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Chapter 88: A Crown in Quarters.
🕑 Added 2024-08-19 22:39:10 +0000 UTCChapter 88: A Crown in Quarters.
A flick of its clawed fingers was all it took to send Mittens flying again. The impact sending echoing aftershocks in all directions as a blast of pure kinetic energy pushed the stale air way from the creature.
I thought it was an utterly ridiculous display, until he flicked his clawed digit a second time. Creating an explosion of force that was easily ten times as potent as the last one had been. Rather than being blown backwards, the rest of the Intruders disintegrated. The solid, possessed bodies of the anchorites turning to dust alongside the flexible frames of the flagellants and Solomonlings. Bulky stone hosts crumbling as their shells lost their integrity. Their veil-born occupants vanishing back into the ether with a rush of imploding space.
More appeared after then of course.
I had pumped so much Psy into my Avatar. Into the Tall Man, that the very fabric of reality was in tatters.
Fires were still breaking out all along the arena. The oxygen in the air igniting as crimson and purple flashes of lighting surged out from within Pandemonium. Those fires and indeed some bolts of crackling energy were soon possessed themselves. Forming into more knights and chanters that leapt into the fray even as more anchorites seeped into the walls and came out as hulking mounds of torment. Golems in all but name, yet with a distinct talent for using hums to bolster its allies as it charged towards my foe.
As for their target, they let out another sound which might have been a chuckle. Raising one of their clawed feet high up in the air and over their head, only to bring it down onto the sands.
Well, that’s what I think happened anyways.
The motion was far too fast for me to see.
All I knew of it was that the resulting shockwave put the last two to shame. Shattering more of my bones after they had just finished healing and causing my body to burrow itself deeper into the boundaries of the arena.
“Yes. Very good. Very good.” I heard them repeat, after my ears had finished growing back.
“I must admit, I am suitably impressed. To think that one of us would be so mighty while being so young. And with a second Type to boot.”
It was odd. Very, very odd.
The bipedal seahorse had nothing on their facial structure that might indicate joy. Nor contrition for that matter.
That face was long and angular. Ending in a proboscis of sorts. A small, toothless mouth covered in bony ridges throughout the length of the organ. So that it couldn’t form anything close to a human smile.
Yet it felt as if it was smiling, despite my cobweb being unable to catch any hint of a mind or the emotions therein.
But hey, if diplomacy was an option, who was I to turn it down?
“Your prowess pleases me, child. It is impressive, even by our exacting standards.”
“I am glad that you are pleased.” I managed after my lungs and larynx healed themselves. “Now, if you’d be so kind as to stop attacking me, I would love to have a chat about how impressed you are and what I could do for you.”
I searched my acquired memories for information. Looking through Sarcophagus Solomon’s eyes for any hint of the being’s intentions.
“You are a Kanari, yes? I had heard you were one of the more, well-established species living in the Labyrinth. You…”
I paused again. Catching faint glimpses of political scuffles that had not happened yet in this timeline.
“You have a matriarch that is close to the 8th Tier. On three different Types. I hear she, that is, Lady Agony, is quite impressive.”
I also knew that she hated the Seeking Drake with a passion, after the latter ate three of her children and turned a fourth into a rug. Granted, I didn’t exactly know if that animosity would translate to someone who absorbed a part of the Drake’s mind and some of his abilities, but I figured I’d better play it safe.
“Indeed, tales of her mastery and elegance permeate throughout the entire Labyrinth. Shopkeepers here and there cannot help themselves when discussing her majesty. So, I would hope that she might look kindly upon humanity. Maybe even to the point of forgiving me these transgressions? This one time? I would, of course be willing to compensate her for this act of kindness. You too, if you fancied an improvement in your abilities. I have not heard of your mighty name until now, but I am sure you are respected and revered in equal measure. I could make that status grow, if you would let me. I have this power….”
“Spare me the (Drake)kissing child. It doesn’t suit someone of your rank.”
I stopped, considering what he’d just said. Wracking my mind as my flesh and sinews knitted themselves back together. Trying to ignore the ongoing rush of manifesting Intruders so that I could focus entirely on the conversation.
‘So, he doesn’t like the Drake either. Big surprise, I guess. He was never the most sociable of antediluvian nightmares. And if he is working for Lady Agony…’
“You should also know that my granddaughter has naught to do with this. She is her own person with her own struggles and agendas. Responsibilities that demand her attention at every corner. I hardly ever visit these days and I certainly don’t share news pertaining to the likes of us. I would not burden her with such trifles when the multiverse is always a few bad decisions away from erupting into war and anarchy once more. She is not privy to your existence quite yet. She will not be joining us for our lessons.”
