Jace sped over the shattered landscape of the broken highway on an alien world. The same world he had left behind a few months prior. The same place of his Aspirant Trial, and where he lost both of his arms. He zipped by the enormous crater he had to circumvent – the remnant of a battle site where he had fought a Black Hole Conclave member, an Ascendant. One who had completed their chosen amount of progression in both Class and Advanced Class, and who was immortal to aging.
The crater brought back memories of that very painful experience and the lessons that came along with it. He had learned from those mistakes and had only suffered a brief handful of setbacks in his travels since. But death was close by on several occasions, and this site of an older battle brought a chill to his chest.
A flash of veridian light on the horizon caught his attention, and Ollie spoke directly into his ear. “That is some type of large-scale Pulsar Skill! Probably a last-ditch effort. I am scanning reports…not good! The Astral Demon is big.”
“How big?” Jace asked as he felt his chest tighten ever-so-slightly.
“Fifty feet tall; and it is fast.”
I’ve fought big things before, Jace thought, but not big and fast. This might be a problem. For the first time in a few months, he felt like he would not be enough to tackle the situation at hand. I wish I had Priam here, he thought. The backup healing and barriers are just so nice to have.
But Priam and his allies were busy elsewhere, and Jace could do nothing but prepare himself as best as he possibly could for the combat that lay ahead. Kill the Astral Demon, close the rift in space. Easy enough. He took several deep, calming breaths as the wind caused his clothing to whip around in the air.
Kaboom! An enormous explosion rocked the entire horizon, and crimson flames burst up in an enormous display of power. But those flames were tinted with a black, glowing essence. Something that looked malefic in nature, or even corrupting, in a way. A scarlet that ripped into the air and faded into a bloom in the night sky.
“Hurry!” Xera practically shouted over his earpiece, causing Jace to wince. “Get there now!”
“Working on it!” Jace shouted back as he was sure he maxed out the acceleration.
“Initiating overdrive. This is going to burn the power cells out for the day, so you’ll be stuck there for the rest of the night until they recharge. Hang on!” Xera sounded almost panicked.
Jace did as he was told, and he saw the display on the vehicle’s interface shift and blend as the world became a blur around him. He was going so fast that even his enhanced, magic-prosthetic eyes and increased perception was not able to keep up. The wind that was blowing at him was so fierce that he had to tuck all the way down to the body to prevent from being sheared off.
The vehicle began to slow before finally sputtering to a halt, and Jace could hear the sounds of combat as he looked up from the console. What he saw shook him to his core. An enormous, purple and black monstrosity with horns and spikes jutting from its head. Its body was long and supported by six, sizeable trunks of legs that were tipped with wicked claws. The face, though, is what scared him the most. It was a black void of nothingness, with a deeper, darker black coming from a hole where the mouth would be. A cavernous void of endless, eternal, screaming torment.
Pulsar Coalition and Black Hole Conclave members were engaged in a fierce combat with the beast – on opposite sides of the creature. They were tossing about Skills of all types that caused collateral damage. And, it looked like to Jace, that they were trying to aim those Skills to cause splash-damage-harm to the hostile faction.
Behind the Astral Demon, Jace saw the shattered remnants of some huge device – the Astral engine, he presumed. And above it was a hovering, one-hundred foot high and just as wide gash in space. Jace could see a miasmic realm beyond that rip; an inky, black space with flickers of purple and crimson that intermingled just like his weapon’s Skill enhancements. And he could swear he saw shapes moving in that outer darkness beyond their universe’s limits. The limits enforced by The Cosmic System.
“Go time!” Ollie shouted as Jace set the hoverbike down, unsheathed his sword, and began running forward. “The Dark Between Stars is here to help!”
Priam’s flight ran out after they cleared the hill on the horizon – but that was enough. The bunny-boy was panting with exertion as he landed. “I’m…going to…sit here… a minute…” he collapsed to the ground as he sucked in air.
