----------------------------------------
I didn’t mean to let slip that Verve comment, Jace thought as he traveled with the zero-gravity launch towards the next Complex. Priam is just…so like him. Naïve, trusting, willing to help. Jace chided himself. Don’t get attached. I don’t even know if I’m going to keep him around.
He heard the exhilarated whoop from behind him as Priam reveled in the near-flight experience. The same feeling Jace had when he first did it for travel and not because he was fleeing from an Ascendant who took his arm. He’s young, comparatively. Like a teenager. That’s so weird. He’s considered an adult on his world? Well, Ollie did say that his species is hard-wired, so they don’t act…badly.
Jace felt an odd mixture of emotions as he landed and launched himself once more with another Dark Energy Mine. A sense of regret from not saving Verve and just hiding to keep himself alive; not guilt, regret. Regret that he didn’t have the power to save him like he did now. Something stupid to have regret over, but he felt it nonetheless. He also felt a…protective desire. Priam was innocent; just like Chroma was. And Chroma was taken away because Jace couldn’t protect her.
In that moment, he made up his mind. I’m going to invite him along once we clear the volcano tile. See if he wants to team up. Just saying those words in his head filled him with a sense of resolve. Yeah. This is for you, Verve. I couldn’t protect you; I’ll protect this little guy. Verve was gone for too long for him to bring back as a Tier 10 Ascendant with the…however the resurrection thing would work, since it had been more than 10 years.
I’ll survive. He’ll help me survive. I’ll get you back, Chroma. I promise.
----------------------------------------
Shhiv had just finished moving in when Sera walked into the apartment unannounced. “Getting comfortable?”
Shhiv nodded and smiled, “This place is bigger than mine. It’s awesome. Missy even asked if I could teach her some exercises; she said they moved into the building also!”
Sera smiled and nodded, “Good to see it is going smoothly. You have another roommate that will join you eventually. Quinn Cipher has been invited and has accepted.”
Shhiv narrowed her gaze and felt her tail curl inward in aggression, “Why invite her ?”
“Because she can be used against Jace. Same with Greg and Missy. Same with you.” She uncrossed her arms and walked over to Shhiv, tracing a finger along her biceps. “She intends to seduce him, I imagine. Star Father is attempting to get Jace to become a Signer for the Star Council. We find ourselves in a predicament.”
Shhiv gently, but firmly, pushed the petite hand away. “Why is she moving into the building then?”
“Because she has transaction history through The Cosmic System – and the Conclave have figured out that she knows Flicker…Jace. It is only a matter of time until they make a move on her. Greg is currently contracted to her – so the duo should be somewhat safe. And more importantly, with her here and not in the Star Council’s buildings…I can keep an eye on her.”
Shhiv frowned, “That makes sense. But I’m going to put her in her place. Jace is mine .”
Sera smirked and giggled before resuming her composure. “Good, that is what I was going to ask you to do.”
“What?”
“You heard me. I know you and Jace went for a tumble, and he’s found himself enamored with you.” Sera tapped her wrist-pad, and a screen appeared in space next to the two. Shhiv felt mightily embarrassed as their saucy messages were displayed. “It has been an…interesting read.” The screen vanished and Shhiv struggled to meet the purple, multi-iris eyes. “You keep Jace romantically interested so Quinn has no chance. I do not want the Star Council to dig their claws into Jace…are we clear?”
Shhiv nodded, “Y-yeah…”
“Good girl. Just be aware, you have to be subtle about it. You can’t just alienate her entirely. Keep her from getting involved with Jace, and you’ll stay on my good side. Other than that? He’s all yours. Don’t break him…emotionally or physically. I need him intact.” Sera turned and left.
Shhiv sat on the edge of her weight bench and felt a chill run through her. Private messages are private. No one is supposed to be able to access them…who the heck is she? She was jolted out of her thoughts as she heard Missy and Sera talking in the hallway briefly. Glancing out of her room, Missy waved at her.
The plump woman walked over to Shhiv with a grin, wearing form-fitting clothing. “Ready to get me in shape?” she asked.
Shhiv nodded, “Yeah. Sure. Did you pick up the pre-workout supplement I told you about?”
“Right here!” she said, holding up a pill bottle.
“Good. That’ll enhance your metabolism and force the body to burn stored fat for energy, break down and mobilize the fat cells, and increase your metabolic rate. We’ll do a cut first, and then a bulk.” A good workout and personal training session will get my mind off things.
“How exciting. I need to be able to fit into this wedding dress I eyed in a cute shop when I was out earlier.”
Shhiv suppressed a laugh. Oh, sweetie. Your life is going to be miserable for the next hour.
----------------------------------------
Jace landed and let Priam off again and they went through the same buffing routine with a minor alteration – Dark Matter Blade (Rank 5) [Rending], Dark Matter Shield (Rank 2), and Dark Energy Mine (Rank 1) placed on the tip of his blade.
