Chapter 21 - The Song of Sorrow

My mental projection, carrying the raw signature of my Pillar resonance, hung in the immense pressure of the Outer Choir Chamber. The veiled members of the Choir shifted, their low chant momentarily disrupted, their collective psychic presence washing over me like a cold tide – probing, assessing, laced with generations of ingrained suspicion towards outsiders.High Priestess Thalassa remained motionless on her obsidian throne, but I felt the focus of her ancient consciousness intensify, examining my resonance, dissecting its structure. It felt like being laid bare under the gaze of a god, or something very close to it."Help?" Thalassa's mental voice echoed again, carrying the weight of millennia, tinged with skepticism. *"An outsider, an anomaly resonating with the foundation, seeks to 'help' the Choir soothe the Leviathan? You understand nothing of the Rites, of the pressure, of the god whose dreams sustain this realm.""I understand the Pillars are weakening,"* I projected back, keeping my mental voice steady despite the immense pressure. *"I felt Luminora Prime's decay. I feel the strain here, the dissonance beneath the surface. My resonance may be different, High Priestess, but it is tied to the structure that contains the Leviathan, the structure you strive to maintain. Perhaps a different frequency, a different harmony, can aid your Rites where the old songs falter."It was a gamble, appealing to her desperation while acknowledging my ignorance. Arrogance would be fatal. Silence descended, thick and heavy, broken only by the deep thrum of the Pillar and the resumed, albeit strained, chanting of the Choir.Thalassa's consciousness withdrew slightly, conferring mentally with the veiled Choir members closest to her. I felt ripples of debate, skepticism warring with a flicker of desperate hope. Elara stood silently beside me, her expression neutral, offering no support or interference. This was my test.Finally, Thalassa's focus returned to me. "The Chronicler vouches for your unique nature, though her motives are ever veiled. The Leviathan grows restless. The Pillar groans. Desperate times may call for desperate measures… or invite unforeseen catastrophe." She paused, the weight of her decision palpable. *"You claim to feel the Pillar's sorrow. Prove it. Join the Rite. Add your resonance to our song. Harmonize with the Pillar, soothe its strain. If your frequency aids the Somnolence, perhaps there is truth in your words. If it disrupts… you will be consumed by the abyss, and your interference will end."Join the Rite? Add my resonance to their sacred chant? It was more than I had hoped for, and far more dangerous. I had no idea how their Rites worked, how my Pillar resonance would interact with their Leviathan-focused harmonies. A mistake could disrupt the delicate balance, potentially angering the Leviathan further, or trigger a backlash from the Pillar itself. Yet, it was the only way to gain Thalassa's trust, the only way to truly understand the Pillar's song of sorrow."I will,"* I projected, pushing down my fear. *"Guide me, High Priestess. I will add my resonance to yours."Thalassa gave a slow, almost imperceptible nod. *"Step forward, anomaly. Stand within the circle. Do not attempt to lead. Do not attempt to control. Listen. Feel the Pillar. Feel the Leviathan. Find the harmony between them, the point of balance. Add your strength there. Fail, and perish."Elara gave me a subtle glance, a silent warning, before stepping back. Taking a deep breath, I walked forward, stepping into the circle formed by the veiled Choir members around the central shaft. The psychic pressure intensified tenfold. The chanting surrounded me, vibrating through my bones, weaving complex harmonies designed to soothe the immense consciousness dreaming below.The Pillar's deep thrum felt clearer here, its resonance flowing up from the depths. But overlaid on it, almost drowning it out, was the Leviathan's presence – a vast, cold, dreaming mind filled with images of crushing darkness, slow currents, and ancient, alien thoughts. Maintaining my own sense of self, my own resonance signature, against this tide was incredibly difficult."Begin," Thalassa commanded mentally.The Choir's chant deepened, grew more complex. I felt them drawing power, not from the Pillar, but from the Leviathan itself, shaping its dream-energy into a soothing lullaby. But there was strain, dissonance. The lullaby wasn't working perfectly; the Leviathan's dreams remained troubled, sending tremors through the psychic field.Closing my eyes, I shut out the immediate pressure, focusing solely on the Pillar's resonance. I felt its deep, slow beat, the foundation of this realm. But I also felt the points of stress, the groaning vibrations where the Leviathan's restless energy pushed against it, where the sympathetic resonance from Luminora's decay created hairline fractures in its structure. This was the sorrow, the strain Thalassa spoke of.My task wasn't to mimic the Choir's song, but to reinforce the Pillar itself. To find those points of stress and add my resonance, not to soothe the Leviathan directly, but to strengthen its container, to ease the groaning of the foundation.Carefully, I extended my resonance, focusing on a particularly strained node deep beneath the chamber. I didn't pour power into it, but gently harmonized with the Pillar's core frequency, reinforcing it, smoothing the dissonance caused by the external pressures. It felt like supporting a crumbling wall, adding my strength to its structure.The effect was subtle, but immediate. The tremors in the psychic field lessened slightly. The Choir's chant seemed to flow more smoothly, the strain easing fractionally. Thalassa's mental presence sharpened, focusing on me with renewed intensity. The Choir members nearest me shifted, their veiled faces turning towards me, sensing the change.Encouraged, I continued, moving my focus from one stress point to another, weaving my Pillar resonance into the foundation, reinforcing, harmonizing, soothing the structure itself. It required immense concentration, a delicate balancing act between supporting the Pillar and resisting the pull of the Leviathan's consciousness.For a time, a fragile harmony seemed to settle over the chamber. The Leviathan's dreams didn't cease, but their restless edge softened. The Pillar's groaning lessened. The Choir's chant flowed with renewed strength.Then, a new presence intruded. Sharp, aggressive, filled with ambition and resentment. I felt it approach the chamber from the city above – multiple Krakenborn signatures, resonating with barely contained power and hostility.The expansionist faction. They had learned of my presence, perhaps, or chose this moment to challenge Thalassa's authority.The chamber doors burst open. Several heavily armored Krakenborn warriors stormed in, led by a figure whose resonance pulsed with raw, barely controlled pressure manipulation. His eyes burned with fanaticism."Blasphemy!" the leader roared, his voice echoing physically in the chamber, disrupting the delicate chant. "The High Priestess consorts with an outsider! Polluting the Sacred Rites! Weakening the Leviathan with foreign resonance! Seize the anomaly! Purify the Sanctum!"The Choir faltered, their concentration broken. The fragile harmony shattered. The psychic pressure from the shaft below surged violently as the Leviathan reacted to the disruption, its dreams turning dark and angry. The Pillar groaned, the stress fractures widening under the sudden assault.Thalassa rose from her throne, her ancient power flaring like a cold star. *"Hold, Commander Vorlag! You dare disrupt the Rite? You court disaster!""The disaster is your weakness, Priestess!" Vorlag snarled, ignoring her warning. "Appeasement has failed! Only by mastering the Leviathan, harnessing its full power, can K'tharr survive! The outsider is a threat to that! Kill it!"The armored warriors advanced, their pressure tridents crackling. The Choir members recoiled, their soothing harmonies lost in the sudden conflict. The chamber descended into chaos, caught between the wrath of the expansionists and the surging, angered consciousness of the awakening Leviathan below.