LoRG 2

Then she offered Randidly a hand Good luck

I wonÆt need it as much as you Keep it IÆm sorry I canÆt be more helpful Well I guess IÆll say this Randidly bit his lip and remembered lashing out with his Skills an accidentally injuring many people in the past As he had escaped from the prison on Tellus all those guards There are costs to power But times like these are just chances to reaffirm to yourself that you are willing to pay them albeit intelligently Dwelling on them for too long wonÆt help the people youÆve already hurt Ignoring them wonÆt help shape your actions going forward Only with both can you balance yourself out

HelenÆs hand was tight around RandidlyÆs She nodded without speaking

Then Randidly chuckled his emerald eyes gleaming Plus sometimes the best reward you can give someone is proving that they were the second best fighter in the tournament

After a few more discussions about concrete training plans Helen left Platton finally arrived and informed Randidly that the preparations were over so the group could disembark As the final preparations were made Randidly proceeded directly to the largest of the longships He sat cross legged and felt out to the surrounding boats

Their wood seemed to sing to him whispering of growth or ash RandidlyÆs Mana swirled in his grasp preparing the sing out to the different boats Now managing the Mana would be a very difficult thing for such a long journey but Randidly was confident that after his time in the darkroom that he would be able to manage the threads of mana Even if they were split amongst hundreds of ships

Also difficult would be not burning the entire fleet to kindling But hell if there wasnÆt a bit of danger where was the fun

well better tell Platton about when his thoughts ran along those lines

Humming to himself Randidly distributed the PP he had gathered into his Soulskill It had again only been a few days and he had only gathered a few points in some key Skills but it still added up to 35 PP

Small steps toward a very large goal Randidly thought with a wry smile Then as the boats pushed off Randidly reached out and touched the wood that constituted the entire fleet Very quickly thin fins and flippers emerged from each and every boat Randidly breathed in and breathed out

His boat was at the head He worked most directly on his own boat strengthening the shape and image based upon HelenÆs work as the Bloodfin Reaper Then with a grin he unleashed his creation The boat doubled in speed and let off a splash Surf surged around the prow of the boat

Laughing Randidly activated the rest of the fleet behind him It was gratifying to hear so many fall over and swear as the boats accelerated Maybe this sailing expedition would be more fun than he had expected

Aethon ThaiÆs expression was hideous His teeth were pressed so hard together that the tension headache had become a constant companion to his every waking moment Aegiant’s most recent troop shift had left him flabbergasted After the slow strangulation they had managed over the past few weeks What are you thinking Letting this many Wights through will only further their plan We need to isolate them keep the experience that they need

Relax Aethon Aegiant said with amusement You are too hasty We are playing a game that began before you were born Leave it to those with experience yes

Aethon released a hissing breath but he said nothing else Perhaps he had made the wrong decision throwing his lot in with Aegiant The two were sitting in a stone tower that had been erected in the center of the Northern Camp Their armies seethed around them shifting into a more streamlined form One that would allow Wights to slip past their position unmolested in the area of Hastam

besides For what was done to my grandson AegiantÆs smile was vicious They must be made to pay To think even I didnÆt see their treachery until it was too late

It had to happen this way Aethon said rehashing an old conversation And one that he wasnÆt comfortable with His connection with Randidly remained clear in his mind If it hadnÆt been the Ghosthound boy

LetÆs not do this again Aethon I must ask you to simply trust me Letting the Wights past will convince them to let us here a little longer Then when the time is right

How will we know Aethon pressed We have no inside information Until we force the issue of them allowing us into the city

Aethon paused His eyes widened This sudden confidence it could only mean that they had finally managed to obtain an informant One at the heart of Hastam One with enough influence to know the true war being fought in the city Who

Aegiant chuckled Who else but the ancient enemy Desperate times call for desperate measures

Chapter 796

The Soulless behemoth bellowed its fury The former High King of the Earth Golems just snorted With a step he had crossed the distance to the behemoth and slammed his palm into its torso The bright yellow carapace cracked pink juices oozing around the jagged cracks in the monsterÆs natural armor

The thing staggered backward while yowling in pain It had once been a tiny crustacean grown to the size of a small building by feasting on the emerald essence that turned the lowest of the Seven Lands into a twisted dreamscape Several Earth Golems that the High King had taken under his wing had thought very seriously about trying the stuff but the High King forbade it

Whatever it was it was dangerous So much death resulted from their constant struggles against the Soulless that were warped by its touch There were too many volatile elements in their situation currently to introduce one more

The low cave worked to the behemothÆs disadvantage with its newfound size it couldnÆt squeeze out any of the side passageways to escape After smashing its claws against the stone walls for a few seconds it scuttled back toward the High King with its pincers raised It had realized that there was no choice but to fight

The second punch the High King threw was enough to completely crack the shell and reduce the flesh of its brain to mush With a rumble the thing collapsed Curling his lip in distance the High King approached to gather the flesh of the thing for food

Him reduced to making foraging runs Truly the Procession

Having fun

The High King spun around This presence this voice Although he found himself faced with the Monster PrinceÆs smiling visage this time the High King was not fooled Unlike the actual Monster Prince the eyes of this face burned as emerald as the purest gemstone This was an outsider one who had confused him in the past

It would not happen again

Meet me foul spirit and you will find yourself shattered The High King intoned He took another step and crossed the cave to appear before the fake The palm he threw at the interloper possessed an even more fearsome momentum than the previous two that had slain the Soulless Behemoth With such a strike he would easily shatter a Soulless Godbeast let alone this

Boomm

Hissing the High King was barely able to stabilize his body His hand was largely so numb that he couldnÆt move it Most infuriatingly the interloperÆs hand was curled into a very familiar claw One that the High King had seen only the Queen of Talons use And to his eyes it looked like the Queen of Talons was slightly inferior to this individual

The sharpness it radiated even now the High King had a sense of foreboding as he looked at that hand

Who are you The High King asked He massaged his hand rapidly trying to restore the feeling in it

The edge of the interloperÆs mouth quirked up Truly the High King wondered how he had been fooled upon their first few meetings This man had none of the inborn arrogance of the Monster Prince and none of the malicious guile But rather than making the High King more comfortable the absence of such obvious defects actually filled the High King with a deep fear

It wasnÆt that this individual wasnÆt arrogant

It was just he was so sure of himself that he felt no need to posture And that surety was so deep and strong that not even the High King could pierce through it To this emerald eyed individual the High King was truly not a character worthy of notice

Yet if that were true why does this specter continue to haunt me The High King wondered

Honestly I am feeling quite wronged Would you believe me if I told you that this face was in fact mine originally mine Your Monster Prince only inherited from me The interloper said with a smile

The hairs on the back of the High KingÆs neck stood up straight That would make this man old Monster Royalty Bad viscous blood He wasnÆt overly familiar with the many Princes and Kings and Dukes that have killed each other over the past few generations in order to how sway over the Land of Bones but it was enough to understand that being a leader amongst the Monsters was a bloody business

The Earth Golems fought honorably to find a Path toward greatness The Monsters fought in order to find out who bled the reddest blood

Perhaps But that does not explain why you continue to appear before me I am not your kind speak to your Monster Prince if you wish to offer counsel

It might be too late for counsel especially for that one The interloper mumbled Then his focus returned and he grinned at the High King HeÆs a tool So I come here instead for understanding On whose side will you stand when Alta erects her great device

truly even the dead gossip It is none of your business Now leave me in peace If you are aware of as much of the goings on in the Procession as I suspect there is nothing more for us to talk about

This seemed to puzzle the interloper Is it really so strange that I would speak with you as the Procession nears its end You have located the runes that you have so desperately sought Even now thousands toil away to excavate the site of the ritual Alta promises to deliver on all of the promises she has made even as her constant operationsÆ have rendered her unrecognizable A metal queen that smells of brimstone and ash Tension fills the air This world seeks clarity I have a way of brute forcing the issue but I would rather not Instead I would much prefer you stop this yourself

The interloperÆs expression darkened If I am forced to move it will not go well for you

Is that a threat The High King asked quietly His hand was only now starting to regain feeling He had no true confidence in facing this foe But still

But still some part of him wanted to fight so badly Wanted to struggle and scream Only then could he test the edges of himself Only then would he be able to understand how badly he was left scarred by his dethronement Every day was one that he lived in fear that he would never be as much as he had been For each Soulless that he struck down

Oh High King you have fallen quite far to reach this land have you not Careful you do not forget what caused you to rise to such distant heights in the first place Then as quickly as he appeared the interloper vanished

Randidly opened his eyes somewhat annoyed to be pulled out of his Soulskill so suddenly But in the last few minutes a wave of Aether hit the fleet that caught his attention immediately There were very few entities that could produce Aether on Tellus and all of those were at the level of being dangerous to Randidly

So he returned to himself and considered the problem at hand

Despite PlattonÆs very pessimistic predictions the assaults on the fleet down the Hallat were relatively few Part of that was due to the Wights gathering for what was clearly a major offensive against Hastam but also it was because of their speed

Platton had the trip from Hastam to the sea taking three to four days Randidly managed it in nine hours

Most of the individuals on the boats were locked in their own meditations attempting to further comprehend RandidlyÆs images As such Platton was mostly isolated in his slack jawed shock that they had made such a brisk time To Randidly to take so long was already starting to wear on his nerves

Not that it was PlattonÆs fault that Randidly was becoming increasingly irritable The real problem was his Soulskill Randidly was hoping he would be able to push through his mission on the Death School continent before he was forced to deal with the problem of his Soulskill One of the solutions he was aiming for required some preparation there

But the timetable had escalated Not due to his actions but

It appeared Alta had realized that she was going to die soon She had become truly desperate relying on violence and threats to bind the entire Procession to her cause With her growing familiarity with the image of Ash she also had the firepower to back it up

Honestly if the image of Ash wasnÆt constantly burning away at her body Alta likely wouldnÆt have been able to survive the infection so long At this point her and the burning image of Ash were starting to blend together

Still that was an issue for another time

Following the scent of the Aether on the salty sea air RandidlyÆs Perception spread farther and farther Very soon his face was twisted into a scowl Cursing softly to himself Randidly stood and gathered PlattonÆs attention Platton careful WeÆve got company A boat is coming A big one

Platton didnÆt question Randidly outward but his eyebrow twitched It was clear from his expression that it would be highly unusual to encounter another vessel here Randidly shook his head helplessly The other man would know soon

When the other ship arrived it dwarfed the longships that RandidlyÆs crew was using to sail Normally vessels the size of which Randidly now utilized would be just begging for trouble on the high seas They simply couldnÆt handle the waves of a true deep sea storm

Of course Randidly simply shifted the wood of the longboats until they were a more capable vessel But most people did not possess the advantages that Randidly had

This vessel was the size of a cruise liner from old Earth It was a massive thing that must be able to house thousands of people For all that its presence here was concerning at least it was clear that this wasnÆt something that had been made by Wights this was the work of one of the descendants of the Spearman

As the ship was making a beeline for the fleet they didnÆt have to wait to find out which one

Mr Ghosthound I presume A serious older man announced from the bow of the ship as it loomed over them The old man stood at the edge and bent at a 45 degree angle and then shouted down toward them in order to communicate Excellent You have been summoned aboard The great Oracle has seen fit to venture forth Your presence is required

Chapter 797

Randidly had to admit to himself that if he took the time to meticulously construct a boat it would look a lot like this Trees and leafy shrubs were the first things that assaulted his senses when he laboriously clambered up the absurdly long ladder to the deck of the ship above Bright flowers and ferns swayed back and forth in the sea breeze And at this height the wind was strong

Not that it was a difficult climb but to move calmly up the ladder while maintaining a consistent flow of Mana to all the hundreds of ships it was testing to him Both his mental resources and his ability to resist stress After all a stray thought would have a ship slowly smoldering around the crew

But the moment where he hopped over and found himself faced with a tropical jungle paradise Randidly managed to hold tight to the reins of Mana Rainbow feathered birds twisted to look at this new arrival with detached interest From his vantage Randidly could peer through the foliage and see an orchard where dozens of workers were gathering humongous oranges

If you are quite done gawking The old man who had called him up said sharply Then he spun on his heel and began marching through the jungle Sniffing to parse apart multitude of sweet fragrances emitted by the ship Randidly followed

Immediately Randidly felt a pounding in his head Taking a page from AltaÆs book he used the image of Ash to burn the remainder of that strange pollen out of his system and shook his head Now was not the time to get sloppy Sampling the flavors of this place could wait until later

The Oracle huh

Part of Randidly looked forward to this meeting The Oracle was an ancient being And from what Randidly had gathered anecdotally the Oracle mainly kept herself cloistered deep within the Heart School To find her here and the fact that the Oracle asked for him by name

It obviously wasnÆt a good sign As they began to descend a grand wooden staircase lined with twining vines and opulent azure flowers Randidly grimaced Truly he hated meddlers more than anything It felt like every time he attempted a different task crazy people popped out of the woodwork in order to twist him to their purpose

Honestly he was tired of it And with an entire boat of wood like this around him He had some confidence in resisting any sort of pressures she put on him here and escaping without a scratch

Well perhaps that was being a bit optimistic Now was not the time to underestimate the opponent either

Deeper and deeper they went Below the jungle was a perfectly populated shady grassland Hordes of deer like animals looked up as the duo descended into that area The deer’s ears flicked and then they returned to their gazing But Randidly couldnÆt help notice that a few on the edges of the pack kept an eye on the humans

Downwards they went Below the grassland level was water Long tanks of it full of swimming turtles and shellfish and tuna Below that were the caves

And below the caves was darkness

You must proceed forward on your own from here The man said His face was only illuminated by the candle he had produced as they entered into the water level Behind him the soft light refractions from the water tanks played on the staircase He offered Randidly the candle which Randidly took Few are allowed to witness the Oracle Perhaps as a show of respect you might consider some footwear

Then the old man sniffed and turned back upward RandidlyÆs frown grew worse

It was a power play to leave a foreign influence wandering alone with a fucking candle in the middle of your super ship For all that it was a wondrous display of engineering acumen to create something like this it was still made of wood Fires at sea were exactly the sort of problem that plagued those who were afflicted by hubris It might even be a generous lesson for Randidly to teach this Oracle

Ultimately that idea was squashed and Randidly began once more to descend But what else was Randidly supposed to do but continue onward He had come this far perhaps driven by curiosity more than a show of respect Because truly the being he was about to meet might be old Very old

Randidly proceeded downward The darkness stretched around him thick and heavy In spite of himself Randidly shivered as he remembered his time stuck in the dungeon Unpleasant memories even if it turned out alright Not something that Randidly would like to relive The weight the darkness

The edge of madness upon which he had danced Those moments where his own images seemed to come alive against the backdrop of his closed eyelids

Each level of the ship was about 20 meters in height But this most recent layer felt extremely long After a minute of walking Randidly began to count the steps Still he walked downwards without ceasing or without sign he had passed into a new area Every step echoed so Randidly believed that he was in a wide open space

Unable to resist Randidly spread out his Aether Detection to feel in the vast darkness around him What he found stopped him dead

Wights Folded into vast stacks Millions of them Hundreds of Witch Kings Neatly sorted into piles Sleeping and vulnerable A desert where each grain of sand was an inert machine designed to kill

With a delicate touch Randidly reached out and brushed his Perception against the nearest pile He released his breath in a hiss they were filled with energy all ready to go All they required was some sort of signal and they would explode to life Randidly had floated his fleet up next to a veritable nuclear warhead

Or more accurately a submarine carrying a nuclear payload had chased him down and hailed him

His first instinct was to say fuck this and burn the whole place to the ground But he restrained that This much energy could be used And now more than ever Randidly was intrigued by the prospect of what the Oracle wanted Was this an ambush Was Randidly being brought below in order to be killed

That seemed excessive If the Oracle truly controlled this force then she could have struck without worrying about the consequences Perhaps it was a threat against the Oracle Someone keeping this waiting army here as an insurance policy Perhaps but Randidly had no way of knowing

He was aware that the leadership of the Spear users and the Wights were intimately related but more than that

While his thoughts swirled around him Randidly continued to descend

Below darkness was fire Honestly it was a smoking stinking hellscape Randidly wrinkled his nose as he arrived to be assaulted by sulfur and charred carbon The ground was smoldering quietly with a desolate sort of resignation Randidly honestly had no idea how this ship continued to be seaworthy

But amongst the grey rocks and small flames he found the Oracle

She was a small woman smaller than Randidly had expected She looked like a child with her hair in a boyish bowl cut Her hair was black and her eyes were crystalline and translucent like diamonds When Randidly walked down the stairs and slowly crossed the smoldering wasteland she smiled DonÆt like it I find it keeps me grounded

Despite her young age Randidly was absolutely sure that she was the Oracle Even standing in front of her felt difficult there was an image hanging over her that seemed to constantly push at the fabric of the world around her The ground near her warped and shuddered underneath the pressure

Randidly inwardly believed that the Oracle was lying She did not like this place Who could It wasnÆt that she wouldnÆt prefer another location it was that a place like this was all she could safely be near Her ridiculously powerful aura would slowly erode anything else

About ten meters away from the Oracle Randidly stopped He bowed slightly Well met Oracle I am Randidly Ghosthound Why have you brought me to the bowels of your ship

The OracleÆs laughed like a clear bell IsnÆt it obvious To warn you Randidly Ghosthound Your closest confidant has betrayed you You waste your time heading to the Death School Better to return and defend Hastam from the threat of the Wights

Very gradually RandidlyÆs eyes narrowed He looked at the OracleÆs smiling face His closest confidant had betrayed him Now the Oracle directly said what Platton had danced around Randidly was aware that Shal was sending him away But it hardly counted as a betrayal He needed to be in the Death School to obtain Acri and Sulfur Even now he could sense that he was growing nearer to them by the day

Yet why did the Oracle warn him off

LetÆs dispense with the ominous warnings Randidly growled I donÆt care for the shadow games You are carrying an army of Wights on this boat Why should I listen to anything you say

The Oracle blinked and then chuckled Her smile was sly as she looked at Randidly You are more perceptive than I expected Why should you listen Because you know me or at least my brand of magic You have the touch of karma on you you encountered Lucretia did you not She was my daughter Truly of my flesh daughter So you understand that what I say carries weight Can you not feel it down here in my kingdom

For the first time since they had met the OracleÆs expression shifted into something close to bitterness as she gestured to the scorched ground and scattered fire RandidlyÆs brain slowly parsed apart the information that the Oracle had provided She was LucretiaÆs mother

Could he even believe that Everything the Oracle had said so far needed to be taken with a grain of salt Perhaps this was the sort of Oracle that could only lie

But on the other hand It certainly would explain the familiar thread of karma that the Oracle exuded

The OracleÆs eyes flashed Fine you are too stubborn an ass to respond to the stick How about the carrot then

