Brent Stinebaker
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33-22 Uneasy Alliances
🕑 Added 2025-02-11 11:53:38 +0000 UTC{This is EGI Contingency Bleak. We believe that the Hidden Flame has made contact with something within the Ori Delegates. Currently, the patterns of domain information are spiking unnaturally—corresponding to a signature that matches the Hidden Flame itself, now being emitted from within the substance.
Keep the Deep Ones in reserve. Keep the countermeasures for the domain of the information primed, and hold back. We wait until he makes contact with us before proceeding to the next steps.}
-EGI Contingency Bleak “Refusal”
33-22
Uneasy Alliances
Outrage exploded from the Majority as soon as Avo finished talking. Attention filled the space between them as the shadows that constituted the Ori over Heaven flared with fury and indignation. The many peoples that composed their existence screamed at their counterparts within Avo’s flames. Some pointed fingers, while others lashed out—rudeness and even attempts at physical blows flaring in the heat of the moment. Yet, they were constrained, more enchained to the Majority than any of Avo’s templates were to him.
Across the realm, Avo’s subsumed looked on, many of them unimpressed. The Massists were humiliated and frustrated, and the Saintists sneered and jeered with laughter. Through it all, Draus took on a pensive mood. Frowning with her arms folded, she looked like the oldest inmate from head to toe.
[So this… this is the Inner Council,] she drawled. A snort, reminiscent of an angry steed’s disdain for a reeking snake, accompanied her words. [I expected—hells, I didn’t know what I expected. Something more than this. Something more worthy of puttin’ down. These shits are just like worms. Hiding under the skin. Can’t even shoot them.] She snorted. [Half-strands. Leave it to Ori-Thaum to ruin a good snuffin’ too.]
After a few more moments of venting their frustration, the Inner Council finally established its presence. “Enough,” they declared in an officious tone. “You insulted us, but we see your capability.” A bitter silence followed as the Council’s shadows turned outward, facing the rest of their culture, while they resumed speaking among themselves. Avo looked on with pleasure and glee; there was a power in being able to provoke and not be struck in return.
[You’re kind of shit, you know that?] Naeko muttered.
“Been told a few times,” Avo replied.
[Yeah, you’ll probably hear it a few times more.]
“What do you think?” Avo said, consulting his own templates for what they thought of the Majority.
[I think we should burn them and move on,] Corner muttered in reply. The squire had never held the Massists or the Saintess in high regard. The entire war now seemed like a smokescreen—a ruse for the Great Guilds to fuck those beneath them. A racket for deaths.
Benhata, already burdened by his forced betrayal, turned and pleaded. [Listen, we don’t need to do this. We don’t need to… Ori-Thaum can provide us with many, many benefits. They could be good, worthwhile allies. The dream—we can live together.]
Then, there came a single rebuttal—from an unexpected individual. [No,] Shotin said.
Benhata then turned to the Seeker. [Seeker?]
Shoten repeated his statement once more. [There is no room for a real alliance—not with the Majority, not with the Inner Council. A betrayal will come. There’s no way the Inner Council will let something like the Dreamer exist uncaged—or even leave him alive. You already know that, Mirror.]
[But, present circumstances—] Benhata sputtered.
[Amount to piss and shit when the Ladder is at stake. Don’t forget what this is all about.] Shotin snorted as his eyes narrowed in derision at the Overheaven of his people. Cynicism and bitterness lined his very being. [They’re already engineering consent. Right now, they’re afraid of Avo. But the moment this ends? If we’re not joy-fried null-minds, then we better be ready for them to come for us. Come from us in the dark—from every angle they can. But you already know that. It’s how you do things, as well.]
The last sentence was meant for Avo. Shotin continued. [The moment they get the opportunity—when they have the advantage—they’ll try to put you down. They’ll try to take everything you have from you.]
“Expect that,” Avo replied. “Have plans. Benhata. Don’t worry. Won’t be feeding from your people. Yet.]
The Mirror remained a bundle of dread.
Shotin snorted. [The Majority will probably work with you. You might get something out of them. But if you rely on them too much—if you give them too much—they will turn it against you. I think you should trade favors. You’re not wrong there, but what you give? Be careful about how you give it. They’ll do everything they can to learn how you work. It’s the foundation of Ori-Thaum’s tactics.]
Avo went quiet, considering Shotin’s words.
[Service,] Naeko grunted.
“What?”
[Trade in services,] Naeko said. [Do something for them. Like a Squire performing a run. Then ask them for the same in return. It doesn’t need to be more complicated than that. Squires and Middles. The half-strands that define this city.]
