Magus then announced:
“The egg is the world, as I’ve heard. There are two ways to interpret it. The first is that the world itself is what creates the kind of person inside. In this instance, you’re bound to this scenery. Some may not wish to hatch. Others will struggle to let go. But eggs were meant to be broken. A shattered world invites one to step forth and experience a world anew. It’s still regrettable that Moons are still suffering from the effects of Serum G to this day, though I am oh so elated that it seems that the invasion given our Moons one last push to ‘hatch’ from their shells.”
“Hah. Hatching is a strange way to describe us. But I like it. We call this the Tides of the Moon. Old wounds can never heal because of Serum G. Hora Therapeutics will have their work cut out for them. And also – Archetype of Hope – I don’t believe it was just the lack of Serum G.”
Ruby smiled, fixing her buttons as she realized how unsightly she appeared. Most of the Moons Magus had come across looked that way. They had shown more emotions in this one hour than they had in the months that he had spent in the Nexus.
“I’m aware. Her foundation of rapport has paid itself back by tenfold. Thank the Amalgam when she returns. She’ll be happy to hear the exciting news.”
The tarot card returned to Magus’ side. It disappeared with a blinding flash of light.
“Is… there a reason why you were looking at our Tides?”
“There was an abnormal spike of positive Nex. Nex born from a Hope seeded by Despair. No Moon can fondly speak of their past. Even so, I’ve only seen the Moons tap into that despair to bring forth new colors into the Nexus. I must say, my stroll has been quite the inspirational one. Marvelous what following a virtuous star can do.”
“A star?” The Moon asked.
Magus seemed to smile. He had no mouth, but Ruby could sense this.
“Indeed. A star. Now then, if you may excuse me.”
Magus appeared and disappeared like a flickering star. Just as his tarot card vanished with a blinding light, the magician disappeared when a crystal obstructed his form.
A heavy silence immediately befell the corridors. It caused Ruby to reflect on her encounter with the Archetype of Hope for a short moment.
“Hope born from despair. If it weren’t for our experiences, then I would’ve accused him of treating me like a child. Only children believe in such nonsense.” Ruby complained, but her feelings contrasted her words. “Our Tides were the worst part of us. A Moon barred of her past will loathe anything that resembles it.”
She then turned her attention to the Masque.
“So we must thank you for allowing us to overcome our hurdles. I never knew how colorful my crystals were till you arrived. How terrifying that this came out without a thought put into it. I suppose that’s what makes us different from old Moons. You’re severely mistaken, Impuritas, if you believe that we’re protecting the Nexus under an obligation. This is what we want.”
You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.
Her face was pulled close to the Masque, her breath running down the side of the entity’s stitched ears. Ruby’s eyes drilled into theirs carrying the collective fury of the Moons.
“So long as there’s another suffering more than you, then there is a distinction between heaven and hell for you. I remember your faces. The Blood Festival and your carnivals. Your fairgrounds that decorated the rides with entrails. There was once a living popcorn machine that held molars extracted from children. Etch their weakness into your body.”
“What kind of weakness? Are we going to torture them?”
“You are.” Ruby handed over a flaming crystal to her Aspiring Moon. The heat it emitted should have burned their hands, but it was surprisingly cool to the touch. “My methods would only kill them too quickly. I would start with dissection. Remove their components. None of them belong to it in the first place. Do as you wish.”
The Candidate and Aspiring Moons were taught to be cruel to their enemies. A single ounce of mercy could quickly spiral into a disaster. Furthermore, there wasn’t a person present who didn’t know of the horrors the Blood Festival were capable of.
While the Fractured Nilhim were the manifestation of terror, this was only true when they were present. The very existence of the Blood Festival instilled fear into Adventures of all levels. A joyous carnival of blood, shaped by the flesh of living, and played unwillingly by those who wished to keep or regain what little of themselves they had left.
How hope was trampled by the bleakness of losing it all, and how despair transformed into hope as one acquired the flesh of others. How deep that underlaying despair would run as they smiled and repressed their revulsion to what they had become.
“They’ll bring people down infinitely beneath them, so that they can live in their own paradise. The Festival fabricates smiles. The only children I’ve ever seen smiling in those were those who got to keep their parents as stuffed toys.” Ruby recited a scene far too specific to be a random example. “Show them no mercy. You’ll have to protect more than just the Nexus. Don’t forget that.”
“Yes, master.”
* * *
Few of the Floors were breached by the Impuritas. The Floor of Judgement, the Floor of Civilization and the Floor of Ego saw the Impuritas appear inside uninvited thanks to Nav’s relocation.
However, these were the ones that lived the shortest lives. The pale majesty of the Floor of Judgement turned black in an instant. A creature with one thousand golden eyes hunted the unfortunate invaders as a humanoid owl laughed at their throes.
The Floor of Civilization saw a similar scene. Since it was manned primarily by ex-Eye personnel of Caldera Industries, they were not exactly trained for direct combat. However, there was no need for them to lift a finger.
A crying, wandering child; a hundred ethereal hands; and a thousand bouncing hearts laid the invading Impuritas to waste. Archived Corrupted fought on the side of the Nexus, eliminating all that was deemed impure. What were once chibified versions of the Corrupted became their fully powered selves. And with it came the same level of annihilation that they were originally known for.
It was one thing for the Impuritas to prepare for Moons, but entirely another to guard against Corrupted exceeding that of the Eternal Night Risk Class. It did not help that the Floor of Judgement held a Paradise Lost Corrupted, promising any future endeavors to be as hopeless as the last.
Those who were unfortunate enough to face the majesty of the Icon of Judgement fell to their knees and repented on the spot, only to be mercilessly transformed into Markers. A graveyard of pallid crosses littered the Floor of Judgement, as bleeding, screaming hearts did in the Floor of Civilization.
Then, there was the Floor of Ego.