The Nether felt alive in his hands Or rather his grip on the connection to the whole of Expira was so vital that even contact invigorated him The story of this world that had once existed outside the System had been waiting for someone to begin telling it Now it lent its Weight to the Nether Ritual
Congratulations Your Skill Precise Nether RItual has grown to Level 529
However his series of steps to reel in more Nether proved too effective Randidly rocked back on his heels almost falling off the branch of the supertree as he attempted to channel it Too many streams of Nether wound themselves together at once each single thread thickening to a rope and then knitting itself into a fishermanÆs net dragging along a whole slew of other connections As the Nether Ritual continued to sprawl outward piling up into the sky and digging down into the sea Randidly quickly had to admit that his Willpower wasnÆt enough to support all the significance
A strange luminance began to glimmer along the edges of the flows a strange sort of gorgeous friction as meaning rushed at ever faster speeds to create an edifice to Expira
RandidlyÆs breath hissed between his teeth as he saw the accelerating movement and saw the moss spirits sense it too rising up into the air to follow the flow They provided the physical representation of the strange luminance Reaching inside himself Randidly found his sturdy Yggdrasil image and brought all those Nether flows through it It acted as an expanded highway of energy lessening the ache his physical form had to endure
But soon as the Nether Ritual swelled to dizzying heights and distant depths even Yggdrasil began to tremble underneath the significance that swirled into him
Below the people cooed in awe as the emerald lights rose to join the stars Meanwhile Randidly pressed his Nether Core to its limits to support more and more support structures a framework to handle the huge amount of significance that had arrived Already he could feel the original form straining and bending underneath its weight and he reinforced the structure as rapidly as he could
This is a hope A prayer Randidly trembled as his mind began to throb with the mental strain He worked frantically having to eschew understanding and rely on intuition to create space for the force that poured through him as both his body and Yggdrasil could barely endure A bridge built toward nothing hoping that on the other side Expira might find hope Whatever Expira becomes whatever choices these people make let them not forget how difficult it was to walk the Path to reach here
How the small struggles on Expira are just a prelude to a bigger danger
He raised his hands and felt his skin tingle with the rapid passage of Nether The world around him spun He looked up and couldnÆt even see just the tip of what he had made Then he lowered his gaze trying not to collapse Due to the queer luminosity that accumulated from so many gathering flows of Nether the core glimmered below It sank and settled in the depths of the planet as it began to activate
And Randidly Ghosthound smiled spent and collapsing because for a brief moment he felt small before the whole of humanity’s accomplishments This history that he had just channeled had meaning
So long as he protected them for long enough this world would grow strong
Chapter 1911
The individuals came in groups of two or three driven by the strange shift they had all just felt in the world and also due to their shared desire to protect the future of Kharon The meeting had originally been scheduled for after the weekend but the rapid progress of events made it clear they needed to reach an understanding now
The strange working wrought by Randidly was just an extra twist on an already hectic week
Derek Moss and Hydie Mordath came first him scanning the small clearing within the forest and her dragging out some logs to make impromptu seats His eyes flicked around searching for threats
The lack of present enemies and the echoing sounds of laughter below proved to be an unnerving combination
Vye arrived next slipping out of the darkness her footsteps covered by the continuing revelry happening on the beach below Elijah Frank chased after her his hair windswept and his chic white jacket stained by dirt and leaves He tried several times to draw her into a conversation but she pointedly ignored him Tatiana her secretary Wolfram and Naffur came soon after followed by Selene the goblin Nrorce and Commissioner Arrietti The former two were engaged in a heated debate over the proper way to raise high quality meat
Considering how high quality the barbecue had been Derek salivated a bit to imagine even tastier food
Alana Donal and Hank Howard came and then Sam and Regina Mrs Hamilton and Ghost were surprise arrivals because they hadnÆt made an appearance at any of the barbecue events Heiffal came with Raymund Ballast both releasing an oppressive physical aura that had Derek Moss rubbing his chin
Looks like it really is worth it to train on this island He mused
The final group was also something of a surprise Not due to their presence because no one would deny their connection to the Ghosthound and their contribution to ExpiraÆs fate Mostly it was because of how unsure they seemed to be about whether they should be included
Zack Krum looked around His expression wasnÆt exactly defiant but to DerekÆs eyes it looked like the young man was ready for a rejection He was poised to flinch away from any harsh words We didnÆt well I felt the pull of something here that I donÆt really understand If we are bothering anyone
That strange sensitivity from the GhosthoundÆs working it looks like we will have to investigate who exactly has access to it Derek shared a glance with Naffur whose pursed lips told him that the younger man was thinking the same thing
Of course not Alana spoke confidently She smiled with unusual brightness as Todd who flushed and ducked his head a little at the affection
Next to her Hank Howard leaned back against a tree stump and gestured vaguely Take yur seats YouÆve done more than earn it
Even I One whose fingers have soaked in pools of innocent blood The Chimera woman seemed puzzled as she looked around After I snarled at the Ghosthound earlier
Ha The cowboy grinned at the Chimera Then his whole disposition shift death rode in his eyes his guns at his sides suddenly weighed down by the lives they had taken His aura became suffocating Even Derek couldnÆt help but shiver You goofed for sure An ant picking a fight with a titan ThatÆs just youthful spunk But ta your other question do ya think any of our hands s clean girlie
The Chimera bowed deeply to Hank Howard and then she Zack Krum Todd and the Automaton joined the group Tatiana stood and cleared her throat The fact that all of you were guided here means you both care about the state of Expira and that you possess the requisite sensitivity to be even more proactive about it However letÆs start by touching on this new sense that we can all tap into My connection gave me a bit of extra insight that IÆd like to share
Again much of his current training capability seemed to be capped He wanted to improve his Nether understanding but that was a slow process of experimentation He wanted to improve the emotional affect of his images but the bits of space that prevented them from aligning perfectly werenÆt problems he could brute force his way through He wanted to continue through the Hierarchy of Burden but his unevolved Endurance meant that he still couldnÆt endure exposure to true entropy for very long
Yet Randidly didnÆt feel bothered by the lack of easy Paths forward If anything the small break for the barbecue and some of the conversations he had gave him patience Or as Sydney would point out they gave him faith that as long as he kept working an answer would come
Even if that answer was just him accumulating enough PP to trigger the next Soulskill Tithe