At that, Avo’s mind turned to Quail Tavers, and he found himself missing her counsel. That being said, he was also glad about her disappearance. There was a reason why she survived so many Guild Wars. Ephemerals didn’t perform well when Godclads and powers got into fights. Hopefully, she would stay gone or hidden until everything was done—or make contact with him of her own accord.
He could go looking for her, but after all she did for him and his cadre, he let the option be hers. There wasn’t much more he could ask.
A scoff sounded from Zein, she took a step closer, leaning over the edge to point her glaive at the Majority. A few of the shadows flinched away at the sight of Thousandhand, their minds screaming in absolute terror.
“It’s her!”
“The eldest! Elder O’yaje!”
“Thousandhand! Oh, dead gods, the Dreamer’s eaten her as well—we’re fucked! Fucked!”
As the cries of horror built, a sneer built on Zein’s face. The disgust she felt toward her own people was palpable. [Pathetic. You waste time with these vermin, Plague. Do not waste my teachings. They are vulnerable. Seek them. Tear out their throats and drink from them their minds and deaths. They clearly have no interest in using the tools they possess. Such passivity will not serve as a pillar for the existence to come.]
“Not yet,” Avo replied, smoothly. “Still have uses for them. Think Naeko is right. Think you’re too addicted.”
[Addicted?]
“To killing. You would have us forego a useful weapon for a fight I have no guarantee of winning.”
Her nostrils flared slightly. [You fear them?]
“Their patterns are strange. Ontology is unique. I don’t think they can face me. Would have tried to strike me with miracles if they could. But also don’t know if I can reach them easily. Not being able to kill them is also defeat. Especially if they manage to escape and learn.”
Surprisingly, Zein’s offense died down. [Hm. Too cautious. But you speak true. One cannot give fearful vermin the same consideration as one would a true warrior.]
“Yes. But violence and bloodshed aren’t the most effective tools against true warriors either.”
[Oh? And what is?] Zein said, grinning sardonically.
“Giving them a home. Something to lose. Someone to lose.”
At once, she realized what he was saying—what he was promising and the power behind his threat. Jaus was here. Avo had sensed the node the moment he arrived. Zein had neglected to consider certain possibilities.
Suddenly, all sense of joviality bled out from her features, from her mood. [What are you doing?]
“Nothing. Yet. Do you want to speak with him?”
And Naeko’s face resembled that of a terrified child as well. For all his rage at Zein, he didn’t like seeing her like this. She was never meant to be so human before him—so vulnerable. Thousandhand shuddered—a reaction Avo couldn’t believe she was capable of.
[No,] Zein said, her voice the barest whisper. [My deeds are not done. I cannot greet him until my shame is undone.]
“Your shame,” Avo said, sampling her words and memories. “Always has to do with you. Fine. Won’t force anything. But he is here. Something close to him. Just as you are something close to you. The Majority might keep its peoples contained. I won’t. You can all venture where you will. Go where you want. Will spread myself. Let you all speak to those you wish. Your own choosing.”
His templates looked at each other, unsure what to think. Zein went stone-still.
“And Zein,” he continued, calling her attention. “Shame. Shame is just a feeling. Doesn’t matter. Or is the only thing that matters. But think. Understand. Not just yourself anymore. Nothing stopping you from making old choices. Nothing stopping you from making new ones.”
At that, he left her to stew in her thoughts. Naeko made for her immediately. And his own internal dialogues ended just in time for the Majority’s response.
“Your offer has been considered,” the Majority declared, though there was a tremor of uncertainty in their voice. “A truce, then. A limited one in scope and purpose. But we wish to see a show of good faith.”
Avo was expecting this. “An act of service,” he said, his voice a sibilant hiss.
He watched as the Constituents flinched. “What?” the Majority asked.
“This is how we will show each other the truth behind our resolves. I will ask you for something. You will ask me for something. We will both offer a service. Something only we can provide to the other. This will be my demonstration to you. And yours to me.”
Avo took on a posture of aggression, drawing from Draus and Zein. He needed the Majority unnerved—their mental state seemed influenced by the overall mental-state of their entire population. How this was compiled, Avo didn’t know—and this, more than anything, made Avo hungry. Once more, the Majority fell into internal conversation—a dialogue that lasted only a few seconds.“Agreed. However, we must discuss the magnitude and equivalence of these services.”
“Not trying to cheat you,” Avo chuckled. “But very well. Tell me: What do you want right now? Ask me. I’ll ask for something in return. Bargaining is fun.”
The request from the Majority—and the Inner Council especially—was nothing short of instant. “Then we wish to know if Voidwatch possesses anymore of these Deep Ones?”
