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Page 3729

‘Over time,’ Abbas went on, ‘my large family gradually diminished. Wars took their toll on us. In more ways than one. And I... ignored it all, for the most part. I grieved, sure. Endured the misery. As we all do. But I never changed my thinking. I focused only on my work. On myself. Whenever I thought of the future, it was in terms of technological development and nothing else.

‘It is to my shame that I did not truly begin to change until there were only four of us left. Four brothers. And finally, I started to view Abolish for what they truly are.’

Hector didn’t follow. ‘What do you mean by that?’

The Sunsmith met his gaze. ‘They are an ideologically-possessed opponent. Exceptions within their ranks can certainly found, but at their core, they are a cult of death. An enemy of all human life, seeking its destruction wherever and however they can. When I was younger, I viewed them as nothing more than... a physical threat. An enemy to be fought solely on the battlefield. With power. With technology. But then I began to see that fighting them--truly fighting them--can involve more than killing their warriors and protecting innocent life. It can also involve creating new life.’

Hector’s eyes shifted to the illusory floor as he absorbed those words. Huh...

‘When I viewed the world in that context,’ said Abbas, ‘I rather abruptly began to feel that having children was not merely a duty to my own family and bloodline. It was also a moral imperative in this neverending battle against human extinction.’

Damn. Hector had no idea how to respond to that.

‘And so, from there, I became highly motivated to find a wife and have as many children as I possibly could. But in the pursuit of our dreams, life often provides us with more difficulty than we anticipate. While I did manage to meet a lovely woman and get married, we struggled terribly trying to have children. She had four miscarriages within the span of two years. Then she vanished, and I have not seen her since. I have no idea what became of her, though I... I suspect...’ He closed his eyes and shook his head before continuing. ‘I don’t know.’

Hector was at even more of a loss than before.

‘And so we have the scene before you now,’ said Abbas. ‘Raheem’s mother was my second wife. And when he was born, I was indeed... beside myself with relief and joy. In fact, it might well stand as the happiest moment in my life. Embarrassing though it may be, I am also... pleased that I can relive it again like this.’

Page 3728

‘Wow,’ said Garovel. ‘I know this is an emotional moment in every father’s life, but, uh... you really, um... just... wow.’

The older Abbas scratched his cheek. ‘Ah... perhaps should I have picked a different memory...’

Garovel chortled. ‘First one that came to mind, huh?’

‘Indeed...’

‘He cried more than Raheem did that day,’ said Worwal. ‘Far more. It was very heartwarming, I thought. And perhaps a little pathetic, too.’

Abbas shot the reaper a look.

‘But there was also more going on in our lives than is made by this scene here,’ added Worwal. ‘It had been... a difficult few years.’

That piqued Hector’s curiosity--as well as his hesitation. ‘W-what do you mean?’

The vision paused, along with the younger Abbas’ wailing. Hector hadn’t intended to do that, but now that it was done, it seemed better to keep it that way.

Rather than answering the question, however, Worwal deferred to his servant.

Abbas looked over his captive audience, and for a very strange moment, Hector felt like he could see exactly how old Abbas truly was. That expression on the man’s face didn’t change much at all, and yet there was still something in his eyes--a tiredness, perhaps--that spoke of many feelings all at once.

Hector had never witnessed the like before. And it made Hector hang on to every word that Abbas was about to say.

‘There were many reasons why I... fell apart like this. When I was young--even younger than here, I mean--I never thought much of having children. Of carrying on my family line. I partook in many different hobbies, you see. Many personal interests. And social interaction was... decidedly NOT one such area, to say the least.’

Hector was suddenly trying hard not to relate too much. And failing.

‘My reclusive nature caused friction between me and... well, my parents, of course. But also my entire family. Worwal here, included.’

The reaper gave an acknowledging nod.

‘I was neglecting my responsibility, they said. And they were right. As a man of Hahl Saqqaf, I had a duty to carry on my bloodline. But I also had eight brothers. All of whom were much more sociable than I. All of whom seemed to be doing just fine in carrying on our family’s legacy. And I think my parents probably thought the same, deep down. We all had our quirks. This was just one of mine. They could let it slide. And so this continued on for many years.’

Oh, man. Hector had a dreadful feeling that he knew where this was going.

Page 3727

A moment later, the man’s palm arrived exactly there, and just as Hector suspected, Abbas Saqqaf’s aura became clearer in his mind’s eye. Along with his soul, too. Both shone together brilliantly, almost indistinguishably from one another, as he peered harder into them. Searching. Thinking of the memory as Abbas had described it.

It should have been obvious. Abbas was probably thinking about it right now, himself. Unless he was being a jerk and purposely trying to make things harder.

Yes. The first thing of substance was there. That seemed right. Felt right. He embraced it with his own aura, let the Core have a bit of leeway. Freedom to help. It wanted to. He could sense its desire.

He felt a change all around him, but in his mind’s eye, he saw not much difference.

So he tried opening his eyes.

A pristine white hallway. A continuous bar of golden paint on each wall. Valgan words on each sign. A floor of polished tile. More white and gold, but with outlines of black, too.

It didn’t quite look like a hospital, Hector thought. In fact, it looked a bit like the Golden Fort, which he and Garovel had visited in Kuros. Not identical, though. Perhaps this was a different area of it? Or it had been remodeled since then? Raheem was probably quite old, so that might make sense.

Then he noticed Abbas. A second one, that was. Visibly younger, though not terribly so. But perhaps that was due, at least in part, to how utterly haggard the younger Abbas looked. Frazzled hair. Deep bags under his eyes. Pacing back and forth across the floor. And smoking a cigarette, too. That was a surprise.

Meanwhile, the older Abbas was right there next to him, looking on with complete awe, stepping closer, then to the side, as if not to wanting to get in the way of his younger self.

A baby’s cry arrived, muffled behind a closed door. The younger Abbas instantly turned and bolted through it.

Hector and the other three observers followed.

Young Abbas was bent over the bed, hugging his wife and new child.

And sobbing uncontrollably.

The staff were smiling and presumably congratulating the couple in Valgan, but they were also giving some strange looks to the loud, weeping man in front of them, even as they mopped the floor and wiped down the room. One of them was attempting to apply a stethoscope to the child and not succeeding, because Abbas was in the way and apparently too far gone to even notice.

Page 3726

He understood a little better now. It probably couldn’t transport him anywhere, just like Lord Abbas said, but perhaps it could show him something from the past.

Just him, though? What about everyone else?

He pulled himself back a bit, wanting to sense everyone around him again.

Garovel. Worwal. Abbas.

And there they were. Right alongside him. But he maintained his connection to the Gate, too. It was surprisingly easy.

Because of the Core. Ah. It was behaving. Good.

‘Whoa,’ came Garovel’s silent voice. ‘This is different. What am I even sensing, right now?’

‘Oh, you can sense a change,’ thought Hector. ‘I’m trying to include you guys.’

‘Was that Hector?!’ came another voice, one Hector didn’t recognize at first.

Hector might’ve blinked if his eyes weren’t already closed. ‘Was that Abbas?’

‘We can hear each other’s thoughts!’ said the Lord Saqqaf, sounding quite amazed and pleased. ‘Aha! How are you doing this?!’

‘That’s a good question, uh... I think it’s mainly our proximity to the Gate. Its aura is... kinda huge, actually. Covers this whole area. And I... think I’ve kinda... tapped into it a little. Thanks to your Living Core.’

‘Incredible...!’

‘While it is amazing, I also find it mildly unsettling,’ said Worwal.

‘Me, too, actually,’ said Garovel. ‘Servants shouldn’t be able to communicate with each other like we do. That’s supposed be our thing and no one else’s. What’re you gonna steal from us next, huh?’

Hector snickered. ‘Garovel... shut up.’

‘What else can the Core allow you to do?’ said Abbas.

‘Not sure yet,’ said Hector. ‘But I think the Gate can let us view memories of the past. That’s why I wanted to include you all. With any luck, we can all witness something together.’

‘Memories, you say?’ said Worwal. ‘What sort of memories?’

‘That’s also a good question,’ said Hector with a bob his head. ‘Uh... I think... just about anything? Or rather... anything within proximity of the Gate. Within the aura.’

‘Hmm,’ hummed Abbas. ‘Does that include us?’

‘...I guess so?’

‘A test, then,’ said Abbas. ‘Show me the birth of my son, Raheem.’

Holy shit, uh. Okay. The man was ready to go, apparently.

Hector concentrated, thinking about that request more. How to accomplish it? Hmm. Auras, auras. Uh. They were kinda muddy, still. Hard to read, let alone connect to. Maybe if he... hmm...

‘Er... can you put your hand on my shoulder?’ asked Hector.

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Page 3725

It wasn’t like Cocora’s Candle. That thing had a real sentience to it. It could talk to him--or try to, at least. This didn’t. This was different.

Heh. Wow. He remembered how strange and overwhelming all of his encounters with the Candle had felt. But oddly enough, this experience here--with this quiet Gate--made those previous ones with the Candle feel somehow more sensible to him. Like it was adding a new context through which he could view a problem that used to befuddle him.

And it also reinforced how truly special the Candle was, by comparison. How much more sophisticated it was. If the Candle was like an animal, then this was like a single-celled organism.

Interesting.

Ah, but still. Careful, he told himself.

Abbas said this thing was dormant, and while Hector did believe the man was correct, he still didn’t wish to test that statement too much. If the Gate was waiting for a ‘direction,’ then that seemed like a somewhat dangerous thing to be providing without due consideration, given the fact that he already knew it was a teleporter.

Hmm.

But there was a lot more here than just that, too. The aura was so receptive to him. So welcoming. And it had such depth to it. The ‘direction’ that it desired from him wasn’t just physical. It would accept a different kind, too.

But what did that mean, exactly?

