“How’s the Patron of Feathers?” Randidly asked as he leaned back against the hand-sewn cushions. He, Neveah, and Tatiana sat at the rather cramped table by the window, half of their bodies bathed in sunlight. Despite their relative importance on the broader political spectrum of Expira, no one seemed to notice their presence here. Conversation and business continued around them without the slightest pause.

It was a definite relief, one Tatiana hadn’t even believed at first. She insisted everyone would know him immediately. Randidly had finally cut his hair, but most of the customers at the diner seemed either too self-involved or fearful to notice them. Or, more honestly, most of the people who ended up here came from Danger Zones connected to Expira, so they knew of Randidly Ghosthound, but had never seen him.

Their waitress was a frogperson and the one who seated them had been of a strange, teddy-bear looking teenager with a blank expression. Both had been too numbed by the constant flow of customers to give them more than a perfunctory look.

Well, Randidly’s lips twitched as his gaze went out the window. Several prominent and powerful figures waited, not approaching but watching the diner with intent gazes. The zealous fervor in their eyes was visible even from here. They stood next to their mounts and adjusted their grip on the weapons. They were an unasked for honor guard. I suppose we are incognito as long as you ignore how many of the Riders are gathering at this location. Few Zones could muster up enough force to harm this diner, right now.

Neveah pursed her lips and looked down at her coffee. “Her situation is stable; she remains on the schedule Lucretia warned you about. Nothing unusual has happened; she continues to dim and wither. The original timeline of about four more months… seems like it will hold. However, the Patrons are becoming increasingly upset, actually watching her suffer. Their work isn’t quite what the other Pantheon members have come to expect. Returning to the Nexus sooner would be better.”

Randidly nodded slowly. His mouth tasted sour. Now that the deadline approached, he felt like there were so many more tasks that needed his immediate attention. But so long as he trained both the emotional method Helen had demonstrated and familiarized himself with his new Domain, he would emerge a much more powerful version of himself than came down the shaft to meet Solomon Rex. Plus, if he could find more time to experiment with his Fourth Authority-

His thoughts paused when their harried waitress approached the table. She favored them all with a tired but genuine smile. “So, have you had time to look over the menu? What can I get for you?”

“I’ll have the daily special,” Tatiana said as she took the menus from Randidly and Neveah and gave them to the waitress in a neat pile. Neveah ordered the same.

“I’ll take the Southwest Scramble,” Randidly said. The waitress nodded and then flounced away. At the next table over, a toddler stared soulfully at Randidly over his mother’s shoulder, deeply perplexed by something in his visage. Randidly couldn’t help but wonder if the kid had some unusual perception-based Skill, already, or could witness a bit of his images.

Hell, my Animation Nova is activated constantly. They should do studies to see if I’m safe to be around children, He reflected, only partially joking.

“I hope the food tastes as good as it smells,” Tatiana sighed in satisfaction and then took another sip of her tea. “The chef at City Hall does either artisan flatbreads or yogurt parfaits for breakfast, but sometimes you just want a hefty helping of diner food. Grease and butter, oh god. Mmm…”

“Both of you are way too expressive when it comes to food.” Neveah shook her head slightly at Tatiana and looked at Randidly. “Are you going to visit her while you are here? The one you have the connection to?”

“I’m not sure if that’s the best idea. I think keeping her bubble intact for as long as possible would be better,” Randidly looked past the busy diner goers and through the walls to see Randy, working in the back. Her control over her power had grown to the point that the preparation of foods didn’t take much effort; it was why Takeyhands recommended they shift some of the training to more combat-focused. “Besides, she’s under the impression that I’m some sort of sentient cloud.”

“Well, this idyllic period won’t last too much longer. That Zone 1 land developer is going to start breaking ground soon,” Tatiana rolled the bottom of her coffee cup on the table, like it was a tilt-a-whirl. “Depending on how much traction he gets with property values, a whole new type of clientele could show up at B’s Crossing.”

“How did we let this happen? The process won’t be pretty. Refugees don’t have money; You know they are going to try and push out all the non-Expirans that have settled here,” Neveah asked.

If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it's taken without permission from the author. Report it.

Tatiana threw a pointed look at Randidly. “Partially because I wasn’t informed that there would be any need to buy up property in the area. But truthfully, even if I had known, it would have been difficult for us to do anything. No one even owns this land; even now, it’s mostly first come first serve for places outside of the Zones. There is only an issue if one of the Zones thinks its too near to them and wants to contest the foreign business’s claim for a payout. If Kharon or any of its connections start sniffing around this area, which is pretty immediately Southwest of Zone 1, there would have been a huge stink.

“They won’t do anything to the diner, at least not at first,” Tatiana continued. She rolled her shoulders and set her cup down flat on the table. “I did some research. The developer is based out of East Providence and is savvy. They are smart enough to understand what is bringing value to the area. And also that this area was purposefully made attractive to refugees by the owner.”

