You have received 500 Schema Credits for completing your quest.

The Control Worlds are thankful for your efforts and risking your life to save valuable artisans, even though their survival wasn’t necessary for the quest’s success. Your bonus includes access to special tutors, vendors, and artisans in the Nexus Market and vouchers to spend as you please. All the relevant information has been stored in your Schema interface.

“That’s strange,” Selia commented. “I got more than you. The Nexus Market’s most exclusive spell emporium and mage advisors are open to me. They want to speak to me about getting a soul weapon seed as well.”

“That’s pretty great and incredible,” Nil stated, helping her get closer to the Fountain of Pyrene. “A soul weapon will help with your lack of offense a fair deal.”

“It's just a consultation, and they’ll probably send me a long chain of quests or some exclusive work to get one.” Selia winced as he seated her on the edge of the Pyrene. Then she sank her fingers in the water and shuddered. All her visible injuries disappeared, and the sickly pallor disappeared. “I don’t get why I’m getting so much more than you, though.”

“Because you were at considerably more risk than everyone every step of the way. If not for your scouting, we would’ve faced far more obstacles during our ascent. It's likely we would’ve still gotten the package to its destination, but Merchant and his fellow survivors would’ve died.”

“Your contribution wasn’t any less than mine.” Selia sighed. “My information was useful. Sure. But if you and Bjorn didn’t block off all those paths and set up the triggered collapses, more would’ve found us sooner or later.”

“The Nexus clearly disagrees. Do you need a moment, or should we go see Layla?”

“Let's go.”

The pair bid Sakura and her people goodbye before moving on. The Schema had offered Carmen an additional bonus to stay behind, heal the injured soldiers, and erect ice defenses in the tunnel, and the older woman had accepted. When they reached Layla’s office, an unexpected crowd greeted them.

“Nice of you to join us.” Susan hugged Nil tightly. Selia received a similar but less emphatic greeting. “Are the pair of you mad?”

“Mad?” Nil raised an eyebrow, exchanging confused glances with Selia.

“What did we do?” Selia asked.

“You took week-long quests when you had two weeks until your next Death Gauntlet match?” Shawn’s question hit the pair like a sack of bricks.

“Well, that sucks. The quest took little less than a day.” Even though the Fountain of Pyrene had healed her external and internal injuries, she had continued to use Nil for support. Selia released him and stepped away. “This might not be as good a decision as you thought, Nil.”

“I got a bunch of ability ranks, and my Might went up as well.” Nil tried to cast a positive light on the lost time, but she was right. The lost time had cost them dearly. It was just like his first-ever quest. He was only away for a single evening but returned home three days after his summoning. Layla had once explained to him time was distorted when traveling far through the multiversal network. He hadn’t thought the time dilation could get so severe. “I’m sure you got far more growth than a week of only training would provide.”

Selia sighed, nodding. “My Finesse is as far as I can get it until Silver Realm, and Mind isn’t far behind. My abilities are also almost high enough for ascension.” She gave Shawn a hug and changed the subject. “What are the pair of you doing here?”

“Layla summoned us here, saying you were done with your quest,” Susan answered. “She wanted to talk to all of us in person.” The woman nodded at another group of Summoned waiting nearby. Cara Sue stood among them. She flashed them a smile and waved. “Something about finally meeting our colleagues and coordinating to resolve the matter.”

“That’s just one item on today’s agenda,” one of Layla’s pink clones said, opening the door to the caseworker’s office. “Come in. She’s ready for you.”

A total of nine people entered the office—Nil, Selia, Shawn, Susan, Cara Sue, and four others who Nil didn’t know. He had seen them in passing at the Forge but never interacted with them besides polite nods of acknowledgment.

The layout of the office had changed. A large horseshoe table sat in the middle of the room with nine chairs, and Layla stood just beyond it. Everybody took their seats, with the Death Gauntlet fighters sitting on one side. Susan sat between Nil and Cara Sue. The unknown Nexus agents occupied the horseshoe arm. The caseworker wasted no time before starting her spiel.

“I don’t have a lot of time, so I won’t waste time on introductions or pleasantries,” she said. “Half of you already know about the other, and I am glad you segregated yourselves.” Layla waved at Cara Sue and the individuals sitting with her. “Death Gauntlet Team, meet the Cursed Investigation Team. Susan, you will act as the liaison between both groups and direct everyone if and when joint operations happen.

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“While you took care of everything inside Symbiotech, Nil, CIT was tracking down their projects, investigating the Pits, and studying the big picture. I theorized that Shina and her operation were only a wing in a larger organization, and they helped confirm that. There are some big players pulling the strings here, but everything leads back to the Pits.”

“Do you mean more Cursed Energy harvesting operations?” Nil asked.

“Yes and no,” Layla replied. “As far as CIT and our other agents have found, only Symbiotech was in the corrupted soul weapon business. However, they’re not the only ones trying to create artificial power seeds. The Schema detects them, but we’re having trouble. I suspect that the Pits are acting as their testing ground. The number of Summoned dying in them is also increasing.”

“Do you think the artificial power users are somehow growing stronger by murdering fighters with genuine seeds?” Selia asked.

