Beyond The System
Chapter 192: Feed the Egg

Aaaand now.

Now…

NOW.

I tried to move myself, my body, whatever I even was right now. Just a floating consciousness, I guess. Awareness with no arms, legs, or anything else remotely useful.

And man.

Thea and Elric weren’t exaggerating. This sucked, and I was pretty sure I’d only been here a few minutes. There was no way to shift my view. No turning around, no glancing behind me, no rotating even slightly. My entire perspective was fixed on the scene in front of me, and that was it.

No sound. No groaning allowed. Just me, and my thoughts.

Eventually, I focused on the crystal above the egg, cold vapor rising from it in lazy wisps. That was something to think on. Waste some time.

Did Griffith have something like this?

But he hadn’t seen what I saw. No massive beasts floating in a void. No spiraling down into the pupil of a cosmic eyeball. That was my experience.

So then… what was it?

I used to think it had something to do with Precursor Energy. Back then, I felt it move inside me right before the eye noticed. And the beast did notice because of it. It locked on, like it had been waiting for something.

But the vision itself is what led to that meeting. To those elemental figures. The mysterious beings made from force that talked about a “master.” A world failing. Griffith didn’t mention any of that. According to him, he saw… “earth stuff.”

Hmm.

I really, really wished I could tap my finger on my cheek right now.

Ugh. Fine. Focus. The egg. That’s the only thing here, so let’s give it some attention.

It’s egg-shaped—shocker, and milky white, just hovering there in place.

And unlike Thea and Elric, I didn’t even get a companion aura. No comforting purple glow, no color at all. All my PE was floating around my Nexus, not in it. Not that I want to dismiss their experiences, but still… A little visual variety would be nice.

Okay. Egg. What’s your deal?

Given the environment, I could think of two real options. One: it’s helping restore our Internal Energy. Two: it’s what we've been sending Internal Force into. Like maybe this is the thing locked off our Nexus until we’ve earned the right to open it.

Or maybe it’s both. Or neither.

One small clue: there wasn’t much energy swirling around it directly. Some strands, sure, like Thea described. Occasionally turning gold. But nothing consistent. No clear connection. No actual proof. Just floating, and mystery.

COME ON!!!

Thump.

Wait.

Something moved.

Thump. Thump. Thump.

There it was again. The sound, heavy and slow like something massive shifting in the dark. A ripple in the black ink of the void, lifting itself up from the depthless silence.

The doorway that usually marked the exit of this Internal Space began to dim, just slightly, as the new presence rose higher.

It wasn’t far from the egg, emerging right next to it.

But it stopped, freezing mid-rise, held in the shape of a fountain-like burst of water. Then it sank back down.

Well… that sucks.

I waited, hoping something else would happen. Started singing tunes in my head just to pass the time. That went about as well as you’d expect. One specific game jingle latched on—just a couple of notes, but it looped. Over and over. Within a few rounds, I had fully weaponized my own thoughts against me.

By the thirtieth time that cursed block-stacking theme echoed in my mind, I was ready to force a scream even if it killed me but—Thump.

It rose again.

But this time, it held form. Stable, slow, and deliberate.

It emerged directly beneath the egg, then stretched upward. A single tentacle, coiling and wrapping itself around the base like a ribbon of smoke. Its aura was so dark it nearly vanished into the background. Not invisible, just near indistinguishable, radiating a black fog of energy.

The energy around it started to condense inward and rise, slow pulses flowing with every movement. The undulations carried that black essence upward, and the egg drank it in completely. Not a trace left behind.

And that’s when something changed.

A deep warmth started building in me, quiet and nourishing. Not physical, but tangible. I expected the tentacle to drain at some point. To finish its cycle and collapse. Or to dissolve back into the void like it had before.

But it didn’t.

It kept feeding into the egg, and somehow, through that, into me.

Something flickered. A sudden internal shift, and for the first time since I arrived, I felt motion. I blinked. Somehow, even without eyes, I did it. Brief darkness then sight again. You know... a blink.

I did it again. Once more.

Then a slow, relieved breath. Not out loud, but it felt like breath. My eyes could move, and I could breath. Just that alone… It was enough to break the stasis. The total, suffocating stillness. I wasn’t a complete idiot after all. At least not in this particular case.

That tentacle, its energy, was the same essence that laced through my body. The same one that dyed me in pitch black during the reconstruction of my Inner Realm.

It was the Voidrace youth's energy. The one who died young, whose soul had bled into me after enduring endless torment. And now, for some reason… he was nurturing something within me.

Through that process, I gained more control. Not full mobility, but the sheer disappearance of that pure, crushing sensory deprivation? That alone felt like a miracle.

I still couldn’t leave yet when I tried to force my mind away, but honestly? I didn’t want too just yet.

So now it was confirmed, the egg was absorbing energy. Which meant it was likely tied to the unlocking of the Nexus. Or maybe even the creation of the realm within it.

But the questions stayed.

Why does this place even exist? Why does it require constant Internal Force? And if it’s not just about unlocking something... Then what’s the actual purpose of all this energy absorption?

Before I could press further, something deep in the space shuddered.