“But its hard to believe that their desire for profit will allow things to remain like this for long.” Neveah sighed. “Change… comes for everything, doesn’t it?”

“Speaking of change,” Tatiana twisted to look at Randidly. She had to squint because the sun hit her eyes and caused them to tinkle with honey. “Two things: you heard that they caught the leader of the Order Patricide, yes? Her name is Missy Carp, apparently an old friend from Zone 32. They are going to have a trial. Also, the next fighting tournament will happen in a month and a half. I feel like both events would benefit from, if not your active involvement, proof you are paying attention.”

“That name… does sound vaguely familiar…” Randidly drummed his fingers on the table. He couldn’t help but imagine the sort of media spectacle both would rightly be and the prospect of being present gave him a headache. Perhaps he could do some training during that time, but he didn’t want to waste his spare moments. “But how will paying attention make a difference to the outcome?”

“Because it’s important. And because although most people might not be sensitive to most things, they are sensitive to what you pay attention to.” Tatiana pressed her hands flat against the table. “You want to emphasize this world has consequences? That you won’t solve every problem for Expira? That’s fine, people eat that shit up. But pay attention to this trial so they know you’ll stand by their personal responsibility. You want the people of Expira to be dedicated to improving their power? Actually, come down and watch the tournament. It isn’t an efficient use of your time, I know. But sometimes there isn’t an efficient Path, just the one you need to take.”

Randidly sighed. For a few seconds, the table was silent. Then their server returned with a steaming serving trail filled with their orders. The smells they had been forced to endure from other tables finally became their own.

After his first bite, Randidly released a satisfied exhale. Neveah buried her head in her hands.

The group departed B’s Crossing quietly, after leaving a rather sizable tip. Randidly returned to his volcano, having agreed to Tatiana’s request to appear and be more present for these events. He crossed his fingers, hoping they wouldn’t be too torturous, and turned to his Path screen. With a hundred and thirty-five thousand more PP to go through, he needed to hit some of the high-cost Paths. He would probably leave himself a slight buffer again, just in case he found a very necessary Path in the future, but for now, it was time to spend.

Congratulations! You have completed the Sigh as the Sky Closes Path! You have housed a dark power of Exodus for some time, within the muscles and organs of your body. The shadowy interiors of your joins have nurtured its growth. The end yet remains distant, but you can now hear its approaching breath. The world stumbles forward and you can only watch its heavy struggles. Yet as you observe the world on its Path, you can briefly predict a moment of the future, where it finally collapses and the sky folds inward to reveal the waiting carrion.

Within the yawning abyss, a face sneers. It waits with limitless patience for its long-promised corpse. After the collapse, it will feast.

For a brief moment, your eyes meet. That interaction changes you in mysterious ways.

Congratulations! Primordial Nether Juju +300! Congratulations! You have gained the Skill Smothering Inevitability (L)!

Smothering Inevitability (L): User is empowered by the finality that awaits all things. When user lands blows on a foe, a small portion of that inevitably infects the recipient. As more and more of that power begins to accumulate in the foe’s body, their Stats are slightly reduced and they receive additional damage from the user. Effect increases with Skill Level.

Congratulations! You have completed Joy, the Blooming Sun Path! As you walk along through the varied landscapes, you come to appreciate that for your planet, the font of all life is the sun. Its rays caress the ground, radiant and generous with their apportionment of existence. Day and night are divided due to the period of life that occurs in the day. Night is a time of rest and preparation for those hours where the sun is present. Prolonged exposure creates the possibilities of wondrous things; life is a gift only possible because of its furnace of energy.

Observing this process, you steadily accumulate insight into the wondrous spread of possibilities. Your feet tingle against the sun-warmed ground, feeling the shift in your environment before you even understand it. However, with continued observation, you advance.

Congratulations! Unnatural Metabolism +300! Congratulations! You have gained the Skill-

Recalculating… Synchronicity detected!

Due to your Fourth Authority: Animation Nova, you have gained the Skill Animus Diffraction (M)(U)!

Animus Diffraction (M)(U): A unique Skill of Randidly Ghosthound due to synergy with his powerful Nether Core. Impossible to duplicate; attempts to do so will cause degeneration in the body of the recipient. Some of the user’s potent and passive radiation strikes the prism of your body and is released with a slightly more vigorous disposition than the usual force. Other entities that are within a certain distance of user will have the chance to receive some extra Animus. Animus will give those individuals passively an increased ability to gain Skill Levels and also the ability to subconsciously consume Animus in order to improve their own Skills and images. Will only be able to increase Skills to just beyond the current standard of Randidly Ghosthound. Passive and active effects improve with Skill Level. Rate of release slightly increases with Skill Level.