I stopped at that.
‘Granddaughter? I thought she didn’t have any family? What?’
My brain soon snapped out of the confusion however. Whether it was a lie or the setup to some kind of scheme, I didn’t need to know and didn’t need to care. Instead, I decided to fish for some more answers.
“Indeed, you are correct. The likes of us don’t need to go around announcing ourselves at every interval. Savants should mind their own business and stick to their own lanes. Is that right?”
I waited for him to either deny his status or to confirm that he and I were the same.
The creature threw a punch to the side. Letting loose another blast of force.
“Yes and no. I don’t believe you’ve grasped my meaning as I intended it. Then again, I have always struggled with reading you primates, so you might know more than you’re letting on.”
He inclined his narrow head ever so slightly. The motion making me realize how oddly still he’d been while lashing out at my Intruders.
‘As if he was perfectly in control of his posture the second he decided to let himself be seen. No, it goes deeper. Every single movement might have been calculated since the very beginning.’
That hinted at another worrying facet of his existence. If he was truly capable of such feats while blocking my cobweb and my future sight from detecting him, then he should be at least as strong as the Drake. Level and Tier wise.
‘So, how come Sarcophagus Solomon and the Drake never heard of…’
“Take control of the veil, child. I grow bored of swatting your flies. They do not allow me to focus on you and our current conversation.”
I did as he asked at once. Figuring that he could simple keep banishing them even if I didn’t and that a gesture of good faith could only improve matters for me.
‘Besides, I can always turn on the ability again while my body regenerates. That, and having more calm to and find his mind might lead to me [Dominating] him, or otherwise figure out his angle.’
The Tall Man followed my orders, his essence repairing the veil between fiction and reality. At the same time, Mittens kept trying to snap at him with Anezka’s mutated mouth. Jaws tearing at empty space whilst he drew on the power of the bone sword to heal his own twisted and torn limbs.
“Mittens. Stay put.” I ordered him. Placing some amount of Psy into [Domination] to ensure his good behaviour.
Mittens snarled, but obeyed.
Anezka’s beautiful silver eyes tracking the Enhancer as he stood completely still.
“Thank you.” He said with a smooth, contended voice.
“Now that my first inquiries are out of the way, allow me to begin the introductions.”
He patted down his symbiote, in a manner that reminded me of the stereotype of a jovial fat man. Though the being in front of me didn’t look like he had ever had an ounce of excess fat on its aquatic body.
“I am Hazimon. Savant of the Enhancer Type. Different people call me different things, with the System calling me Hazimon the Dragon and the few people that remember me calling me Hazimon the Hermit. Personally, I prefer Hazimon the Dreamer. But that is neither here nor there. The fact remains that, outside of those on the cusp of ascension, I am one of the most potent Espers alive. Besides that, I remain on of the mightiest Enhancers you’re likely to find anywhere in the Labyrinth. Though that title does ring a bit hollow, with me being a Savant and all.”
He let out a sound that might have been a chuckle in a human.
“Your turn, child. Tell me about yourself. More than what the System said, if at all possible.”
‘How am I supposed to know what the System said?’ I thought inwardly, though I quickly focused back on the request.
“I am Solomon Carter. Savant of the Telepath Type. Hero of human…”
“And?” He interrupted me. One of the frills on his head twitching in lieu of eyebrows to raise.
“And of the Shifter Type.” I continued.
The being nodded.
“And what a curiosity you are. Solomon Carter. Truly, I didn’t believe the System at first when it gave me a description. Those with more than one Type are not usually given the moniker of Savant. No matter how proficient they are in the usage of their Psy. Someone with your age and level of expertise might normally be categorized as a one in a quintillion genius, rather than one of us. That is, if it weren’t for your abilities…”
There was a crooning sound then. Like that of a songbird calling out for a mate.
“I honestly cannot find any other explanation for you having those, other than you being a Savant. Tier 2 at this stage might be unusual. Tier 3 might be absurdly rare. But Tier 10?”
The crooning grew louder.
“No. Even those geniuses that factions covet with such zeal tend to become mired after reaching the 4th Tier. It might take them a few thousand standard rotations just to form a Title or two. Even if we account for them brutalizing themselves every second of every day in order to train. Case in point, my own granddaughter is almost half a million years old and she hasn’t gained a level in the last two thousand. Stuck as she is on the 8th Tier. If she couldn’t manage to break through then, I doubt you could do so in two months.”
He paused for a brief moment.
“No offence meant on my part, of course.”