The orb, floating above the energy-fed egg, twitched. Then it trembled.

A silent tension built with each vibration, the kind that shook the air. Each second, it pulsed more violently, as if some invisible force were crushing it inward, pressing from all sides.

CRASH!

It shattered.

Not like glass, but as if it broke through reality. This was the sound of something essential breaking. The orb came apart with a noise that didn’t travel through air. It didn’t reach my ears because they didn't exist, but it did reach me.

Sound carved through me like a blade made of thunder. Agony bloomed in my awareness. I didn’t just hear it. If felt like I was part of what broke. Unable to scream, only blink in pain.

Even the tortured, guiding presence within me—the Voidrace soul that had filled this space, halted its influence in the aftermath, its steady current frozen, holding still.

Then, motion.

The orb descended.

It didn't fall. It appeared instantly, positioned against the now-still tentacle. It carried no light, no sound, no heat. Just loomed.

Aaand nothing happened.

It floated there, inert.

We all waited, giving me a moment to recover mentally from the trauma. The silence held, stretched taut as a wire. After some time, when I could finally think again, I recalled how the tentacle sprouted up. A scream of thought.

Could it be?

Touch it!

The tentacle twitched.

The orb rotated, slow and deliberate, as if in quiet response. From the depths below, something stirred again. Another heavier pulse pushed upward through the dark, flowing through the base of the tentacle.

It stretched, extended, and then split at the peak.

A second limb grew, thinner and more precise, reaching toward the orb like a careful hand.

The orb moved.

It drifted forward, folding itself into the reaching tendril. The branch enclosed around it, neither resisting nor forcing.

The mist the orb once emitted faded. The last trace of its cold breath vanished into the void.

Then came the surge.

From the branch into the trunk, down into the main mass of the tentacle, and finally into the egg.

And I felt a comfortable chill run through me. My vision started to blur at the edges. The hum and movement of mysteries began to fade and in its place, I felt the warm breeze. Grass. The unmistakable smell of impurities leaving someone's body.

I woke up the next moment.

Thea and Elric were sparring a little ways off, while the massive serpent had taken up a spot near me, curled like a casual guard. Thea’s slime companion trailed behind her, darting back and forth with more speed than I remembered it having. Still not fast enough to avoid blades that weren’t even really aimed at it, but the little blob was trying.

I was back.

I stood slowly, shaking off the last remnants of stillness, ready to start exploring the new pieces of myself alongside the others.

They’d advanced their spirits too, but none of us had really talked about it yet.

“Thea!” I called out.

She turned toward me, just for a second, but that was enough.

Elric took the opening and drove a set of blades into her spear, slamming it hard. The impact rattled her grip and made her wince. Then his foot snapped up into a sharp kick, aimed toward her chest until a small, armored jelly-creature leapt between them, catching the strike mid-air.

I wasn’t sure if Elric had pulled the force behind it or if the thing was just that durable now, but it didn’t melt away. It simply stretched, compressed and warped like elastic armor, then snapped back once he pulled his foot away.

“I wasn’t going to actually hurt her,” he mock-complained, though the grin on his face betrayed him. “Stop getting in the way.”

The slime returned to shape almost proudly, and Thea scooped it up with one arm before jogging over to me.

Morning had barely broken. The sun was only just rising over the horizon, casting a soft layer of pink-orange light across the distant treetops.

“That took over a day,” Thea said, concern clear in her voice. “Are you alright?”

She was probably thinking I’d gone through the same sensory nightmare she had. But honestly, I was more surprised by how much time had passed. It hadn’t felt anywhere close to that long.

“I’m fine,” I said, nodding. “But I think I figured out a few new things.”

The four of us sat down soon after—Elric, Thea, me, and technically the slime. Griffith was still nearby, buried in Body Refinement. Looked like he wanted to finish that before switching back to Spirit.

I told them everything.

The Voidseed. The egg. The fact that I could actually do things inside the Nexus. I left out the memory pieces of the Voidrace. Those could wait for a quieter moment, but I did explain the blue crystal orb, and how it, along with the Voidseed, was channeling energy into the egg.

“So you had control?” Elric asked. “Even after I entered a second time, I couldn’t move at all. Just had to sit there and watch. Free to come and go at least.”

Thea nodded. Clearly in the same camp. “And I can still send energy into the Nexus. Still progress Spirit Refinement. We figured the egg was eating the energy… Now we know it is.”

I glanced toward Griffith. Then the snake.

Luna? I called inwardly.

No reply.

Instead, Wyrem’s voice came through. She hasn’t spoken in a while. I think she’s done it.

All of us were ready now then, or as ready as we were going to get.

Great news, I said. Seems like she and I are on a similar level then.

Not even close, Wyrem replied immediately. After you all attempt your ridiculous idea, she’ll complete her path of elemental dominance. She’ll succeed even if you fail. I’m sure of it. At best, you'll have three elements. Much worse. And slower than her. Plus—

GOT IT!

I was sure she’d appreciate the confidence from her old master, though I wasn’t as fond of the implication that I might fail.

I stood. “After Griffith wakes up… who wants to really heat things up?”

“...Gods, man. Just... why?”