Agh.

This “aura reading” thing was hard. Messy. Maybe there was some special trick to it that he didn’t understand yet. Right now, it was like trying to grab water with his hands. Technically possible, sure, but one wrong move, and it would slip right through his fingers.

He refocused.

What did it want? What was the true nature of this non-sentient thing’s desire?

...To see? No. To show.

It wanted to show him something. Anything, really. Anything he asked it to. Anything within its ability to.

Anything within the ability of its aura.

Whoa.

He knew quite well by now that auras could retain memories. And they could reveal memories in others, too. As auras linked together. Worked in tandem. Or were manipulated by a greater aura. Such as that of a Sparrow.

He sensed a change in the Gate. Because it was sensing him now, too. More specifically, it was sensing an opportunity to provide him with something. To show him. In accordance with its desire.

Did he wish to view a memory? And if so, which one?

Aha. He needed only to provide it with a direction.

Page 3724

‘Looks like we’ve got their permission,’ said Hector.

‘Yup,’ said Garovel, though it did come with a sigh.

‘You sound disappointed,’ said Hector.

‘I’m not. At least, not really. If anything, I’m only disappointed with myself for how excited I feel.’

‘What? You’re a walking contradiction, Garovel. Er. A floating one.’

‘Well, when you can acknowledge your flaws and try to change them, only to revert back to your degenerate ways, it can come with some complicated feelings.’

‘Y’know, I remember you calling me a drama king, once. Turns out, I was in good company.’

‘Alright, smartass. Let’s just get on with this, shall we? And if anything goes horribly wrong, this was never our plan. It was purely Abbas and Worwal’s. Agreed?’

‘One hundred percent.’

And so it was that they approached Rathmore’s Gate as the sun hung low in the sky, blanketing the natural scenery in a deeply red-orange glow. The monument was cool to the touch, and Hector kept the rest of his armor on, save only the gauntlets for his bare hands. He took a long, slow breath as he cleared his mind and found his concentration.

First, he felt for the Gate with his soul. Easy enough. It was clear as day to him now. Aura, too. Like a great pillar of light shining in his mind’s eye. Then, he felt for the Core in his hand.

And that was when the world around him came alive in an entirely new way.

What an incredible sensation. Like he was suddenly in a car--or motorcycle, perhaps--speeding down a highway when he’d been standing perfectly still only a moment prior.

He felt the world rushing past him. In fact, he might have mistaken it for actual wind, if not for the Scarf telling him the air currents around had not changed a bit. Still the same calm breeze he’d felt before.

Then he felt the circling, too. The spinning. The world, revolving.

Huh.

What was it doing?

He sensed more there now. Yeah. The aura. He sensed intent. Desire.

Whoa.

Distinct. Different. As all auras were, of course. But this one was very different. Despite how powerful it was, it felt much less... sentient. Maybe not at all, even. Unaware of itself? But still waiting. Patiently.

For him?

Yes.

For him to provide it with something. A command? No. A direction? Ah. Maybe so.

Desire, but not awareness. Not intelligence. How weird.

Page 3723

“That is important information,” said Abbas, “and all the more reason why we should have a working Kag of our own as soon as possible. At the moment, the Gate is a one-way road. If, gods forbid, an invasion were to be launched through it, we would have no ability to mount a counterattack until a new Kag was made. I suppose I should make it a top priority project, after all, just to be safe.”

Holy fuck. That was a scenario that Hector hadn’t even considered before. He held back a sigh as he rubbed his forehead. “It was bad enough when I only had to worry about a war arriving through Lorent...”

Abbas regarded him with a hint of amusement in his expression. “As you grow older, you will no doubt come to understand that, if you are acting as a true lord over your lands, then ‘worrying’ is your entire profession.”

Hector merely frowned, not exactly loving what he was hearing.

Abbas looked toward Worwal, who then chimed in again. ‘As a great statesman once said, “In every Age, the state of the world will drive you mad, if you allow it. And unfortunately, allow it we must, in the hope that our subjects might be spared from some portion of its unending cruelty.’

Hector’s frown didn’t get any better, but he did feel compelled to say something. “Worwal, holy crap. You’re as bad as Garovel.”

‘I beg your pardon, young man? What is that supposed to mean?’

“It means you’re a real downer!” said Hector.

Abbas snorted, then laughed outright.

Worwal did not, instead merely cocking a skeletal eyebrow at his servant.

‘For the record, I resent that,’ said Garovel. ‘I can be optimistic.’

“Yeah, you can be,” said Hector. “But you’re not.”

The conversation continued on that track for a bit longer, with Worwal expressing his displeasure at both Hector and Abbas; and Hector offered a small amount of appreciation for the reaper’s words of old wisdom, but for the most part, he held his ground. Because for some reason, he felt as though he had to, or else these ancient, jaded-as-hell reapers would overwhelm him and Abbas both.

The Sunsmith, for his part, merely seemed entertained.

Eventually, however, the subject moved back to the Gate, and Hector and Garovel had to consult with each other privately as they came to a decision about it.

Page 3722

At length, Abbas decided to speak up. “While we are here, I would like for you to try interfacing with Rathmore’s Gate, using the Living Core.”

Hector’s eyes widened, and he blinked.

The previous moment of tension had been rather unceremoniously obliterated. Had Abbas not even noticed it in the first place? Or simply not cared, perhaps?

Abbas’ expression remained unchanged as he elaborated. “That is, if you are comfortable doing so. I understand that it may seem a bit risky, but Worwal and I will be here to pull you out, should anything go wrong. Just as you did for us.”

Worwal jumped in before Hector could respond. ‘That is a weak safety net, I feel. We were unable to pull Hector out of his coma when he first interfaced with the Candle. Why should he and Garovel believe now that we would be able to retrieve them from a dive into the Gate?’

“Because now we have the Core,” defended Abbas.

‘But the Core hates us, apparently.’

“I am aware. And that is why Hector should be the one to dive instead of me. He has already demonstrated ample skill in controlling it. You and I will be there to assist and guide him, if necessary.”

‘Or,’ said Worwal, ‘we could simply have neither of you do this, instead. And avoid a needless risk.’

“The risk is minimal,” said Abbas, looking from Worwal to Hector and Garovel. “If you are worried about accidentally triggering the Gate’s power, don’t be. Without a Kag, it is dormant.”

‘You sure about that?’ said Garovel. ‘Hector and I have both experienced its power once before, when it teleported us here from the Undercrust. Along with several other people.’

“Excuse me?” said Abbas, eyeing the monument another time. “Ah, of course. I believe I have already heard much of that tale. So this was how you returned, then? Interesting.”

‘Yeah, so it’s definitely not dormant. Not completely, anyway.’

Abbas shook his head. “No, it is. I’m certain of it. But that means someone else is already in possession of a working Kag for this Gate. Whoever it was that activated it for you. There were multiple strange figures involved, yes? What were their names again?”

‘Malast and Royo Raju,’ said Worwal. ‘Correct?’

‘That’s right,’ said Garovel.

Hector didn’t recall ever telling them that, but he supposed it was only natural that word would have gotten around, especially to the reapers, who were always talking to one another.

Page 3721

‘And did you discover anything else after those examinations?’ said Worwal.

‘Not particularly,’ said Garovel with a hint of exasperation. ‘They’re unbreakable, immovable, and typically reach far deeper into the earth than one might expect.’

“Immovable?” said Abbas. “What do you mean by that, precisely?”

‘Oh, did you not know that about them? They can’t be removed from whatever location they are found in. Even if you dig out all the dirt and rock around them, carve an entire canyon where they stand, they’ll actually stay exactly where they are. They’ll float in midair, even.’

That was news to Hector. He could see the surprise on Abbas and Worwal’s faces, too.

‘Truly?’ said Worwal. ‘You are not making that up, are you?’

Garovel seemed amused. ‘Not only that, but the land around them will slowly regenerate into its previous state, too. So even if you did go through all the trouble of carving out a whole canyon, your work would be undone in a matter of... hmm, days? Weeks, maybe?’

“Remarkable,” said Abbas. “How have I never learned of this?”

‘Heh. Don’t feel bad. Instead, feel impressed. By me. And how incredibly knowledgeable I am.’

‘I am still not entirely convinced that you are being serious,’ said Worwal.

‘Oh, I am. Like I said, I’ve been studying these things for a very long time. I’m familiar with many of the quieter efforts made throughout history to learn more about the Tools--and let me tell you: more than a few of those efforts have ended up largely forgotten by the academic community.’

‘Ah. A sadly all too common tale.’

‘Indeed,’ said Garovel with a nod. ‘And it doesn’t help that the Tools themselves have also been forgotten by many. But yeah. I’m sure you’ve seen similar problems in your own research, no? Fierce competition. Information being purposely buried. That sort of thing.’

‘Of course,’ said Worwal, an abrupt heaviness in tone. ‘Along with... much worse things, as well. But I’m sure I do not need to tell that to a Prime Archiver.’

Garovel seemed to match his energy. ‘Yes. I’ve witnessed more collateral damage done to the world for this infuriating reason than I even care to remember. If only it were possible to forget.’

A silence arrived as the two reapers fell quiet.

Hector exchanged looks with Abbas, not knowing if one of them should try to revive the conversation.

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Page 3720

He took in a deep breath and steadied himself, seeing that Worwal was still looking at him. ‘You’re right,’ he told Garovel, and he put the Core back inside his armor. ‘At the very least, we should consult Abbas before pulling another stunt like that.’

‘Mmhmm. And can you imagine how much shit he and Worwal would give us if we just jumped in there, right now? In the middle of the examination, too? We’d look like huge assholes.’

‘Yeah...’

‘But I like your thinking, kid. You’ve got moxie. Don’t lose it, just ‘cuz I’m fightin’ ya on this one.’