For the first time, Avo found himself appreciative of the Majority. Finally, they did something interesting. “What a delicious request. You want to claim one of these Deep Ones for yourselves?”
A momentary argument broke out within the Majority, but it was quickly silenced by a voice of resolve. More and more, it was a conversation between Avo and the Inner Council. Here was another problem with democracy: People weren’t equal, and the masses were quick to collapse in fragile cliques. “Yes. We want a Deep One for study. We wish to understand. We wish to master. And we wish to inure ourselves against. There is no salvation that comes with ignorance.”
Amusing, Ignorance laughed.
“Understandable. And doable.” the burning form of the Strix drew closer, and this time, the Majority didn’t back away. The crackling templates faced their counterparts, staring on in fascination. Benhata in particular, found a version of himself—a shadowed form that vaguely formed his outline among the billions within the Majority.
[Are you me?] Benhata asked.
“I–I think so,” his Constituent self answered. “And… and we are dead. Consumed by the Dreamer.”
[Yeah…] Benhata breathed. Avo kept him from a full breakdown.
“What is it like?” shadow-Benhata asked. “Being a part of the Dreamer?”
Benhata regarded the idea of Avo with terror, but spoke without fear in his words. [What he showed me… it scars. I will never be right again. I will never be able to fully understand. But he’s no slaver. And he doesn’t keep me enchained.]
Other templates spoke to their shadows. Lovers, children, parents, and siblings called out to themselves and each other, separated by the barest of margins.
The Strix and the Majority weren’t exactly mirrors of each other, but they were still close enough that the symmetry was unnerving.
“I’ll seek them,” Avo said, his burning Soul serving as an eye. An eye glaring down at the Inner Council fused around the Majority as if a “heart.” “I’ll talk to the Bleak. See what I can get you. And I can offer you… an audience.”
“Audience?” the Majority asked.
“The Deep Ones aren’t dead. Or even fully broken. There are still egos left in them.”
Once more, absolute pandemonium broke out within the Majority—but was clamped down before it could get out of order. “You speak true?”
“They are like you. Even like me in some fashion. They are broken civilizations. Ancient isn’t even strong enough of a word. Would you like to hear their thoughts?” Avo let slip what lingered in the mind of the Trinary Melody. Pain, madness, and all too much stimulation flooded the space.
The Majority reeled back. The Inner Council cried out, their stoic facades shattering. “Stop. Stop!” With a pulse of information, Avo felt them suddenly jolt across a few layers. Suddenly, he realized he couldn’t perceive part of the Majority. The head and limbs were missing. Only a patch of their chest remained. He knew they should be there but—
The Strix stopped channeling the broken consciousness of the Deep One. “Apologies. Thought I fixed that one better.”
[You’re dancing on thin ice,] Benhata snarled. [This is supposed to be a diplomatic moment.]
“No,” Avo replied. “This is about sales.”
The Inner Council took a moment to compose themselves before they spat their words at him. “What was the purpose of that? Do you mean to insult us? To harm us?”
“I mean to enlighten you,” Avo said. “Here is my show of good faith: You cannot use the Deep Ones without someone fixing their minds. And with your reaction… You cannot. Lack the proper architecture. But I can. So. Your one service demanded is actually two. Giving you a Deep One Would be like gifting an unstable warhead. Would look like an act of sabotage in waiting.”
At once, the Majority quieted. A moment later, most of its ontology resurfaced from the depths it sank to. “We see. But you are willing to offer one that you have disabled? In trade?”
“More than that,” Avo said, glee building in his mind. “Going to help solve some of your Voidwatch related issues as well. Going to steal some Deep Ones directly.”
The Majority collectively blinked at Avo. “You plan to what?”
***
A tendril of flame coursed away from the other branches and sought the mind hovering atop Naeko’s palm. A second later, a connection was established. “Refusal.”
{Dreamer,} Refusal said. {I have been waiting—}
“I need to steal another Deep One from you. Trying to develop relations with Inner Council of Ori-Thaum.”
The Contingency Bleak paused. {Elaborate.}
Comments
Deathly_God
Or, it's a secret mission from Dannis from beyond the Softmaster's Clutches! We must decipher the clues to his Hardness!
Jack Smith
Do not trust it!!! Its the infacer using mamals account as a guise to spread electro-thaumic trojan based viruses!!!!!
Craxuan
Ah, got it.
Brent Stinebaker
Those are some "extra" documents that ended up getting dragged in with my chapter files. Basically were in the same folder and went on a ride. Don't worry, they're not viruses or critical files. They're just l10 machine review documents. A whoopsie.
Craxuan
??? I saw some Chinese xlsx links under the usual links for a moment and was tempted to click but ultimately refrained but what the heck was that?
