The core realm of the titan had undergone a transformation so complete; it echoed in harmony with the titan aspect. The entire realm now flowing with the aspect of the titan hummed steadily with pure power that rivaled masters of old, Moyo wasn’t sure how he knew, but he could feel it in his bones. There he stood, next to the throne of the titan that had been relocated back to the top of his mountain, floating on a circular platform with the remaining thrones that had manifested themselves back. Staring at the sea of Ashe that hummed and glowed with authority unrestricted fused with the titan aspect, at his side were his mother and father, both of them looking paler the more he had completed his core realm.
He had an intimate understanding of what was going on to them, and he had accepted it, his parents were fading away into oblivion, their work done. He never did figure out if they were figments of his imagination manifested by his core, or they were truly the souls of his parents, but he was profoundly grateful for their existence during these trying times of his. His dark skin now had dark purple runes etched into them, words of pure power transformed from his native Yoruba language into the primordial runic language of the archailect.
They spoke of courage, of a will so profound it had the ability to bend the archailect to its wishes and it spoke of the primordial being Moyo would one day become when he grew into his full might as a titan. He had broken through to master a day before in this place, at the bottom of his sea of Ashe, he had connected with his titan aspect, letting it flow through him as he once again accepted the fact of what the titan was and who he was in tandem.
The power of a master had suffused him, parting the sea of Ashe as the landscape changed once more, additional mountains sprouting into existence, his core realm becoming a fully functional world in theory with rivers and mountain ranges, plain lands and even forests of purple trees. Moyo had emerged from the ocean a changed being, his mind going to what he had encountered down there, in the depths of pure authority.
The titan that was lay at the bottom of the ocean, purple light filtering in from the hanging sun in the skies above, Moyo staring at the gigantic being that had somehow been in his core realm without his knowledge. He floated to the bottom, breathing was not an issue for him, this was a world of his own making, nothing could harm him here,
Nothing except this being down here,
It was more of a deliberation than a fact, for Moyo could feel the palpable power oozing off the body of the being, masked by the power of his Ashe and aspect roaring above the seas. He stepped close to the being when he felt a probe touching his mind, immediately he went on alert, gathering his Ashe and preparing to destroy this intruder into his world when he felt the probe retreat and flare in front of his eyes, blinding him as he raised his hands to shield his eyes from the pure power,
Power that felt oddly enough like his, except like it had another feeling to it, like a rawer form, a primordial form,
“titan” the voice said in his head,
Moyo whipped his face to the helmet of the giant that lay propped at the bottom of his sea, eyes glowing white at him,
“heir” it repeated,
“Who are you?” Moyo spoke, again ignoring every common sense that went against speaking underwater,
“torchbearer” it spoke again,
“I have no idea what you mean” Moyo replied,
“Come, see, decide” it said,
Moyo felt his Ashe tugging at him to move closer, to touch the metal armor of the giant. The being wore what looked like medieval armor, a few variations such as the crystalline parts that were seamlessly added to the metallic parts that moved like liquid mercury. Coming in contact with the armor drove Moyo to his knees,
“COME” the voice echoed within his skull,
Moyo grunted as pure power rampaged through him, considerably screw piling him straight into the rocky depths of his sea of Ashe. His eyes wide open, he saw the visions flashing through his head, of a battle so intense it burned his eyes just staring at it. A battle of two titanic beings that dwarfed stars and suns, each swing of their arms shattered entire galaxies that were just forming out of the primordial ooze of the barren universe,
“SEE” the voice echoed again,
This time Moyo could see it clearly, the two beings that fought, one of pure purple and white light, whose features he couldn’t see clearly beneath the blinding lights that made up its body. He knew who it was though, the very being that now laid at his feet, a worn and shattered version of that majestic and glorious being. The second being was one that drove Moyo with pure revulsion, a being of pure oily darkness, a serpentine creature whose cries unraveled reality itself piece by piece, only the presence of the broken being who was once majestic managed to stitch reality back together.
He saw them there, six primordial beings just created into existence, all within cocoons of power that were safely being safeguarded behind the giant shining being. Moyo saw one of the cocoons hatch, giving birth to what seemed like a large red dragon whose cries filled the very empty expanse of space. The being had managed to beat back the large serpent, whose hold over reality had been steadily broken, pushing it deep into the vast infinity. The being itself had not escaped without devastating damages, its body was steadily being broken, like fractured glass it shattered, not before a large purple gem within its chest came out, glowing as its essence were siphoned by the dragon and its siblings.
Moyo took a deep breath there, still under the hold of the vision,
This was the origins of the archailect, the supreme beings and a being more powerful than the supreme beings.
