The Greatest Fight [progression cultivation isekai]

X2.3.6 – Indigo's Revelation

"I don't think they're coming back," said Indigo standing as she watched the hustle and bustle of the Gray Bazaar.

"It's been several hours. We were dumb enough to believe that they would go refuel and we would be off," said Rosso.

"Yeah," Roa nodded and sighed, "the siblings are probably light years away from this place by now—and we're stuck here. No money and no transportation."

"Not necessarily," said Indigo, shaking a wad of cash.

"Where did you get that?"

"I stole it from the siblings while we were in the collector's office. I figured we might need some funds, given that there are no Jumpers here," she explained with a smirk on her face.

The three travelers spent the day gathering supplies for the trip to the Exit. While they were sitting at a food stall, the alien chef's eyes grew wide as he noticed the boy's wound on his arm.

"You have been cursed, boy," the alien said.

Roa looked down at his arm and noticed once more that the dark discoloration had grown. "The Rot?"

"Yes. The Rot that curses the asteroid belt," it said.

"What will happen to me?" asked the boy.

"The Rot will spread, and weaken you. Your infection started small, so it will take some time—but the time will come eventually. It is—inevitable."

Roa's friends' worried looks meet his own, then he turned back to the alien and asked, "is there a cure?"

"Perhaps, you should go to the planet named Spore. The people there are among the greatest healers in Nyx. Perhaps they know the answer that you seek," the chef turned around and continued preparing food for the customers.

The boy sighed. "Spore is the planet where the other Exit is."

"We should pass by there first. At least let's get an opinion from these healers, in case the rumors are true," said Indigo, as Roa nodded with a defeated look on his face as he swirled his broth without eating it.

The Jumpers boarded a small, yellow, beat-up spaceship they rented from an orange-skinned, four-eyed humanoid named Stax. They had spent most of their money for the supplies and transportation, but at least they were off that rock.

"Welcome to Stax's no-tax taxi service. First stop—Spore," said the driver as he pushed on some buttons.

The three sat around a table drinking coffee, discussing their next steps.

"We get you the cure, then head to the Exit. Before you know it, we'll be back in Grand Market, find Nirvana and the others, and finally we'll be back on track again. Then we will probably head to that tournament in Parallel Valley," Rosso said with a determined look in his eyes.

"Sure," said Roa softly.

"The Seven Wonders Tournament?" asked Indigo. "I've heard of it. The strongest fighters in Free Society meet there every one hundred years."

"Yeah, we were supposed to go there years ago—but then we got kidnapped and spent our time doing shows at the damn circus. So, we probably missed it by now," Roa explained, placing his head in his hands.

"No, you didn't," Indigo said, causing the other two to look up at her. "If I'm not mistaken, the last tournament was on the same year as my brother's coronation—and that was exactly—" she paused and counted on her fingers, "ninety-nine years ago."

"So—the tournament starts in one year then? We still have time?" Roa said, his eyes lighting up.

"Yep. Why do you want to go to that tournament, anyway? Are you trying to win the prize?" she asked.

"Yeah, but more importantly, we need to convince some of the strongest fighters there to join the revolution against the Old Order. If we win the competition, it will be easier to convince them," Roa said.

"Well, you'll need all the luck and training you can get. I hear those fighters are fierce," Indigo said.

After a moment of silence, Roa asked her, "you come from some—powerful family, don't you?"

Indigo looked up at him with an uneasy look. "Yeah, I belong to the royal family of the Azzura dynasty. My family runs one of the last remaining Free Nations in the Innerverse, Azzura's Domain. I am second in line to the throne, after my brother. I'm—the backup," she said, looking down at her coffee.

The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

"Who's your brother?"

"His name is Blue. Many Jumpers know him as Gorgeous Blue," she said.

"Hey, isn't that the famous cartographer?" asked Rosso, opening his little red book, and flipping through the pages. "Yes—I remember writing this down. Gorgeous Blue and Elevar of Pardasia, two of the greatest cartographers in Free Society, officially tasked by the Library of Everything to map out worlds and the Palace floors. You're—related?"

"Yeah, my brother has a very impressive—resume. Monarch of Azzurra, cartographer, political leader in the Halls of Might, and so on…" she said, resigned.

"So, he probably knows a lot of people and a lot of places?" asked the Sunflower, thinking ahead. "He can help the revolution."

"Yeah. He knows a ton of people and a ton of places. His political machinations, however, probably won't allow him to help you boys out, at least—not out in the open. Plus, there's one other problem," she said.

"What is it?"

"He's several chokepoints up the Palace, probably giving a speech in the Halls of Might as we speak. We have several Gates in the way," Indigo shrugged her shoulders. "I left home and had stolen some blueprints from my brother, using them to jump through several Exits that allowed me to descend the Palace. Most Jumpers want to climb the labyrinth and get to the Dreamer, but I never cared about all that, so I went in the direction no one was going—down. I wasn't really sure where I was heading to, but, as they say, if you don't know where you are going, any place will do, right? Well, that was several centuries ago, and now that the Gates showed up, I can't really make it back up the Palace anymore. So, I'm stuck here for now."

