Godclads

Chapter 33-2 Lovenet (II)

Chapter 33-2 Lovenet (II)

Hey, hey, New Vultun. Cala Marlowe here, back again from my new broadcast studio. Well. I guess that’s not entirely accurate, but the term broadcast Heaven seems a bit too glib and disrespectful. Also, a little too much braggadocio even for your girl here.

Now, you all might have noticed some changes these past few days, but for you Numbheads out there, here’s a catch-up.

Scale’s gone; Fifth Guild War is on, and paused at the same time. Naeko back. Wombrash ending? Symmetry up. High Seraph MIA. Axtraxis confiscated to serve as temporary Paladin headquarters, and—oh! There’s a new Heaven of Love now! It’s the thing I’m using to reach all of you. Not quite the full Nether replacement, but it’ll get there.

The user isn’t half bad either—even if he’s the ultimate half-strand. In fact, he’s one of you! Say hi to Aedon Chambers, everyone. Former Enforcer. Former gutter rat. Still a survivor and…

Well, if there’s proof that the world does change, that the years do flow and that good things can still happen and people can get better, here he is.

Don’t lose hope, New Vultun. We might still end up all snuffed or butchered before this is over, but there’s a fire on the horizon, and it's growing higher. The crown is cracking, but the base still holds. So keep surviving like you always do and stay tuned. Now more than ever, we got a reason to burn.

-Cala Marlowe, Siren of the Symmetry

33-2

Lovenet (II)

Samir Naeko scared the living piss-shit out of Chambers, but something about the Chief Paladin’s Heaven spurred only reflexive hate. Chambers had been terrified when Naeko conscripted him into service, but he went along with things when he found out that Avo busted the big man out.

Also, what the fuck was he supposed to do? Tell Samir Naeko the Force-Breaker no?

He got put to work immediately alongside Cas and Cala, all of them deputized as honorary Paladins during a time of the crisis. Well, Naeko was technically a member of the Symmetry now too, so it was kind of like a marriage rather than a hostile takeover. Either way, Axtraxis got snatched up into the void, the constant skirmishing happening across New Vultun was being clenched like piss held back from spraying out a clenched urethra, and the Guilds were rolling out to lick Naeko’s ass.

All that, and apparently Jaus fucking Avandaer—or a node of the man—was still around. Shit was tumbling off the rails at superfast speeds, and Chambers was caught in the middle of all of it.

It was actually Jaus that sent him to speak with Naeko. Chambers fucking froze up like a Joyfiend hallucinating a needle when the Godbreaker approached. At the time, Chambers was busy trying to connect more people using the Lovebringer. Correspondence was a pretty nova Domain—it allowed him reach anyone he had Bonds with anywhere, and after what happened earlier, he had plenty of Bonds to spread out from. The main difficulty was in managing the sheer influx of emotions and making the connective network neater.

While Chambers worked, Jaus split away from Naeko’s company and stalked forth with conversation and purpose in mind. He looked exactly like he did in the vics, except more… human. Personable. The way he went after conversation though was like an ambush predator—Chambers wasn’t ready for that shit at all.

“Hello. Your name is Aedon Chambers, yes? Very good. I always quite liked the name Aedon—a classic Kosgan name, popularized by High Inquisitor Aedon Thrage. Terrible man, but he had an excellent taste in wines. Oh, no, please, stay seated. Continue watching your vicarity or simulation—I didn’t mean to disturb you. Might I ask what the material—Oh, don’t worry, there is no need to share. I am merely curious. Hm. Seems I’ve made you uncomfortable—my apologies. What would make you feel comfortable? What do you like speaking about…”

And it went on and on.

Chambers felt like a child watching an approaching disaster. All Jaus did was talk and communicate. Chambers, meanwhile, stammered like he had a bit too many drugs and drink beforehand, unsure how to present himself, unsure what the right thing to say was at all.

Making matters more awkward was Draus being there too. The Regular looked more constipated than ever before—and she often had the look of a woman who had a few centuries of unreleased shit clenched between her augmented cheek-meats. She kept looking at her guns, facial muscles twitching as if she was suffering from some kind of nerve damage.

“I think she is confused,” the Lovebringer whispered. The Heaven subtly studied both Jaus and Draus with their Bonds. “She does not know how to face this problem. Her instincts are telling her to be armed. But there is nothing to shoot.”

Hard to imagine, but Chambers didn’t know what the fuck he was doing either. Not even a little. But a few more sentences from Jaus, and he was lured away from even his anxiety.

“I understand that you are a companion to Avo? Please. Tell me about him. How did you meet? Is that so? Ah, now that’s a good story. Circumstance: It is the clarion call of all who become great. A secret for you, Aedon: Most of us have greatness thrust at us. Quite literally in a few cases. To survive is a triumph unto itself. You should be proud of yourself.”

Should be proud of yourself. That shit triggered Chambers’ fight or flight response. He barely remembered what followed after that. There was laughing—Jaus said something pretty funny or something. And… and Chambers felt a ping at that point. Connections linking him to Paladins that Avo used to have templates of.

