“Solomon Rex,” Randidly muttered to himself, thinking of the shadowy figure who had so casually lent out the Nether Penance with a trap secreted away inside of it. He also thought about Don Beigon, and the short explanation he had given about what is required to reach the Pinnacle.

An image, a foundation, and a perfect moment.

“Kelnan… Mae Mykna…” Pullas frowned and puffed out her cheeks. “Obviously the others I recognize, but I have definitely heard those names, before.”

“Ah, a true history buff,” Tuthak Eloise seemed cheered by her interest. He brought two tentacles curling to his chest and wiggled his sagging head. “You have definitely heard of them both, but likely not by those names. Kelnan is more commonly known now as the Master, although he recently suffered an extreme setback on his mountain.” At this point, Tuthak gave Randidly a heavy glance. “Since then, he has been constantly attempting to recover, although most believe he will never regain his former glory.”

“For the record,” The vulture man interjected here. “On the sixtieth floor, before you attempt to climb, there is a service exit. So our news is quite up to date.”

“Finally, Mae Mykna… well, she died a long time ago,” Tuthak sighed. “She, I think, had somehow become Elhume’s main brake during the worst of the Nether Wars. After she died, he went a little bit crazy. That, combined with the loss of the Duelmo in the ritual to create humans, really tore him to shreds. He lost control of his body and is even now forced to use image projections to interact with others.”

“Mae Mykna is the name of the Patron of Truth,” Randidly guessed, his Nether pointing him in the right direction.

Tuthak nodded. “The Aetherium she left behind was apparently quite small, but potent. With it and the planning of Kelnan and Solomon, they created an isolated universe inside of another universe. A land they claimed would be a place where a weary traveler could lay down their arms and remember peace. Alymian could provide a respite from ‘reality’.”

Solomon for the Foundation, then. The Patron of Truth’s Aetherium for an image. But what would the moment be? The transition between the Second and Third Cohorts?

Even through his alien, octopus features, Randidly could read the bitterness on Tuthak’s face. “We have lost many companions to the temptation of Alymian. It was an insidious trap for those long tired of Elhume’s tyranny; it emphasized escape and a shedding of burdens over any truth, completely against Mae’s desires. However, you can rest assured that we have given much thought to our plan.”

Fiona opened her mouth to continue her interrogation of the elder Eloize, but Randidly put a hand on her shoulder. He waved off her glare and turned to the octopus man. His mind whirled, trying to catch up with all the different information being thrown at him. “A party, huh. We really do appreciate the invitation. But I want to clarify something; why did you say it would be a bad idea to continue climbing the Sonara?”

The air around them began to fill with the sound and smell of meat sizzling over an open flame. A muscular woman strode up to the group and offered them frothy drinks ringed with fruit from her tray. Randidly and Fiona declined, while Xershi took two for himself. Pullas cradled a single glass, eyeing it suspiciously.

Rather than answer, Eloise simply gazed at Randidly for several seconds. “It is a tragedy, but I always suspected that you would wish to climb the Sonara. No matter how much I attempt to dissuade you, you have committed to the journey, have you not?”

Randidly lifted his chin.

The octopus shrugged, five of its tentacles stretching out and sweeping the woman’s tray clean of any further drinks. “I suppose that is why you make such an appropriate individual to cause the Sonara’s collapse. Ah, well, there is no harm in telling you. If the bottom portion of the Sonara covers space, the top stretches across time. With how much Nether has been pumped into the upper end, it becomes a grind against your psyche to go higher.

“At least, that is what we suspect,” Eloise tossed back two of the drinks at once before he continued. Randidly tried not to be distracted from the other movements in the surroundings. “What we can tell you is that few can handle to climb past the sixtieth floor; we believe the sixtieth to the seventieth floors are an acclimation period to whatever lays beyond. Only a few have gone beyond that point, claiming you needed almost a thousand Willpower to endure. But apparently, the eightieth floor is filled with darkness. None have returned from swimming in its depths.”

“Ominous,” Pullas took a small sip from her drink.

Randidly’s eyelid twitched. This, from the woman who has a connection between herself and a drop of empty death that grows stronger every second? But it doesn’t matter if I need to handle the passage of time to ascend. Finding out more about the Patron of Truth and what happened to Elhume is important. Especially if this faction will really return and begin to try and overthrow him.

A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

This is a chance.

“Tuthak, the competition will soon begin,” The vulture man said. He eyed the drinks held by Tuthak and Xershi with obvious envy.

The octopus nodded and gestured at the Ascension Pact. “We will remain here, enjoying ourselves, until the fissure in the Sonara approaches. Take your time, talk with some of the other people who have reached this point, get a feel for the group. Consider whether you want to join us. And enjoy yourselves. This is not an escape, like Alymian, but you deserve a break from your struggles.”

