Chapter 144 - Who are you? What even are you?

"We should vote him out of nexus right now!" shouted some guy Hensen remembered to be in the seventh row.

He pulled down his top hat and sneered. What a joke. It was actually quite funny how everything around here needed a consensus. All the jokers who'd paid the cost to convene at Nexus had prayed for it to run based on the majority's will.

However, it was different from the critical consensus that Rupert wanted for the world. That consensus made use of Essence strands and complicated mind games, whereas Nexus had something of an impartial will that was supposed to listen to the majority.

Hensen had ideas on how this was going to play out, but he kept his mouth shut and scoffed internally, If they want to make a fool of themselves, who am I to stop them?

The one who'd begun the topic shouted at the top of his lungs, "I vote for this person to be kicked out of Nexus, and I implore the rest of you to follow quickly."

A palpable sense of contradiction spread all around the hall, and Hensen reveled in it. It was clear what was going on here. Many here knew it had to be done, but who in their right mind would verbally oppose an Eterna?

However, Hensen slapped his forehead the very next moment, realizing the contradiction in that statement. Yes. These dumb fucks will do it. They did just lynch an Eterna almost to death, after all. He shook his head. This was fun.

He was curious to see if they had the guts to do that again. Do it when neither the Nexus' pressure contained the Eterna nor was Rupert there to 'serve the justice.'

"This is worse than we thought, overseers. We need to kick this usurper out right now!" came the voice of that hateful teenager who'd started the motion for Hensen to be silenced. What was his deal? The kid was annoying as all hell and had one idea after another.

"What…what do you mean?" came an old hesitant voice.

The kid didn't die because of Hensen's focused hate and instead barked, "Think about it. The only reason someone can sit at the bottom of Nexus while being this powerful is that this…thing, this usurper, is not an Observer! It probably doesn't even follow the same path to power as us at all."

Hensen raised his eyebrows. He'd been wondering how anyone would ever get all these slimy bastards to offend not one but two Eternas, but as usual, he'd underestimated the imagination of observers. This was actually quite an interesting excuse.

Well, Hensen gave zero fucks if this person was a God, an Elden One, some outsider, pollution, or whatever, as long as it meant he could go back to Mistress after this. However, all these people obviously weren't of the same mind, and the hall instantly devolved into panicked cries.

"This…this can't be! How could Nexus of Elyndor allow such a thing!? I support his removal."

"Blasphemy! Oust him!"

"Gods and heavens beyond. We need to stop him. This…usurper is getting closer to the weft's core. Oh, Nexus. I vote him out! Kick him! Kick him!"

"Oh, no! That was his plan, wasn't it? He struck the omniscient one right at the worst moment to have free reign in here? That has to be it! I endorse the expulsion."

More and more of these hasty conjectures exploded in Hensen's ears, and he even began to feel a bit apprehensive. What if this really worked?

Well, he still had Mistress's light.

In but a few seconds, the mechanical voice of the nexus's will resounded, "The motion for removal of a member has been passed by a two-thirds majority. Removal imminent…"

The crowd suddenly turned silent, their ragged breaths acting as background music to the figure that walked between the shadows and lights.

However, the figure casually strolled higher, a hand in his pockets as if to show his disdain for such tactics.

.

.

.

In a few seconds, that mechanical voice boomed in the hall once again, "Motion for removal has been overruled. The meeting will continue as is."

.

.

.

"Hahhah Hah Ha aa Ha! Get fucked." echoed the boisterous laugh from somewhere in the row right beneath Hensen's.

Isn't this the guy who was silenced, just like me? Hensen mused. But, well, he was far too ecstatic to care about any of that, and this other guy was definitely challenging him to a competition by laughing so hard.

Hensen's body shook. No. It fucking rocked. "Hahh…" He was trying. He was trying so damned hard.

A palpable dread permeated the hall, and Hensen could hear their heartbeats over the disdainful laugh. This proclamation shattered any and all their vain hopes of resistance.

Hensen also stopped giving a fuck and leaned back, his chuckle escalating into a rapturous laugh, "Hahhaha Hahhhah! What a pathetic lot. Overseers? Can't even vote one person out. Hahhahah."

To his surprise, people indeed turned towards him, and he reasoned, Seems like the restrictions they piled on us are all gone. Did this newcomer overrule more than just his own removal?

Who cared?

"Hahahha haha."

"Ha ha Ha Ha aa Haa."

Two laughs, one almost maniacal, the other unrestrained, echoed in the hall, and someone finally couldn't take it anymore.

"Stop this folly, you worms! Do you think this is going to end well for any of us? This is an outsider we're talking about! It could very well be the culmination of all that is uncanny and has come to usurp our foundations and ruin our realm from its very core."

Hensen snickered. If he was the usurper in question, he'd have taken this guy and made an example of him right about now.

