Chapter 21-12 The Paths of Futures Broken (II)

Chapter 21-12 The Paths of Futures Broken (II)

Fate is a fickle thing.

Even in years of yore, the gods of destiny and the weavers of preordination were not omnipotent. Such is the great weakness of all Heavens, after all, for the conceptualization of all-knowingness remains beyond even the genius of the minds.

And no god has ever managed to reach such heights, though their ambitions drive them to seek it.

Despite this, limited hyper-awareness is possible, and the secret to manufacturing prophecy is quite simple, in fact.

Maintenance.

The ultimate insurance towards seeing your desired outcome made manifest is maintenance. Conceptualize the future. Create a subreality mirroring the world that is and allow it to progress with assumed variables. Designate essential characters, events, objects, locations to form your miracles around.

Then, use time itself as a buffer against any intruding elements. Often, when something happens makes all the difference between what follows, and a threat displaced often is a threat neutralized.

Indeed, when built correctly, this does not even produce much entropy. Take the Augurshields afforded to the FATED, for instance. A slight imbuement of probability to ensure all the safety they need, protecting them from ill fortune and or stray bullets.

The difficulty of creating such a Heaven, however, loops back to matters of complexity, and informational deficiency.

For even the supposed gods of foreknowledge could not predict the Godsfall. For what did they know of Jaus? For how could they have noticed his machinations with their sacrifices already tainted with Ignorance?

Hence, when building a Heaven of Destiny, you must not be confused. You are not creating an omnipotent system. That is the illusion at play. Something beyond the demands of mortal ken. But what you must demonstrate is nonetheless difficult, for are tasked with the functional manifestation of a dynamic subreality capable of detecting, intercepting, and removing variables you deem intrusive.

The passing qualification is simple: you each will select a specific tree from an enclosed biome, and at years endor when you believe your design is readywe will release swarms of gnarlflies infested with barkrot into the ecosystem.

Ensure the survival of your tree.

You will be getting a list of pairable Domains. This Heaven may not exceed the demands of a Second Sphere Liminal Frame. This Heaven may not be paired with another Heaven. This Heaven may not interface with outside technologies or machinery beyond the enclosed biomes. You will each be given a stipend of a million sacrifices, and should the need arise, you may officially request more.

Oh, and a contract of their choosing to any of you that successfully completes the project faster than the current record holder: [2 WEEKS, 1 DAY, 14 HOURS, and 35 SECONDS - KAE KUSANADE (FIFTH KNOWING)]

Good luck.

-Agnos Yue Reason-Bearer to her novitiates

21-12

The Paths of Futures Broken (II)

Would you, Zein said, her words colder than the kiss of a blade, like to learn about the Paths? I believe that was something you desired to learn about.

The miracles of her Heaven poured forth from her ontology, building as a golden pool around her being. A weave of rippling chronology slowly encroached, filling the command nexus, and with every inch did tension rise.

Now, more than ever before, Avo felt the threat that Zein posedhow much harm she could inflict in a heartbeat.

He danced on the edge of manipulation and provocation.

Draus cast him a thought and her words echoed across to the cadre. +Careful. Im ready for this, but Kae and Tavers need out if were about to find out whos gonna light the wick. Passages are ready. Be sure about your words.+

Avo grunted.

He stood on treacherous terrain, but he needed an edge. Playing passive meant surrendering Kareand all self-determinationto Zein. His understanding of her deeper nature remained blurred, but it was becoming increasingly clear that unless one posed a requisite martial or metaphysical threat to Zein, she would regard them as more playthings than people.

This was a dangerous game he played, but passivity would betray his own actualizationand what he wanted for the city. Besides, it was Zeins nature to battle. Learning how to direct her focus would be invaluable for the future.

Yes, Avo finally replied. Going to show me now? Use it to explain why you have to kill my Paladin.

Inside his mind, Kare shivered, uncertain how to feel about the ghouls possessiveness, terrified of what the Godslayer intended.

Among other things. Zeins face took on a curious quality, rage flattening to something inquisitive. Seeking. Your Paladin. Truly, you are Walton's child. All he could infiltrate, he thought to be his, caring nothing for someone else's opinion. Or will. She chuckled. A commendable belief. And true.

She released her umbrella, and it fell from existence, vanishing in departing threads.

Lifting her now-emptied hand, she extended it in greeting, expecting him to grasp it.The initial instance of this chapter being available happened at N0v3l.Bin.

His claws were large enough to wrap around her forearm twice over, but still, he committed to the awkward action, thinking himself prepared for whatever may follow.

As his splinters were scattered across the face of Idheim and his original body in the enclave, the only ones truly at risk of cessation were his cadre, but with how Zeins eyes were locked solely on him, he doubted she would strike at any of them as a means of retribution.

