Descartes gave a single nod and moved to her seat, monitoring the heads that sat here with the eyes of an owl. She took her seat and was immediately given a warm cup of tea by the kind Archivist. Having no reason to refuse her, Descartes nodded again in thanks.

But she never touched, let alone spared the cup of tea any thought thereafter.

“Apologies for my late arrival. There was some confusion when we found the Arbiter’s Council to be empty. Moreover, the Beholders were vocal about a certain Code of Conduct that became immediately binding a week prior.”

“They can take their complaints to me. Please don’t bring them here.” Frost said, gracefully erecting her posture.

Her feathers rustled to the truth, for she wore the Coat of Prejudice this time. However, the rustles were faint, and incredibly difficult to detect. This was because she was dealing with a Beholder, whose stats made it impossible to manipulate with her Abilities and Skills in the first place.

“Very well.” Descartes immediately began business. “My reason for arriving in your sacred grounds comes in threefold. The first is the mobilization of our personnel in the attempt to track down the detected presence of the Fractured Nilhim.

The second is the beginning of the new Lament Cycle. I’m unaware of what changes you will bring and must plan accordingly to minimize the risk of escapees. I trust that the Eclipses in your possession will be able to track them down.”

“With your cooperation, then everything will be possible.” Frost assured.

Not a single change occurred on her face. It was as if the only stimuli she could detect were solely business related. Her mind eerily focused, her eyes appearing as empty as they were full.

“Extraction of the Genesis Stones has been postponed until the new cycles begin. Public order will be handled at large by our enslaved Repenters.” ‘Enslaved’ was not a word Frost or Jury wanted to hear, but the truth was that the Repenters were exactly that. Slaves. It caused her stomach to churn violently in response.

“The third?” Jury inquired.

“Mimicry’s involvement in the Acedia Special Division. Our Blue Moons have been deployed to find specific individuals matching this criteria.” Descartes materialized a folder in her hands. She placed it on the table, allowing Jury to reach out for it with her tail and passed it over to Frost first.

The folder was pristine, but its texture felt like it had been shelved for years before it found use. The fact that these were kept in a paper form revealed their clandestine nature. Within were background checks regarding a dozen individuals, including Abigail and the Orange Disruptor.

Beside the empty picture of the Color were the blood-red, bold words of ‘Harrower’, whilst the others besides Abigail were given the title of Repenter. There were no images attached to determine who these other ten people were, but just from reading their backgrounds she noticed two common links.

“Ex-Impuritas. Affected by the Piece of the Fallen Star. Brought to a state that no longer aligns them with the Impuritas… You’ve written here that it’s unknown if they are Corrupted. You know well they’re not.” Frost circulated the information, pointing out this discrepancy for Descartes to answer to.

“Not yet.” She immediately replied, drawing heads to her. “The plan is to force them into inevitable Corruption.”

Satania then followed. “They seek Corruption. But when they’re left face to face with the truth of it, then I wonder how they’ll react. It’s not an experiment if that’s what you were thinking. They serve a purpose in the grand scheme of things.”

“This is the first time I’m hearing this.” Galia admitted, setting her cup of coffee aside as things had become serious. “Punishment is punishment regardless. I’m curious to what you plan to put into motion.”

“To find G-Z7.” Satania revealed. “The Orange Disruptor is one of the survivors of the first ever Zeroed Horizon at that cursed Site. She knows more than anyone about the Elysia that haunts it. It’s in our best interest to find it before the White Wing does. I believe there is no better person than her.”

“You think this is possible by forcing Corruption?” Anna had to ask, unconvinced by this plan.

“No. We want to take a glimpse into their minds, and the Voice From Beyond the Void that will speak to these people along the way. We suspect that someone or something may guide them in the right direction.” Descartes answered, collecting her documents as they were slid back to her. “There’s a running theory that there are multiple voices that can incite Corruption. My Blue Moons have determined that they are the most fit for this operation. I will unconditionally believe them.”

“All this for G-Z7.” Frost was also unconvinced, more worried about Abigail’s involvement.

“Abigail is the guarantee for Mimicry. They’ve created a certain bond that Mimicry will fear severing. Amalgam. Did you think we wouldn’t employ such underhanded tactics?” Satania sharpened her nails along her horn.

“You want to put a healer on a train full of criminals!?” Frost nearly snapped but was quickly calmed down by her Hired Arm that desperately held her in place.

“Criminals overseen by the Orange Disruptor. Meaning are not your typical criminals.” Galia read between the lines, realizing that this was the reason why they were a part of the Special Division.

“Yes. Precisely.” Descartes confirmed. “There is a deep regret we wish to exploit. It will trigger the Genesis Stones more readily than anyone else. Abigail will be there to keep them alive. No more, no less. The Orange Disruptor and my Blue Moons will ensure that your Black Wing is safe. There is no Impuritas foolish enough to go against a Blue Moon.”

