Chapter 2410 (Patreon)

ToC: https://www.patreon.com/posts/23899958

The question spread further through the Alpha Cosmos, the main thrust again being deviated from Randidly to worries about the fallout.

Of course, the second beat of this instinctual reaction was from the critics. Randidly streaked across the skies, his lip curling as he drifted over radio and television stations. He observed harried-looking men and woman crossing out their previous programming and frantically gesturing to their news personalities to look at the teleprompter and pivot to this sudden story that had erupted.

Considering its origins and the uniformity of its presence, it was clear something had occurred. And even if they weren’t the most accurate, all of these outlets wanted to be the first to have an opinion on the topic.

Loud voices and table-slamming fists entered into the fray with bold enunciations. Especially in news originating in and around Zone 1, the pundits were especially harsh on Randidly. They complained about how irresponsibly he behaved in regards to the Alpha Cosmos, dragging them into all these horrible situations. How his own over-confidence and antagonistic nature constantly introduced new threats. Weren’t they still reeling from these Homunculi spawning across the Alpha Cosmos?

Yet now he had found some new foe to fight against, when he hadn’t yet done anything about the troubles in the Alpha Cosmos? Especially so soon after he unleashed an entire population of Nether-based beings in the wildlands…

“It’s not even a question of whether the Big Dog in the sky could fight against something like this,” A red-faced man flapped his lips toward a camera. “It’s whether he should, whether he has any right to make this decision for us. And I might just be a Level 62 Orator, but I believe the answer is an emphatic no. Stop asking us to pay your debts, Big Dog, in exchange for nothing in return.”

More organized, smaller pulses of negativity began to surge from different locations. Randidly jumped from meeting to meeting, sensing the predatory and calculating nature of these individuals. He watched them, his mood chilling every second.

A woman in a navy blazer and red blouse that screamed political candidate wrapped her knuckles on an oak table and glanced around at the people gathered there. “This is good. This is an opportunity to attack all of the pro-Ghosthound factions. Obviously, our main goal will be to get a foot in the door of the materials industry, but even if we just discredit his affiliates, we can build up momentum for the next election. Heh, and they say there is no such thing as bad press…”

At another location, a group rapidly made plans based on this night to try and convince young Classers to apply to their Order, rather than the prestigious Order Ducis. There were several burning pyres of negativity from ancillary educational institutions, urging their deans to write open letters to Randidly Ghosthound, cashing in on this fear in order to demonstrate a sympathetic philosophy. Even if not one the students would like, one that would catch the eye and attention of the guardians of the next classroom cohort.

Waves of consequences from his action spread out and Randidly quivered. He pressed and pressed, but his body and significance wanted to drift apart in a thousand directions. Neveah’s support helped, along with other small spots of support that began to emerge, but he couldn’t proceed like this.

With burning eyes, he turned his attention onto the Alpha Cosmos. We don’t have fucking time for this. Time is not fickle, and we are on a clock, people. I don’t want that thing swimming up toward Pine any longer than necessary.

So… if you won’t let me do this willingly…

But just as the Hungry Eye of the Songstress of Absence turned to the people of the Alpha Cosmos, a third wave of reactions arrived. The more considered began to come to their conclusions, and due to the flowing river of significance through the Alpha Cosmos, these stronger beliefs held a lot of sway.

In Kharon Academy, a thousand teenagers and young adults looked up and saw Randidly Ghosthound fighting against an eldritch horror in the night sky. Clouds marched to grapple with the ephemeral invader. The teenagers’ eyes sparkled, even as their thoughts merged into a nearly uniform single reaction. So fucking cool. Someday, that will be me.

The children of the worried parents from the first wave woke up, sensing the current of significance beginning to circle the world with increasing force. The details of the situation percolated down into their consciousness. And when that question alighted on their minds, as soft as a feather, the response was unanimous: of course, Randidly Ghosthound would win.

He always won.

He won against entire Zones, against the entire Alpha Cosmos.

He would win against other worlds too.

Donnyton blazed with support as an alarm bell woke all of the active Squaders, their unwavering confidence pushing back and calming the panic in its surroundings. Huang Li stood on a balcony and looked at the sky, remembering what it was like to stand in front of the Ghosthound at the previous challenge. The ogre people picked up their weapons and growled at the sky, wishing they could participate in the battle. Grand rituals emerged, followed by raucous feasting to celebrate the night of chaos.

The populations of the various Nemesai that had been brought to the Alpha Cosmos nodded their heads at the sky, acknowledging his efforts. The different races and peoples who had been a part of Randidly’s Soulskill before the Alpha Cosmos barely batted an eye; this was just another step forward for him.

The Order Ducis began producing its own media content, urging peace and unity. Affiliate new stations scrambled to patch in this direct statement on the strange quandary seizing them all. Naffur Suite’s solemn face appeared on flickering screens across the Alpha Cosmos, as they shifted from the quicker reactions from other news.

His calm voice echoed out across the land. “The System has always thrown tests in our Path. Forcing us to grow, wanting to measure and extract as much benefit from us as we can. That is its way of exploitation. Randidly Ghosthound has been at the forefront of our planet for years, bringing us into contact with forces beyond our comprehension, admittedly before we are prepared for them.

“But he also exhausts himself carving a Path in his wake, so the rest of us might follow. We have the Class Lighthouses, we now have our own Pantheon, we monitor and control the contact with the wider Nexus. When you reflect on the actions he’s taken, it is undeniable that his body always stands between us and that next threat. Even now, he fights in the sky to protect us. Fear is a natural response to the unusual and unexpected; I’m not asking you not to be afraid. But you can feel his significance in the air, can you not? Have faith. He will not falter here.”

