Those in the Background

  Velruzenshup’nertoroliz noticed it when Zerax’thum’s gaze passed over him. Not because the Stellar was lacking in subtlety, but because the Visitor with him didn’t bother hiding his intent. Not that Frein was skilled enough for such a thing in the first place. The odd thing, however, was his reaction.

  The spider had never been the subject of someone’s curiosity before. Not once in all the millennia he had lived. Yes, even the great Evanclad Irista had never been interested in him as a creature. Only fear. Only anger. Everyone either only cowered before him, or only stood up to him.

  Not Frein Nivan.

  The spider didn’t feel animosity coming from the Visitor. Neither did he sense fear, or anger. Curiosity was Frein’s strongest thought. Frankly, it was annoying.

  How did it get so big? Can it see me from space? Does it weave webs towards space? What does it eat? The laws of physics don’t apply… Well, I guess it doesn’t apply to anything here, pretty much. But even so, that’s bigger than an Oblimoth.

  Velruzenshup’nertoroliz gagged at the thought of being compared to such a creature. Sure, an Oblimoth’s legs could be comparable to steel mountains, its head an entire dungeon on its own. But for a Spider In The Sky, and one who had attained the powers of a Deitar, such creatures were way under his league.

  Thraxzim’gar would be a whole different topic, but such was the case for a fellow Sealed One.

  The spider, however, didn’t have much time to spend contemplating on the Visitor’s weird reaction. He was busy enough trying to figure out if the entity before him was a threat or not.

  “Destiny won’t help you,” said the distorted figure. Meiyal was blurring his—the spider guessed—features. “My bond doesn’t exist in this reality.”

  “Who are you?”

  “Frein and his friends call me the Letterman. You may address me the same.”

  “But that’s not your real name.” His nine heads studied the Letterman. No matter which method he tried to use, through Destiny, Contradiction, or even Meiyal Weaving, he couldn’t unveil the mystery behind this person. It was another annoyance that led to mild frustration. Other than gods and above, no living mortal could hide from him and his webs. Not until now.

  “That doesn’t matter,” said the Letterman, his voice echoing interchangeable tones between male and female. “You won’t be able to figure it out.”

  “Why are you here, then?” Velruzenshup’nertoroliz asked. “Obviously you’re not here just to gloat about your superiority.”

  “I’m here to tell you to not meddle with Frein and his friends’ affairs until they’ve resolved their missions in Talendrym Isle.”

  “Kind of you to tell me exactly where they’ll be.”

  “Even without my help, you’d eventually figure it out,” said the Letterman. “I’m here to tell you not to bother.”

  “Or what?” The Spider In The Sky skittered on the clouds, circling the Letterman, who was merely standing in the air.

  “I’ll put you back where you belong,” the Letterman said simply.

  “But it would be entertaining, I gather. Meddling with mortal affairs, that is.”

  “None of them would be strong enough to match you in their current state,” the mysterious entity explained. “You’ll only be disappointed. But if you allow them to be unbothered for the next few months, you’ll get an even more worthy adversary as a reward.”

  “And what would that be?”

  “A Deitar Frein.”

  Velruzenshup’nertoroliz stopped in his tracks. He began to read the possibilities within Destiny. He found the line the Letterman was talking about. A Deitar Frein. But the path he would have to go through to get there was nothing short of… insane.

  “And here I thought you were their ally,” the spider said, laughing menacingly. “What a cruel person you are.”

  “Say whatever you want, just don’t bother them. You were never meant to be freed this soon in the first place.”

  “Fine. Only because it’s interesting.” The eyes of the spider’s nine heads narrowed, studying the Letterman once again. This time, it wasn’t to determine the entity’s identity. “How do you propose I spend my time then? You look like a worthy opponent. We could spend the next few months just fighting each other.”

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  “Oh, please…” The Letterman flared his meiyal, pushing away the spider without even touching him. “You want a challenge, Velruzenshup’nertoroliz, not death. Don’t waste my time.”

  The Deep Nightmare spider shrugged off his fear as if he was simply molting. He had faced stronger opponents before, so he understood the script. This was not an opponent he could defeat with either brute force or subterfuge. Unless he could figure out how to become a god without a divine sponsor, he would have no chance.

  “Alright, I get it.” Velruzenshup’nertoroliz crawled away, not wanting to face the Letterman.

  “Do I have your word?”

  “Yes, yes. I’ll go sleep somewhere. Don’t bother me again.”

  Just like that, the oppressive presence from the mysterious entity vanished, like he was never there in the first place.

  “How bothersome…”

  The Letterman stood atop a forsaken tower somewhere in the Nightmare Lands. He was past the ruins of the Sky Islands, Su’karix’s home thousands of years ago. Some landforms still floated in the air, now ravaged by the Nightmare and bereft of life.