RandidlyÆs eyes narrowed dangerously The muscles of his jaw twitched These manipulators were all the same Threaten you and then attempt to pretend they were doing you a favor by tricking you

This time when the Oracle laughed it was a cackle She rocked back and forth and revealed her age with a hacking coughing laugh At the edges it was more than a little mad Oh donÆt make that face You know what you are Mr Ghosthound Sir Ghosthound My Liege Ghosthound What sort of Crown do you wear I wonder But I donÆt offer you the internal answers you seek what I offer is a story The story of the Spearman Auto Rach

Chapter 798

With deliberate steps Randidly ascended the long staircase toward the surface of the ship The return trip went much more quickly than the descent Without any of the confusion and uncertainty the stairwell was a smooth ride

Like all the stories of my generation it is a story of love The Oracle had whispered We were demigods descended upon Tellus Chosen by the System to represent two sides The side that sought to help Tellus ascend And the side that sought to allow Tellus to descend into chaos

You were the Champions and the Nemesai Randidly had said slowly as recognition dawned in his eyes He licked his lips in shock You ARE one of those two beings even now ThatÆs why you are so old And why you feel so different

The OracleÆs crystalline eyes flashed Heh you are smarter than you look You know the old words That will make things easier Yes we were the Chosen descending from higher Cohorts to assist with Tellus This influence I now have is a remnant of that I am bound descending to a lower cohort But what you feel is part of my true power bleeding through the bonds of the System it truly has been so long Even the System ages boy The bonds grow weaker Time will claim us all

After trailing off for several seconds the Oracle looked up sharply Now Mr Ghosthound can you answer me this why do the Chosen choose to descend to a lower Cohort

Randidly opened his mouth to guess but then frowned Based on the way the System operated the grandest manipulator of them all It would threaten first and then offer a carrot while treating it as a favor

As he reached the deck of the ship Randidly passed the stump of the burnt out candle to the old man who took it stiffly I trust the discussions below went well Mr Ghosthound

We disagree on methods There isnÆt anything more to talk about Randidly said with a sharp look He walked to the edge of the deck and dropped onto his waiting longboat below

As he landed the many ship captains hopped from boat to boat to see what had happened All knew of the Oracle and they were delighted to find out that the Oracle herself came out to support their expedition Randidly could see in their expressions that it filled them with hope That they were energized the presence

Yet Randidly now felt plagued by questions

Understandable That you would mistake that the System steals us based on aptitude Your mistake is because you are missing a very obvious assumption about those that are Chosen The child Oracle had stood and performed a little curtsy We Chosen we all come from worlds that failed the third Calamity The System has deemed our worlds to have no further use Capable but that isnÆt enough for the System any longer The very planet we live on rots beneath our feet Coming to a lower Cohort and fighting is not for our own sake but for the sake of our entire world

It is the only way we can obtain life energy for our world

So what next Platton finally asked The group of captains had gathered around Randidly and waited impatiently as he contemplated

What do you mean Randidly asked lightly He turned and looked up at the looming ship above them We continue on toward the Death School

So what happened Randidly had asked

There is a task before the First Calamity You are forced to name the world Ha to think the System still insists that the sharing of information be taboo Well it is more complicated than that but for our purposes it doesnÆt matter We had eight Champions and eight Nemesai Fighting to control the factors necessary to complete this first task

You must also understand that our worlds were well aware of what was coming A hundred years prior to descending to the lower cohorts we had been found wanting by the third Calamity Even I donÆt know the details but each world was broken in a way Life slowly died Dungeons were inert Monsters disappeared Crops slowly failed

Then a notification appears offering a Path to salvation in twenty years time the System will require a Chosen Should they succeed in their task the world will be granted a measure of respite for their world Not the thick and rich life energy of when the world was being tested but enough

So each chosen was carefully picked and trained At least in my world it was a bloody business We might have been traditionally peace loving and nature focused people but one hundred years of watching your world die changes you I killed thousands to seize my spot and I was proud Oh so proud

Randidly had suppressed his impatience as the OracleÆs explanation wandered even as he wondered if this story could be believed But it sounded like how the System operated So he had waited while the Oracle gathered her thoughts

Then she said My apologies When you have seen so much sometimes it is difficult to know reality from memories But yes eight Champions eight Nemesai I was a Nemesai Auto was one as well

And the other even now I have forgotten her name I knew her for the glaive she wielded A Champion The strongest The fastest the one all we Nemesai feared

As we struggled to prevent the naming of the world there were three years of long war Millions of those of Tellus died to our machinations Fighting a war they didnÆt fully understand But those were not all of the losses that occurred Five Champions and 6 Nemesai died From sixteen we were down to five

In addition Tellus was slowly changing The process of Naming the World shouldnÆt have taken as long as it did already life energy was slowly leaving the world As we fought and struggled we each experienced the acute fear that we would once more watch a world die

Sitting cross legged Randidly gathered his Willpower and returned to steering the hundreds of longships The wind across the surface of the sea had picked up so some had drifted apart to mill around the large Oracle cruise liner But within five minutes he had gathered the ships back into formation and began to head out toward the Death School

To his amusement the OracleÆs large ship began to follow Randidly attempted to lose it by increasing his speed but the huge thing sped up with remarkable alacrity He grimaced but then shrugged If the Oracle followed so much the better Randidly had an idea to hasten his construction plans on the Death School

Even now he began to make subtle changes to the position of his ships into a different formation

The OracleÆs eyes had been misty We found ourselves at an impasse Too many had died for this to continue Fighting shifted from direct wars to subterfuge The world slowly weakened Even we Chosen felt our life energy drying up In order to escape the weakening of our Skills we all developed images that we could use independent of the System And of us all Auto was the best He wielded needles and with his images he could pierce anything Without the benefit of her Skills Auto was able to fight the glaive wielder to a standstill So they made a deal

We would cease fighting Perhaps it was the dying of Tellus but we all felt ourselves losing the will to continue Perhaps it was better to just accept what had come to pass and live out the rest of our days peacefully So we did We allowed our strength to slowly diminish We had normal lives Farms Businesses While Tellus collapsed around us It was just easier Although we each felt our own shame as we let down the homeworld which trained us that guilt was a double edged sword

For all that we had struggled so hard to obtain such honor we now resented our worlds that put so much pressure on us Or at least I did Auto as well We developed a deep hatred for those that forced us to this point and living like peasants was a satisfying sort of revenge The only sort of revenge we could manage

This likely would have continued until we were the last living beings on Tellus But something unexpected happened Part of our peace was that for all that we were weakening our lives continued We developed hobbies Painting poetry eternal things But that illusion of safety was shattered

One of the Champions grew sick The weakness had advanced to the point that even we were no longer immune to the rapidly returning diseases of Tellus Immediately we sought each other out We had felt superior We had we had thought we would have so much time

I once again ventured out alone after ascertaining that our fellow was dead but Auto and the glaive user stuck together I donÆt know what happened between them but even if I did I wouldnÆt have the words to describe it Some truths are secret not because it is not commonly seen but the only way to understand is to feel it in your hands and in your beating heart As they say they fell in love And as a backdrop the sickness began to affect us all Without life energy the bindings that the System placed on us began to fail Rather than freeing us the bindings were killing us

Here in the explanation the Oracle cackled once more Quite like these heavy bindings now are more dangerous than they are useful Then she had shaken her head

Then the final act to break Auto The glaive user died In the wake of her death Auto had a bitter decision I am not sure what drove him to think of it but he decided he was going to save the world that had birthed the woman he had loved so dearly She had been a Champion so her world would receive support if Tellus thrived So Auto butchered his way through the traps we had laid and accomplished what eight Champions could not he named the world Tellus And then he slaughtered the First Calamity hiding the fact that he was a Nemesai

And when the Second Calamity came none of us were surprised that our deepest fear was realized a world where puppet soldiers were manipulated by distant overseers At this point the memories of the survivors toward their home planet well Hopelessness seeps into the bones and turns bitter to the taste The surviving Chosen united and followed Auto in crushing them to bits His image dominated Tellus and he prepared to ascend to complete the Second Calamity

But the System was watching It provides no perfect Paths only appropriate ends When he was about to ascend he received a notification the System was aware that he was a Nemesai and due to his clever manipulation the Nemesai worlds would receive the life energy reward for what he had done not the Champions

Ultimately turning all of his hard work to nothing

He stopped the process by severing himself in half It was the only way After all he hated his own world It was only the memory of his love that Auto attempted to protect now And the System told him directly that his hands were poisoned he could not protect another world Generosity was barred to him

Instead he had to follow in the footsteps of his darkest memories and worst fears he had to create a puppet soldier from the native population to ascend He had to become what he hated the most in order to save his loveÆs world

Chapter 799

Three days later Randidly stood on the bow of his longship and looked at the foggy shore of the Death School Some of the more seafaring among the crews had warned that the Death School was an inhospitable place to land but Randidly was still surprised by the shore it looked to him like the exposed bottom jaw of some long dead monster

Not a great first impression Randidly muttered to himself Flexing his hands he reached out through his inner connection to reach Acri and Sulfur

Immediately Randidly could feel AcriÆs joy And it was clear why they were close If Randidly wrecked his ships against those exposed stone teeth and sprinted for the rest of the day he didnÆt doubt that he would finally be able to seize Acri before dusk It wasnÆt what he planned on doing but it being a possibility was nice Truly he missed his equipment

It was easy to forget the small understood things he had relied on Acri for when the two were working together But when all he wielded was cold wood

Truly it made Randidly appreciate the equipment he had made Not only for the convenience of always having it there but their connection was so intuitive that Acri would stretch when it needed to in order to strike a target that was attempting to dodge

But seeing the shore reminded Randidly of the end of his conversation with the Oracle

Thank you for the story but how is that relevant to what I am doing right now Randidly had asked

Cackling the Oracle answered Well you are right Not directly Perhaps I warn about the folly of plans But mark my words Mr Ghosthound Should you land on the Death School land neither you nor your Crown will be able to return to the Spearman School in time to see your Master By that time he will have passed from this world

Which Randidly reflected was a very ambiguous statement Based on what he understood about the Second Calamity from both his acquisition of the Ashen Image and then this story after defeating the Second Calamity a portal would appear This Ascension through the portal was somehow part of passing the Second Calamity But of course all the details that would be actually helpful to know were absent

Still if Shal truly was gone by the time Randidly returned it was possible he simply had ascended rather than died

Gritting his teeth Randidly threw his hands up to the sky Which brought him right back around to wondering why the Oracle was attempting to prevent him from making landfall on the Death School Randidly turned and glanced behind

Like a hungry whale following a school of minnows the huge cruise liner of the Oracle loomed behind his longboat caravan Since hailing Randidly the first time and speaking with him the Oracle made no attempt to interfere with his group’s journey At least not in any way that Randidly could detect And likely not at all The voyage here was rather uneventful A starving child could have navigated the placid seas that Randidly had faced

That ominous wind after his meeting with the Oracle had turned out to be nothing

Honestly the fact that it had been so easy made Randidly nervous It made it seem much more likely that the trouble was waiting out beyond the edge of his vision RandidlyÆs hand went up to his chest There was a budding pain there

Sighing Randidly best to ignore the pain He already knew that his Soulskill was approaching the end of its viability Alta was preparing to force his hand And Randidly was not looking forward to attempting a remaking of himself while this boat loomed over him In addition RandidlyÆs plans wouldnÆt be possible on the sea

Which was why no matter how intimidating it may be the rocky shoreline was a relief

What was also weird was that it wasnÆt that the Oracle wanted to stop him per se she just warned of the costs of landing

Well then Randidly announced to the salty air Time was growing short No more waiting around Time to make landfall

Even OpheliaÆs face was smudged with dirt and ash LetÆs not panic ThereÆs been an attack but the damage is not as serious as it appears

This is not an attack Shal growled He gestured out the window to the haze of thick black smoke that wafted up from a dozen sizable fires There were Wight forces within the city Strike forces true but that doesnÆt it mean it will not be difficult Even if we are not truly fighting the Wights this Æ

You are right of course I must go speak with Aylwind immediately Ophelia picked up her spear and spun it Even from the casual movement the air hummed with a strange note Your girlfriend is already here is she not Safe Therefore go out and pacify any rogue elements within the city They spread chaos End it Start with the Southern portion

Shal grunted not pointing out that it was OpheliaÆs meddling that he and Rumera were still in their squat base rather than exploring the city For the third time this month Ophelia had demanded a dinner She had even allowed Shal to invite Rumera

Allowed Shal thought sourly Convenient

Yet if this was truly all according to plan why was OpheliaÆs generally perfect hair messed up Where did the smudge on her face come from Shal was aware that Ophelia had moved immediately when the attack came He was sitting with Rumera before the decided upon mealtime

OpheliaÆs image was very distinct She had responded even before Shal had realized something was wrong

Perfect Ophelia said sharply With a quick gesture the window exploded outwards We are past the point that you need to hide fight with speed in mind The attacks are at the edges of the city but those fleeing inwards will cause more chaos There is a lot of city to cover

Then she was gone streaking toward the city center Shal watched her go for a second wondering how long this crazy charade would go on When would the people stop paying the price for the games of their leaders

But then Shal shelved his thoughts and rushed out into the city Immediately he located a group of spear users fighting against a contingent of Wights in a nearby gym To someone of his power the stone walls were nothing but paper

With a crash he tore through the side of the building and hit the Wight lines like a collapsing mountain Those that werenÆt ripped to shreds by his Phantom Thrusts were physically broken by his body Shal slashed and cut a space clear around the spear users so fast that they just stood struck dumb with their spears raised

Shal paused to look at them You stand Good How well can you follow

To this credit their leader nodded

In an instant the booming roar of the Phantom shook the city A shadow fell over the district in which Shal stood The surviving Wights slowed their constant bombardment of Psychic Venom as the craned their necks to look upward

ShalÆs eyes flashed The weight of the PhantomÆs hand crashed down on top of the building It wasnÆt screaming per se but the Wights made that noise of unwilling death as the stone and wood supports shifted and crushed them to mush against the ground

But Shal was already thrusting his spear forward forging a path for himself and those fools that were dumb enough to get separated and attacked by Wights

When they were out on the street Shal closed his eyes briefly and listened He heard the heavy breathing of those that followed him Beyond that he heard the dying of Wights Beyond that he hard crying and fires and screams for help And beyond that was the light tapping of the Wight hit squads

There were seven in total in the area Shal could easily sense In groups between forty and fifty Some light fighting but most of the individuals who lived out here in the edge of the city werenÆt strong enough to fight a group of Wights

With a grin Shal glanced over his shoulder to the group following him This will be harder before it is peaceful Agreed

I The man who led the survivors said uncertainty We donÆt have much strength The attacks

Almost all of Hastam is burning Shal lied shortly He didnÆt have time to baby these fools The only safe place is the Central Square and the Colosseum but how long will they remain safe after we have fallen Take shelter at my back or make it on your own

Shal didnÆt bother to wait to see their answer This group was led by a coward and the others with the elderly man were likely pupils Too young to recognize what sort of spear user the man was Shal immediately set out down the alley and out to the main street Two Witch Kings looked up from where they were ripping through buildings as they pursued a wounded woman Immediately ShalÆs face turned grim

Distantly he could hear other sounds of fighting But one by one they were being silenced Some Shal could tell were spear users ambushing Wights but there were also more worrisome noises There was a force amongst the Wights that was systematically seeking out resistance and eliminating it That was unusual All of this was unusual It was too sudden How had they missed this

Had they missed this

Perhaps due to OpheliaÆs comment about speed Shal released the looming image of a phantom that hovered over him Instead a giant serpentÆs hiss echoed across the city ShalÆs spear flicked out and the two Witch Kings expired smashed to the ground

The elderly man and his pupils had only just arrived in time to see ShalÆs casual attack and the rapid death of the Witch Kings What

HIss

The whole city rumbled with the fury of the sound ShalÆs eyes blazed yet he remained torn There were so many places to go and he was only

There was a cry nearby That was all the impetus Shal needed This was clean up and wouldnÆt accomplish much in the grand scheme of things Likely the goal was just to destabilize an already tense city Even if the death toll was only in the hundreds this attack would strike fear into every citizen of Hastam

But still Shal would fucking enjoy ripping some Wights to pieces right about now

Chapter 800

To ShalÆs surprise he recognized the figure he found when he investigated the nearby scream Azriel

His discipleÆs rival was sitting in a smoking crater Wincing and holding her ribs she forced her body to sit up and bow stiffly to him Surrounding her three twisted and broken bodies of Witch Kings lay splayed ShalÆs eyebrows rose

Sir The girl managed stiffly

Shal grunted Brave But foolish Hey you Shal beckoned the old man over He stood like a deer caught by a hunter for several seconds as he tried to suss out the point of the request Only a glare hurried the foolish man

Uncertainly he approached Shal pointed to Azriel Protect her Make sure she is healed I spoke pessimistically earlier only the outer districts have fallen to the Wights Take her inward You will find help

Before the group could complain about ShalÆs lie earlier he was gone When next he stopped it was in the middle of a group of Wights They died silently as the Wraith Adder slithered in their midst biting liberally Even Witch Kings died quickly if they werenÆt prepared for the ferocity of his strikes And the Witch Kings were few and far between

With brutal efficiency Shal made his way through the city By rapidly dealing with all of the Wight forces in the area Shal got a pretty good picture of the event It seemed like Wights had tunneled through to the outskirts of the city and set up base camps While they made preparations for the attack mixed explosives and brought Propagators into the city

At the same time the Propagators blanked entire blocks with their mental attacks while the fires distracted city officials Under that cover the hit squads of Witch Kings began to make their rounds and defeat groups that were a little too effective at stopping the spread of panic They neednÆt even kill all that many oftentimes it was more effective to let the hysterical people who had been attacked escape with only wounds

That way the story would spread

The more Shal moved and fought the more he realized that the loss of life was only half of what he had expected It appeared that the Propagators immediately fled from the city after their stunt knocking the weaker willed squatters and merchants that lived at the edge of Hastam

Then rather than an attack this was a distraction ShalÆs hands tightened around his spear so powerfully that the spear creaked But what was the point of all this To distract from another physical event Or to interfere with the coalescing image of Tellus

Still Shal had a mission He continued to kill his way through the groups of marauding Wights in the South of the city Their numbers were only about a thousand They had nowhere near the manpower that Shal would have expected for a full incursion

There was a silver lining to the attack however While cutting through the Witch Kings Shal reached Level 98 One step closer to fulfilling his destiny

And that thought set him off on another tangent Was this all arranged for him to get experience

But very quickly Shal dismissed that thought Getting him to Level 98 was never the hard part The hard part came next The distance from 98 to 99 was almost five times that of 97 to 98 And would likely take several months to finish

Hell he had been stuck at 97 for four months Even if the speed of gathering experience vastly increased Shal would be at 98 for a year TellusÆ champion would not be ready for quite some time