Kharon itself burst with support. Lines of fiery belief radiated outward. Rituals were held by brass automatons, spiders, and crabs, releasing pulses of utmost belief in Randidly’s capabilities. They worshiped him like a god. The spread of panic slowed and then stopped in the face of this new current, one which wouldn’t be easily swayed by emotion. Not when Randidly Ghosthound had so consistently proven his accomplishments.

People reconsidered. Still nervous, they looked at the sky. They waited and wavered.

But as their thoughts shifted from catastrophizing, the clouds grew stronger. The Dread Homunculus manifested claws of moonlight and began to shred through the more dangerous offensives of Laplace’s influence.

Randidly continued to observe, the frost that had stilled his mood beginning to thaw.

Lowanna and Enmya stood at the head of the Nether people’s from the memory, now just beginning to settle down in the wild area given to them. They had woven massive gates of black wicker and stood before them. They bowed their heads and offered their faith into powerful Nether Rituals. The flows of significance deepened.

Randidly even felt the annoyed belief of Fatia Cerulean, acknowledging that this confrontation would probably end in Randidly’s victory. In the meantime, he felt the raptor construct prowling along the edges of the Zones, probing the defenses of humanity.

As the situation stabilized, Randidly moved back to the board room with the political candidate, where a sweaty-looking young man gulped and said. “But… should we really be so cavalier about this? If Randidly Ghosthound really fights against some Cthulhu fucker, are we gonna be okay? I… I don’t want to d-die.”

The sharply dressed woman at the head of the table pursed her lips and regarded the speaker for several seconds. Then she sighed. She lifted her shoulders in an elaborate shrug. “Even if you had bet only a penny on Randidly Ghosthound at every challenge he has encountered to get this far, on every time he almost died or someone tried to kill and overthrow him, you would be obscenely rich.

“You would be Tatiana or Naffur Suite, you would have vacation homes for your pets and whole functioning cities that walk around when you feel like wandering. The reason why he’s been the defining political figure of the last decade is because he hasn’t yet lost people’s faith. Just be glad their attention is elsewhere and focus on your job, Jeremy. We can make real gains with this.”

The current of Nether did several more laps across the surface of the Alpha Cosmos. Then it brought all those conclusions howling up to slam into his consciousness. The world-state image changed.

He became a being who could fight and overcome the mandate of an Eternity.

The members of the Pantheon smirked and crossed their arms, not even needing to lift a finger to shift the outcome.

Randidly growled as he came back to his body. His Nether Core loosened up and began to accelerate. He grabbed the pieces of his body, he arranged his anchors, he crashed back into the present and felt like himself. Translucent significance rushed through his veins, grounding him and reestablishing his presence. He straightened and cracked his neck.

His skin burned, scraped raw by Pine’s presence. But Randidly suspected that to solve this problem, he would need to do more than just endure Pine’s presence; he would need to follow Laplace into the belly of the beast.

Congratulations! For surviving the experience of becoming a Legend, +1 Muse’s Reverie!

Muse’s Reverie is now at 7/7. Congratulations, Dreamer, you may now take another Reverie!

In front of Randidly, Elhume now glared at Fiero. Their little scene continued. “Do not act like your behavior is selfless; we both know your true motive in wanting to take these feelings from me; everything I have, you’ve always craved. You are hollow, Fiero, and you always will be. No matter how much you pour into yourself, this is who you are.”

Fiero growled. “Hollow? Ha, how rich, coming from you. No matter how much you’ve accomplished, you’ve never been able to stop and just be content with what you have. You must always build the pyramid of your life higher, no matter what you need to sacrifice to do it. I might have been hollow, but at least I was born that way. You’ve dug out and extracted everything of value, and for what? So you can be alone and obsessed with your son’s death?”

Elhume grabbed Fiero by his shabby vest. “My son is proof of what I’ve accomplished. That I can lead my people, that my wife loves-”

“Not to interrupt.” Randidly, now standing beside the two, patted their shoulders. “But why don’t we move you two to a safer location to hash this out?”

The Songstress of Absence crooned out oblivion. The two turned, too enthralled by their complex emotions to recognize the threat, and met her song without any defenses. Their expressions went blank as their consciousnesses vanished. Both collapsed to the ground.

Randidly cracked his neck again. He considered bringing the two into the Alpha Cosmos and having the Pantheon watch them but worried they would wake up and cause havoc. He produced the Alchemist’s Passport, needing quite a bit of focused attention to punch through the greedy rind that Pine’s presence created.

He unceremoniously dumped the unconscious bodies through to the Fifth Cohort Rally Station. Then he looked upward.

“Took me by surprise the first time, but I won’t let it happen again,” Randidly muttered. His focus shifted to Pangu’s Asymptote. “Nyx… well, I appreciate your support. I suppose you don’t want Laplace’s influence to spread any further. Is that why you helped me originally, when you provided the Cloak of Utter Night and the Hollow Needle? So, what can you tell me about the ways you can face an Eternity.”

Nyx smiled. By being an Eternity. Or…

Randidly grimaced, understanding without her needing to finish the sentence. He shook his head. “Just another day in the life. Well, fine. Let’s see what we can manage. Muse’s Reverie.”

Existence froze around him. The energy halos rippled and came into alignment. His awareness bloomed and expanded. With this opportunity, he needed to lay the groundwork for his third trick.