188 (III)

Decider

"Oh, yes, that matter. I suspect Veronica Chandler is your grandmother," Udraal said nonchalantly. "Your father, he was adopted, see? I dug a little bit into his past, and beyond the fake memories that the Republic likes to dump into all its citizens' minds, he was adopted from an orphanage by the Lowe family, a group of middling, Adept-Tier Pathbearers who lost their own child during one of the great plagues."

A tornado was tearing through Shiv's mind. He had been hit with far too many things out of left field, and now he was beginning to feel dizzy. Adam clutched his arm. "Shiv? Shiv, are you all right?"

Shiv didn't say anything. He stared at Udraal as one of a million questions tore through him. Instead, all that came out was, "The fuck? What is this shit?" He couldn't help it; he started laughing. "I…"

"Yes, yes, I know, as if your life wasn't messy enough. But your father had to come from somewhere, and Veronica Chandler did have a special dalliance with a certain Marcus Graves." Udraal shook his head and sighed. "He was a good man, an excellent Pathbearer." And then Udraal clenched his jaw as he stared upward. "It's a real shame I had to kill him, but it was ultimately a mercy after ruining his soul. I was really trying to kill his lover, you see, and Veronica, but he was in the wrong place, and so was she. The wrong Pathbearer died a hundred and twenty years ago. Hm. Those were interesting days."

And if Udraal's actions with his parents weren't enough, apparently, he'd also murdered Shiv's grandfather.

"Hey, I, you—" Shiv could barely form the words.

"Anyhow, after I killed him, she made sure that the supposed child they bore together was placed in an orphanage. I suspect that was to ensure that she had no other weak links to exploit. It is difficult being the head of the Ruling Council. Not only do you have to worry about your enemies, but you have to worry about your friends as well. The things they might use a child to do. The power they would hold over you." Udraal smiled to himself. "My father got lucky when he had me. A weaker offspring would have made him weak and vulnerable. And weak and vulnerable Legends don't stay Legends for long."

Slowly, Shiv's hands came to clutch his head. A pounding headache had begun, and he was past the point of caring about this mess now. His anger had dulled to a cold hatred for Udraal, but also for Veronica, the Ascendants, and specifically for the System itself. His life had always been complicated. A miasma of misery and death followed him. The title Omenborn had been bestowed upon him since birth. Now, apparently, he was Ruling Council royalty. A grandchild of Veronica Chandler. Or perhaps Udraal was lying. Either could be possible, and Shiv was no longer in the mood to discover the truth.

The Deathless wondered if he was going to have the first stress break of his life. But then, a numbness hit him, and he pulled his hands away. He would deal with the overwhelming bullshit later. Right now, he was going to figure out the rest of Udraal's game.

"So, why are we going for the mana core, then? You said you killed a few of the Avatars. That means the Ascendants probably don't have their full power anymore. You still have more bodies. Why can't you go for the rest?"

Udraal threw his head back and let out a quiet laugh. "Do you expect me to do everything for you, Deathless? No. I am not going to be able to replicate my actions earlier. I had the advantage. I had preparation, and killing a few of those Avatars cost me dearly. I spent a demigod. Those don't grow on trees, you know?"

Udraal paused. "Well, not in most realms. I need to revisit Mahoraba sometime. Nonetheless, they will be bringing their full force to bear, and Veronica Chandler will be unleashing her grandmother's full might without any reservations. I will be focused on diverting their attention. I have already freed a great many prisoners, so that will be your smokescreen. However, I don't expect this riot to last very long. The Ruling Council wants both of you back. Unique Skills and your Unique Path notwithstanding, they cannot risk anyone claiming the reward for the hidden World Quest. Which means they will be hunting you without reservations."

Slowly, Udraal began to grin. "And you have the special ability to be in two places at once. I understand you have a Golemancy skill."

Shiv understood where Udraal was going. "You want me to send a version of myself to escape the loop? Is that what you want?"