ShalÆs expression turned bitter Especially if Propagators continued to be so cautious in their movements Although he had frequently detected their signature energy he hadnÆt had the chance to pursue them overmuch They simply stayed too far away from Hastam in order for him to catch them out

Inwardly Shal believed that he would be able to handle the battle he might encounter even if he ventured past the area around Hastam that the Spear users controlled But for all that Ophelia had assured him that the Wight leadership was the old Spearman Shal couldnÆt completely trust that the Spearman wouldnÆt move when Shal interfered with his Propagators Because of the number of people that the Spearman allowed to casually die

Gritting his teeth Shal continued to race across the city Rather than following his instructions he proceeded to the Eastern districts before finding Ophelia There he detected the familiar scent of a Propagator but it was already fleeing underground as Shal cut his way through the Witch Kings that were patrolling through the neighborhoods

Every eviscerated body that Shal saw seemed to increase the heavy pain behind his eyes He had only found about a hundred dead but even that was too much Why Why was all of this necessary Why did so many need to die so he could ascend Truly he needed to reach Level 99 before he could accomplish it and that required experience but still

Could Shal really trust a Spearman that allowed so much death It was as though the loss of life didnÆt matter to him at all

ShalÆs spear pierced through a WightÆs throat The thing scrabbled at the weapon helplessly as Shal whipped the spear around and smashed another wave of Wights backward Air hissed out through ShalÆs nose This whole ascension thing was beginning to stink Shal crushed bodies and bits of gore squirted onto his leathers

At this point what could Shal do but trust Ophelia and her ilk The only other option was to best them To seize all of the power And although Shal had grown in strength such a feat was likely still beyond him

Shal pursed his lips Soon

Even more quickly than the South district the Eastern districts affected by the surprise Wight attack were cleared out Shal was rather disgusting with how simple it was to mop up the weaker Wights at this point he may as well be traipsing throughout Hastam with a broom With most of the fires under control Shal returned to the center of Hastam

There he found Aylwind and Ophelia both with serious expressions on their faces

This was done purposefully Those Northern bastards let the city be attacked Aylwind hissed We must strike now prove to them crossing us was a mistake

Ophelia nodded placidly and then looked at Shal Good Everything has been cleared

Of course Shal said But then he stepped forward toward Aylwind Is now really the correct time to attack These are fellow spear users And with the city still burning

Others will handle it Shal Ophelia said soothingly Remember our goal is to prepare for your transcendence No matter what actions we take the life energy of Tellus will slowly stiffen and die if you are not prepared for your destiny

Yet is the energy not shifting as we speak Shal argued New images and Styles are appearing at a rate that is incomparable to the past few decades There is a breath of fresh air among the Styles We have time When that strength grows to fruition

Shal Aylwind interrupted with a glare Have you wondered why so many have been sacrificed these past months I have no doubt you have Your heart is soft Do you truly think it is a coincidence that suddenly the possibility of creating new images exists That the death and the new growth are happening independently of each other

Shal opened his mouth But there was no reasonable answer that he could give to AylwindÆs pointed stare

All things have costs Aylwind said coldly Then he turned away and began to strap on his armor

Our Images were stuck Built upon the belief of millions In order to shake those images some of the bases had to be eroded It was inevitable Ophelia said quietly But her eyes were bright when she pulled ShalÆs gaze to her own We have paid the cost Now it is time to reap the reward But to accomplish that we cannot allow these Northern fools to stand with a spear pointed at our back

What are you doing Helen hissed Silo just began to giggle

Helen had been performing a sweep through the Western Districts to rid the area of Wights To her surprise it was far easier than she had expected Although the fires and destruction would seem to indicate that the city was being invaded upon investigation Helen discovered that the destruction was largely aesthetic

It was like someone had designed the attack to look bigger than it was There were still Wights wandering around but Helen hadnÆt even seen a Witch King And at this point the Hellfin Reaper would shred anything less

But as Helen was shifting rubble to free a trapped family she felt a sharp killing intent at her back Growling the Tides of Blood Domain condensed around her in a split second With its buff she managed to finish cutting through the block of stone and spin out of the way of the attack

To her fury it was not a Wight claw that had struck at her exposed back It was a spear

Or something like a spear Silo was different Not himself It looked like he had cut off his own hands and stuck sharpened stakes of bone into his arms His eyes were sunken and his teeth were yellowed to the point of looking rotten The strange protrusions of bone continued up his arms like thick sleeves he had spiky shoulder guards that also looked to be made entirely of bone

But despite that there was no doubt that these bones were sharpened to deadly points

Silo continued to giggle The family the parents and two small girls slowly emerged from the collapsed wreckage of their house When they did Silo raised his arm and slashed

Roaring Helen interposed herself between the groups Silo

Our match is today Silo mumbled His voice was high pitched and quiet I figured why wait We can just fight now We can revel in this ambiance We can show our true selves You know why I like you Helen

Helen gestured for the family to flee which they did gladly Fuck you What the hell happened to you You look like like you are slowly transforming into a Wight

For a second a genuine look of shock crossed SiloÆs face Just as quickly his expression crumpled into raw fear Perhaps the enormity of what was happening to his body finally struck home But just as quickly those genuine emotions were replaced by madness in his eyes

His giggles persisted You are the only one that gets it I saw your match I felt it The hatred the violence you just get it Spears are made to kill To pretend otherwise thatÆs why I was gonna ask to be close But when I saw you saving those people with the spear I was so confused I thought you understood Maybe you only understand while fighting So let me remind you

IÆll gladly kick your ass you sick dog DonÆt bitch if I devour you in the process Helen’s spear blurred as she activated Feeding Frenzy In her mind the best chance to finish this quickly and then continue to assist others was to overwhelm his defenses now For all that the strange protrusions from the stumps of his arms looked like spears it was not an easy thing for someone who had used a spear with two hands his whole life to learn how to utilize weapons that extending straight from the arm

But Helen had underestimated Silo

For all that he was slowed by her Domain his arms swept upward to knock away her attack Then he favored her with a cocky grin

HelenÆs eyes flashed

Fuck This Guy

Chapter 801

In addition to being fast SiloÆs main advantage was that he had two weapons For all that much of his fine control was lost with his new weapons it was easy to cover for that when you possessed the ability to thrust a second time with an independent spear a split second after your first attack was easily blocked

A thin wound was scored across HelenÆs cheek even as the flames of fury in her heart grew from small embers back to the reaching fingers of flame they had been for the Skarch fight

Fine then IÆll stop playing fucking nice Helen thought furiously

She stomped her foot smashing the low building on which they were fighting It was only two stories off the ground but without a firm base

Helen conjured three Maw of the Hellfins that chomped toward Silo from different angles while he fell

Hahah This is exactly right In battle anything is fine If you cannot win shift the battle Keep shifting until you find an opening Silo brayed like a village idiot But he twisted around midair and ripped her blood images to pieces with his spears

Which of course opened him up to her direct charge

Crunch

HelenÆs thrust took Silo in the chest His body was catapulted across the block smashing into another wooden building After a creaking groan the building collapsed on top of Silo

But Helen frowned and looked at her spear Rather than skewering him she had impacted him There was an armor A natural armor It seemed like the bones of his ribs had extended and hardened into something like an exoskeleton Although it was a direct hit Helen suspected that she would need to land another in the same spot in order to put him out of his misery

When Silo popped up out of the wreckage he was coughing Big hacking coughs that had him drooling black sludge He flashed his yellowed teeth at Helen and smiled as he staggered out of the ruins of the building Yes yes we are the same you and I

You sound like my mother Helen muttered as she raised her spear Then she paused As an experiment Helen did her best to paste a very disapproving face of her mother on SiloÆs body Instantly there was a surging response from the black flames of rage in her chest

Now feel this Silo wheezed Momentum of Tragedy

A dark cloud seemed to gather around Silo His body cast a longer shadow than should be possible considering the still dim light of the late hour Very rapidly he accelerated toward Helen His steps echoed with a hint of his gathering momentum

HelenÆs spear flashed out Bloodwalker Master of Tides surged around her Very nice of Silo to not even attempt to destroy her Tides of Blood Domain With it her powers were many times greater And with the Master of Tides she quickly drew currents around her to improve her movements and restrict his

But Silo just continued to laugh and rush forward

Fine then

Helen exploded forward Her spear was a stampede of rhinoceros Her vicious attack pierced forward toward SiloÆs sickly chest who was wearing her motherÆs disapproving face At the last second the black flames in her chest exploded From some deep corner of herself Helen increased the speed of her attack The adjustment that Silo had made proved insufficient in the face of the last second surge

She arrived at Silo far before he could bring his attacks around to bear Her spear smashed into SiloÆs chest with enough concussive force to jar even Helen The strange bone armor that had grown to cover his chest shattered Black blood spurted outward in sad steaming bursts HelenÆs spear slid into his innards ripping through the spongy muscle of the diaphragm

HelenÆs eyes narrowed imperceptibly Such a blow would likely kill him eventually as it prevented Silo from breathing But for now

With wicked eyes Silo raised both of the harpoon like arms he now possessed

One thing you must never forget Randidly had said to Helen before he had left Is that others can use the same tricks you did to beat someone Often they will IÆve done it quite a bit It feels poetic to beat someone with their own move Of course itÆs ultimately a terrible idea

How does it feel Silo screeched with glee as he endured the blow to strike at Helen

Of course she was prepared

Helen completely let go of her spear Her two hands snaked out to grab SiloÆs attacks The point wasnÆt to block them with her hands but only to avoid the worst of the damage With the aid of the Tides of Blood Domain and her Hellfin Reaper Skills Helen was fucking fast But she realized it would be just short of being enough to escape unscathed

Her right hand flashed out and seized the attack of SiloÆs left arm The ridge of sharp bone along the side of the spear cut deeply into her hand but Helen endured and pushed that blow to the side

Unfortunately Silo adjusted the angle of attack on the other arm Gritting her teeth Helen could only put her hand in the way of the thrust The powerful spear ripped through the center of her hand The pain was excruciating And as it pushed deeper the wound spread upwards across her palm until the two sides of the hand were connected only by thin strings of flesh

But afterward the thrust smashed into her shoulder and deflected upward too much of the momentum had been robbed from it when it had impacted her hand

Fuck Helen said as she gripped with her right hand and curled her lower body up off the ground into a tightly wound spring

Her legs exploded outward Her heavy steel greaved feet smashed directly into SiloÆs face For all that the rest of his body was covered in armor his nose broke easily in a spray of black blood Barely able to stand he reeled backward

Helen used her right hand on his spear to jerk him back upward Even though he was barely conscious having spears attached at his elbow made it pretty simple to manipulate his body After tapping her feet against the ground Helen leaped up once more

Prick

Helen kicked the butt of her spear shooting the entire weapon through the hole she had made in his chest She had kicked hard to be sure it would pierce through his back but it looked like the design of the natural bone armor was to prevent outside attacks her spear pierced easily through his back from within

Finally she let Silo collapse and frowned at his gurgling belch Heaving a relieved breath Helen looked at her left hand Already the flesh around the wound was inflamed and twitched Some of the black goop that Silo used as blood has splashed on her wound and it sizzled painfully The edges were red and inflamed Luckily a river of energy was coming to her from Randidly to heal the fucking thing

Honestly the fact that he didnÆt even need to be near for her to steal his energy Truly too convenient

Wincing Helen looked over at SiloÆs wriggling figure He was attempting to sit up HelenÆs eyes hardened

What the fuck was this prick thinking Attacking during a Wight attack It was like he didnÆt fucking care about what was happening around him

There was a split second of hesitation but then HelenÆs resolved firmed If he truly was so mad that he couldnÆt realize what he was doing it was her duty to put him down After walking over to pick up her spear she approached Silo

Helen Silo struggled to speak

Helen brought the spear down on his neck severing it from his body Just sleep You donÆt deserve to be heard any longer

Dying is strange Silo reflected as he stared at the clouded sky

After his head was severed from his body he felt everything growing more clear Hazy memories sharpened into focus His vision which had shifted to being mostly based upon movement one more returned in all of its colorful glory All of the emotions that had been suppressed by the energy of the stone surged to the surface As his blood trickled out of the stump of his neck Silo began to cry

Perhaps strangest of all Silo still maintained sensation in his body He could feel it failing Portions of his organs twitched and swelling Even though the nerve endings were severed It shouldnÆt be possible Yet Silo felt it all

Including as the thing in his stomach began to move

As it began to stir Silo shivered His uncles had given him a ring Why hadnÆt he realized something was wrong when rather than shrinking the stone had grown to the size of an amulet

The stone shivered in his withered stomach Eight legs stretched out from it slowly picking the stone up It skittered around his stomach climbing up his esophagus

why am I not dying Silo whispered

BECAUSE YOU ARE NOW WIGHT the rumbling answer came As Silo watched with horrible fascination his body from the shoulders down stood above him It seemed like some terrible shambling thing as it staggered closer Because it didnÆt have hands it could only spear him through the mouth in order to lift him up NOW STAND PUPPET THERE IS MUCH TO DO

Chapter 802

Randidly smiled like a wolf as his longship scraped upon the mist shrouded shore Others might fear Wights hiding amongst the rocky outcroppings but Randidly could feel the thin threads of their energy as clear as day He knew every last one of the fuckers within the surrounding one hundred kilometers

But he didnÆt mind them In fact Randidly needed them

Hopping down off the long boat Randidly strode forward through the mists The stones were dark and wet but his Stats improved body had more than enough grace to ascend the sloping beach to the bluffs above

Platton scrambled to keep up Do you think

We should be safe for the moment The only force worth talking about is a few kilometers to the South Randidly said as he squinted Then he looked at Platton with a sharp glance Did you go over the carving with the soldiers

Platton threw up his hands Yes And like you said your boys took to it so much more quickly I donÆt get it itÆs just a design right How can your group be so much better at memorization than trained soldiers After all the years IÆve drilled them

Because itÆs about image Randidly said shortly They recognize the familiar But enough talk Get everyone ashore and begin to march Just to be safe IÆll head forward toward that mountain in the distance and start drawing up the basics

For a long moment Platton was silent as he scanned through the mist covered ground ahead of them Beyond the bluffs was a plain and only in the distance was there a chain of mountains Those mountains are probably four hours march from here Is this truly for the best

Yes Randidly said shortly He raised a hand and touched his chest The pain was growing worse Hot and stifling It felt difficult to breathe Now of all times he was on the bad end of the time difference We donÆt have much time

Then Randidly left blurring across the land with enough force that he left a clear trail through the mist In order to clear the way Randidly used Reach of the Jade Slag to clear out some of the Wight patrols that would likely cross the path in a few hours but largely he left the Wights alive Killing them now would be a waste of energy

Energy that Randidly would need

In the past Randidly had created a runic engraving on the bank of the Hallat that had ripped the energy right out of the WightÆs bodies It occurred to Randidly that the quick removal of energy from hosts was part of the design of Wights that way the Propagators never need fear that the Wights would rebel They were truly at the mercy of their makers

Normally individuals would develop Skills in order to take advantage of such foes but Randidly reminded himself that the Wights were part of the Second Calamity By that time the focus on Spears had emerged on Tellus Likely the world was past the point where it was looking to develop new images It was refining the ones it had when the Wights were at their height

Were the spears enough to overpower an endless army of puppets animated by a vast sea of energy

The answer turned out to be yes Slightly surprising

But that didnÆt mean that the sea of energy wasnÆt a powerful force worthy of shaping an entire world around Which Randidly didnÆt want to do but he would very gladly simply take this very poorly defended energy for his own use

It was hungry work to create a world

At the Hallat Randidly had fed the energy into that heartbeat across Tellus that fueled new images It had likely allowed many to grow despite the strange calcified Aether across Tellus Now he wanted to take it all for himself

When Randidly arrived at the mountain he was greeted with an unpleasant surprised Four Witch Kings and a Propagator in the shape of an amber butterfly They stood on the rocky summit of the mountain and coolly watched his approach

FOOL THIS DOMAIN BELONGS TO ME I WILL ACCEPT YOUR BODY AS TRIBUTE the booming mental dialogue came with enough force to make Randidly wince Truly the mental power of these Propagators was ridiculous Even he with his Willpower sitting at 665 had to be wary of their mental attacks

Likely it wasnÆt a difference in Stats but in specialization Randidly was good at a lot of things Meanwhile these small bug creatures were focused on controlling their puppets and gathering energy At their game Randidly couldnÆt beat them All of their Skills and Images were concentrated on this one thing

But he could kill them even so

There was a rumbling as two of the giant durable puppets surged out of the ground to tower over Randidly Chuckling Randidly slowly walked forward Do you think this is enough to stop me

The Witch Kings moved first screeching as they rushed toward him Randidly opened up several Eruption of the Blazing Leyline in their path The explosion of emerald flame didnÆt even slow them They burst through while singing in their strange undulating voices ready for violence But of course the first volley of Skills was just a cover

Behind the two larger puppets began to step forward

Of the Witch Kings the middle two were struck with a half dozen Ignition Bolts and Reach of the Jade Slag The bolts slowed and stumbled them enough that the claw that ripped out of the ground could snap closed on their body binding and damaging it Ultimately they could fight their way out but by then it was too late to protect their companions

The Witch King on the far right burst through the emerald flames only to physically crushed into the ground by Influence of the Molten Core The hyperdense ball smashed the thingÆs torso with a vicious snap It screeched and struggled but the intense heat and powerful energies produced by this world engine slowly melted its body beyond a fighting state

The leftmost Witch King was faced with Randidly himself

As the Sun Stills RandidlyÆs spear slid forward toward the Witch King

Hissing the thing conjured a spectral claw almost double the size of those Randidly had seen before The coloration was different too it was a spooky yellow color with vicious ridges extending from the claw To RandidlyÆs surprise when the two attacks clashed neither emerged victoriously

Gonna need to work on that image Randidly reflected even as he activated Stalemate Breaker and crushed the Witch King to the ground Its exoskeleton fractured but then Randidly unleashed a condensed blast of Indignation of Yggdrasil Its wails turned small and weak The Crown of Cataclysm and Gloom flickered to life above RandidlyÆs head

He struck again burning with the image of a sunÆs slow failure As the Sun Stills ripped forward once more The heavy weight of the attack broke what remained of the Witch King open like an egg

FOOL YOU HAVE EARNED MY IRE

Randidly was somewhat amused by the continued arrogance of the Propagator as the two remaining Witch Kings rushed toward him But the larger puppets were a more annoying problem Overpowering them was possible but time consuming The sheer amount of the pseudo metal that constituted their frame was a hassle

Better to head to the source

Randidly blurred past the Witch Kings To his surprise they twisted around and raked their claws against his sides even as he tried to dodge Without Sulfur he received several deep gashes along his sides His expression was bitter Soon he would get his actual fucking equipment back

