Frost was starved for a time out. Agreeing on forcing people to Corrupt went against so many stances she had taken in the past. Not long ago she would never have wished her worst enemy to undergo a Corruption Event.

The ultimatum caused the triplets to immediately shift their gaze towards her, stunned by her approval. They were not alone. Moons were also baffled by the truth of Oboros Infinitas and believed that the Amalgam would have gone against their proposal.

It felt odd that after having cemented her drive to make wrongs into rights that she would dabble in something so sinister. However, deep down they understood the purpose of it. The transparency shown in the Council gave them the context they had been starved of ever since they ascended to Moons.

Besides, it wasn’t like good people were going to be turned into Corrupted. Still, it left a bitter taste in their mouth. Even that was an understatement.

Cer, Ber and Res’ eyes stared judgingly at her as Cer mouthed the words “Guess we’re the bad guys now.” She said it half-jokingly, but it was enough to cause a cold dagger to carve away at her heart.

Jury is going to need all the Nex in the world to use her tech to its full potential. This is necessary. Frost assured as if to convince herself, slapping her shaky internal compass.

“Ber understands. It was just jarring to hear it come from you. Expect backlash after this.”

I’ll take anything on the chin if it means that more people can be saved. I’m ready to dabble in evil if it’s necessary. Ugh. Nav… Sorry. Can I say something?

“Rare for you to ask.” Nav spoke with stupor. “That is usually my line. Frost. Are you ok?”

Far from it. I want to vomit. I want to shout and kick myself till blue but we’re at a point where we can only choose the lesser of two evils. I knew this would be hard. I’m kind of shaken at the moment. But this is the path I chose because the alternative is worse.

The alternative was doing nothing. Doing the exact same thing as the Ateliers which led to this mess in the first place. Looking around, she could tell that each of these figures were stagnant beings deprived of passion or what Frost considered to be a personal drive.

They were lost, motionless and satisfied with only the status quota. So long as they were untouched then everything was fine. This was how she saw it. Of course, this was a generalized depiction.

How can I see it in any other way? Someone has to shove them along. Paradise Lost was the last thing that motivated them to change. That wasn’t enough. The Arbiter wasn’t enough. Iscario wasn’t enough. Even the Impuritas aren’t. Something has to give.

Frost allowed these sour thoughts to mingle in her mind, eventually reinforcing her decision.

Beholder Knalzark drummed the air with a deep breath as he prepared for his turn. Before he could speak, Nav suddenly spoke on behalf of the Archivist.

“We only learn what would be of use to people who are no longer. The right way to live is something we can only teach the dead. I trust you Frost. We have to change things. Not everything has to be written in blood.”

Frost’s eyes closed. Those words were exactly what she needed to hear the most.

Exactly.

* * *

“What is there more to say? The issue of our stolen technology is too straightforward to require a resolution. I only didn’t expect that these Impuritas were capable to this degree. To preface, we were already aware that they could grow as large as what you call the ‘Complex Hearts.”

Beholder Knalzark hadn’t ventured into Scarlet Logic’s hive personally as have the other Beholders present, but he was informed of the charred remnants of a fleshy mass so large that it could encompass an entire Sector.

Frost called them the ‘Heart of the City’, and she knew that these were far from the only ones that plagued Elysia.

“Detecting them is not as easy as you may believe. They are stumbled upon only by seismic activity. Listening for the heartbeats is impossible when so many more drown them. We rank them at the same priority as the Genesis Stones because of their danger. As much as I want to claim that this is not our fault, the fact is that we allowed one to form under our noses.”

Knalzark was surprisingly apologetic compared to earlier. He knew that it was futile to go against the Amalgam. The best thing he could do was to suck up like every other Atelier, less he be made an example of.

“What I want to discuss is not a resolution. Information is what I want to share. You must be aware by now that the Impuritas have motivations specifically against our Ateliers. It’s true that we have had a hand in creating some of them, but others exist solely as our philosophical opposite. Carpalis isn’t here to discuss it, so I will share one of her secrets in her stead. I doubt she would ever tell you without losing face.”

Evergreen’s fists curled tightly, her brows furrowing as she heavily gulped. Promised Oath also shared uncomfortable body movement. Meanwhile, Magus remained calm, standing with all fingers touching in contemplation.

“Carpalis has yet to tell me this herself.” Magus interjected unexpectedly. “My good friend always referred to it in a roundabout fashion. I’m curious.”

“I don’t know the extent of it. She was betrayed by a close friend. That very same friend is Ringmaster Phalange: the one who runs the Animals.”

“Blood Festival. I’ve heard Carpalis mention that name before.” Frost spoke. “It never occurred to me that she was the leader of an entire Impuritas Group. This is all about what? Envy? I don’t get it. It’s too personal to just be about philosophical differences. Here I thought that the Blood Festival were created because of something the Golden Index did wrong.”

That fucking Herring.

“True to his namesake.”

The reason Knalzark brought this up was to have Frost reveal the true names of these Impuritas Groups, as well as to show that he now, at the very least, understood who their enemies were. They had been fighting them for a long time, after all. It was just a shame they never put as much effort into fighting them than they did amongst themselves.

Again, Frost was wrong. So unbelievably wrong that several veins protruded across Knalzark’s arms like coils of thick ivy.

“We’ve been searching for Infecta Rot for as long as you could ever imagine. From my desolated homes and infected motherland and the thousands I knew who collapsed because of their calamities… Amalgam, as there is much that you know what we do not, the same can be said in reverse. I was born because of Infecta Rot!”

His temper reached new heights as he nearly lashed out, controlled only as his left hand clasped onto his right. The black hole in his palm screeched like it was alive, pulsating with a gravitational pull that caused a few of Frost’s floating orbs to drift into its direction.

Then, with an unspectacular puff, the black hole disappeared like a snuffed flame.