Nexus Awakened (An Isekai LitRPG Gender Bender Story)

910. A Cnidarian Moon

“Umu. Impressive. Amalgam.”

A Seci Response Moon greeted Frost as she moved into another room. An equally impressive chamber sat behind the Stage. It was separated by five wooden doors and a single steel, lattice door.

As one would expect, this room which was decorated with a few inward-facing sofas and a glass table was the most secure place within the Stage. It served as an isolated room where high-stakes meetings could take place.

While CognitO Filters can already achieve 100% sound isolation, the Kingdoms preferred a natural sound barrier using exactly a 15-meter-thick wall. Additionally, examination magic such as [Clarity – Transparency], [Redvision], and [Echolocation] could not easily penetrate through this natural barrier.

Although, just for good measure, there was a CognitO Filter that isolated this magnificent room.

Frost sat down on the chair furthest away from the seat. Then, she motioned her head for the Moon to take a seat.

“Can I really?” The Moon, who was a jellyfish Aquatid, asked. Her fluency and pronunciation were the most impressive out of the Eclipses.

The only thing she lacked was tonality.

“Please do. Consider it a way to keep the seats warm for our guests.” Frost smiled.

“Umu. Understood.”

Her voice was neutral, and it perfectly matched her expressionless face.

Furthermore, her skin was a translucent pale, appearing like a plastic film filled to the brim with water. Purple bioluminescent beads flowed throughout her body in a slow, hypnotic manner. Attached between each bead was a strand, and within those strands were long cilia that wiggled around like the legs of a centipede.

Sat atop her head was a plump jellyfish cap. It was shaped like the tip of a harpoon, and it had three long flaps that were slicked to the side. Dangling beneath it was a bundle of translucent tentacles that acted as her hair as well as a secondary set of arms.

She glowed with a soft, biofluorescent blue, as did her beautiful ring-shaped eyes. 22 more eyes could be found hidden around her body.

“Are you nervous?” Frost asked as she crossed her legs and rested her chin on a fist. “I picked you to escort me here because you know the layout of the Stage. It’s a maze out there. But for good reason. It makes it a strategically viable place to take shelter should Atlas come under attack.”

“Agreed. It will also depend on whether the attacker is on par with us. Otherwise, these walls are meaningless even if they use Caldera Industries’ construction blends.”

This was Cuboza, a Cnidarian Aquatid that specialized in neurotoxin. Not only that, but Cuboza came from a type of Cnidarian that had the capacity to modify their behavior, which was reflected in how she had learned to speak.

Nav believed them to be from the Box Jellyfish family.

“Respectfully, you did not have to invite me here personally. I can stand outside these doors to guard you. The Three Heads of Security are a better choice, though I am incredibly grateful you’ve chosen me.”

“They’ll be preparing the representatives to join us here. Plus, I want them to screen the Kingdoms. While my decisions are final, I want to ensure that all opinions are heard. I have a strong bias to some of the Kingdoms here.”@@novelbin@@

“Umu. Could it be the Chlam Empire?”

“Exactly. I have a short history with Princess Perla. At the time I was not aware she was of royalty. Funny how the world works.”

“Hm. It’s easier in the watery depths where I’m from. You can tell friends from foe easily. Except when your siblings get hungry if you’re a shark. Luckily, Cnidarians don’t eat each other. Unless we’re starving.”

“Oh. Would a cannibal Cnidarian be a Sindarian?” Nav interjected, causing Frost to silently laugh.

She found Cuboza endearing, just like all her Moons. The old Frost would have felt unnerved by her high toxicity. Merely grazing against Cuboza would result in a lethal dose. But she had seen and experienced stranger things, so this was entirely normal to Frost.

Cuboza covers every inch of her skin from below the neck to avoid accidentally stinging people. I don’t want to psychoanalyze her, but it could be why she’s so reserved.

The Moon couldn’t bathe in the public baths alone. Biological limitations prevented Cuboza from living a social life, and it was another task that Ignis was seeking to resolve.

“Amalgam. You didn’t choose those 8 Kingdoms by virtue alone.” Cuboza suddenly said, right as Frost set down a petri dish in front of her. “I knew right away what your intentions are. As expected of you. The ‘helping out the Blessed’ is a cover story.”

