439. What Are the Aberrations of Elysia?

439. What Are the Aberrations of Elysia?

The Arbiter must have known something they didn’t to make such a bold suggestion that the White Rabbit was an Aberration of Elysia. She was the only one well versed with them. The moment those words left her lips the room succumbed to an immediate silence.

“Elysia is no longer a sole entity. Her mind had fractured into several major pieces, all stemming from the one true Elysia. Hence – Aberrations of Elysia.” The Arbiter calmly revealed, bringing a tail to tap Jury’s leg from underneath the glass table. “Jury however is an anomaly. An Aberration is the undistilled woes of Elysia, personified into whatever grotesque form they take. She is the antithesis of it. Jury has no physical flaws, and neither does she seem bounded by the cycle of madness in the past.”

“Meaning Jury is Jury. We’re well aware of that.” Frost wondered if this was truly the case as she brought up the Horseman she had spoken to inside of H5, noting that it was a man rather than a woman.

Unless Elysia at one stage had also gone through a gender change then she couldn’t help but to poke holes at the Arbiter’s wisdom. It irked her that Elysia was the sole outlet for the Angels. Even Demons did not speak so horribly about her.

It began as a small, unrecognizable buzz and became a heat that spread from her heart up to her neck, and across her left arm.

The verdict on Elysia was inconclusive so long as she didn’t have the full picture. Frost was already hard on the Exalted solely for being Impuritas. She did not want to make the same mistake.

“I can’t do what they can either. The Nexus hasn’t been infected because of me either.” Jury referred to the blackened, scarred walls found in various places within the Nexus. If Jury was an Aberration, then she would have had a negative effect on the Nexus.

Or so they’ve been told.

She then continued, gently pushing the Arbiter’s tail away with hers.

“Our differences don’t stop there, but it doesn’t change that I have some of her blood in me.” Her eyes then moved to Galia and Satania, before landing onto Frost and then the Arbiter. “Also, is this ok to say out loud in front of everyone?”

“Be not afraid. Coincidentally, all people present are already versed with Elysia. One with Corruption.” A nod was given to Galia by the Arbiter, then another to Satania as she uttered: “And one with conflict.”

“Don’t be so vague with your words. Conflict? You like to misrepresent events.” The spiteful Demon sighed, lighting a finger with a flame as she then lit the tip of one of her horns like a candle. “It was a bloodbath. What you don’t know, Arbiter

, and Amalgam – is that Elysia can give and take however she sees fit. Expecting her to take sides is betting on the flip of the coin. For us it feels like that. For Angels? Expect maximum resistance.”

“For you, my Amalgam friend? According to your experience, it may be possible that you can bridge the chasm between the world and Elysia’s Aberrations.” Magus claimed hopefully. “I’ve heard the Horsemen were particularly violent. For them to go out of their way to speak to you personally is a positive sign! At least in my limited sphere of knowledge! Do shrug me off if you think otherwise.”

“No. You could be onto something. I hope so too.” Frost smiled at him before shifting her focus to Michaela and Satania. “Is there a number of how many Aberrations of Elysia are known?”

“Your guess is as good as ours.” Satania shrugged. “Could be two. A dozen. A hundred. Who knows how many Aberrations there are. What’s known is that they’re linked with the ‘Voice From Beyond the Void’. Ergo, Elysia. Did you know that the tempo of the ticking is never the same? You have a mountain to climb. Elysia isn’t our problem, and I’m more than happy to hand the responsibility to you.”

“They’re similar to the Alter ‘you’ but have a distinguishable personality.” The Arbiter then explained. “There’s one in G-Z7. One called the ‘Original’. You and I know what this entails. Another that graced the Abyssal Mother with her voice. And finally…”

Their eyes then fell onto Galia.

“One that spoke to me. It could all be from the same Aberration, or that ‘Voice’ and ticking we have come to know and love.” Galia spoke sharply in a low, dreaded tone. “We were tipped off otherwise by the White Wing. Who I heard is Elysia through and through. But not necessarily Elysia herself, but an Aberration. I’m ill versed in this discussion. Elysia in my eyes, is a force of nature that we can’t fight. Plot a man in a forest and nature will takes its course. Arm the man with will or knowledge, and they can thrive. The forest remains unhampered. To it, the forest does not know of the man’s existence.”

