Multiple Scrying attempts: {
Dhinir: Tier 5 God of Conquest => Pantheon Divine Realm,
Uton: Tier 5 God of the Underworld => Pantheon Divine Realm,
Canmis: Tier 5 Goddess of Storms => Pantheon Divine Realm,
Earae: Goddess of Abundance => Pantheon Divine Realm,
Quotz: Goddess of Logic => Personal Divine Realm,
Dhoerin: God of Tricks => Quotz’ Divine Realm,
Lady of Blood: Tier 5 Abyssal Entity => Personal Abyssal Realm,
Vorayx: Tier 2 Abyssal Spawn => 1st Layer of the Abyssal Horizon [Fallen Kartha]
}
All scrying attempts failed.
Do you wish to send the prerecorded message? Yes/No
Kal chuckled as the storm above shattered another dozen spires surrounding the caldera. It appeared Fyborh was telling the truth. All of the gods along with the Lady of Blood were watching him.
Disturbing but now that problem was solved. The prerecorded message surprised him though, the ring’s description didn't mention that part. Kal tried to view the message himself but when he made the attempt nothing happened. Shrugging he hit yes. No doubt it was something from Fyborh and Kal felt he could trust him that much at least after everything he had done.
Message Sent!
Kal concentrated on finding fitting armor while the storm continued to tear the dome apart. A lot of it was closer to fitting than he originally thought. Was armor for the younger Karthians? Or was he just bigger than before?
He had definitely grown a lot more muscle but he wasn’t sure about his actual size with nothing for reference.
Kal managed to find an assortment that would work for now. Each piece was charcoal gray with crimson trim. It was only uncommon quality compared to the larger rare quality armor but it was better than nothing. The armor didn’t have any attribute bonuses so he just put it on over his pants, the armor’s straps self tightening as he put on each piece.
He put Exterminator’s Regards and its sheath over his shoulder after realizing it had an opening in its side that would help him draw it easier from his back. Once he was done Kal took a breath and made his way up the side of the caldera to watch the conduit as it raged with power beyond what it had done before.
The storm above continued to rage and Kal’s mana sight couldn’t help but pick up the tiny traces of the space mana being disintegrated with each detonation. He didn’t know how long it would hold together but he knew he would need to be fast.
An explosion of power drew his attention back down to the conduit and his killing sight flared as a pair of malevolent eyes of flame appeared inside of it. All around him the ground began to glow a dull red and his armor brightened like his first sword had.
Kal grinned as his soul screamed for carnage but he ignored it for now and activated Slayer’s Intent and Identified it as a scaled paw easily twice his size emerged from the pillar of power.
[Bestial Lord | Abyssal Spawn 99]
[Entities Marked: Bestial Lord | Hostile]
Kal felt he would have been terrified to see an enemy this powerful only days ago but now, he only felt the thrill of the coming challenge, something that had felt somewhat artificial recently.
Something told him the feeling would pass and the bloodlust would return but for now he would enjoy the feeling renewal as long as he could.
The rest of the Bestial Lord emerged from the conduit its form larger than most buildings from Farninghold was covered in jet-black scales like the rest of its kin and beneath them radiated an intense heat that warped the air around its body. Its head was shaped more like a wolf's but its fangs were still the needle-like shape of the weaker variants there were just far more of them filling the demon’s mount disturbingly some were crammed in at odd angles that would have made them pierce its own lips if it had any.
Health:
3000/3000
Stamina:
6360/6360
Wrath:
99
Kal drew Exterminator’s Regards and let his Flames of Wrath wash over it as the Bestial Lord glared down at him with malevolent hatred constantly bombarding him with its eye attack. It was definitely much more potent than the royal guard’s version of the attack but it clearly wasn’t as specialized as the Felflame Scion.
As if they were both waiting for a sign to begin they charged toward each other as the storm overhead sent a cascading web of destructive lighting across the roof the dome diverting the pillars of magma to start spraying in all directions making the light levels drop but they were soon replaced by more and more bolts of destruction from the storm above.
Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more.
Kal lept from the ground as they got in range the ground at his feet liquefying as the Bestial Lord’s savage jaws came towards him.
A sensation he had learned to dread came over his mind as he felt the hints of a memory flicker into his mind. But he soon recognized Fyborh’s voice as it came to mind.
“Extermination is sometimes necessary.”
----------------------------------------
Dalen didn’t like this place at all. It was all wrong and he could tell by the fearful faces all around him that the others felt it too. Even Elder Jaliete looked concerned despite the neutral expression she kept pasted on at all times.
They had come across a few more demons, one called a kuroxet slaughter and another dog-bat thing that he hadn’t bothered Identifying. They may have been a problem if there were more of them but they only ever came three or four at a time so the forward guard and the elders were more than capable of dealing with them.
Dalen had managed to level to thirty-five in only a few days. It was actually pretty stupidly fast considering he hadn’t worked on his alchemy at all in that time and was just using his already-made bombs. It made him wonder if killing demons granted more experience than normal monsters.
The storm overhead exploded once more, making him flinch out of his train of thought and look into the sky, “What the fuck is that thing, “ Melisia who was walking beside went to reply, “Yes, yes, I know it's a mana storm you’ve told me that already. But why is it here? It makes this place feel even worse every moment that passes.”
