Though the assault on the Ultimate Phoenix Sect was a success, it was not without losses. Even an overwhelming force would inevitably sustain some casualties, it was simply a matter of who incurred more- relative to their own strengths. So far, the trifold alliance hadn’t lost any of their Assimilation level cultivators, and the Sylanis cluster was down three… but a single one from Ceretos perishing would be a huge deal. Weos and Rutera simply didn’t have any to lose, and the latter was fortunate that Anton had been present for the most recent attack.

Anton was quite aware that if any Assimilation cultivators were lost in the war, he was one of the most likely. After all, he was active and mobile- most of the rest were present together on Ceretos, bound to a purely defensive situation. At least for the moment- perhaps some might develop to a later stage where they would be more mobile, but that was unlikely to happen in the next few years if they didn’t start highly mobile. Everheart of course didn’t count, because he wasn’t really interested in involving himself in fighting in other systems. Weos was an exception because of the Twin Soul Sect, but otherwise he had quoted exorbitant costs that were maybe not even worth it- and that was saying something, given how strong the man was. More than once he mentioned to Anton how he’d like entire planets.

The most recent advances were the exception to the mobility issue. The Great Queen was not bound to a place- she benefited from devotion, but that didn’t require her presence in any particular place. Beyond that, she merely gained a stronger body- she was likely of a similar power to an Assimilation cultivator, which in a way made her much more deadly to those who were uneducated.

Then there was Nthanda. Her current limitation was not her power nor her capacity to travel, but simply her weapons. No doubt she would do fine in a battle consisting of Life Transformation cultivators ripping them apart with her bare hands or using her older bow, but she couldn’t make optimal use of her power until her new weapon and ammunition were available. Rutera was hard at work on that because they had the best non-enchanted materials expertise, and since they seemed to be a high frequency target they needed whatever assistance they could get. Weos… well, hopefully they’d have their own Assimilation cultivators soon enough- they had peak Life Transformation cultivators and Anton had been helping as he could. Gaining even one or two Assimilation level cultivators there would greatly increase their defensive capabilities.

After the assault on the Ultimate Phoenix Sect, two months had passed without direct action. That didn’t necessarily mean anything good- it could mean that the Sylanis Cluster was no longer confident in attacking, or it could mean they were preparing something bigger. The number of mobile Worldbinding cultivators shouldn’t be terribly high, but there was still the potential threat that they could combine what they had remaining to attack Rutera or Weos.

All of this put together made Anton wonder about the ransom of the two he had caught, Alaia and Zarina. If they were returned and healed, then they would have only removed one Worldbinding cultivator. On the other hand, forcing the enemy to expend resources for the attempt- both in the ransoming and recuperation stages- seemed like it might be worth it. And having one successful event of diplomacy seemed worthwhile. He wanted to work on that, but finding anything even remotely approaching neutral ground was a challenge.

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Though Everheart could fake transmissions from the Alaia and Zarina, nobody wanted the Sylanis cluster to know it was so ‘easy’. Thus, they were directly involved in the negotiations for their own ransom. Ironically enough they were more reasonable and cooperative than the weaker cultivators, like Merve. Anton doubted they trusted anyone still, but they were willing to go along with the motions on the chance that they were freed. Or perhaps because there would be some sort of ambush waiting at the other end, which was kind of the same. That would at least be trust in their allies, to some extent.

Anton was fairly certain that there wouldn’t be an ambush, or at least he was convinced that the two hadn’t asked for one. Whether or not that would equate to the Sylanis cluster agreeing, he couldn’t say. But, at least their sects had agreed. Negotiating a price had required input from those who were more adept at trade than Anton- he was aware of the value of many goods, but the Sylanis cluster didn’t necessarily offer the same things as Ceretos did. More importantly, the sects couldn’t afford to just throw together a room packed to the brim with diamonds- or something cultivators actually cared about. If they were seen to be buying up all of one type of usable good, the price would increase… which meant they would be less willing to trade and couldn’t afford as much. Anton was willing to press them for everything they would give, but he’d rather get the most possible as well- for himself, and for Rutera who sustained the majority of the damage from the two.

They were even willing to meet at the edge of Rutera’s influence. That was good… but also meant Anton wouldn’t be at optimal strength. It was better than trying to meet them in Okloi, because that sort of confidence would give away too much, and he really wasn’t certain they couldn’t set up a good ambush for him.

The negotiations ultimately resulted in the Sylanis cluster not informing him where they would arrive, just the distance- they would use their communication devices when they arrived, and would wait for the time Anton promised he would arrive in. He slightly undersold his potential speed- and they likely knew that. Even so, it would be much harder to organize an army to show up than a single ship or small fleet, and Anton thought he should be able to pick out anything untowards before they arrived.

Thus it was that Anton set out with the two cultivators- still restrained and with damage to their cultivations. Not alone, of course. He could doubtless fly the two of them there faster himself, but he took the maximum forces the enemy would accept. He really did want a successful negotiation, even if it was unfriendly. That would be the first step towards maybe ending up at peace. Because he sure wasn’t confident in managing to beat Worldbinding cultivators fifty or a hundred more times.