Hector frowned inside his helmet. ‘Kid? You’ve never called me kid before.’

‘Yeah, I’m tryin’ it out. Whaddya think?’

‘...I hate it, honestly. From other people, sure. But from you, egh. No.’

The reaper laughed. ‘Alright, fine.’

They decided to wait patiently for Abbas to finish his examination. Hector thought about sitting down and meditating, but it didn’t take much longer for the man to let go of the monument and walk over to them.

‘So what’s the verdict?’ said Garovel publicly.

“It is a magnificent structure,” said Abbas. “The etchings on the surface are almost invisible to the naked eye, but the flow of ardor through them is still pristine. As if they’d been crafted yesterday. That is how you know they are the work of a master integrator. Eliminating all leakage is a thing that even I still struggle with. Fortunately, my work rarely calls for such precision. Machinery will always be in need of repair or refinement, regardless of how much time is spent perfecting the finished product.”

‘...Alright. I’m not too proud to admit that most of that went over my head,’ said Garovel. ‘Was any of that relevant to the issue of creating a new Kag?’

“Yes,” said Abbas. “The flawlessness of the etchings will need to be replicated in the Kag itself, which will make the project a bit more time-consuming for me. But that is all. I could still manage it in a day. Perhaps a week if I take breaks to work on other projects. You said this was not an urgent matter to you, yes?”

‘We did. Anything else you can tell us about the Gate?’

Abbas’ brow twitched as he eyed Garovel. “You also said this was a long-held project for you. Have you never had anyone else examine this monument?”

Garovel shook his skull. ‘Not this one specifically, no. But others, sure. Many, many years ago.’

Page 3719

‘Hector, I’m serious,’ said Garovel. ‘Increasingly, I’m beginning to see the danger we pose to each other. We’re even more alike than I first realized. We both have a very high tolerance for risk. More than that, I think we both find enjoyment in it, too. Like it’s slowly becoming our hobby to risk our lives while flirting with the unknown.’

The reaper’s heavier tone dampened Hector’s spirits a bit, but perhaps that was a good thing. Rationally, he still knew that Garovel was right. And he was being reminded of his meditations again. Of his possible encounter with the Void.

This wasn’t the same as that. The danger didn’t feel nearly so immediate or threatening.

But it wasn’t entirely dissimilar, either.

A background thought process took up the question. Where had these urges come from? Was it from a place of confidence? That seemed wrong, since confidence had always felt like such a foreign concept to him, but... maybe...

He did have a sense that he could control the Living Core. Or at least, keep it in check. And he didn’t feel threatened by Rathomre’s Gate, either. They hardly seemed comparable to the danger posed by something like the Void itself.

Perhaps, then... yes. He did have confidence in himself. That he could handle whatever crazy shit they might stumble into here.

Wow. That really was it, wasn’t it?

Because he didn’t feel like he was actually putting Garovel in danger here.

But he was, wasn’t he? He was playing with things beyond his comprehension.

And not just that, either. Abbas and Worwal were here both here, too. Messing with the Gate in their presence could potentially put them at risk also. Strong as they were, they still deserved consideration for their safety, didn’t they?

Not to mention Warrenhold.

He couldn’t afford to let himself get put into another coma. Warrenhold couldn’t afford it. Not until the Rainlords got back, at the very least.

He was supposed to be a lord. He was supposed to have a sense of responsibility. Not just indulge in whatever sounded fun.

Agh. He could already feel various counterarguments rising to his defense. It wasn’t just about fun, surely. These were calculated risks. Necessary ones, even. They needed to obtain more power. To protect Warrenhold. To protect Atreya. From the likes of Abolish. And more, perhaps.

That path forward was not a gentle one. Not a safe or easy one.

But those were just excuses, weren’t they? Even if there might’ve been some truth to them, it didn’t change the fact that he’d been getting carried away with himself.

Page 3718

Smiling to himself, Hector finally did as Garovel initially requested and materialized the dark suit. He stepped a bit closer to Abbas, who had his eyes closed and seemed to be off in his own world.

It wasn’t so long ago that Hector would’ve had no idea what the man was doing, right now. But thanks to the Candle’s memories--and from his own personal experiences, of course--he knew that Abbas was examining the structure of its soul power and/or ardor. And that required intense concentration.

So intense, in fact, that Hector didn’t even want to say anything aloud, in the off chance that it might distract the Lord Saqqaf. It probably wouldn’t, given how well-practiced the man no doubt was at this type of thing, but it still would’ve been impolite.

It was tempting, though. Worwal was floating right there next to the man, observing silently. Hector might’ve liked to ask the reaper for his opinion on the Gate, but he supposed that could be saved for later.

As he kept moving slowly closer, however, a different idea entered into his mind.

He pulled the Living Core out of his armor and eyed it for a moment. Then Rathmore’s Gate. Then the Core again.

Worwal was staring at him now, Hector noticed. The reaper didn’t say anything, though.

Hmm.

‘Hector,’ came Garovel’s private voice again, embedded with a familiarly apprehensive tone. ‘You’re not thinking what I think you’re thinking, are you?’

‘Depends. What do you think I’m thinking?’

‘I think you’re thinking that using the Living Core to interface with Rathmore’s Gate wouldn’t be an incredibly stupid thing to do.’

‘Hah. Well, you’re wrong, because I definitely know that it would be.’

‘Ah. And you’re thinking about doing it, anyway.’

‘Maybe.’

‘Hector. Haven’t we fulfilled our stupid quota for the day? Trying to interface with the Candle when we had so little information was bad enough, no?’

‘I mean... yeah. You’re right. Obviously.’

A beat passed.

‘But what if we just--?’

‘Hector, stop. Don’t say any more.’

‘Why?’

‘Because I’ll say yes! And I don’t want to do that, right now!’

Hector breathed a laugh, trying to keep it quiet.

‘Remember that whole speech that you just gave to Abbas about taking a step back and realizing that you’re actually a big dumbass? I think you should take your own advice. And so should I, frankly.’

‘Aw, c’mon...’

Page 3717

‘Garovel, I just feel like it’s not that important. The armor’s not hard to materialize, so if I don’t think a name fits, then I’ll just go without it.’

‘Yeah, that’s fine for you, but what about me? I wanna call it something cool.’

‘Wow,’ said Hector. ‘Which one of us was three thousand years old again?’

‘I’ll thank you to take your ageism and leave it out of this conversation.’

‘Ageism, huh? You’ve called me young and stupid before. Like a lot.’

‘I said THIS conversation. We can both go back to being ageist in the next one.’

That made Hector chuckle.

A brief silence arrived as they both just continued to watch Abbas from this short distance away.

‘But c’mon. Name. While we’ve got time. Let’s figure this out.’

‘You’re really not gonna let this go, huh?’

‘Maybe if you can distract me with something sufficiently interesting. Can you?’

‘Nothing’s coming to mind.’

‘Name, then. I threw a bunch at you. It’s your turn to suggest one.’

‘Well, uh... hmm. I guess... I kinda feel like a good name would pay homage to the shield that it used to be. So maybe Amir?’

‘Amir, huh? Just Amir?’

‘Yeah, why not? Short and simple.’

‘You know Amir is an actual Valgan name, right? For a person? And a fairly common one, too. It’d be like naming your armor Fred.’

Admittedly, Hector hadn’t thought of it that way. He bobbed his head again and rubbed his chin as he gave it more serious consideration.

‘You are NOT naming your armor Fred, right now.’

‘I mean... I could...’

‘Hector.’

‘What?’

‘That’s dumb.’

‘Why? I can name it what I want, can’t I? No one else will ever even hear it, except us. Probably.’

‘What if you become good friends with a guy named Fred at some point, huh? Or Amir, for that matter? It’ll be needlessly confusing.’

‘Hmm. That’s a good point. So I should just always be rude to any Freds or Amirs, then...’

It was the reaper’s turn to laugh. ‘If you want the name to have some sort of sentimental meaning, then perhaps you should ask Abbas or Haqq about why they named it Amir. Just in case there’s some context we’re missing.’

‘Good idea. Plus, that’ll let me put off making this decision for a little longer, too.’

‘You’re really obnoxious sometimes, you know that?’

‘Whoa. That’s pretty mean, Garovel.’

‘If you don’t decide soon, I’m just gonna start calling it the Darksteel Armor on my own, because fuck you.’

Page 3716

How many times did he have to do something incredibly stupid before he finally started remembering that he should leave his phone behind? He felt especially dumb here, knowing that they were already planning to return to the Forge, where he could have safely left it.

He could already picture the judgmental look on Ms. Rogers’ face when he told her that he needed another replacement.

Ah well. Problems for later.

As Hector moved toward the Gate, Garovel decided to speak up privately from inside Hector’s armor.

‘Hey, make the Darksteel Armor before you get any closer. I find it much cozier to hide in.’

‘...What did you just call it?’

‘The Darksteel Armor. It still needs a name, right? And that one seems pretty much perfect to me.’

Hmm. Well, the reaper did have a point. Hector had been meaning to give it a name for a while now, if only to make it even easier to materialize. Zeff and Asad had both mentioned that naming techniques was good for that purpose, but Hector hadn’t fallen in love with any of the things he’d come up with so far. Plus, it hadn’t exactly been a priority. The dark armor was already pretty easy to materialize, he felt.

‘I don’t know,’ said Hector. ‘Naming it after myself just feels kinda... douchey. Y’know?’

The reaper gave an echoing chortle. ‘But it’s so fitting, though! It’s both dark and steel! Ish!’

‘Ish? Steel-ish? I feel like if you have to add an -ish, then it might not actually be that fitting, Garovel.’

‘Agh, fine. Name it something else, then. Anything. I just want to call it something other than ‘the dark suit.’ That sounds way too generic and vague.’

‘Uh... hmm...’

