The Chorus had been buzzing with knowledge. They had successfully spread across much of Eridanus's surface, not yet daring, however, to touch the infected parts. They would, soon, and they would be rid of it, but for now...they'd had an idea. A bit of intel they'd caught in their endless listening.

Transcendence...? A way to get stronger? To go beyond what a normal gembound was capable of? That did sound like them...that sounded like their kind of challenge, the kind of thing they needed.

The only problem was its location. They know generally where Polaris was, but they hadn't yet been able to leave the confines of Eridanus. They could not simply have The Consul take the test in their stead - they had tried to cast magic through it, but the farther he got from the them, the more difficult it became. They had tried many different avenues, come up with every idea they could, but nothing was fruitful. Could they have the transcendence master come here? No, he didn't leave his cave. Could they grow in that direction until they reached the cave lip? It would take many cycles to grow that far, and they would be thin and weak and easily severed. They could not remotely be there either...no...there was one option.

They had to move. They had to be dug up, their heart, and the network culled.

Not all of it, Abdicus figured they could dig up the protective core as well as some of the surrounding voices and bundle them together to be taken out of the cave, but it would still be a great loss. They would be starting over. Almost.

Ah...all this work they had done, for nothing! No, some of the voices chimed. We have grown strong! We have learned! And when we grow again, we will grow faster, better, more efficient! We will be better!

Abdicus considered this and then relented. They would do this. Yes...

But then the problem of, well, getting them to Polaris. A sizable portion of earth would have to be moved. That was an issue. They had the Consul, at least, that seemed to be willing to do whatever it was that they asked. And so they plotted, and constructed a plan - inspired by the nests they had observed birds building in the tres, they needed leaves, large leaves, and woven sticks and threads. Strip branches and stems of their fibers and create a bundle to wrap around their earth. They guided The Consul into this, finding the largest leaves they could reach.

It was hard work. It was tedious work. But they did not tire. They did not need to rest. And neither would the Consul rest until this job was complete. With sharp, precise teeth, the rat carefully stripped fibers from thin, springy woods and wove them as birds did, reinforced by large, flat leaves that curved around. It took hours. A fully day, in fact, of nonstop work until its paws and teeth ached. But at last, the nest was constructed and he began to fill it with earth.

The Consul stood back, weary, but satisfied. The Chorus looked through his eyes and thanked him in gentle words, praised his work. He had done so well. The work was nearly complete.

He began to dig into the earth where the Chorus's heart lay. They could not help but stiffen in fear as their sacred site was breached. But the Consul was careful, digging far around their their body and cutting through each mycelial cord gently, apology in each bite. Every time he did so, more voices went quite. More sensations shut off and The Chorus braced to endure all of its world shrinking once again. It was agony - not physically, of course, it was simply a quick snap and then quiet, but to feel so much of it suddenly cut off...oh, it was far far worse then losing some caps to a backfired spell.

The voices within the core cried for their lost siblings, while the ones that knew they were going gently comforted them. They were ready. They were okay with this. They would hear new voices soon.

At last, after a long, careful work, the Consul had dug enough on all sides that he began to carefully lift the earth off the top and set it into the nest.

For the first time since its life had began, Abdicus felt the cool air on its cords. It gripped the stone (metaphorically) tighter, as if to shield it from the cold, but it did not ask the Consul to stop. It was too late. It was so alone, with only a few voices remaining. It was so weak again, so raw and weak and helpless. It was grateful to the Consul, though - the rat avoided cutting any further cords and even left the few fruits they had here intact.

The rat dropped into the shallow cave it had dug and began to try and struggle to lift the remains of the Chorus out of it. But he had been sure to leave a large portion of the network remaining, so it was a large bundle that a small rat was trying to lift up and out. Sympathetic, and wanting to help a bit, Abdicus called for the still-living branches of its own mycelia left in the walls to fruit one last tine - they did, growing large, sturdy caps that would serve as a makeshift staircase, just big enough for a rat.

It still wasn't graecful or easy, the rat did his best but he had his limits, clumsily climbing his way up the stairs with a bundle of dirt and mycelia and mushrooms in his paws and jaws that was more then half his size. But they made it up, with only a few more voices lost by pure accident, and he set them into the hollow of the nest.

The rest of the work was simply to cover the top of the mushroom with dirt, so they would be safe and comfortable. Abdicus relaxed into it, but it was still an odd and uncomfortable feeling to have its world limited to such a small space all of a sudden. It was nervous, but it pushed through its nerves.

Thank you, Consul, it whispered to the rat, personally. We ask one last task - to Polaris and back. And to be careful as we go. The rat nodded, looking tired but eager. It had woven in a thicker, flexible branch as a sort of "handle" near the base and got into place, now, picking it up in his jaws and beginning to push forward. The Chorus felt something like a jolt as they began to move. If they had a stomach, they probably would have been sick. But it was also exhilirating - for the first time since hatching, it felt momentum itself.

And on they went, very very slowly, but steadily, out of Eridanus.

*exit