Melisia frowned but ignored the interruption, “I don’t know Dalen, Comprehend the Astral Threads allows me to understand skills and arrays to a point but this place is something else. Just activating the skill for an instant threatens to knock me unconscious. Who or what created this place was certainly created and held together with power and skill far beyond anything I have ever seen. As for the storm, like I said I don’t know but you are right that it feels out of place. Everything else here feels so still and well, controlled,” She gestured to the storm, “That is everything but.”
“Then what has Elder Jaliete said about it? She’s been here before right?” Dalen replied.
“She said it was never there in her previous passages, though she hasn’t used this particular passage before.”
“Great, as soon as we do something new is when everything goes to shit! How much longer do we have to walk this “Fractured Road”?” Dalen asked with air quotes.
“At least until we find the next crossing. Elder Jaliete says they are relatively common but she is unfamiliar with this path.”
Dalen muttered a few key words under his breath, no doubt everybody within the next mile heard him anyway, “Fucking perception…”
Something from the storm above him made him pause, “Was that a roar?”
“Eyes up! More incoming!”Leo roared his high perception picking out something from the featureless gray.
Dalen looked and it was only after the rest of the fighters were in position that could even make out what was coming. Dozens of those dog-bat things but these had wings as they flew from the endless gray towards them and worse yet most held slaughters on their backs.
“Fuck!” Dalen spat as he drew out three more bombs with short fuses. He really didn’t like this fucking place.
----------------------------------------
Vorayx sat upon his now third throne. His conduit had fallen easier than he had expected but that was not what had infuriated him so much. Vorayx had felt the mortal break. He could even feel the mortal’s soul begin its transfer but somehow it had escaped it.
Vorayx couldn’t see the mortal’s stats but something must have changed as now he had no feedback at all from the ring. No flashes of imagery from the mortal’s eyes and even the amount of attributes drained had become unreliable. It no longer told him the exact amount drained, instead it flickered through a series of random numbers that made no sense to him.
Did the mortal somehow acquire an anti-scrying skill? No that was unlikely and even if it did there was no way it could possibly be able to prevent the scrying capabilities of a mythic rarity item. What else could it have been? Perhaps an artifact? Where would he get something like that on this pathetic plane?
It was infuriating and several dozen kuroxet, garghounds, and felflame conjurers had paid the price of his anger. The moment the felflame scion died all its faction outside of the event were removed from the quest. Now none outside the event zone were given notifications on the progress of the event.
Furthermore, a mana storm had begun to permeate the event zone. All around the edge of the forgotten one’s mountain small pockets of space mana gone mad had appeared. How it came to be Vorayx didn’t know. Perhaps the event and his presence on this plane had done more damage than he had first calculated.
No doubt even now more tier two demons were scrambling to enter the layer sent by their masters. He had expected to see another gorefiend by now due to their unique rebirth cycle, they were the most likely to have communicated with their masters first but so far none had arrived.
Vorayx had forced several dozen packs of kuroxet and garghounds through the pockets of space mana. Most simply exploded into clouds of gory mist but a few of them had made it through. He had commanded them to return with anything they found on the other side assuming they lived. None had returned but that was no matter. At least it gave these pathetic things some purpose.
----------------------------------------
The golden light of their domain bled through the flawless curtains of the pantheon’s council chambers. Dhinir sat on his throne flanked by his brothers and sisters, well most of them. Some remained suspiciously absent.
“That foul demon has ruined everything, we were so close!” Uton roared, his long black hair hanging as if the natural laws didn’t apply, slowly swaying in an unfelt breeze.
“Oh, quiet Brother! We would have done the very same if we could have risked fraying the firmament further than we older have,” Canmis spat, “Smiting that freak was a mistake. We have already put all our work in jeopardy using our power in that way.”
Dhinir ignored his siblings as he watched the caldera of the freak's battle. It will return soon.
“Has anyone devised how that anomaly was created? Was it a problem with the forge? Dhinir? You said you were looking into it, “ Earae asked.
“I have yet to find a cause for the anomaly, the forge remains in perfect condition.”
Earae went to respond but they were all interrupted as the sanctioned timeout ended early but instead of seeing the mistake appear inside the caldera the entire plane vanished from their perception and an image appeared in front of them standing with an irritatingly familiar stance.
“Fyborh!” Uton yelled mixed with even measures of hatred and fear.
“Quiet! It isn’t him. It's just a message,” Dhinir spat.
Fyborh’s image grinned, “I had both hoped this day would never come and hoped it would come while I could live to witness it. How is that little experiment you had going on now Dhinir? I bet you wish you had never discarded it now. Hmm?”
Dhinir frowned, “Ignore it the traitor is just trying to divide us even in dea-”.
The fake Fyborh cut in, “This is about the time when my dearest former brother will claim I’m trying to divide you or something like that. So most of what I say you will ignore anyway like the lap dogs you are so I’ll skip the universe-shaking knowledge I learned in my final years and instead give you this, “ Fyborh reached into his pocket and when he pulled his hand out he instead gave them all the middle finger, “One last fuck you, “ He started laughing hard as all of the gods frowned, “Ah, Kal taught me that one when he was a boy. I just wish I got to experience the moment for myself, “ He didn’t drop the finger as his body began to vanish, “See ya, oh dearest cowards of the seventy-third.”