"Yes, one to be accompanied by me. One with a Vitae signature to be spotted alongside me. Something for the Ascendants to track. That way, Veronica will dispatch everything she has. But by then, it should be too late. Especially if you manage to collapse this prison entirely."

"So, while you're luring them off, you want me, Adam, and everyone else to make a run on the mana core and devastate this entire Rubix Well? Just, dump it back out into the volcano? Is that the general idea?"

Udraal nodded slowly. "It will also be worth your while. Both of you have been abused and driven to the brink. When you collapse this core and all the prisoners slip free, the Ascendants will have to make a choice. Do they risk all the Legends breaking free from their prison and unleashing hell on the capital, or do they try to focus their power on seizing you? Chandler is many things; cold and calculated is one, but there is a limit to how cold and calculated she is. She still loves her Republic. Is it the truest love she has ever known? Truer than the love she feels for her so-called beloved? Definitely truer than the love she will feel for you. On top of this, however, there is a great benefit to collapsing a mana core."

"A special item," Adam said. "Shutting a High Dimension Rating Gate is how my father got my armor. Or so he claimed."

"Your armor," Udraal said. He let out a quiet breath of amusement. "Is that what he told you? Young Lord Adam, you underestimate your father. He didn't close a Legendary gate. He closed five. Five gates connected to a full set of armor. It is the indestructible armor you speak of, yes? Blue, like the color of your eyes. Unenchanted."

A hint of disquiet escaped Adam's expression. "How do you know?"

"Because I was going for the gates first." Udraal's gaze grew distant. "It was meant to be my armor at some point. You should have seen your father. And perhaps someday you will. At the height of his ambition, he was vicious. He was borderline unstoppable. It mattered little that I was of a higher Tier. He came fearlessly. He struck strategically. And he never stopped. The Starhawk chose well. And considering you remain alive, I expect just as much from you. Especially if you wish to be a companion for my great experiment."

Regardless, Udraal wrinkled his nose as he regarded Shiv's Orichalcum blade. "You're due something more useful than a few Master-Tier pieces. I would scarcely call that Heroic, even if it does say so in the notifications. And with this mana core shattered and a new tool in hand, I think you will have good chances of escaping. From there, I think it's time for my father and me to have our long-awaited reunion. Once you lead me to him, of course."

"The father you broke, you mean," Shiv said coldly.

"The father who decided to get in my way after suffering his own crisis of faith," Udraal snarled with a faint hint of anger. "But that's over. It's all well now. I can forgive him. I can." Udraal forced a smile on his face, and Shiv felt a chill crawl through him. For the first time, the Deathless felt truly worried about his so-called mentor. Valor was scattered, still a shadow of himself, and thus far, Udraal had proven a threat to even Ascendants. If Udraal meant harm to Valor, Shiv needed to protect him. Shiv needed to protect everyone from the return of this man. But he wasn't sure if he could, and he didn't know how.

"Are you considering how to defy me?" Udraal asked.

Shiv stopped himself from shivering. But he didn't lie. "Always," he said.

Udraal nodded. "Honesty. Directness. Brutality. You would have made quite the Vanguard, but these are not good habits to have if you want to be a Legend for a long time. It'll get you killed."

"Getting killed's what I do," Shiv said. "Just builds me up."

"Your deaths are to be an education, yes, but don't use them as a crutch. There will be a point where dying has more cost than benefit. I tell you this right now because you should know that your enemies are learning from you. They will adapt their strategies to contain you. And it's not a good thing, to be trapped and eternal. Someone will use you as a tool."

"Like you," Shiv shot back.

Udraal nodded once more, not even denying it. "Like me, perhaps. But I care. So far, I'd prefer to see you flourish, to see you push this world to the brink."

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"What do you want? An incursion to happen? Why?" Shiv said, moving on to the point Udraal mentioned a while ago.

"Because I need the Ambient Mana Threshold to rise. More importantly, I wish for it to be connected to a world I've claimed."

And that was another unwelcome revelation. "You conquered a world," Shiv said flatly.