“None taken.” I answered. Still searching the cobweb for an in and wanting to keep him talking.
“Please continue.”
“Yes, of course. As I was saying, Savants typically shoot up through Tiers at blinding speeds. So much so that even your growth isn’t completely unheard of. I myself came close during my own species’ Tutorial. But for that growth to extend to more than one Type?”
He began making soft clicking sounds. A little bit of water leaking from his tubular mouth.
“No. That should have been impossible. Yet, here you are. Obviously capable of all the System claimed. Tell me, how is it that you came to be this way?”
I thanked my lucky stars then. Not just because the System had apparently missed some of what had transpired in Pandemonium, but also because this was the inroad I had been waiting for.
‘He wants ascension.’ I reasoned. ‘He wants more power, just like the Drake. And just like the Drake, he never dreamed it would come in such a package.’
“I made a pact.” I told him. Bending the truth just a little bit. “I exchanged memories with another Savant. Only, this was done with a powerful combined ability. My [Inexorable Presence]. I didn’t just take in his recollections, but also his thought process and the way he felt and experienced Psy.”
Hazimon nodded again.
“And, would this other Savant happen to be the Seeking Drake?”
“Yes.” I answered immediately. Knowing damn well he’d seen my abilities and that he’d already had suspicions going in.
“So, you. The first Savant in, as far as I know, forever that managed to overcome our one failing, allowed and indeed assisted the Seeking Drake in obtaining another Type?”
Well, not exactly. The Drake in this timeline had gotten less than nothing out of it, but revealing that might lead to me being gruesomely murdered.
Not just because this Hazimon fellow had a vested interest in keeping the Drake away from such power in the future, but because he would lose any incentives in keeping me alive, as I would come out looking like a scammer.
‘But, if I let him think the Drake has managed to get his claws on Telepath already, well. Killing me doesn’t solve anything at that point. On the contrary. He would have every reason to keep me alive, on the off chance that I could give him a second Type too. He would need it, if he wished to crush the Drake.’
This being was clearly on another level than Randall, so he would certainly survive the process too. And even though he would learn the truth eventually, it would still buy me enough time to level up my cobweb and finally get a reading on him. Failing that, it would give me more time to level my new Shifter abilities so that he didn’t destroy me with such ease. If I managed to get Enhancer abilities from the deal, well. All the better.
“I did do that.” I told him. “Though, I didn’t fully know how evil the Drake was.”
He made one of his ridges twitch again.
“Really? You didn’t know that dealing with the monster draped in living leathers would be a bad idea?”
“I was desperate.” I told him, truthfully this time. “I needed to be more powerful to defend my species.”
“Some might have argued that being Tier 10 is more than enough to deter potential enemies. I tend to come and go as I please, after all.”
“That doesn’t apply in my case.”
“How so?”
“My world is about to be invaded by gnomes. They’ll do it before the Tutorial ends. Before I have access to this Human City I’ve heard so much about. I’ll have to portal out the hard way and I needed the Type to survive the breaking of space around a Tutorial, since I can’t guarantee that there’ll be an aperture of torn reality for me to dash into and out of Pandemonium.”
There was brief silence after that. With my new tormentor not saying anything.
Then, he made another clicking sound and relaxed his posture.
“Yes. I see now how you might have arrived at that conclusion. Fair enough.”
He began to pace around the premises. My eyes now noting how his strikes had heated up the sands to the point where they had turned into sizzling half-solid crystals.
‘Sudden motion, at such velocities. (Gnome) me. The air molecules probably ignited after not being able to move out of the way of his blows fast enough. How is it that the Drake survived this guy until now?’
“Though it is regrettable that, out of all the living Savants here in the Labyrinth, you decided to reach out to it in particular. Tell me, Solomon Carter. How do you see the Psy around you?”
“It is the collection of every thought, emotion and desire that every living being has ever had.” I told him truthfully.
“It is a lake within me that roils with the turbulent waters of their minds. I used to think it was all my mind alone, but that was only because I was holding myself back. Every ripple and every wave in the waters is another thought or idea added to the whole. Whether they come from the love of two fated individuals or the machinations of murderers and slavers; it doesn’t matter. Everyone thinks and everyone considers themselves to be the center of existence. From the wisest sage to the dumbest centipede. They all have a sense of self that might revolve around philosophies and the legacies they will bring or perhaps around food and killing and growing. It doesn’t matter. Each being thinks and lives its own version of a story and those stories come together to turn into pure Psy. Into the stuff that makes Intruders. Into Pandemonium.”
It was my turn to pause.