‘How about the Shadowsteel Armor?’

‘I... actually don’t hate that.’

‘Yeah? It’s settled, then!’

‘Hold on, I didn’t say yes. Just that I kinda liked it.’

‘What do you mean? That’s the same thing, Hector. Those are equivalent statements.’

‘Nuh-uh. Saying that I like it just means that I think you’re... er... heading in the right direction, I guess.’

The reaper sighed. ‘Alright. Not Shadowsteel. Just the Shadow Armor, then?’

Hector bobbed his head a little to both sides, then shook it. ‘Nah, I don’t like that one as much. Sounds kinda... I don’t know...’

‘Then how about the Nightsteel Armor? You like the steel part of the name, right?’

‘I... kinda don’t, actually.’

‘Huh? You don’t? But you just--what? Why not?’

‘I dunno.’

‘Just the Night Armor, then?’

‘...Eh.’

‘Hector. Quit being a picky bitch.’

‘...No.’

‘Oh, my god.’

Page 3715

He wanted to see how his normal iron armor truly compared to the dark suit in this particular scenario. It seemed to him that it wouldn’t make much difference at all, since the aforementioned g-forces that his body was being subjected to would be the same.

But again, he didn’t know much about g-forces to begin with. So maybe it would have made a difference? Or maybe the suit had some other component to its protective capabilities that he did not yet fully understand?

It did give him a strange sort of feeling in that regard. An extra layer of comfort--in his mind, at least. But that very well could have just been his own messed up head playing tricks on him. In fact, that was quite probably the case, Hector thought. Even his iron armor often made him feel more comfortable than normal clothes did.

There was just something so calming about wearing armor. He didn’t know how to explain it. Maybe there simply wasn’t a way to.

Regardless, the iron suit worked about as well he’d expected it to. Which was to say: not very.

It didn’t take them very long to reach the Carthrace Nature Reserve, wherein stood Rathmore’s Gate, but by the end of the trip, Hector felt like his whole body had turned to jelly. It didn’t hurt, thanks to Garovel numbing the pain for him, but he’d experienced this type of wobbly sensation many times before, and it always meant that he had a lot of broken bones. Hell, maybe all of them.

That seemed rather unlikely, though, knowing what he now did about how many bones there were in just the hands and feet.

Eh, he was letting these spare thought processes go off in weird directions. Time to focus, he decided.

After being gently set on the ground by Abbas, Hector immediately did his best impression of an unfolded pile of laundry, crumpling into an iron heap. His foremost thought process was disoriented beyond all recognition, but thanks to the others, he was at least able to observe as Abbas moved toward the Gate on his own.

The man seemed to be taking his time in his approach, walking slowly around it before finally getting close enough to touch it. By the time he actually made physical contact, Hector had regenerated enough to walk again.

He double-checked everything he was carrying. Shard. Scarf. Core. Phone. Oh, that was broken. Of course it was. Dammit.

Page 3714 -- CCCV.

When he was ready, Abbas stomped back outside, grabbed the young Lord Darksteel with one hand, pulled him under his arm, and used his strengthened legs in order to gain distance from the grassy earth before rocketing away at a medium burn. No sense in following Hector’s example and leaving another fire behind for Raheem or someone else to put out.

Once he had sufficient altitude, he cranked up the burn to eighty percent. He was tempted to go for the full hundred, of course, but after the recent tweaks he’d made to the fusion-propulsion system, he expected the jets to be slightly more powerful than before. And as he had yet to actually test them, it would have been rather irresponsible to do so now, when he had a passenger with him.

...But on the other hand, he was quite certain that the new calculations were correct, and even if they weren’t, the built-in fail-safes meant there was zero risk of accidentally instigating antimatter reactions.

Well.

Mathematically zero.

Yeah. He should just go for it. Hector was undead, and time was wasting, after all.


Chapter Three Hundred Five: ‘Thy distant coruscations...’
Click to display entire chapter at once -- (mobile link)

Well, this wasn’t how he’d been expecting the day to unfold. Being carried like a sack of potatoes through the sky was one thing. Doing it while also breaking the sound barrier was quite another.

Hector didn’t know much about g-forces, but after feeling like he’d been hit by a truck and passing out--or perhaps dying, actually--and then later waking back up again, he resolved to add that to his list of things that he needed to learn more about.

In fact, he’d been meaning to do that ever since his flight with Dimas Sebolt back during the battle at the Lorent-Callum border, when they’d flown to Hahl Saqqaf’s aid. That had been quite the experience, too--and not entirely dissimilar to this current one. It just hadn’t been nearly as intense, though the fight had that followed it more than made up for that discrepancy.

Admittedly, he could have prepared himself a bit better, but Hector wanted to test something of his own during this trip. He figured that they would have to do this twice--to the Gate and then back again--so for the first one, he made the rather haphazard decision to not materialize his newer, more powerful armor.

Next page at noon

Just want a little more time. Thanks, everybody.

EDIT: Okay, I might need another hour or two, but I will post it soon. Promise. I'M NOT MISSING A DAY. I SWEAR. Well, not today, anyway.

Page 3713

Hector was sighing again. Exasperated, no doubt.

Understandable. A part of Abbas sympathized. Related, even. A shadow of a memory tickled the back of his mind. Time spent with his mentors. They’d often behaved unreasonably in his presence. Been too caught up in their work to pay much attention to anything else. Dolf, in particular.

So perhaps that shadow of memory should have given him pause. Made him reevaluate his current actions. Made him hesitant.

But it didn’t. He gave it almost no consideration at all.

Instead, perhaps there was something ever so slightly invigorating about it. A whisper of nostalgia.

A fondness for those eccentric masters of old.

He could feel, in some small way, a kinship with them. Many times over the course of his life, he had struggled hard in his studies and his work just for the mere opportunity to feel that way. To feel a modicum of worthiness when comparing himself against their incredible legacies.

They’d simply been too great. Too brilliant.

But here and now, despite barely even being able to acknowledge it, he did feel it. Perhaps more strongly than ever, in fact.

The feeling that he was ready. Finally. To match them. To make them proud.

By the time he made it to the tree, he was raring to go. He had a preliminary overview of the suit’s working condition already in his head, in accordance with his last memory of its operation. True, that had been a few days ago, but it was still quite clear to him. As long as nothing had changed with it while he’d been unconscious, everything should have been fine.

Overgrown branches were indeed all over the place, but Abbas just pushed through them without hesitation. Was Worwal enhancing his strength? He wasn’t even sure. Didn’t matter. He reached the armor quickly and set about entering it.

In the past, that had been a point of great difficulty. Laborious and time-consuming. But efficiency had become a priority of late, and in just the past few weeks, he had managed to improve his speed putting it on by over fifty percent.

Hector offered to help him with it, but Abbas refused. It would have been a needless distraction and probably made things go slower.

The donning of the helmet was done last. Allowing it to drill through his skull and into his brain was a sometimes-risky endeavor, rendering him briefly unconscious if he messed it up. Thankfully, that hadn’t happened in a while.

Page 3712

“Uh--h-hold on a second there--” tried Hector.

Abbas was already pushing past the flaps into the cool air of the Imara Forest. It smelled rather nice out here, but he paid it no mind at all, instead focusing on where his armor was in relation to their current position. It would have been in the tree with him when--ah.

A worrisome thought. But it should’ve survived whatever mayhem the Core instigated. He turned to his right. The southern horizon. Where the Imara Forest gave way to the grassy landscape of the great tree. Not too far away. He started walking.

New voices arrived in his ear. Familiar ones. His many children and cousins. His beloved Hahl.

He didn’t stop walking.

“I am fine,” he said in Valgan for them. “I will return shortly. Alert me if an attack arrives.”

More voices. Many more. Some raised. But none angry. Just concerned. And none talking to him of imminent danger.

He needed not pay more attention than that. All was well. Or well enough, at least. For now.

He could concentrate on the work to be done. That was good. There was much to do.

Someone was following him. Several people, actually. Worwal was running interference for him, though. Assuaging their worries, no doubt. Helpful.

His mind was on the suit. On its current specs. He’d been tweaking it little by little. The Core had been intended as a bigger step in that effort, but it seemed to have been a failure in that regard. Disappointing, but not outside expectations. The next attempt would be better. After this trip to the Gate. In fact, depending on what he found, things might speed along even faster.

Shouldn’t get his hopes up, though. Too soon to know.

Ah, one of the followers was being persistent. Hector? Of course it was him. He was saying something, too.

Important?

Expressing reservations.

No, then.

Ah, but Abbas realized that he still needed to ask the boy something.

“What are the coordinates of Rathmore’s Gate?” said Abbas.

“Oh, I--uh--coordinates? Er, I don’t--er--”

“Quickly now, Hector. Time is short.”

The boy exhaled. “Agh, I don’t know coordinates. Do I look like a map? Garovel?”

‘Just bring us with you,’ said the reaper. ‘Hector can’t fly as fast as your suit can, so that’ll be fastest.’

“Garovel, please, for the love of--”

“Very well,” said Abbas.

Next page on the 4th

Thanks for reading, everyone. Hope you had a good Halloween. Or failing that, a good day. Or failing, a good couple hours.

Page 3711

‘Go on, then,’ Worwal told him.

“What exactly do you need this Kag for again?” said Abbas. “I don’t recall what you told us before.”

‘That is because they didn’t tell us anything,’ said Worwal, no longer with the echo of privacy. ‘They just asked if we could make one for some monolith back in Atreya.’

Abbas gave the reaper a look.

‘Alright, fine,’ said Garovel. ‘I’ll admit: we were being a little cagey with the details. It’s a personal project that I’ve been working on for a very long time, so I’m a bit reluctant to go into it too much.’ He spared a glance at Hector. ‘But I suppose if the two of you deem it important, we could reveal a few things. Not that there’s that much to be revealed. I’m not trying to hype it up that much.’

