All healers were to be nurtured underneath Frost’s wing, and none dared to say otherwise. After Scarlet Logic’s mass assassination of the healer’s public image, those that showed aggression were far more at risk than those still incapable of it. They would be easily mistaken for Scarlet Logic Gambit personnel in the eyes of the masses.

If it weren’t for Jury’s Isolation Sphere, then this would have risen to the same level of emergency as the Seeds. Thankfully, she had time to accumulate her thoughts and to lay the tracks for them to spin round and round.

Frost’s head spun, but her train of thoughts couldn’t be clearer now. The Ateliers that dealt with crime and punishment were the only ones in which she could place any semblance of trust, and ironically, it was the detached Atelier – Oboros Infinitas – whose philosophy strongly resonated with hers.

Turn back the clock just a few months ago, and Frost would have vomited at the idea. Or better yet, stood around and watched it happen like with D-13 and her administration of Serum S.

It surprised her how much she learned from these Beholders. She had thoroughly tempered her resolve in the event that these Beholders were hostile against her new reign, but surprisingly enough, they were obedient.

Frost had to consider whether this was because they were wary of Frost’s and the Arbiter’s power, or, because they were in a situation where they realized that their reign was built on a foundation of sand; their cold war and the betrayals having eroded it until the verge of a total collapse.

Justica Arms judged those that acted unfavorably. Oboros Infinitas punished those people. However, none could penetrate deeply enough to root out the cancer that caused them to fight for a foundationless castle, rather than to collectively create one.

What was required was an inquisitor. A body that could audit and collect information regarding conduct to ensure they all played by the same rules, less they’d be passed onto Justica Arms for the verdict, and to Oboros Infinitas for the sentence.

What they required was Jury.

The torch was finally passed onto the final member of the Arbiter’s Council. Jury had claimed a neutral stance since taking her position behind the desk. Suddenly, her shoulders relaxed as indomitable confidence began to emanate from her being. A faint ticking could also be heard, reflecting the status of her heart.

Frost mentally reached out for her as she watched on with gentle eyes.

Jury. Are you ready?

“Always. Mm. Thank you. It’s my turn to take the stage. It’s a lot more nerve wracking when everyone here can kill you just like that, but I know I can manage. Watch me, Frost.”

Good luck.

Jury briefly smiled before it swiftly disappeared. The unstable ticking followed soon after, playing a soothing rhythm that roused suspicion from the Beholders, but the longer they listened, the more they realized that this ticking was different from the one they recognized.

It was beautiful.

And her voice paired well with it.

“I am Beholder Jury.” She opened with a declaration designed to define her in the face of the Council, and to separate herself from Elysia as an identity of her own.

Her goldens eyes, the fluffy tail, and her avian, flushed ears were the hallmarks of an Angel. However, when one looked down at her left hand and saw her corroded, charcoal-colored claw and the mysterious bulbous tip of her tail which grew like a tumor in the eyes of many – then one needed to wonder whether she was an Angel or a Demon.

The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

Thankfully, Jury cleared this up with her following opening statement.

“I am an Angel like the Arbiter and the White Wing, but not as sacred as the former, or spiteful as the latter. I very well could be worse than the White Wing after having witnessed this world’s atrocities whilst hand in hand with the Amalgam.”

The meaning of hand in hand could be interpreted in a number of ways, so she clarified:

“We travelled this world seeking answers with the company of misery. We were guided only by the light of hope. To those of you who question or raise your brows at my affiliation with the Amalgam must ask yourself this: Who were the ones that issued any semblance of an effort to rescue them following the betrayal of a Star of the Nexus?”

Frost was rendered speechless. This was the first time she had ever seen Jury stand to address anything so vocally. She was the kind of person who took the issue directly to the person in question, such as Frost herself whenever she bit more than she could chew.

This was translated to a bigger stage almost flawlessly as Jury went for the throat to claim her position as the Amalgam’s Beholder.

“Justica Arms and Act X aided, sending three ‘disposable’ Moons our way as we traversed through the echoes of the restrictions in Grandis. It was there and within the Derma Layer that we realized that Corrupted are only our greatest threats when we allow misery to continue. We watched as people despaired and watched their world burn. Saw children seek for the stars in their world underneath, only to Corrupt and become that same star they wished they could reach.”

Jury told an abridged version of their journey, and the experiences that were etched into the forefront of her mind. Frost was always vocal about how she felt of these things, but this was the first time she had heard Jury mention her experiences in this light.

Woven within her confident words was utter anguish. Jury had waited for this moment, because she too had learned to despise the Ateliers, and she painted them as monsters.

But not irredeemably so.

“These Moons, who were cast out of the Nexus and barred from attending this very Council are now the same ones who guard it. The scorched girl who wanted to be loved is now the one person who brings many hearts together. The children who yearned to see the stars were able to reach them, and now sit cozily within the Amalgam’s heart.”

Jury wanted to pay homage to the Moon triplets, a testament to how proud she was of them.

Because like her, Ignis and even Nav – they were stragglers trying to figure out their rights and wrongs. If misery was the world, then Frost was their hope to see it in a different light. For Jury, this was a literal meaning than just a simple metaphor. Perhaps even for Ignis. Snap. Ber. Everyone Frost touched was helped in one way or another. The fluffy ears of the triplets drooped, their tails softly wagging as they embraced Jury’s voice.

The Moons wondered what Jury was getting at as eyes wandered over to the triplets, then to Frost, and finally back onto Jury as she continued:

“I believe that we are only worth as much as we want to believe ourselves as. Time Reverberation seeks to help those we take in to realize their potential. Your trauma is ours. Your grief will be heard. We must become better.” She pointed to the triplets who served as proof of her words…

… no. They were an invitation.

Indeed. The cunning Jury had planned to sweep the Moons into their hands for good. They were already on the Amalgam’s side. But for them to know that she also belonged to the Amalgam meant that by working under her, they’d also be working closely with the Amalgam.

As if sensing their curiosity, Jury then confirmed:

“The triplets were only the beginning. We therefore extend our invitation to all Moons of the Nexus to join Time Reverberation – the Atelier of not only myself, but also of her most merciful: the Amalgam.”

They did not know what to think. Jury intentionally invited them rather than ordering them to join by the command of the Amalgam because these Moons were the ones who were forever forsaken by all.

That’s why her invitation caused these unwanted Moons to stand there with solemn eyes. Jury’s offer couldn’t have sounded any better after hearing the truth of why they fought the Corrupted in the first place.

Were it not for Serum G, then many would have broken down into tears.

“Time Reverberation is fundamentally an Atelier that will regulate all other Ateliers, conduct audits to determine whether guidelines and Laws are being satisfied, and most importantly, to ensure that it serves its ultimate purpose as the highest level of authority behind the Archetypes. Through my time manipulation there will be nothing you can hide. In order to remain within the Nexus and continue as a Blessed Beholder, then you must agree to the terms of Time Reverberation. This is how we will guarantee that your silly cold wars will be put to an end. Moons. Healers. Perhaps even the Stars, and those deserving will be elevated into our Atelier, and they will be offered a chance to live rather than serve.”