You wish for him to fight against that PineÆs tone changed to one of horror and recrimination Even my father cannot
No not fight Balance Randidly replied He allowed himself a small moment wondering what Ezekiel was doing within that multilayered sphere what the dead experienced as their home hurtled on a collision course with another With great difficulty he wrenched himself back from the distraction Right now the issue is that all the darkness has started to crack the fabric of the Nexus We can support the weight for a while with images and Nether but that will only delay the eventual collision And they cannot be separated not entirely They remain connected So we need a new foundation
ThatÆs why we need Elhume To function as the core anchor of the Nexus for our new shape Randidly flicked his fingers and a circular platform of golden runes flashed into existence beneath them The complex wheels of the working began to spin The Engraving flared with life and power enough that the air around them began to distort The effect of conjuring such a complex working was satisfyingly dramatic but really Neveah had been the one who had created this working while Randidly had been talking with Pine Randidly just acted as a flashy salesperson The Alchemist as magician manipulating the audienceÆs attention
Even his words were part of the trick convincing everything that this was about that We need three cores for three universes to be brought into alignment Rotating around a central axis Lead him over there please
Around the main golden brilliance of the working Neveah had woven were three more sedate circles on the ground lined with pulsing runes but with their central portions clear After a hesitation Pine moved and Elhume followed When they stood in the middle of one of the outer circles the writing along the edge began to animate itself
Randidly guided the Nether connections so the Engraving reacted to the correct bonds In Truth this was the one whose anchor would be the most important
Because no one had done more to shape the Nexus than Elhume for better and for worse It couldnÆt be anyone but him not with his weighty history
He doesnÆt even see me Can this truly be enough Pine asked breaking into RandidlyÆs thoughts Is this really my role
Randidly smiled Your part is the climax Pine Just give me a second and youÆll be the reason everything changes
Chapter 2454
Randidly flexed his fingers For the moment Pine seemed satisfied with his answer So he let the vulnerable universe soul be and focused on the connections He did his best to relax because he needed to be sharp for this next bit
His Nether seethed and spat in his veins flowing faster and more thickly than it had ever had before For a brief moment Randidly marveled at the sensations so closely matched to what he imagined it was to be slowly cooling magma planet Waves of chaotic and dense significance sprung off him both surrounding the brilliant Engraving with a protective bubble and flowing out to fuel the framework for the next step His eyes burned bright and emerald and violent With this this journey will come to an end
He wove strands of Nether around Elhume digging deep into his history strangely insubstantial as it was due to FieroÆs borrowing Yet Randidly felt the anchor sinking deeper and deeper into ElhumeÆs existence He suspected the process could not be pleasant Significance was sowing together two histories to make them as one The two Nether varietals hissed and trembled on the contract
Yet Elhume just looked at Pine his gaze empty but sure His fatherÆs answer had no words but did possess the unrelenting solidity that the universe soul desperately needed
Pine trembled bearing the scrutiny of that gaze with difficulty after having not had the privilege of receiving it for so long Nearer to Randidly there was a slight pop as Neveah manifested back She gave him a quick nod holding a large orb of mist in her arms Randidly pressed her lips together to see the excited pulses from within the misty orb Yet It was proof that Neveah had extracted agreement For now that was more than enough
Neveah began reinforcing the central portion with bold strokes of harmonious Aether and Nether while the floating consciousness was left to the side for now
Next to their floating ritual the darkness pressed closer Even if the Alpha Cosmos could delay its collision with the Nexus the tide of negativity encroached more and more Their movements fell into shadow the only light coming from the glowing Engraving
With the first circle now populated and anchored into place Randidly turned his attention to the second one He sent a message to Enmya and receiving an affirmative he flexed his fingers Yggdrasil creaked and groaned the massive trunk shifting from the original position to within the depths of the circle
Enmya arrived with arms windmilling pulled along by the shift in the World Tree RandidlyÆs mouth quirked upward but he didnÆt let that distract him He focused on the pulsing life of Yggdrasil and followed its roots digging deeper and deeper into the fabric of the Nexus while also following the carefully laid runes shaped by Neveah The tree became a stand in for him and the universe he represented the Alpha Cosmos When Enmya regained his balance he sat down and began to meditate His Nether flowed through clean lines joining the anchors the Nether connector had already made and then joining up with YggdrasilÆs similar efforts
It did not feel good to do but Randidly released the last of his grip on his insubstantial identity The Alpha Cosmos is more than just part of the Vessel It can be everything I can be nothing The anchor can flow through Enmya
Congratulations Your Skill The World Tree Guzzles Even Truth has grown to Level 1995
Congratulations Your Skill Engineering of the Enigmatic Alpha Cosmos has grown to Level 1831
With Nether and roots Randidly tied the knot fixing the Alpha Cosmos in a new place He felt a strange queasiness but nothing too disturbing yet Right now it was just a symbol Only when he tightened those Nether bonds would everything be changed
Before Randidly began the final anchoring process he sent a message to Naffur and the others struggling underneath the negative subconscious of the Nexus One more push to hold the land of the dead back and make it a big one IÆll handle it from there
On cue the Nexus around him shivered Then began to shake as all the people who believed in him trusted his word and threw their all into the attack Randidly began to laugh from the abrupt twitchings of his Grand Fate Randidly knew that the group had manifested enough power to tear the fabric of time For now he ignored the scratching impulse to go sew up that wound and just allowed himself to feel pride
Congratulations Your Skill Echoes of a Living Myth has grown to Level 1604
Congratulations Your Skill What the Ghosthound Sows He Will Soon Reap has grown to Level 1995
In his mind Randidly continued his explanation to Pine Would you believe it if I told you there would be value in us being connected IÆve faked it well thus far but I am not you Pine I am a constructed thing I possess a powerful Vessel sure Mimicking the effects you have but ultimately well maybe IÆm a little bit afraid of reaching a limit in that mimicry Creating the connection would legitimize me in a way In a way I want to happen less for my pride and more to ensure a stable future for the Alpha Cosmos
But also RandidlyÆs eyes narrowed Why did I struggle for so long for power if not so I could freely make my choices and damn the consequences You are more than a resource Pine You are alive And therefore itÆs worth extending a hand to help you
Whether in the end you take it is up to you
As Randidly took the last few steps he took around 3000 VP Skill Levels he had gained due to the Alpha CosmosÆs enthusiastic defense and poured it into his Harmony Creed just for a little extra edge for what he planned on attempting