The older generation of cultivators on Ekict had been wiped out in the war, but instead of discontent those who remained had been mostly positive about the outcome, or neutral at worst. Everyone except weaker sects who had made a position for themselves working as the lackeys of more powerful groups had a direct improvement in quality of life, and those not so tightly entangled in the affairs of the greater sects were not worse off.
Anishka had been with them since the end of the war, in part to act as a bridge between Ekict and the alliance. Her greater motivation was to remain with her friends. They were the first individuals she felt were her friends entirely on her own merit, not because she was the daughter of Annelie or because of the Fire and Ice Palace. While her previous friends hadn’t necessarily been false, the fact that she didn’t think about anyone on Ceretos outside of family said something.
So Anishka spent time with Patka, as well as Celina and the disciples of the Enkindled Sun Sect. She also had the Sergeant with her, a lesser friend only in stature. She had an official purpose, of course, but she could manage that alongside other affairs, like cultivation. Patka’s official position was something like her disciple. Meanwhile the Fire and Ice Palace had many cultivation tips to offer to the Enkindled Sun Sect. But in return, there were a few things Anishka could learn from them and pass back to her sect. No path was perfect, or if it was possible it certainly hadn’t been completed yet. There were always things to learn, even from those weaker.
Enough time had passed that there were some important choices to make. Ones that were very important to the future of how they would interact.
“What are your plans?” Anishka asked when she was together with both Patka and Celina.
Celina answered quickly. “I will be searching for a suitable Assimilation goal, of course, and staying here as a guardian.”
“The same with me… eventually,” Patka said. Her cultivation was a bit slower than Celina, who was also a step or two behind Anishka.
Anishka nodded at their responses. “You’re not even considering Ascension?”
“Why would we?” Celina shook her head. “This is our home. We fought for it, and while some of the leadership made terrible choices… we still live here. The affairs of the upper realms don’t matter. If they come here, we will be ready.”
Anishka didn’t know what else she should have expected. The people of Ekict had a particular way they did things, and while the older generation that used ‘Transferral’ were gone now, the reasons had all come from the same place.
“I would like to help out others, if possible,” Patka said. “Depending on if we can take care of ourselves first. How long the invasions take… and all of that.”
Anishka nodded. That was still an issue, as it could take months simply to travel between Ekict and the Alliance. But that was considering standard troop carriers. If only a small number of powerful cultivators were involved, they might be able to take a faster vessel, potentially cutting the time in half or more. The only question was whether particular Assimilation cultivators would be effective outside of their home world. “I think just taking care of yourselves is enough. And working together with everyone to improve ourselves, of course. If we could get one Augmentation equivalent in each system…”
Patka laughed, “As if that’s so easy. Doesn’t it take like… a millennium?”
“It can be half that,” Anishka said. “... or less.” Her aunt had managed it in three hundred years, after all. And her grandfather might do it soon, though that was potentially a secret. “With improved natural energy levels, everything is faster.”
Anishka felt her other companion try to draw her attention. As it turned out, the Sergeant could apply a significant squeezing force when she wanted to. That was preferable to nipping Anishka with her mandibles even if she’d never broken skin when she didn’t intend to.
The Sergeant, seeing she had attention, signed her own part of the conversation. “I will be staying with you.”
“I know,” Anishka said. “I’m not planning to ascend, either. Though I don’t know what sort of Assimilation I’ll ultimately end up with, and how mobile I’ll be.”
“Good. I like it here,” the void ant declared.
The only question remaining for Anishka was if she had an Assimilation that was lacking in mobility whether it should be on Ekict or Ceretos. Trust was once more building up between Ekict and the rest of the lower realm community so it wouldn’t be so difficult to move between the two as it once was. There was still the matter of travel time, but as the decades went by Anishka found that to be less of a factor in her mind.
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The preparations were finally finished. Understandably, Anton was nervous about the whole process. He was confident in the safety of Poriza, or he wouldn’t have even suggested the option. They had gone to great expense to make certain that the planet would withdraw from the sun at the correct rate and distance. The thing Anton was most concerned about was it not paying off as promised.
There would be improvements, but there was some chance it wouldn’t be as much as anticipated. There were so many variables to consider, it was simply impossible to know. It might have been better to pour all of the resources allocated to this project into another method of growth, though Anton believed that there was a maximum level they could reach without the constant input of natural energy from a more powerful star. Ultimately, there was a limit to how much cultivators could augment the natural ambient energy based on how much was coming in.
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Even so, Anton had made promises that he wanted to be fulfilled. Even if in two or three centuries this paid off, if it took that long many people could lose out on opportunities before then. Not just small opportunities either- if the timing was wrong for them, it was very easy for people to die of old age when their cultivation didn’t advance quickly enough. That was inevitable, of course, but Anton still wanted to avoid it being his fault, when shorter term benefits might have resulted in a better growth curve.
