Side Story- The negotiations of Quilith

Authors note

Hey guys, sorry I'm late with this. My buddies wedding is done so now it's just seeing some friends I haven't met up with in a while I I had a few hours these last few days to work on this. You can view this chapter taking place around roughly chapter 190 but I don't believe it matter too much. I'll have the poll for the next side story up tomorrow and now without further ado, hope you enjoy!

Quilith entered the empty white room he’d grown so used to ever since the decision had been made to get more deeply involved with the foreign world, having fully expected to begin the long process that was meeting the representatives of various nations, faiths, and races as he had been doing constantly since the unique alliance between two realities had formed, only to be stopped as he found someone else already in it, sitting against the wall and obviously filled with stress.

“Another issue Valax?” He asked with a sigh. The problems were never-ending, both on that world and their own, creating nothing but stress for one of the main heads of research in their lands.

“Where do I even begin,” He complained. “The fact that we’ve had another failed attempt on our end? Maybe that as well as we’ve managed to construct a model of the XO42A realities physics and structure we still can’t figure out how mana plays into the rules of the universe, the same issue we’ve had with every freaking reality that seems to be so mutable? Or do you want to hit on the topic of fucking souls! The fact that we’ve learned there’s some immaterial part of us we haven’t discovered in all of our history is one thing, but that it seems to transcend the confines of realities as a whole is a completely other matter altogether! Honestly, what are even the implications of that? Those foreign gods were able to interact with them in ways we couldn’t dream, meanwhile we still can’t even detect them within ourselves. If the last thousand years hasn’t been filled with enough stress for our race, it’s only exploded for us since we detected some of our kind transgressing the boundary.”

“All you can do is your best,” Quilith told him as a completely different thought filled his head. Another failed attempt. It wasn’t shocking, but it was still bad news, all the worse for the fact that if he was right then it was one that had taken centuries to properly set up. “Was there anything else, or did you just stop by to vent?”

“The council wanted me to question you about designating your pet project as a class zero priority again,” Valax told him as he closed his eyes. “Don’t get me wrong, the boy is interesting and provides some decent entertainment value, but giving him the highest priority level is going to raise some questions. What makes you think he’s worth the attention? Even if he is marked as a person of interest, he’s the lowest one.”

“A mistake on their part then, he should at least be in a healthy middle.”

“But the question is still why.”

“Valax, you were only moments ago complaining about souls and how hard it is to learn anything about them. The fact that he’s turning himself into an expert on the topic is reason enough to keep a close eye on him. Check your sources on the topic, we’ve managed to learn just as much from watching him as we have by watching their soul mage.”

“What? That can’t be right.”

“It is. Aside from that is the growth rate he’s displayed. A reality that displays what a person has achieved numerically is interesting enough, but I think the speed he’s shown makes him worth the extra attention when you compare him to not only the world at large, but the other summoned as well.”

“Well, I’ll at least confirm what you said about his soul research but the council considered the growth he’s shown to be less important. As fast as he’s been going, he’s still not even at the same starting place as the others. They think we should be focusing our efforts into trying to raise up the world's contenders instead.”

“We can do both, it’s not like we don’t have an unlimited budget for this and keeping every path we have open won’t hurt. I’ll talk to the council about this after I’m done, for now I should get to this.”

The dismissal was clear, yet Valax remained, one more question still on his mind. “...So how’s Glob?”

“He’s good. Adjusting to his new environment well I’d say. You should visit him, you wouldn’t be denied the request.”

“I don’t want to make things harder than they have to be. The sooner he forgets about this life the better.”

“Your son’s not going to forget about you any more than you’ll forget about him, and let's be clear that the danger he’s in is far more immediate than ours. Visit him before you regret Valax. You don’t want to leave it too late.”

The other grey didn’t say anything at that, he simply left quietly, giving Quilith the chance to get to work.

---

As he announced the location he needed to go to first the empty room changed, the floor and walls shifting in seconds to match the environment that it was projecting his likeness into, while at the same time providing structure to keep his projection from passing through anything, giving it a more natural look as an unimaginable level of energy was burned to let him peer through the boundary of realities.

He didn’t bother looking around the room, he’d already observed it before the meeting. A throne room of sorts made of wood and stone, with the leader of the nations he was visiting sitting there waiting amongst a group of advisors for his arrival.