“It's difficult to tell at this point,” Cara Sue said. “Because if that were the case, why would they just use the arena? We’d see increased Summoned death across the board. There must be more nuance to this that we’re not seeing.”

“I think we should delay discussion and investigation until after the soul weapon business is resolved,” one of the other CIT members said. He was a short bald man, and Nil struggled to tell much about him through the puffy coat. “The seed situation is much bigger and runs deeper. It’ll do us no good if we split our attention or can’t confirm that they’re connected.”

“Isn’t the corrupted soul weapon thing sorted with Symbiotech gone and us taking out the primary players?” Nil asked. “We or agents not in the public eye can take care of the ones still in the Pits. I don’t see why—”

“Symbiotech might be down, but this is far from over,” Layla interrupted. “People CIT identified as test subjects and partners, and the people listed in everything Andrew dug up are falling like flies.”

“Do you think the greater powers behind Symbiotech are eliminating the evidence?” Selia leaned back in her chair, making it stand on two legs. It reminded Nil of how Andrew behaved in class. The man tested poorly and didn’t do well in school. His head was always elsewhere. Nil believed that if the British education system included aethertech, criminal law, or programming, he’d be recognized as the savant that he was. “I wouldn’t be surprised if they also silenced their staff.”

“Unfortunately, the staff are out of reach.” Layla staffed. “Anyone not in your government’s custody has disappeared. Our requests to question them have been denied, and my bosses are staunchly against coercion or bribery. That’s where all of you come in. We don’t know who is killing Symbiotech’s partners and previous subjects, but they all have one thing in common.” Several translucent screens appeared behind Layla and slowly solidified. They showed butchered corpses, vivisections, and a few that were intact. “All the soul weapon seeds have been harvested.”

“So, someone is trying to pick up where they left off,” Selia commented.

“That’s our biggest concern. CIT, drop all other investigations and make finding the parties involved as soon as possible. Embed yourselves in the Pits if you must. We’ll take care of the legal side of things.”

“Andrew will be valuable to this investigation once he returns,” Susan said. “I’d like to work with CIT if that’s alright. Skoll, Hati, and I have a lot to contribute here.”

“I worry your previous ties to the police force might hamper our investigation,” Cara Sue told her.

“I’m sure we can find a way around that,” Layla said. “I’ll get someone on that. Despite your experience, I’ll have to place you under Cara’s command, Susan. She has more experience as an earthside agent and Nexus investigator. Is that alright?”

“I’d rather not step on any toes,” Susan replied. “She’s more familiar with the case. It makes sense.” She faced Cara Sue. “I have a few informants and a friend in an intelligence agency that I trust. Tell me what you need, and I’ll help in every way possible.”

“You lot are doing well.” Layla nodded. “The bosses don’t like me sharing this tidbit with newcomers, but the rewards can be incredible.”

“What? Do we get to be where you are?” One of the CIT members asked. She was the only other woman besides Cara Sue. She looked significantly younger compared to everyone else. In fact, she barely looked older than Emily. She sounded annoyed and carried the tone of someone who disliked authority. Her presence in the team and the meeting made little sense to Nil. “I can’t think of anything worse than being stuck in this place for the rest of my life.”

“That might be an option for some of you someday.” Layla ignored the taunt. Nil guessed the girl had a vital skillset or powerful ability that made her invaluable to the team. “But I’m talking about the opportunity to move to a Control World. The requirements get lower the closer you get to the Platinum Realms, and if you’re good enough, your family, partner, or a loved one or two get to go with you.”

“That’s incredible,” Nil whispered.

The rude young woman sat up straighter. Everyone but the bald man displayed some sort of surprise. He either didn’t care or excelled at hiding his emotions. The Nexus and Schema had revealed little about the Control Worlds thus far. However, the kind of influence they had, the scale of their operations, and the benefits gained from winning their favor suggested they were factions of incredible power. Nil imagined that moving to one would significantly make his family’s lives better, and there was no safer place for them.

“And you’re not dangling this in front of us, so we’ll do something dangerous like get involved in the Pits, right?”

Layla remained calm and didn’t react to the accusation. Instead, she focused on its source. “Given everything you’ve achieved because of me, Cara Sue, I’d like to think you’d be more trustful of me and the Nexus. No. I’m not dangling anything in front of you. There are other parameters, like the quality of a person, but no, I’m not dangling anything or lying. Most who reach Platinum get invited or receive quests to prove their worth. Immortals are always welcome in Nexus World. It's for the good of everyone. People with too much power often turn into tyrants if no one keeps them in check. There’s always a chance of their mere existence figuratively and literally destroying the stability of their home realm.

“Nexus employees and agents receive such privileges earlier if their performance is good enough,” Layla continued. “My contract with the Nexus ends in a few decades. Unless I get a manager contract, I’ll also be taking the ascension to a Control World.”

“Damn.” Shawn sighed, and all eyes turned to him. “I was going to bow out of this Nexus agent business after this quest, but now you’ve got my interest.”

“I guessed that might be the case.” Layla smiled. “We hope you take this as a sign of how much we value your skills and actions. The Nexus values those who serve it.”