It ultimately didnt fit her behavior. She was a duelist before a Godclad, and she met her challengers thusly.

+I hate it when she does that shit,+ Draus growled, thinking back to how Zein just threaded information from the paths into them before their attempt on Mirrorheads life.

Is this supposed to be what happens? Avo asked.

It is an unfinished scene. One Im currently scripting. And she said no more.

Avo prodded further. Why? Why does this moment need to happen?

To provoke something between the Guildsa temporary accord and a mutual cleansing. As Highflame has Chivalrics to purge, so too does the Overclan of the Ori have corruption it must uncover. Think of it. Think of the moment. The resonance. A daughter of the Ori-turned-Paladin giving her life for a prisonera disgraced Highflame Instrument.

Her father and uncle will be distraught of course. But pliable towards new persuasions.

Avo considered the scene she was painting, and his templates filled in the details.

Most were confused, but between Banhata, Abrel, and Elegant-Moon, a potential picture came together.

This was about politicsmost likely meant to provoke a moment of uneasy peace. Kare Kitzuhada just proved to be the most effective sacrifice on the altar.

Her worth came in three parts: she was a Paladin; she was of a major Ori clan; and she was related to Shotin Kazahara. For the first, it would spark her comrades back to war footing. Scale would likely be locked down, the other Godclads banished and viewed as outright adversaries.

[Making sure that no one can get close to the Gatekeeper,] Benhata theorized.

Then, the Ori themselves would have shame to match Highflame. With the spearheads of each major alliance undone so publicly, there were good odds of a restructuring happening. A removal of problematic elements. The ones replacing them thereafter would likely be more to Zeins liking. Especially if she wanted to engineer a prolonged period of disorganized peace.

If Avo had to guess, this was a delaying strategy to get more of her schemes in place and ensure some kind of advantage when the Ladder returned.

Finally, there was Shotin Kazahara. His rage and retribution would be certain in the aftermath, but even Kare wasnt sure why Zein wanted to use him in such a manner. Planeshift was a volatile enough character on his own. Perhaps the death of his niece would make him reckless and willing to

[Vulnerable,] Elegant-Moon whispered, her mind glittering with fascination. [She wants him to make choices so severe he would otherwise never commit to them. She plans to disfigure his heart and replace its driving motion with her hand. Maybe she wishes to recruit him. Him and the Ambassador.]

On the throne, Chambers eyes swung from place to place. Im completely fucking lost again. Whys the druggie wanna kill the glasser again?

Peace, Avo answered, testing the waters. The thinning of Zeins lips told him he was right. He fed his conclusions to his cadre through his Splinters and made a show of addressing them directly. This is supposed to be an engineered moment of armistice. Disarray will grip both Guilds. Very similar kinds of disarray. Old factions will be replaced. And the sacrifice of an Ori to protect a Gold will strike at the heart of the conflict. It will shame the Guilds in a way they couldnt ignore.

Just as he had struck at Zein with words she couldnt turn aside from.

There was meant to be a way to things. A foundational concept. To say that she was a coward and bending before the world was to claim all she was but a lie.

The same thing applied to the Guilds.

Saintists and Massist were supposed to be at war. The war of all wars. Eternity was at stake. Utopia. But being forced to see the narrative break within the halls of Scale? For who was friend and foe to be so muddled from the act committed?

That struck at a civilizations heart.

But there was just one thing Avo had to say about that: I can make this worse. I can make your plan better. And we dont need to waste an asset.

Oh? Zein asked, surfacing from ire to curiosity once more. And what can you add that I have not already accounted for?

Arrogance. Arrogance and self-assuredness.

For all Zeins skills, she was really too stubborn. Ever the warrior, she treated her sandbox as a mechanism to deliver her outcomes and situations in the most direct ways possible: shock and blood.

Avo had nothing against violence, but the craft that defined himthat was his fathers legacy was one of subtle betrayals. Youre looking only ahead. Just the future. You forget about history.

History? Zein asked.

Finally, Avo turned to Kae and let his excitement run over to her. The Agnos was confused for a heartbeat, but when the rest of his thoughts arrived, her eyes widened, and she understood what he intended.

There is a unique opportunity before us, Avo elaborated. One that can achieve the false-peace you want. And more. One that allows her revenge to be sated. And her name to be made just again in society.

A beat passed. Threads of gold drew taut around Zein as her brows furrowed. Then she saw. Then she remembered. Ah. The Trident. The information you stole that day.

Yes, Avo said. There are Paladin killers still unpunished. DRongos soldiers. Know where they are. Can access the sleeper identities theyre hiding under. Track them. Take them. Use them. It will all make for a better design. A more calculated approach.

As he finished speaking, Zein mulled on his words, let out a small breath, and nodded.

No.

The future washed over them again.