The throes of the Nexus were nothing to be alarmed about. Occasionally the Nexus would quake even outside of Frost’s influence. This was mainly caused by the awakening of an Archetype. The most recent was the Archetype of Wrath who, like all Archetypes aside from Frost and perhaps Anna, awakened outside of the Nexus.

Nav couldn’t predict when an awakening was imminent. She was also not entirely aware if the Archetypes within their Floors were even awake to begin with. Nav’s attunement with the Nexus was strange. What was even stranger was what the System was in the first place. Not for Frost, but for the Blessed as a whole.

If it was not Nav who governed their System…

… then who did?

The Floor of Ego was their first clue.

< A voice not belonging to my own has uttered this to me. The Archetype of Ego is waiting for a trigger >

“More mysteries. Right when we were getting answers. Any idea what this trigger is?” Frost pondered as she overlooked the sprawling town that belonged to her precious Moons and Healers.

< Nothing. I believe this is the same person that has been feeding me information that I otherwise would have never known >

< They demand that I do not pry nor mention you in any capacity >

< Strange… I feel like I have heard this soundless voice before >

< Please pay this no further heed. They assure that this trigger will come in due time >

Black Wings, White Doves, and all manners of Moons lived freely in this paradise. The concept of normality was still foreign to many, but the Healers were good at bringing the unsociable Moons out of their comfort zone.

Besides, who can say no to a Healer’s request?

The town had a population of roughly two hundred. Thirty Moons, and one hundred and seventy Healers; one hundred of which were the Black Doves. The remaining lived within Time Reverberation’s Headquarters.

Some found the confines of those vast walls more comforting than being under the sun. In fact, a lot of the White Doves were more comfortable living there.

The reason was not so clear. They just liked it. The Black Doves on the other hand unanimously wanted to live here because it paralleled their aspirations of freedom. The White Doves had the mindset of a bird in a cage in a sense.

Healers and Moons, and even the Stars came from a massively diverse background. No two people had the same experiences, but they could be categorized into three distinct areas.

The first were the Healers who normally came from stable backgrounds. Rarely did any find themselves amid tragedy. Most if not all came from the Epiderma Layer with the majority of recent Healers having been born in the City of Clubs.

Contrary to what Frost’s belief; Scarlet Healers did not come from war-torn backgrounds. They were just Healers that carried an unhealable condition which slowly changed them over time.

The second were the Moons who came from tragic backgrounds. Despair and loss were a common theme amongst the Moons. Many came from the Subderma Layer where the light of day shone through small crevices, past the layers of the world they called the ‘Well’.

Those Moons born from the Subderma were the only people that were able to leave it behind without becoming an Impuritas. It was the source of their perceived divinity long before the Blessed were a widely known force. Some of the Incandescent Colors were also born from this place.

The third was the Stars. They came from all corners of the world and yet they shared only one thing. The Nexus. It was their compass; the ‘Northen Star’ that navigated them when they were lost in their darkest seas. Even if everything around them was changing, the Nexus would always remain firmly in the center of it all like Polaris – the Northern Lodestar of Earth’s skies.

“Or perhaps like Sigmia Octanis. The Southern Star.” Nav added from out of the blue.

Therefore, the Nexus itself became their epiphany.

This was the fundamental difference between the Stars and the Moons who were broken down by the world and forced to Corrupt, saved only by the Blessing of the Nexus.

Powerful epiphanies trigger the Corruption. Elysia is capable of leading a person to an epiphany. The same goes for her Aberrations as well.

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Frost fell into deep thought, hearing Ignis, Jury, Nav, Anna, the Star Child and Snap enter through the front door.

“Who is to say that you cannot lead people to such epiphanies too?” Nav stood at the bottom of the Atrium, staring up at Frost’s figure that slowly made her way towards the balcony.

She gave them a pleasant wave.

“You know as much as I do that you may have the same power as Elysia to speak to people’s hearts. If she Corrupts, then you can bring them back. But you also have Abilities that can incite the opposite.”

… is that really something to be happy about?

“I am only stating my observations. You and Elysia are alike in that you both have a profound influence on people. Even the Beholders have been reinvigorated because of your presence.”

The difference being that I can’t exactly invade other people’s minds unless they’re about to become Corrupted. I doubt Elysia fights people in their State of Minds to turn them into Corrupted.

“We don’t know that.” Nav said precisely what Frost was also thinking. For all they knew Elysia’s method of Corruption was simply beating a person in their mind. But how could that lead to an epiphany?

It was ironic that Frost of all people was stuck on this train of thought.

Res was the first to hear the ticking. Ber didn’t hear it at all. Neither did Ignis as far as she can tell. I don’t know what the conditions are, but Res just needed that one last push to Corrupt. And for what reason?

She was still frankly frustrated that Res had Corrupted. Nothing was going to change it, but the fact that Elysia did play a role in her Corruption now brought her intentions into question. She was mostly on Elysia’s side prior. But now? It was difficult for her to answer this.

… Besides. That might not have even been Elysia herself. It could have been a different Aberration. At this point it sounds like I’m making excuses. I just want to know what’s going through her mind.

And speaking of Res – the group waited at the Atrium for the triplets. A long silence held them in suspense as they sensed their presence approached the front door. Suddenly, the doors swung open, revealing a pair of beautiful, sapphire eyes that widened in surprise.