“At least, that used to be the only way I was Psy. Now, I’m not so sure. I have gotten to know this, alternate viewpoint, ever since my pact with the Drake. I also see that Psy can be the very idea of struggle against the inevitability of decay and entropy and death. Each of my cells feels as if they were a world. Containing records of all the cells that came before. Even before my birth or even the conception of my grandfather’s grandfather. I can feel that history. The cold nights that the earliest humans spent out in the rain whilst chasing prey across the plains of Africa. The fear that came with not knowing what was behind the tall grass of beneath the dirty waters of a river. The dread of seeing half a village wiped out by plague or by an errant flood. Further back, I see the common ancestors of people, chimpanzees, bonobos and gorillas. Moving up and down the trees to eat bugs and nuts and fruits. I feel their simple-minded sadness when mother and fathers and children died to serpents and spider bites. I feel their joy when new members joined the family. Most of all, I feel the resolve and resentment and spite. Every cell in every one of their bodies was alive and wanted to keep on living. Every, single, one. For thousands of millions of years. Going back to where our evolutionary ancestors were but rodents among the toes of dinosaurs. Back to when the planet earth was one big primordial swamp for gigantic crabs, spiders and gryphon flies to hunt in. Back to when the first cells began adapting to breathe oxygen, the poison that had caused several mass extinctions when the oldest mountains were young and the first plants had not left the ocean.”
I reigned myself in. Realizing now that what I had said might not make any sense.
“No. No. That is quite illuminating. Please keep going.” The creature urged me.
“Very well. From there, it is, as if each of my cells remember that struggle and they know the struggle of other living beings. They don’t want to die. They do not want to vanish. They do not want life to vanish. Instead, they, I, am compelled to indulge in the instincts of all living beings. The Psy from the Shifter Type is the will to live and expand and keep death at bay. Demanding that all living beings take care of themselves and eat and drink and reproduce. Demanding that I prove myself the superior lifeform. Demanding that I become the most adaptable and resilient organism in all creation. So that my genes, above all others, finally defeat the very concept of death.”
I cringed upon finished the statement.
“You know, saying it all out loud really does make it sound rather sinister, doesn’t it?”
“Yes. But I didn’t expect anything less.” Hazimon admitted. “Every Shifter Savant I’ve met has given me more or less the same answer. Just as every Telepath Savant I’ve met has given me different variations on the former answer. I was just checking whether you had truly aligned your perceptions with the Shifter Type, or if the Drake had somehow infected you in some manner.”
It was his turn to appear troubled.
“You see, that is the great blessing and the great shackle of Savants. We are so proficient in attuning to out Types that we lose all perspective on the others. So that we end up trying to understand the other three from the viewpoint of our own. Case in point, there aren’t very many Savants out there in general, but some of us do talk to each other. I have tried to see things from those points of view you’ve described, but it is far harder than it looks. I keep grasping at concepts that seem too vague and nonsensical, despite them making perfect sense to me. In that same manner, I have explained Psy to the others, only for them to not get it. Their own minds unable to perceive Psy of the Enhancer Type.”
He made another short crooning sound.
“But those lessons can wait for later.”
His ruby-red beady eyes found mine.
“Solomon Carter. You stand accused and convicted of serious violations of the Tutorial’s code of conduct. With me is a warrant for your death or chastisement, as I see fit to give it. As such, you now have two options. One, surrender and die or keep fighting me here and die. It will make no matter.”
He paced forward with absolute confidence. His cadence even and controlled.
“Option two, will involve this chastisement I mentioned. You must receive instruction from me at set intervals. So that the System can continue to run the Tutorial to its completion. Normally, I would advocate for this course of action with no strings attached, but your own choices have forced my hand.”
He came closer. Closer.
Until he was staring up at me, within arm’s reach.
“I will add another caveat to your training. You must do with me what you did with the Drake. With the contract being overseen by the System itself under this authority of mine. So that we can keep the funny business to a minimum. If you manage to obtain the Enhancer Type and give me the Telepath Type, I will agree to train you as far as I know. I will even consent to become your ally in the future, in exchange for further service.”
“And what might this further service be?” I asked him pointedly.
“Simple. Help me track down and kill the Seeking Drake. Once and for all.”
The way he said it, sounded as if he was trying to separate a pupil from the master he already had. Which was odd, to say the least.
‘Wait… don’t tell me! He thinks me and the Drake are friends!?’
Yes, he must have thought that. While I couldn’t read his mind, all his mannerisms pointed towards that being the case.
Then, I thought of how perfectly things had aligned and thanked my lucky stars once more. For I knew the smile I felt would not be showing up on my face.