The words were true, but even considering the kind delivery, Randidly had a hard time accepting them.

With that, the octopus turned and undulated away. A few of the other individuals in the surrounding space sent them occasional glances, but they were largely left to their own devices. Randidly bit his lip, looking after the group; he had a decision to make.

“You want to climb immediately, despite what that guy said about what’s waiting on the eightieth floor,” Fiona jabbed Randidly’s side with her finger. “Why are you in such a rush?”

“At least take some time to recover,” Pullas added. “If you are half as tired as I am-”

“How could he be? You handled all the difficult parts, Pullas.” Xershi folded his arms across his chest. His metal nostrils flared. “Well, anyway, this seems like a good a time as any to say something: I won’t be climbing any further.”

Of them all, Pullas seemed the most stunned. She wheeled to face Xershi. “What? What are you talking about?”

Xershi downed one of his drinks and grimaced at the flavor. “Look, this group- obviously its important to me. I may joke a lot, but this has been a lot of fun. At the same time, I’ve been thinking about what the maker said-”

“You would never betray Randidly. Don’t let that bottom feeder get inside your head,” Pullas’s voice began to get louder.

Xershi shrugged. “If I’m being honest, I thought about attacking him the first time we’ve met. And his stoic attitude does grate on me at times. But-- why would I keep climbing? I’ve accomplished what I wanted. I’m not- I’m fine, by the way, don’t give me that look Pullas, I just have other things I want to do. If there is a service exit to leave the Sonara before everything shakes itself to pieces-”

On cue, a powerful reverberation shook the layer. The party around them only seemed to intensify. Over by where Eloise had gone, four individuals manifested their images and began to engage in a team battle.

“-I want to get out of here. And improve myself on my terms,” Xershi finished.

Randidly watched him with most of his attention on the Nether Ritual within the Ascension Pact. There wasn’t even the slightest emotional reverberation coming through the Nether; Xershi had somehow found the time to achieve a higher state of emotional control than Randidly had.

Or he’s just locking down everything, He mused.

Once the words were out, both Fiona and Pullas seemed to be vaguely insulted. Before Pullas could open her mouth and argue with him, Randidly reached out and put his hand on her shoulder. “Actually, this is probably for the best. I think from here on, I should climb the Sonara alone.”

Pullas’s eyes fixated on him, disappointment growing into devastation before his very eyes. Suddenly, all the shock and outrage Xershi had generated rushed toward him. And Randidly understood her feelings, when you found a group of people with which you could work so well, it was heartbreaking to lose that bond. To go out on your own. If it was a normal situation, Randidly would try harder to keep the Ascension Pact together. But two factors forced his hand.

First, moving up through the Sonara proved to Randidly how little he knew about the Nexus. He proceeded from layer to layer, almost randomly uncovering information about the past that he now struggled to juggle, unable to see how it all pieced together. The sudden collaboration between Solomon Rex, the Master, the Patron of Truth, and Don Beigon was an example of that. The passage through the forty-ninth and fiftieth layer was studded with similar revelations, which Randidly even now hadn’t really been able to parse apart.

Secondly, he could feel the way the Grey Creature was approaching a point of no return. The emotional violence contained within him rose within Randidly’s body like heartburn; he could feel it seething within him, even his physique unable to quite cope with its heat. And despite how honest they had been with each other, Randidly felt embarrassed to pause and so obviously work through his own trouble.

Fiona moved between Randidly and Pullas, touching both their shoulders. “Randidly still has his mission driving him. But he’s not leaving immediately, right Randidly? We should all rest first, then maybe share a dinner in this… strange atmosphere. Then we can all decide what to do, moving forward.”

About thirty meters away, Tuthak began acting as a referee in an image competition. A jagged saber and a massive woofy mammoth clashed with each other, the details of both sharp and piercing. If nothing else, Randidly was inclined to believe Eloise’s bold prediction about making war on Elhume just from the ability displayed.

Randidly forced the tension from his shoulders. “Exactly. Let’s take a break, then talk about the details over dinner.”

Pullas’s eyes gleamed like she was about to burst into tears, but she managed a shaky nod of her head. With that signal, Xershi moved away, loudly gasping and reacting to the action in the image competition. His loudness only made his obvious desire to avoid a real conversation more obvious. Despite his own desire to do the same, Randidly forced himself to confront his feelings.

He moved a short distance off from the fighting and sat down. So much happened, so quickly. I can barely figure out what to do next, beyond climbing to find the key to saving the Patron of Feathers. After a rest…

His thoughts began to drift away.

…there’s more to do. But really, Pullas, do you think this is easy for me?

I’ll miss traveling together. Hopefully, after I finish this, back in the Nexus, we can find each other again…