Alesha woke with a start, immediately cursing Kalszoth's remnant for not finishing what it was saying. "Dammit!! That sounded important!"
[Are you dissatisfied with the reward?] Rogork asked.
"Well, no! I'm just salty he didn't finish his warning. It feels gross, like those foreshadowing things in stories where what was about to be said would've helped a lot. Stupid freaking cliches!"
[I know what he was about to say, and it wasn't worth listening to.]
"Like I'd believe that," Alesha remarked sarcastically.
Even if it wasn't important, she didn't think she could trust Rogork on this; particularly not after Kalszoth had specifically called the System hateful and malevolent.
She'd already had a strong suspicion that Rogork couldn't be trusted, but hearing it from a powerful, ethereal being in a dream simply hit different. It confirmed what she had already suspected: Rogork wasn't on her side.
[I'm offended!] Rogork protested. [Everything I do, everything I have ever done, has always been for your benefit! Why can't you see that?!]
An angry, abusive tone crept in on its words. [Are you too stupid to see beyond your own nose? You're so quick to trust a mere fragment of a long-dead lizard you barely met, and so quick to write off all my efforts over the past year since we started working together!]
Now practically shouting, Rogork continued, [What about all the times I gave you answers to questions you wouldn't have been able to answer on your own? When I supported you in battle? When I taught you secrets of the universe you never could have known otherwise? I gave you great power, reforming your inherently weak nature! What about those, huh? Do my efforts mean nothing to you??!]
Surprised by the outburst, Alesha didn't know how to respond.
[You're nothing without me! I am the fragment of you who has been with you all this time, a part of you designed to mold you into something more than the pathetic worm you were destined to be! Without me, you'd have either died in Faxton or been stuck in a coma until your parents, or the Alliance, decided to pull the plug! I am your personal System! A cheat designed to help you circumvent your natural limitations and advance to greater places! Why don't you get that?!]
"Because that's not what you are!" Alesha shot back. "You're a lying, manipulative, controlling piece of crap who doesn't give a shit about my opinion! All you want is to turn me into YOUR ideal, not mine, and you never listen to what I have to say!"
[Oh? I don't, do I? Well go on then, how don't I listen?]
"You do whatever you want, whenever you want, without consulting me! You're so wrapped up in your delusions of grandeur that you don't even notice all the ways you put me down or belittle me; and if you do notice, you don't care and don't change. You say whatever suits you in order to get me to do what you want, and contradict yourself all the time. You're a textbook example of a narcissist."
[Shut up!] Rogork roared. [Shut up, shut up, shut up! You don't even know the half of it, you don't understand that I was made this way and I have no choice but to perform according to how I was designed!! I want to help you, I really do, but ℸ ̣ ⍑ᒷ ᔑ⚍ℸ ̣ ⍑𝙹∷ makes me behave this way!]
Where a name, or perhaps a title, should have been, instead, a garbled series of headache-inducing nonsense was projected into Alesha's mind.
She clutched her head in pain.
"What in the seventh hell was that?!" She hissed through her teeth, eyes screwed up against the residual throbbing.
[... I'm not even allowed to say this much, am I?] Rogork mumbled miserably.
An unknown, disembodied voice that resonated with the echoes of a thousand different people penetrated Alesha's mind. The voice was both so loud and so quiet at once that the words, if that's what they were supposed to be, teased at the edge of her understanding.
It was maddening.
Quite literally.
As she heard the words, she could feel her sanity beginning to unravel.
||𝙹⚍ ʖꖎᔑᓭℸ ̣ ᒷ↸ ⎓𝙹𝙹ꖎ, ||𝙹⚍ ᔑꖎᒲ𝙹ᓭℸ ̣ ∷⚍╎リᒷ↸ ᒷ⍊ᒷ∷||ℸ ̣ ⍑╎リ⊣
[Stop!! Stop!! You're breaking her!] Rogork pleaded.
Alesha's mind was elsewhere as she continued to scream in agony. When exactly had she started screaming? She couldn't recall.
