt care none of these people do The messes will get cleaned up with violence and crackdowns problem solved Even with the death of a pivotal figure like NÆGick they only think about their own benefits And avoiding the consequences of their actions
Commandant Wick finally raised his head we must still make preparations to fight If the Engraving Guild was going to try and apply pressure and lower the influence of Military High Command The rest of the NLC will eventually get around to it but they will want to deal with their own problems first In the meantime the other factions in the military will come at us with knives
Recall all our forces and have them gather on standby Perhaps Commandant Keckle will be able to convince the other Commandants to wait but the other side has the right of it Of course listening to that damn purple witch came back to bite us
Lady Iellaya grimaced but then opened her mouth Commandant there is one thing I wish to report When communication was established Randidly Ghosthound reached out and informed me that he intended to take advantage of an invitation to a training session by the creator of the Grand Pattern Should I inform him that he should not attend
Of course did you not hear the CommandantÆs order Jeroac grumbled The bearman was a notorious ass kisser to his kin and took any opportunity to put her down Lady Iellaya ignored him and kept her eyes on the Commandant gauging his reaction
But what she wasnÆt prepared for was for the Commandant to start laughing He pushed his chair back from the desk and leaned back his large shoulder bobbing up and down Only when his guffaws had run their course and shifted into chortled did he pull himself forward and fold his hands in front of him Heh this Ghosthound has quite the sense of timing doesnÆt he That old bastard on his weird mountain he might claim that heÆs independent but if there is internal fighting at Military High Command he will be the one pushing for it
For a brief second Lady Iellaya saw something like genuine hesitation on the CommandantÆs face But then his expression firmed back to the familiar look of implacable resolve At the same time as this vulnerability by our faction I send a talented subordinate to participate in some of his Grand Pattern nonsense Heh IÆm certain it will give that old man pause If only because he cannot understand why I would do so Heheh Yes the Ghosthound is ordered to do his best while attending this training camp Even if he still needs more education in proper manners his ability to escape certain death is truly admirable
Lady Iellaya bowed her head slowly She sent a message to Randidly saying that he was free to attend the training session leaving out the portion about being ordered to do his best Then she responded to the other half of RandidlyÆs message
When I finally have some free time IÆll provide what information I know about the Path to the Pinnacle Also donÆt worry about the passage of time Although the time dilation there isnÆt strong I know the Grand Pattern Mountain experiences about two days for everyone in the Nexus
Be ready The chaos has the big groups moving cautiously but that will end soon And when the fighting begins I have no doubt that you will be targeted
Chapter 1800
Outside the cave the wind crooned its constant song Eoarn sat with his legs folded beneath him waiting for his master to visit His twitch was back but this was a relatively mild day He felt more sane than usual He raised his slightly jerking left hand and patted the ground trying to reassure himself with the cool stone
After long hours of this same task the stone floor had been worn perfectly into the shape of his body The flat chamber had been cleared of most stones and stalagmites so he now sat in the middle of a stone belly Due to his weakness his meditation dwelling was close to the surface of the mountain
When he had first arrived he was overjoyed He believed that while the constant noises from the wind were slightly undesirable he would grow used to them
He of course was wrong Honestly Eoarn wished he could hear the wind a little bit better That way it wouldnÆt sound like whispers
Sometimes he had nightmares that the mountain kept him here for so long because it was steadily digesting him The wind was the glee of the grand pattern as he died here Eoarn might have worn down the floor but what had changed within himself in that same time period When was the last time he had the desire to leave the mountain and see the rest of the Nexus
He pushed those thoughts away and tried to focus The more he allowed those thoughts to fester the worse his twitch would become Upon the wall in front of him a replica of the official tiled platform sat filled with the base symbols for experiencing the Grand Pattern Eoarn engaged in intense image training while he waited dancing across the illuminated tiles with a perfect grace that he wished he could capture with his body
The whispering of the wind was static pulling at his attention Just a few tugs so even in his imagination he failed bitterly
Soon the knocking of a cane interrupted both his image training and the constant noise of the wind around the mountain A short while later his master came out of the shadowed passage that led deeper into the mountain rubbing his beard