Greg glanced down and shook his head, “Shouldn’t have exhausted yourself. But thanks.” He looked out to the remnants of what was once some type of ancient battlefield. An enormous, green pasture that was fenced off with several cairns that were raised in memory of the fallen. A huge, fifty-foot-wide and twenty-foot-tall rip in space was present.
“Reality’s Order,” Quinn’s voice said over the comms. Greg watched as the rip in space vanished – as if the universe itself said “nope!” and sealed itself back up with a huge zipper. A loud, resounding pop echoed throughout the landscape before the only noise that could be heard was the screaming of the creatures below.
They looked to be some type of horrible amalgamation of slimy slugs and cows with huge, lamprey-like mouths. The behemoth bodies surged out over the plains, consuming every single bit of vegetation and overwhelming the small group of soldiers that had seemingly been called to action to hold them back. A lot of good that did, Greg thought as he saw them ripped apart. But…he saw something ‘off’ as well. A specific soldier that he focused on, upon having his head bitten off, had something sucked out of him. Something slightly blue-ish; the color of Stardust.
“What is that?” Greg asked, rapidly looking at Darrin – his Wayfinder.
“I’m working on it!” Xera’s voice came out. “Just start killing!”
Greg swapped his Sandstalker Bowblade to its ranged form and began pulling back the phantom string as if he was nocking an arrow. A projectile of blazing, crimson radiance crackled in his hands as he expended a small amount of his energy to imbue the shot with his Planet Cosmic Power. Alright! Let’s see if these things like lava! He let loose the shot at the creature that was sucking the substance out of the soldier’s body.
The arrow struck true and the creature let out a terrifying scream of pain that blended with a chorus of other sounds until it became a howl of a pack. The creatures began charging towards the hill they stood upon. Greg pulled back the string again and again, feeling his energy drain ever-so-slightly with each pull, as the bolts of lava surged outward and slammed into the creatures; forcing them back as they began to melt from the heat.
But the horde continued to approach. “Dee? You ready?” Greg asked; not sparing a glance as he wanted to focus solely on shooting the largest of the creatures.
The Plorp woman next to him cackled with a manic delight. “I’ve got this! Demolisher’s Devastation (Rank 13) [Cloud]!”
Tapping into her Ascended Power of Flux – an upgraded version of Nebula – a bright-red cloud of caustic acid surged out from her and cascaded down the hill in a roiling wave. The Astral Demons surged forward, into the acid cloud – and began to melt. They kept charging uphill, and Greg kept shooting.
Priam stood up and dusted off his hands. “I can help!”
“Save your energy,” Dee replied as she readied another Skill.
“Oh, this one doesn’t cost me any.” Priam raised his hand up above his head, “Ishtar’s Embrace!”
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The shockwave of slightly-pinkish-white energy surged out from Priam in a huge, larger-than-a-mile radius. It encompassed all the Astral Demons…and did nothing to slow them down.
Xera’s voice came from Darrin once more, “These smaller ones cannot feel anything except hunger. They’re little more than animals.”
Greg slammed his foot on the ground, “Planetary Palisade (Rank 10), Planetary Growth (Rank 6)!”
The ground under him surged up as he willed and created a large, stone tower that the trio were standing on top of, giving a perfect overview of the battlefield. The grasslands around the tower grew as well and animated, responding to Greg’s will to tangle up and slow down any attackers.
He kept shooting as Dee unleashed another blast. But this one was not a cloud of acid – the prior one was still present. Instead, she shouted, “[Trap]!” as the Evolution. Greg saw as a sphere appeared in front of the trio before slamming down into the ground at the base of the tower. “They can’t see it – only you guys can!” Dee shouted as she took in deep breaths from the exertion of her Skills.
Greg continued his barrage, feeling his energy dwindling little by little. And they still had so, so many more to go.
This doesn’t look good, Greg thought. These Astral Demons are no joke.
“Activating Verge Protocol!” Ollie shouted as he merged himself with Jace’s form. Requesting permission to enhance aggression.