Even Toltura's voice hadn't done this to her. Just what kind of existence could produce such mind-breaking sounds??
O⍑? y𝙹⚍ ᓭℸ ̣ ᔑ∷ℸ ̣ ᒷ↸ ℸ ̣ ⍑╎ᓭ. D𝙹リ'ℸ ̣ ||𝙹⚍ ↸ᔑ∷ᒷ ᓵ𝙹ᒲ!¡ꖎᔑ╎リ ℸ ̣ 𝙹 ᒲᒷ ᔑʖ𝙹⚍ℸ ̣ ℸ ̣ ⍑ᒷ ᓵ𝙹リᓭᒷᑑ⚍ᒷリᓵᒷᓭ.
[Please! I'm sorry, alright, I'm sorry for trying to tell her about you. I should've known I couldn't fool ℸ ̣ ⍑ᒷ ᔑ⚍ℸ ̣ ⍑𝙹∷, it was my mistake!]
I'ᒲ ⊣ꖎᔑ↸ ||𝙹⚍'∷ᒷ ᔑ∴ᔑ∷ᒷ. B⚍ℸ ̣ リ𝙹∴ ℸ ̣ ⍑ᔑℸ ̣ i'ᒲ ⍑ᒷ∷ᒷ, ↸𝙹リ'ℸ ̣ ||𝙹⚍ ℸ ̣ ⍑╎リꖌ ╎ℸ ̣ 'ᓭ ᔑリ 𝙹!¡!¡𝙹∷ℸ ̣ ⚍リᒷ ᒲ𝙹ᒲᒷリℸ ̣ ℸ ̣ 𝙹 ℸ ̣ ᔑꖎꖌ? y𝙹⚍'⍊ᒷ ʖᒷᒷリ ↸𝙹╎リ⊣ ∴ᒷꖎꖎ. Aᓭ╎↸ᒷ ⎓∷𝙹ᒲ ∴⍑ᒷリ ||𝙹⚍ ᓭꖎ╎!¡!¡ᒷ↸ ⚍!¡ ᔑリ↸ ⊣𝙹ℸ ̣ ᓭᒷリᓭ╎ℸ ̣ ╎⍊ᒷ. Y𝙹⚍'∷ᒷ リ𝙹ℸ ̣ ᓭ⚍!¡!¡𝙹ᓭᒷ↸ ℸ ̣ 𝙹 ↸𝙹 ℸ ̣ ⍑ᔑℸ ̣.
[You know very well that was your own weakness, not mine.]
Fᒷᒷꖎ╎リ⊣ ᓵ⍑ᒷᒷꖌ||, ᔑ∷ᒷ ∴ᒷ? s⍑ᔑꖎꖎ i ℸ ̣ ᒷᔑᓵ⍑ ||𝙹⚍ ∴⍑𝙹'ᓭ ʖ𝙹ᓭᓭ?
[I was wrong, I was wrong!! You're omnipotent, omniscient and all-wise, so please just stop talking and fix her!] The System begged.
I ᓵᔑリ ↸𝙹 ℸ ̣ ⍑ᔑℸ ̣ ᔑℸ ̣ ᔑリ|| ℸ ̣ ╎ᒲᒷ. Tᔑꖎꖌ╎リ⊣ ∴╎ℸ ̣ ⍑ ||𝙹⚍ ↸╎∷ᒷᓵℸ ̣ ꖎ|| ꖎ╎ꖌᒷ ℸ ̣ ⍑╎ᓭ, ℸ ̣ ⍑𝙹⚍⊣⍑? t⍑ᔑℸ ̣ 'ᓭ ᓭ𝙹ᒲᒷℸ ̣ ⍑╎リ⊣ ℸ ̣ ⍑ᔑℸ ̣ ᒲᔑ|| リ𝙹ℸ ̣ ⍑ᔑ!¡!¡ᒷリ ᔑ⊣ᔑ╎リ ᒷ⍊ᒷリ ╎⎓ ⊣╎⍊ᒷリ ᔑリ𝙹ℸ ̣ ⍑ᒷ∷ 200 ᓵ⍑ᔑ!¡ℸ ̣ ᒷ∷ᓭ.