  The island he was on was not in the sky, but was isolated somewhere in The Great Sea Dividyr that separated Irista Nation and the east. It was also left alone by the Nightmare. A safe haven created by a Void Mother or Father, but was eventually abandoned by the Order. Now, the haven was slowly deteriorating. In a month or two, the Nightmare would completely engulf it once again.

  The Letterman wasn’t here to prevent such a tragedy from happening. He was contemplating. The future was far harder to read from this point on. Branches upon branches, interweaving with one another. One possibility causing another that was drastically on the opposite spectrum of potential realities.

  This was the thing with Destiny. If too many people with high Destiny Adhesions moved in synchronicity, even the future itself would become hard pressed to decide on an outcome. And the people who could read these possibilities become lost in the kaleidoscope.

  All except the Letterman. He was far more experienced than the rest. Even Zerax’thum wouldn’t compare to his mastery. Simply because he had lived through these realities over a billion times already.

  “Are you tired?” a small orb asked. It floated beside him, nonchalantly waiting for their next course of action.

  “No, Sam. I’m just reminiscing,” she said, dropping the manipulations within her persona. Her voice turned sweet, bittersweet, diluted by the repressed exhaustion.

  “Ah, this is the part where things get tricky.”

  “You’re not supposed to be running around, Sam. Your other self might catch your presence.”

  “This far? I doubt it. Besides, in this moment, I would be too busy trying to figure out what’s happening to Frein, or teasing Katherine. Depends on how soon Elizzel returns.”

  The Letterman sighed, turning her attention towards a more productive outcome. There, in the sky, she found what she was looking for.

  Weaving around the floating islands was the wandering Sky Knight atop a five-headed Forest Jaws. Depositing Sam in her pocket, the Letterman reapplied her disguise, blurring her features and hiding her real voice.

  In a single step, she appeared before Ashtine.

  The Sky Knight lost her balance, rolling down the Forest Jaws’ spine before eventually catching herself. That was a good sign. At least, the Letterman knew she was talking to the actual Ashtine. The Entity would’ve stood its ground.

  “Where’s the Entity?” she asked, her voice echoing with both male and female tones.

  Ashtine had that look. Tired and lost and in despair. The Sky Knight’s own brother had tried to kill her and almost succeeded, an unknown being with mysterious motives was possessing her, and she was riding a five-headed Nightmare pseudo-dragon that had no interest in her. Even for a soldier, these things would be a lot to take in. The Letterman had to be direct, however, to make sure she was well hidden.

  “She’s in my Mind Palace,” Ashtine answered while maintaining her distance. She was cautious, but she could see the gap in power between them. “She’s resting.”

  “What did it—she—tell you?”

  “Are you here to take her away?” the Sky Knight asked instead.

  “Depends,” the Letterman answered honestly. There were many possibilities in Ashtine’s Destiny. Only a few of them were good. “I’m here to help, but only if the Entity’s plans don’t involve Frein and the others.”

  “She wants me to find Thraxzim’gar,” said the Sky Knight. “She said, I have its soul within me, and I have to return it if I want to get my memories back in order.”

  The Letterman smiled, but it didn’t show, her meiyal blurred it from reality. This was the best path for Ashtine. Isolated from the others for a long time. Challenges will be on her path, but the Entity would take care of her and teach her how to become stronger.

  If things went according to her expected future, she would return reaching the Deitar stage the next time she and Princess Kristel would meet.

  “Good. Then I’ll let you go,” the Letterman said.

  She only vaguely entertained the thought that the Entity had somehow calculated her presence and told Ashtine to lie. Even if that were true, her solution to it would be to simply extinguish the root of the problem. But she chose to trust the Sky Knight this time. This was the best path for everyone right now.

  “The Princess’s control over this Nightmare will disappear the next time it touches the ground,” she said to Ashtine. “Either conquer it or run away from it. Either would work for you.”

  The Letterman turned but waited for Ashtine to ask her question.

  “Wait! Who are you?”

  “I’m a friend,” she replied. “But only as long as you keep the Entity away from Frein and the Princess. Don’t worry. Once you’ve finished your task, I’ll come find you again.”

  The Letterman turned back to Ashtine and approached her, placing a blurred hand over the Sky Knight’s shoulder. Hers would be a difficult future, and one full of despair and loneliness.

  “Stay strong, Ashtine,” she said. “Don’t give up. You’ll see everyone again in the future.”

  This time, she didn’t wait and stepped away.

  “Alright, that’s Ashtine guided and encouraged,” Sam said, appearing before the Letterman once again. They had returned to the tower. “You sure that’s enough?”

  “Yes,” said the Letterman, not bothering with her voice this time around. “Ashtine’s strong. Her despair would be her anchor, and the Entity would value her even more once she tapped into her potential.”

  “So what’s next?” Sam asked.

  “Time to head back.”

  See you on the next release!

  Shall Allren

  Nova!