Chapter 1136 Beginning of the End
Despite the seriousness of the situation, the Bishop's cry of anguish made an even broader smile stretched across Daneel's lips. He had always wondered whether it was really cool for Heroes to walk away from an explosion they set off, and now that he was doing it himself, he found out that it did feel great.
He stored away the smile in a vault he hoped to open soon, though, when he reached the center of the continent and saw that the rest had begun to celebrate. His first instinct had been to join them, but with the Bishop still standing outside Angaria with the majority of her force unscathed, he just couldn't get in the mood.
The celebration was led by his elder brother, of course, who had a rare talent of being able to forget everything that wasn't in front of him. Daneel could see that Eloise was watching him dance around with a glass of wine in his hand with a small smile on her lips, so he could tell that she must have seen, like him, that this was good for the morale of the continent.
The platform they were on was protected by a barrier that kept out sound, so when he deactivated it, he saw that Elanev was successful. Below, the people were shouting his name and that of the Mother they hoped to save, and seeing them all, Daneel wished that he could join them.
Alas, he knew, like the others, that the final battle was just beginning. They had all seen the hidden cards of the Bishop that were still floating out there, shrouded in darkness. Just one of them had been enough to deal with their own trump card, and if the others were equally powerful… they were in for a rough ride. The only consolation was that they had a few guesses regarding what she might be hiding, courtesy of the TriCobra sect. The news had also reached them that she had dismantled her secondary headquarters, so no matter what, she would be returning soon to either grasp victory or die trying.
Daneel knew that this must be the idea in her mind, as he had found out quite a lot about her from his master's memories. She might be cruel and authoritative on the surface, but that seemed like a veil that she had adorned to carry her to her goal of reaching the apex of the Church. He didn't know why she wanted to reach this goal, but deep inside, the determination that spurred her forward was nothing short of impressive.
The celebration went on for a few more seconds, while Daneel stood in front of the throne, lost in his thoughts. Wine was passed around, but many denied Elanev. Some did accept, but except for Percy, the rest only took small sips. When his elder brother finally realized that the mood had started to grow somber, he instantly changed, too, and said, "Don't tell me that that respite wasn't needed! Well, even if you didn't enjoy it, I did, and so did the people below… still, let's get back to it now."
His lopsided smile betrayed the smart mind that he usually kept hidden away. Tipping his head to his elder brother, Daneel sighed and walked forward to the image of Angaria floating in front of him.
Just as he was about to raise his hand and run a few simulations, though, he received a message that made him raise his eyebrows and freeze. A moment later, he disappeared.
After a few short teleportations, he arrived in a cave unlike no other. The walls seemed to glow with all sorts of colors, and the ceiling was studded with shining stalagmites and stalactites. It seemed to stretch to infinity, but only a small portion of it was lit. It was here that he found the thousands of people who made up the Hivemind, and together, they were all huddled in a small space while looking around with fear.
The one who had messaged him was Dalia. Despite her young age, she had been chosen as the representative of the Hivemind due to the natural leadership skills she had picked up on her journey as the heir of her mother's empire. Seeing him appear, she ran forward and said, "It just quieted down. There were no casualties, but everyone is scared."
Nodding, Daneel patted her head and waited for the system to respond.
[Instability detected does not meet the estimations present in the data provided by the TriCobra sect. It is probable that this is because of an extreme weakening of the core when the Will of the World was forcefully used before the apocalypse. New estimations are being drawn.]
Just when I think that everything is going to plan… the heavens through me a curveball, he thought, but on the outside, he spoke in a strong, unwavering tone.
"Calm down, everyone. This is within our expectations. The instability was just… more violent than we thought. Mages are on the way to create formations that will protect you. The work you're doing here is invaluable. Angaria will forever be indebted to you, and your sons and daughters will regale others with the tale of how their patients saved their home. We have a few minutes of respite for you to come down. Use it well, and if necessary, make use of the calming trinkets, too."
He said the last part while waving his hand toward one corner of the cave, where a pile of objects could be seen. They had been created by the system using an ancient spell from the Empire, and when worn, they could calm a panicked heart. If not for their limitation where prolonged usage would send the user into a destructive mood of fearlessness, he would have deployed them among the army outside, too.
For now, they could only help the Hivemind. He had lied to them, but he had no choice. Being calm was the most important thing to work together, so if he didn't soothe them with his words, he could kiss goodbye to this valuable card of his.