The large puppets blurred as they moved far faster than their huge bodies should allow but Randidly just grinned Phantom Half Step teleported him back and forth weaving through their attacks as though they choreographed the whole thing

As soon as there was an opening Randidly activated Spear Advances Ash Trails His body zipped through the air toward the amber butterfly It fluttered in the air agitated It barely had any time to think

Randidly twisted rapidly dispersing his momentum in a blast of concussive force as the wave of mental power ripped outward He wouldnÆt be knocked out by the same thing twice But even from the ten meter distance that remained between them Randidly staggered and experienced a brief second of dazedness

His emerald eyes flashed as he steadied himself The metal puppets behind him were slashing toward his back Beyond them the Witch Kings produced Psychic Venom and prepared to blast Randidly with it

With a glance roots erupted out of the ground and surrounded the small amber butterfly It fluttered furious and bombarded Randidly with shouting commands to release it but Randidly ignored it He even gained a few Levels in Pain Resistance for his troubles Instead he turned and faced the oncoming attacks from behind

The Crown of Cataclysm and Gloom glowed with its sickly grey light Randidly activated All is Ash and the world flattened He was ash The metal puppets and Witch Kings were ash The attacks the struggles of the Propagator all of it was nothing but flat ash extending toward infinity Parts of a once great whole separated and broken The burnt remnants of GodÆs dead body

Pieces of a long forgotten perfection scattered to the four corners of the universe Weak and fragile

Break for me Randidly whispered

And like the poorly constructed bits of dust that they were RandidlyÆs breath scattered the bodies of the Witch Kings the puppets and their Psychic Venom They were the ash and the wind drew them away

Randidly let the Skill drop with a wince as a headache tore through him He staggered and then spat as he steadied himself That much at once that concentrated of an image it was still hard But after a few seconds he allowed himself to gather his energy his grin returned to his face

After moving a bit away Randidly regarded the struggles of the amber butterfly against the constantly growing roots with an indulgent smirk

Just sit tight I have plans for you

Chapter 803

Clutching her chest Alta did her best not to glare at her head scientist while she spoke The woman was jumpy enough as it is Are you sure It has been armored If in the approach we are attacked

As best we can The short woman said with a bow Several drops of sweat ran down off of her nose and gathered at the tip of her nose to drip off Any further and it will require a larger cart And you stated

I remember the orders I gave Alta hissed The numbness of her metal body was remarkably inconvenient sometimes There were occasions when she felt lost Adrift in her own body Sometimes Alta wondered if she even existed anymore For a while she had taken solace in her existence by proving it through harassment of her lackeys Which was why she was currently on her third head scientist in three weeks And this woman didnÆt seem like she would last long Leave

Part of those sudden changes were also related to the important Alta placed on her deviceÆs plans But if Creta found out she would be quite disapproving

Alta cursed the foolish woman and wondered what insightful solution to the that Danz would have come up with Another one in a long line of individuals that left her unsatisfied and mildly frantic in comparison to his understated efficiency

Shaking her head Alta regarded the short and lumpy cart It was of the size that it could be a hand cart drawn by a human Which was the point The grand caravan carrying her portal apparatus was already prepared But the vast fleet of flatbed carts carrying hulking metal gizmos and transistors were only a decoy The key to open the door was all contained in this small cart Her most brilliant and streamlined work

and it was stubby and lumpy Alta limped up to it Honestly it reminded her of herself It was strangely infuriating

With a grimace Alta turned away and check the horizon Almost sunset Creta should be returning soon

At the very least Alta reflected as she returned to her tent the world ending will mean I wonÆt need to see DanzÆ sisterÆs accusing eyes any longer Maybe I should have just had her killed months ago

Thunder cracked above as Alta continued through the twisted badlands they now called home Alta wished that all of this wasnÆt necessary but she had been betrayed About two months ago when they had arrived at the lowest Land her faction was already losing momentum rapidly She was sitting at the top of the Procession but she was losing control

Part of it was the edge of madness as food began to run low and everything depended on foraging there were no more easy cities to raid Another part was the influx of desperate people into the Procession as all the other lands realized the damage their passage had caused wouldnÆt heal easily And perhaps worst of all the neutral faction led by the Monster Prince became increasingly antagonistic to her goals

Worst of all that very same Monster Prince seemed to have a fucking Land full of farmland from which he was drawing resources Vegetables and fruits nuts and mushrooms Very quickly her power base was eroded to a fraction of what it once was as they were drawn away by the siren song of food All she had left was the scientists The hardliners The Spriggit supremacists

And Creta of course

Alta felt no relief when she arrived at her tent It was a lonely place no one was around She didnÆt bother with guards anymore not when her appearance usually disturbed the fools that were assigned to her enough that they would willingly switch factions to get away from her and her grinding and screeching metal body It was infuriating After all the terrible things she had done throughout her life it turned out that it was the innocuous decision to improve her physical body that the rest of the World Tree would see her damned for

Sometimes she caught her followers pining for how pretty she was before the operations

Truly sexism was not dead

Moving as fast as she could Alta hobbled into the tent and found her little blue pills Although the doctor had warned her against it she took four at once The pain in her chest didnÆt hurt any longer it was just constantly warm And her insides felt wet and sticky although Alta chided herself that sweating with her new body was impossible

Part of her considered opening herself up and looking at the problem at her core one more time but another warned against it She was meeting Creta later and the other woman would be able to smell the pungent residue of her insides if she exposed it to air That wasnÆt a talk she wanted to have again

Besides it would end soon either way

Panting softly Alta turned and considered the map on the table The Soulless Land was a hellscape but not nearly as bad as they had expected There was resistance but it wasnÆt nearly to the point Creta had feared In fact the Soulless tended to avoid the expedition Marauders were sometimes a problem but not a serious one

Even now AltaÆs hands clenched into fists as she studied the map Under the advisement of Creta Alta had been cautious in her descent in this Land Which was why the other two factions were able to move in the dead of night and rush toward the ruins ahead of her

For this Alta didnÆt blame Creta But it did birth in her a vicious fury she had nursed ever since It was some small consolation that thousands had died on that night run but it wasnÆt enough

Now the Monster Prince and Weaver Factions had held the Progenitor ruins for two months They excavated the ruins as Alta demanded but they wouldnÆt allow her to install her own equipment to open the portal Instead they ask that the equipment be delivered so they could take it apart and inspect it for technical oversights

TECHNICAL OVERSIGHTS Alta bellowed Her voice was hollow and metallic but still the tent shook with the force of her shout

That was another reason she no longer had guards Increasingly her outburst grew unavoidable Perhaps it was this body Some things simply could not be endured without comment

The fools were less foolish than she had anticipated Perhaps from some of the rumors she had planted they understood that her goals were not just the stated opening a door to the Progenitor and attracting his attention

Which was strange For all that most people were developing a nihilistic streak they balked at the prospect of death Honestly Alta was surprised more people werenÆt on her side The world was ending that much was clear

And yet food continued to appear in the Monster Princes hands The Weavers assembled grand tents that gave the illusion of civility even in this wild place It was hard to gather firm population numbers about the procession but an impromptu city the size of any one LandÆs capital had sprung up at the edge of the ruins

But even the Monster PrinceÆs magic food source couldnÆt hold off the inevitable

Hunger was rampant So even as the other factions didnÆt want Alta technology they needed it despite everything else she had lost she was still the greatest technical mind that this world had ever seen

This world will burn One way or another Alta muttered Her hands moved to the small models on top of the map and moved the small carts toward the ruins Tomorrow was the agreed upon date They would allow her through or she would force their hand

On her side there were herself Creta and the enigmatic and beautiful pilot of the silver mech Honestly Alta was so irritated by how pretty the pilot was that she had many times considering assassinating her as well But she was useful And always willing to support Alta Even to a metal Alta loyalty meant something

Soon Alta whispered She lay on her bed and stared up at the rough cotton roof to her tent CretaÆs mission tonight was delicate It wouldnÆt change the outcome but it would certainly make tomorrow easier

You are sure Lucretia said her expression behind her mask twisted into a frown

He nodded I donÆt believe your mistress and I have anything to talk about

Lucretia leaned forward Cailm

That is no longer my name The Earth Golem who had been High King boomed Like clockwork his good arm reached up to touch the stump of his shoulder Even now the limb felt so close moving Like it was still there I am no longer the boy filled with hope for this world I have learned much

If you believe the rumors that dark attitude will put you right on AltaÆs side Lucretia pointed out She seeks an eternal answer if you take my meaning

CailmÆs smile was sharp and bitter I am surprised you havenÆt urged her from such a path She wins no favors from the populace with her extreme stance No the opposite of hope is not hopelessness

Lucretia just stared at him for a few seconds That is exactly what it is

Bah I will not engage in battles of words That was never my strength Cailm turned and regarded the cracked and rugged land around the two of them They were meeting on a low mountain to the South of the ruins From their position the cheery torchlights of the night watch were visible Let us speak no more of this Instead I have a question before you go crowing back to your Iron Queen Why was the Great Emperor of the Earth Golems different from me

Lucretia thought about a dozen ways to twist the answer she gave to urge her to join Alta but somehow she knew it wouldnÆt work Everyone was aware of the madness in Alta now Despite persuasive arguments people were spooked by that Hell Lucretia was spooked by it In AltaÆs chest the karmic flowers had begun to rot Petals fell away and gathered in a bubbling cesspool at her core

Instead Lucretia dropped those thoughts and simply considered Then she said Perhaps because he was not trying to be his ancestors But simply trying to protect his people

mm Cailm said slowly Then he stretched Recently IÆve begun to suspect it is because he never existed And yet even now every time the young Earth Golem speak of him their eyes fill with light Something that doesnÆt exist yet still it ignites a spark That is precious That is magic

Cailm began to walk down the mountain Something that precious even if it does not exist it must be protected The young must have Paths toward the summit to walk Goodbye Creta Queen of Thorns

IÆll see you tomorrow Lucretia whispered pain in her heart One last dance

She looked up at the sky searching for an answer

Chapter 804

Randidly frowned and coughed Really bad heartburn Then his frown deepened and he smacked the cage of roots containing the Propagator to stops its incessant buzzing Although it had eaten through the surface layer of roots for almost 8 hours with no result still it continued to eat

Sporadically it would blast out randomly with its mental powers but Randidly simply stayed away and ordered no one near the strange plant orb at the height of the mountain Due to the strange noises coming from it no one needed to be told twice

Not much time Randidly pressed his hand to his chest

Twisting Randidly asked Platton Io and Yonna who were each in charge of their own section of the formation a question he had repeated often over the past few hours Ready

Yes Io replied pointedly glancing sidelong at her companions

Very shortly Platton replied with a harried expression Inwardly Randidly didnÆt blame him he was handling fully half of the formation Also his soldiers didnÆt have the benefit of being touched by RandidlyÆs images to give them a helping hand

Yonna just threw up her hands Randidly had the impulse to chuckle but knew that such a thing would affront the pride of both Io and Platton For all that he liked Platton it was somewhat disturbing to see his habits reflected in Io so exactly with an extra sprinkling of arrogance He had also heard that the two had taken to having dinner together

Everyone couples off at the end of the world but me Randidly thought with a faux frown before saying pointedly I need a time Yonna

Her expression was nervous She closed her eyes With his Aether Detection he could just barely sense as she reached out and felt at the growing image she was creating with her group below Found it wanting Considered She opened her eyes An hour

Wight attacks will increase by then Io grunted sourly Platton nodded in agreement

Inwardly Randidly gave Yonna another sharp look She had used a very nascent stage Skill like Aether Detection Or image detection And based on his own observations of how the work was proceeding below her prediction was likely very close to being accurate Randidly felt no shame for patting himself on the back for choosing to assist Yonna along in her test

Truly in raw power or understanding she wasnÆt overwhelmingly impressive But her intuition

One hour it is Randidly said clapping his hands We can spare the time And as I said these are still light patrols Attacks now are actually better for us More Wights closer during the first wave As I said the process will take several waves There will be a fair amount of time between the waves Even IÆm not sure how it will go But between those waves is when the heavy fighting will be As soon as someone with half a brain realizes what we are doing they are going to throw everything they have at us Platton Io since you two are finished take your units and begin to construct fortifications

They nodded in unison and walked lockstep away from Randidly He almost threw up his hands in frustration In addition he had half a mind to assist them with his own Skills but he knew that Io and her crew were rearing to try out using the Emerald Essence Skills to grow barricades It would be a far cry from what Randidly could manage they were still barely able to grasp controlling its use but he suspected the difference in defenses wouldnÆt sway the fight

Besides spear users were remarkably poor at taking advantage of defensive positions It simply wasnÆt in their blood And Randidly hadnÆt enough time to change that yet

Sorry Yonna whispered drawing RandidlyÆs attention back to her

It didnÆt manifest but he could feel the heartbeat of his Crown He reached out and touched YonnaÆs shoulder DonÆt worry about it All people have different gifts Just like all people have weaknesses There is no shame in not being someone else

Then Randidly shooed her away She obviously had work to do Just like he did

With methodical precision Randidly began to finish engraving the vast formation that had been condensed to a sphere of vines surrounding the struggling Propagator It was with much relish that he felt the Mana and Stamina expenditure runes coming into effect The Propagator was silenced as its body no longer contained the necessary energy to move Peace at last

Chuckling Randidly continued onto the control runes on the ground in the surrounding area These were much more touch and go and in a lot of places he had to improvise Hard work but satisfying But the whole time the pain in his chest persisted

Time flowed uneasily past

No sooner than the sounds of fighting drifted up to Randidly than Yonna was scrambling up the slope Finished Finished ItÆs a few minutes late but

Randidly didnÆt wait to hear Instead he burned through the rest of his Mana to complete his own formation His smile was wide as the Cheshire CatÆs To start Randidly reached out and stole the waiting energy present in the huge army in the OracleÆs boat For this he didnÆt bother with the formation After all the formation should be self sustaining once it was started but the formation required fuel to get started Without that he would need several small scale successes before he could spread the formations influence

But with that army that the Oracle had so generously provided

Io crushed the head of a Wight beneath her heel and conjured a handful of emerald fire Even that small a Skill decreased her small Mana supply to critical levels but the Wight about to strike a fallen Spear user was sent screeching away as its face was melted

Io dismissed the Skill notifications and rushed to help the poor fallen fool up He nodded gratefully and sucked in several deep breaths Seeing he would live she turned and regarded the battlefield

Wights had gathered together to form a force of several thousand a few less than their own number but the Wights didnÆt care about losses Every one of the lives under Sir Ghosthound was precious Most disturbingly a Witch King sat at the helm of the opposing force

To this point they had kept losses low but

There was a rumble from the mountain Io turned hopefully but there was no further movement Sighing she twisted back aground and slapped the wounded manÆs shoulder Buckle up this might be

Sarge what the fuck is on the ground The man yelled pointing and shouting The Wights are gonna kill us all

Fearing the worst Io stared at her feet It took several seconds but she forced herself to relax With an even speed there were strange runes growing beneath them As Io looked left and right they spread all along the fortifications all the way back to the center of the mountain Io even recognized them they were the same runes they were ordered to carve

The runes grew inexorably out past the barricades and toward the main body of the Wight forces Perhaps it was easy to miss with them growing at only about a meter every thirty seconds but very quickly

The runes beneath them began to glow As Io watched the runes snaked outward in a burst of speed snaking endlessly in the strange esoteric pattern that Sir Ghosthound had taught them

As if sensing something was wrong the Witch King began to sing The entire remaining force of Wights began to rush forward IoÆs grip on her spear tightened

But then the runes flashed once more A bright flash The ground seemed to open up and reveal the sun and suddenly Io was faced with a dazzling brilliance so powerful she could only force her eyes shut

When she finally forced her eyes open her vision was blurry but one thing was for sure

All the Wights had collapsed to the ground

The mountain rumbled once more The runes began to extend even further from the base of the mountain stretching off toward the horizon so far that Io could no longer detect the edges of them Unsure of what to do Io ascended toward the summit where Sir Ghosthound sat The stone path there was deserted

The only company she had was the eerie light from the runes

Right when she was going to approach where he had sent up shop she found Platton and Yonna already there Io nodded stiffly to Platton and was inwardly furious that Yonna had made it up here more quickly than she had

We are all here Platton said tentatively Now what

We wait Sir GhosthoundÆs response came Io studied the area beneath him the whole area was thick with glowing runes And these were much more dense and varied than the runes they had been inscribing It looked like the scroll ravings of a mad man scrawled over every stone The Ghosthound himself was sitting on a platform of vines above the runes holding a ball of roots that was also covered in a dense network of runes

Runes everywhere

The light from the runes was so bright and the distance between them so small that Io couldn’tÆ even detect the individual symbols on the vine ball The thing simply seemed to glow

After a pause Sir Ghosthound continued The Propagator is much better than I am at gathering energy So I subdued it and used the formation you created to amplify its power Anything within the runeÆs area will be affected And each wave we use the energy stolen in the previous wave to spread the amplification area I donÆt think any other Propagator has noticed it yet so we should be peaceful for a while

What ah is the point Io asked Her mouth was dry looking at these strange energies Someday if she learned the images provided by Sir Ghosthound would she be able to manage such things The short lived daydream set her heart pounding

Taking the WightÆs energy All of it Sir GhosthoundÆs voice was strangely harsh

Io had nothing to say to that She glanced at Platton He seemed similarly confused

To IoÆs immense distaste it was YonnaÆs face that was warped with shock But But She couldnÆt even ask the question that had occurred to her

Sitting above the glowing runes the corner of Sir GhosthoundÆs mouth curved upward Return to your posts Soon you will understand

So they returned to their posts By that time more Wight patrols had arrived They were massing this time in the tens of thousands but there seemed to be some confusion amongst them The Wights had discovered their compatriots fallen lifeless on the ground and couldn’t seem to decide whether to attack with such an obvious warning

Not that it mattered About ten minutes later there was another rumbling from the mountain all those tens of thousands of Wights toppled over Or at least Io assumed so She was blinded for a good thirty seconds by the light this time

This wave Io didn’tÆ see the expansion effects of but when she turned to look toward the summit there was now a small blue green ball hovering above the mountain

It was the same sickly color of the WightÆs Psychic Venom

This time there was a response It took a while but there was a dull rumbling as a Wight army marched directly toward their position Her subordinates paled with fear and cursed Sir Ghosthound for bringing them to this death trap Like a canary the man that Io had saved earlier cried and begged for mercy

Even while she struggled with her own fear Io reprimanded them and stood tall at the front Because she had been chosen Because she was first among them Although she chided herself for it Io turned and peaked at the mountain It was beginning to glow Io turned back around with renewed confidence

She would be the first to meet the oncoming horde

There was another rumbling All the approaching Wights collapsed The ball above the summit had grown even larger It was now like a small lake hovering above the Ghosthound

