Wearing Power Armor to a Magic School (115/?) WiP 1

Hey everyone! Here is the Work in Progress for Chapter 115 I hope you guys enjoy! :D

Ilunor

I wanted to scream.

I wanted to yell.

I wanted to give that would-be human ‘leader’ a lesson in logical fallacies.

You do not simply equate the scaling of a mountain, or the crossing of a body of water, with the traversal of dead space.

For the former two exist, but the latter…

…

Doesn’t.

… 

I paused.

Reeling myself back.

Taking a moment to ponder what it was that I was even thinking.

The void, this dead space… its existence was tentative, yes.

But so were manaless newrealmers… and everything else they purveyed.

Moreover, had I not already accepted earthrealm as a dead realm? 

It stands to reason then that this dead space… must exist.

That means my argument, my reflexive decision to berate the man had no bearing on reality since—

No.

There must be other points in that speech that could undermine… all of this.

I took a deep breath, turning every which way within the great nothingness that was this dead realm.

This… realm within and without another realm.

It was disorientating.

Especially as that infernal language that was earthrealmer gibberish blared throughout the sight-seer.

Their words… barbaric, figuratively, and literally as well. As each and every word sounded as if they were garbling harsh syllables without consideration for a more refined tonal sensibility.

Barbarians would be a fitting way to describe them.

…

But barbarians they were not.

For their commitment to overcoming their limitations, to championing sapience against the repulsive and unfeeling forces of the natural order, their tenacity and their stubbornness, all of it… was the work of the civilized mind.

All of it was undeniably… the rhetoric of a civilized peoples.

But they are manaless! A part of me screamed, trying to reel back this… new side of me that would dare to lend an ounce of credence to the idea of civility being applied to a newrealmer, let alone a manaless one at that.

But despite its screams—

—and in spite of its credibility, owing to its voice representing the sum total of civilization itself—

—I couldn’t help but to resist it.

And not for any love or compassion for Emma or her kind.

No.

It was because there was no longer a clear line between reality and unreality.

For the very artifice we now stood within, was a living contradiction to a reality I could no longer passively refute.

A reality whose long drawn out history was sensible.

Even if that sensibility was beholden to an entirely alien set of logic and norms.

Norms which rewarded the insane, and punished the reasonable.

Logic that worked… but only within a reality of chaos and impossibility. 

A reality so novel, that it was better ignored as the exception to the true norms — status eternia.

I could not lose sight of that.

Prince Thalmin and Princess Thacea could not lose sight of that either.

For they both existed within living realms of mana and magic.

Not realms of the dead and unliving.

I had to remind them of that.

I had to take it upon myself to embody the role of the parent, the senior, and the wizened elder.

I had to carry with me that which both the Prince and Princess so dearly lack — the strength of character from a noble of an unending lineage. 

And I would be there when the time comes, as the sole voice of reason, amidst a sea of star-struck fools — to remind them that not all could be reality.

As Emma, as convincing as she is, could still be lying.

Perhaps not now.

Perhaps not with the alternate truths she currently purveyed.

But most definitely with whatever future lies she could potentially serve as truths.

Because as with any trap, honeyed is the trail that leads to damnation.

But thankfully, I had tasted the ambrosia of truth.

And it was I, and I alone, that could resist the nectar of Emma’s sweet nothings.

This commitment to the truth was not to be delayed however.

As I had yet more questions to pose the ever-so-prepared purveyor of alternate truths.

“Emma.” I began, turning towards the earthrealmer with an expectant step, watching on as these ‘astronauts’ started planting their kingdom’s flag on this new realm — hinting to the fractionalization of their troubled past.

“Yes, Ilunor?”

“That… speech, it was from one of your leaders, correct?”

“Yeah, an ancient leader from one of our old states. The very state whose flag you see being planted here now. The predecessor to one of the super-states that later became an influential bloc within the halls of the Greater United Nations’ General and People’s Assemb—”

“Yes, yes, yes. That is all well and good. However, I have a question pertaining to his… lofty ambitions.”

“Alright? HIt me.”

“He claims to wish to reach for your moon, and, ahem — to do other things. If that much is true, then tell me, why would he have not aimed for something larger?”

“I’m… sorry, I’m not really following—”

“You stated that every point on your non-existent tapestry is a ‘realm unto its own’, correct?”

“Yeah, more or less. I was being a bit reductive there, admittedly, but—”

“Then why the moon?”

“Huh?”

“Don’t play me for a fool, Emma Booker. If the moon was such a coveted destination, then surely there’s a far larger, far more enticing destination which would’ve obviously taken precedent. One which dominates the day, rather than merely peeking through occasionally in the night.”

I paused, allowing the earthrealmer to process what it was I was broaching. As it was clear to me, that somewhere behind that faceplate, was a face currently reaching the same realization as I.

“Tell me, Cadet Emma Booker, why didn't you aim for the sun itself?” 

Emma

I wanted to scream.

As much as I wanted to laugh.

But that was the immature side of me talking. 

It was clear that I’d skirted by Ilunor’s fundamental systemic incongruency, but that we were close to a looming impasse.

Though at the same time, I realized that this was the moment I could finally address the elephant in the room that started this whole mess.

The question of stars.

This wasn’t a moment to laugh and berate, no.

This was the moment to enlighten and inform, and also prime-time to finally address the elephant in the room that was the Nexus’ own sun and moon.

This was what the whole mission was all about.

And I was loving every bit of it.

Thalmin

Ilunor had a point.

If the moon was a realm unto its own, a desolate waste of nothing as it may be, then what of the sun? 

A blazing realm of fire and death perhaps, but humanity seemed adept at surviving any environment with the aid of their suits of armor. 

Surely the sun would’ve been a far greater goal to achieve.

“Perhaps you could show us a sight-seer of your people arriving on the surface of your sun, Emma?” I posited.

Ilunor

“I’m afraid that there are things that even humanity can’t do, guys.” The earthrealmer spoke through a rare admission of inadequacy. 

“And yet you claim that all points in the sky are realms unto themselves. Why is it then, that your people weren’t able to reach your sun?”

“Oh, we reached it alright, and the sun definitely is a realm unto its own—”

“Then why do you claim to be unable to—”

“Because the sun, in addition to being a deadly source of light, is likewise a realm composed entirely of perpetual fire."