Don Beigon features were harsh and his hair was dark. Looking at the intensity of his gaze and the lines around his eyes, Randidly realized that the man was ancient; the only reason he couldn’t tell immediately was that his hair was completely black, without even the slightest hint of grey.

Yet there was an implacable weight to him that couldn’t be faked. His Nether Core responded to the significance he had accumulated simply by aging, even if he had no dedicated receptacle to contain that power.

The other fact about the Don that became immediately obvious was that he had no legs. His torso cleanly transitioned into the wicker and mahogany wheelchair beneath him. But the folds of the man's maroon jacket prevented Randidly from seeing the particulars of that shift. Yet the fact that his upper body appeared almost completely humanoid seemed to suggest that it wasn’t a natural transition

Next to them in the courtyard, the spring gurgled pleasantly. Birds chirped in the warm illumination that shined down on the house of Beigon. Randidly slowly opened his mouth, wondering how much and what he should say to explain his presence.

But the Don lifted a massive, tanned hand to stop him. “Let us dispense with the artifice. I can guess the goal of your meeting with my daughter, even if I do not know the details nor why you, the rumored Head Drill Sergeant underneath Commandant Wick, were her best selection. I am not a man who wastes time. Do not bother lying to me.”

And for the first time since Randidly had walked into the room, Randidly stiffened. Don Beigon briefly pulled back the curtain and revealed a thick and furious flow of Aether that was pumping through his body. His hand stretched outward, elongated by the vast energy he contained. The image that Randidly witnessed there, of molten metal and bleeding skies, was not at the overwhelming ‘truth’ of the Speculum he had witnessed in the Fifth Cohort. But it felt a finger or two deeper than Velio Dunn and Commandant Wick.

This was Don Beigon, the man who shared the administration authority of Alymian with Solomon Rex. Here was the ironhanded father that was selling off his daughter to the highest bidder.

He was ancient. And he had the power to survive in the viper pit that was the Nexus.

Randidly pressed his lips together and controlled his expression as best he could. He took several steps forward and sat down at the light bamboo table. That reminder of what this man was planning to do with Claudette was enough to steady him through this strange development.

He refused to balk easily before this twisted father.

Randidly’s mind moved frantically, trying to weigh loyalty to Claudette versus the subtle threat that Don Beigon made, even while he simply folded his hands in his lap. The Don leaned forward and poured Randidly a cup of steaming tea. The way his jacket fell truly revealed that his torso ended at a complex network of straps that attached him to the chair.

Of course, in the Nexus you didn’t need a whole body to wield overwhelming power.

As the older man leaned back and set the tea kettle down, Don Beigon’s lips curled up slightly. “...quite like your arm, I sense, my wounding was self inflicted. But I was not so bold as you, to directly alter the Aether body record of the Nexus. Heh. I… just wished to escape my past. And I found a new identity for myself in the Nexus, one that didn’t require legs at all or the tradition that was tied to them. Only power.”

Randidly took a sip of the tea. The flavor was warm and spicy, all cinnamon and clove and citrus. When he set the cup down, he finally addressed Don Beigon’s original question in as neutral a tone as possible. “I’m here to see if I can help Claudette.”

To Randidly’s surprise, the Don chuckled. “Heh. Let me guess, help protect her… from me? From my machinations? From her vicious father?”

Is this a situation where he wants to force me to admit going against him before he bares his fangs…? Randidly wondered. But still, he nodded. The Don had asked him to tell the truth and poured him tea. So the least he could do was tell the truth-

Randidly paused on that thought. His Nether Core was whirling, faster than he had seen it moving in a long time. His skin prickled, warning him. His eyes steadily narrowed into sharp points. Why the hell would it matter that he poured me tea…?

Seeing the shift in expression on Randidly’s face, Don Beigon’s heavy eyes showed an expression of surprise. “Oh. Heh. Well, you weren’t the Head Drill Sergeant for nothing, eh? Forgive an old man for wanting to use a few tricks to ensure the best for his daughter. Truly, your image is a little shallow… but that’s a matter of time, isn’t it? You’ll be a monster someday, in this man’s estimation, Randidly Ghosthound. Keep at it.”

However, Randidly heard something entirely different from that statement. The understated Don Beigon leered at him. But you aren’t a monster now, not yet.

Not like me.

Randidly’s hands tightened on the teacup, but he didn’t dare take another drink. He activated both Revelations of the Atramentous Threshold and Ruin is Inevitable, Yet This Too Shall Pass, but both Skills felt… anchorless, somehow. The Skills spun, but he couldn’t get any solid read on the situation and he didn’t dare forcefully flare his image to force the issue, not while they were calmly sitting across from each other and sipping tea. Begrudgingly, Randidly allowed his Skills to deactivate and scrutinized the man in front of him.

If Commandant Wick was the master of harsh rules and regulations, the Don in front of Randidly was deeply talented in the methods of soft power. Suddenly, the strange debts he had seen being paid at the entrance made more sense. That, perhaps, was the danger of this man. That you would happily throw yourself into his debt and then just as happily give up everything you had to repay him.

Stolen novel; please report.

“I think,” Randidly said slowly. “That selling your daughter to the highest bidder… is not the best for Claudette.”

Again, Don Beigon seemed surprised. He glanced around at the surroundings for a few seconds, his eyes inscrutable. The birds continued their merry song, even with the air seemed to hum. “...and what do you know about the difficulties of being a father?”

To that, Randidly said nothing.

“I’ll pay you double what she is offering, just to walk away.” Don Beigon said after taking another sip of his tea. Randidly had to forcefully suppress the desire to mirror that movement, afraid that another sip would make him more susceptible to persuasion due to the Don’s strange Skillset.

