Chapter 7: Old Friends
The room grew considerably quiet as the meeting came to an end.
Commander Oti's left mouth twisted into a scowl as he grumbled through gritted teeth, visibly displeased with the outcome.
There was nothing he could do about it now that the council had decided. He would have to wait for a future meeting to drive his point forward once again.
He glanced towards Umber, his eyes narrowing. He was most surprised by his sudden change in sides, considering he'd been with them fully in previous meetings.
Tera's shoulder slumped as she sighed dramatically in defeat. In truth, she didn't care too much about this matter. She just hoped whatever resulted from it wouldn't have anything to do with her people. Or her, especially.
Aztec said nothing as a low grunt escaped his lips.
Respen meanwhile, stayed focused on Bastain, his featureless face making it impossible to know exactly what he was thinking about.
Bastian could still tell the two of them were more disappointed than almost everyone else in the room. He just hoped they weren't planning anything as a result.
BANG!
Once again, Nash's fist slammed into the table hard, the sound echoing sharply across the room.
Bastian's brows creased as he stared at the table, wondering if it would last even shorter than the last one Nash had destroyed.
"…Fine then. Do whatever you want for now. But this isn't over Bastian." He said glaring down at Bastain as he stood abruptly. " I will not let you make my grandson your pawn."
He turned to the door and stormed toward it and out of the room without looking back.
Unlike the others, none of his retainers were present, so no one moved to follow.
The eyes of most of the retainers standing listlessly outside turn to the slowly closing doors as they observed the expressions of everyone still in the room.
The Council didn't have any outward reaction s to Nash's sudden outburst . After all, they were used to them by now.
Eventually they rose one by one, bowing slightly to Bastian, and then turning to leave.
Their commanders rushed to follow behind them as they emerged from the room.
Respen paused briefly at the large door, glancing back at Bastian one last time before stepping out.
Soon, only Bastian and Tristan were left in the simple room.
Bastian exhaled deeply, leaning back in his chair.
"How tiresome."
"All of this… is really so tiresome. It almost feels like we're losing every time."
Tristan's eyes slowly moved to Bastain as he let out a soft breath. "Don't be like that, old friend. You'll only scare people if they see your defeated expression."
"Are you not the one always going on about hope and faith? It would be too sad if you lost yours as well."
Silence stretched between them for several moments.
Then Bastian chuckled as he turned to face Tristan.
"I suppose it would, wouldn't it?" He sat up. "…You know, I've often found myself reminiscing on the old times these days, when all we had to worry about at the time was competing against each other. How I miss that."
"Why did we have to be such geniuses and advance so fast? How shortsighted of our younger selves!" he mused as he pulled a jade coin from his pocket.
A faint purple glow enveloped it a second later, causing it to float slightly above his palm.
Bastian Lost, was a genius in every sense of the word. At only thirty-four, he had already done what most took decades to achieve—if at all. He had cultivated his Heart Shard to the fifth stage, Dominion.
Not only that, he had also developed a unique ability from the moment he had been implanted with it.
Heart Shard ability: Gravitas
The ability to manipulate one of the fundamental concepts of the universe, gravity itself.
He was quite good at it too, although not as good as a certain Warden. Something he'd often been reminded of.
His elemental ability that came with the Heart Shard was wind, which synched perfectly well with his main.
As of right now, he was considered the second strongest Sentinel in the entire galaxy.
Naturally, Tristan Dune—a Silver Mornan, wasn't that far behind either.
His Heart Shard had already reached the fourth stage: Harmony, like every other member of the Council–despite being a quarter their age.
He hadn't developed a unique ability like Bastian yet, which was common, but he did receive four elemental affinities with his Heart Shard instead of the usual one. An almost impossible feat, making him a prodigy in his own right.
Tristan smiled faintly. "I think leadership suits you well, my friend.
"Now you actually have to think, before you act," he quipped.
He ignored Bastian's indignant look as he went on. "Also, you're the only genius in this room. I simply had to try my best to keep up with you, that's all," Tristan said, leaning back in his chair.
Bastian snorted. "Oh please, don't try to sell yourself short. Heart abilities are definitely great. But it's a known fact that most people develop one if they keep ascending the ranks."
"Which means you'll get one eventually when you reach the fifth or sixth stage of ascension, like I know you will."
"However, the same cannot be said for elemental abilities," Bastian mumbled with an envious expression. "So don't go acting all humble around me, it's infuriating."
Tristan let out a small laugh. "Alright, I admit I was being a bit too modest. But it's still great that you realise who's the better of us two." he teased.
"Try catching up to me first before you talk so confidently." Bastian shot back with a grin.
Both of them descended into a fit of laughter for several moments.
When they finally stopped, Tristan's expression seemed to darken ever so slightly.
"That was quite an interesting meeting, wasn't it, Bastian? Especially the part concerning the Renegade boy."
Bastian nodded. "I suppose it was. And thank you for backing me up on the matter. Just like always."
"Truly, I'm blessed with great company… Well, mostly."
Tristan waved dismissively as he leaned forward, his pristine white hair glinting in the room's yellow lighting.
"That was nothing. It's only natural that I have your back, old friend."
"…But there is one thing I was curious about concerning the meeting."
"Something I'd go as far as to say is quite out of character for you."
Bastian's brow raised. "Oh? What is that?"
His eyes were still focused on the jade coin zipping about the room like a bug under his control.
Tristan turned his gaze to the coin gliding around, as well, his glinting blue eyes narrowing slightly.
"To me… it almost seemed like you were more concerned about the fate of that half-human boy, than you were about dealing with the fallout from the annihilation of one of our most treasured planets."
"That wouldn't be the case, right, old friend?" He asked, facing Bastain. "You're not planning anything with that child, are you?"
He paused for several moments, then continued slowly. "…Anything having to do with Yue Xie, for instance?"
Bastian's lazy smile faded almost instantly as the jade coin above them halted in its place.
The invisible tension in the room suddenly became much more noticeable.
His eyes met Tristan's again as he turned to him.
They stared at each other for a long time, neither saying anything.
Finally, Bastian rose to his feet, his expression filled with annoyance.
"…That's uncalled for, Tristan. You of all people know how much that name means to me." He said, levitating the Jade coin closer to him and pocketing it.
Tristan studied Bastian's expression intently, not saying anything more.
Bastian let out an audible breath as he walked toward the door.
"Calm your mind old friend. There's nothing going on. Don't become paranoid." He said with a dismissive wave back. "This was merely an emergency meeting to get some pressing matters out of the way. We have to fully understand the scope of our current losses to know where we go from here."
"The Arbus situation could just be settled quicker, so I decided to focus on that sooner."
He glanced back at Tristan for a moment. "You know me, Tristan. I always do what I believe would be best for the greater number of people. I'm not one to let my emotions get the better of me. Not anymore at least," Bastian whispered as he finally walked out the door, closing it behind him.
Tristan sat alone in the room for a while as his eyes remained fixed on the door. "You are right, Bastian. I do know you."