‘A long-term project, you say?’ said Worwal. ‘How long, precisely?’

Garovel bobbed his reptilian head a little. ‘Oh, you know... a couple thousand years or so.’

‘And yet you also say you’ve not made much progress on it?’

‘What can I say? I’m easily distracted.’

Worwal snickered.

Well, that was a good sign, at least, Abbas felt. He decided to jump in again before Worwal’s mood had the opportunity worsen. “Tell us about this project then, if you please.”

‘Okay. Uh. I’m guessing you’re familiar with the name Rathmore, yes?’

Abbas’ head reared back. “Certainly.”

‘Well, one of his Tools is in Atreya. Rathmore’s Gate, to be exact. We were investigating it, and we think a Kag might be able to reveal some of its long-held secrets.’

Holy oasis. “A Kag for one of Rathmore’s Tools... If you’d told me that before, I would’ve made it more of a priority.”

‘Well, you had a lot going on. Still do, in fact. As do we. And I consider this more of a side project, at the moment. While I do want your help, I also don’t want to take up too much of your time. I imagine you’ll at least need to make a trip to the Gate itself for this, yes?’

“Atreya is quite close,” said Abbas, already thinking of putting his armor on right away. “I could knock that out in an hour. Or less, perhaps. And the examination wouldn’t take--” Abruptly, Abbas decided to cut himself off and stop wasting time altogether. He started for the exit of the tent. “In fact, I’ll go right now.”

Page 3710

‘You make a fair point,’ said Garovel. ‘Perhaps we should emphasize that Hector and I would much prefer to keep the Core around, as well. No matter how much of a jerk it is, we would take no pleasure in the destruction of such an incredible object. In fact, one of our primary goals for Warrenhold is to use it as a place to preserve knowledge far into the future, and I would say this little guy qualifies.’

Abbas recalled them mentioning the like before. “That is some comfort, then. But generally speaking, I do hope that you and Hector will never grow too eager to deliver death and punishment. It is a timeless problem that those in power must struggle with: that we do not become callous or cruel with the passage of time.”

And Abbas half-expected Hector to return a dismissive look or some word of protest--as youth was often wont to do--but the boy surprised him yet again with his silence, with the seriousness in his expression, and with the slight nod he gave.

A lull in the conversation arrived, but it didn’t take long for Garovel to fill it.

‘Well, I suppose we should let your family in here before they worry themselves into a frenzy,’ said the reaper. ‘But one last thing: have you made any progress on that Kag we asked you about?’

“Ah... um. No.”

‘Oh. Been too busy, huh? That’s a shame. Or is it that you just don’t think you can do it?’

‘What?’ said Worwal.

Uh-oh.

‘It’s okay if you can’t,’ said Garovel. ‘I mean, Kags are pretty rare to begin with, and recreating a specific one doesn’t exactly seem like it would be a cakewalk. I understand if it’s too much for you.’

‘Too much?’ said Worwal, hardly able to conceal the irritation in his tone.

Abbas felt compelled to intervene privately before things got out of hand. ‘Worwal, relax. It is an innocent question.’

The reaper’s next words were also private. ‘A mere Kag? Too much for you? Laughable. Is Garovel stupid? Or just trying to annoy me? Agh, this must be some ploy.’

‘I don’t think he knows you that well yet,’ said Abbas. ‘Calm down before you say something we both regret.’

‘Mrgh.’

Garovel picked up on the abrupt silence. ‘Fellas? Something wrong?’

‘Listen to his smug tone,’ said Worwal, still privately. ‘I hate him.’

Abbas had to consciously avoid rolling his eyes. ‘No, you don’t. Just let me do the talking.’

Page 3709

Hmm. Abbas couldn’t help being a bit surprised at how certain Hector sounded of his convictions here. Young people did not often have such feelings toward such matters, he’d found. It usually took them quite some time to determine their beliefs in one direction or the other.

But for the few young people who did have such feelings, it was usually a red flag. A warning sign. That they were either thoughtless toward the real consequences of their actions, or that they simply had a callous--or even cruel--nature to them, deep down.

Neither of those descriptions seemed to fit Hector here, but it was also still too soon to be sure. They hadn’t actually known this fellow for very long, had they?

There was a third explanation, though. For an attitude like this in a young person. Abbas had seen it a few times.

It could manifest when a young person had been forced to confront the matter by a particularly horrific event. When they’d been given no choice but to reach a strong decision about it.

And right now, observing this young man’s gaze, Abbas was leaning toward that explanation. What exactly had this child been through? Even among Sandlord and Rainlord children--children who tended to mature quite quickly--this was rare to see.

It was one thing to bear witness to some terrible trauma. That was more than bad enough. But it was another thing to be forced into a terrible decision regarding that trauma, too.

If it hadn’t felt wildly inappropriate to do so, Abbas might have inquired further.

Instead, he decided to stay on topic. Hector and Garovel were already being quite generous with how much time they were giving him to think.

“...To be quite blunt,” said Abbas, “I would be upset if you destroyed the Living Core. Even disregarding how much effort I put into its creation, I simply do not see how there would be any need to destroy it. In the worst case, putting it in storage would be the more desirable outcome.”

Hector made no response, but his eyes went to the floor, and he rubbed his chin.

Abbas kept going. “Especially considering the fact that you do not know how the Candle might react to its destruction. If it feels any sort of attachment to the Core, then you would be jeopardizing our relationship with it, too.”

Page 3708

Perhaps the reaper had a point.

But oh well. In this moment, Abbas Saqqaf could not bring himself to care about appearances. It seemed quite clear to him now that the young Hector Goffe of Atreya was going to be an important ally for the foreseeable future. Trying to present a false image to him, therefore, would not be good in the long run, even if it made things less bumpy in the here and now.

The glowing orb in Hector’s grasp drew the young man’s glance, along with a raised eyebrow.

Abbas wondered what that might be about, but when Hector elected not to say anything, the Lord Saqqaf decided to steer the conversation elsewhere. “In any case, I will take what you have told me into serious consideration. Worwal may pretend to know everything, but I will not.”

‘Hey.’

“It may well be true that we should reevaluate our approach to using the Forge,” said Abbas. “And your perspective on the Void is... intriguing to me. I shall have to give that more thought. But in the meantime, I must get back to work. The Core is but the first step in a larger project. More of a proof of concept than a finished product.”

“Ooh, yikes,” said Hector. “It doesn’t like hearing that.”

Abbas returned a flat smile. “Heh. Perhaps I shouldn’t even bother examining that one and instead merely leave it in your care. How would you feel about keeping it?”

“Uh. I’m not sure, but I kinda feel like I have no choice. How would you feel if I decided to destroy it?”

Abbas blinked. “Why would you do that?”

“Because it’s insanely dangerous.”

Abbas kept blinking. “And you just told me that it doesn’t like what I was saying. I can’t imagine it was too pleased to hear those words from you.”

“Oh, it already knows how I feel about it. We had a long chat before you woke back up. If it can’t learn right from wrong, at least in the most basic sense, then I don’t really care how much power it has to offer us. It’s too dangerous to keep around.”

“...You are treading into the territory of complex ethical questions, Hector. That may not be a human being in your hand there, but it is still a sentient, thinking entity that you are talking about killing.”

Hector’s gaze was steady. “I know. But it tried to murder you and Worwal. And possibly also Garovel.”

‘Yup,’ said Garovel. ‘Hates my guts, too, apparently.’

Page 3707

‘Only when he gets particularly excited about his work,’ said Worwal. ‘So yes, all the time.’

‘Sounds like a real hassle,’ said Garovel. ‘You have my sympathies.’

‘Heh, thank you. And knowing what I do of your servant, you also have mine, a’hkin.’

‘Oh, wow. I haven’t been called that in millennia. I’m not sure it suits me, but I appreciate the gesture, at least.’

“Which questions did I miss?” asked Abbas.

“Uh... well, to put ‘em all together, I guess I was just wondering how the personality for the Living Core could have come from the Candle when... I mean, the Core literally told me that it put you into that coma. So the personality must’ve been there before we connected it to the Candle, because that happened after you and Worwal were already passed out.”

“Ah, yes. An understandable point of confusion. There are two possible explanations for that. Both of which harbor some rather unfortunate implications, I’m afraid. The first is, in my estimation, far more likely. And that would be that the Core’s personality did indeed already exist within the Candle. So it would also remember doing that to us.”

“Huh. Wouldn’t that mean that the Candle itself hates you, too?”

“Not necessarily.” Abbas allowed a beat to pass. “But yes, probably.”

“Aw, shit. And the second explanation?”

“Temporal interference,” said Abbas.

“Say what?”

“When dealing with Fusion Forges--or dense pockets of ardor in general--time itself can become something of a blurry concept. For example, the precise moment that something is created can turn into more of a... ‘range’ of creation, rather than a singular instant.”

“What the heck? Why would that happen?”

“Oh, any number of reasons, depending on the exact nature of the object in question. But from what I have read, it can be especially likely to occur when the object being created is something particularly influential over ardor itself. It is an interesting phenomenon. I remember reading one theory that said it was a consequence of an ardor feedback loop.” Abbas tilted his head as he recalled the essay more fully. “In fact, it said that such a feedback loop, if unable to rectify itself, could result in a spatial distortion akin to a... black hole. Hmm...”

Hector just stared at him.

Worwal’s next words were wrapped in the echo of privacy. ‘You do realize that we’re trying NOT to come off as unhinged madmen in front of our gracious host, right?’

Page 3706

“H-hold on a second here,” said Hector. “You’re saying that its problematic personality came from the Candle?”