Priam used his Pulsar Ward (Rank 20) [Multi-Target], Pulsar Physic (Rank 2) [Contingent] – as he only had to affect two targets – and his Priest’s Benediction (Rank 10) [Enduring] on himself. As he recovered his breath, holding Jace’s arm for support, he nodded and swallowed a bit. “I…I’m good. Just give me a minute.”
Jace nodded as he looked at the lava tube and the bubbling magma that rushed out of it and down the mountainside. “A lot less room to walk. Also, that benediction thing will stay on you pretty much all the time, right?”
“Yeah…now that I’ve used [Enduring] with it on myself,” Priam replied as he tugged the hat a little lower on his brow. His darting, almost-black, blue eyes were firmly affixed on his hand and the seemingly invisible space he was holding. “What…what is that?”
“Oh. Dark Matter is invisible to anyone except for me and Ollie. You’re holding my shield.”
Priam smiled and nodded, “Neat. Okay. Whew. I’m good now. And I can help out in the fight this time! I got a combat Skill!”
Jace couldn’t help but smile at the buzzing enthusiasm coming from the bunny-boy. “Good. Let’s go in.” He walked up the tube and had to side-step and shimmy along a small ledge that ran alongside the lava. “Watch your footing,” he muttered.
“Easy! I’ve done tons of agility courses. Part of priest training.”
“What exactly is a priest?” Jace asked.
“Oh, well, it’s a person who serves the gods. We conduct rituals, perform rites, sacrifice the ani-”
“Sacrifice?” Jace turned his head back at the young man. “What do you mean?”
“Oh. Well, you kill the animal, take some of the cuts of meat – normally the stuff that people don’t like to eat like the liver – and burn that to satiate the gods’ hunger. Then we eat the good parts.”
“Oh, I thought you were going to say you sacrificed people,” Jace said as relief washed over him.
“Eww! No way! That’s too mean!” Priam replied with a disgusted look.
Ollie chuckled as he left Jace’s neck and swam through the lava nearby, causing shimmering starlight ripples that were cosmetic only – but an indicator of his happiness nonetheless. “It’s not human sacrifices like what you might have heard of in the tech-vamp-cults back on Earth.”
Priam frowned, “You have people sacrifices on Earth?”
“Not that I knew of,” Jace muttered as he looked at Ollie. “What do you mean?”
“They have only cropped up recently since The Cosmic System introduced them to the wider universe as a whole. A few of the other species – like ones that feed upon blood, or try to replace all of their physical components with mechanical ones – migrated over before the Star Council and Planetary Independence Pact stopped transit to-and-from.” Ollie splashed around a bit in the phantom nebula before flying back up to Jace and wrapping around his neck like a fuzzy scarf.
“Good to know that we won’t just be up against the corpos when I go back to Earth,” Jace replied.
Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation.
“What-os?” Priam asked.
“Big businesses that basically rule everything,” Jace said back. “Okay, the chamber opens up ahead.”
<<<<<>>>>>
[Warning! You are about to enter a Complex!]
[This location has been marked by The Cosmic System as Tier 3.]
[Number of foes to clear out: N/A – see accompanying Quest.]
<<<<<>>>>>
[Quest: Run the gauntlet.]
[Time Limit: N/A]
[Reward: Legendary (Equipment) Boon.]
[Sender: The Cosmic System.]
<<<<<>>>>>
Jace emerged into the chamber and was surprised – it was not just a cavern like the prior Complexes had been – this one started in a square chamber with a tunnel entrance on the opposite end made of worked stone. There was intricate scrollwork upon the shaped corridor, and Jace’s vision combined with Universal Translation was able to read it out.
‘Here lies the entrance of Thellor’s Tomb. He who first conquered Ash Peak and claimed all four World Pillars. Once you pass the threshold, you have’ – the time was odd, but Jace’s Skill was able to translate it to something he was familiar with – ‘5 minutes to reach the end.’
Ollie curled around the back of his head and popped his head on top of Jace’s under the hood. “Interesting. Unique Complexes are not unheard of, but they are definitely rare.”
“That explains the increased reward!” Priam stated as he got into the chamber behind Jace. “What do you think it means by ‘run the gauntlet’? Some type of time trial, sure, but is it dodging traps? Pure speed?”
Jace frowned, “I don’t know. Ollie?”
The otter shrugged and patted the sides of Jace’s head playfully – to his slight irritation. “Nope! Nothing for it but just going in and trying.”
Jace looked back at Priam, “Looks like we gotta split up for a bit.” He pulled the backpack off, removed some rations, and handed them to Priam. “Just in case. I’m sure getting off the volcano tile, you’ll find water.”
“You…you’re abandoning me?” Priam asked, his voice filled with sorrow despite the near-whisper.
Jace crouched slightly to be on his level, “No. I’m not going to abandon you,” like I abandoned Verve, “I’m going to be back. But if this is a time trial…well, I’m faster without you.”