Galia spoke cryptically, running a glistening finger around the rim of her mug. A high-pitched whine accompanied her final words:

“We cannot tame a God. The Archetypes however… Hmm… Have we strayed too far off topic? This was about the White Rabbit. If it is an Aberration of Elysia, then this is the first time I’ve heard of it being seen by the naked eye.”

“That’s the problem. We don’t know if it is by the naked eye. Only children have been reported being able to see them.” Jury explained the gnawing conundrum before revealing that she did catch a glimpse of a reflection of herself too after using [Time Seer], which had the side effect of involving the Aberrations.

Jury was asked to use it here. Unfortunately, there was little Nex to be used within the Nexus. The reason for this was that the Nexus itself devoured the Nex as soon as it became available.

This was a cover up reason, however.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

The real reason was this:

//////// ////////

Jury still had room to grow. Even Beholders after painstakingly achieving their title needed to continue tempering themselves before they became who they now were. Their fusion with their tech was proof of this.

But by how much could Jury grow? This could not be answered meaningfully anytime soon. It was a shame that Beholders were still out of their reach.

Are you ok, Nav?

“I’m as fine as can be. The sensation was odd. It reminded me of when the Archivist used to silently speak with me.”

Could it be another Archetype trying to communicate with you?

“Unknown.”

There were plenty of mysteries at hand, but none more than the Aberrations and now the White Rabbit that plagued the minds of children. Frost made it clear that all Ateliers would be involved if the effects were as widespread as they believed it to be.

This meant that they had to be ready before a single drop of blood could be spilt. Frost already assigned the triplets for the excursion ahead, and the Stars were aware of the happenings. But the Ateliers were still in the dark.

She did not want them to take a hit while they least expected it, especially if it turned out that the Impuritas were behind this.

“We’ll get Caldera Industries to join the investigation.” Frost announced. “They can detect Impuritas presence. Have them ready to scrub through areas that report of the White Rabbit.”

“I shall personally take this to Knalzark.” Galia hummed, already envisioning how the man would react to an order given by her lips. “Uprooting this is a good first step before we can lay the foundations in the Nex Megalopolis.”

“Which leads to another point. Unless you want to tackle Iscario right now?” Satania asked, holding a cup up kindly for Anna.

The girl hopped from her seat, her face beaming as flowers seemed to form around her head. Anna was happy that someone appreciated her tea, and in that moment, Frost gulped hers down and did the same.

As did Magus. Three pink brushstrokes were made around the cheek area of his face to convey a humorous blush. A proud look formed on the Arbiter’s face for some reason as she watched over Anna like how a mother would a child.

The Hired Arm stared defensively at the Arbiter, as if to declare Anna as her own.

“We can leave the worst for last. Iscario’s topic extends to the Apple Advent and Grandis as a whole. I have a lot to vent about how the Nexus has handled that Region for the last decade and a half.” Frost hid her anger well as she thanked Anna for the tea. “Infernis exists as well. I’m so fucking… Sorry. Excuse my language. Ahem. I’m curious to why no one ever tried heading into Infernis after Iscario’s betrayal. That’s the resurrected kingdom of Puritas. He was their prince. Is it not obvious that he’d be there?”

“Obvious indeed. Would you like an answer now, or after what Satania has to say?” Galia’s words were venomous. They were like fangs ready to strike for she had a response primed to immediately counteract Frost.

“Now. Just for this. Why didn’t the Nexus send someone to find Infernis?”

Galia’s eyes became a vibrant purple hue, appearing like the nebulae above as she brought a finger to her lips, painting them with the taste of bitter coffee.

“Because Infernis doesn’t exist above Grandis. It resides underneath it in the Derma Layer. As if by an act of the divine, the city of Infernis sunk 12 years after the loss of Paradise. People only remember the remnants of it. News doesn’t spread far in Grandis because no one dares to leave their homes in fear of being brought down by the swords of injustice.”