The Commandant’s eyes glowed, somehow making the wild claim that he could double Randidly’s power credible. But there wasn’t even a flicker of hesitation in Randidly’s mind.

“...I will have to decline, Commandant,” Randidly replied slowly. The offer might sound beneficial, but Randidly didn’t trust it for a second. “But thank you for your generosity. Considering that I still need to train the recruits, it is for the best that I do not make any sudden changes to my person.”

“A stretch in a time dilated location would easily resolve such difficulties,” The Commandant countered smoothly with an easy smile. His teeth were very white.

Randidly resisted his body’s urge to tense and he forced the Grim Chimera not to manifest its defiance. Now was not the time to show outward aggression. But he did make a slight mental note; the dark side of Commandant Wick’s good moods was a sharp increase in avarice. He bowed slightly. “Even so, I have to decline. Shortcuts will only hurt me in the long run.”

“Heh. That’s why I like you, Ghosthound,” The Commandant chuckled again. “You aren’t swayed by immediate benefits. But still… are you sure you won’t reconsider? Considering your connections… well, it seems obvious that your ambition is not some mundane accomplishment. You cannot deny that more power will make seizing what you want easier. As your superior officer, I owe it to you to help achieve your desires.”

The Commandant’s words were light, but his image shifted slightly at the same time. The tight control that he had maintained over his image rippled and parted. If Randidly’s senses hadn’t been so acute, he might have missed the change. In that oppressively restrictive scaffolding that restrained Wick’s madness, a hint of a flaw emerged. That madness spread out to touch the surrounding space, seeming to erode the natural order of the universe within the office.

...it’s an emotional attack. He’s trying to inflame my desires, Randidly abruptly realized. After the Stillborn Phoenix’s experience with emotions as a part of images in the past few weeks, he would never overlook the sudden surge of charged emotions that sought to infiltrate his person as the Commandant spoke. And at the moment, the Stillborn Phoenix gratefully shifted from its normal cycle and devoured the threads of madness from Commandant Wick.

But Randidly was thoroughly chilled by the situation, despite his immunity. Just like with Neshamah and Nether… the more I meet the upper crust of the Nexus, the more I realize that my tricks are being used by others, more proficiently than I can manage. Maybe they don’t have all of them together, but I’m not unique.

While the subtle display filled Randidly with a sense of dread, he kept a slight smile on his face. He kept any stiffness from his features. “...even so, I can wait. Besides, somehow, I feel like having a favor from a great individual such as you, Commandant Wick, will be invaluable in the future.”

Commandant Wick’s smile faded. The massive bear man looked at Randidly Ghosthound with his beady black eyes. Within his soul, that madness stirred and seemed to seize control of the Commandant’s body. Despite being a living, breathing organism, he stilled entirely; there wasn’t even the slightest modicum of movement from his person for almost ten seconds.

Then his image shifted and the flaw was repaired. Commandant Wick shook himself lightly and then allowed himself a sardonic smile. “Keh. I have to admit, my insistence has more to do with my discomfort with owing a favor than anything else… but I’ll respect your wishes. Bahaha, those labor freaks will be on their back foot for months after this. Especially because of all that extra Aether that’s turned up. It’s one thing for us to claim there was corruption… most people might not be convinced, all considering their bias against the military. But if we also sweeten the deal with a generous increase in everyone’s Aether allotment… Heh, most would be forced to admit that there must be some truth to the investigations. Otherwise, where else could the Aether have come from?”

Randidly nodded slowly. But Edraine has already informed me that most of the spare Aether that was discovered was confiscated by Military High Command. The surge in Aether that we are experiencing… is because the military made the unilateral decision to stop supplying Aether to the vast majority of the planets in the Fifth Cohort.

Millions… no, maybe even billions of people will die to cement this as a political victory for you.

Randidly’s heart clenched. Being associated so closely with Commandant Wick made him feel frustrated. Again, he was in a situation where those billions of people would have been relatively safe, if not for him. If not for this chance, the military would not have so decisively cast the Fifth Cohort to the side. Of course, Randidly didn’t necessarily feel responsible; this was the callous decision of the Commandant’s.

But his hands tightened into fists. Yet I have taken advantage of these brutal military leaders. They are… for the moment, my allies…

It was a bitter realization.

“But anyway, I must return to the Fifth Cohort,” the Commandant turned away and stared at a map on the wall. “The Nether is up to something big. I need to be there to stop it. You are dismissed, soldier.”