Priam nodded and Bloopa became a series of fractals that Ollie translated, “She wants permission to integrate with me. That means that we can track each other’s location, provide information on our Aspirants, rapidly message despite distance, and more.”
Jace looked at Priam and smiled, “I trust him. Go for it, Ollie.”
The two Wayfinders nodded and there was a spark of blue lightning that zapped between them. “Done!” Ollie stated.
“By the way Priam…call me Jace. Flicker is just a code-name I used to stay safe.”
Priam chuckled, “I thought Flicker was a weird name.”
Jace turned to the tunnel, “Stay safe. I’ll make this quick.” 5-minute time trial? Right in my wheelhouse. He’d been a courier for god’s sake, timed deliveries through hazardous territory and over all manner of obstacles was his bread and butter. “Here we go,” he whispered as he sprinted into the tunnel.
----------------------------------------
“He’ll be back,” Priam muttered to himself as he sat down and leaned against the wall.
We can track his progress now that I am linked to Oliver.
“Should we call him Ollie as well?”
No. He only lets his friends call him that. Just use Oliver, for now.
“Right. So, Bloopa…what can you tell me about this secret faction?”
Very little, I am afraid. I can tell you very little because of restrictions put in place by X.
“But they’re all about doing good in The Cosmic System?”
Good is…subjective. They do what needs to be done to keep the System stable. This could involve saving a whole world, or assassinating a dictator, and a whole range in between. They are not purely altruistic.
“Oh…” Priam sulked and pulled his knees up to his chest. “I…I don’t know if I could work for someone like that.”
The Dark Between Stars is not as popular as the other factions, sure, but they do fix things. Without the work that X does, and their Signers, the whole System would be in a much worse and more exploitable state.
“It’s keeping things from getting worse. I…I suppose I could live with that.” After all, a Priest’s job after interceding on behalf of the gods is to make sure the world continues well and properly…I would be doing the same thing, just on a System scale. “How do I sign up?”
Bloopa stopped moving entirely, and a singular, square panel in the center of her illuminated. A shadowed, humanoid figure appeared on the screen. He could not tell any features, but their voice was female. “I am Xera…so, you are interested in being a Signer for me?”
“Yea,” Priam replied as he sat up a bit straighter. His hat brim squeezed down. Oh, good idea. “Can I get a signing bonus or something? I don’t have a lot of gear since I gave a lot of my Boons to…my old allies.”
Xera…giggled, “Sure. I can give you a small signing bonus I suppose.” Her voice shifted to become stern, “Be aware, by becoming one of my Signers – you will be fixing The Cosmic System. This may mean you do things you find distasteful or against your morals. Do you understand?”
“I do,” Priam replied. Like dad said, ‘sometimes a man’s gotta do things he ain’t proud of’. The hat squeezed down as if affirming his decision. “Plus, Jace is keeping me safe, and I am protecting him. If he’s part of your faction, I want to be a part of it, too. He got so strong; I want to be that strong! We can be an amazing team!”
Priam’s fingertips began glowing a deep purple. Xera sounded pleased. “Welcome to the Dark Between Stars. Now, Bloopa will fill you in on the rest…but first, let’s get that Signing bonus settled.”
<<<<<>>>>>
[Quest: Stand up and stretch.]
[Time Limit: N/A]
[Reward: Legendary (Equipment) Boon.]
[Sender: Dark Between Stars]
<<<<<>>>>>
Priam smiled and stood up, raising his arms up and feeling the slight ‘pop’ of his joints.
<<<<<>>>>>
[Quest Completed: Stand up and stretch.]
[Time Limit: N/A]
[Reward: Legendary (Equipment) Boon.]
[Sender: Dark Between Stars]
<<<<<>>>>>
“I want to use that right now. I’d love to get armored robes or something, so I don’t have to worry about heat or cold and can survive a surprise attack.”
“I’m heading off. Bloopa will take over once more. She’s been present this whole time,” Xera stated.
Bloopa began shifting and changing shapes, Congratulations! Okay, let’s get you that new gear.
<<<<<>>>>>
[Using Boon: Legendary (Equipment).]
[Manifesting.]
<<<<<>>>>>
Priam’s body was covered in luminous starlight that shimmered and clung to him for a few moments before vanishing. He was covered in a dull yellow with gold inlay cloak, and it was a little heavier than his prior clothes. It covered him from head to toe – with a hood that came up and let his ears poke through. The floppy rim of the hat hugged to the sides of his head.
These are called (Light) Archpriest Vestments. They are extremely heat and cold resistant. They also have the highest category of armor rating for a Tier 2, lighter set of attire.
“Out of curiosity, what’s Jace’s armor like?”
Highest category of armor rating for a Tier 1 world, in a medium weight category.
“So, I’ve got better armor?”
Yup!
“Huh. Then I guess this next Boon reward should go to him. I mean, he’s running the gauntlet, after all.”
Well, about that - you won't get any Boon from this because the reward is given to whoever reaches the end.
"That's fine! I got a signing bonus!"