“E-Everyone’s here?” She blurted out, right before Ignis exploded with astonishment.

“RES!?” Ignis ran towards her, reaching out to hold her forearms as if in disbelief. “Is that really you!?”

“Bzzzzt!?” Snap also rushed up, now looking up at Res with sparkles in its eyes.

Anna placed her book down, unable to hide her smile of relief.

“Another Realization… You… You look so much happier now.”

“A surprising appearance.” Nav did not expect Res to appear so colorful considering she took the form of an adult now. “But it is beautiful, nonetheless. Welcome back, Res.”

“Welcome back!” Jury exclaimed, lunging forward with open arms. She embraced everyone into one giant heap, her tail securing them all in place.

“Mhm! Welcome back Res!” Ignis sincerely hugged Res, knowing well what she had endured as a Corrupted.

“Bzzzzt~!” Even Snap got in on the action, leaving Cer, the Star Child and Anna to struggle in between the bodies of giants.

“I-It’s so good to see you again, Res. Welcome back!” Anna’s feet were torn from the ground repeatedly before she disappeared into Snap’s body, reappearing on the other side where Frost now stood. “You did again Frost. You saved another person.”

“All thanks to our old friends.” Frost pointed at the entrance where four new figures could be seen.

It was Stella, Aster, Revy, and Sana.

“And Res herself more importantly. She managed to reach a crossroads somewhere along the way. I can only imagine how hard that was. I’m proud of them. All of them.” Frost spoke like a doting parent as she watched over her ‘children’. “Anna. We have something we need to talk about with Magus and the Arbiter soon. I’m sorry to bring this up on such a short notice.”

“It’s fine! I’m always looking for new ways to make myself busy now.” Anna nodded her head rapidly, right before she fondly stared at Res’ brand-new form. “Canvas Tales. She used to make that kind of face only when she was next to you.”

“Yeah. Res can smile earnestly now. She was like you. She had the weight of the past holding her from being true to herself.” Frost whispered.

Suddenly, Res’ ears flapped in her direction. Through the shoulders and heads of her friends, she spotted Frost and beamed with the brightest smile Frost had ever seen. Warmth enveloped her chest as a wave of relief crashed over her again and again.

She still couldn’t get over Res’ scare.

“Do you think Corruption is a curse?” Anna suddenly asked just as Res began painting a picture for Ignis and Stella, the texture causing the blind girl to smile just as brightly as Res.

“It is.” Frost answered immediately. “The suffering it’s caused cannot be a blessing.”

“I’ve been thinking about that. I know it’s a curse. But for some people that have lost everything, it can be a ray of hope.” Anna begged to differ. “If a person can overcome themselves then they can be better. Don’t you think?”

“In a perfect world, yes. But this isn’t a perfect world. Not everything operates in a vacuum. The Corruption draws out the worst of a person rather than their best. And even their best becomes a hideous parody of what they once were. The nature of the Corrupted is predicably horrifying…”

Frost glanced over as Ber who had become the Black Swan she had aspired to become.

Ignis who could only blame herself for the misery of others.

Aster who aspired to become a star, only to realize that they were not what she had believed them to be, and now was content with just seeing them.

Snap who realized that there was more to helping someone than showing them pictures of precious memories.

Jury who found a star in her bleak world. Contrary to her reaching for a star, that star reached out towards her.

And now Res, who once blinded herself to the colors of the world only to realize that it’s not so bad. The ugly and the beautiful made up the colors of the world, after all. And if she didn’t like it, then she had to paint over it.

Frost couldn’t hear the others anymore. The wheels of her train of thought drowned their voices. It finally landed at its destination, and she couldn’t help but to see where Anna was coming from.

“… but in the best-case scenarios, and certainly with me – we can make the best of it.”

“Yeah. I thought so too. Sorry. It’s kind of like having the mentality of Wandering Healer.” Anna chuckled, expecting this kind of answer from Frost.

A warm hand then fell onto her head.

“It’s good to see both sides of the argument. I have a lot of regrets from not being able to see from the other side. Maybe one day we can change the Corrupted phenomenon into a real blessing. But for now… it’s unfortunately a curse. Negative emotions are the strongest after all. One small lapse of judgement or emotion can bring a normal person down. I’ve seen it happen to the best of us. It’s in our nature. It takes a strong person to see through it.”

“Exactly. We’re all slaves to our emotions. And that’s the key. Emotions. Nex.”

Res was showered with endless warmth that day. The short-haired woman – who was once the coldest – became the warmest of them all. Of course, Res’ professional conduct hadn’t changed. She had her duty to uphold as an upstanding Moon. She vowed to never let herself lose sight of what matters the most. If her tail was a paintbrush, and the world was her canvas, then the people around her were the colors used to paint her world.

Aster, Stella, Revy and Sana were to live within the manor until a home for them was built. Anna and Nav wondered how to make the place bearable for the blind Stella. That was until Ignis came up with a brilliant idea.

“Backpack. I can make one for Stella. It can protect her and help guide her until I figure out how to make more complex organs.”

The plan was made effective immediately.

And in the meantime, Frost had a meeting due with the Archetypes, her Moons and later – With Mimicry and the 6th Branch.

Afterwards…

… it would be time to head to Atlas with the triplets for the Blooming.