This was how Chambers got talked into doing something he really, really didn’t want to do: Inform Chief Paladin Naeko of the happy news.

“I would tell him myself, but it is best that you do so. I understand that the Nether is down and the greatest replacement in terms of rapid communications across the planet is possessed by you? I remember the Remembrance. I used it once as my personal Heaven. I will not lie, Aedon, it is a terrible burden to bear. Love is ever heavy, ever suffocating, and ever fragile. You have my appreciation for being gentle with the people. You are a good man.”

Chambers didn’t remember what he even said in reply to that. Jaus used words and spoke in a way that was just… it wasn’t Necrotheurgy, but Chambers suspected the Savior didn’t need it. The only thing he knew was the outcome: He agreed to check up on Naeko for Jaus’ sake. Because “Samir could do with a new friend, now. Someone to give him more perspective for what is to come. I intend for him to lead on this; to make wrong a long-delayed wrong. I was too passive with his release. He was always meant to be more than just a beast of war and bloodshed. And so are you. So were all the children of New Vultun.”

And that was how Chambers found himself materializing over in the void to speak with Chief Paladin Samir Naeko. Only to hear the guy’s Heaven shit-talking him. Chambers almost couldn’t believe it. Well, he knew gods could be assholes—he wasn’t going to be missing the Techplaguer in time soon. That one was an ass. But they weren’t usually complete fuckers all the time.

The Sage, though? Just hearing them talk filled Chambers’ bones with acid.

“They are so old,” the Lovebringer said, quivering as the mists pried at their Bonds. There was so much power around Chambers—at any moment, he knew Naeko could see him pinned and crushed and flayed or whatever other horrible shit. “And they hate. There are no Bonds with them. They hate. They judge. They scorn. They control. But there is no love in them. Even less than other gods. It is an impossibility. They are the loathing of a hateful ruler; a bitter father.”

Stolen novel; please report.

That was what made everything click into place for Chambers. A bitter father. Always seemed to come back to that no matter where he ended up, no matter what he faced. The fact the Sage was doing that with Naeko somehow made things more fucked up. Chambers wasn’t shit, but Samir Naeko was one of Idheim’s greatest—and bleakest legends.

If someone could treat him like shit, what hope was there for the rest of the half-strands in existence?

Thankfully, Naeko wasn’t Chambers—wasn’t just some glassjaw juv that had to take it. Chambers got to call the Sage a sow and that might have gotten him some points with Naeko. Which was good because—though he hated the Heaven—the user was still one scary motherfucker.

So it was that Chambers offered another overture: a chance to access the Lovenet. And so it was that Naeko barely hesitated before accepting.

“Yeah,” Naeko said, grunting. His skin was just a shade off from melding with the absolute darkness of the void, so Chambers almost missed it when the man extended a hand and grasped theoffered Bond tighter. The mists around them swirled as well, drawing tighter into a protective sanctuary that spared them from the misery of the vacuum.

Atop stolen Axtraxis, with an onrush of ships drifting in, the new Gods of Love and Peace shared a moment.

It also occurred to Chambers that he had Samir Naeko at his mercy too. The man was infested by love. Could Naeko resist the touch of the rash? Or waves of unceasing pleasure? The thoughts were as intrusive as they were scary, but it also hinted at another thing: Trust. The easiest bridge of trust Chambers ever experienced in his life.

Never once in his wildest delusions could he imagined this moment, that he would be working side-by-side with the Chief Paladin in the void. How the fuck was this his life? But it was. And he had Avo to thank for it.

“He gave you circumstance. You struck the sparks of choice.” The Lovebringer’s words made Chambers uncomfortable—reluctant to accept. His awkwardness proved contagious.

Naeko shot him a wary look. “Is that feeling from you?”

Chambers cringed. Fuck. “I—uh, it’s not—sorry, shit, just tweaking—”

The Chief Paladin waved him off. “It’s fine. I’m not gonna palm you, if that’s what this is.”

A lungful of awkward laughter echoed out from the Lovebringer. “Yeah. Awesome! Great! Love that! It’s… Glad I won’t get splattered. Thanks.”

But Naeko continued looking at him. “You scared of me, Chambers?”

That made Chambers freeze. “Fuck, boss, I don’t rightly know who isn’t.”

Naeko snorted. “Yes you do. Avo. Zein. Veylis. Plenty of people know I ain’t shit.”

The Chief Paladin’s words struck another beat of pause. A pulse passed through Chambers, and the Lovebringer brightened all the Bonds around them. A particularly strong cord ran down from Naeko through Axtraxis, into the planetary ring where Jaus resided. Another of his Bonds split into two, parting into a flaming chain and a fractured pillar of gold. Both trailed down into Idheim’s atmosphere, past the coming voidships, into the Substance and the fractures lining its surface.