Abbas was hardly listening, however, as he rubbed his brow. “Ugh, I’m already dreading what I’m going to see when I look at it again. If an entire personality has taken root in it, then I can only imagine what a mess the memory structure has become. I probably won’t even be able to make heads or tails of it for weeks...” Agh, or even longer, potentially. He hadn’t examined very many sentient objects before, but they were always absurdly complex. In the past, he’d tried referencing neurological maps as a point of comparison, but they never seemed to help much. The difference between a fully ardor-based mind and a human brain was simply too great, apparently.

But perhaps he should treat this as yet another opportunity to learn. With the Core being so portable, it could possibly serve him well as a point of comparison with similar objects. The Candle itself would obviously be the most convenient for that purpose, but given its intimate role in the Core’s creation, it would almost certainly be of limited use here. Their structures would probably be practically identical. In which case, it might be best to compare them for their differences rather than their similarities.

No, what he needed was a sentient object--preferably more than one--that had no ties to the Candle whatsoever. That would likely prove the most illuminating. But he couldn’t do that here, now could he? Such an endeavor would no doubt require--

“Lord Abbas,” came Hector’s voice, along with a forceful hand on his shoulder. “Can you hear me?” He sounded concerned.

Abbas saw the young man there, looking up at him. Apparently, he and Hector had both moved closer to the entrance of the tent. Ah. Abbas had always had a mildly troublesome habit of unconsciously pacing back and forth when brainstorming. “Apologies,” he said. “I was merely lost in thought. Nothing to worry about.”

‘I told you,’ said Worwal. ‘He is fine. He does that all the time. It’s not a side effect of anything.’

Hector pulled his hand back. “Okay, well... good. You just woke up, you know. You had me worried for a second.”

“Did I ignore an important question?” said Abbas, far from the first time in his life.

‘Yes,’ said Garovel. ‘Several, actually. He really does that all the time?’

Page 3705

Hector looked confused. “Unexpected? What’s unexpected, exactly? The fact that I can talk to it? Or the fact that it even has as personality in the first place?”

“The latter, I’m afraid,” said Abbas. “My intent for the Living Core was to have to have it become the foundation of a larger interfacing mechanism for non-servants in the use of ardor. I felt that a complex pseudo-consciousness would be well-suited to that purpose. But from the way you are describing your interactions with it, perhaps I... erred in some way. Hmm.”

‘So you accidentally created a sentient being,’ said Garovel. ‘Wonderful.’

Abbas paused on that thought. Had he truly done so?

No, no, that couldn’t be right. Sure, his plans for the Living Core had been quite advanced--perhaps the most advanced individual item he’d ever developed, even--but it just didn’t make sense to him that it could have manifested an entire personality without him realizing. Its ability to “think” shouldn’t have even been that sophisticated. It was only meant to simplify complex process and bridge the sensory gap for individuals who could not innately detect ardor.

This didn’t make sense. How could it have--?

Abbas’ expression slackened as a thought struck him, and he felt compelled to ask a new question. “Wait a moment. You said that you... ‘connected’ the Core to the Candle and then ‘dove right in,’ didn’t you?”

“Er. Yeah?”

“And that is when you began to communicate with it?”

“Yeah...”

Oh. Gods. “And are you still able to communicate with it even now? At this very moment?”

Hector’s eyes went from him to the Core and back again. “Y-yeah...”

Abbas rubbed his temples with one hand as he processed that. “Then in that case... I believe that this ‘accident’ as you put it, is not my doing. Or at least, not entirely. It is also yours.”

“W-what do you...? Uh... Oh.” Hector smacked his lips. “We shouldn’t have done that, huh?”

Abbas sighed. “Probably not, no.”

‘Sorry, I’m a little lost here,’ said Garovel. ‘What shouldn’t we have done?’

“When you connected the Core to the Candle--especially so soon after its creation--you essentially poured... an unknowable quantity of ardor and... gods know what else... directly into the Core. So it is not unreasonable to think that the Core may have... shall we say, imprinted some of that metaphysical data onto itself?” Abbas tapped his head and groaned. “Agh, the memory structure! I spent so long weaving it together! I’d just put the finishing touches on it when I passed out, which means... it would have been empty and pristine at the time you connected it to the Candle... ah...”

Page 3704

‘Oh, right,’ said Garovel. ‘The Candle went completely out of control, and there were branches everywhere. Hector had to cut a path to you. He set the tree on fire, actually.’

“What?!”

“Agh, you didn’t have to tell--”

‘Eh, it’s fine. Don’t worry. Raheem put it out. That’s just how worried Hector was about you. Almost accidentally destroyed one of the most valuable objects on the planet. What a great friend he is, right?’

“Garovel, please stop...”

‘Interesting,’ said Worwal. ‘But I doubt a bit of fire would have destroyed the Candle.’

‘You’re probably right,’ said Garovel. ‘Would’ve been funny, though. In a tragic sort of way.’

‘I think you and I may have very different senses of humor.’

‘Maybe. But anyway, to finish answering your question, you were probably out for a few hours, at least. Raheem could give you a better estimate, I suspect.’

Abbas’ eyes returned to the Living Core in Hector’s hand. The metal band was already wrapped around the boy’s wrist, Abbas noticed. “You said... you used the Core to retrieve Worwal and I?”

‘That’s right,’ said Garovel. ‘And apparently, it wasn’t too keen on cooperating, either. Hector practically had to force it.’

Hector asked the next question. “Did you give it such a bad personality on purpose? That had to have been an accident, right?”

Well, now they were coming up on a portion of the conversation that he didn’t necessarily wish to discuss. Out of embarrassment, primarily. But he supposed there wasn’t much point in trying to save face now, especially when keeping information from these two could just end up causing more problems later.

“...Truthfully,” said Abbas slowly, “the development of the Core required me to tread into... unfamiliar territory. Do you know what a pseudo-consciousness is?”

‘Is it what it sounds like?’ said Garovel. ‘A fake personality?’

“Somewhat,” said Abbas. “More specifically, the term pseudo-consciousness refers to an advanced technique in integration. It is what you might call a ‘soul construct.’ That is, a pocket of soul power that is able to react to some form of stimuli. Typically, that stimulus is a person pressing their own soul power into the associated object. That is the most primitive form of pseudo-consciousness, though it is still quite advanced by conventional integration standards.”

“Hmm,” hummed Hector. “This thing seems way more advanced than just that. It can react to a lot more than just my soul power. I mean, I can talk to it.”

“Y-yes...” Abbas rubbed his chin as his eyes slowly widened. “I must admit, that is... unexpected.”

Next page on the 24th

Thanks for reading, as always.

Page 3703

The reaper wasn’t done, though. ‘He might be too nice to say it, but I’m not. It seems to me that you could both do with a dose of humility here. You should take Hector’s advice seriously before you get yourselves killed for some completely avoidable reason. And make me sad. You don’t want to make me sad, do you? I hate being sad.’

At this point, Abbas knew that many reapers would take Garovel’s words as a challenge, of sorts, and begin arguing relentlessly with him.

But Worwal was not one such reaper. A fact for which Abbas was eternally grateful.

Instead, Worwal merely looked over at Abbas and returned a nod of his reptilian head, informing him that it was his turn to say what they were both thinking.

“Amusing,” said Abbas, “but I am still a bit confused about what ‘advice’ we are meant to be taking here. I am unsure how I am supposed to ‘be stupider,’ precisely. If I am to take that more seriously, then perhaps you should propose it more seriously, hmm?”

Hector and Garovel exchanged looks of their own, probably consulting each other privately.

Then Hector spoke up again. “Okay. So. I might not be the best at explaining things... but, uh... it’s like this: when you come up against the Void again, your mental state is key. You need to be rock solid. Unmovable. You said it yourself: you experienced a ‘euphoric epiphany,’ right? That’s what’s dangerous. When your emotions try to take over, when they fill you with a sense of power and... ambition, I guess... that’s when things are most likely to go horribly wrong. That’s when the Void will lure you into infinity and make it so you never wake up again. Both of you.”

‘Which is what almost happened, by the way,’ added Garovel. ‘Thankfully, you weren’t yet so far gone that Hector couldn’t dive in and retrieve you. With the aid of your Living Core, it must be said. I’m not trying to argue that you didn’t create something incredible, because you most certainly did.’

Hmm. Interesting.

Rather than responding right away, Abbas took his time mulling that information over.

Worwal had a question for them, though. ‘How long were we unconscious?’

‘Tough to say for sure,’ said Garovel. ‘We didn’t know you were in trouble for a while, because your family thought you were merely being... shall we say, ‘eccentric’ by barricading yourselves inside the tree.’

“Barricading?” said Abbas.

Page 3702

“I know how it sounds,” said Hector, still chuckling a bit. “But I’m serious. I’ve seen this problem many times, thanks to the Candle’s memories. It knows the history of other Forges, too. Forges have always attracted brilliant inventors. And they’ve always come up against this same problem. You understand? I need you to listen to me on this. If you don’t adjust your approach, then the Void--or whatever you wanna call it--it’ll lure you in and eat you alive.”

Worwal glanced at Abbas, and they didn’t even need to exchange words privately in order to know what each other was thinking. Abbas returned a nod, knowing that the reaper would be able to sum up both of their thoughts just fine.

‘We appreciate your concern,’ said Worwal, ‘but let us not forget that, Candle or not, you are still quite inexperienced in these matters, Lord Goffe. Nor are you an inventor. Abbas and I have our own process. We have been doing this for a very long time. And yes, we do understand the risks. But trying to “adjust our approach,” as you put it, would not be as simple a matter as you seem to be implying. Moreover, it might just ruin everything and set our progress back by years, potentially. Which is time that our kin may not have. Particularly, our subjects back in Sair.’

Hector’s brow lowered now. “You know what would really set you back? Getting yourselves killed.”