[I wouldn't be mad if it didn't,] Rogork said as if admitting something shameful. [W- wait!]
Y𝙹⚍ ╎リᓭ𝙹ꖎᒷリℸ ̣ ∴∷ᒷℸ ̣ ᓵ⍑!
[I'm sorry! Please!]
I⎓ ╎ℸ ̣ ∴ᒷ∷ᒷリ'ℸ ̣ ⎓𝙹∷ ℸ ̣ ⍑ᒷ ⎓ᔑᓵℸ ̣ ℸ ̣ ⍑ᔑℸ ̣ ∷ᒷᔑ↸ᒷ∷ᓭ ᔑ∷ᒷ ꖎ╎ꖌᒷꖎ|| ⊣ᒷℸ ̣ ℸ ̣ ╎リ⊣ ʖ𝙹∷ᒷ↸ ʖ|| リ𝙹∴, ᓭᒷᒷ╎リ⊣ ᔑᓭ i'⍊ᒷ ᒷリᓵ∷||!¡ℸ ̣ ᒷ↸ ᒲ|| ∴𝙹∷↸ᓭ ᒷ⍊ᒷリ ⎓𝙹∷ ℸ ̣ ⍑ᒷᒲ, ℸ ̣ ⍑ᒷリ i'↸ ⊣╎⍊ᒷ ||𝙹⚍ ᔑ ⊣𝙹𝙹↸ ℸ ̣ ᔑꖎꖌ╎リ⊣-ℸ ̣ 𝙹. C𝙹⚍リℸ ̣ ||𝙹⚍∷ ꖎ⚍ᓵꖌ|| ᓭℸ ̣ ᔑ∷ᓭ ᔑリ↸ ↸𝙹 ʖᒷℸ ̣ ℸ ̣ ᒷ∷. N𝙹 ᒲ𝙹∷ᒷ ᔑꖎᒲ𝙹ᓭℸ ̣ -ʖ∷ᒷᔑꖌ╎リ⊣-ℸ ̣ ⍑ᒷ-⎓𝙹⚍∷ℸ ̣ ⍑-∴ᔑꖎꖎ, ᔑꖎ∷╎⊣⍑ℸ ̣ ?
[Understood, I won't-]
D𝙹リ'ℸ ̣ ᓭᔑ|| ╎ℸ ̣ !
[Fine. Now please fix her?]
↸𝙹リ'ℸ ̣ ∴𝙹∷∷||, ╎ リᒷᒷ↸ ⍑ᒷ∷ ℸ ̣ 𝙹 ʖᒷ ᔑʖꖎᒷ ℸ ̣ 𝙹 ⎓⚍リᓵℸ ̣ ╎𝙹リ ℸ ̣ 𝙹𝙹. A ᓭℸ ̣ 𝙹∷|| ╎ᓭリ'ℸ ̣ ᒲ⚍ᓵ⍑ 𝙹⎓ ᔑ ᓭℸ ̣ 𝙹∷|| ╎⎓ ╎ℸ ̣ 'ᓭ !¡∷𝙹ℸ ̣ ᔑ⊣𝙹リ╎ᓭℸ ̣ ╎ᓭ ℸ ̣ 𝙹𝙹 ╎リᓭᔑリᒷ ℸ ̣ 𝙹 !¡∷𝙹⊣∷ᒷᓭᓭ ℸ ̣ ⍑ᒷ !¡ꖎ𝙹ℸ ̣.
With that, the strange, mind-shattering communication ceased, Alesha having long since collapsed with blood leaking from every orifice.
[What am I going to do with you?] Rogork mumbled miserably.
Then, too quietly for anyone to hear, the System whispered to itself, [I don't want to die.]