Maybe he had even underestimated the risk of this place
A unified but muffled clack brought the Monarch of Karmas head up He looked at the distant stones they appeared now to be drifting around his position orbiting a sun Another clack sounded and suddenly he released that the previously thrown pebbles had entered their own sort of orbit bouncing off their targets and then hitting another target And then another
Clack
Clack
The Monarch of Karma sat in the middle of a totally accidental orrery and sighed It always begins like this
Randidly Ghosthound rushed at the head of the group keeping his speed suppressed so his small army could keep up with him Ahead the specter of Devick continued to skip forward almost mocking their seriousness He kept an eye above watching the flow of significance for any dangerous developments He coolly clocked the shift coming from the Beigon compound which likely meant the Don hadnt missed the opportunity
At the very least Randidly felt confident with such a large debt sitting between them Don Beigon would not be a problem Or at least he was one that he had proved capable of handling in the past
Congratulations Your Skill What the Ghosthound Sows He Will Soon Reap has grown to Level 200
If Nether flows through them a varietal would form She confirmed The power would be small but small expressions might end up being unusually sophisticated There is no way to know
Randidlys lips twitched The walls were pressing even more tightly around their bodies So a strange and impossible gamble with everything at stake Alright how close is Enmya to being ready to give his Phaea
We can expedite the process and begin almost immediately He will ahem Enmya has done an admirable job in demonstrating his intent to serve the people of the Alpha Cosmos He has passable control over patterns and is truly expanding
How long Lowanna Randidly interrupted As the shade of the Actus Suprem skipped forward it almost appeared like she turned and glanced back at them before she proceeded forward and around the corner It could have just been a strange twitch or the angle but
Seeing the specter check on their progress slowed Randidlys steps His eyes narrowed as he examined the surrounding the way the walls pressed closer from every side the way the density of the ambient Aether kept rising the unnatural stillness he felt in the air The flavor of their environment had changed and not for the better
Shit Randidly sighed right as the return message came from Lowanna It only confirmed his old fears but didnt address the new ones Likely at least six hours His attitude the creation of so many Phaea at once will be a strain even for Enmya
Randidly didnt bother to reply He glanced over his shoulder catching Alanas gaze she understood his intention immediately and bellowed out an order Double time
The few representatives from the Upper Sonara Society looked decidedly out of place as the Vulpis Squad surged forward and left them in the dust The long hours of physical training paid dividends They transformed in but a moment into a loping herd of predators glad to charge into the jaws of this trap and tear their way out
Randidly allowed his Cloak of a Thousand Lightless Horizons to stretch behind him as he bounded forward All the restrictions he had placed on his speed for the sake of his followers he abandoned All his passive Skills all the image physicalizations that had affected his body on a fundamental level all the recent Stat boosts were allowed to manifest to their full potential He remembered that intoxicating moment of advance as he had attacked Elhume he channeled that stampeding momentum and ripped around the corner
Devicks phantasm twitched when he suddenly stood only a meter away from her his eyes blazing and his hand reaching out to grab the projection Whether it was just a little stray deviancy or a deliberate trap he would stop this here
The projection released a soundless screech and flickered as his hand neared It flitted several meters forward sensing his intentions and displaying its own second gear in response Randidly only snorted such a small distance was still within his reach
As the claws of the Dread Homunculus sank into the projection and it began to wriggle and flail the projection began to look horrified that it had been caught It gazed at him with pleading eyes It looked forward then at its captor then back forward It broadcast desperation with every gesture In response Randidly frowned at this thing he had caught The rest of the Vulpis Squad caught up to him and stared at the projection in confusion
Even in the form of a wisp of an echo Randidly said slowly as he observed projection practically beginning him to go forward a little bit more The Actus Suprem would never show so much deference You are not a flicker of madness from her What the hell are you Who did this
The projection just continued to plead with its wide eyes Even if the form was a lie it was still Devick he trapped
Almost unwillingly Randidly looked across the current low ceilinged chamber to the dark hole opposite them The Aether density had increased again so it felt like the ominous hole in front of them breathed Aether out against them a monstrous beast born of solidified energy
Feeling that Aether Randidly realized they could have arrived at only one specific place for the energy to flow like this
And he knew of only one specific ally that would have used subterfuge to lure him here And already his chest felt like a congested volcano at the thought of being misled at this juncture
Chapter 2376
Just like all other aspects of his life Randidly could only advance Turning back would probably only waste more time He proceeded through the dark hole almost daring an enemy to leap out and attack him
Disappointingly he stepped through without incident Their destination was a surprisingly large room with a low ceiling The far end of the chamber lay quite a distance away Randidly led the way the Songstress of Absence sucking in a deep breath preparing to release a crooning aria of oblivion to eliminate any roadblocks present
The room opened up and spread out in front of him The space covered as much space as Kharon just a wide plane without defect or variation Yet even Randidlys skin crawled as he stood because the three meter high ceiling felt like a twisted inversion he half recognized The crystalized Aether in the area achieved a purity not present in the portion of the mountain range they had explored thus far creating the illusion they walked underneath a calm mountain lake
From a glance his senses urged Randidly that diving into that lake would be one of the most refreshing experiences of his life He snorted and ignored the optical illusion that calm water would devour you just as quickly as an event horizon and leave just as little waste behind
Out of the corner of his eyes Randidly would see movement within the depths that vanished when he focused directly Still looking directly up let him peer into the flows of the energy and appreciate how overwhelming the pressure would be in this water Despite the crystallization the Aether whispered at the possibilities it seemed to directly urge Randidly closer ask him to dive into the lake
If Randidly came into contact with the power here
Well Id be powerful but fucking trapped wouldnt I Randidly pulled his eyes down suppressing his urge to test the theory in the name of pushing his limits For better or worse he no longer had time to ascertain exactly how far he would go in non deadly situations He glanced behind him at the column following behind him A few from the Upper Sonara Society couldnt tear their eyes away but all of the Vulpis Squad quickly reined in their temptation and focused on the task
Pullas strode forward to stride next to Randidly There is a lot of unquiet death here To the point but I cant help but wonder where the bodies went
Randidly spared one more glance up toward the inverted lake that was not a lake but a parched throat above them I have a feeling that what we are seeing is an illusion The real depths of this place are not as pretty as the undulating energy currents we can see