Raven replies as I'm still lost for words.

"As much as I'd love to speculate if our ancestors left us a gift, or if the demons have fed us enough misinformation over the years to make ourselves crazy; it's best we talk about the more immediate problem at hand."

She holds up the silver device with eight glowing yellow gems and two stones that are clear and dull on the face of it.

Still, I don't give a response as my mind is still racing elsewhere.

Celia's old memories of demons taking over worlds, and Ember's words of the throne on almost every world he's lived on being captured by demons come to mind after Raven's statement; however, with so many sources giving similar yet flawed explanations for the same phenomena, I don't know what to think anymore.

Demons may have their eye on the throne, but clearly, humans have built up a force of strong hunters to fight for it too.

The fact that this organization, the Order, has supposedly been around even before this world was connected to the system makes me even more curious what Qi is in relation to the divine... and who these originators are that no one has any clues or solid facts about other than old poorly translated texts.

I finally nod, looking at the odd device in her hands and reply.

"Immediate problem at hand? What are you talking about... What is that device?"

She holds it up and points to one of the two crystals that are no longer glowing.

"These are the two members of the Order you killed... Remember how quickly I came to check things out after the disappearance of Mr. Freeman?"

She points to the second dull crystal.

"I'm surprised they haven't come to eliminate the threat already... It's best I send out a response now before one of the big three from Central comes to see what happened here for themselves."

My eyes widen slightly as she moves her finger toward one of the bright glowing yellow gems.

Our link of loyalty is still as strong as it was the moment her eyes opened, but the fact that she has direct calling access to what seems to be seven other Divine Core holders is still a bit unnerving.

I speak up as her finger hovers above one of the crystals.

"Who are the big three? And is everyone in the Order a True Core? Are there others stronger than you?"

She grins again.

"You really did just kill Mr. Freeman without asking him a single question, didn't you? One minute his core was steady, and seconds later it went out..."

She laughs, then points her gaze toward the device, so I do too and look at it with more detail.

"See these four? The crystals glowing a bit dimmer than the others? These are other members of the outer members of the Order. They have yellow cores awakened and are far more powerful than anyone in their respective nations, but they haven't fully compressed their cores. Everyone has their natural limits, not all people are capable of subjecting their bodies to this much pressure over time."

Her eyes move to the other four crystals, including the one her finger is hovering over.

"These are the only True Cores left in the Order. Myself, and the big three..."

She pauses, and the fact that she talks of them like this, and isn't a part of their close-knit group, tells me all I need to know.

Clearly, these three are the strongest in the world. The ones that run the Order behind the curtain, and from her earlier remarks, it's obvious they control the Association at Central headquarters as well.

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If the man that owned the marble mansion, and Raven herself, aren't strong enough to be among their ranks, I wonder how strong they really are.

Even now, I sense a tinge of fear coming from Raven's subconscious as she looks at the device, and as she's about to continue speaking, one of the four True Core Crystals blinks and glows brighter than the rest.

A man's voice ripples out.

"Checking in again on the top of the hour, Redgrave here from Central. Raven, if there isn't a reply in the next few transmissions, I'm going to have to take care of this issue myself..."

Raven's eyes widen, and I raise an eyebrow.

Her pulse speeds up, but I'm still in the dark on who exactly this is.

The man's voice ripples out again in the same monotone pitch with undertones of residual anger and impatience.

"I repeat, this is the top of the hour check-in, Redgrave from Central. Raven, if you hear this, we need a status update. Elara is the closest, so we'll be sending her out—"

Raven clicks her yellow gem and responds before the man can finish his words.

"Mr. Redgrave, reporting in. I've been quite busy healing, but the business you wanted taken care of is finished. I just ran into a few roadblocks along the way."

Immediately, the uninterested-sounding voice of the man animates, and the angry undertones come out full force.

Raven places a finger over her lips, making sure I don't make any noise as his angry yells come over the transmission device.

"What happened to Sebastian? Did you two get into a fight delivering a package? Injuring any members of the council is strictly against our pact... and it looks like you did a lot more than injure him."

Raven clicks her gem, but takes a few seconds to think to herself before replying.

"It was self-defense. I either turn into one of his twisted pieces of art, or I break the pact..."

She pauses for a few more seconds, and adds another line.

"I'm sure I don't have to report this to you, but there are most likely single-digit days remaining before the doors open, and we see what trials the originators have offered. Our pact is as good as ended..."

There's silence for a few more seconds, but the man's voice that replies back is more cool and calculated.

"It is still vital that we honor it until the end. It would be a waste to kill one another before even laying eyes on what some of us have waited centuries to see. Beckman studied your gem's fluctuations ever since your battle with that pest in the Dark Continent began. We know you were weakened when you showed up at Sebastian's mansion... and it appears both of you were in quite the fight when you arrived."

There's silence in the air for a few moments, then a long sigh comes next.

"I don't know how you healed... but I'm glad you made it out, Raven. You've always been one of my favorites."

Raven's face doesn't change, but a mixture of emotions comes out of her. Half is pure disgust and resentment, but another half is filled with respect and awe.

He continues to speak.

"It's a shame the old man won't get to see the trophy our ancestors left us. He truly was a believer... but that's life, not everyone gets what they deserve."

He laughs, and his mood changes again in an instant. It makes me wonder if every True Core in this order is as psychotic as the man in this mansion.

"Well, that is all. I look forward to seeing you again. Most of the Central forces will be moving in to start making temporary bases near the throne in a few days. I'm sure the Eight Great Regions are a mess, and the Dark Continent will be up for grabs as well. But, there's no point in negotiating rights over it now. Whoever takes the throne will own this entire world anyway."

His laughs fade away, and his crystal clicks off.

Raven leaves a final message.

"Indeed. I will see you all soon."

She too takes her finger off the gem and puts the transmission tablet into her item box while shaking her head.

I want to ask a million more questions, but concern is the only emotion I feel as Raven whispers under her breath.

"That will buy us some time, but I doubt they bought a single word I said. Beckman is too meticulous to write off today's events as a simple quarrel..."

She thinks to herself for a few more seconds, and I finally interject.

"That was one of them, right...? One of the big three? They're coming to the Dark Continent? And what do you mean they didn't buy it... he seemed to believe every word you just said."

Raven shakes her head again and looks at me.

"Yes, he's one of the big three, a fire user just like you actually. But him taking anything I say at face value? No... He's just wasting time. All of this is a big joke to Redgrave. He knows we're not a threat. He couldn't care less if I went on a rampage right now and killed every one of the outer members of the council and lied straight to his face about it. He's just putting on a show for his equals, Elara and Beckman. If he really cared, he would have come and leveled these two nations the instant you killed Mr. Freeman."

I look around the abandoned mansion, thinking about the fight I just had here, and the battle I had with Raven in the desert that morning.

The fact that there are really three people more powerful than them, not even bothering to take care of a potential rogue force on the loose when so much is on the line, both frightens and excites me.

Another line she's said makes me quite curious too, the fact that if all of the outer members of the Order were killed right now, no one would bat an eye...

I look back up at Raven and reply.

"Well, I think we should lay out everything on the table now. Where our loyalties truly stand, and how we can help each other in this impending war. You're a member of the Order, but an outcast that will be crushed once the big three really come out to play. I say we work together. I have an idea of how we could get much more powerful in the next few days..."