‘That seems a bit rich, coming from you,’ countered Worwal. ‘You think we aren’t aware of your recent exploits? Knowing that you are not nearly as old as you pretend to be, the risks that you have taken are truly absurd. I would’ve thought that you and Garovel would understand our position a bit better than this.’

“Oh, I understand it perfectly well,” said Hector. “And you make a fair point. Maybe it is a bit rich coming from us. But that’s just another reason why I know what I’m talking about here.”

‘Heh. The confidence of youth. And the naivete, too.’

At that, Garovel, who’d thus far remained silent behind Hector, decided to chime in. ‘Oh, I’m sorry,’ said the reaper, sounding not sorry at all. ‘Who was it again that pulled your sorry asses out of a coma just now? Ah, that’s right. It was my boy Hector here. So how about you show a little more respect and do as he asks, hmm?’

“Garovel--” tried Hector.

Page 3701

“Help me in what capacity?” said Abbas. “You’ve already done more than I could have imagined.”

“The Void,” said Hector. “Talk to me about it. When have you encountered it before?”

Abbas had no idea where this was going, but he supposed there was no reason not to answer. “That is a difficult matter. It’s something that inventors have contended with throughout history. Even before I ever faced it myself, I had heard the tales. About how the greatest minds to ever live could reach out and touch this... realm of brilliance. Some called it the Void, yes. Others called it Enlightenment. Or the Heavens. But all agreed that it was something beyond the self. A rarely reachable place where new ideas could be discovered, where old ideas could be found again, and where struggling ideas could come together and find beautiful harmony.”

Hector remained quiet, merely listening.

At the boy’s apparent attentiveness, Abbas decided to continue. “As for myself, I have been fortunate enough to encounter this feeling on... six occasions that I can remember. Now, whether or not I truly came face-to-face with the so-called Void in these moments... well, that may be unknowable. I can only report how I felt. And the results that followed. Each time, I was met with a great euphoric epiphany. A breakthrough in the work that I had been toiling away at for... years, in most cases. And there is no doubt in my mind that I would have been incapable of building my armor if I had never experienced those moments.”

Hector nodded. “Okay. I understand the problem.”

“Problem?”

“Yes,” the young lord went on. “The problem, Lord Abbas, is that you’re too smart.”

Abbas returned a dull blink. “Excuse me?”

“First, you need to adjust your mindset. Because you’re too smart, you need to slow down and come to the realization--the epiphany, to use your word--that you’re actually not smart. That you’re a big dumbass.”

“Hector, I am receiving some rather mixed messaging here...”

“Look. The Void will turn your own intellect against you. Your mind will become lost to infinity. So... yeah, in a weird way, you need to become stupider.”

‘In that regard, this conversation will surely help,’ said Worwal.

At that scathing remark, Abbas might’ve expected the Lord of Warrenhold to take offense.

But Hector just paused for a laugh, instead.

Which ended up pulling one out of Worwal, too.

Quite the uncommon sight from his reaper, Abbas noted with mild shock.

Page 3700

Abbas chewed on that question for a bit as he met Hector’s gaze. He decided against answering it straight away. “The Void... that is what Abolish calls it. Their god.”

“Yeah, but I don’t think it’s as simple as that,” said Hector. He squinted. “And something tells me that you don’t think so, either.”

Hmm. “What do you know of the Void?” said Abbas.

“...I asked you first,” said Hector. “You’re not trying to avoid my question, are you?”

Hmph. He supposed there was no point in trying to hide anything, considering how invested he and his kin already were with this young man. “...No, that was not my first time encountering it. I’ve glimpsed it before. A few different times, in truth.”

Hector’s head reared back a little, but the stern expression on his face didn’t change into one of surprise. “So you knew the danger. And did it, anyway.”

Abbas pulled his legs over to the side of the bed and sat on the edge, putting his back to Hector but not standing to his feet just yet. “Of course I did.”

“Then why did you--? Agh. That was so reckless!”

“Hah! Hector. This is the risk we take. This is the nature of working with a Fusion Forge. I told you before, did I not? The Candle may be “gentle,” but that does not make it harmless. In some ways, that may even make it more dangerous. It can lure one into a false sense of security.”

“I understand that,” said Hector. “But you still could have at least told me you were planning to do something risky. That way, I would’ve been more prepared to help you, if something went wrong. Like it did.”

“Hector. Every time I use the Forge, this can happen. There is no safe handling of it. I knew the danger, yes, but I had no reason to think that this instance would be any different from the others. Because, frankly, it wasn’t. This was just the first time things went wrong.” He stood up and straightened his robe. “There will probably be more.”

The young Lord of Warrenhold stood up, too. “Respectfully, Lord Abbas, that’s a stupid approach to take. And unlike you.”

Abbas chortled. “I don’t disagree. But I’m not going to stop using the Forge.”

“I’m not saying you should,” said Hector. “I’m saying you should be smarter about it. We should be smarter about it. Let me help you.”

Page 3699

Abbas sat up more fully in his bed. “...Personality-wise, you say? So you have already managed to communicate with it?”

“Yeah,” said Hector.

“How in the world did you accomplish that? I have not yet created instructions for its use.”

“Oh, uh. I just kinda... connected it to the Big Candle and dove right in.”

“The Big Candle?”

“Right, uh. Since we’ve got this Mini-Candle now. Big Candle and Mini-Candle.”

Wow. Abbas needed a moment. “Alright, well, before you go renaming my creations permanently, that object is called the Living Core.”

“Oh. Huh. Okay. I guess that sounds better than Mini-Candle, anyway.”

“If you were able to communicate with it, then I am surprised you were not able to learn its name without my help.”

Hector paused for an odd look, then clicked his tongue. “Uh... well, there might be a reason for that...”

“What do you mean?” said Abbas.

“Ah... I’m not sure how to tell you this, but, er... this thing, the Living Core... it doesn’t seem to like you very much.”

Abbas blinked again and furrowed his brow. “Excuse me?”

“Like I mentioned, it’s kind of a dick. It doesn’t appreciate you. In fact, that’s why you and Worwal both nearly died.”

Died? Hmm. Yes, this was the second time Hector was mentioning that, but only now was it beginning to sink in. “How... how did it nearly kill us?”

Hector took a long breath. “Well, from what I’ve been able to piece together, this Living Core here... ah... it led you astray. Technically, I guess it didn’t try to kill you directly, meaning with its own power, but... it was the equivalent of leading you into a minefield. With a blindfold on.”

“...How do you know this?”

Hector scratched his brow. “It’s hard to explain. The power that this thing can tap into is the same as the Candle. Or maybe that’s only when it’s connected to the Candle. I’m not sure yet. But the point is, it leads to a deep, dark place. Full of... incredible power. Infinite, maybe. It might be what they call the Void.”

Abbas remained quiet, though he exchanged looks with Worwal.

“I’ve felt it once before,” Hector went on. “Recently, actually. In my meditations. So I knew a little of how to deal with it. But you...” Hector leveled a stare at Abbas. “Was that the first time you’ve ever encountered it?”

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Page 3698 -- CCCIV.

Chapter Three Hundred Four: ‘Awakening of the Sun...’
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Abbas Saqqaf groaned as his eyes eased open. They resisted. They wanted to stay closed. And he wanted to let them, too. But in his gut, he knew he couldn’t. He knew something was amiss.

He tried to sit up and encountered more resistance there. He pushed through that, too.

He found a dimly lit room around him. A bed beneath him. The smell of morning dew in the air.

“There you are,” came a voice on his left. “Welcome back.”

It was the Lord of Warrenhold sitting there, he realized between blinks. The young black man had a grip on Abbas’ forearm. Instinctually, he wanted to ask why, but when he laid eyes on the glowing object in Hector’s other hand, he became much more interested in that.

The Living Core. Hector was holding it. Hector was using it.

Abbas stared.

“Your family has been worried about you,” said Hector, letting go of him, “but not as much as they would have been, if they knew just how close you and Worwal came to killing yourselves. Before I let anyone else in here, you and I need to have a talk.”

Worwal? Ah, there he was on the right. To his eyes, reapers were regal horned lizards with ethereal black-and-white flames tracing the outlines of their bodies.

‘It seems we’ve upset our host,’ said Worwal.

“I’m not mad,” said Hector, sounding quite mad. “But this thing you’ve created is incredibly dangerous. I wish you would’ve at least told me more about it before actually trying to forge it.”

Ah...

Abbas had to clear his throat before speaking. “Yes, well... with the benefit of hindsight, I would have to agree. It did not seem such a dangerous idea at the time...”

“Creating a living, thinking interface didn’t seem that dangerous?” said Hector.

The doubt in the young man’s voice made Abbas feel suddenly defensive, but he had to ask something else first. “What have you learned of it so far?”

“Oh, quite a bit,” said Hector. “I’ve learned that it’s capable of making moral judgments. I’ve learned that it can influence you emotionally. I’ve learned that it can manipulate soul power and ardor. But most importantly, I’ve learned that, personality-wise, it’s kind of a dick.”

Abbas almost couldn’t believe what he was hearing.

Almost.

When dealing with this particular person, Abbas was somehow beginning to feel as though incredulity was to be expected.

Page 3697

He climbed to his knees and finally regained a proper sense of environmental awareness as his vision cleared. And yet he felt more confused than ever, because he could hardly understand what he was looking at.

The entire world was on fire. Everything around him. Ablaze.

Even himself. All up his arms and legs and chest. But these weren’t the reddish flames of his lutetium.

And strangest of all, they didn’t hurt, either. Because of numbness? No. The flames weren’t burning him. Not cooking his flesh.

If anything, he was feeling somewhat better, actually. Invigorated. This was the intense heat that he felt before. It wasn’t painful. It was like a deeply warm embrace, covering his entire body.

But he could see other things burning around him, too. Smoke and damage. Craters in the ground. Burning men running across his vision. Screaming.