“Do it!” Jace shouted back as he sidestepped a beam of energy that seemed to be a Skill gone wild and off target. As he kept his sprint going, he felt a surge of adrenaline kick through him as rage surged through his body; his Wayfinder manipulating his brain’s biochemistry to trigger specific responses that would empower a certain set of Skills from his Class Expansion.
The inferno of hatred in his chest exploded into a furnace that blazed out of control, and Jace grit his teeth as he felt an absolute and utter disgust for this monstrosity. It surged up to his neck and head, and he could feel the warmth race through his body as he manifested wrath incarnate.
Void Blade (Rank 5) [Rending], Void Shield (Rank 6), Wrath’s Embrace (Rank 10) [Focused], Aura of Wrath (Rank 11). Jace’s body illuminated with the visible-to-only-him whitish-grey energy of the Void, which would negate any damage directed his way. His weapon ignited with the same whitish-grey light, with a splash of purple and crimson nebula clouds that shrouded the weapon’s form. Crackling, red and crimson lightning surged around him as he felt an absolute hatred for this creature. This creature from another layer of reality dared to violate the System that he was entrusted with responsibility to help protect?
The monstrosity must have sensed the new threat, as it stopped fighting the Signers assaulting it from either side and its face split in half, revealing an enormous, yellow eye that transfixed itself on Jace.
It is trying mental control. Cute, Ollie said in his head. Or rather, not control, trying to stun you. Too bad I am here! Otter power!
Jace sprinted forward, taking note of the various energy types that ripped into the hide of this enormous Demon. Gravitic bursts, metallic blasts of energy, mundane weaponry of all types, pure, raw entropy – everything seemed to injure the creature, but it would heal shortly after. Jace shouted out, “Use damage over time Skills!”
The various Signers looked at him, not seeming to acknowledge what he was ordering. Fine then! I’ll do it myself! Jace continued his headlong sprint. Steel Gale Stride. The air coalesced under his feet and turned into scything blades as he gained the ability to run on the air for ten seconds.
He closed with the creature, and it swung out with two, enormous, clawed hands that moved far faster than what he would have expected given the bulk. But, with Quinn’s Skills – now on a timer but still enhancing him – stacked with his own Skills? He was far, far faster than this thing.
Jace let himself fall down – dodging both swipes that sought to close in on him – and threw his weapon at the enormous, yellow eye. The creature blinked as the sword impacted, bouncing off. But it did some damage, as the crimson and purple nebula clouds lingered and began to slowly spread.
Jace summoned his blade back to his hand as he kept running on the air. The creature tried to backhand him, and Jace folded back at the omni-directional knee joints as the claw went sailing overhead. He held up his sword and scored a hit – but it did not cut deeply. A little bit was all he needed, though, as the miasma damage-over-time effect took hold.
The creature let out a screaming roar that sent the rest of the nearby Aspirants and Ascendants fleeing in terror. Nice try! Fear effects will not work on my Aspirant! Go get it, Jace!
Jace saw the crackling Aura of Wrath striking the creature and seeming to fizzle. Too low of a damaging Skill to hurt it. Turn that off. The crackling faded, and Jace jumped on the air as another two claw swipes came at him. But the Astral Demon had a backup, and its maw opened as a blast of pure, black energy shot out and cascaded around and over Jace.
The Void Shield took all of it, fully negating and nullifying the offensive ability. Glancing behind him, Jace saw that the landscape in a cone was just gone. Obliterated completely. As if it was fully annihilated; a gouge carved from reality. He turned back to the creature and kicked off to his left, throwing his sword once more before recalling it post-impact. He dashed around the creature that, now that he was higher up, looked just like an enormous, Demonic version of the Vyrknadine that he had fought when he first arrived on Velenar Prime all that time ago.
It looks like they take after the dominant species of the world they manifest nearest to. Vyrknadines are the most dominant species here, hence the similarities, since they do not have a physical form normally. Maybe like Troxanir’s avatar?
