Cyril Sarnath
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Chapter 157
🕑 Added 2023-04-03 10:38:09 +0000 UTCHey everyone, my apologies for my lateness. This is Friday’s chapter but due to an episode of cluster headache, I am struggling with my time. I will do my best to get back on schedule soon. Enjoy!
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The situation got serious the moment the soldiers turned on Keynes’s group. Their particular attention was on Columbus, which made sense. To them, he was the real threat. But the question was why had they turned on them so suddenly? The opening of the second rift could have been an accident and not a premeditated act.
Betrayal? He asked himself but also hoped that Lem Solaris was close by and would lend him a hand. There was no response though.
Keynes watched the Resistance soldiers take positions, then his heart sank for good. There were more soldiers coming. This had been planned.
“Does Cassandra know about your betrayal, captain?” Columbus asked.
The captain had eyed Columbus with cold calculation before he opened his mouth.
“You’ve betrayed us, Curt,” the captain said. Many soldiers nodded. “And this isn’t something the Resistance can forgive.”
So Keynes wasn’t the goal of their betrayal. That felt weird but for some reason a great weight was taken off his chest but it didn’t make the whole setup less deadly. Their initial outburst of anger aimed at Keynes had fooled him.
“Do you understand the importance of our presence here, soldier?” Columbus asked, showing no outward emotions. “Your action will jeopardise the future of the planet.”
The captain snorted at that.
Keynes sensed Kora’s attention on him and suspected that she had blacklisted all the Resistance soldiers. This gave Keynes’s group a small edge but they were vastly outnumbered. With Columbus’s Talent on cooldown, their only true offensive skill was Keynes’s [Chaos Aura] but with his shaky spiritual aura, it was a double-edged sword at best. If he failed to take proper control of the skill, he’d harm everyone, including his group.
A decision had to be made as the seconds ticked by. Standing in front of potential enemies, the scope of Keynes’s failure was finally revealed. He wasn’t prepared for situations like this one.
“You—” the captain froze.
Keynes and Columbus perked up. All the soldiers stood still, their eyes blank.
Lem Solaris? Is that your doing? Keynes asked. She didn’t reply.
Instead, he heard a clapping. Then they saw a person walk among the frozen soldiers. The person wore a red and black coat that certainly was a rift item. But it didn’t matter as Keynes sensed their spiritual energy. It appeared familiar but much stronger. As he raked his mind, the person spoke up.
“Columbus Curt and Keynes Kid, what a nice surprise.”
Keynes would never forget his voice even though he wished he could.
“Windsor Freeman,” Columbus said as Freeman took off the hood, revealing his young but weathered face. Keynes noticed an unhealed injury on his neck and two more hooded figures in the distance. His mind blanked for a split second.
- The Pure Body blocked an unknown mental attack.
The strength of the mental intrusion was more than he expected. His legs felt shaky and his head started to hurt. Even though the pain was weak and dull, it made it harder to concentrate. Moments like this reminded Keynes about the importance of potions. Ignoring their potency was becoming a severe liability.
As his thoughts tried to crawl through his mind, Columbus and Freeman talked.
“What are you doing here?”
“Relax, Columbus,” Freeman said, stopping in front of Columbus. “I am here as a potential ally not an enemy.”
“How did you know we were going to be here?” Columbus asked again, his voice flat, his body tense and ready to spring into action.
Freeman sighed.
“Isn’t it obvious, Columbus? Do you think this is a coincidence? Me, finding you in the middle of nowhere? No, my old friend. Cassandra may be a competent officer but her underlings are not. I planned for this since I’ve learned about Hunter.”
Kora’s hand touched Keynes’s shoulder and it helped him focus. Columbus also perked up at the mentioning of Hunter.
“What do you know about him?” Columbus asked, seemingly unperturbed by the fact that this whole thing had been set up by Windsor Freeman.
“I fought him two days ago in North America.” He touched his neck. “That’s the little parting gift from him. Living Frost. An annoying and stubborn affliction, hard to remove and constantly on the verge of spreading.” He turned around, his eyes brushing Keynes and Kora without further acknowledgment.
“He’s coming for you,” he said to Columbus. “And there’s nothing you can do to stop him. I tried and was not only outmatched but countered as well. He has a well-rounded team. At least Level 5 and 6, all rift essence. Varied and uncommon spells and Talents with high synergy. They hit my group and before I could make sense of the situation, half of my people were dead. My beloved Marg Moonbane stayed behind to cover our retreat.”
“How strong is he?” Columbus asked and as Keynes started to recover from the mental attack, he sensed Columbus’s aura. He was shaken and it appeared that somehow Freeman was aware of it.
“At least Level 8 rift essence with solid rift items.”
“Level 8? What is this in terms of attributes?” Columbus asked and Keynes noted a fallacy in Columbus’s question. He still looked through the prism of attributes but that was a clear mistake.
“Somewhere over 50,” Freeman replied. “But attributes aren’t the most important thing anymore.” Freeman understood. Of all people, it had to be this one! “They will control you until your Talent runs out and will finish you off, Columbus. The rules of the pre-outbreak world no longer apply. If you cannot adjust, you’ll perish.”
It was difficult to disagree with him.
“And you came all the way here to tell me about it?”
Freeman sighed and they could see his exhaustion. Even despite his youthful appearance, he was an old man and it was clear that the recent events put pressure on him. Keynes still hated him for what they’d done to him but he couldn’t help and feel a bit sorry for his biggest enemy.
