[391] 5.15 Apeiron

I’m beset by fatigue the moment I release my Overlimit state.  It’s been too long since the last time I needed to tap into that aspect of ｢The Anomaly｣.  Yet more proof that I’ve grown too complacent these past three years.  And if my inferences are correct, some secret and nefarious organization has been working behind the scenes for at least most of that timeframe.

“What is Apeiron?” I ask Svana.  I struggle even to stand, leaning on Chloe for support.  Fortunately for our immediate safety, Svylune has completely passed out and Svana looks plenty worse for wear, sitting on the icy floor and breathing heavily as well.

“Apeiron is…  It is a clandestine operation comprising some of the most powerful individuals in Europe, Asia Minor, and North Africa.  It might be likened to a guild of sorts, coordinating efforts between these powerbrokers as they work to divide hegemony amongst themselves.  Svylune and I are actually operatives working on behalf of the Swedish Government in Exile to gather information about their membership and abilities.  For your assistance in that matter, I owe you my thanks.”

“Swedish Government… in Exile?” Chloe asks.  “Why have I not heard anything about that?”

“Because the events which led to this occurred very recently, and neither side has any interest in that information getting out.  Apeiron is, as I mentioned before, working to take over the governments from within.  And informing the populace about the infiltration would only invite the sort of chaos that would further their ends rather than ours.”

“So, if I follow,” I say.  “Some individuals in this Apeiron group are puppeting the senior government through intimidation, force, blackmail, etc., and you two and some others have gone into hiding to continue fighting to free your country from the usurping entity?”

“That’s the short version, yes.  Now that you have made an enemy of Apeiron, I believe it would be to your advantage to work with us going forward as well.”

“Do you have any documentation on Apeiron or any other intelligence you are willing to share with us?”

Svana hesitates.  A long breath follows.  Several seconds pass.  Finally, in a swirl of fog akin to the cirrus clouds high above a cold winter morning, she summons a small manila envelope.

“You will store this in your [Inventory] at all times.  You will treat it with the same care and diligence that you would any other important matters of national security.  You will not share this information with any people who you have not personally vetted are trustworthy and qualified to handle classified documents.  Should someone ask where you got this information, neither Svylune nor I will be implicated.  I trust no part of these conditions are unamenable to you?”

“I have no objection to these conditions, but we should hurry.  I have no doubt that those two are going to try to shatter the dungeon core, and when they do, this whole place is going to collapse.”

“Oh God…”  Svana’s eyes widen the moment the realization strikes her.

And as if to confirm my earlier statement, the entirety of the underworld starts to shake.  Small pieces of stone and dust from the ceiling fall down, some dusting my hair in a manner I find discomforting.

The four of us coordinate with unspoken ease.  Chloe takes the now-sleeping Svylune into her arms, while Svana and I each support each other as we make our way toward the exit.  The rumbling intensifies as we make our way toward a small blue portal that appears just on the edge of my vision.  Even still, as the dungeon breaks down, I keep my eyes and other senses peeled for any signs of ambush by lingering creatures.

None slow our advance.  Although the timing is close and we have several encounters with falling stones and other debris far too close for comfort, we suffer no substantial damage as we pass through the portal and make our way back to the outside platforms near to where we first landed on this sky island.

This leads us to our second problem.  Chloe and I are both far too fatigued to fly ourselves several hundred miles over the North Atlantic Ocean to meet up with our contact.  Even at our altitude and with the light of the full moon shining overhead, I can’t make out any shorelines toward the direction I believe to be north.

The rumbling intensifies.  Svana turns to me with a look I can’t quite place.  Annoyance mixed with pity, if I had to guess.  More icy clouds surround the area around her, revealing a small copter of her own.

“You two better be prepared for an extremely tight trip, and you can forget about us going to wherever you were headed before.”

“We understand,” Chloe says.  She and I take seats pressing our arms and hips against each other while helping set Svylune on our legs in front of us in the only way the three of us are going to fit in this space meant for one person or maybe two small people at the absolute most.

The copter departs.  The floating city reminiscent of Atlantis coats itself in a thin, translucent green barrier once we’ve departed its immediate airspace.  I worry about tsunami potential, considering its continued collapse toward the sea floor.  Instead of crashing into the ocean with meteoric force, it instead falls beneath the tides in a smooth, flowing pattern.  Some other force of the System seems also to be affecting the ripples of the water surrounding the impact site, smoothing out the pressure wave to prevent any faraway tragedies that none of us would be able to mitigate, let alone prevent otherwise.

“Seraphina, Chloe,” Svana says.  “If you two would like to rest for the time being, I can keep watch while we fly.  It’ll be a few hours before we arrive at our destination.  And I would prefer not to speak about where exactly that is until we get there.  Operational Security and all that.”

Chloe turns to me.  “You can go ahead and rest, Sera.  I know you’re on the verge of passing out.  I’ll stay awake in case Svana needs any assistance.”

“I’ll do that.  Thank you, Chloe.”