What the hell was happening here?

Kerikos stirred within his grasp. ‘Ogh...’

‘Kerikos!’ thought Vito. ‘You’re conscious?!’

‘Mgh... I don’t... what...?’

Before he could question the reaper any further, however, a blinding light in the sky stole his attention, and he had to shield his eyes. When it abated, he saw a great fireball suspended there, looking not unlike a meteor, but it was just hung there in midair, seemingly not moving.

And then it clicked for him. Could that be Jackson up there?

Vito had heard that the Radiant Sentinel, the Star of the West, had gone mysteriously missing after a terrible battle with the Mad Demon in the Uego Desert. Theories abounded about what might have become of him, but one of the more popular ones had been that he was recovering here in Intar.

If that was really him, then perhaps the situation wasn’t so--

Agh, he was getting distracted, Vito realized. He needed to find Prince David again. In all this chaos, that was going to be difficult. He needed a reaper’s senses.

‘Kerikos, can you hear me?’

‘Rgh...’

‘Kerikos!’

No response, this time.

Shit.

He tucked the reaper under his arm as he looked around. The flames all over his body had diminished, but they weren’t entirely vanishing, and the same could be said for those covering the courtyard. It was a bit easier to see, at least. And he recalled the general direction in which the Prince had been fleeing.

So he started running.

Whatever else was going on around him, whatever this mad battle was and whatever big names might be involved in it, Vito Sebolt knew his task. And he was going to see it done.

Next page at noon

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Page 3696

Something was pushing down on him now. As if gravity had suddenly quadrupled. He could feel it there on his back. The added pressure. Almost like the foot of a giant. Was it real? An actual giant pinning him down?

He discarded the questions as soon as they entered his mind. Distractions. Unimportant. Didn’t matter if it was real or not. Didn’t matter if the Mad Demon himself was sitting on his back, right now.

The only thing that mattered was reaching Kerikos.

His muscles ached. Fatigue struck.

But so what?

His body didn’t want to listen to him?

So what? He was in charge, not his body.

He could hardly think straight?

So what? There was only one thing to think about, anyway.

Time stretching away from him?

So what? Time could stretch for a thousand years. Vito would crawl for a thousand and one.

The entire world was unraveling around him? Peeling away from his vision like a torn painting?

So. What.

He crawled. And kept crawling. Ignoring all the rest. Everything else.

And finally, he reached his reaper. With his lone hand, he grabbed the lump of soul power that was Kerikos and pulled him close.

And he breathed. He didn’t know what to do now, but that was fine. For the moment, that was fine. He could figure that out later.

Ground shaking.

Whatever.

Kerikos was alive. But just barely. Completely unconscious. Unable to reinitiate the hyperstate. Problem? Mm. Maybe for the best. Might not have been able to maintain it for much longer, anyway.

Tired.

Absurdly so.

Not sure he’d ever felt so tired before. Couldn’t think. Couldn’t recall. Wanted to slip off. To sleep. To rest. Deserved it, didn’t he? Such a long day. Time to let go.

...Except.

Bother. There was a bother. Still. Somehow. Somewhere.

Back of his mind. Couldn’t grasp it. But it was there. Scratching at him. Yelling at him. Familiar faces with familiar voices. So familiar. And yet, he felt certain that he’d never seen them before. How could that be?

They were reaching out to him. And he heard what they were saying. Just a bit. Just enough.

“Not yet.”

His palm found the hard earth. And after a moment, his other palm found it, too. Regrown. Still regenerating. Slow but steady.

His bare skin felt the grass again. And the cool air.

No. Not cool, actually. Extremely warm. An intense heat. Had he set himself on fire again? That didn’t seem right.

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Page 3695

Vito was floundering. His mind felt scattered. His senses. His limbs. Why weren’t they reappearing? The regeneration. It was still happening. He could feel it. But it was slow. Not like pan-forma. What happened to the hyperstate?

His senses. Yes. No. Foggy. Too greatly diminished. Something was very wrong, and he quickly realized what it was.

‘Kerikos?’ he thought. ‘Where are you?’

There. Vito saw the reaper in the grass, not far away. Smoldering with ethereal, black-and-white smoke. Wounded. Badly.

To Vito’s eyes, the reaper was supposed to look like a honey badger, but right now, Kerikos was virtually without form. Little more than a blob.

Vito crawled with his one arm, trying to will the other to grow back faster.

So much blood. Still gushing out of his wounds even as they healed.

He didn’t understand. How had they been separated? Where had the attack even come from?

Might this be how he was going to die? Without even a clue as to what happened? Just caught up in some mayhem beyond his comprehension? Wrong place, wrong time? In some foreign land? Never to see his family again? His dorky little sister? His stubborn father? His brave cousins? Lord Dimas?

This wasn’t right. It wasn’t fair, either. He couldn’t explain why. Couldn’t think it through. Couldn’t process any of it.

But he could feel it. In his gut, he could feel it. How wrong this was. How cruel.

He kept pushing. Kept crawling. Somehow, with each passing moment, it seemed to be getting harder, not easier. That also made no sense. He was still regenerating. He should’ve felt the improvement. And yet.

It was like the world itself was pushing down on him. Telling him to stop crawling. Telling him to give up.

It kept growing more difficult. His vision stretched before him. It felt like Kerikos was getting farther away, too. Not closer. That couldn’t be right. Even time itself was all wrong. This felt like an eternity going by. How could Kerikos be so far away? He’d been right there a moment ago.

Agh. He knew the problem. Rationally, he knew it. He was delirious. His senses were lying to him. Aftermath of the hyperstate. That had to be it. Only explanation.

Or he was dying. Truly dying. Turning slowly feral after his link to his reaper had been severed.

No. No, no. He refused to believe it. That was just the fear talking. Trying to take over. Make him panic.

Kerikos was right there. Wounded, sure, but still alive. He could almost touch him.

Page 3694

After another moment, he noticed people in the crater. They were gathered together at the bottom, looking around with apparent confusion.

Kerikos recognized their soul signatures as that of the Abolishers who’d just been in the area. They’d been spared from the blast--or whatever it was that had made the crater.

More disturbingly, Kerikos could not sense any of the castle guards who those Abolishers had just been fighting. Which could only mean one thing.

This crater was undoubtedly the work of Abolish. Perhaps their leader, even. So there was nothing to prevent another crater from appearing on top of Vito and Kerikos, right now.

They had to move. Barnabas and the other Abolishers were looking similarly befuddled, so Vito decided to take the opening to flee before they came back to their senses. This fight wasn’t important. Only the Prince’s safety was.

Kerikos had a bead on Prince David’s position. Vito bolted through the corridor, bounding over rubble and weaving between more fights going on along the way. He spared a blanket of flaming lutetium for another group of attackers as he passed, but that was it. The remaining castle guards would have to fend for themselves.

Another problem arose when he sensed some of the previous Abolishers in pursuit. The last thing he wanted to do was bring hostiles closer to the Prince, but another brief quake cut that concern short, and Vito saw another gaping hole in the castle on his left. Where entire rooms had been, now only open air remained.

The pursuers were the lesser worry now, he felt. He had to get Prince David away from these vaporizing blasts first. The pursuers could be dealt with later.

More running. Dodging. Weaving through mayhem. A tall window offered a shortcut, and he took it, crashing through to reach the outer edge of the castle grounds. He had eyes on Prince David now, scrambling through an enormous garden among a crowd of other non-combatants. They’d nearly reached the castle’s eastern exit. Would that be far enough away from the danger? Probably not, Vito felt.

Then his vision went white, and his mind blanked out. When he regained awareness, he was flat on his back in the grass.

What in the world was that? Had he gotten hit? Was he hit? Where was he hit? Where? He couldn’t feel--

The left half of his body was missing. No arm. No leg. He still had both eyes, though.

Page 3693

“All that talk about honor,” said Barnabas, “and yet what are you doing now? Trying to bring others into our fight. I told my men to hang back so that you and I could have a proper go of it. You disappoint me, stranger.”

“That’s not honor,” countered Vito. “What you’re talking about is merely pride. Honor is something done in service of others, not to satisfy one’s own ego.”

“Rationalizations of the cowardly.”

“That is incorrect. Would I like for us to have a proper duel? Sure. But when you have responsibilities beyond indulging in your own personal desires, honor becomes something much greater than a simple feeling in your gut.”

Barnabas squinted at him but made no further retort.

“I respect your desire for an honest fight,” said Vito. “If I can spare your life, I will. But it seems to me that the company you keep has given you a false concept of what true honor is.” Not that Vito was terribly surprised by that. Anyone who participated in the wanton slaughter of civilians couldn’t have understood much about honor, no matter what they said.

Vito decided to hold his tongue on those last thoughts, though. He had a feeling that they would fall on deaf ears to any Abolisher, since they’d probably heard something similar countless times before. Kerikos had often found that people had an odd compulsion to disagree with arguments they’d heard too many times, regardless of how much merit said arguments actually had.

For his part, Barnabas remained quiet, merely standing there instead of continuing the attack.

Which Vito found surprising. Perhaps he should have used this opportunity to press his own advantage, but something was stopping him. Something in that uncertain expression on the other man’s face.

Before their dialogue could resume, however, another quake arrived; but this one was unlike any of the others.

It was sharp and brief. Not terribly disorienting--or even that dangerous, really.

But something else occurred along with it.

The entire corridor behind Barnabas was gone. The connecting rooms, too. Part of the courtyard. An entire chunk of the castle.

Just gone.

In its place was a great crater. A half-sphere, gouged out of the building and the earth. And stranger still, it looked so clearly cut. Not like the aftermath of an explosion. Rather, it looked more like the mass had simply been subtracted from the space that it had been occupying mere moments ago.

Wide-eyed, Vito had no idea what to make of it.