Chapter 1822 - 1822: It's Time

A little while later, Weaver was coming back into the Lucid Parlor.

"What about the rest of us?" asked Grim, throwing his hands out in frustration.

"Don't be so eager," said Skullius, scratching his brow. "I have jobs planned for every one of you. Tall tasks. I'm giving you a reprieve before you have to agonize over them. You should enjoy it while it lasts."

"Oh..." Grim shrank.

"Speaking of that, while I'm gone, I need invitations sent to all the Stellars." Skullius turned to Gerriey. "I want you working with Weaver and Fortus on this. Get all the information on the Stellars – their accommodations, their names, and their general temperament – and then draft invites for a mutually beneficial conversation. Make sure to invite them here."

Everyone was surprised, but Gerriey moreso. "Me? Why me? I mean, I'm happy to do it – honored, even – but…"

"You're the one person here I trust the most with diplomacy," said the Hybrid, but then he hummed. "No, that's not quite right. I'm investing in your ability to practice diplomacy. Dangerous as this might be – because you're the one I'm going to send forth with all the invitations as well – I trust you."

None of the Stars contested this, much to Gerriey's surprise. She blushed, and her eyes turned misty.

Yuyui, Grim, Baddan…

All three looked at her with nothing but affirmation.

Timmit, Ruge, Magisa, and the other Troops…

They gave her nods of confidence. None of them had doubts about the role Skullius was giving her and her ability to accomplish it.

Weaver floated towards her and placed a hand on her shoulder as though to further reinforce the sentiment.

"You can count on me." Never had Gerriey looked so resolute. She would do it.

Skullius gave her a nod. He knew a great deal about his subordinates because of Apexis' Maverick Wafer abilities. He'd seen their experiences, their strengths, their weaknesses; it was up to him to capitalize on that to maximize their growth.

Gerriey was the one to stop Pherdanta and Kintar from butting heads when they were fighting against the masked man. She'd kept hope during that fight even after the Commander was incapacitated, and before the Stark-Soul Order left Aigas, she'd led her peers into dangerous Clusters, killing voracious, malignant Cluster Generals and their spawn. It was no mystery who her role model was, and she was naturally building herself into an image similar to that model.

Skullius was glad. 'What are you still doing in there, Pherdanta?'

The Hybrid considered blasting through the Timemould Mirror Box right then, but he quelled the urge.

A moment later, he beckoned Red Rage and Araeyn to a corner.

"So now," began Yuyui, marching up to Elita and Uyuniya, "you guys are leaving, huh?"

"I'm afraid so," said Elita with a gentle smile. "Hopefully, we can meet on Zelozeld soon."

Yuyui gave a vigorous nod. "It's not just master. We're happy to repay you for sticking around when you really didn't need to."

Uyuniya sighed, "On that front, you really owe us nothing. That was a good stroke of Direction – meeting you all on Aigas. The last thing I imagined coming out of Elita's convoluted plan to help me become Divine was gaining allies, much less," she stole a glance at Skullius in the corner, "Null Life ones."

"I'm still trying to understand how this whole business with the Existential Parallels works, to be honest." Grim sidled in. "I thought you and the boss were fated to be enemies, but well… I'm glad we managed to work things out."

Uyuniya gave the Unlimited Star a sad smile. "Indeed."

Elita was shaking hands with Baddan and the Troops when the door to the Lucid Parlor rippled.

"Oh, it's time," said Skullius.

Araeyn marched up to the door and opened it. On the other side was Subossais. The breadth of his ill mood was unmistakable. Skullius hurried to meet it all in his Apostle's stead.

"You have a lot of nerve. You think this is funny? Why didn't you tell me about this before? I have a daily limit for Tors Lampion traversal reserves, and you just wasted a portion of it for what – a petty joke?"

"Ah, sorry. I didn't know. Honest mistake on my part. It just slipped my mind," said Skullius 'sincerely'.

"Sure, it did," grunted Subossais.

Earlier, Skullius had instructed Weaver to inform the Warlord that he (Skullius) had clearance for Elita and Uyuniya's leave through the sentry Subossais had left outside the door. The Hybrid had expected a greater outburst from Subossais, all things considered.

"Do you have proof of this supposed clearance?" asked the Warlord.

"The Sovereign General didn't seem to think I needed any. Of course, you could warp to the Humble Paradigm and confirm – if you have enough of those traversal reserves to spend, that is."

That was almost certainly unnecessary, Skullius knew, but he poked the Warlord anyway.

Subossais scoffed and turned. "Let's get going."

***

Skullius, Elita, Uyuniya, and the Warlord appeared in Sector SEPT (A) Negative and immediately began for the Tors Gate.

"What's your rationale for that earlier decision?" Uyuniya asked Skullius in the Common Tongue of Aigas.

"Information," replied the Hybrid succinctly.

Speaking in a language Subossais wouldn't know wasn't enough, as he could pick up on intent – even that which wasn't projected willingly. The ultimate solution was to either use vague or simple wording.

"Is that all there is to it?" Elita didn't buy it. Perhaps because of her earlier guilt, she was inclined to show that she was invested in Skullius' plans and goals following her and Uyuniya's. Whatever crisis was on Zelozeld paled in comparison to what she was going to leave behind here on Breaking Chasm #59.

Skullius was just about to reply when he snapped to his left. Subossais, Elita, and Uyuniya snapped in the same direction. All four had felt the teasing, cutting sensation against their skin despite the distance (indeed, including the Warlord). It was like the edges of thousands of blades – cold and sharpened to the limit – were pressing against them despite their defenses.

A creature was sitting above one of the worlds nearly nine hundred kilometers away from the Sector. His obscure, undefined body was pulsating with some ominous authority that radiated all the way to the citadel.

'Meditation…' Skullius thought at once.

At one point, he'd had a skill that drew him to this state – a dimension of power he couldn't have dreamed of back then.

Indeed, Sword God 'Protean' Shidao was meditating in anticipation of his duel.

'I bet 'Smoke Eyes' is doing something similar elsewhere,' thought the Hybrid.

What a fierce confrontation the two were gearing up for. The fact that Thyrgga had authorized this already spoke volumes about its weight, but this… this was a different kind of evidence for the grandeur.

Thankfully, Shidao had enough restraint to not harm even weaker individuals like Elita and Uyuniya with his meditation. Skullius imagined it was a rule he was forced to abide by, lest he garner the wrath of a certain blonde Grand General.

Speaking of the weaker beings present, the Zelozeldian princess lingered just a little longer on the visual of Shidao and his odd appearance before continuing along. She couldn't help comparing this feeling to the one she already knew and admired.

Soon, the Void Users, Skullius and the Warlord were being shunted out of the Monosphere at a Tach of OC9 and into the Duosphere, their bodies transmuted. In anticipation of the not-so-uncommon eagerness of the Abyssal Fiend, Subossais was holding his Lampion out (paralyzed as he was), projecting its brilliant light for their protection.

He wasn't Gylliard. No Warlord or General had enough power to ward off even the proxies of the terrible Fiend with just their innate powers and mastery of the |Greater Cosmic Law|. Fortunately, the creature only reacted when figures of a certain caliber were in range. Grand Generals, for certain.

…However, they also seemed to be drawn to creatures a notch below that level. Anomalies of a high caliber, for certain.

—-

[Author's Note]

Thanks for reading!