However, before he could put this marvelous thought into words, his laughing buddy who'd called out Rupert for what he is—a bastard—and was silenced promptly, scoffed, "You're all really blinded by the prospects of becoming gods, aren't you?"

Only the footsteps of the usurper greeted his question as they crossed what seemed like the sixth row.

Tap Tap

"Hah," he chuckled, "Are we really believing any stupid conjecture now? Come on, guys. There could be a million other reasons why this being was able to sit down at the bottom. Where is this talk about him being an outsider coming from?"

"What the hell would you know?" rasped some new voice Hensen hadn't heard until now. "Who do you think you are?"

"Well, I worked with Lorendales before your omniscient one slaughtered them. So I am definitely far more knowledgeable about the inner workings of Nexus than anyone else here."

That shut up the naysayer quickly, and the guy continued, "The answer is simple. You may or may not know this, but the vote of stronger observers counts more than us pathetic middle and low shades."

If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement.

Sarcasm dripped through his voice, and he asked, "You know what that implies?"

Tap Tap

Someone gulped and replied, "They…they're far stronger than any of us? Strong enough to outweigh all our votes."

"Bingo! Here I thought Rupert had already muddled your brains. I mean, yeah, there could be a couple of other reasons for this anomaly, but the assertion that they're an outsider has got to be the most absurd one."

The crowd chewed on his words, and in but a few seconds, the whole hall flickered, and the lotus pillar at the pinnacle that had been utterly dark, radiated pure light. Everyone stopped what they were doing and snapped their heads to the highest row.

The usurper, as expected, stepped onto the eighth row without a hitch. People stood up abruptly, their faces a mask of anxiety and apprehension as they took in the aftermath of previous proceedings.

Even Hensen stood up, a hand on his top hat. When his brain comprehended the sight in front of his eyes, a shudder went down his spine followed by a rush of ecstasy.

Above all common observers were these four demigods. One sat on his throne, filing his nails with a frown, while another pulled herself out of icy vines. These two were expected.

It was the third figure—the kneeling one—that gave Hensen a pause. A furious vertical eye shone with a red hue, doing its best to resist the pressure and unfurl. Alas, every attempt was a miserable failure. Its owner had it worse as he trembled, trying his best to oppose a pressure so terrifying it warped the very air around him.

Finally, there was the usurper donning that unique mask, black and white debris swirling around him like a cosmic halo as he stood there, overlooking the kneeling Rupert.

"This…this…Coven master. RESIST! We can't give up like this!"

"How is he doing this!?"

"How do we help!? Should we try to vote again?"

"Shut up. You know the vote is rigged."

"Coven master, unleash the Essence strands. We will support you!"

Hensen watched them all flounder like puppies without a master. Tch. He clicked his tongue.

Only if I had my champagne to go with all this. This was too fucking entertaining.

Regardless, all these cries and prayers did nothing to faze the people in question. Rupert didn't have the luxury to respond, while the usurper didn't bother and instead walked towards Lady Eterna.

He extended a hand towards her, and without showing even a hint of fear or gratitude, she accepted it. It was as if none of what happened fazed her even a single bit.

What Hensen saw, however, was the fact that Rupert was still on his knees. This meant that the usurper could selectively control the pressure and only apply it to Rupert. Hensen narrowed his eyes. This was good. It looked like there was finally someone who could keep Rupert in check.

Lady Eterna cradled her right arm as she walked back to her throne, but there were no serious injuries. Her heart was entirely unharmed, and Hensen somehow felt better about it.

As much as he hated Rupert, too, he would loathe for the man to really be killed by anyone but himself or Mistress. Eternas were existences that deserved reverence for the feat they'd achieved, and dying in such a mundane ordeal was tantamount to disrespecting the cosmos that had supported their journeys.

Murmurs echoed around the hall as people watched the proceedings with bitter expressions on their faces.

In this otherwise terrible situation for the council, Rupert's lips moved, and he hissed through gritted teeth, "What are you playing at, usurper?"

The usurper in question slowly turned toward Rupert, his figure an enigma against the backdrop of only light in this whole world—heck, even the stars from beyond were blocked by something. And after all this time, he broke his silence, "Usurper?" he shook his head, the particles of entropy orbiting him. "I'm just expressing my… disappointment towards the visionaries of this era."

The whole crowd quietened down as he focused his gaze on them.

Like an elder reprimanding children, he started, "As beings born from the flux, did everyone really just advocate for the execution of an observer for having an opposing perspective?"

"Did everyone really agree to a drastic measure that would essentially run the first Axiom of observation into the ground? A choice that would have severely limited the possibilities one's viewpoint could grow into."

In a crestfallen tone, he beseeched, "Have we really learned nothing on our journeys as observers? From the axioms that guide our path and our very singularity?"