Still the runes shifted and snaked outward extending

How far does it stretch Io whispered

Like he was right next to her the Ghosthound replied Across the entire Death School and a lot of the sea This will be the tough one They realize whatÆs happening and they are sending only their quick forces Be on your guard This will hit hard Delay as best you can

Sir Ghosthound was right Almost a hundred Witch Kings appeared about eight minutes later all screeching their fury Even if they were staggered into groups of about a dozen it was still more Witch Kings that IoÆs mind could gather Spells whizzed half heartedly out but even Io trembled with fear seeing so many together All these Witch Kings There was only supposed to be a half dozen at most

A howling shrieking Witch King rushed directly toward Io where she stood at the head of the battlements With trembling hands she conjured the emerald essence in her hands Then Io once more peaked at the mountain The brightness was growing but

The Witch KingÆs blow smashed into her hastily thrown emerald essence To IoÆs surprise it was enough to deflect the first attack

I survived a Witch King attack IoÆs numb brain managed

Almost mechanically Io thrust her spear into the Witch KingÆs side The blade skittered off the bones of its ribs only serving to infuriate it further As it was raising its claw to cut Io in half the idiot man who had been sobbing a second later smashed into the Witch King from the side

It staggered then smashed him into the battlements with the sound of shattering bones

More Witch Kings arrived ripping apart the battlements and

Right as they were about to be ripped to shreds the mountain rumbled once more Io had never been so thankful for blindness in her life The Witch Kings twitched and became limp But such was their speed that the momentum of their approaching bodies still crashed into the defensive fortifications Several towers made of plants toppled over

Io winced and picked up the wounded man

There was a humming in the air and Io turned and looked at the huge mass of blue green energy in the sky

Huh they realize the limitations They are marshaling forces right outside the edges of the formation Clever Sending Propagators toward our position Foolish but understandable Sir GhosthoundÆs thoughts boomed over the mountain Well this is just what IÆve waited for

The sea of energy descended from the sky rushing into the runes With renewed vigor the formation extended outward Or at least Io imagined it so After all the runes were now stretched far beyond her ability to see

When the Propagators appeared they didnÆt even come close to the mountain The Ghosthound himself used his Skills to slow and capture them The mountain rumbled Light descended The mountain rumbled The sun itself was below Io The mountain rumbled Io didnÆt know if she would ever see again

By dusk Io was trembling A wall of energy that was as large as the sky hummed with its contained fury The only thing louder was Sir GhosthoundÆs laughter

Your move Autarch Everyone defensive perimeter but at ease There are no Wights left on Tellus to threaten us All that remains is the spear users

Chapter 805

Helen sat panting on the ground Above the midday sun blazed downward looking brighter than it had in weeks The sky was so blue and wide she had a strange urge to reach up and scoop some of it and raise the rich color of the sky to her lips so she could drink

Fucking dumb Helen whispered

All across Hastam the city was almost dead silent Hissing whispers and tentative laughter were the only infrequent disturbances

The silence was not because the city had fallen But perhaps the opposite Everyone had seen the marshaling Wight forces outside the city And every citizen was aware of the mounting tension between Hastam and the Northern Camp Their Masters were salivating for an excuse to strike at the otherÆs throat While the Wight army was preparing Aylwind and Ophelia the two great leaders were preparing to head toward the Northern Camp

Helen was feeling furious and afraid Her emotions boiled over in her chest until her black flames of rage were wide and maroon colored Too much was filtering into her She had lived on the front lines for almost a year She knew what would happen to Hastam when the protection offered by those two departed to deal with political issues

And then

It had seemed like the world itself was ending Letters crawled across the ground in an invasive glowing script It spread on the edge of the wind sweeping across all of Hastam in all of ten seconds The letters climbed up buildings and across the Hallat in a snap Then it had swarmed under the Wights

It was somewhat strange to see the Wights turn tail and flee from it but the strange script was too fast even for them And so quickly did it happen that no spear user could figure what it could mean

It streamed forth endlessly driven by some unseen imperative And following the script almost a minute later there was the endless light It was blinding So much so that Helen could see through her eyelids closed The light pierced through those tiny apertures like they were nothing

In that dreamlike blindness Helen wondered what would happen to her world It seemed too late The impending doom was beyond her own spear Violence could not move the implacable number of Wights Even the great Masters of the world hadnÆt managed to turn this doom aside This was just how it would end

And then Helen had awoken from the light to find the world had completely changed during her light dream The Wights toppled over They were still

No attack came

Such was the confusion that even Aylwind and Ophelia returned to the capital to investigate Several bold adventurers eventually ran out from the city to investigate the happening in the Wight camp they discovered that their eyes werenÆt deceiving them The Wights were still The hill on which they sat was still and dead

The whole countryside was silent

Without the horrid motion of their bodies they appeared like dolls strewn across each other in pathetic slumps After a few hours passed and there was no change the even bolder individuals stacked them up like firewood to burn They danced with the frozen bodies of the dead Wights They found Witch Kings and stitched them together with sticks of wood and paraded them across the city

A playful hushed celebration A cautious spirit of optimism was born in the city by these small acts of control On street corners people whispered about what might have caused it Most suspected that the Spearman had returned and defeated the great Propagator the Autarch Yet if it were so others reasoned why hadnÆt the Spearman revealed himself yet

And why had he allowed things to grow so dire before moving

Helen rubbed at the cobblestoned ground with her thumb Although it had largely faded there were some spots were the burnt lines of that strange expansive script could still be seen It had covered the ground and left its mark

Looks like what Randidly did to SkarchÆs spear Helen muttered She looked to her left and right listening as small noises began to grow commonplace The grand spear users of Tellus had become church mice after brushing so closely with death the prior night but they were rapidly crawling out of their hiding spots

Soon the streets would be crowded and noise would radiate outward Basically hell on Tellus

Nodding to herself Helen set off across the city Regardless of the why the change had occurred Helen wanted to accomplish something that she was very afraid of letting slip through the cracks during the fallout from the Wight offensive she wanted to do Azriel a favor

As she hurried across the city Helen determinedly activated her Tides of Blood Domain The layering was shallow but waves of blood energy radiated out from her body to wash against the buildings and people that were slowly coming to life It wasnÆt the most efficient method but it would give Helen an extra edge to find Azriel

There were a few places that Helen checked immediately as she crisscrossed the city the Hall of Stances AzrielÆs personal quarters and the spot where Helen had met HelenÆs master outside of the city All of these were empty

Typical

Slowly as Helen got used to the sensory information that was flooding in she spread her Domain farther away from herself The slow beginnings of a headache crawled together and formed a knot by her temple Still the greatest distance she could cover was one hundred meters Beyond that HelenÆs vision began to swim and there was a strange darkness in the peripheries of her vision

How the fuck does Randidly manage this Helen muttered kicking over the broken remnants of a wall Shaking her head she continued But as she methodically worked back and forth she was able to get a pretty good picture of the state of Hastam and who was in it

Helen was somewhat disgusted by certain individuals celebration rituals And oddly aroused

When she finally found Azriel Helen felt like an idiot Azriel was standing in the middle of the Colosseum looking up at the sky

The vast building was empty as Azriel stood on the center stage with eyes closed The immense edifice was like a bowl held aloft to the sky The sunlight slowly filtered down filling the place with an incredible weight Thin layers of light refracted off of Azriel as she stood on the stage in the focal point If anything Helen became more aware of the intense silence here Staring at Azriel as she just seemed frozen in time

Helen couldnÆt bring herself to walk forward for a long time She simply watched In a way Helen knew Azriel They were both women who wanted to accomplish something Only the methods they went about it were quite different Azriel chased the feeling of control by perfecting her own spear art Helen got super fucking pissy about it

Basically the same Helen thought while wincing

After releasing a breath through her nose Helen walked out onto the Colosseum grounds

AzrielÆs eyes flicked open Helen Have you seen

Of course Helen retorted

Do you think it was Randidly

Helen had no answer for that It was the same question that she burned to ask Yet Helen could sense through their connection that Randidly was deeply involved with something currently She didnÆt want to send a message and risk distracting him from something important

Azriel I want to offer you something

Azriel twisted further and looked at Helen with an inquisitive look Helen couldnÆt help but notice how pristine HelenÆs clothes were Pure with with a crimson vest Her eyes seemed to burn like lanterns

Helen licked her lips We fucking won right So what the people need are a celebration The tournament it was derailed by the Wight attacks But now those fucks are gone And that fuck Silo well he attacked me in the chaos and I beat him Your opponent letÆs not pretend like he would have been your equal So what IÆm saying we should spread the word that we are finishing the tournament We can fight in front of the crowd winner take all I know how important proving your master is so letÆs settle this All of this The finals youÆve always waited for

Azriel just looked at Helen

Helen frowned What What are you looking at

You beat Silo AzrielÆs eyebrows quirked upward Surprising Not as surprising as you beating Skarch I suppose but still

Scowling Helen threw up her hands I get it IÆm the ultimate underdog Everyone is very shocked that I continue to be able to get myself out of bed without losing a fight Your glory if anything would be tarnished by a victory against me Why donÆt we all

Helen you know it’s not like that But AzrielÆs expression was sad It is too late My Master has left It matters not now whether I achieve glory This isnÆt my stage any longer All that remains is to watch as everything falls apart

Like the Wight army collapsed Helen said sardonically

For the first time since Helen had arrived in the Colosseum the pressure eased as AzrielÆs face twisted into a smile Truly it boggles the mind What other strange effects will the Ghosthound have on Tellus I for one am excited to find out

After a few seconds of silence Helen said again so no fight

No fight Azriel agreed At least not between us

Then her gaze lifted upward toward the heavy sun hanging in the sky but I doubt that the peace will last Especially now that the external threat has been removed from our necks I suspect very soon all those who have been waiting in the wings for hundreds of years will come forward staking their claim on the soul of Tellus

And those are the people we are going to rip to pieces for glory Helen asked Both women grinned It was a rhetorical question

Chapter 806

WHAT IN THE LIVING FUCK Ophelia bellowed The stone building shook around the three of them with the force of the expletive Shal kept his face studiously neutral as he allowed the noise to wash over him AylwindÆs only response was a dull grunt Both men watched as Ophelia waved a hand and shattered a wooden chair into splinters

For all it was a useful tool it was still of the Wights Aylwind said when Ophelia finished hyperventilating So

Do you know how fucking dumb you sound Ophelia hissed It was a tool of the Autarch The Wights were a nameless collective of energy led by a spiritual being that the Spearman destroyed hundreds of years ago The Autarch we know now is the Spearman It was his tool honed to a purpose And that purpose

Is accomplished is it not They were a means to an end To loosen the image of Tellus Aylwind scowled and scratched the back of his neck That has been done Do not belabor the point your anger is not becoming

Fools IÆm surrounded by fucking fools Ophelia threw her hands at the ceiling The ceiling and the floor above it were annihilated by the casual gesture Bits of debris clatters to the floor but most of it was simply gone The casual display of power did a lot to cool ShalÆs mood Above them the sun seemed to peer down through the open roof into the room

As the powdered wood floated downward ShalÆs eyebrow twitched With a supreme effort of will he suppressed the urge to reach up and knock away the sawdust with which he had been dusted

No matter your age you behave like a child Aylwind muttered but it was actually quite amusing to Shal that Aylwind kept his voice lowered It was clear which of these two Masters held the power in the relationship Which made Shal wonder whether he would be able to best Aylwind in combat

It would be a close thing he suspected but Shal believed he was almost there

Still Ophelia said patting the dust off of her leathers as though she hadnÆt destroyed the entire building above their meeting room All is not lost Due to the fighting there is no doubt that our chosen champion has benefitted from the Wight attack Shal have you reached Level 99 yet Are you close

Finally Shal could very easily resist the urge to smile Some part of him sensed that something very bad was about to arrive in this room What do you mean I am far from Level 99 I barely reached Level 98 during the attack The scant few Witch Kings I could find were far from enough to level me

OpheliaÆs wild frustrations were amusing The new deadly stillness as she affixed Shal with an incredibly intense look was far beyond that Repeat that

Shal considered for several seconds before responding You have heard what I said There is nothing more to clarify I am far from Level 99

Witch Kings OpheliaÆs voice was small Her eyes appeared vacant like she was studying something far away There were Propagators in the attack I believe they attacked the South quadrant When you patrolled

There were only Witch Kings Shal said with a shrug Aylwind seemed similarly confused looking from Shal to Ophelia and back again It did not reassure Shal that he and Aylwind were on the same page

There were Propagators You should have met Propagators Did you skimp on your patrols Of all times to fucking slack off

I did not slack off Shal said his eyes blazing There were no Propagators They ran after they set their petty fires Only Witch Kings

There were Propagators Five Ophelia was staring at the ground now Shal wondered if she was considering blowing up the floor beneath them I am very sure I they were there They had to be

There is no need to hide it Shal said as a small seed of certainty bloomed in his heart You arranged the attack All of this all of this death To push me to reach Level 99 Perhaps I donÆt even know anymore But it failed There were no Propagators in the South Quadrant

They were there Ophelia countered

And what I missed them No doubt you checked in on my progress and noticed that the Wights were cleared out after I passed through After your meddling with my dates I have a hard time believing that you would have trusted me enough to even allow me to wander away for the half hour IÆm surprised that you didnÆt insist that you be the chosen one yourself

If I could I WOULD have My image was the SpearmanÆs it was not enough to accomplish his goals With deep breaths Ophelia fought a losing battle with her rising temper Perhaps you let them escape Because I am sure they were there The order was given And for all the Wights had done to hurt us they have never disobeyed an order

There was a ringing beat of silence as Shal took that sentence in and then the Wraith Adder at his core slowly raised its amber gaze to glare at Ophelia Your arrogance is impossible to understand But I did not let them escape God help me I agree with Master Sky This was not a reliable tool

THEY WERE THERE Ophelia bellowed The floor rumbled ominously

The Wraith Adder slowly uncoiled in his chest If they were then why did I not find them Do you expect me to believe that they wandered off And it wasnÆt like someone could just waltz up to them and defeat them Who else in the city has that power

If they were there Aylwind cut in Shal would have found them For all his inexperience and weakness he is not inattentive

FUCK Ophelia bellowed She slammed her fist against the wall Shal was so taken by surprised when the building next door cracked and began to collapse that he couldnÆt stop the chuckle from escaping his lips

OpheliaÆs glare silenced him For all the Wraith Adder wouldnÆt accept being bullied there was no reason to antagonize her if he didnÆt need to After another whistling breath Ophelia folded her palms So you are not Level 99 You have not reached the point where you might take a Great Path But we have high Level Dungeons We can push you up to that Level

Besides Ophelia continued The opposing image is not yet ready Perhaps some patience is a good thing

Once again Silo experienced the sensation of dying It was not the sort of thing that grew more bearable with repetition if anything it grew worse

I hate this Silo swore to himself even as some stubborn fraction of his consciousness refused to give in to the sea of black pain he swam through

The strange runes on the ground followed by the bright vicious light that filled the world had ripped something precious from Silo The obsidian spider in his stomach collapsed dragging Silo down with it All the vital energy that the spider had infused him with dissipated All that was left were the dregs of life from his injured physical body

The obsidian spider had stitched Silo together so that he might serve it more efficiently For all that it wasnÆt concerned with his comfort it had ensured that he had a working body Rather than one of the Wight skeletons with a small bit of flesh manipulating the limbs his was a normal body

One that after several gasping minutes he managed to move

But for all that he had enough strength to manage for now something inside of him was fading He was living on borrowed time His stitched together body would not last long

Stumbling Silo wandered half blind through the city Although his senses were mostly fuzzy he had a strange unerring intuition that the answer to his problems lay within the city He simply had to make it there before his body failed

By the end Silo had to use his strange arms as crutches to continue to push himself forward He hobbled around like some sort of naked beetle the flesh of his back exposed to the air People saw him and let him pass without comment their glassy eyes wide with shock it had been a long day for everyone

When Silo barged into a building and reached the stairs he paused This was truly hell

What followed was a half hour that Silo would never forget Three times he vomited black blood making the stairs slick and dangerous Twice he slipped smashing his head against the hardwood The fourth time he vomited there was nothing left within him He just wretched until he could control his shaking enough to straighten

Once someone entered the house and began to walk up the stairs But one look at the trail of blood bile and scratched wood sent that individual running away screaming It did however give Silo a fresh wave of adrenaline With it he clawed his way upward

The top of the stairs was an accomplishment The long hallway afterward was a punishment

Perhaps the easiest part of the whole journey was the thin wooden door at the end of the hall While his left arm struggled to keep him upright he slashed with his right arm The door shattered

From her position in the bed Skarch looked upward So it is you

Silo didnÆt bother with pleasantries he simply murdered her and stole her image to fuel himself

Chapter 807

Lucretia made sure she was holding AltaÆs gaze before she spoke There are other ways you know Other paths forward

Not that Lucretia wasnÆt willing to see this version of Alta through to the end But Lucretia dearly wished that Alta would find happiness And this journey would not end in happiness

Those paths arenÆt mine Alta said looking away and toward the blockade waiting ahead of them As she had often of late Alta brought her gaze upward back to meet LucretiaÆs eyes And in AltaÆs eyes there was only darkness And I intend to bring the entire world around to my way of thinking before this ends

She doubts me Lucretia thought sadly as she looked at Alta Where there was once smooth skin and bright eyes there was now cloth and steam release valves Metal ventricles and a rubber skin substitute AltaÆs entire body was covered in a thick cloak that did its best to muffle the screech of metal against metal as she moved with only mild success Here toward the end she doubts even me

Bold Lucretia said with a soft smile She dare not examine the karma in AltaÆs chest lest her resolve waver Although she wasnÆt her child Lucretia would not let this girl child walk alone in the dark There are so many minds and so little time now Then letÆs continue

There was a sound of a tent flap opening and both women looked sharply up When she saw who it was Lucretia relaxed marginally It was the blonde specter of Lyra waltzing around inside RandidlyÆs Soulskill LyraÆs violet eyes flashed with a reciprocal recognition of the larger role that Lucretia served outside of the Soulskill but very quickly her gaze dropped to the ground

For this at least there was an unspoken agreement neither would mention who they truly were to Alta lest they distract from her mission It was enough that both were here to support Alta

Perhaps Lucretia should have been more protective of RandidlyÆs inner secrets and ejected such an interloper but Lucretia had sworn to herself to follow this girlÆs steps to the end Randidly would understand And if he didnÆt Lucretia supposed that this experience being there for a child surrogate was what she had always been looking for anyway

Maybe peace wouldnÆt be so bad

We are ready Lyra announced

Alta nodded Then letÆs begin

Very quickly the orders were issued and the horde of industrial carts rolled down the hill toward the blockade Along the path thousands of hungry scavengers watched their passage with hungry eyes They were the minor figures that werenÆt deemed critical by any of the factions Therefore in the strenuous lead up to this inspection they were given barely enough rations to eke out a living