“I greet Yerik, leader of the wolren,” He said politely, giving a gentle bow to the man before him. He shared the hominid body type that so many races on the world seemed to, with a furred beast-like head and three gleaming eyes to be seen peering back at him.

“Speak, foreigner. Why have you requested this meeting?”

It is always easier when they get to the point, isn’t it?

“As you already know, my race has been doing our utmost to provide you all with information on the movements of your invaders in exchange for your eventual assistance should you survive-”

“For all the good it will do,” The king said, cutting him off. “Useless information in exchange for a price we don’t know, you must be aware I was against this alliance from the start.”

“I am,” It was an alliance that the entire world needed to agree on for their help to be gained. Since whatever information they could provide would assist the world as a whole they didn’t intend to move unless the vast majority of nations agreed to it, and given their desperate state they couldn’t say no, even if many were unhappy with the vague terms. That left him to try and smooth over the edges, as well as create whatever favourable conditions he could as a whole. “But I’m not here for that. The conditions of our alliance was to assist in both the development of technology that could help your war efforts, as well as observe the enemy. Right now I’m here to ask you to make a choice instead.”

“...What kind of choice?”

“As far as we can see, your people currently have two problems. You struggle to grow food and your population is in decline. We will allow you to buy the solution of one of those issues from us now, and after we’ve been rewarded for the work we’ve done for this world we will gift you the other, free of charge.”

The people in the room exploded into conversation at what he’d just suggested, but their king silenced them all with a wave of his hand. “And why should you not simply give both to us now? We are supposedly allies, are we not? And you can’t say that assisting on those fronts wouldn’t be good for the war efforts.”

“Both problems won’t truly affect you till the time limit for the invasion has passed so they aren’t part of the assistance we’ve promised. As for being allies, well you could consider it insurance. After all, after we solve whatever choice you pick it should be enough to prove that we can solve the other as well, and that should be more than enough to ensure that our reward for helping the world is properly given,” He told them with a knowing stare. While his race couldn’t watch everyone at all times they did their best to keep an eye on anyone they were worried might try to renege on the deal after, and from the conversations they’d been listening in on, he knew that was the exact intent of the king he stood before.

To his credit, the king neither rushed to defend himself, nor to take offense. Instead, he sat there and thought.

“And you’re sure you can solve both issues?”

“Rather easily even.”

It wouldn’t be hard for them to deal with themselves either, conditions were just unfavourable. Their fertility could be enhanced with life magic, though being dependent on mages for their breeding was inconvenient, and there weren’t enough plant mages in the world to help them. Not when the largest group to exist tended to stick to themselves.

“Very well, We’ll get your assistance with improving our food production. Just tell me one thing. Why do you even need money for it? If I understand correctly it’s not something you can use.”

“True, but there’s enough of my kind on the world who could. It’s just another resource and you can never have too many.”

---

“Quilith!” The moleperson yelled happily as the alien projected himself into one of the dark caverns within the world. “It’s been too long! How are you my friend?”

“I’m doing well Wulo, I’ve just come to confirm that the advice we’d given you last time has been working out as we’d expected.”

“We’ve had less cave-ins overall and have been able to expand deeper into the earth, we couldn’t be doing better! But enough boring talk, please have a seat, let us chat.”

He always had conflicting feelings when he visited that particular kingdom. They were one of the few groups that seemed as happy to assist his people when they thought they weren’t being watched as they did when they knew they were, making them quite likable and viewed positively by his kind as a whole, but at the same time that left some of them worried about their long term potential. A species so inclined for both kindness and trust would be easy to take advantage of, especially by some of the more unscrupulous groups on the world and their long-term survival could easily be threatened once the shared danger to the planet was handled.

Just as bad is how willing some on the council are to try and take advantage of them too. He thought with a tired sigh. I understand the desperation, but to try and take advantage of one of the few groups that seems like they’d help up even without the aid we’re providing them leaves a poor taste.

At the very least for the time being they were doing it in a way everyone could accept. The additional help the molepeople received beyond the confines of the initial agreement of the world was given freely, both to strengthen the bond and debt between them, as well as keep the grey’s being looked at as friends and benefactors.