Rutera provided ships, including one of their smaller carriers with a few fighters. Ty Quigley volunteered to come, perhaps because Elder Intan was also along… or because he hoped there would be a fight. Both of them probably wanted that, but Anton at least trusted them not to start it.

Anton was bending the rule of only bringing one ‘Worldbinding’ cultivator. Obviously, he himself was going. Along with that, he was bringing the Great Queen. If nothing went wrong, she would stay hidden and unnoticed unless they had the proper training to pick her out, a simple blank for energy senses in the void of space that was already mainly empty.

The message came, and they moved out. Anton marveled at the fact that he could reach the edge of the system, further than he could have ever imagined traveling, faster than he once could have walked to Alcombey to sell off his crops. How greatly things had changed for him in the last century and a quarter, and the same was true of Ceretos as a whole. It was hard to keep up with, even if he was one of the driving forces.

As they drew close, Anton removed himself from the ships, flying ahead with just the Great Queen as a companion. The given coordinates were accurate enough that he found the waiting cultivators without issue. From everything he could tell, all was as anticipated. No Worldbinding cultivators, even as his senses squirmed their way through the barriers of their ships to peer inside. The ransom payment was available in boxes and crates, not wrapped up in a storage bag. Its presence was useful. He got close enough to feel beyond and around the group, feeling only emptiness beyond them and the standard background of natural energy.

He returned to the ships, to arrive with them. “Everything seems to be in order,” Anton said. “But stay cautious.”

“Of course,” was the Great Queen’s immediate signed response.

The other ships replied through the comms devices- Ruteran ones all worked with each other except for the exception of interstellar ones- and even those they were working on. The acknowledgement of preparedness came from everyone, and Anton moved to unbind the two Worldbinding cultivators. He was unconcerned if they wanted to attack him- in their current states he could destroy them even in a melee. One had the faintest connection to some of those in the awaiting fleet, but that was to be expected.

It was extremely surprising to Anton that the exchange went through smoothly. He went out with the two in hand, the Great Queen nestled into the back of his clothing. Likewise, the various goods came to him, his senses quickly checking that quality and quantity were satisfactory. He dug deep into the cores of the boxes, but everything was precisely arranged and within expected tolerances for the crystals, metals, and exotic lumber- among other things. When half of the good were safely in his possession, he let the weaker of the pair go- Alina who had the connection to people. Then the other, Zarina.

They got on their ships, sealed up, began to turn around… and that was when it happened. Anton had remained ready, outside of a ship so he wouldn’t have to bother with it getting in his way if something went down. When he sensed a change in the world, his eyes immediately flicked to an empty part of space, only to find great skeletal hands prying apart the void. Two reached through, slicing apart a vertical slit- then more pried open the sides like the void itself was a cloth to be torn through.

At such a distance Anton couldn’t accurately judge their size, but the vertical slit was hundreds of meters in height, and the individual arms were at least a dozen. Though they appeared human, perhaps they had come from giants.

“Hold fire!” Anton commanded before anyone else could react. “Target the interloper, but don’t attack until I do, or upon my order.”

What was it? Anton searched his memories for what the skeletal arms could be as the opening in nothing rapidly expanding, stark white bone contrasting with the blackness of space, the points of light behind it covered in nothingness while the faint light of the sun lit the side towards them. The information carved out of the just released captive’s heads provided a name. A Worldbinding cultivator, Bala Sykora. She was the leader of the Ivory Maw- one of three Worldbinding cultivators they had. Her relationship with the other two present was anything but friendly.

As a literal mountain of bone pulled itself into the world, and even before Anton felt the spectral energy emanating from it he was preparing himself. “Don’t let them screw this up! Fire on the bones!” He punctuated the words with his own shot, shattering dozens of bones but ultimately seeming to be inconsequential damage compared to the size of the ship that was pulled through.

Anton was not concerned because he felt a great number of enemies come along with it. In fact, he was nearly certain that whoever controlled that came alone… but that was a more terrifying result than them bringing along an army.

He could feel the connections, though it wasn’t like anything else he’d ever seen. Yet it also wasn’t unfamiliar. Spectral energy, but unlike himself it wasn’t being drawn from beyond. Instead, it simply was- and that was all. The connection from the great mass of bones, some human in shape and some clearly not now that Anton had the chance to pick them out, were entirely suffused with spectral energy, without a trace of natural energy within Bala herself. He’d heard she had a mountain of bones- but even the two in the ships in front of him had thought it to be hyperbole.

Then a wave of power pulsed out in a sphere. It was only enough to cover the closest ship- one of the Sylanis Cluster. The barriers they had did nothing to stop it, and a moment later Anton felt the death of dozens of souls at once. Fully half of the complement of that ship had died, and Anton didn’t expect that the others were in good shape either. Attacks from the local fleet crashed into the mountain of bones. Instead of resisting with a barrier of energy, its simple size and mass appeared to be its main defensive factor. Anton thought to order a retreat- it wasn’t necessary to fight this, not here. But if he did… then the two he had just ransomed would certainly perish. He cared not for their lives- only what they represented, should they survive. They would have to fight- at least long enough to let them retreat, or send a message. Though they also couldn’t get too close to the mountain of death.