Besides no one could miss the tension in the air The watchers piled themselves up like spectating hyenas waiting for the true powerhouses of the savannah to pull out their knives and begin the fight

Then they would move Even if they would just lick blood off the stained ground that was better than what they had now

Alta stood at the front riding the largest of the carts Lucretia and Lyra stood by her side staring down the opposition

The runes of the Progenitor were located in a canyon But in order to enter the canyon there was only one entrance which the other factions had used as the spot for a vast metal gate Geometric spikes spiraled off the top of the thirty meter high sheet of metal Honestly Lucretia had no idea where they had managed to obtain the materials for it

Secretly she suspected that the opposition had someone who understood one of RandidlyÆs Skills that could manipulate metal Otherwise such a swift construction would have been impossible

Lucretia and Alta had run heavy simulations where they brought the carts up onto the plateau circumvented the gate and then lowered themselves into the canyon Unfortunately if they were discovered at all the loss of life during the counterattack would have been catastrophic

Lucretia tried to avoid admitting that Alta had axed that plan not because of the loss of life but because fewer followers meant less chaos for covering what Alta truly wished to accomplish For all that Lucretia was determined to follow this through to the end sometimes Alta made it difficult

Lucretia calmly closed and opened her eyes She would not look away Not here at the end of things

The rumbling of the wheels of the carts as they funneled to the gate seemed like the only sound in the world Underneath her cloak LucretiaÆs talons twitched and undulated down her back They slowly unraveled from being twisted around her waist ready at even the slightest sign of violence to lash out at the defenders of the gate

Standing on top of the gate were four individuals The Monster Prince stood with his arms folded behind his back looking disturbingly like a greasy self satisfied Randidly Inwardly Lucretia hoped that the talks would break down so she would be able to punch the smug look off of his face For all that she and Randidly had been forced to make their peace due to their symbiotic relationship working with Randidly was not a stressless job

The guy was flighty and distractible to a fault Beating up this look a like would be a harmless stress relief

Beside him was his bodyguard a hulking Monster that was part dinosaur and part werewolf Most of his body was covered by dark blue scales but there were tufts of matted fur at his elbows shoulders and hips They represented the leadership and muscle of the Monster Factions

The Weaver faction was represented by a rather young looking weaver still the size of a gocart and an ancient White Hunter Even from this distance it was clear that the White Hunter had already gone blind But still Lucretia felt those rheumy eyes fix on her

So this is the answer you had for the Queen of Talons Lucretia thought with a small smile LetÆs see how deeply independence has allowed you to grow Mr Hunter

As if following LucretiaÆs train of thought exactly Alta whispered They underestimate you Creta They underestimate us both Let us teach them regret

LucretiaÆs grin widened Let us teach them providence A Path shaped by our own hands without relying on a godling for succor

Nodding shortly Lyra took a step back away from the other two womenÆs knowing glance IÆll assume my position

Ah good Alta grunted a metal finger scratching the seat of the cart as she methodically drew it back and forth DonÆt move unless you have to And when you move well make them bleed

After Lyra left Lucretia flexed her hands IÆm going to be sad when this is all over It has well I wouldnÆt trade our time together for anything else

Alta snorted DonÆt get soft on me now We have some idiots to fool

Alta stood straight for three hours while the inspectors scurried across her carts like ants Besides her was Creta as well as the four leaders of the opposition faction

Everyone watched stiffly as the investigations were carried out

While they looked over her decoys Alta looked at those four leaders Of them all the Monster Prince stunk of fear sweat Her new mechanical sensors likely werenÆt even necessary the boy was so green with fear that even Creta wrinkled her nose in distaste For all that he had led he was still withering before the impressive auras of Creta and herself

Much more troublesome were the other three The Monster PrinceÆs bodyguard was renowned for his ferocity It was with relish that Alta saw the Monster kept his eyes fixed on Creta The White Hunter panting feebly while they waited but Alta wasnÆt fooled for a second those fuckers only seemed to grow more wily with age She would know For perhaps a dozen years she had worked closely with a White Hunter of some renown

His plans were the most insidious she had ever seen It was a tragedy that he eventually grew disillusioned to her goals and called her mad and a liability Then she had to silence him which Alta knew had angered Creta Not because of the loss of life but because of how useful he was Although Creta was becoming increasingly cold in regards to the plan Alta knew the other woman would still see it through to the end

Then why did she say that about valuing our time Alta wondered Her scanners flicked to Creta whose heart rate was sitting at a mind boggling forty beats per minute That womanÆs iron nerve was impossible to understand Was she testing me Making sure my resolve hasnÆt weakened

Of the two of them Creta was the one who behaved more like a robot These days Alta felt out of control full of outbursts and barely controlled fury All the while Creta kept her eyes on the prize AltaÆs eyes narrowed There was no need IÆll burn this all to hell Creta IÆll get you the vengeance that we have waited so long for

And of them all standing there Alta hated the Weaver the most After her prior run in with the Weaver leader Alta would never be comfortable around them They were so still it was disturbing

Still her eyes scanned Alta looked for traps for hidden ambushes and most of all for the man who had been High King of the Earth Golems Of all those who possessed a significant amount of power he was the only unaccounted for force

That she was aware of at least

Well him and the entire population of Carthak Alta thought as the steel appendages of her hand tightened in a grinding hunk of metal It wonÆt be as satisfying to burn them all down without seeing that look of fear on their faces Their loss of hope Perhaps that is why we were so confidently received Are they working together with this group Hiding from me

AltaÆs fury mounted as her piercing scanners turned their attention back to the four individuals in front of her Food was dangerously close to running out even the Monster PrinceÆs deep pockets were emptied Although the other side had attempted some experiments with the ruins they didnÆt have the know how or the oomph to actually open a passage Then needed Alta

So even if they hated it

AltaÆs mouth stretched into a grin Soon they would let her in The door would open And then everything would end

Chapter 808

At two hours and fifty eight minutes a technician walked up the commanders Lucretia appraised him quickly He was a competent man but one vastly out of his depth here He had a greying mustache that was dripping with his sweat after the tense hours of examination

It ate away at the psyche when missing a single thing could mean the end of the world as you knew it

When the technician stopped in front of the leaders he twitched at the waist as though he wanted to bow but then thought better of it Instead he simply brought his hand to his chest Reporting WeÆve thoroughly investigated the machinery Everything checks out against the manifests we were given ItÆs good to go on through

Lucretia didnÆt look at Alta But she was still acutely aware of the other womanÆs lack of reaction

SheÆs becoming so good at hiding herself Lucretia thought sadly They had come so far over the past sixty years hadnÆt they

The Monster Prince coughed and looked at the Weaver and then at his bodyguard Intriguing So no tricks Alta Well that will certainly make things easier Open up the gates

What need is there for tricks Alta asked ArenÆt we all working toward the same thing To escape this failing world

As if to give weight to her words the sky rumbled with the crack of thunder Everyone shifted uneasily Storms on this lowest Land meant only one thing the Sea of Annihilation on which this Land floated would grow rough If rain actually fell on top of them it would be beyond dangerous The waters of the sea of annihilation could eat through metal better than acid could

You fool no one with your lies child The Weaver hissed

The Monster Prince gave the Weaver a meaningful glance to silence it and then gestured above his head The gates Open them What we look for is not an escape Alta it is salvation But IÆm glad to see you have come around to a more agreeable stance

That caused Alta to twitch in disgust which brought the first completely genuine smile of the day to LucretiaÆs lips it was good to see that Alta still couldnÆt stand the insufferable twat that was wearing RandidlyÆs face It had been an awkward explanation when Alta had believed the Monster Prince to be that same individual that Creta brought around for a visit

But the Monster PrinceÆs continued ineptitude eventually knocked the point home

With a grinding that was almost an answer to the cartsÆ rumbling when they rolled down the hill the gates slid open Typically the huge slab of metal moved at a glacial pace The technicians gathered up and trooped back through the opening followed by the opposing leadership Meanwhile Alta and Lucretia stood with the carts and waited while the gates opened enough for them to pass

Even once the gates were open all the way it was slow going The passage to the canyon only allowed one cart to proceed at a time and the track through the winding stone walls was rough Lucretia pressed her lips together The least the fuckers could have done was pave the road

But what truly dragged LucretiaÆs mood down into the dumps was that after ten minutes of rolling through the canyon was to reach an open area At the other end of which was a smaller but equally imposing metal gate

They were trapped

What is this Alta asked evenly calling out to the Monster Prince who stood on top of the gate

This Oh we will be transferring your machinery to our own carts Their wheels were designed for these rough tracks It seems yours havenÆt been faring so well The Monster Prince responded in a sing song voice Is that a problem It shouldnÆt be unless have you hidden something from us I thought we were past this Alta

Neither Alta or Lucretia bothered to respond They simply descended from the cart as a swarm of technicians and mechs came out to switch the equipment from AltaÆs carts to their own

A neat trap Alta said lightly They likely made preparation to transport the equipment we disclosed safely so we cannot reasonably complain as to their handling They would have made preparations

Fools Lucretia replied quietly They seek to bind us with social decorum

Alta nodded This farce is based on the premise we donÆt wish to force the issue But this is all just to penetrate as deeply as possible before being discovered so that the eventual slaughter is that much easier There is no rush

There was enough volume to AltaÆs voice that a nearby technician froze as she spoke The man spun slowly saw that Alta was watching him and then hurried away

Lucretia clucked Unnecessary That warning will make them waste more time on this

Alta shrugged IÆm tired of all this Creta IÆve waited so long My family is waiting Danz is waiting IÆm just ready for our

Alta trailed off as the technicians finished transferring the equipment to their own cart and the newly loaded cart continued Alta and Lucretia waited for the next cart to arrive Following the lead cart was pointless there was nothing on it of use

Better to just wait here for the inevitable

The discovery of their hidden cart was likely an accident The mech handling the larger piece was clumsy and a corner brushed up against one of AltaÆs prior carts that had already been cleared of machinery Perhaps the Monster Prince thought he was being extraordinarily clever by this plan but his good cheer had quickly fled when Alta and Lucretia had remained stone faced while the machinery was moved

And yet such was the Monster PrinceÆs luck that he hadnÆt thought through what would happen if neither Alta nor Lucretia responded to this change So he hadnÆt figured out what to do with the carts They were soon stacked and the open area was wide but there was a lot of carts Space filled up

Alta had insisted that they bring a wall of machinery So that the opposition was aware how out of depth technologically they were

But the lifter mech bumped the turbine with the secret compartment up against another cart By some weird coincidence the mechanism triggered and the thing popped open The small blocky cart rolled out and clunked against the ground

AHA The Monster Prince bellowed He opened his mouth once more likely to continue gloating but the blast of Cruel Indignation of Yggdrasil that radiated out from Lyra was enough for the fool to choke on his own glee

The shimmery silver mech exploded out from the block cart with an EMP wave that fried all the mechs of the opposition As they fizzled and shut down the silver mech landed On its back were two brutally stylized wings that Lyra had insisted on that were disturbingly reminiscent of LucretiaÆs own In her one hand she held a black scimitar In her right a gatling gun

The thing looked like the angel of death incarnate

About damn time Alta muttered She pressed a button on her wrist communicator All teams move in bring the ash

As the silvery mech exploded out of the cart CailmÆs hands tightened into fists He felt the wave of mental agony that spread out from that thing and endured it with pure stubbornness His body quivered but he didnÆt look away from the monster that had stopped his glorious rise short

Then as the silver mech began to spray bullets amongst the technicians Cailm released a breath and forced his body to relax For all that he wanted to destroy that thing that was not his fight With a light step he dropped off of the plateau and descended into the canyon below

Already the individuals brought by the Metal queen produced their insulated mechs and began to launch attacks on the gate Blasts of fire and ash crisscrossed the chaos the small area Metal bubbled and melted Cailm could hear the approach of a larger force from the Metal Queens camp ready to force the issue

With a crash he smashed into the ground just as the Queen of Talons spun out of the way

Already the Weaver and White Hunter had arrived the three together surrounding Creta and boxing in her movements Alta had already escaped but once the Queen of Talons was no more Alta could be easily dealt with

With relish Creta ripped open her cloak and revealed the two long and sinewy appendages that ended in talons She spun slowly on her heel eyeing the three So I am the target am I And you will let the silver golem run rampant

There was an explosion by the gate as the silver golem crashed into it The hinges screamed and groaned beneath the force Very quickly smoke billowed upward to obscure the vision of what was really happening

CretaÆs eyes settled on Cailm I am surprised You donÆt seek revenge

Cailm simply hefted his saber

Laughing Creta spun around Her talons rose above her head to point at them Fine then The first dance is mine Come quickly I have somewhere else to be

Chapter 809

With the distractions by Creta and Lyra Alta slipped through their noose and proceeded deeper into the box canyon For all that she was intrigued that the Monster Prince was the opponent chosen for Lyra while three of their other haymakers were used on Creta she kept her eyes forward If she managed to accomplish her mission all of this would end The rest didnÆt matter so much

Creta would be fine without her Alta thought bitterly She always had been

There were a few guards which Alta reduced to ash on sight but most of the forces were behind in the ever growing melee Even as Alta rushed forward she could feel the cracks and booms of battle shake the entire canyon Small pebbles dislodged and fell down the walls hopping and skipping into her path

Something to watch Alta reflected eyeing the canyon walls carefully Truly just as the Monster Prince hadnÆt thought about what to do with the carts Alta hadnÆt thought about what would happen if their fighting destroyed the canyon and collapsed tons of stone on top of the ruins

It would be quite awkward to fight off the other factions while the excavated the runes that Alta needed to work A strange reversal of their current position that Alta hoped to avoid

When Alta rounded the next corner she stopped Because there they were

With trembling hands that couldnÆt even be hidden by her largely metal body she traced the runes that covered the ground They spiraled and twisted together in strange patterns drawing the fabric of this world

Well that wasnÆt accurate Alta reflected as she picked her way through the deserted ruins This was not the origin of this world

Whatever these were it spoke to the origin of the Progenitor himself A smaller and simpler genesis but with far reaching repercussions

Very quickly AltaÆs expression turned sour She took stock of the area

The runes were only in a thirty meter in diameter circle There were strangely shaped protuberances covered in the thin impressions and then several dozen meters of flat ground that had been carefully swept

Another rumble moved through the canyon floor Alta grimaced better to get to work then

In the center of the runes was the most densely packed of the runes They spiraled together and formed a circle that could only be described as a door It was due to that resemblance that the other factions believed that it was possible to use the door to pass to another better world The ProgenitorÆs world A world that wasnÆt floating on a sea that would destroy them all One that wasnÆt afflicted by fickle seasons and unpredictable calamities

Which was foolish Alta knew

Based on her research and her experience in the prior runes there still existed a connection between the Progenitor and the world It was a spiritual connection of indeterminate strength there was no real way to test the extent of the connection from within the world But it was clear that things the Progenitor did affected the world By extension things that happened here should affect the Progenitor

What the Monster Prince and his ilk wanted to do was flood this side of the connection with energy Hopefully that would cause a commiserate amount of energy from the Progenitor With energy flooding from both sides well this was where Alta lost any sort of faith in their plan

With energy flowing from both sides the other people hoped a portal would be established A connection that it would be possible to physically pass through Or at the very least the energy would flood into this world and rid it of the endless Sea of Annihilation below Which is why Alta couldnÆt support such a plan

In addition Alta had lived a life that had seen everything precious she possessed ripped away for the greedy satisfaction of others If there really was a Progenitor he had let such things happen without lifting a finger AtlaÆs story was one of thousands that were torn apart by a force she had no hope of resisting And the world grew increasingly strange as the ProgenitorÆs actions warped the core of the world to destructive tendencies

If you want destruction Alta thought bitterly IÆll give it to you

In her chest heat slowly built She called on the image of Ash that she held close to herself every moment of the day and it answered Heat flowed through her and into the runes below It was a balancing act because the shallow nature of the markings made it so they could hold very little energy But Alta had practiced a lot for this moment

And she was very very good

AltaÆs plan started the same as the other plan Fill the connection between the world and the Progenitor with energy Draw the reaction Then their viewpoints diverged Rather than hoping for some sort of arc that would carry them away from their doom Alta accepted the doom of the world She just wanted to drag the Progenitor down with them

She would ignite the energy and burn the connection to ashes They would be severed totally and completely Alta didnÆt concern herself with the details of the fall out because she didnÆt care What she wanted was to make the fickle and thoughtless god who had created this world pay Afterward Alta would be at peace She didnÆt care what would happen then

That was her and CretaÆs answer to the god who had asked impossible things of them

Her eyes glowed with glee as the runes slowly began to emit light From the outside working inwards light traveled through the runes slowly flowing like water

Brighter and brighter on the ground hotter and hotter in her chest as she drew more and more from the ashen image It was pain but a welcome one Just a bit more and

The energy reached the central area the door The ground cracked and dissolved and Alta fell with the broken pieces of the runes into the area below

PROGENITORÆS SLIMY DICK Alta swore struggling to right herself after crashing to the ground There were a few nearby boulders that she smashed into that she burnt into bubbling slime in her fury If the runes were broken then she wouldnÆt be able to

Alta froze

The air around her flickered and then like a hazy mist another world appeared before her eyes It was somewhat like the dreaming of the highest Land but this was a shallow and weak reflection that Alta was seeing currently It hung around like the ghost of clothing over the caves she was in but she could clearly see the cave system around her

She was in a room The colors of the ghost room were bright and eye catching But it was a small room In the room with Alta there was a figure Male His hair was short and dark From his stance he was furious with Alta And suddenly Alta realized there was a ghost on her too She was someone else in this dream world She was the Progenitor

She wore his limbs like a strange coat They shifted and moved with her as she raised the pale and fuzzy hand in wonder

The male figure was shouting ghostly words that held no weight No sound reached AltaÆs ears Heedless she walked to a mirror on the far wall of the short room The mirror itself was fuzzy but the reflection was crystal clear a pale faced ten year old Alta stared back at her out of her fuzzy body

Such was the shock that Alta couldnÆt look away for several seconds The other AltaÆs eyes widened

Then Alta twisted and sprinted away running out of the small room She ran down ghostly stairs to the ground floor with long windows but then she continued running downward Her ghostly feet knew where she needed to go There was a door and then a long hallway A tunnel through the ground The air here was so heavy it was difficult to breathe

The heat in AltaÆs chest was unbearable The fabric of the dream seemed to hum as Alta proceeded farther down the hallway

Eventually she reached a spot in the hallway that was different The dream was singing around her a distant song And on the ground a mirror of the runes above this time spun in gold and glowing with the power to

Welcome to the beginning

Alta spun around The dream was gone and now she was in a deep cave with a strange emerald illumination from pools of glowing liquid The runes were still there a mirror of the faded runes above done artfully in gold the true runes that were the core of this land And sitting next to the runes were two Earth Golems