Really, they were the perfect race to interact with as far as he was concerned. There was only one thing that gave him trouble with them personally, but that was more to do with his own comfort. They were just too chatty.

“So much has happened since your last visit my friend, where do I even start? A new dwarven mining settlement has appeared nearby, it’s always so nice to have new neighbours, isn’t it? They’re a little distant for now but we’ll grow on them, just you wait! Aside from that, my fourth cousin just had their first child! Such a sweet woman, as much as the drow like to keep their distance, her husband was worn down easily enough. Don’t tell anyone I said this now, but the entire race are bigger lovers of affection than they like to let on…”

Quilith listened to all of this quietly, nodding when he needed to as he waited for the many stories and ramblings to finish so that he could move on to his next task.

---

For his final stop of the day, he appeared at the entrance of a great wall surrounding a small nation, two winged guards standing in front of it with weapons drawn and at the ready for him. As an unannounced visit, this wouldn’t be a meeting, but an attempt to gain one.

“I am Quilith of the grey. Once again, I am here to request a meeting with your leader. Has there been any word since my last visit?”

“We don’t want or need your help, outsider,” One of the angels spat as the other continued to hold a sword his way for all the good it would do. “We take care of ourselves so be on your way and enough of these visits.”

He did his best to hold in his annoyance. The angels managed to be the worst combination of proud, powerful, and annoying that he had to deal with. As natural wind and blessing magic users, they’d be instrumental in the coming war if they’d be able to work with the other races, all the more so for the fact that each member of the species was born with the skills at the fifth level. It was their isolationist tendencies and the fact that they refused to receive more than a minimal amount of help from others that made them so much of a pain.

They didn’t even want whatever help his race was giving the world as a whole, let alone the additional support his people worked on to try and improve their image. Despite their low numbers they continued to lock themselves away and train, only wanting to fight on their own terms and ignore whatever else the other people of the world had to put up with.

Absolute fools. And with the entire species numbering in the low tens of thousands, there’s a good chance an invading force won’t even appear near them. They won’t get any of the glory they seek if they don’t step beyond their walls.

He’d tried all sorts of approaches in the past to get them to open up, not just for the good of his race, but for the world they lived on as well, but he was going to try one last thing before he gave up. Brutal honesty.

Disappearing before the guards, he changed the location of his projection, taking him to the home of the archangel where she lounged.

The head of her people by virtue of her strength, she was the only one in the nation to have an awakened skill, wind magic at that, but at the very least he knew from their spying that she was a competent leader despite such a poor reason for having the role.

As soon as he appeared she reacted, tossing a nearby spear at him which harmlessly passed through his form as he stared at her, all but disinterested as she continued the attack, creating powerful gales that still couldn’t move him.

All he did was wait. If she didn’t want to talk then that was fine, all he needed was for her to listen.

It took a while, but eventually she accepted the fact that her attacks did nothing as she heaved a breath. “Who are you? How dare you enter my home like this!”

“Let's cut to the chase and get straight to the point. Your people are going to die out,” He told her bluntly, not caring to answer her. “It’s not as if we don't understand why your god did this to you all. As he lost power, lowering your birth rates to keep your numbers low was an excellent way to make it so he could continue modifying your race without having to expend too much strength. From the records we’d found on the subject, your people came to this world weaker and with your magics naturally at the third level, it’s undeniable that your kind is better off for that intervention. But your god got too greedy. We’re already aware that even if a skilled life-mage helps, you all struggle to produce young. He should have been acting to increase your kind's fertility a century ago to get it to more reasonable levels. As it stands, based on our projections even if you survive anything that's coming you’ll still lose too many members of your kind to be left with a viable gene pool. Of course, that’s not an issue for the other smaller races that aren’t bothered by mixing with the other groups, but you all are too resistant to that idea. You have two options at this point. Either we can provide you the knowledge we have now and we can work to remodel your biology while requesting the help of either the great life spirit or the soul mage, or you can all simply die out. I’ll be back in five days to get your answer, but should you still decline then that will be the last you hear from me.”

Before she could respond he canceled his projection, finding himself in the same white room he started in. All of the meetings were nothing but a pain, but it was work that needed to be done.

Hundreds of races and even more factions of each. I can only hope the other negotiators are having more luck than I am. He thought tiredly as he went to prepare his report on all that had occurred before meeting with the council once again.