Randidly saluted and then left. With his heavy heart, the portraiture that surrounded him on the walk out of Military High Command looked especially distorted. The haughty expressions of the fallen military leaders twisted into leering sneers. The faint screams of the dying seemed to permeate the building. Randidly paused briefly and closed his eyes. His Nether Nebula stirred, his four grey bubbles tumbling end over end. His Nether washed through his veins, quickly finding and locating the foreign element in his body.

With a sizzle, his Nether annihilated that insidious thread of emotion that had embedded itself in his veins. But Randidly’s expression was quite ugly. Even though I saw it coming, Wick’s image still managed to effect me…If I didn’t have Nether that was keyed only to my images, it would have been near impossible to find and eradicate the taint...

After he left Military High Command, Randidly immediately pulled out his Philosopher’s Key and opened a portal to deep within the Web. Before he returned to the Rally Station, he wanted to do a few more cleansings of his emotions just to be sure. Beyond that, since they had another fifteen hours or so off anyway, he would stretch that out a bit and train.

Humming to himself, Randidly began to descend deeper than he ever dared to in the past. Part of him acknowledged it was a risk, but another part of him knew that he couldn’t afford to take his time improving.

And once I’m sure I’m not compromised, Randidly thought slowly as he floated downward, It’s time to focus on my definitive Skills for the different images. But before the new Grim Chimera… I should return to my original image, Yggdrasil. The Inscrutable Mien of Genesis and the Implacable Price of Exodus have both been on the back burner for far too long. Let’s not forget to sharpen my most reliable blade...

*****

After the twenty-four hours were up, Raymund Ballast returned to the Fifth Cohort Rally Station with a face long with disappointment. Reality had taught him several harsh lessons. He was more capable than during his initial arrival to the Nexus, that was undoubtedly true. But in the grand scheme of things, he was still a tiny fish who had foolishly swam out into the depths.

The first information broker he managed to locate, after asking around for a while, had shut the door in his face when he requested information regarding the Swacc Family. The second had refused to answer any of his questions and even recommended that Raymund pay him an exorbitant sum so he wouldn’t simply sell the fact that he was asking questions about them to the Swacc Family.

A string of further failures led Raymund to halt his investigations around that last message Techetadore and sent and instead just ask about his brother. This was a little more fruitful but didn’t turn up anything significant. Techet had definitely come to the Nexus and been seen around. He had even arranged an apprenticeship with a middling tier fighter who participated in the Nexus Arena, but apparently, Techet had quit the training after a week.

Based on the timeline, it was right after he quit that Techetadore had sent his final message to Raymund.

By the time Raymund found out this information, his twenty-four-hour ‘holiday’ was up. He didn’t even have time to try and speak with the fighter Techet had met before he had to return to the teleporter formation.

Plus, his mood was not helped by the fact that he was once more burdened by the suppression array the Ghosthound had created. After a full day without its constant presence, the exertion was once more agonizing.

Currently, Overseer Helen had them all standing in formation near the teleporter on the Fifth Cohort Rally Station. A last few recruits were scurrying out, earning death glares from Overseer that promised them additional training due to their lateness. Overall, the mood of the recruits was rather strained and restless. Partially because they likely shared Raymund’s opinion about returning to the suppression array while the other recruits clearly weren’t affected, but also many people were whispering about the report of corruption in the Seventh Cohort.

Finally, the last recruit arrived. Overseer Helen stared around at them all and cleared her throat. “Does anyone have anything to say about the request made of you by Head Drill Sergeant Ghosthound? This is your one chance to come clean about any deals you may have made with outside forces.”

The recruits remained silent. Overseer Helen nodded, seeming unwilling to push the issue. “Alright then. Squad Captains, form up. We are heading back. Time to pick up where we left off.”

The group moved quickly across the dirt track as they returned to the training area. But as they approached the space given to their elite group, they slowed; Head Drill Sergeant Randidly Ghosthound was waiting for them at the edge of his territory with his arms folded. Yet after Overseer Helen said a sharp word, the group kept marching.

They filed around the Ghosthound, avoiding his eye contact. The intimidating man stood there at the edge and looked individually at all 200 of the recruits as they passed him.

The group seemed to heave a sigh that flowed amongst them, the tension in their bodies releasing as crossed the presence of the Ghosthound without anything happening. Yet after they had believed they were safe, the Ghosthound spoke.

“One of you… lied.”

Everyone paused. They couldn’t help but turn around and look at their Head Drill Sergeant, dreading what they would find in his face. And as expected, Raymund’s blood curdled as he saw that orb of darkness that had taken the place of the Ghosthound’s left eye. He favored the group with a slow smile. “Did you really think I wouldn’t notice…?”