At least thatÆs what IÆve been told This is the spot the Progenitor was born The female Earth Golem looked to the scarred male who nodded and folded his arms The woman turned back to Alta IÆm not very religious you understand But I believe in what I can see and I can certainly see the power of this place

Who are you Alta whispered staring at the two of them She could feel the power of their images even now They would not be easy opponents

The man grinned stretching the scars across his face I am the knife that will end you abomination You will not destroy the ProgenitorÆs work Before your device arrives we shall end you

We are the blood of Carthak The woman said softly The blood blessed by the Progenitor I am not normally the violent sort but we will stop you Without your precious machines or mechs we

Alta began to laugh The heat was growing worse in her chest She felt the urge to cough even though her physical esophagus had been replaced long ago She laughed for almost a minute while the two Earth Golems watched

Finally she forced herself to stop continuing was too painful Finally she could admit it Finally she could speak of the sacrifice she had made for her and CretaÆs dream and never spoken a word of

Not even to Creta Especially not to Creta Because she wouldnÆt understand My device The machinery above Fools Do you know for how long IÆve dreamt of this day How long IÆve waited How long IÆve planned Of course you donÆt

The heat at AltaÆs core grew unbearable as the furnace in her chest began firing on all cylinders The cloak around her began to smolder and burn away There is no device because IÆve made myself into the key that will tear this all down I am your dreaded device Lament because your prayers have gone unanswered You are too late to stop me

Chapter 810

Drawing the vast sea of energy that he had gathered from Tellus to himself took Randidly quite a while In fact it took so long that he very nearly thought that he had missed his chance to alter the course of his Soulskill

The pain in his chest began to pulse with increasing regularity as he struggled to manage the tides of power All the while Randidly sat with gritted teeth and funneled more and more energy into his body The problem was the same one that he had encountered when spreading Aether throughout Earth energy movement was a cascading phenomenon

The more of the stuff he moved the more he had to resist its urge to accelerate even further Honestly Randidly had a secret worry that if he allowed the energy suction to cascade he would end up draining Tellus dry He wasnÆt willing to completely turn this place in an energy desert just because of a Soulskill situation that he himself caused Such was the heavy weight of responsibility

It was a game of tug of war on a tightrope Every second seemed to stretch More and more energy went inside his body where the strange egg that was born of his broken Skills waited

This would be the seed of the new world His world But he needed the energy in order to force it to grow

And not just his own energy He would need the SoulskillÆs assistance as well

But one hurdle at a time

Finally the last of the energy slithered into Randidly and he sealed his body to prevent any leakage Already the ground on which he sat had been crystallized in a strange wave formation For the rest of TellusÆ existence it was likely that this spot would remain a mystery as to what caused the strange crystallization phenomenon Maybe he was sitting on the site of a future paleontological dig

Or perhaps they wouldnÆt wonder as to the cause Randidly reflected After all word would spread that this was the spot on which the Wights were defeated

Keeping himself sealed was difficult so Randidly devoted a lot of Willpower to holding the energy within him Slowly he could feel the interior of his Soul Space changing which was a good sign Just also a dangerous one But now wasnÆt really the time to worry about the consequences With the energy handled for the moment Randidly finally dropped into his Soulskill

What he found was devastation The people of the upper lands struggled to rebuild their lives after the Procession had descended through them and took everything required to survive leaving the remnants practically nothing Some fled trying to follow the Procession Most of those died on the journey It was just impossible to continue in the wake of that disaster

There were some small to medium sized communities outside of the Procession that survived But Randidly was horrified to see that the experience of dealing with the Procession twisted those communities into extremist communes Religious elements ruled the roost there relying on superstition and fear to keep the people under their control

Aside from the lowest Land all lands were filled with vast stretches of countryside that were just lying fallow Discarded farm equipment and trampled towns dotted the landscape Likely they would heal in a generation or two as vegetation reclaimed the space but it was just spooky

No longer was solely the highest Land haunted by ghosts

And in the lowest Land there was war

Randidly breathed in and breathed out He felt the fabric of the Soulskill Then he stepped and reached out with a hand that surrounded his target like a net Gotcha

LyraÆs reaction was quick but this time Randidly was prepared to deal with her His fingers were every root and vine in this entire world His was the wind and the skies There was nowhere she could escape

She was in the middle of beating up a group of people led by the Monster Prince who wore his face That was somewhat amusing for Randidly to see For all her other faults being weak was not a problem Lyra possessed When Randidly intervened the Monster Prince flinched as if expecting another blow to smash him backward

Randidly favored him with a withering glance Snot nosed brat IÆll get to you in a minute

Seeing that the Monster Prince was just staring Randidly turned back to Lyra Pouting she threw her hands up into the air

Doggy youÆll never believe how cathartic this is Punching someone with your face

Randidly shook her once jarring her soul painfully Although she wasnÆt here physically she had split off a portion of her soul to slip into his Soulskill He couldnÆt inflict any real damage to her but harming this bit of Lyra would definitely cause her no end of pain But honestly that wasnÆt RandidlyÆs goal

Perhaps satisfying but ultimately only a short term satisfaction

It was still very tempting

Why are you here Randidly asked the sharp fingers of his grips tightening on her for emphasis

Lyra shook her head helplessly for several seconds before speaking I miss you I donÆt know why but everywhere you go you alter the System ItÆs so fascinating So I wanted to see how your Soulskill

Can you see how this is not helping me trust you Randidly said tiredly He didnÆt have time with this For all LyraÆs mature looks and harsh upbringing she was young At her twisted core Randidly knew that she was truly fascinated by him Even if that fascination only extended as far as the next way to manipulate him the curiosity was genuine

But Randidly couldnÆt stomach what parts of herself she was willing to sell in order to satisfy that burning curiosity

Hey I actually have an answer for that Lyra said with a grin She was lovely and cute as an impish kitten and knew it Randidly you donÆt need to worry about the Creature anymore I promise She believes she has already won SheÆs moved on to other worlds Because she shaped your fears enough that

I get it IÆm sorry Lyra but what follows is private Randidly flicked his wrist and shredded the soul a bit before banishing it from inside himself Then he turned to the Monster Prince

To his surprise the Monster Prince spoke first you You are the one running around claiming to be me

Shaking his head Randidly just said I really donÆt have time for this Spend less time worrying about what others think about you and more time improving the lives of your subjects

Randidly stepped and crossed the battlefield to a broken corner of the canyon Here was an area covered in cracks and burns from a battle that had even Randidly raising his eyebrows These fighters could hold their own even if he brought them to Tellus As he drew closer he found a Weaver body cracked open like an egg in the middle of a crater Beyond that there was an ancient looking White Hunter with both of its arms ripped off lying slumped against a piece of stone

As Randidly approached the White Hunter stirred and looked up at him We have waited so long Progenitor This old one cannot keep to the ways any longer Apologies

After hesitating Randidly reached and touched the White HunterÆs head For a split second Randidly saw this old manÆs entire life One of AnnieÆs this White Hunter was filled with an unyielding loyalty Stubbornly his entire life he taught young White Hunters the gathered stories of the Progenitor Struggling to help those who came under his wing never compromising When slighted this White Hunter would bury the emotions and remember the grudge But his was a fair and principled mind Always he would see justice done

And as the world began to fail he never once lost faith

But what Randidly also saw was that this White Hunter barely had enough blood left in his body to be living let alone truly see All he could witness was a blur come into his vision and the White Hunter hailed it as the Progenitor Hell it felt like almost anyone could have walked by and been called Progenitor

But of course it wasnÆt anyone It was him the true Progenitor And for that White HunterÆs soul that strange twist of chance would make all the difference Carefully gathering those powerful feelings and traits into himself Randidly continued forward

That was the trick of faith Randidly suddenly thought believing for long enough that the one time it matters you wonÆt fuck it up

Beyond that was a one armed Earth Golem holding a broken saber Even though his body was crisscrossed with grievous wounds he looked up as Randidly approached

Cailm grunted his annoyance clear So you have come I should have known You are a pestilence upon my fate

RandidlyÆs smile was sad A moment one who had been High King You come second right now There is another who I need to speak with much more pressingly

After blinking recognition filled CailmÆs eyes Ah Of course It is so Ah you will need to excuse me just step around I am unable

I know itÆs fine Randidly said softly He really did mean to speak a bit with Cailm before he continued through the area But there was another who demanded his attention

Beyond Cailm laying in a crater with her lavender hair spread around her was Lucretia A saber blow had cleaved her almost in half at the midsection She slowly bled out staring up at the sky

As she struggled to speak her lips were so very dry and her tongue was too clumsy to properly lick them I I lost

Chapter 811

Randidly chuckled despite the panic fluttering in his stomach It was hard to suppress the memories of the time they had spent together working on understanding Mana Engraving Of course you did You lost sight of why you are fighting What did you expect

Instantly some of the old spunk of Lucretia appeared on her face Her glower had physical weight Hmph What would you know of my failure oh lofty Progenitor

RandidlyÆs grin shrunk A lot You fought here in my Soulskill Now that IÆm looking I can feel the threads of meaning running through it all

So you offer me salvation once more Another chance at life Lucretia asked her gaze fixing on Randidly with a strange desperation Then Lucretia began to cough her upper body shuddering while her lower body lay completely still a small distance away

After she had finished coughing Randidly slowly shook his head IÆm not giving you any special treatment if thatÆs what you are asking I canÆt It wasnÆt my power that gave you your first chance Lucretia It was your own

So I die Lucretia said With the slowness of failing capability she brought her had to her chest in wonder To think I am so sad And scared I donÆt There was so much to do I must I must watch Alta to the end Has she

Not yet Randidly stood and looked West where Alta battled against Allica and Rejt Then he lowered himself down on his haunches to be next to Lucretia She fights even now It seems like she should be able to overwhelm them But she is not doing that Such is the Path she has chosen Too blind to see the way forward

Lucretia seemed to think about that Blood continued to pour out of her wound Randidly could sense that the time for Lucretia was growing short If she wanted to speak she had better do it soon

But Randidly realized that he couldn’t force these conversations That was what he had learned from trying to talk to Cailm so often

So it always is between parents and children Randidly thought as he stared at the bloodstained stones beneath Lucretia That the adults have the understanding and the preparation but the children have all of the control Because I made this world it was always my responsibility to make myself available to guide them And I didnÆt

They asked for me over the years And I wasnÆt fucking there

Why Once more Lucretia licked her lips Why did I lose

Because you didnÆt want to win Randidly said softly

Lucretia gave Randidly a death glare that had him chuckling again Randidly shrugged No itÆs true You were so fixated on being there for Alta that you stopped listening to what you wanted You were just like a security camera Watching under the guise of protection But for it Alta grew spoiled

WhatÆs a security camera

Randidly sourly looked up at the sky Really this was where the System translation failed him But explaining would take too long

So Randidly shrugged again and said What I mean is that there is more to being a parent than being there You also have to communicate You stopped communicating You allowed a child to shape the future before she was ready and this is the result

Lucretia gave Randidly a hard look You are certainly acting knowledgeable these days

He winced Yes My crime is a hundred times worse than your own But I intend to fix that Do you

Lucretia bared her teeth IÆm dying

And youÆve died before Randidly said as he straightened Do you remember what you were thinking when the Autarch unwound the fabric of what you once were There was a spark there Something that refused to be extinguished That sustained you then It might do so again Good luck

Walking away Randidly ignored LucretiaÆs desperate pants and approached Cailm He had collapsed and was now leaning up against a small stone boulder When Randidly arrived before him Cailm looked up with suspicious eyes I suppose you have some thoughts on what I should do now yes I am uninterested My life is my own

Do you know why the Emperor was so powerful Randidly said as he crouched before Cailm

Cailm blinked

Well this is a little roundabout But do you much about chemistry Seeing CailmÆs expression Randidly hurried along well anyway suffice to say that matter all that exists is made up of bonds Bonds are stored energy To create a bond you need to remove energy from the world Reciprocally when you break a bond energy is released Understand

Cailm was frowning An improvement

The reason you will never be the Emperor is that you are attempting to reach his power by creating something By building an empire with a heavy crown But you canÆt wield that power while creating Energy is stored during the creation of something with the longevity of a crown or empire You need to destroy a bond to get there With a flicker of will Randidly conjured the Crown of Cataclysm and Gloom above his head He reached up and tapped its grey metal The Emperor you so worship gave up his crown destroyed his kingdom and his lineage laid it all aside to protect his people That was his strength That was why the world still trembles at his name Nothing in this world comes without a cost Cailm

Then Randidly stepped away proceeding deeper into his Soulskill Honestly he was beginning to like this godling stuff Always getting to have the last word was a feeling that he could get used to

Allica pressed her hand to her side to stem the flow of blood Most of her other wounds had been cauterized closed by the Metal QueenÆs attacks but when Allica had been slammed into the wall a long shard of stone ripped open a gash in her side Gritting her teeth Allica channeled every bit of healing she knew into the wound

She would even drink a bit of that emerald essence if she could but she was too far away from any of the surrounding pools And the nearby pool they had dumped on the Metal Queen in order to put out the vicious waves of flame that surrounded her like a cloak

I canÆt fail here We had a dream our dream will change this whole fucked up world The Metal Queen bellowed The flames around her rose higher She was barely visible in the core of that fire a thing of blurred shapes and fury rather than a person

In front of her Rejt flashed a tired smile For the Progenitor there is always more work to be done Come then abomination Let me lay you to rest

Both figures cracked the ground as they launched themselves forward The Metal Queen ripped forward and slashed out sending claws made of flame chasing after Rejt Rejt skipped sideways cutting with his palm that shot sharp blades of air at the Metal Queen The blows ripped through the fire surrounding her and smashed into her with enough force to stagger her but after a single unsteady step she twisted around once more Fury built in the air around her

I canÆt fall here The Metal Queen panted For Creta for our dream just BURN

There was an audible snap in the air and then a beam of hyper concentrated fire and ash shot outward toward the spot where Rejt had just landed Allica paled as Rejt raised his hands to conjure a blade of air but he held that concentration for far too long

But Allica knew that had no other choice If he didnÆt empower that blade it wouldnÆt cut through the Metal QueenÆs attack But that meant

There was a blur from the side and a body superimposed itself between Rejt and the beam A wave of heat followed by a booming crack smashed into Allica She felt blood spurt between her fingers as the blast aggravated her wounds The heat was such that her eyebrows were burnt away even from the thirty meter distance between Allica and the epicenter of the blast

As Allica blinked the ash was ripped aside by a blade of wind so large that it scared the ground and ceiling with its passage Like a cold Northern wind it blew and extinguished the fire that surrounded the Metal Queen Underneath the flames the remnants of the woman were thin and sickly with withered skin between hissing cherry red plates of metal

But The Metal Queen stumbled I wonÆt fucking let

You are beyond your depth Rejt rumbled He walked over and touched the charred corpse of Tessa who had thrown herself between him and the blast His face was covered in deep shadows as he considered his three year companion Sleep Your dream dies here

Chapter 812

Randidly arrived around the time that AltaÆs confusion at her loss dissolved into sobs Almost unseeing she looked up at him as he stood over her and slowly gathered her hands into his own Why

IÆm sorry Someone should have told you long ago They should have warned you that this Path was empty Randidly said softly

AltaÆs hands tightened around his own But it was MY Path I chose it

You chose wrong So IÆm here to ask As Randidly spoke he felt the rotten karma moving in AltaÆs chest Old wrongs ready to weigh heavily upon him for the rest of his days if he chose the easier path But like he told Cailm all things had a cost

Within AltaÆs chest the old flowers twitched Their petals had long fallen off of and pooled in her chest The rancid smell of rot hung around her soul like a mangy dog begging for scraps of food All of Alta had slowly been destroyed from within by the heavy weight of this karma that had been left to die

Could I have said something that day when I showed her the true power of ash Randidly wondered And he knew the answer was yes What he could have shown her didnÆt matter What would have mattered was that he took responsibility for what he had done He could have talked with her He should have shown her that ash was not everything

But he hadnÆt And this karma now bound him to ask of Alta a favor

All things had a cost

I ask for forgiveness Randidly said simply

Fuck you Alta spat out Then she died the image inside of her extinguished

Sighing Randidly straightened He turned to Rejt who had finished making his peace with the passing of Tessa The two men regarded each other silently for several seconds

To you too I apologize Randidly said with a short bow IÆve made too many mistakes to count There might not have been an easy answer for how to stop what happened here but that doesnÆt mean that it isnÆt my responsibility

Rejt shrugged and walked over to Allica helping her stand Bah we are friends There is no need to ask for forgiveness I am sure I might make some minor mistakes in the future that will require forgiveness as well Such is life

RandidlyÆs eyebrows twitched I donÆt think you understand IÆm the Progenitor All of this

It is known Rejt nodded sagely Did you not tell me years ago in the cathedral of your making

Randidly opened his mouth and paused Well he had told Rejt he was the Progenitor in the Cathedral while they were cleaning but Rejt had acted amused like Randidly had spoken a joke So Randidly had thought he hadnÆt been believed Perhaps it is so Which explains why some of your prayers have been so irreverent over the past few months

Rejt grinned I have not seen it written that God and Earth Golem may not be friends So I am candid It is one of my many virtues As is magnanimity I forgive you Randidly

Chuckling Randidly turned to Allica

She regarded him skeptically We believed you to be the Monster Prince To think we had shot too low Well I must say you really fucked this one up

Randidly threw his hands up in the air This is my first time And to be clear I allowed you to fuck up I didnÆt cause this

Allica grunted I get the picture Man itÆs hard to even believe You are the Progenitor I used to hear stories about you And all the while you were traveling from Land to Land taking odd jobs ThatÆs a really weird way to run a world Maybe a good one but IÆd think youÆd have better things to do than just shifting rocks

Smiling Randidly didnÆt bother to answer He simply waited for her decision

AllicaÆs face scrunched up as she thought about it Then she shrugged Well yea I forgive you too IÆve not been perfect I just have one question was the Emperor real Did he really exist

Yea Randidly said shortly

Fuck me Allica muttered Then she raised her finger and pointed it meaningfully at Randidly chest ThatÆs all well and good but donÆt let my brother know that He will hold that over my head for years The guy is stubborn as a mule

Fine fine Randidly said feeling relieved in some strange way These two for all that they were a part of his Soulskill he liked them Which was the price of asking for forgiveness Randidly supposed That from now on he would always be equal to them rather than a god

All things had a price

When Randidly spoke to Alat he had two choices He had chosen the hard route Because now he needed to make some sacrifices

What now Rejt asked Oh great Progenitor give us the briefest peek into your vast and intrepid psyche

The factions of the Procession are still killing each other above Allica grunted For all that the Procession is well and fucked theyÆve spent years learning to hate each other It won’tÆ be easy to resolve