Frost blankly blinked.

Eh? What is she talking about?

“Elaborate.”

9 tentacles rested on various parts of the table. Then, she pointed at a tentacle northwest of the petri dish.

“The Bellum Empire is the Nexus’ strategic gateway into the inner northwest of Elysia. The 8 Kingdoms you plan to cut a deal with reside in key territories. As an ex-assassin of ImpulseWorks, I’m shocked… no, it should be a given that you’re aware of using allies as a way to mask your movement.”

“I see.” Frost nodded.

I have no idea what she’s talking about, but it sounds interesting. I’m better off letting her continue.

“6 of the 8 Kingdoms are from Emvita. The Kingdoms you’ve chosen are spaced in a way that will allow us to reach all corners of Emvita.” Cuboza claimed.

Frost hadn’t looked at where these Kingdoms were on the map. She only knew that the majority were from Emvita. It didn’t occur to her that there was significant value in their location.

“Scarlet Logic has many bases around Emvita. The access will benefit us greatly. We’ll be able to attack them from anywhere.” Frost said.

“It will. The arrangement of the Kingdom will allow us to form an encirclement along the central parts of Emvita. As for the other two, we’ll have access into the far southeast corner of Emivta, and the distant northwest past the Great Wetlands at the mouth of the Anid Region.”

Essentially, the Nexus’ reach will go beyond just Grandis with this one diplomatic move. That way they could scout the world further than just the Nex Megalopolis with ease. Grandis was their springboard, and this would be their first step forward into establishing the Hyperlink Networks.

A fast travel system, huh.

“These locations will be important. But our hosts will also determine whether they’ll be a good fit. The last thing we want is to allow the Impuritas to gain access to our Hyperlink Network. But in saying that…”

Frost folded her arms, disgruntled with the recent invasion of the Nexus.

“… They already have access to the Nexus. At the very least, we won’t have to worry about them infiltrating the hearts of our allies.”

She studied the placements further. She didn’t have a map to understand where exactly those locations were, but the general placements of her tentacles revealed that they’d have a massive mobility advantage.

We should move before Scarlet Logic becomes aware. We should hide a few more in Emvita at the very least. The more we have, the easier it’ll be to outmaneuver Scarlet Logic’s forces.

“It will be our one step closer to your dream of world domination.” Cuboza said.

“World domination isn’t the goal.” Frost sighed. “Never has been. My goal is to make this world a better place. We just don’t have the headcount to enforce it without resorting to drastic measures. Besides, there’s a lot of impurities we have uproot before it can enter the realm of possibilities.”

She was honest with Cuboza. It wasn’t like Frost to lie that everything was going fine, or that it was easy. A part of the reason why Frost called Cuboza here was to cool off. Being in front of so many people was natural for her, but it was her theatrics that wore her down.

Cuboza then spoke:

“Isn’t world domination your goal? One day we’ll have to face the Stars. We’ll need lots of allies, won’t we?”

Despite her expressionless voice, she spoke the language of hope. Her optimistic words were like a ray of sunshine. Gathering every Kingdom of the world under one banner was a pipe dream, but it wasn’t one that Frost could call impossible.

“We’ll need as many people as possible. Well. Cuboza. Since we have time, I’d like to ask you for your poison.”

“Umu. The purpose of the sipping flask. Have as much as you need.”

I tend to forget these items are strictly from Earth. I guess does look like a type of glass you’d drink alcohol from. A small little sippy slide, huh.

“A horizonal shot glass?” Nav said.

Something like that. Oh, right. Nav. Will you be able to find anything on these Kingdoms for me?

“I will let the Bookkeepers know.”

Thank you.

* * *

A thick, blue liquid spilled into the petri dish. It was an odorless fluid that was invisible in the light, but it emitted a faint glow when in the dark. After a being exposed to the air for exactly 10 seconds it turned to a white strand that began to resemble silk.

“Umu. I received my name from this. My main way of administering poison is through creating strands. They’re fragile. I used to shred a ball of them into a ventilation shaft to eradicate floors.”

