Endless Path : Infinite Cosmos

With the rapid changes occurring within the Tower, the investigation into the Po Bidau Family was making very slow progress. All anyone knew for certain was that Gustang had been the one to set off the explosion, but, no matter how much they looked into it, they were unable to understand his motives. This led to some speculating that Vahn had somehow gained control over him during their brief encounter on the 113th Floor, but, with very little evidence supporting this claim, others began to believe that Gustang had experienced a mental breakdown after seeing his ex-wife and daughter among the women following Vahn.

Though it was well-known that the Eurasia Family had joined hands with the Aldrnari Empire, few knew the specifics of their arrangement. This didn't prevent people from speculating, however, so, with Gustang's apparent suicide being the most hotly debated topic within the Tower, rumors had been spreading like wildfire. Some even went to brokers such as Jaina to discern the truth, but, as powerful as her Opera was, it was powerless to peer beyond the 134th Floor. Thus, every time Vahn retired to the 199th, he, and everyone with him, effectively vanished from the observation networks that had been established over the last ten-thousand-years.

Since Gustang had prepared numerous countermeasures to prevent members of the Tperie Family from spying on his activities, no one knew for sure what had caused him to act. This placed the Po Bidau Family in a 'very' precarious position, as, not only did they have to answer for the destruction of the 129th Floor, most of the systems Gustang had prepared in the event of his untimely demise had been taken offline. The few systems they were able to get back online had their data expunged, so, other than a few fragmented pieces of information, all of the knowledge Gustang had amassed over the past twenty-five-thousand-years had been lost. The explosion had also killed a number of their highest-ranking members, so, without any leadership, the once-prodigious family was on the verge of splintering into several smaller factions.

Making the most of the Po Bidau Family's misfortune, several Great Teachers from the Workshop immediately stepped in to assimilate the more promising members of the family into their ranks. This included Graham, who, thanks to Phae's meteoric rise, saw a tremendous increase in his power and authority within the Workshop. She was lauded by several Teachers as the type of genius who appeared once every ten-thousand-years, and, more importantly, her ties with the Aldrnari Empire were something the Workshop intended to make use of once the seal on the 135th Floor had been removed.

As one of only five Great Teachers within the Workshop, Graham's status could even rival the Leader of a Great Family. While this comparison was becoming increasingly less relevant due to the actions of Vahn, it was still a highly coveted position that basically allowed him to act as he pleased. He had also managed to 'secure' Phae's loyalty by learning her preferences and setting her up with another of his prized female Disciples, so, while the Great Father had yet to appoint anyone as liaison to the Aldrnari Empire, Graham was fairly certain he would be the one chosen.

With such an end in mind, Graham took advantage of the rumors linking Vahn to Gustang's death to personally oversee the Workshop's investigation. This was directly supported by Phae, so, even if others wanted to procure a piece of the pie for themselves, the former's connections were his alone to exploit. Of course, he never said this aloud, as, despite her expertise laying in the reproduction of ancient artifacts, Phae's power was one of the most heavily debated topics among members of the Workshop.

Though he once believed himself far more powerful than the buxom blacksmith, Graham had long ago made the connection between her power and the growth exhibited by Vahn. If this hypothesis proved true, she would be among the most powerful beings within the Tower, so, even if he had to bend over backward on several occasions, he carefully measured each of his actions in an effort to remain in her good graces. This might sound antithetical for someone aiming to ascend to the rank of Father in the not-so-distant-future, but, believing Phae had no interest in such titles, Graham was more than willing to give a bit of ground if it meant he could stand near the pinnacle of his beloved organization in the future.

Guided by this insight, one of the first things Graham did after installing himself as overseer of the Workshop's investigation was tasking Phae's team of elites with uncovering the truth. She had taken in a handful of Disciples after scouring the slums spread throughout the Middle Tower, and, while a few of her detractors had called her out for exclusively picking female Disciples, the results her team had put out spoke for themselves. She had a knack for drawing out the talents of others, and, even though it had been less than a year since she became a Teacher, many of her Disciples had already made names for themselves. This included once-impoverished youths who most people would have simply overlooked unless they were in desperate need of 'materials'.

With Phae as their Teacher, it seemed like anyone could be refined into a peerless genius in one or more trades. This had garnered her a mixture of attention and frustration from virtually every other Teacher, as, more often than not, they hand-picked their Disciples from among the most prodigious of backgrounds. Phae, however, didn't seem to care about her Disciple's background at all. Rather, other than the fact they were all women, the thing most of her Disciples had in common was that they were uneducated orphans. Some hadn't even known how to read, yet, mere months after they had begun studying under Phae, many were able to compete directly against Disciples several times their age. This was unheard of in the history of the Workshop, and, while it had yet to gain any real traction, Graham had been privately promoting the notion that genius was something that could be nourished so long as the person teaching them was competent

Though this was ultimately just another attempt to capitalized on Phae's momentum, observing the former's Disciples had led to Graham truly believing this was the case. While it wasn't enough to get him to abandon the notion that certain people were born more gifted than others, he couldn't deny that Phae's methods had born fruit. There was a chance that she had been able to see something in the children that other people missed, but, given his own ability to see talent, Graham didn't believe this was the case. Instead, it was like she planted the seeds of talent within them before using their overwhelming desire to overcome their past as nourishment for their growth.