Dalia had always been a smart child, so she could tell that things were not exactly as he was telling them. Still, she was also smart enough to see the reason behind his actions, so she turned around and said, "You heard the Godking. It's the last leg! Will we let the glory be taken away by the others above? No way!"
Smiles came upon their faces on hearing her words. Patting her head again and thanking her, he sent a message to the system before teleporting back to the surface.
"Stabilise it using any means possible. We just need to hold on for a few hours. After that… we'll have plenty of time to deal with it."
[Affirmative. Strength of Hivemind attacks will be reduced, but stability will be ensured.]
There was no other way around it. The system would essentially be restoring the Energy reserves of the core a tiny bit with every attack to fool it into thinking that everything was normal, as the main problem was that they were being depleted at a much faster pace than the World was used to. It was only a tiny stopgap, but the future could be thought about if one existed. After giving a quick rundown of what had happened, he turned to the projection once again, but he dropped the idea of simulating anything as he saw that the force of the Church had once again begun to move in Angaria's direction.
Immediately sending a message to everyone present that they should be ready again, he cursed her in his mind as he had been hoping that she would give them enough time to let the Hivemind recovered. It was all the more important now to use the rest with even greater effect, if possible, so with bated breath, everyone waited to see what she would do.
They could all see her from where they stood. She hadn't even bothered to wipe away the black streaks along her face where the tears had flowed before, and her black dress that had been immaculate before was now torn in many places. She had mauled it herself, in her frustration, and beneath her, the rest of the army had somehow been rallied once again into a bloodthirsty rage.
The main thing that Daneel was concerned about was the masses of darkness behind her, though. He kept his eyes on them, but as she arrived at the spot a few kilometers away from the shore, she stopped, making his gaze rivet back to her.
There was a strong wind blowing, bringing the saltiness of the sea deep into the continent. As he was standing a few hundred feet in the air, it arrived in its pristine form, waiting to be breathed in so that it could be enjoyed by those who loved it. Daneel had always been fond of it, but now, it smelled of death, destruction, blood. He looked to his left and right, to his sovereigns arrayed around him, and as he studied their faces, he only saw confidence. Confidence in him, in his plans. He knew that it would destroy him if any of them came to harm, and for a moment, he understand why this thought had even come in his mind.
It's because it's finally the end. Soon, the victor will be revealed…but isn't it said that war never has any victor? I will prove that wrong. I have to!
He let out the breath he had been holding, and for a second, it was as if time had stopped. Angaria stood below. Its people, its land, its dreams and hopes and blood waited for the final battle, and in all their hearts, he knew that he was the one who stood, confidently, assuring them that it would all be all right. The past played in front of his eyes, reminding him of the debt he had to this continent. The future played in the corner of his vision, waiting, calling to him tantalizingly as if it could be grasped if he just stretched out his hand. More than ever before, Daneel wanted to put this all behind him. Angaria deserved peace. Its people deserved time to grow, happily, with nary a care on their minds.
I deserve some rest, too. Being a leader is f*cking hard.
But does anyone in this world get what they deserve? NO! It has to be taken with both hands, wrenched away from the grasp of destiny! We will take what is ours!
His thoughts reached a crescendo that pounded in his ears and made his heart beat like a drum, and all at once, time went back to normal…and the axe fell.
"Enough. I think it's time to end this… but before that, I have to return something to you. Here…. treat it as my gift."
She spread her arms out, but Daneel turned his head to see that one of the objects behind her had started to move forward. He could feel the entire continent hold its breath as they waited to see what would be revealed… but surprisingly, even as the object moved in Angaria's direction, the layers of darkness did not disappear like they had done when the armor had been revealed.
Wait… Is it growing in size?
His doubt was soon confirmed when the massive clump of rippling darkness doubled, then tripled. It kept growing at an incredible speed, until finally, it was as large as a cloud that could engulf all of Angaria.
And when the layer on top that was hiding what it was disappeared… that was exactly what it did.
Within… were tens of thousands of ghosts. Like dark, humanoid shadows, they blotted out the sun and effortlessly passed through most of the barriers set up around the continent. But like Daneel, many were fixated on a single detail that had become visible when the ghosts had reached the shore.
At that distance, each ghost had a face… and those faces belong to the Axelorians thought dead by them all.