Rise Of Pandora

Rise Of Pandora: LI. The Months To Come

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XI. Stoic

Gaijin was sitting glumly with something weighing heavily on his mind. 

"Gaijin, on behalf of everyone in this room, I'd first like to extend earnest gratitude to you for aiding in attempting to capture the man you fought in the Snowpeak and we offer the same gratitude towards you for treating both Maddard and Baccus and keeping Maddard alive through the night," Atlas affirmed.

Gaijin did not seem to care much for their extended gratitude. He only expanded his mind to care for one particular matter.

"You have already done so much for us that we cannot just turn blindly to. You will get what you are looking for with us. You will have Pandora, whoever she may be, you will have her. We will spare no expense in aiding you with that. However, I only ask that you..."

Taking a quick pause, Atlas peered deeply into Gaijin's eyes. 

"I only ask that you join us in not only pursuing Pandora but the Dakini as well in the months to come. As I have already been informed, the others have familiarized you of what the Dakini is capable of, what they have done in the past, and what their plans may be. Now, you may not have known this but the man you fought, Genesis—that is what he calls himself—he told Baccus at the end of their bout that the Dakini is and has, for a very long time, been in possession of a box that contains what he called deities and the name Pandora also came up. And Baccus did not bring this up, he spoke of it himself. He also stated that there would be a day the box could no longer suppress their numbers, he termed that day 'the day of wrath'. Is any of what I am saying familiar to you?"

After a few seconds of tense silence, Atlas continued.

"By your expression, I believe I have my answer."

Gaijin responded abruptly, "Yes. The box would not hold forever. The ones who made it knew that, and it is unfortunate that it had to be in your lifetimes. It was more of a temporary solution during our time."

Atlas, pressing back against the sofa with his hands rising to his chin and promptly resting in place, spoke more confidently, "And it would appear that the Dakini would prefer a more permanent solution."

Confounded, Gaijin leered in closer. His eyes wholly communicated the confusion that was mounting inside.

"What are you saying?"

Believing he had now captivated Gaijin's attention, Atlas continued: "I am saying just this—and listen well—according to the man, Genesis, who mind you is a very prominent member of the Dakini, said from his own mouth that Pandora is, in fact, their enemy. Perhaps they were not identifying the woman as the target, perhaps rather it is her abundant supply of deities that concerns them, but that is not our concern. I am proposing that you help us prioritize the Dakini as they themselves pursue her. They strike her, and we strike them. Because of the sheer amount of billions...there is little we can do about that, at least maybe right now." 

"But the Dakini is the sort that deals in quality rather quantity, there are few individuals in their ranks; nonetheless, these few possess abilities that are just too overwhelming. But, with all of this chaos, the Deathknights and Shadowbirds returning and Pandora returning, we can use the chaos to trump them. You recall the man who was standing before me in my chambers? Yes?"

Atlas proceeded to look at the interested group, allotting his attention equally to each of them. "That was King. That is what he calls himself. He visited today and although he tried hiding it, his heartbeat was heavier than typical. I could feel he was nervous."