Which Randidly supposed was why significance began to pool here
From RandidlyÆs talks with Yystrix and also later the Patrons he knew roughly the situation in the Nexus Pine was a child that Yystrix had with some Nether being a throwback to the Shallah the original pure beings of myth that lived in an Eden lost to history Due to various circumstances Yystrix had brought Pine back to Elhume her husband who was an Aether based being like her
Elhume had a particular role in the Aether society one that put him in a position of power In Pine he saw providence and opportunity Yet all was not well every moment that Pine spent in the exposed universe the light of his life grew dimmer He might truly be one of the Shallah however outside of Eden his only fate was to die
Yystrix and Elhume didnÆt understand the timeline but they understood how this was going to end if they did not act
So Elhume mortgaged the entirety of the Aether population in order to create an adequate environment for Pine He relied on the perfection of the child Yystrix had brought to reach the PinnacleÆ and create the Nexus from nothing However it soon became clear that the Nexus was only a temporary solution It stalled out PineÆs degeneration but couldnÆt heal the wounds that had already occurred Therefore Elhume mobilized the Nexus to try and bridge the gap to that lost Eden so Pine could recover and thrive
Randidly floated down through the thick air Out of the darkness of the Shaft the first hints of Pine emerged A stadium sized sphere waited below slurping up all the significance that floated down here and remaining thirsty for more It looked like the inversion of the Stillborn Phoenix the darkness seemed to intensify around the edges of the sphere becoming thick and impenetrable Out of the corner of your eye you could see nothing but the abyss there But when you looked at it directly a bright world unfolded before you
It looked full but that embrace sang of emptiness
Randidly couldnÆt make out any detail of this world because the fuzzy lines of mountain and sky and greenery were rubbed away at the edges by the gleaming sun touched spell that covered all of it The golden light refracted into blinding kaleidoscopes that beckoned Looking directly at it Randidly felt a deep tug on him to join that world Even with his own Nether Core this existence was strong
Hollow as it might be some substance existed there
Randidly turned away with an effort of will shattering the growing connection of significance between himself and that world Only out of the corner of your eye when that brilliant dream faded to darkness could you see the tumbling details that he had heard from Roy
In that darkness several limbs twisted mid air Randidly saw a single featherless wing folded neatly A bloodshot eye stared around sightlessly as it tumbled A luminously pale skull released a misty of glittering blue motes A fleshy pink stomach engorged itself on the significance absorbing more and more
The ugly and swollen organ couldnÆt be seen if you looked for it but lurked like the whisper of doom when refused to be pulled into the dream
The strange dream around PineÆs body already has such a frightful pull Randidly frowned and looked away entirely from this strange base How dense must the significance in his stomach be And why canÆt I feel it The significance that flows into him just seems to disappear
Indeed Or rather it was the true me Not just the unlucky bit of myself that remains conscious The man standing next to the bed gave a small smile His cheekbones were sharp and his hair was slate grey His eyes glittered with a purple so dark it was nearly black But now that Randidly was closer he could see that the figure in the bed and the standing figure wore the same face
Abruptly Randidly realized where he recognized the sharp features You are
Solomon Rex The mysterious figure bowed to Randidly He held the perfect bend of his bow for two seconds before he straightened At your service Mr Ghosthound IÆve been waiting for someone like you for a long long time
For several seconds Randidly just stared at the man His emotions twisted back and forth in his chest as he thought about the way that Neshamah this manÆs daughter betrayed Claudette at the last second Perhaps being under the sway of the Rex Family would have been the lesser of several evils but it had seemed unnecessary
But truthfully he wasnÆt even sure how close Solomon and Neshamah were
RandidlyÆs gaze shifted to the sleeping form of Solomon A small smile played across the manÆs face as though he wandered through a reassuring dream RadndidlyÆs frown deepened at the strange circumstances I IÆm not sure what to say to you
Nor I you honestly The mental projection of Solomon Rex reached up and rubbed the back of his head with a rueful smile I had always hoped someone like you would come along to threaten Elhume but I didnÆt have much hope
That certainly earned a sharp glance from Randidly You
Then he stopped short Was he surprised that this mysterious figure slumbering beneath Pine knew he wanted to overthrow the Nexus Compared to the other facts about this strange meeting that seemed to be the most innocuous Besides being aware of RandidlyÆs own goal was something different than being aware of the group gathered with the intent to bring down Elhume
Solomon just watched RandidlyÆs internal conflict with a knowing curl at the corner of his mouth
Randidly breathed out a breath There is too much strange about the situation LetÆs take one thing at a time
Why are you here Randidly asked Not the projection but your true body You are sleeping
Very deeply But thatÆs the price I had to pay To remain here Solomon RexÆs smile faded IÆm guarding Pine against selfish and shortsighted fools Even if our leader has forgotten the original goal of the Nexus there is a group of us that has not No matter what we cannot give up now out of fear
Randidly absorbed that answer slowly He wasnÆt sure what Solomon meant by giving up out of fear But rather than ask that question he changed his focus but kept things simple And why have you been waiting for me Or someone like me
You are quite special It didnÆt have to be you obviously Solomon scratched his beard looking surprisingly mundane despite the environment The horrible truth is that the System is all about commodifying and stealing something precious in order to repurpose it for another aim First to cut through the abyss and reach Eden and now well All the powerful individuals who have come before end up eventually empowering that man on top of this sick pyramid one way or another The reason I reached out to you what you are making of yourself would be very very difficult to copy There are too many crucial pieces And for that reason you have a chance of being singular A chance of reaching the Pinnacle based on your own power
Chapter 1891
When Solomon spoke the words left his lips and hung in the air like secondhand cigarette smoke As Randidly opened his mouth he could feel the distinct tang of knowledge and honesty hanging in the air
Since arriving in the Nexus Randidly had heard many people talking about the Pinnacle They revered it there was an entire group of people that were so obsessed with reaching it that they were named after it the Pinnacle Seekers The power divisions that he had encountered as far as he could understand them were constructed to describe how close a person was to reaching the Pinnacle
For all that when the shade of Solomon standing at the foot of the bed told Randidly he had the potential to reach that point on his own power that goal felt quite distant despite the confident expression on the projectionÆs face It was hard to even know what it would take to push his images to that potency
RandidlyÆs thoughts turned inward for several seconds But he ended up being pulled out of his thoughtful reflection by a soft laugh from Solomon Oh donÆt worry most people donÆt share my optimistic opinion on you Elhume included you are still beneath his radar even if youÆve managed to defeat Wick ThereÆs no rush to fight him to the death For now you just need to continue doing what youÆve been doing