“Columbus, we’ve known each other for decades. We ran the solar system together. We aren’t men who enjoy games.”
“I don’t see it the same way,” Columbus said but his voice didn’t sound very sure anymore.
Freeman glared at Columbus with cold, unyielding eyes.
“Things are about to take a turn for the worse. The Solar Council isn’t what you think it is. Did you know what they plan to do with Earth’s rifts once they subdued everyone?”
“The same thing you tried?”
Freeman’s face twitched but otherwise he didn’t react.
“You’ll soon find out that what I tried to do and what they are doing are two very different things. They plan to move all the rifts off the planet and control who will level up and to what degree. Unlike me, they are seriously bent on seeing their plans fulfilled and they have the means to succeed with barely any opposition.”
“We won’t let that happen,” Columbus snapped, losing his cool. “We’re the only ones with access to Level 4 rifts. We have our counter-measures, Freeman. We won’t stay idle while the Solar Council tries to take over the world.”
“If you seek to fight them, then stop this idiocy.” Freeman waved at the three Level 4 rifts. “You’re wasting good rifts on them. The Resistance’s days are numbered. Do you think Hunter’s presence in North America was a coincidence? No. He’s there to deal with Sandman and then would come here to end the little rebels.” Clearly, Freeman had no love for the Resistance but the cold way he delivered the news made Keynes shiver.
“That’s the more reason for giving them rifts,” Columbus replied and Keynes realised that the founder was buying time for his Talent to come off the cooldown, though Keynes didn’t know the exact cooldown.
“They will have no time for that. They have no big hitters to defend this place. That’s why the only way to slow the Solar Council down is the fourth outbreak. It will empower the people, making it harder for them to consolidate the power at the top.”
Columbus opened his mouth but Freeman cut him off.
“You have no choice. But I haven’t come here with empty hands. If he does the fourth outbreak. I will share all I know about the superstructures. There are… were nine of them. The Edenus, which was the centrepiece of the Human Project, was destroyed in the Oriental League’s territory. The Eye, also known as the Helios Project, is currently in the hands of the Institute. The remaining superstructures are hidden. After the fourth outbreak, I will come to you and reveal all the information.” Freeman turned to go then stopped. “One more thing. I release you from the ritual, Columbus Curt. I am not your enemy. Make sure to remember it when the time comes.”
With that a portal opened in the air and Freeman with the two remaining figures entered it. Silence lasted only a heartbeat as the Resistance soldiers came back to their senses but their hostility vanished. They looked around confused, some were running away. Some screamed.
What had been done to them? Had it been the same mental attack that hit Keynes?
“What just happened?” Kora whispered.
“I’m not entirely—oh… That was Tulli and Kaito Ren with Freeman.”
Columbus nodded, staring at the point where the portal had been. Most of the Resistance soldiers were gone.
“Did you catch it all?” Columbus asked and Keynes thought he misunderstood the other man until Wagner spoke from a speaker in a personal device. “Yes. I also have confirmation that he fought or rather encountered Hunter in North America. It was uglier than Freeman made it sound, Columbus. Our report says that Hunter made it quite public. He wanted to send a message to everyone.”
“So…change of plans?”
“Keynes?” Wagner asked. “What do you think?”
Keynes approached Columbus. He still felt queasy after the mental attack and the conversation between Columbus and Freeman, and other revelations. Kora followed his steps while the rest of their group secured the perimeter.
“I…am not sure what to do,” Keynes said truthfully. He felt lost. “I need time to think this over.”
“Alright but don’t stay anywhere near these rifts. The Institute knows you opened them. If you go ahead with the outbreak, inform me. We should be done with the domes in the Level 5 cluster rift by the time you return to Emerald City.”
***
Keynes tried to sleep but found it elusive. He had a big decision to make and it bothered him that once again, it was his call, his responsibility. He had full support from Wagner and Columbus but that didn’t make it any less heavy. Columbus didn’t have it easy either. He had to explain to Cassandra what had happened and why they had taken with them the two rifts and left one unopened. There was a real possibility that the Resistance would turn against them.
Since they left the place when they’d encountered Freeman yesterday, Kora was silent and thoughtful. Keynes didn’t want to disrupt her inner deliberation.
A world stilled and he knew who appeared next to him.
“Quite a mess you have here,” Lem Solaris said as she prodded a wall of a cavern they were currently hiding inside. “But it isn’t the worst I’ve seen. So cheer up.”
Keynes’s laugh was mirthless, his eyes returned to the dark ceiling.
“Why didn’t you step in?”
“I’m not permitted to involve myself in your affairs. I’m here to merely train you, Keynes Kid.”
“That’s unfair,” Keynes said, knowing how whiny he sounded. “With your powers, you could solve all the problems.”
“Shortcuts don’t work that way. Me solving the problems of your world would only lead to bigger problems later on. Your world must learn at its own pace. I don’t fully subscribe to the complete non-intervention policy the System of your universe demands, but it has its merit. You’ll learn from your mistakes and you’ll become wiser in the process.”
“A lot of people will die.”
“Inevitable. You don’t have any control over their lives.”
“Another outbreak will kill many people.”
“So will the regime that will be born from your inaction.”
“But—”
“Enough,” Lem Solaris cut him off, literally. He couldn’t squeeze a sound out of himself. “No, let’s go over everything you’ve learned since yesterday.”