Frost wanted to help Jury develop the types of compounds she could create further. It was the main reason why she had called Cuboza here. The opportunity presented itself, and Frost took it as fast as she could.

Midnight Strand

< Tier 4 Negative Status | Tier 5 Disease >

< TYPE: Anticoagulant, neurotoxin, arrhythmic, hemotoxin, dermonecrotic >

< EFFECT: May not be removed once target ingests or is afflicted by Midnight Strand unless RESIST is higher than 120. Shut down the target’s organ system. Inflict the following Conditions: Paralysis, Blood Loss, Unstable Rhythm, Blood Destruction and Developing Necrosis >

< ADDITIONAL EFFECT: If target survives then apply 100 permanent Severe Debilitation Stacks >

Severe Debilitation

< EFFECT: Reduce all ATT and DEF Stats by 1% of base value per Severe Debilitation Stack that applies through the target’s RESIST. Reduce total HP by 50% >

It was a poison that worked on Moons as well. For reference, the Triplets used to only have 100 RESIST, and they were already considered to be amongst the strongest Moons. This showed why Eclipses excelled in Moon Vs Moon situations.

They were equipped to not only murder a Moon, but to debilitate them if they failed. Thankfully, nearly all Moons of the Nexus were under the banner of the Head.

Still, it was worth looking into a Moon-slaying poison.

Frost was curious if she could cure with her nearly maxed [Cure Disease IV], but alas, no number of black particles changed the composition of the Silent Strand. It annoyed her, but she received what she had called Cuboza for.

But she wasn’t satisfied with this at all. It frankly annoyed her that her [Cleanse IV] probably wasn’t enough to deal with most of the Stack either. The difference between the two was that [Cure Disease] removed a person’s illness, Conditions and the effects of a disease, whereas [Cleanse] removed foreign bodies which typically caused the disease in the first place.

It wasn’t anything Healing magic couldn’t fix, especially after hacking the patient in half.

It makes sense, but it doesn’t make sense at the same time. Haaaah. I figured [Cure Disease] doesn’t work on the disease itself. [Cleanse] on the other hand…

Black particles formed on the Silent Strand. Pieces of the strand were taken by the particles. Before long, the petri dish was empty.

“You never cease to amaze me. Scarlet Healers and the Perched are the only Healers I know who can properly deal with my poison.”

“It’s just that your poisons incredibly powerful. Are you able to produce more for me?”

“Umu. I can. Amalgam. You’re smiling suddenly.”

She was right. Frost was grinning from ear to ear. Cuboza thought she was smiling at her, but in actuality, it was because of a prompt that appeared in front of her.

< Cleanse IV has gained a level >

< Congratulations! >

< Cleanse has reached its Mastery Level of 50 >

< Cleanse V has gained a unique effect >

“I just received incredible news.”

It was long overdue, and she wished she had gained this during her battle against the Heart of Ours. Finally, that same power Poena possessed was in her own hands.

< Cleanse V >

< EFFECT: Instantly remove 5 chosen Stacks on self or target in your proximity. If multiple targets are in contact or in your proximity, then 5 Stacks will be simultaneously removed from them all. You may remove up to 100 Stacks at once at 3x the mana cost >

< DISTANCE: 10m: 5 Stacks, 15m: 3 Stacks, 20m: 1 Stack >

< COST: 50 MP >

< MASTERY: Purify >

< Tap the heads of the unwanted ducklings and turn them into beautiful geese >

< EFFECT: Remove permanent Conditions and Stacks born from Corrupted or sources of Qliphoth. Remove all foreign materials from the target, whether it is accessible or not upon contact >

//////// < ALERT > ////////

< It may not remove Qliphoth Corrosion or similar phenomena >

< But you can slow down the process >

< Odd how the Mastery of Cleanse allows you to remove Conditions. But considering it’s limited to Corrupted-based Conditions, it doesn’t make [Cure Disease] redundant >

< Beware that there will be limitations. Not all Corrupted are made equal >

Frost stowed away the poisonous petri dish with a delighted expression.

“Alright. I’ll keep this in my Dimensional Storage. In the meantime, would you mind guiding our first guest?”

“Right away, my Amalgam.”