"Have you seen the Halls of Might? What are they like?" asked Rosso.

"The Halls are the government complex of the Empire, the most powerful nation in Default World. They serve as the de facto center of the Old Order—or at least that's what my brother used to say. They're located in Central-Center, the capital, an immense city shaped like a broken diamond. I remember Blue used to always complain that the arguments, the laws, the scheming in the Halls were all just—theatre."

"Theatre?"

"Yeah, as in it was all for show. He used to say that the real decisions were made in the Elsewhere, by more powerful people than the politicians. The true wielders of power in the Halls of Might—the Ring Keepers," she said in an ominous tone.

"Who?" Rosso asked.

"Powerful industries, organizations, oligarchs, and special interests who lobby the Halls of Might, swaying policy to benefit them. The Ring is the road that loops around Central-Center, and on it are all of the headquarters of the most powerful groups. These groups funnel their money into the system, forcing the hand of government in their direction—to their benefit—and often at great expense of everyone else," Indigo said. "You met one of the Ring Keepers already."

"We did?" asked the other two in unison.

"Yup. The one who represents the Old Order's energy sector. The master of smoke stacks, the king of sludge, the toxic manager of pollution."

"Lord Smog?" asked Roa.

"Bingo," smiled Indigo.

"Are you saying that—" Rosso murmured.

"I'm saying that the seat of power in Default World is run by the same people blocking the way up."

"The Gates," the Sunflower said, his eyebrows curling as his eyes met Rosso's.

"Exactly. They represent the Old Order's largest benefactors, the pillars of the system, that's why they actively lobby the government of the strongest nation to uphold the status quo," Indigo said. "The Empire is much stronger than any other country, so they are able to control the whole thing with this one nation, and they do so from its capital. It's a system based on force. The strongest decides the rules—it's the law of the jungle, with extra steps."

"So, things aren't bad because they have to be bad—" Rosso said.

"They're bad because someone wants them to be this way—because they benefit from the system being this way," said Roa with anger in his eyes. "They're obliterating Nature and keeping Humanity in bondage—so that they can keep being on top."

"Exactly, and for them to be on top, everyone else must be somewhere else," she said.

"At the bottom," Rosso said.

"See, you boys are getting it," Indigo said.

"So, the wars, the corruption, the suffering, the deaths, the destruction, the—the—it's all just—because they benefit, and want to keep it that way?" asked Roa, receiving a nod from the blue-haired girl. "These people have lost their humanity. They're monsters."

"What an abomination of a system," said Rosso.

"Speaking of Abominations—the Gates each control one," said Indigo. "They're sort of like Kami, except they are not born of Nature. They are born from the unrighteous actions of Humanity. They are born from thousands of collective mistakes and moral shortcomings, done through generations of people not caring, being greedy, being cruel and ignorant. They are the spirits of the very creations that keep the Old Order running."

"We fought one in Ardor's Forge, the chokepoint Lord Smog guarded. Its name was Lothrah, and it was hideous," said Rosso.

"That monster was probably what came out of the pollution of the waters, the air, the ground. It's what manifested from handshakes in government buildings behind closed doors, in wars fought over oil, and in the hatred and suffering that sprang from them," Indigo explained, shaking her head.

The space taxi finally reached the planet called Spore. There, the three travelers spent several days until they were able to meet with a group of alien doctors. One of them kept staring suspiciously their way, until she asked to speak with them in private, away from the other doctors.

"You are Jumpers, aren't you?" she said, in a soft tone.

"Yes—how did you know?" asked Rosso.

"You need to make your auras Whisper. Nobody in Nyx knows how to wield their auras. If Shadows pick up on your signal, it's going to be trouble for everyone," she continued.

"Sorry," Roa said, suppressing his life force's signal as best he could. "What about my—infection? Can we stop its spread through my body?"

The doctor paced back and forth without saying a word. Roa's heart was beating fast in his chest, and his breath sped up.

"No," she said, causing the boy's heart to sink. "But you can slow it down. The infection feeds on your life force. The more aura you use, the bigger the infection will get."

Roa's heart dropped. "What about a cure?"

"The Rot has no known cure. I'm sorry, but eventually it will take over your body, and you will turn into a mindless zombie," said the medic.

Roa's heart sank again as fear gripped him like a cold burn in his chest. "How much--time do I have?"

"Depends on you. It will take years if you don't use your aura, but you will speed the process up if you use any Gift," the alien said.

"I have to use my aura, though. I have a tournament to win," he said. "I have a revolution to join."

"You will die if you do. Every bit of energy you use is one less day of life you will have," explained the doctor as she shook her head.