Revenge was a dish best served cold. Or at least that’s what Jack kept telling himself when they exited the conference room that the Primal had brought them to.

One reason he kept doing that was to put himself in the exact kind of mindset one would have expected from him after Grimshaw got off without even so much as a slap on the wrist for all he did.

The second reason was to remind himself that, one day, when he was strong enough, it would not be too late to address this grievance. Letting go of grudges was something neither Lex nor Jack were good at.

At least Grimshaw ended up paying a significant amount - the Crystal alligator would be the one who would enjoy those benefits. As it should be.

The Artica race member didn’t appreciate how his concerns about the broken laws were addressed with a simple promise forced by the Primal from Grimshaw not to do such things again. He was also assured that the Artica race, despite their prowess and power within their realm, would regret it if they tried to forcibly punish Grimshaw.

It was not a threat - on the contrary, the Primal was genuinely trying to save the Artica race from facing a great deal of trouble. After all, compared to the Humanoid Alliance, the Artica race was a lot weaker, so their leverage against the Sages was similarly a lot weaker.

"You know, Jack, you’re not so bad," said Grimshaw once they had all exited. "The brooding and plotting revenge a billion years down the lane are kind of a buzzkill, but you’re impressive nevertheless. It’s no wonder Bob is willing to follow you around. Would you be interested in making an appearance at a child’s birthday party? I promise not to try and enslave you. It’s just that my cousin’s kid requested a freak circus for his birthday, and I feel like you guys would fit right in."

"I think I’ll have to pass," Jack said, trying not to glare at Grimshaw. The sheer entitlement radiating off him was quite repugnant.

"Enh, smart move, honestly," Grimshaw said with a shrug. "The kid was going to hunt the circus freaks with his friends anyway."

Oroo stepped in between the two suddenly, cutting off the conversation.

"If you’ll excuse me, Grimshaw, I need to take Jack and the rest with me for some paperwork."

Grimshaw just shrugged again, and walked off with the Jagged Stallion who had agreed to become Grimshaw’s new slavemaster - meaning the one who would manage all his slaves. It was the only way the stallion could have avoided the undoubtedly severe punishment that no doubt awaited it.

"I have never met anyone as insufferable," Jack said to Oroo as they turned to watch Grimshaw leave.

"Believe me, Grimshaw is far from the worst Sage you’ll meet if you ever encounter more of them," said Oroo. "It’s an undisputed fact that together, the Sages control a large part of the universe."

"You know, I heard something interesting once," said Jack, thinking back to what he learned about the Kun Peng. When he recalled what Little Blue had been capable of, Jack couldn’t help but feel slightly intimidated by the concept of Sage races. "I heard some races higher up on the Cosmic Ascendance Spectrum specifically get targeted to be eliminated just because they’re stronger."

Oroo looked towards Jack, once more surprised by the fact that he was, at least to some degree, in touch with things that were actually secrets.

"Yes, that does happen, which is why the Sage races have a loose alliance. But being higher up on the Spectrum doesn’t necessarily mean that their universal power is great. Despite being on the peak of the Spectrum, the only reason the Sages are strong as a whole is because of their alliance."

"How does that make sense?" Jack asked, confused.

"Very simple. Power doesn’t just appear out of this air. Being born strong is an advantage, and a disadvantage. The amount of resources it takes to birth even 1 Sage is often enough to allow a thousand Celestials to be born, and if we’re talking about a race like fairies, well... that would be enough resources to birth over a quadrillion of you. Probably more. No wait, definitely more - because of how weak you are when you’re born.

"Now getting enough resources to give birth to enough Sages to compete against all the other resources in the universe isn’t as easy as it seems. Sure, they’re born strong, and have enough advantages in a one-to-one situation. But who says wars are ever one to one? Most powerful races specifically design and use quick breeding, easily strengthened races to fight wars for them, and that’s where the advantage of numbers comes into play.

"Once, the dragons waged a war against one of the Sage races, but didn’t need to fight themselves even a single time. They only offered to reproduce and strengthen the bloodline for any race that fights on their behalf - considering that dragons can reproduce with almost any race, it was a valid offer. Over half a trillion races showed up to fight. The Primals eventually had to intercede, providing the dragons with an entire Major realm to end the war."

Jack suddenly thought back to the Kraven. The Ventura academy was using them as cannon fodder to fight a war in the Crystal realm and artificially mature the realm. Maybe it was because the academy knew that it was linked to the Primordial Garden, or maybe for some other reasons, but the Kraven were basically a fodder race for them to fight their wars. Who could guess how many other such races existed in the universe?

Of course, he doubted there was anyone who could be like the dragons and simply use their virility to win the war. That was... yet another example of why dragons were awesome.

"Enough about this," said Oroo, moving away from the topic. "You need to follow me back to the alliance. We need to go through certain procedures to hand off your rewards. Not to mention, you need to answer to the alliance for the little stunt you pulled."

"Of course, of course. But first, we need to find my crew," Jack said, not at all trying to delay the inevitable. For some reason, he had a feeling he was about to be dumped with a lot of responsibility. That was Lex’s department. Jack’s role was only to enjoy himself with countless shenanigans.

"For the protection of your crew, they have already been brought to the alliance headquarters," said Oroo. "I believe they’re quite enjoying themselves. You can see them if you’ll follow me."

Jack smiled awkwardly. Why did he have a bad feeling about this? Now that the Primal and Grimshaw had left, the suppression on his body had lifted, so his wings were trembling again. Could it be that there was some kind of trap waiting for him at the alliance headquarters? He did use them to shield himself without asking. Maybe they were angry about that.

*****

"Oh you poor thing," said the kind lady as she provided Pebbles with a cushion to sit on. "Does this happen to you often? Maybe we can find a way to fix this."

"Fret not. I see it as more of a superpower than a curse," said Pebbles, shaking his head. "Although, I’ll admit, the nature of my super power has changed since I became an Immortal."

Then he carefully proceeded to sit on the cushion, careful not to detonate the two naval mines that had replaced his hips today.

"Previously, my body parts were replaced by simple prosthetics. Now, they seem to be replaced by weapons."

"Oh that’s adorable," the kind lady said as she resisted the urge to inch his cheeks. "I’m sure something like this gets you all the points with the ladies. You must be one irresistible hamster."

"Oh yes, my own endless charm is my greatest curse. But I’ve sworn never to settle down until I find that accursed leprechaun who locked me in the pot of gold and threw me down a rainbow. That’s how I ended up in the Folklore realm. I think he mistook me for a piece of gold."

Pebbles stuck out his chest when he spoke, trying to appear even more adorable.

"Oh dear, such chivalry. It is most admirable. But I think, if you meet the right lady, you shouldn’t resist your feelings just because of your oath. After all, you don’t need to settle down - you can bring her along with your crew.

"Speaking of which, your entire crew consists of boys, doesn’t it? Aren’t any of them married? Or in relationships? That must get lonely," the kind lady asked as she began to prepare a meal for Pebbles. She was their caretaker at the alliance, and she would soon have to go take care of the others, but Pebbles didn’t want her to go.

"Well... if you want to join, I can talk to the captain for you," Pebbles said, feeling slightly embarrassed. "Just so you know, I’m the real captain. Jack is just... I’m letting him be captain because I don’t want to break his heart."

"Oh that’s a nice offer," the lady said with a chuckle. "But I already have a job elsewhere, and I’m quite busy helping out the alliance. I couldn’t possibly go off sailing with you boys. But I’ll be here if you need anything, so you can ask for me by name. My name is Velma."