Then the memory took him through the great infinity, to a place of pure darkness, a place of pure taint and blight, the great abyss where the serpentine beings’ body had broken to form this great place, where an uncountable number of horrors were being birthed every single second, where evolved blights who fed on their siblings had grown strong enough to create an existence known as lords,
Where the body of the being was slowly being built back, drawn back together by the malevolent power the abyss had been gathering overtime. For every world and piece of the archailect it took, a piece of the being grew back,
“DECIDE” the voice of the being spoke,
The voice of the titan, the true titan, the primordial and precursor of the archailect and probably the universe itself.
It wanted him to choose, to decide as all titans must do, the will of the primordial titan flowing through the gem now floated before his very eyes. Would he carry on the torch, would he defend the archailect from the horrors the powers of the archailect could only keep at bay?. Moyo shook as he came out of the memory, the eyes of the being glowing faintly, he took a deep breath as he stood back, strength flowing back through his limbs,
“I thank you” he started,
“You held on for this long, through eons in silence, aware your very nature could rouse your foe, the being in the abyss, that…. creature, whatever it was” he said,
“But it is time for you to rest, to let me carry on the legacy, it is not something I relish, but it is something I must do, it is a path I have tread thus far” he finished,
Grabbing the gem, he felt his aspect click in totality with his path, the primordial power of the titan completely fusing with the path of the titan. All around his realm he could feel the rampaging titan aspect calm, its power being absorbed by a realm that wanted more, the gates of the titan aspect, the crystal structures opening up entirely.
He opened hie eyes, feeling not just power but control, his body fundamentally being transformed. The being gave a sigh, an almost happy sound as its body began to dissolve, its metal and crystal armor turning to dust as they floated towards Moyo and permeating his entire being. Moyo grinned, the being nodding at him with one last great difficulty before vanishing, leaving a single word,
“ENDURE”
******************
Moyo opened his eyes in the present, seeing his parents looking nothing more like a reflection,
“I guess it’s time to say goodbye?” he asked softly,
They both nodded, smiles on their faces. He felt a tear drop from his eyes,
“you’re a titan son, it is beneath your station to cry” his father said,
He smiled, glancing at his mother,
“I never thought I’d see the day where as an African mother, I’d say the dreadlocks on your head suits you well, it reflects you, be strong my child” she said,
He could only nod, gripping the crystalline throne hard as he fought back the tears, steeling his heart while accepting their farewells,
“We have done our parts, you know what you must do next, good luck Moyosore, be well” his mother said as they vanished,
Moyo took a deep shuddering breath as he sat on the chair, feeling the power of his very being course through him. He smiled, his eyes alight,
He had come full circle,
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He had watched his parents die,
He had seen his world decimated,
He had passed through the crucible,
He had seen his parents again,
He had protected his world,
He had been reborn a true monster,
With focus born out of practice, Moyo steeled his nerves as he prepared to exit his core realm. reality came into focus, his power coming to bare fully as he gathered Ashe, the runes on his body lighting up and his spiritual form, a giant armored being wielding a larger form of dominion manifested behind him. The titan spoke, the third edict born out of pure instincts as only one at peace with their aspect could,
“IRAPADA” he said,
Redemption,
Reality exploded with pure power as he was sucked out of his core realm, floating towards the physical realm proper.
***********************
The crystal that contained the cocooned body of the titan cracked, the ascenders who had sworn to protect the body of the titan freezing and glancing at the crystal that cracked the more before shattering, the force wave of the explosion throwing them into the air. They were experts however, even though they were all peak ranked iron and fresh bronze tier, therefore they managed to control their fall, landing gracefully. Josh titan sentinel entered the room, Warhammer swinging behind him and bronze ranked power on display.
The ascenders bowed to him as he glanced around,
“What happened here?” he asked, his eyes straying to the broken crystals that vanished immediately,
“Where is the lord?” he asked, his voice a whisper as he imagined what he’d have to tell the sect leaders,
The ascenders all turned to him in confusion when a loud gong filled the air
GLOBAL NOTICE: congratulations, inhabitants of Gaia!, Moyosore titan blade has achieved the rank of master!. Being the first in his galaxy and home planet, the entirety of the planet get a seven day boost of +500 on all attributes!.
* 10% of all loot gotten from dungeons all over Gaia will go to the titan blade for the duration of the seven days
* 10% of all aether crystals will go to the titan blade during those seven days,
* All dungeons will have prolonged delving time with reduced risks of breaking,
* All ascenders loyal to the titan blade will get a 5% point increase during these seven days,
Hail the titan blade!
Josh looked startled for a minute before he shouted in a voice filled with raw joy,
“he’s back!, the titan is back!”