Jace felt the Steel Gale Stride end, and shooting out his Ghostlight Grapnel from the prosthetic arm, he attached himself to the creature’s head – right above that eye – and retracted it. The Demon whipped its head around – but Jace kept coming and he used the momentum of the tow line to stab deep into that yellow orb.
The Demon roared in pain and did something Jace did not expect in the slightest – its eyelid grew sharp, spiked teeth and clamped down on him. Wrenching his sword free, he looked down and, to his horror, saw the Void Shield had been nullified around his feet and ankles. The teeth were punching into the prosthetic legs, and due to the Nanite-Infused Cyberconnect Integration Fluid running through him, he would have felt every bit of that pain. But he did not, thanks to Wrath’s Embrace.
It can shut down Skills just like your [Astral Annihilator] on the Swordmage Stance! But it looks like only where it strikes.
Jace brought the sword down and chopped through the spikes anchoring his legs to the creature’s face. He released the grapple line and fell back. Dark Energy Mine (Rank 1) [Detonate]. Gravity ceased to affect him and the Astral Demon, and he made sure to kick up at the bottom of its mouth as he fell down in front of it.
That kick was powerful, and the creature began to float upward away from the planet’s surface. It latched its feet down – but only the hind feet. And Jace saw a gap in the chitinous shell on its belly. If it’s somehow like the Vyrknadine from that long ago, Ollie said the underside and into the heart. Jace raised his palm, “Dark Matter Dart (Rank 4) [Exploding]!” He felt his energy drain even further, and he began to feel tired.
The purple-black darts of energy shot forward and into that weak spot – embedding themselves as they drilled deep before exploding with deep, purple shockwaves; ripping it apart from the inside. The creature roared out and let out screams of pain as the explosions pushed it further back, and it only remained in place because of the hind legs digging into the ground. But it was very off-balance, and Jace used that moment to grapple the creature, pull himself forward into it, and activate Raging Cleave (Rank 10). He could see the beating heart of the creature as goop cascaded from the wounds on its underside.
The phantom projection of the blade expanded from the weapon, and he stabbed forward – a fifty-foot-long point that got the creature right through the heart. It let out a whine of pain before going limp.
Ollie immediately left Jace’s body and touched the Astral Demon. It churned with a deep, sickly, black energy before it shattered into pieces. Pale blue, vaguely humanoid shapes surged out of the corpse before shooting into the rift to the Astral Verge. But another part; a pure, white substance of some type of liquid, remained in Ollie’s paws and he tossed it back and forth before flying over to Jace.
Xera’s voice came through the earpiece, “That is Essence. But first…”
-----
[Quest Completed: Destroy the Astral Demon.]
[Time Limit: ASAP.]
[Reward: Legendary (Augmentation) Boon.]
[Sender: Dark Between Stars]
-----
“Close up that rift,” she continued.
Jace let his Skills fade and winced in pain as he gripped his temples – a massive headache hitting post-Verge Protocol with Ollie. Dark Matter Mending (Rank 4). Immediately, the headache vanished, and his damaged legs were repaired as the NICIF coursing through him enabled even Skill-based healing to function on his prostheses. “Ollie, let’s use that on my eyes for some rift-closing Augmentation.”
-----
[Using Boon: Legendary (Augmentation).]
[Target Equipment: (Terrifying) All-Seeing Dragon’s Eyes.]
[Augmenting.]
[Result: (Terrifying / Sealing) All-Seeing Dragon’s Eyes.]
[Description: The Sealing (Augmentation) enables the user to look at any Astral Incursion and seal it. May be done once per day.]
-----
Jace looked at the tear in space, “So how do I do that?” As the words left his mouth, he saw a small screen appear in his vision.
-----
[Astral Incursion detected.]
[Use Sealing?]
[Yes / No.]
-----
“Yes!” Jace said. And, as he said that, there was a surge of bright, white energy that flared from his eyes and zapped the rift in space. Within a second it sealed. “Can I just do it by sight next time?”
“Yup! I will disable the message…Mission accomplished!” Ollie shouted as he flew around Jace, still playing with the weird white goop in his hands.
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