As a result, Ber and the Seci Response Moons made quick work of the Corrupted. The ring of crystals surrounding the Corrupted brimd with powerful energy. It heated the air around it, creating a deadly haze.
They did not even need to Subjugate the Corrupted, though it would make the jobs of the receiving Moons in the Nexus much easier. However, that was also a moot point.
The Arbiter
< Ber, when they arrive, I trust Nav will contact Anna and ask about her whereabouts. While the Corrupted are free to roam within my Floor, I cannot guarantee that they won't be Subjugated. Anna is the only one capable of Archiving the Corrupted outside of Frost's automatic process. Nor do we have an operational Floor of Purpose to stow them safely >
Ber was surprised that she received this ssage. She had not really… no, she had never received a direct ssage from the Arbiter before. The shock had stopped her mid-swing, her target a Hyperwarp Crystal which needed being installed into the marble like a loose nail.
Hello? Nav? Did the Arbiter ssage everyone as well?
"I did. I speak on behalf of everyone in the Nexus."
True. So, was that her?
"Yes."
Nav, give it to straight. What happened? This should be for Frost, no?
Ber was right. Frost, and even Jury were the sole recipients of such ssages. For Ber to be directly addressed ant either they all needed to know this, or…
… Why aren't you talking? Did sothing happen to Frost?
It wasn't Nav to remain silent on such matters. In fact, if sothing did happen to Frost, they would usually find out imdiately. The sign alone spelled bad news, and she braced for it as she slamd her wing down to embed a crystal into the earth.
Finally, Nav revealed what was going on.
Nav
< I have lost contact with Frost. She is now in the domain of a Beholder's equivalent of a Corrupted Zone. I had hoped she could solve this without violence, but in the end, Frost has chosen to take matters into her own hands >
"… Am I supposed to be worried?" Ber scoffed.
The sudden weight on her chest disappeared. She thought sothing worse had happened to Frost.
"Aren't you overreacting? Frost has this. We just need to finish up here."
"Perhaps I am. But this feeling… Is it worry? My heart aches. This fighting. I don't understand the purpose of it. But I can also see their reasoning. A machine has one role… I'm sorry. I always feel lost whenever I disconnect from Frost. I'm not used to being left alone to my thoughts… Mine, and the collective others… they're so loud."
"Talk to Nav! You got us!" Ber cried as she threw a hand into the air.
The Hyperwarp Sites for each of the Corrupted were now complete. An invisible barrier prevented the Corrupted from escaping. They slamd into the walls. Few could do nothing but wait for the inevitable.
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"W-Wait… O' Claw. They are for the Living Loom…" A Missionary croaked.
Ber expected an Exarch to speak up, but they seed to be far more afraid of her than the Missionaries were. Their petrified expressions only brought joy to Ber as she shrugged and waved a hand into the air.
Then, she winked.
"That's exactly why we're confiscating them~ Nothing in the Script says otherwise."
"… Nothing…"
The Missionary groveled in defeat. The simple logic was all they needed to understand. There was no point in arguing over what was infallible.
Columns of light resembling prison bars shot from the crystals. The tips converged and began to descend until they made contact with the highest point of the Corrupted. A low-pitched whine then ca from the devices as they glowed violently. The marble beneath them sifted, then shattered.
The platform carrying the Corrupted floated at the newford craters. Then, with a graceful bow–
"Our work here is done~"
–The Corrupted disappeared without a trace. The Denizens had been eradicated. The Anids ca to a complete standstill, their instincts overpowering their commands. And Act X were suddenly faced with a wall.
"… Half of it, actually." Ber gave them a toothy grin as she threw her hair to the side. "
As per the Seci Response Force, and the Head as a whole – and my role and nasake as the Claw of the Head; one of Three Heads of Security of the Amalgam…"
Ber relished in her title. She elongated every syllable as the embraced the lilight.
"I had overheard Frost's initial offer to you. Wasn't it along the lines of 'let's wait it out' since there wasn't a ti limit. Believe , Frost is far too rciful for her own good. I doubt she's in a forgiving mood either. Consider yourself lucky that your crossing with the Head didn't result in the annihilation of Act X. But that is still to be determined~"
Ber materialized a chair from her [Dinsional Storage] and took a seat. It was a regal chair encrusted with diamonds and was shaped by a single slab of gold. She suddenly beca Act X's babysitter, or a teacher who was scolding her class by keeping them in during lunch ti.
"War ends when the Amalgam and your Beholder finish up. I cannot believe that you brought a war to us, when we're already at war with the Impuritas and Scarlet Logic. Are you out of your mind!? Who do I have to kill to get it through to you!?"
"Sis, let's calm down." Res heaved. "We're just waiting for Frost now and…" She turned to the distant clashes of Jury and Lachesis.
The Moons nodded at each other and took over from here. Since the Anids and Act X finally realized they were completely outmatched, they willingly surrendered themselves. There was no Script that said that they couldn't.
Furthermore, the Milinid must have also ordered them to stand down after finally incurring the wrath of the Seci Response Moons.
"Graced by Mother's kin. A sister." Acedia cutely smiled with a vertically slit mouth. "Shall I release them?"
"Go ahead, boss. Party's over. They'll call this the One Hour War." Horus yawned, glad that she didn't have to fight anymore.
Her eyes moved to the Acolytes, and she scowled when she realized none of the won were her type.
"Tsk."
"… That reminds ." Ber nodded at an approaching Res. "Raoul is in there, right? I heard he had an Ara mont. I wouldn't mind a fourth sister."
"As if it changes anything. Yeah. Go say hello." Res shrugged. "No news on Frost."
"None at all. Nav's locked out. You ok, sis? Don't worry, your dium sis is here~"
"Haha. It wasn't easy, working within Frost's restraints. Think we'll get a… you know?"
"Tail fluff?" Ber's eyes sparkled.
"I was thinking about a headpat." Res laughed.
Ber, despite her positive attitude, carried a look of concern as her tail lightly brushed against Res's ankles.
"Are the twins ok?"
"Yeah. They're fine. Raoul's with them. So stupid. The sa person that ruined us, is the sa person who's keeping them together. But also ruined them by coming back. Like… tch."
"… You never were that harsh on him."
"After hearing excuse after excuse? Makes you want to give up on him."
"But have you?"
Res didn't answer that. She looked in Raoul's direction – hidden by the Isolation Sphere – and clicked her tongue once more. It was frustrating. Raoul was a traitor. Worse. He had tortured their mother and sought the help of the Impuritas to Corrupt them all.
The answer should have been obvious to her.
But she still refused to answer.
Ber held her gaze, even when Res could not.
"… You and I know… how important he was."
"It changes nothing."
"I know it doesn't. What happened there doesn't matter here. I don't forgive him either." Ber did not want to forgive him. It wasn't her intention to.
Like Res and Cer, she had a powerful, though ill-known connection to Raoul. Raoul was the only person she knew as a child. She did not know her sisters for the longest ti, nor the face of her mother.
Just Raoul, who arrived as often as winter. He was the only visitor she had.
Thus, just once, she wished to pay him a visit in return.
"I'll say what I have to say. Watch over the Moons for ." She patted Res' head, and her sister leaned into her hand. "The Eye of the Head is taking over!"
The Moons replied in a series of understanding nods as Ber approached the Isolation Sphere. She let out a long sigh of relief along the way, glad that they were now finished on their side.
It was now all up to Frost to finish this ss.
Her hand entered first, and her face scrunched with confusion.
It was unnaturally cold inside.
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