**********************
On the continent of the imperial empire, king William stood in his throne room, a grin on his face with Excalibur at his side. His throne room burst open as he had predicted, his knights in pure gold storming in before bowing,
“My lord!” knight expert Jerome, lord of the northern castle fortitude said,
“I know” William replied,
“I saw it as well, we might as well be prepared for the true top dog” he said,
“My lord?” knight expert lady Yvonne asked, the lady of the eastern castle Pangea asked,
“I mean we greet our ally as he prepares to do something totally outrageous” William said with a grin,
He glanced out the window, watching the mythical birds and magical carriages fly by, things were about to get interesting again.
**********************
All over Gaia, allies and enemies alike were roused by those below them to the return of the titan, the explorer society began trying to make contact with Bastion and the continent of Asa, trying to be the first to talk to the master of Gaia. The Bharat empire prepared to send an envoy to the continent, now was not the time to side with any faction stupid enough to take on a master and the titan blade at that. The federation threw another celebration in honor of the titan blade, another excuse by their mid-tier bronze leader Perun to host another party.
The glorious empire-maintained silence, aware of their crimes and the sort of retribution the titan could inflict on the empire. Already the heads of those loyal to the golden sun had been packaged in boxes, a sort of subtle apology ordered by emperor Ba Ji to placate the power that was the titan blade, hopefully it would be enough.
The union under commander Cassandra prepared for the rise of a new power, they weren’t stupid in thinking to antagonize the titan blade, but they knew well enough that with the return of the titan, new battles would come and along with it, chances at resources, the union wanted to be in the best position to gain from that.
***********************
Moyo floated high above Bastion, Digi Aye watching the flow of aether around his domain, the winds blowing at his bare body. Fists clenched with his aura sizzling around his frame with easily controlled movements, he stared down at Bastion, realizing this was not the domain he left behind, it had grown exponentially. There were flying vehicles and constructs, ascenders of different kinds moving through the air, unaware of his presence.
With a thought he appeared over dominion, his castle, gently setting down on his balcony, a flick of his fingers had the doors opening softly and without a sound, His wardrobe was filled with an assortment of robes and attires, most from the fashion designers who were lucky to acquire paths suiting their career lines and with a few aether crystals from the clan, were able to evolve their paths into a rare one. He picked up a black robe with the gold crest of clan titan blade sewn into it, he felt someone pass through the bubble of aura he placed around the room to alert him of their presence,
“you’re a hard man to find Moyo” he heard,
Whipping his head to see Ashira, eyes wide,
“Ashira, how, well that explains how I got back home” he said with a smile as she crashed into him, hugging him,
“You almost died” she whispered, hugging him fiercely,
“And you’re a master now, wow’ he groaned under the force of her hug,
Ashira let him loose, stepping backwards,
“I could say the same for you, breaking through to master without the help of any ruler, you just keep breaking the rules, don’t you?” she asked,
Moyo shrugged,
“I’m not one for the rules of the archailect” he replied with a smile,
She gave a weak smile,
“I almost lost you, what happened?” she asked,
Moyo frowned, scratching his beards,
“I’m not sure you’d believe me if I told you that tale” he replied,
“The one where you fought Rohan or the one where you have something called a throne that serves as a key back from death?” she asked,
Moyo looked startled and wary,
“How did you know about that?” he asked,
“The rulers know, it was what brought you back to life, Kairos, the brigade leader, the true blade and thousand blades thought it wise to quickly get you back to your world in time for your return, so as not to draw attentions from other primordials” she said,
“Primordials?” Moyo asked, one eyebrow raised,
Ashira shook her head,
“I’m saying too much, better we wait for someone who actually understands these matters” she replied,
Moyo paused, turning to her as he tied the sash of the robe,
“Who else followed you back to my world?” he asked,
Ashira shook her head,
“no one, but your world is currently protected by the brigade to stop any sort of aura of yours from leaking into the archailect proper, we can be expecting someone high up the ladder of the archailect to make an appearance soon” she explained,
Moyo nodded his head,
“This stays between us, I have no explanations concerning my revival that my fellow clan members can understand, not until some day they reach master themselves, best not to bring it up for now” he said,
“I agree” she replied,
He glanced at her,
“you’ve met her?’ he asked, dreading the reply,
This wasn’t how he had planned the introduction between Ashira and Annika, but it seemed fate could care less for his goals and now he had to deal with the aftermath himself. Ashira smiled,
“we’ve met, talked a bit” Ashira said cryptically,
“And?” Moyo asked,
“you’ll have to ask her about the details” she replied,
Moyo just shook his head turned away, his HUD blinking furiously for the past few minutes he’d been awake. With a thought he opened it,
Notice: congratulations, you have crossed over the threshold to master!, you have reached level 501,
Notice: Congratulations, you’re the first on your planet Gaia to attain the rank of master, you get:
* 10,000,000 diamond coins
* 50,000,000 gold coins
* 100,000,000 silver coins
* 500,000,000 bronze coins
Notice: congratulations, soul abilities: throne of the titan, deific vault of the titan and gates of the titan have been fully linked together in tandem with the aspect of the titan.