“Not so unalike,” the Lovebringer whispered to Chambers. Another set of Bonds ran parallel to Naeko’s. The first connected Chambers to Draus—though it was substantially weaker than that which existed between Naeko and Jaus. The second, however, was also a chain of flames, but Chambers’ chains were thicker and wider—longer too.

Was the Lovebringer trying to tell him how they were both people who loved? Who shared someone that cared for them in the form of Avo?

The Heaven of Love sighed. “No. You focus on what is. Look at what isn’t.” What isn’t? Chambers studied the two of them again and… didn’t see anything. “Only weak Bonds with yourselves. Weak Bonds.” Chambers flinched and cast a glance at Naeko’s core. There was only the barest sliver of movement there. Almost nothing. And Chambers… he wasn’t much better. “Better than before. It almost didn’t exist before you overcame your pathborn. It took doing so much for you to give yourself so little. A shadow looms. Over you. And over him.”

So, why are you telling me this?

“Because we are the God of Love. And there is love missing right now.”

“We don’t have to do this right now if you’re not ready,” Naeko said, shrugging. “I’m not in a hurry for any of this. Got some political bullshit on the horizon anyway. You can focus on finding more people, setting up more connections across the planet. There’s no point in forcing this if you can’t do it yet.”

“No, no, no,” Chambers coughed, working through the vortex of emotions passing through him. “I’ll… I’ll get it.”

Another beat of silence passed between them. Naeko frowned slightly. “You know, Zein taught me something—one of the first things she ever taught me. It’s a lesson about focus and dealing with your fears. You give everything you have to the things you can control, the things that you can affect, and you just pretend the other shit doesn’t exist at all. If I’m the problem here, just pretend I’m not here.”

“Nah. No offense, Naeko, but Zein’s kind of a sow, and pretending things aren’t there, hiding from the world, that’s my problem. That was always my problem. I was kind of a—” Chambers trailed off as he caught Naeko’s expression. “I don’t know if you believe me, but that was not a dig at you at all. I was totally talking about me, please don’t throw me into the sun.”

“No. No, I believe you. And I have that coming.” Naeko scoffed. “Maru was right. I was godsdamned useless.”

“Yeah. But it was nice, wasn’t it? Just… running away. Letting the world just rot. Not your problem.”

Naeko looked up at him, his features pensive. “Yeah. It was. You were the same way, huh?”

“I think I still am that way. Just ran out of places to hide in my head. Also, your fucking ex is trying to ruin the world.”

“She was always ambitious.”

Slowly, a faint line formed between them. It was a paltry thing, almost entirely devoid of color or presence, but it was there. The beginning of a Bond. A point of commonality between the Chief Paladin of New Vultun, and what should have been gun-meat for a small-time Syndicate. And using that solidifying Bond as his anchor, Chambers reached out. Threads of magenta coiled through across the world, piercing through hundreds of thousands of being, using them as conduits of love.

Love, from which Chambers could further reach out into the rest of the world. In scant seconds, Chambers sank this Heaven into loose Paladin’s he located, and all that once, he linked them together, fusing their bonds closer to him, to Naeko as well. All at once, the Lovebringer stitched their bodies into shape too, materializing them right next to Naeko and Chambers atop Axtraxis.

The first to arrive was Kassamon. The poor bastard looked as lost as a flat in a den of killers, and his blonde flat-top of hair was now little more than patches of burned fur, but he was alive. Made it out of the Substance. Alive, and right next to Naeko again.

“Chief?” Kassamon said, blinking as other Paladins began materializing around him as well.

“Paladin Kassamon!” Naeko said with a slight laugh. “I’m happier than I thought, seeing you alive.”

Kassamon stared blankly for a second. “So, does that mean now is a good time to talk about getting a pay bump?” He was only partially joking. Looking around, he glanced at Chambers and flinched. “What the hells are you supposed to be?”

“The Lovebringer,” Chambers said. “I’m also drawing the entirety of your being across from where you were on the planet. Neat new canon I managed to make after my last resurrection. Call it Love is Where the Shape Is.”

Naeko’s head snapped over to Chambers. “Wait, so you mean—”

“Yeah. If I can bind it, I can draw them over. Wherever they are. Whatever they are.” Chambers couldn’t help but smirk. “I can bring the city to us now. Spare you the trouble of doing a house-visit.”

Naeko slowly nodded at that. “I think I can get down with Lovenet. Now. Is there any chance that you might be able to… run a sim on it?”

“Yeah, I’ve been meaning to tell you, I followed another Bonds earlier and found the last sequenced backup of the Stormjumpers lobby—” Chambers cried out as the bond between him and Naeko grew three times harder in an instant. Something in his arm nearly broke as Naeko pulled him down—Heaven and in all—into a half-hug.

“I was wrong,” Naeko said, whispering next to Chambers. “I take back every judgmental thought I had of you, Aedon Chambers. You’re a good man.”

Apparently, if you returned to someone something they loved, a bit of that same love spilled over to you.