Most food sources are destroyed apart from ours Rejt said with a shake of his head We fed the Monster Prince because he was a damn sight better than the Metal Queen but it beggared us to do it Hard enough to survive in this cave without supporting the bloated corpse of one of royal blood

The Lands are widely destroyed and plundered Allica added

CanÆt move the population without food and food canÆt grow enough food here Rejt piled on

Randidly raised his hands I get it I know IÆll handle it But

Glaring at Rejt Randidly pointed at the deep crack that had been ripped in the golden symbols on the ground by RejtÆs final attack Was this really necessary

Rejt adopted a contemplative expression Hum An interesting time to start asking whether things are necessary IsnÆt your world about to collapse on itself

A few minutes ago as he held Alta Randidly could have asked Alta to use her power to fuel the new world that he wanted to create for the people of the Soulskill It would have been a less anticlimactic ending for one And she would have refused him in the same way she refused the forgiveness but Randidly sensed she would have created a huge amount of energy in her rage

That energy would have been tainted but Randidly could have appropriated it to help form the new world The energy he had stolen from the Wights would have been the other half Together it would be difficult to predict the consequencess going forward for his Soulskill

There definitely would have been consequences too

But Randidly was tired of pushing off the payments he needed to make for his Soulskill to later It was time to pay them in full

Well IÆll find you later I have work to do Randidly announced The two nodded and Randidly was gone He flew up to his real body and contacted Io and Yonna as well as the other leaders of those who had accepted his image in Tellus

Very quickly he had their agreement and they shifted to the formation around him that Randidly had indicated Then with a long sigh he went inward to the many runes that made up who he was Everything was there Skills Stats Soulskill images they all coexisted mixing and mingling

Beyond them was the Aether Crossroads continuing to flood him with Aether It came readily to his command willing to construct for him a world But what Randidly wanted to do was not to create another world per se what he wanted to bring another world here to his Soulspace

He would not shatter his Soulskill and remake it He wanted to help it morph into something more complete and healthy And to do that something more than simply throwing energy at it was necessary He needed an image He needed a focus where the world would be born within himself and an idea for its shape

But aside from the mental side of things Randidly needed three elements in order to create the world

The first was a vast sea of external energy on the physical side so his body could be terraformed into something capable of supporting a world Just thinking about the details made Randidly cross eyed but he could sense that it would work with the energy he had plundered from the Wights

The second thing was the easiest he needed something to be the physical core of his new world The seed that was born of his ashen image would do wonderfully Plus it had been slowly snacking on other images that flowed into him with his Aether Crossroads Of all the images he had access to it was the most complete and balanced

The final thing Randidly needed was another huge amount of energy on the Soulskill side to push the inhabitants over to the physical realm

Such was his energy need that he didnÆt dare simply draw it from the Aether Crossroads not only was there the danger of losing himself to the energy but it would also take too long to gather His Soulskill was rotting from the inside out Everything had been expended to get the population of his Soulskill to this point They had nothing left to give

The reason he was taking this path was to save the lives of those that remained If he had to wait well

He needed energy inside of himself right now But technically it didnÆt need to come from the people of his Soulskill

With a shake of his head RandidlyÆs consciousness floated into himself and felt the runes that created his Class Then he slowly found his different Stats and Attributes RandidlyÆs focus settled on one in particular

ProgenitorÆs Influence From it threads of connection spread outward to a few different Paths and Skills It even went to his current Path

Randidly had already made this choice He had given up his role as godling to be regarded as a person by his Soulskill Like the Emperor he was giving up the influence he had over his Soulskill

And in exchange found power

Chapter 813

Sir the Oracle is moving Heading ashore Toward us

Platton looked sharply up at his second in command YouÆre sure

Positive The man said He seemed to hesitate then say ThereÆs nothing else to see around here ThereÆs just us in the surrounding areas We sent the scouts out as far as they could go in eight hours but found nothing but dead Wights and empty caves

Even now Platton struggled to understand what exactly was going on Had the strange formation that Randidly created truly eradicated the Wights It was horrifying It was somewhat emasculating that a decades long war could be solved in an afternoon

But there was no option but to believe when he had witnessed the thing first hand

Sighing Platton waved his hand in the air And the forces under Sir Ghosthound

Still largely out of commission Io sent over a runner that they were handling the feedback from something Since then theyÆve been huddled together From what we can see about half are unconscious The rest look like theyÆve been double marching on no sleep But theyÆve just been standing there

Platton grunted Typical Randidly has cloistered himself away and someone far beyond PlattonÆs ability to deal with was rushing toward their current location

Yet despite how Platton knew he should be feeling the corners of his mouth were turning upward They had won Despite what the abrupt approach of the Oracle might mean they had won The Wights were defeated Maybe just for the short term until they recovered from this setback And maybe in just a small area who knows what the area of the strange ritual ended up being Randidly had been very vague about the details

But they had won

Fuck yea Platton quietly murmured

His second who had been about to leave the room paused Did you say something sir

Platton flushed We have work to do LetÆs get to it begin preparations to receive the Oracle

Allica looked at RejtÆs back after Randidly left Both were slowing beginning to treat their wounds You knew the whole time he was the Progenitor

Rejt flashed a smile and continued to bandage his shoulder Of course not But it is not good for our god to know all our secrets This way he will not underestimate us going forward

Pursing her lips Allica said this way he wonÆt have a firm grasp on reality you mean

Ah the vicissitudes of godhood Rejt remarked with genuine fondness Then he shook his head But Randidly must learn to dress the part As it is he is always barefoot Is being a god truly so hard that he cannot even find time to visit a cobbler

Allica opened her mouth to reply but was stopped as a dull rumble through the cave system around them Following that there was a second of silence as Allica and Rejt looked at each other with worry in their eyes If the fighting above had reached the point that it was hurting the structure of the caves

For all their strength a ton of stone being dropped on them would be overkill for a total burial

But then Randidly flickered into being next to them Quickly come here ItÆs time to move on This place well ItÆs being used to fuel the transition

Before either could make sense of that statement a strange bubble appeared around Allica and Rejt It was mostly translucent but at the edges it seemed to have a blue tint that colored the air around them

Randidly stood at the center of the bubble with Rejt and Allica his eyes a luminous emerald as the bubble launched itself upward straight into the thick cave walls Rather than busting through with physical force it seemed that the bubble annihilated the walls directly they didnÆt even leave a trail of ash in their wake as they shot up toward the surface

When they tunneled up to the ground level of the lowest Land the sky was covered in thick clouds that rumbled ominously as the setting sun painted them burnt orange A chilly wind was blowing across the badlands pulling tumbleweeds and many of the tents used for houses by those not in the upper echelon of the Procession

Randidly grunted Now comes the fucking hard part God moving sucks

He closed his eyes even as the bubble that they were floating in slowed to a crawl below the rumbling clouds Allica opened her mouth to ask a question but thought better of it It seemed that Randidly was otherwise occupied So she turned to face Rejt and found him prodding the bubble with a spear

Fucking stop that Allica hissed What if it pops

Hmph you expect I would prod a second time without testing it first Impossible Rejt replied with a sorrowful shake of the head As if to demonstrate his point he pressed the spear against the bubble and forced the bubble to extend with remarkable elasticity to cover the blade of the spear thrust out through it Aside from the area affected it stayed perfectly robust

Again Allica shut her mouth This time with enough force that her teeth clicked together For all RejtÆs capability he was remarkably careless sometimes

Then AllicaÆs gaze was caught on something zooming up to their position more bubbles

Thousands more bubbles

Tens of thousands The entire Procession lifted in groups between two and ten floating rapidly up to their position

WhatÆs happening Allica whispered

WeÆve made a right mess of this world Learned a lot though and that will shape what we are going forward Randidly announced His eyes opened once more and such was the brightness of his irises that she had to look away from his direct gaze while blinking rapidly Truly IÆve learned so much from these seven Lands But I canÆt sustain it Not like this

You are abandoning this world RejtÆs eyebrows furrowed Can you not fix it

Allica watched the people in the bubbles Despite their relative safety every person she saw seemed wounded and thin They clutched themselves with their hands and looked around fearfully at the bubbles that had buoyed them away These were a people that had endured a lot they all now wondered what new tragedy these bubbles foreshadowed

I could Randidly admitted The light in his eyes dimmed He blinked and sighed and suddenly looked very much like a young man who was slowly losing the race against wariness But if I did we would run into the same problems over and over again I canÆt manage a world IÆm not ready to be a god I have my own battles to fight

Against who Rejt asked But Randidly didnÆt answer

Instead RandidlyÆs gaze turned upward and the bubbles began to flow like a river upward into the clouds They smashed into the smoggy orange clouds like a carriage rushing through a crowd of pigeons a wave of cloud substance exploded outward and flowed in a wave in front of them Inside the refracted light from the setting sun was even more intense Fire reds and mustard yellows formed a strange contrast to the blue lightning that snaked back and forth

The lightning was intermittent but it was growing more frequent While Rejt continued to demand answers from a silent Randidly Allica simply watched the bubbles that flowed behind them following in their bubbleÆs path With a strange grace she didnÆt understand they slowly approached each other and clumped together in a long train

They undulated through the sky like a serpent swimming through the strangely colored clouds Now that she looked more directly and activated her skills she even found some of the refugees from Carthak Allica released a breath she hadnÆt realized she was holding It was reassuring to see that they didnÆt share the same blank faced panic that most of the other people seemed to exhibit Allica could also see spots where bubbles had grabbed boxes and supplies It made her wonder where they were going

And how permanently

Thunder boomed outward as a cobalt bolt of lightning twisted around the bubble serpent Randidly didnÆt even flinch even though it seemed like everyone else jumped out of their skin by the close proximity The burning flash of light left a blind spot in anyoneÆs eyes that were unlucky enough to be looking at the spot where it occurred But then Allica saw something strange The clouds that had been cut in twain by the blue bolt began to morph From orange and mustard came wisps of cloud that were seafoam green like warm seawater

Individual particles floated outward and as the bubble serpent flowed upward those wisps were pulled along and clung to the edges of the serpent

Bolts smashed to the left of the right of the serpent as it continued to ascend This time puffs of mist that were emerald and azure and golden were released spreading slowly out and being absorbed into the serpent

By the most recent harsh crash of thunder even the most skittish of those housed in bubbles had lost their fear Instead they simply watched wide eyed as they flowed upward Azure electricity sparked and jumped back and forth illuminating the dark clouds around them So many bolts struck that there was a veritable sea of seafoam green mist that the bubble serpent slithered into

Always aiming higher always ascending

Where are we going Allica asked mesmerized Neither Randidly or Rejt answered the former because he was sitting with his eyes closed and the latter because he was staring intently as the gathering colors

They were rising through a rainbow wonderland The mustard and orange clouds turned to pink and wine red as they went higher The cobalt bolts of lightning shifted to a royal purple Suddenly floating in the clouds around them were floating pinpricks of light that burned with a white fire

For a while Allica studied these lights They glistened like stars and flickered like candles and the bubble serpent passed through them as if they were the most natural thing in the world It seemed that each time they would pierce through a colorful layer of clouds they would enter a larger open area filled with more and more lights

As the serpent swam upwards these lights were slowly drawn along in its wake becoming a luminous tail that seemed to extend behind them forever

Thousands of wisps floating upward to join the serpent as it crawled toward the sky Or what Allica thought was the sky They had been swimming up through the colored clouds for several minutes At the speed they were moving shouldnÆt they have broken out of the local climate system at this point And all the while they entered larger and larger spaces between colored clouds to grab the luminous lights so that there seemed to be millions of them all rushing up to join the serpent

And then all at once Allica gasped because she knew what those lights were There was only one thing they could be in such numbers with such obvious feeble energy Tears ran down her face as she watched the souls of the deceased clinging to the living so the might escape this collapsing world

But even though it felt like the weight of those lives had solidified into a lead cannonball in AllicaÆs chest all she could think was Lovely They are so lovely

Randidly nodded The royal purple lightning struck seven times in quick succession causing an eruption of violet and lavender and pink and mauve to swirl around the bubble serpent Lights and mist continued to rush over former a larger and longer body And they are exactly what we need Hold on this is the part that might be a little touch and go

Then with only his words as a warning the bubbles jolted as the serpent accelerated further upward toward a thick layer of black clouds that was rapidly approaching

Chapter 814

They plunged into the inky black clouds like a candle into a childÆs nightmare All brief bravery followed by hissing silence

Allica gasped as the temperature dropped to the point that her breath misted in front of her Or at least she thought it did It was much harder to see amongst these clouds She twisted around and looked at Randidly The thunder around them was still audible but it had the same ebony color as the clouds It was only when she looked behind that she saw all the gathered radiance of their caravan glittering that Allica felt some of the chill ebb

So Allica finally said Why Why does the world need to end

Three reasons Randidly finally announced After shaking his head as if to clear some dizziness Randidly straightened

Rejt scowled You answer her Tis favoritism Unbefitting a god of your status

Randidly ignored him and continued The first is perhaps sentimental but also karmic I cannot pretend like Alta didnÆt happen And her emotions were valid despite how extreme her methods were And for that reason we need to give her a proper send off A funeral pyre A way to reap the fate that was sewn between us

The serpent twisted to the left even as thunder boomed again and again around them Within two undulations in the new direction the heat returned to reasonable levels Two more undulations and Allica was sweating And yet they continued forward and the heat continued to rise So much so that Allica panted lightly if she breathed too deeply her lungs would be scalded by the overly hot air

With watery eyes she reached out and gripped RejtÆs shoulder If she was struggling some of the injured in the serpent farther behind them

Then they burst out of the black clouds gliding through the air outward Instantly the temperature dropped down to acceptable levels Allica spun around and released a relieved breath although she had never seen it from this view before the serpent was flying over the Sea of Annihilation And

Allica froze

Behind them the World Tree was burning Those black clouds they had risen up through were the thick smoke and ash that the greedy fires released

You are burning it all Rejt said quietly Our homes All we have known

Every image I gave to you Randidly replied in an equally quiet voice Every hope and dream I invested in this place Every image of one connected to me that served as a seed I need to burn it all all of it will not escape unscathed IÆve tried to pull out everything I could but some roots are too deep even for me to move But if IÆm truly doing this there was no other way I needed the power this fire could provide

With ponderous slowness the serpent spun around in a lazy circle With that there was plenty of time for everyone in the serpent to see the World Tree

It looked brown up close but from this distance it was possible to see waves of ruby and olive colorations that ran up and down the bark in waves Allica recognized those as the bringers of the different seasons Each land stood stark against the backdrop of the Sea of Annihilation each held aloft by a gnarled branch that looked remarkably like a hand with its gnarled fingers locked around the base

It was even possible to make out each land by its climate by the vegetation that it possessed Instantly AllicaÆs eyes went to the sandy Earth Golem land Even from here the swirling winds were clear It seemed like it was sandstorm season She instantly felt a pang of homesickness Right now all the Earth Golems would be holed in up in their burrows drinking homebrew liquor made in the fat months It was an image that reminded Allica of her childhood

Or at least when Allica squinted she could dimly see those individual details

Most of the distinctions were wiped away by the heat waves rising from the thick crimson flames that were devouring the trunk of the World Tree reducing it to charred cinders The bark cracked and split To her horror Allica saw the branches holding the lands aloft begin to sag

As they continued to circle nearby more bubbles floated upward to join the serpent Some of them were holding larger groups of people likely those who didnÆt join the Procession but others brought plants and animals in vast numbers Even Soulless were included in some bubbles although mostly it was the smaller variety

The second reason Rejt prompted gazing intently ahead of them

Allica followed his gaze With the new bubbles arrivals the serpent had grown even larger than it had before It had lengthened considerably And as it continued to circle the head was slowly catching up with the tail They were almost brushing against the slowest of the bubbles

Not thirty meters away Allica could see a sobbing woman kneeling next to a man who had a deep wound in his chest His hands trembled then collapsed at his sides As the woman lost herself to tears and buried her head into his chest a small twinkle of light floated away from his body It joined the serpent but it slowly lagged behind There were thousands of such lights and with so many gathered together they stopped being individual lights soon they were just a radiance

Without slowing the head of the serpent plunged directly into that radiance

Gasping Allica felt ice cold pinpricks all over her body

she was picking a dandelion and the air smelled like summer grass

the reflection of the stars on the glassy surface was too perfect She punched the pond

her father had died and Allica needed to decide who should inherit his armor

Covered in sweat Allica blinked and her vision cleared

Sorry I didnÆt even think how they would affect you IÆve insulated us for now These days IÆm inundated with so many small images that I donÆt even notice Randidly sighed The serpent continued to rotate forming a huge sparkling rainbow colored ring even as it floated above a giant burning tree

What happens to those images Allica whispered She could still feel the wooden chair she was sitting in during that image when that stranger heard that her father had died Do we just disappear when we die Is our world

Allica couldnÆt even finish she just looked with red eyes down toward the sagging Earth Golem land Very gradually it was beginning to tip

To her surprise it was Rejt that answered Look Follow the radiance It is not lost Well not all of it But it is slowly internalized by all who follow after It becomes part of us

Randidly nodded slowly The second reason I burn this world is to make you all real To give you weight It is a cruel thing the System does It allows us to create well these worlds are not meaningless But they are dreams You were a dream to this point Born from my subconscious and Skills but without any method for growth beyond me Oh sure you could influence me but it was a limited thing You would always be of me and I would never be a creation of yours

Is that not how godhood works Rejt asked in confusion

RandidlyÆs smile was tired IÆm getting out of the business of being a god In a way itÆs a blessing but of course it comes with a cost IÆm now risking a lot more by involving myself with you You will be able to shape me much more directly We will be one

A fucking weird time to get philosophical Allica muttered as she watched the lowest Land shudder and collapse into the Sea of Annihilation as the fires at away at the World TreeÆs strength She knew her Land wouldnÆt be far behind

Grinning Randidly chuckled I actually mean that literally Your world will be of my body You will be a part of me Not really physically but more like two sides of a coin No longer will you be just a dream And that is why this requires so much energy to accomplish

This merger it is about my good looks Rejt joked But even his grin faded as more and more of the lands collapsed and fell into the black waters of the sea With her jaw locked Allica made no sound as the Earth Golem Land was devoured by the waiting sea The flames on the trunk of the World Tree began to shrink as there was nothing left to burn Small motes of gold and silver continued to float up toward their luminescent ring but mostly the people suspended in bubbles just watched their world collapse

And the third reason is perhaps the most mundane Randidly said It was the time difference Eight hours in my world was a month on the World Tree Part of the reason that I was so absent was simply that I couldnÆt keep up with the sheer amount of things that would happen in your world if I would deal with problems in my own

The ring began to spin more quickly More and more motes of light gathered around them The radiance grew brighter and brighter Below there was a terrible tearing noise as the World Tree collapsed sideways When the trunk smashed into the Sea of Annihilation a vast wave was produced But very quickly the tree sunk into the depths of the choppy waters and disappeared from the surface of the world