The sound of rib cages creaking as they were being pressed into shapes that they should never have to a.s.sume dominated the entire cavern, where the eyes of all those who were still standing had gone completely round, while their hearts thundered in their chests, unable to believe the sight in front of them.
The gigantic leg which they had seen before was now right in front of them, breaking through the ceiling of the cavern which was supposed to be protected by layers and layers of spells as if it was nothing. The leg was not wearing any footwear, and even while a few got the bemused query about whether there even existed shoes so big that they could fit it, it moved in front of them, pressing down even further and making minute movements from side to side, as if it was merely putting out a cigarette b.u.t.t that was lying on the floor.
It was no simple spell - there was enormous detail in each and every inch of the skin that could be seen, all covered in a complex layer of elemental particles that stopped it from being probed by any prying eyes.
Those that were still standing could only look between the Heroes who had been so vehemently arguing until now, and the one who had suddenly appeared and changed everything in one simple move. Slowly, it dawned on them that they were lucky to not be in the position of their peers, and one by one, with expressions that were difficult to read, the Heroes began to kneel.
Some did it out of pure respect, others showed frustration, while still others showed anger.
This was to be expected, though, thought Daneel, as these were all headstrong individuals who had never had to bow down to someone else"s authority all their lives.
A few moments later, even the Head and the G.o.ddess of Healing knelt on one knee with extremely proud expressions on their faces, and Daneel accepted their fealty officially.
They knew, as well as he did, that this was the moment when his authority would be set in stone, and there could be no challenge, whatsoever, even if it was from someone who knew him well.
"We yield! Mercy!"
This shout was from the exact person who had given that speech just now, and seeing that he was actually the first to yield, the others who had been just moments away from falling prey to his heated words started to understand that he had been acting out of self-interest, rather than an interest in the well-being and future of the Order, and the continent.
After all, only those who cared so much for themselves could jump s.h.i.+p so easily, and even though quite a few people started to repeat the same words along with him, there were some who continued to hold out, even though the force being exerted by the foot started to increase on their backs until it reached a point where they knew that they would be squished into a red paste if they did not ask the one waiting in front of them to be pardoned.
There were only 40 or so of these people, and Daneel continued to look at them gravely while watching as the system ramped up the pain and pressure that they were feeling in their minds.
Of course, that was the secret behind what was happening right now: the system was using the same trick that had subdued all those Heroes of the Church back in the field where the celebrations were taking place, and it was just as effective now. All it needed was one point in time when the minds of those who had to be affected were completely unguarded, and if it weren"t for the system, it would be impossible for Daneel to use that minute fraction to deploy such a powerful spell.
In fact, as he was quite free right now, he even calculated the kind of complexity that would be needed for a Hero to be able to do so, and it was no surprise that it exceeded all the bounds that he knew of.
The system had clearly not just jumped into the Hero level: it had gone beyond, and if Daneel wasn"t controlling his face tightly to show only the seriousness that was expected at this moment, he would be grinning with ecstasy right now.
[Targets found to have decided that they would rather die than yield. Awaiting instructions regarding next step to be taken.]
Letting out a sigh, he saw that the rumors were right - there really were some who would give up their lives, rather than bend the knee.
The conviction with which they stuck to their beliefs was to be admired, but in this situation… Daneel was not going to take no for an answer.
"Knock them out."
Just like that, more than 60 bodies flopped lifelessly to the ground, as all of those who had begun to prepare to martyr themselves lost consciousness and entered the land of dreams.
All the Heroes who were kneeling saw these individuals, and right away, they knew that whether they wanted to believe it or not, everything they were seeing was true: this kid who had been born in such a commonplace kingdom had actually gained enough power to climb over all of their shoulders, and become the first leader of the Order who had obtained his position by force, in all the known history of this ill.u.s.trious organization.
"Hail Daneel Anivron, G.o.dking of Angaria! As the Overseer, I welcome you as the rightful leader of the Order in these troubled times. The position of the leader continues to remain vacant due to the restrictions set up in ancient times, but in this juncture, I"m prepared to give up my position, so that the same clause which was invoked when that enemy took over can be used now, but for the good of the continent. We have all seen your every step as you risked your life to do all that you can for this continent which future generations will call lucky to be the one that gave birth to you. You have shown your worth, time and time again, and just as you said, you have united this continent into one force, under one person. If anyone opposes this, speak now, or forever hold your peace- for the time has come for us to welcome the one true King, of all that is."