"Not one," Udraal noted. "And conquered is a vulgar word. No. I control several. In a chain of escalating Ambient Mana Thresholds. Worlds I need strategically integrated with this one."

"Why the hells are you even back here?" Shiv asked. "If you're already this powerful, what's the point of this world?"

"With higher Mana Thresholds, there is more power. There are greater extents of skill, yes, of course. But there is a lack of something."

Shiv's thoughts started racing, but Adam figured it out first. "There is no Great One on those worlds," he said slowly. "But how powerful is the Great One that they are this crucial? Why do they matter so much?"

"Now that's the question, isn't it?" Udraal replied, offering the Young Lord a genuine smile. "Quite sharp you are. Perhaps more focused than your father when he was younger. Remarkable what good breeding and exemplary environmental conditions can do. But yes, the Great One. I need something that might be able to rouse it once more. Properly rouse it. Not make it slightly aware while it's dreaming, not make it lucid, but to restore it. And if I wish to restore it, then I need far more power. Far more than what Integrated Earth has right now."

"And so all this conflict, everything you've done, it's all to build up to this?" Adam asked.

"No," Udraal said. "I always have more than one goal. Several, all moving in the same direction. Multiple choices building toward the same path. In fact, multiple choices that expand outward. Because the System itself is multifaceted and complicated, it will not be overcome even if I finally awake and mantle myself upon the Great One."

Shiv felt a lead weight build inside his stomach. "Mantle yourself. You're trying to become the Great One?"

"No," Udraal snapped, frustrated. "Think carefully. What did I use earlier against the Ascendants?"

"I'm not sure what you used," Shiv said. "I was busy running away."

"What did I say a few moments ago? I used a demigod to save you. I don't wish to be a god. I don't wish to be constrained and contained in such a manner, to be restricted. I do, however, wish to guide their power. And so a lobotomy is in order."

"A lobotomy," Adam echoed. "Gods, you're planning to rip out the Great One's mind?"

"Yes, and store it within a special vessel. One specifically for fallen gods." And at that, Udraal turned to stare at his banner. It glistened, and from its depths came a mind-rending chorus of echoing screams, screams that emanated from the countless Pathbearers trapped within. Shiv stared at them, their small bodies gliding along the banner's length. They reached out. They called out. They struggled to break free, but they were trapped, trapped as if the threshold of the banner was all there ever was, the totality of existence.

"Oh, fuck," Shiv muttered. His life had gotten extremely complicated in a very short period of time, but next to Udraal here, Shiv realized things were on the verge of getting even more chaotic.

"Now you see the scope of what's at play," Udraal said. "See? Exciting, isn't it? And whether you like it or not, you're going to be an essential part of this entire endeavor." The Abyssal Lord hummed. "And I do respect your snarling, vicious self-regard. You're right, you're not a slave. You're right, I do have need of you. In fact, you will be essential for several things, myself included." He looked at Shiv, and an inscrutable expression came over him. "I will have a special need for you when it comes to the Great One itself. After all, what is dead cannot come back without a proper means."

And Shiv's mind whirled. "Holy fuck. You're going to use me to help you resurrect the Great One."

Udraal's eyes glinted with pride. "Oh, he finally thinks. He finally sees."

Shiv put everything together quickly after that. At least he had a guess. "You want the Ambient Mana Threshold to rise so that I can level faster, so that I can..."

"Exactly." Udraal smiled. "If you can resurrect Rose Van Erren, if you can resurrect my mother in the future, if you potentially can resurrect Adam's sister, then why couldn't you serve as a returning womb for the Great One itself?"

And a weight that Shiv didn't know existed pressed down on his shoulders for the first time.

"So with all this revealed and everything settled, I think there are a few things we should discuss. A number of technical details." Udraal twisted his hand, and an Animancy symbol formed between them. He stared at Shiv and Adam at the same time. "There are spells I would like you to learn, spells that will be very essential for reverting the mana core here to an earlier state, to an unstable state. So, are you going to continue resisting me and making a mess of all this, even after I have laid my proverbial cards down on the table? Or are you going to play along?"