Following this example, Graham had attempted to nourish an orphan of his own, but, much like everyone else who attempted to emulate Phae's results, he quickly grew impatient with his young protege's lack of talent and progress. He was still doing his best to educate the young girl, but, no matter how much effort he put into trying to nourish her talent, there didn't seem to be anything to draw from. This was in spite of her constant efforts to improve, a trait Graham had learned to both appreciate and lament since it often made him feel he wasn't doing enough as her teacher.

Fortunately, after discussing the matter with Phae, Graham managed to secure a position for his young protege among the former's growing group. At first, she didn't really fit in among the other girls in Phae's team, but, after acclimating to the group, her results began to fall in line with the rest of her peers. This demonstrated Phae's inordinate ability to bring out the potential of even the most hopeless students, as, prior to observing her growth for himself, Graham couldn't even imagine his former protege succeeding. In response to this admission, Phae had privately gifted him one of the most important pieces of advice he had ever received as a Teacher, expressing, "It is not our job to imagine our students succeeding. Such expectations limit the path of their growth. In that regard, it can be argued that our most important duty as Teachers is helping our students comprehend their strengths and weaknesses while gently pushing them in the direction they wish to go. Rather than teaching them what we want them to know, we teach them how to study and research the things they need to know in order to succeed in the path they have chosen..."

Though it seemed a bit counterintuitive, as most children had no idea what path they wanted to follow, Graham quickly realized the truth contained within Phae's words. He also understood why each of her students was a street urchin, as, unlike normal children, those who grew up in less than ideal conditions spent an inordinate amount of time thinking of ways to escape their circumstances and improve their lives. This made them remarkably easy to manipulate, but, on the opposite end of the spectrum, it made nourishing their talents significantly easier. They were already willing to do whatever it took to ensure they would never end up back on the streets, so, with Phae's remarkable patience and unlimited resources, there was very little to hold them back.

When he had first taken in his protege, Graham had failed to consider the child's interest. Rather, due to their age and upbringing, he assumed they had no idea what they wanted to do with their life. Even if they did, they had no understanding of how to achieve their goal, so, from the moment he took them in, he defaulted to the mentality that they were simply lucky to be chosen by him. As a result, he had placed an unfair burden on the young girl, as, from the start, he never believed she could succeed. Despite this, he still felt frustrated by her failures and, were it not for the influence of Phae and the inordinate amount of effort she put into improving, he likely would have regarded her as a failure before promptly abandoning her.

As much as he didn't want to admit it, Graham realized that his ethic as a Teacher was incomparable to Phae's. It could be argued that the only reason he had succeeded was that he, like virtually every other Teacher, had hand-picked Disciples with phenomenal talent. In other words, he had benefited from their talent, not because he was an exceptional Teacher. This was a hard pill to swallow, but, in the face of Phae's results, it was difficult to disregard the possibility that he was the reason so many of his students had failed. It wasn't that they were lacking. Had that been the case, he never would have chosen them as potential Disciples. Instead, they had failed because he was unable to nourish their potential.

When he first realized this, Graham made a point to find out what each of his former students had been up to since their apprenticeship beneath him. Some had gone on to become Senior Research Assistants and Data Analysts, but, more often than not, those who failed to become Disciples ended up leaving the Workshop entirely. Among these, some went on to climb the Tower, ultimately losing their lives in the competition to become Rankers. This was perfectly acceptable within the society of the Tower, but, when he learned of the number who had outright committed suicide after returning home in shame, Graham ended up investing the better part of three months trying to comprehend what kind of mentality a person needed to possess in order to take their own life.

Unfortunately, while he was able to explain most of their deaths away using various psychological studies, Graham wasn't able to absolve himself of his personal responsibility in the matter. He knew his words and actions had played a major part in their inevitable ends, as, no matter how he looked at it, he couldn't imagine any of Phae's students doing the same. They were such a close-knit group that they could be mistaken for members of the same family, and, no matter how many times they failed, Phae was always there to help them find their footing. This was the realization that cemented Graham's respect for the former Advisor of the Aldrnari Empire, so, even if it ultimately became little more than her puppet, he sincerely believed the Workshop would benefit from her influence...

(A/N: Alternate Titles: 'People love to gossip...','Being a Teacher is a heavy responsibility...','Graham simping hard...'

(A/N: I really want to write more, but, after three chapters, I'm feeling a lot more drained than I would have liked xD. I'll try to increase my pace in the days to come, but, for the time being, three chapters per day might be my limit. I'll most likely write a continuation of 'A Certain Scientific Side Story' once this chapter goes out, but, after that, I'm hitting the hay.)