Many in the crowd lowered their heads without a word. However, Rupert uttered through clenched teeth, his kneeling figure straightening bit by bit, "You can question the methods all you like, usurper, but we have limited time, and unlike the weak-minded, me and my fellow overseers decided to accept the burden, and do something about it."

He rasped, "Go ahead, be disappointed in us. But that doesn't change the fact that our decisions are the best ones for the world in its dire circumstances."

The usurper narrowed his eyes, "God complex and tangible power don’t mix well, coven master. They don't mix well." He sighed, "Why does each and every era have someone like you?"

Rupert frowned but soon responded, "I understand neither your strengths nor your means, usurper. However, I don't need to, for you're another one of millions that virtue signals without contemplating the consequences of inaction."

He stabbed his cane on the ground and used it to help himself back up little-by-little. "I allowed everyone to brainstorm and offer us a means out of this predicament. Yet, what was your contribution? None. Zero. Regardless, you now play this power game and come here, pass judgment on me and my fellow overseers willing to shoulder the burden?" He sneered, "What a saint."

Hensen rapped his fingers against each other. He had to give props to Rupert for not backing down one inch in front of such a figure. The man had strong ideals and beliefs. To the point that the possibility of provoking someone beyond his means didn't stop him at all.

As always, someone from Rupert's camp—a priest this time, jumped to agree with the man, "Yes, yes. You're nothing but a self-righteous wolf in sheep's clothing, usurper."

"A pretentious idealist," barked that teen once again.

Hensen felt like he should rebuke these guys, but he held his tongue. After all, he had no clue what this usurper's deal was. It would indeed not be ideal if he'd gone up there just to lecture everyone about morals.

At that moment, a low laugh permeated the hall, and everyone shut up once more, "Who said I don't have a solution?"

Rupert parted his lips to speak but closed them with a confused expression. After a while, when he looked like a hunched old man using his stick to pick himself up, he challenged, "Then it's arrogant of you not to present it during the open debate. You do understand that all of us need to come to a consensus of ideals for this to work, right?"

The eyes behind the mask turned playful, "Do we?"

This off-handed declaration was like a spark in a barrel of oil, and people exploded into worried chatter. "What…what does he mean? How could there be a critical consensus without most of us being involved?"

"What is going on?"

"They were right. He's not human. He's something else!"

"Yes, he plans on killing us all and harvesting our viewpoints for consensus."

"Fuck. I am leaving. I don't want to be a part of this. This has gone far out of our hands."

"I am leaving, too. This is wrong."

Tap!

Rupert smacked his cane and finally stood back up—this simple action pacifying the panicked ones. Clearly, the idea of more people leaving didn't sit right with Rupert. There were already many that didn't want or get to be an overseer. So, the loss of even one more Visionary would hurt their chances.

Hah. Hensen mused, He's still trying to make this council of overseers work.

Rupert then finally stood tall and matched gazes with his opposition before asking, "What do you mean, usurper?"

The enigma chuckled, "It seems humanity often expects the worst, even from its saviors." He shook his head, "No. I don't need any of you, nor do I plan on killing anyone. I can mend the weft all by myself. Feel free to leave the meeting at your leisure. I will take care of affirming this realm with my will alone."

The hall fell silent, the visionaries frozen mid-movement, their expressions etched with confusion.

Rupert was the same, his face rifling through myriads of expression before settling on a dark one. After a short silence, he asked with a suspicious look in his eyes. "Why would we leave our world's fate in the hands of someone like you? Who are you? What even are you!?"

The enigma sighed deeply, a sound that seemed to echo around the hall as he moved to center stage, his gaze sweeping over the crowd. His mask, which had been a constant flux of dichotomy of darkness and light, suddenly calmed down, and he spoke, "Call me a usurper if you must. But know this—I am here not to destroy but to fulfill. To balance what has been tipped, to correct what has been skewed."

He paused, his voice carrying a somber note, "As much as I wished that things didn't have to come to this, everyone's poor decisions have forced my hand."

His eyes locked with those of his audience, compelling attention, "You wish to know who I am? What I am? Then listen. And listen well."

He extended his arms, his voice deepening, "I am indeed not a human. For, I am the embodiment of something older, deeper—laws that you have long forgotten or never truly comprehended."

He clasped his hands together as if embracing the weight of his words, "This world operates on fundamental truths—axioms that govern all. Most of you recognize some as mere theories or principles. I live them, for they are part of me as much as I am part of them."

"I am the manifestation of those fundamental truths from which all else flows. I am the proof of the first axiom and the last, the one who strikes equilibrium between that which cannot be balanced."

His arms spread wide, he embraced the expanse of his declaration and proclaimed, "In a world divided into absolutes of light and dark, I arbiter the path of grays."

"For I am the manifestation and harmonizer of the rules upon which our world runs."

"I represent the laws. For I am the law."

.

.

.

"For, I am..."

"Axiom"

"The Zeroth Axiom: Balance."