Blue Moons were the embodiment of nightmares. Only a handful of them existed and possessed one of CogitO’s most prized item – the CognitO Phantasm. It allowed them to manifest as the nightmare of individuals that perceived, as well as to know one’s deepest terrors.

They were near identical to the Fractured Nilhim, for they both possessed similar abilities save that the latter were mostly apparitions of the mind rather than physical. However, because of the Blue Moon’s ability to invoke terror, not many Impuritas aside from the Fractured Nilhim dared to go against CogitO.

Frost wondered if she could ever incite enough fear herself to ward them away. She asked if it was possible to create one for her, but unfortunately for her, this was not possible as it was created using the core of the Collection which was long lost.

This meant that no Blue Moons could ever be made.

“The Fractured Nilhim are a stain to living.” Descartes unexpectedly spat, her brows furrowing. “The sanctuary we created for the ill trapped them in a century-long dream of torment. I fear that even now, those still part of the core of the Collection are at their mercy. We are both groups that attack and manipulate the mind. Neither of us believe we are righteous. But we have values dating back to the day that we were born. If the mind can be understood… if this ‘Elysia’ can be reasoned with… then none of this mental agony would ever exist.”

Emotion overcame Descartes for a split second before her eyes went dull again. Something was suppressing her emotions, likely for her own good. From her words alone it was obvious that she harbored incredible trauma, as did all Beholders.

But unlike them who wore it on their sleeves, she relied on that suppression as the only way to cope with it.

“I am asking you again, Amalgam. Can we proceed with the plan?” Descartes reverted to her cold manner of speech again.

… I don’t want a healer to suffer. This plan sounds beneficial, but I am not going to let a healer get caught in the middle of it.

“Would it be wise to assume that Abigail has also been informed of this?”

Likely. But how come she hasn’t told me anything?

“Perhaps because you would forbid her.”

Tch.

In the end, Frost promised to not impose her will on the decisions made solely by her healers. With a deep sigh, Frost reluctantly agreed with the plan at one condition.

“Abigail will confirm this to me. Alone. Mimicry will too. When I personally hear it from her mouth, then you’re cleared to begin.” Frost’s body was suddenly engulfed by darkness, only her golden eyes visible like the two last stars in the night sky.

“But if so much as a single wound is found on her body, then the entire Lament Cycle will be brought into my own hands. You will both answer before me and the Arbiter when that day comes.” It was impossible to look Frost in the eye. Her warning came across as a wrathful vow as the two agreed with her conditions.

“There will be no flaws in this plan. G-Z7 must be found before the White Wing.” Beholder Descartes assured, pleasing the Arbiter who also wanted to keep the White Wing away from it.

“If it comes to that, then I’ll be punished by Lucy too. She has a thing for healers.” Satania exhaled, smiling at Frost. “You don’t need one of those Phantasms with a presence like that. If it’s you, then I think the Fractured Nilhim might come face to face something incomprehensible. When that time comes, I suggest you ‘cage’ them.”

“Cage them?” Frost immediately diffused, wondering what the term meant.

“Keep them bottled up. They’ll take the form of your terror or mirror an unpleasant side of ‘you’ when they try to dig into your mind. If it scares them shitless, then imagine what the other Impuritas Groups will think once they see it.” Satania said this like Frost knew how to bottle them up in the first place.

But just as she was about to ask for clarification –

– Nav blared out a warning, causing Frost and Jury to stare in disbelief at the prompt.

Her eyes were peeled wide as her heart sunk into the recesses of her gut. Her body was plunged into an arctic sea as ice ran through her veins. She trembled at the news as all eyes fell onto her.

//////// < WARNING > ////////

< UKNOWN RISK-CLASSIFICATION LEVEL >

< Frost! Everyone – Rabbit holes! So many of them! Ber’s watching everyone being swallowed up by rabbit holes! >

Frost and Jury immediately threw themselves from the table as Frost shouted at the top of her lungs.

“GATHER THE BEHOLDERS! GATHER EVERYTHING YOU HAVE! H5 IS UNDER ATTACK!”

Syringe

It's that time of the month again!

You can access 42 Chapters (weeks!) ahead of the main story over on the Patreon for just $5 USD! patreon.com/syringe

And also 1 Explicit Chapter (Frost x Jury)!

We are currently at the start of Arc 7 Part 2. It is planned to be considerably shorter than part 1 and will set up Arc 8. Right now on the Patreon many new developments have occurred, and is poised to reveal the secrets of the Corrupted and concepts beyond just Corruption. Basically, the bigger scale.

And as you can already guess, the theme of Arc 7 Part 2 is

Spoiler

Alice in Wonderland.

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