Randidly shook his head. He would not walk away. Some part of him believed it was for the best to avoid drawing the ire of this man… but another part of him refused to consider stepping back now when he so truthfully believed that Claudette didn’t deserve this.

“A man with principles.” Don Beigon mused, still with his eyes on the spring. Small fish flitted back and forth in the shallow edge of the pool, dancing with the dappled light that filtered down through the water. “As beautiful as stained glass… and just as fragile. Well. Well well well. Let me at least explain myself a bit. I do not want you to get involved while ignorant of the circumstances.

“Claudette is a weakness. My weakness. My only child, my precious daughter. And the unavoidable truth… is that she will someday leave me.” Don Beigon sighed. “Her spirit is too bright. She would never consent to stay here forever, protected from the despicable elements of the Nexus… heh, don’t give me that look. Do you think that the Frost Matriarch or the other Pinnacle Seekers will be able to protect her? To get to me, to get access to Alymian… do you know what would put the Pinnacle Seekers immediately in line? Power. Power solves every problem in this fucked up world. And that’s assuming… that the ones seeking to control my daughter aren’t the Pinnacle Seekers themselves. Those fanatics who base their whole existence around an impossible dream.”

Randidly pursed his lips. In the end, when he opened his mouth he asked a question that had been bothering him for a while. “Why… is Alymian so important to so many people? And powerful people, at that.”

“Ah… this makes sense. Your image is yet too shallow for you to realize,” Don Beigon murmured. “You understand the Pinnacle, yes? You essentially create a world. An internally consistent world emerges from your image, whole and pure. Well, that is the ideal; most often you make the attempt and someone sabotages you or, more likely, your attempt is flawed and you fail.

“To those Speculum and even less who feel like they are close to taking that final step… two examples of how it may be done are better than one. And Alymian is the only publicly acknowledged success in the history of the Nexus.”

“Publicly acknowledged…?” Randidly probed, sensing something from the way the Don had spoken. But the man just smiled blandly at him. And when Randidly opened his mouth to press further, he found that he could not.

And he could read the reason why on the Don’s face. I have already given you this hint. You dare ask for more in the face of my favor?

Randidly gritted his teeth. Don Beigon’s strange social Skills… gave him a feeling of pressure like nothing he had ever encountered before. HIs ability to interact with others had grown, but this was quite a bit beyond his comfort zone.

Luckily, the Don moved back to the prior topic. “You might think me heartless to do this to Claudette, but I have no choice but to find a more permanent means of protection. She will suffer in the short term, I cannot deny that… but I would rather knowingly give my daughter away and guarantee she is safe but upset… than wake up one day and find that she is raped and dead in some dark corner of the Nexus. It is my worst nightmare to think that she would die and I will not be able to recover her body.”

What’s left unsaid is that the transaction will be binding leverage for you, Randidly’s jaw clenched even further. Your Skills… you will bind this individual very tightly to the promise of protecting her… as a wife. And the fact that you are making this public… will that act as a subtle deterrent? How influential are you…?

“If she cannot realize the truth herself… I will make the decision for her.” Don Beigon shook his head. “That is my prerogative as her father.”

Randidly’s skin tingled as he looked at the intense man. He licked his lips and forced his jaw to unclench. Then he shook his head. “You… cannot protect her forever. Part of love is allowing… allowing those you protect to experience pain. To allow them to be hurt by the world… because your truth is not theirs. They need to find it for themselves.”

In that second, all of the amiable candidness in Don Beigon’s expression was gone. Suddenly he was a hawk, riding on a tidal wave of molten flames. “What do you know of love, Mr. Ghosthound? What do you know of protection and responsibility?”

Randidly began to tremble underneath the force of Don Beigon’s image pressure, even as the polite invitation to tea acted as a binding that prevented Randidly from manifesting his own image in response. Subtle and unspoken agreements bound his Soulspace. But Randidly’s emerald eyes blazed; he did not need an image to resist this little bit of pressure.

“My world even now experiences the System, Mister Beigon.” Randidly hissed. “An entire world is balanced upon my continued success, lest it be tossed aside by the Nexus and left to a slow death by energy famine after I am buried. So please, do not mock my understanding of responsibility.”

For the third time, Don Beigon’s eyes twinkled with surprise. All the bluster fell away and the man chuckled. “Heh. It’s been a while since someone has dared speak out against me. Interesting. Perhaps I can understand why you have the false stench of hope on you. Hmmm.”

Randidly tried to keep his breathing steady as the Don rapped his fingers against the table and thought. Finally, the older man spoke again. “...how about this. I promise to not stop you from making a deal in my daughter. Because I think you are aware of how easy it would be for me to do so, without even threatening your life. And honestly… I don’t think your interference will change anything. Giving her an outlet for this hare-brained scheme of hers… is likely a positive thing. In exchange… two things. One, you keep this meeting between us a secret. Mostly because I don’t want my daughter peeved at me. And secondly… to go along with the first portion, I’ll teleport you to the entrance and you’ll approach once again. What do you think?”

Randidly had been expecting some steep costs for the promise of non-interference, but the requests from the Don… were quite reasonable.

Of course, Randidly’s heart sunk when he had that thought. And because they are reasonable… I don’t think I can refuse, can I? He nodded with a heavy heart.

Don Beigon smiled. “I’m glad we had this talk, Mr. Ghosthound. Reach out if you ever need anything. You’ll find I’m quite good at getting… almost anything, for the right price.

Then the Don snapped his fingers. In the next instant, Randidly was standing once more at the base of the mountain, looking up at ten million stone steps. Mist drifted above him in long clumps.

“This is what you meant by ‘teleport to the entrance’? What a petty old man,” Randidly muttered. Then he shook his head and began to climb once more.