Despite himself Randidly couldnÆt help but flash a cheshire smile as he answered his images Every trick deserves an audience LetÆs leave them riveted shall we
Congratulations Your Skill Arch HereticÆs Thaumaturgy has grown to Level 1983
Providence has detected the activation of a lesser System Superseding
Pantheon Intervention We refuse
Warning If you refuse to comply
Pantheon Intervention Do your worst
Congratulations Your Skill Apostate MoiraeÆs Seditious Touch has grown to Level 1722
The brushes with the Providence System felt feather light quickly rejected as they failed to find easy Aether to grasp on his person Yet Randidly could begin to feel the austere methodology present in this glittering starscape From the depths of the Nether Core where the door to the sea of shapes hummed he felt the glimmer of a resonance
If the Nexus and by extension the Alpha Cosmos felt akin to a pool of images with each individual floating and affecting the larger environment somewhat this was a place drained of that suspension fluid All the images and significance stood on their own isolated by a harsh structure The shadows that Randidly sensed of the Eternities were just the way that his senses picked up on the foreign powers
Such a vast and cold place Randidly observed Such rigid labeling and structure
But while the energies of Aether and Nether were kept curiously isolated RandidlyÆs skin soon heated with the approaching furnace of a chariot The transport rumbled as it closed the distance and Randidly could feel the six presences headed his way As they neared their shadowsÆ became increasingly clear The peculiar combination of Aether and Nether of the multiverse felt incredibly dense A few drops of cool sweat slid down his spine His smile just stretched wider and he made a few more preparations
At the distance of perhaps only a mile away Randidly had a realization The structure of their powers are layered Purposefully They probably experience an Eternity bastardizing the process of Aspect creation by using their own selves as the Aspect Which isolates their energies creating the first stages of this horrible mausoleum feel but then they reach the Pinnacle They step outside of the threshold of their bodies allowing to push past the barrier create by the Eternity event and then they use the freed energy to experience another Eternity
Over and over again until they form those tension filled statues
So this is the Path they have chose Randidly flicked a sleeve and darkness billowed out from his back The evolved form of the partial Aspect gifted to him by Nyx TiamatÆs Veil of Death and Shadow spread out like a dove blanket to obscure the space behind him He couldnÆt yet call on the full might of the NexusÆs darkness but he pulled a fraction of it those hungry ghosts willing to be led away answering his call Tens of millions of spectral hands curled into claws He stood at the head of the army ready for his resistance
He might feel their shadows stretching across him but Randidly Ghosthound had a lot of experience fighting in the shade
But he didnÆt stop there He blinked once twice and on the third blink his left eye became completely obscured by darkness as an event horizon opened from his bright pupil It swirled lazily for a moment allowing the Songstress of Absence to pass through his body and hide herself in the folds of the veil behind him Randidly GhosthoundÆs third image pressed and pressed distorting the space further
The fabric of the multiverse was stronger here held in place by the long shadows of the Eternities They applied enough pressure it squashed all the interstitial gaseous image fabric he had grown used to But Randidly Ghosthound had experience a Pinnacle even and was at the cusp of an Eternity He squeezed and even this turned to putty beneath his fingers
Congratulations Your Skill TiamatÆs Veil of Death and Shadow (ND) has grown to Level 1813
Congratulations Your Skill SirenÆs Dirge of Bottomless Taking has grown to Level 1757
The constant flow of VPs had pushed him back up to 3000 even though only a short amount of time had passed RandidlyÆs eyes flashed in anticipation Only a little bit more now
He poured those 3000 into his Impossibility Creed He flexed his fingers He looked up and welcomed the six presences who exited the flaming chariot and flew out to float above him in the starfield
Each popped to his vision As though an artist had traced their edges to emphasis the pressure they exerted just by existing
The leading figure was a gargoyle his stone features implacable Muscular arms hung down from bulging shoulders while talon tipped wings hung from his back Making eye contact made it slightly difficult for Randidly to breathe as the heaviness of this existence leaned against him Both the gargoyleÆs image and his significance were hidden in the churning patterns of energies running through his body but the sheer presence of his Vessel set RandidlyÆs teeth on edge
Randidly had to wonder how many times the layering process occurred as these individuals managed multiple Eternity and Pinnacle events And from a quick scan the gargoyle was only the third most powerful individual in the group
I told you this would be worth it A golden haired woman with skin the color of tree bark whispered to a similarly colored man next to her The duo who seemed to be siblings stood to the right of the leader They regarded Randidly coolly as the gargoyle pivoted and gave them a look
The gargoyle cleared his throat Randidly Ghosthound You have flaunted the rules of Providence by refusing to accept the restrictions on unregistered users Do you dispute this
Even the words had a compelling affect likely due to the intensity of these layered existences Yet RandildyÆs body could withstand their displeasure Which he suspected would intensify before the showdown was over
Still Randidly hesitated before answering He sounds so officious is it really possible I could just buy time by playing along with their bureaucracy
I do Randidly said lifting his chin
Ahem let me assure you your word will not be enough to convince us The gargoyleÆs lip curled upward But it was also obvious he was enthused by the prospect of RandidlyÆs denial With my privileges I can view the activity logs You burned away the restrictions as soon as they formed with waves of raw energy How do you explain this
Your restrictions were so weak that just the humming of Aether and Nether through my body annihilated them How the hell is this my fault Randidly complained inwardly even while he felt lightheaded from the volume of force rushing through his veins He considered said I didnÆt understand the process I know better now
To be truthful Pine had loved that Neveah relied on physical power to speed them across the spatial divides They had raced through the cracks in space crossing from the Nexus proper into the Alpha Cosmos by sheer didnÆt of momentum and ingenuity From there they had gone away from the GhosthoundÆs origin planet to one of the orbiting moons There Neveah had taken Pine out away from the few cities to this distant place
Yet it wasnÆt just that There was also the strangest familiarity in how Neveah moved in the passive Aether patterns she maintained around her body
The two were entirely alone Crossing into the Alpha Cosmos appeared to have a screening effect so that the dark subconscious no longer hung like a depressed cloud over PineÆs mood Several wide fields stretched in front of them messy with tall grass From a look at the soil Pine could tell it was rich but it was also studded with stones the land would need to be worked for a bit before it was useable for anything And in the distance he could see small ridges
Only in those ridges did Pine sense local wildlife The place was untouched
Not this place specifically but what it could become I want I want it to be over too Neveah said quietly she turned and looked at Pine and her eyes glistened with tears I understand that sentiment I am quite like you I believe I am bound to Randidly Ghosthound I sense his suffering each day And it is a strain I support him as best I can but I want him to stop pushing himself to stop throwing himself into these situations to simply simply accept the gift of this land and retire from his battles