It was too late to change things, of course. Anton simply had to acknowledge his doubts. They were part of him, and he had to move past them. Hopefully by achieving sufficient results, but Anton was prepared to deal with failure if it came down to it. And in a way, the thought motivated him to do better to avoid it.
The final days passed slowly, as details were checked and re-checked. Anton was already beginning the process, but not in a way that was irreversible. While it was only going to make a small difference in overall mass, he was gathering free dust throughout the system and guiding it towards the star. There was no chance of it increasing the mass of the star enough for it to trigger sustained fusion, and likewise it wouldn’t significantly change gravity or any other factors. Still, it was not an insignificant amount of mass and it wouldn’t ever be used for anything else, unlike the stray asteroids that might be mined for various metals in the future.
It was a meditative thing, drifting through the void of space and guiding everything around him towards the small star. It allowed him to clear his mind for the real thing.
The system didn’t have another brown dwarf, though that was by no means necessary for what they intended to accomplish. The star was just below the threshold, it only needed a few percent increase in mass to surpass the threshold. It would take almost a thousand planets the size of Poriza to make up that difference, but the system had several gaseous giants that would serve the necessary purpose. For the purposes of harvesting them for various elements, it was unnecessary to have more- and there was no guarantee of achieving the intended results every other way.
Combining every speck of dust and every stray asteroid could potentially be sufficient. But doing so would mean a steady increased in the star’s mass instead of a short burst, and while that sounded safer on the surface there was a significant issue. At the point where the star began to properly sustain fusion of heavier elements, it would do so rapidly, the temperature jumping sharply in a short time. The planet already needed to be moving, or at least it was safer if it was as the formations would be affected by the change in energy to some extent.
When it came down to the last moments, Anton listened to the official announcement taking place on the planet below as he made his way back. There was a large gathering of sects, and sound transmitting formations would relay it in close to real time around the planet. Among those gathered were the leadership of the Order on planet.
Nyarai was one of the most powerful local cultivators, and she had been chosen for the honor of making the official statements. “Today we begin a process that will reshape our world forever. It is not one undertaken lightly, but one carefully considered. All of you know of the work that has been done over the last decades. And now, we will finally make use of it. With the help of our friend Anton… and the cooperation between all of us.”
At the mention of his name, Anton descended so that he could be seen. He didn’t want the personal glory, but he did want people to be comfortable with him, a real person and not just an idea.
The speech continued for a while longer. It was a big event, after all. Rarer than once in a lifetime. As far as Anton was aware, it was unique in the galaxy. Though perhaps he was being too limiting. Either way, he could say it was true of the thousands of systems they had surveyed in the lower realms. Joy was half an exception, but there was little practical benefit besides the knowledge. A lone red dwarf didn’t have any significant difference from a binary pair of brown dwarfs.
The timing for everything was quite intentional. The path Anton would be guiding the sacrificial planet on would not pass through that of any other planets. Anton began to create the necessary connection, coaxing it along the path while drawing upon his power to reduce its orbital speed. It was a slow process, during which the people of Poriza were already beginning their shifts empowering the formations.
Nearly everything had stopped on the planet, except the most necessary things such as emergency services. Food was not prepared individually, but communally for all of those lending their power to the efforts. Only a small number of ships performing necessary functions traveled the seas.
Anton almost felt the urge to rush, but he knew they had prepared for a certain variability in time. It felt slow now, but he knew it would speed up. He paid attention to Poriza, as it created an inverse magnetic field to its star, slowly pushing away. The planet wouldn’t be changing its orbit terribly much in the grand scheme of things, but remaining perfectly still would have many negative consequences.
A great mass spiraled through space, the gas planet drawing ever closer to the even larger mass of the star. Because no matter how small the brown dwarf was as a star, it was still on a different scale in terms of mass from anything but the most extreme of planets. Though the difference of size wasn’t nearly so extreme. The star wasn’t even half again as large as the gas giant in any particular dimension, which became readily apparent as it drew closer and closer.
Instead of allowing them to continue accelerating closer, once the natural draw of gravity became a dominant factor Anton focused on guiding the planet properly. His intention was to have it spiral around the star, letting mass be pulled off in layers rather than crashing directly into it. That required just the right angle and momentum. He felt the power within him burning swiftly, the surrounding stars bolstering him. It would have been impossible to accomplish the task without them.
The gas giant made contact, bits of it pulling off. Anton carefully monitored the reaction of the star, along with many others. They had avoided the worst case scenario already- a direct impact that might cause a burst of energy that could damage Poriza. Now they just had to follow through.
Then Anton felt it. It was almost as if a switch was flipped, a greater power growing inside the star. He wouldn’t miss the opportunity a second time. He was already prepared to bind the star to him as it crossed the threshold.
With all of Anton’s experience, it happened easily. He formed the connection, and the flame of a new star lit within him. The power of the new star pulsed… and for the first time he felt something outside their predictions. It was more powerful than initially anticipated. As it devoured the last of the gas giant, the rapid growth in energy threw Anton off guard. It seemed the process wasn’t going to be so straightforward as initially planned.