Notice: aspect of the titan has fully bonded with the path of the titan blade; attacks of the titan now carry soul destroying attacks.
Moyo closed his HUD with a flick of his thought,
“Not much to see here” Moyo muttered to himself,
He turned back to look at Ashira who kept smiling at him,
“Now that’s creepy, the whole smiling thing you’re doing” he remarked,
She rolled her eyes,
“we’re masters now!” she said, excitement in her voice,
“I’ve noticed” he said drily,
“Meaning we’re subject to the orders of no one!!” she said again,
“And?” he asked,
“It means we can go across the archailect as we like!” she cheered,
Moyo paused, smiled,
“Yes, I guess so” he replied nodding,
“After we bury Rohan six feet under the ground of course” he said as the two of them vanished from the room,
*********************************
The sect leaders had gathered in Bastion the moment the message from the archailect went out, sealing the doors behind them as they waited with baited breaths for the titan to appear. They sat with baited breaths, Annika gripping the arms of her chair tightly,
“do you still think he’s in Bastion at all?, I don’t know what masters can do anyways, for all we know he could be half way across the world right now” Ayo said,
“Moyo wouldn’t do that, he’s not some kid who has no sense of responsibilities” Mrs. Martha replied, eyebrows furrowed,
“Is that what you know of our patriarch or what you hope of him?” Mr. Boyle asked,
Mrs. Martha kept quiet at that question, realizing Mr. Boyle was right,
“he’ll turn up at one point, that much is certain” Idris said,
“I have tracking runes scattered all over Bastion and Asa as a whole, they’ll pick up on any power higher than bronze rank” Samantha said,
They all turned to her,
“Samantha, you do know he’s way more powerful than a bronze ranker, right?” Ayo asked,
Samantha shrugged,
‘it’s the best I can do” she said,
“And your best is enough” Moyo replied as he suddenly was seated on his throne,
They all turned to him, viewing the being who sat on the chair, whose power they couldn’t even sense in the slightest, but they could all feel his presence, like a physical thing they could touch, power crackling quietly in the air. Mrs. Martha was the first to come out of the trance, getting up from her chair,
“Sect leaders of clan titan blade” she spoke, her voice like steel, jarring the rest from their awe and shock,
“Rise and bow, to the one true lord and patriarch of clan titan blade, the master of clan titan blade and Gaia, lord Moyosore titan blade” she said,
They all rose and bowed, Moyo raising his eyebrows,
“Really now, I go for a month and some weeks and I come back to formality?” he asked as he stood, his frame towering over everybody,
They all looked up at him,
“Moyo” Annika breathed,
He glanced at her,
“Hello Annika” he said with a smile,
The storm empress blitzed into his frame, hugging him tight as he caught her faster than she could move, master reflexes coming into play. The ice was broken at that point, one by one they came forwards, hugging him, even Mrs. Martha,
“Welcome back Moyo” she said, Moyo hearing the relief in her voice and wariness of watching over the clan in his stead,
“I’m back” he replied firmly,
With that out of the way, Moyo saw Mrs. Martha clap, drawing their attentions back to her,
“With the titan returned to us, it’s time he meets his clan” she said,
Moyo groaned even as Annika held on to his hands firmly, afraid he’d disappear on her again,
“Martha what did you do?” he asked,
She grinned and snapped her fingers as the giant doors swung open to reveal hundreds upon hundreds of ascenders arrayed in the different colors of their different sects, banners waving in the air and in front of them the vice sect leaders dressed in the glowing robes of their sects. Moyo glanced at her, seeing the look of ferocity and joy in her eyes,
“You were always one for theatrics” he said as she smiled,
“I make use of every situation given to me” she replied,
Moyo nodded,
“Let me guess, this is being shown worldwide?” he asked,
She nodded,
“it’s time the other powers know you’re back, let the clan rouse again from its slumber” she said,
Moyo nodded and with one step appeared over the air of the clan, a loud roar emanated from the crowd below, their voices carrying the energy and morale of the entire clan. Moyo watched them all, seeing the look of expectancy in their eyes, he raised on hand skywards, feeling the eyes of everyone on him and spoke,
“hail clan titan blade” he said,
“HAIL CLAN TITAN BLADE!” they answered,
The chant filling the air even as more and more ascenders took up the chant, Moyo releasing a pulse of pure aura into the air as the skies above darkened into purple, winds blowing, and the titan above it all.