The sun rises over some mass of land in what I presume to be somewhere in Europe.  There’s no snowpack on the ground as I half-expected there to be, save for the on a few isolated peaks.  The air isn’t particularly warm, though I’ve grown rather more insensitive to extreme temperatures as I’ve become more mechanical and gained additional levels.

As I gaze upon the land down below, I see cities far more compacted than the ones back in the states.  Like most American settlements these days, the cities of Europe have developed further vertically and shrunk horizontally.  Artificial biodomes supplement the crop-growing fields surrounding the urban cores.

In contrast to what I know from back home, the city we’re approaching has a number of Ethertech armaments on its outskirts and even a massive dome of Etheric energy surrounding the innermost portion of the settlement.  Hundreds of patrols stand along the outer walls, watching out for any signs of violent activities from the various beasts which hunt and graze the fields and farms further away.

Svana mutters a combination of letters and numbers into the helicopter’s communication module.  A few seconds later, whomever she was speaking to responds with a curt ‘Over’.  Our chopper descends further, and the barrier surrounding the inner complex of the town dissipates.  We pass through, and the barrier re-forms behind us.

Around the same time, Svylune arises from their slumber.  Their eyes meet mine, and as their gaze looks down upon how Chloe and I have been scrunched together and how they have been lying upon our thighs all evening, a blush creeps up upon their cheeks.

“I hope you are well this morning,” I say.

Svylune nods.  As before, their fingers trace words in English which appear before the two of us.

“I am sure Svana already thanked you before, but let me also express my own appreciation for your assistance back in the Atlantean Dungeon and the Underworld.”

“There’s no need to thank us,” Chloe says.  “If you don’t mind my asking, I am a fairly strong healer.  If there is a problem with your voice, I’m more than willing to try to heal it.”

Svylune shakes their head.  More words appear.  “I took a [Vow of Silence] as one of my Skills.  Fortunately, I managed to find a loophole.”

It isn’t stated, but I do understand.  Skills with deleterious side effects generally give boons to compensate.  Chloe’s and my [Angelic Bond] comes with only the minor downside of being impossible to get rid of short of one of our deaths, goddess forbid.  For that, we each get perhaps our single most powerful Skill, and the reason why we’ve survived so many fights between then and now.  For Svylune to have a Skill with yet an additional downside, the benefits must be commensurate.

We touch down and are immediately surrounded by armed guards and support staff.  I don’t believe this to be a trap; if Svana wanted to dispose of us, she had plenty of opportunities while we were in the plane or before we got on.  Still, so many unfamiliar faces bring a sense of discomfort, alongside the notion that Chloe and I are in a foreign land with no support network at all for the first time in either of our lives…  I’d say ‘since the System arrived’, except, it really has been the first time at all, thanks to Mom— Alicia— all but adopting me after what happened to Lily.

Thinking about it doesn’t bring the same emotional dread that it did before.  I’m not sure exactly which being was responsible, but I feel that I’m finally truly healing from the events of that horrific day.  Chloe notices as well, sending a warm feeling through our bond as Svana and Svylune depart first.

More conversations follow, and though I could try to hear them out, I afford them their privacy and confidentiality.  It’s the least gesture we can give if we’re going to be staying in whatever facility this is for the foreseeable future.

My stomach growls.  I’m about to pull out some food when the door opens again.  Svana offers us a bit of assistance getting out of the back.  Considering I’ve been nursing a cramp on and off for the past hour, I accept it, helping Chloe out once I’m free.

Once the two of us are situated, we’re approached by a middle-aged man wearing a gray-colored military uniform that gives no indication of nationality, rank, or station.  He offers us his hand, and we again accept the gesture in the spirit it is given.

“So, are you really the Seraphina?” the man asks.

“The Seraphina?” I say.  “I mean, I am Seraphina, but I’m hardly so important in the grand scheme of things to be referred to with such a grandiose moniker.”

“Might we ask who you are and where we are?” Chloe asks.  “I must admit that all of this has been very sudden.  After the Atlantean Dungeon was destroyed, we found ourselves making an expeditious retreat with Svana and Svylune.  Since then, neither of them has been interested in answering any questions.”

“You may call me General Souire.  This is Eurodef Advance Station 26.  We’re about five miles east of Antwerp.  As for any other questions you may have, I will tell you what I can, although not here.”

His eyes dart around the gathered crowd.  Again the implication is clear, that one or more of these soldiers and support staff is a mole of this Apeiron organization.  Mine follow as well.  Among the immediately present, Svylune is the strongest by a significant margin, followed by Svana, then by this general who just introduced himself.  No one else feels like much of a threat…  at least not in direct combat.  Spies don’t have to be particularly powerful, and there are plenty of long-range movement and telepathy Skills that don’t require an extraordinarily high level.  Chloe and I got [Angelic Bond] before Level 40.

“Before we do that, Sir,” I say.  “I have some business to take care of that will require a few hours.  Might I attend to those matters first?  I’m sure you and your agents will have matters to discuss internally before you are ready to share anything with Chloe and me.”

“Hmm.  We shall make it so.”  His eyes dart to a man behind me and just to my right.  “Sergeant, lead these two down to one of the basement cells.”

“Yes, Sir.”  He beckons us inside, and we follow.