Shiv looked at Adam and cast his Psychomancy out into his friend. At the same time, the Gate Lord activated his commander's foresight. Everything came to a halt.

"Holy fuck," Adam said, echoing Shiv.

"Holy fuck is right. What the hells are we going to do about this guy?"

"We're not going along with him blindly," Adam declared. "Absolutely not. He's staying far away from my parents. He's staying far away from everyone we know."

"No shit," Shiv said. "Especially Valor."

"Especially Valor," Adam agreed with even more vehemence. "I mean, gods, Shiv. What the hells did we get dragged into? The Ascendants were bad enough. Now we have to deal with this madness. Multiple worlds. A plot to resurrect the Great One. My sister still being alive inside of you." A sheer bout of stress radiating out of Adam would have given Shiv anxiety most of the time. Unfortunately, Shiv suffered from the same thing right now.

It was all getting too much for the both of them. They needed time away from… all of this chaos.

"Did you mean it earlier?" Adam asked, his voice suddenly softening. "Did you mean what you said about ending yourself?"

"Yeah," Shiv replied immediately. "I'm not going to be a slave, and I'm not going to let him threaten me. It's the only leverage I got. He seems to need me alive, so we can use that against him."

"And you'd do it?"

"Yeah, of course I would do it, Adam."

"You're not afraid?" Adam asked, a hint of apprehension in his voice.

Shiv thought about that for a second. He thought about all the times he actually came close to death, close to that final oblivion. He thought back to the one time he'd crossed it within his Delve, yet not truly. He had been slain over and over again and faced pain most people could never fathom. And none of that bothered him. But death, the potential to never be once more...

Shiv considered it.

And he considered it a pathetic fear. "Yeah," Shiv said, "I would. You don't get to live forever if you're afraid to die. And there's no living if you let someone else choose who you are, what you are. I'm not afraid of what comes after, if there is an after. I've enjoyed the here and now a lot. Good friends. Good fights. Good life. Short, maybe, but it'll never be enough. Hells, forever might not be enough. But I got to be happy. Truly happy."

Shiv paused. "That's more than what most people ever get. But my life's still not over yet, so…"

"Still not over yet," Adam agreed, though this time it sounded more like a plea than anything else. "Shiv, I—"

"It's alright, Adam," Shiv said. "You're worth my life. You, Uva, Valor, everyone. I would die and stay dead for any of you." An uncomfortable awkwardness filled the Deathless as he admitted that. Vulnerability was a bitter pill. "Yeah, I would. It's just, I don't know, it feels weird to say it."

"I'd die for you too, Shiv," Adam said. "I'm… I just don't really…"

"I know. You're not a coward. Never think of yourself that way."

Adam coughed mentally. "Right. So, instead of us dying, you got any ideas about how we can resolve Udraal? I don't think we can even kill him for good right now, even if we do destroy one of his bodies." Adam's attention wasn't on Udraal anymore, however, but on his banner. "That thing is constructed of pure Animancy, and more of him seem to spawn out from that. I think that might be the core of his strength. Do you know what it is?"

"Not a damned clue," Shiv said.

"Then we need a closer look. We need more information about him, and we need a means of understanding him without him noticing."

"So, what does that mean?" Shiv asked.

"That means..." Adam swallowed his discomfort. "I think we play along for now, and we try to figure out who he is. We learn his limitations, we learn his habits, and eventually, we learn how to deal with him. It's like you said, we have some leverage, and we might be able to use him to our advantage as well. Maybe we can finally get a moment of peace after this."

"Adam."

"Yeah?"

"I think you're hoping for too much."

"Let me dream, Shiv. Let me dream. For now, let's see what he has to offer. It's him or the Ascendants. And frankly, fuck the Ascendants."

"Fuck the Ascendants," Shiv agreed. "So. We're going with the devil that made us."

A cold hate returned to Adam. "For now. For now."

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