QThe titan watched as large carrier ships passed through the atmosphere of the world he just consecrated. All around him the frame work for a large city was coming up, headed by Idris and the guard, cities were slowly forming all around him, purple walls surrounding the entire domain as cities built by each of the guard were contained within the continent that now belonged to the titan. Even as he floated high in the skies above, his robes flapping in the soft breeze of a planet slowly terraforming into the exact image of earth, Moyo crossed his arms, frowning as the ships began to land, disgorging the thousands of colonists within them.
He had been informed by Altair that each planet taken was to be seeded with new lives, drawing it closer to the archailect and even now he could feel dungeons linked to the archailect springing up around the continents. He could feel everything around the continents, his aspect interwoven with the entire planet, in theory it was his, he had been the one to release the planet from the grip of the abyss and it was his aspect that did the most of that. The titan wasn’t sure how he felt about having another planet under his control and one so far away from his galaxy, but that was a trivial issue, even now a coalition government was being formed by the new colonists.
He felt a perception lock on to him, glancing in its direction to see a woman smartly dressed in a military looking attire, tattoos adorning her face and standing rigidly as she withdrew her aura after gaining his attention. He floated down towards her, watching as she bowed at the waist to him,
“Greetings master titan blade, I am the representative of the high council, diamond ranker Ayesha” she started,
“On behalf of the high council, I wish to extend their congratulations on your quick and decisive consecration of this planet to the archailect. For your efforts, the council has decided to grant you ownership of the planet” she said,
The titan frowned,
“It was my aspect that’s interwoven with the very fabric of the planet, I can feel it even now, would I had been denied the planet in the first place?” he asked,
“The conquering of new planets is a task best suited for the jades, as such they are paid hefty sums or given legendary relics or other forms of payments for the planets by interested parties” she explained,
“So I would be obliged to hand in the planet even if I don’t want to?’ he asked, one eyebrow raised,
Ayesha shook her head,
“No, the planet would be cut off from the archailect and left to you to use your aspect or in your case, the aspect of the thousand blades whom you currently wield to power the planet, a feat not even a master can maintain for long” she said,
Apparently working for the high council didn’t mean she was privy to things like him being a primordial, he played along with it, nodding sagely as she looked satisfied. Tapping the air as it shimmered, she produced a scroll, handing it over to the him, he opened it as golden inscriptions began to appear,
To the titan blade,
Congratulations on your exemplary performance with planet designation blade (until its calamity and name appointment). With low death rate and high ascension counts, it is with pride we wish to bestow this planet into your hands, control and sorting of the planet will be left to your sole authority and forces on the planet will be under your jurisdiction, we hope for more performances like this.
The high council.
Moyo snapped the scroll close as a loud gong echoed around him,
Global Notice: the planet designated blade is now under the complete control of the master titan blade; all governments and positions are subject to his complete authority. Due to this, the following are in order:
- 10% of all dungeon rewards and loots go to the titan blade
- 10% of all income and tax to be levied go to the titan blade
- All resources within the planet are subject to his authority
- All domains, cities, towns and the likes are under the domain of the titan blade
Notice: congratulations, you are now the owner and lord of planet designated blade. For this accomplishment, you get:
- 10,000,000 diamond coins
- 100,000,000 gold coins
- 1,000,000,000 silver coins
- 10,000,000,000 bronze coins
- 100 mythic dungeon cores
- 1,000 legendary dungeon cores
- 10,000 rare dungeon cores
- 100,000 uncommon dungeon cores
- 1000 ingots of mithril
Along with the usual bounty of rewards that came from being the first to own a domain on the planet, the rewards had the Moyo shaking his head,
“These rewards are absurd” he said as Ayesha cocked her head, nodding,
“I apologize for the small scale, however the archailect runs on a very delicate balance of rewards currently, I can table a complaint for you if you like” she said as Moyo looked confused,
She thought he was complaining about the rewards, he quickly waved his hand,
“No, they are fine, any other thing the council would like to inform me?” he asked,
She shook her head as she bowed,
“none lord master, I will be taking my leave and wishing you good luck on your future conquests. Again, congratulations on your accomplishment” she said as a pathway opened behind her; its destination hidden.
After she left, Moyo turned to the large city in front of him as Idris flew closer to him,
“lord” he said as Moyo turned to him,
“issues with funds?, cause believe me I have more than enough to splurge” he replied,
Idris snorted,
“We have more than enough to build ten cities twice over” he said,
Moyo shrugged,
“Pity, I was hoping to offload some funds, vault must be swimming in money right now” he said,
“Must be nice” Idris replied,
“what’s the issue then?” he asked,
Idris pointed into the distance where a group of people looked dressed in what he suspected were really expensive clothes stood, squinting at the distance. From the looks he guessed they were advocates, seeing as they couldn’t see that far,
“Those are the…ah…influential colonists that came along with the transport ships, they were wondering what form of government the planet would take” Idris said,
Moyo winced as he glanced at Idris who stared at him gravely, neither of them was good with issues of government, both of them being warriors. While the guard were creating cities around the continent, they too would be leaving when they were called for their next assignment and were in no form rulers themselves. He sighed, scratching his head,
“Now would be a good time to have Martha here” he said as Idris grunted in approval,
“Then why don’t you just call her?’ Idris asked,
Moyo face palmed himself at his idiocy before doing so, seeing as his HUD was now responding. It cost a whooping 2000 diamond coins for the long-distance call, but he didn’t bat an eye, it wasn’t a dent in a dent of the funds he had within his disposition. The surprised face of Martha came up in front of him and Idris as he transferred the image to his communication device,
“Lord titan blade?’ she said, surprise in her voice,
“Hi Martha, not a long time I guess” he said,
She raised an eyebrow,
“it’s been a month plus Moyo” she replied as he frowned,
“that’s impossible, we literally left Gaia a few days ago” he said,
She shook her head,
“No, you left Gaia a month and a week ago, perhaps being light years away has its communication downsides” she said,
“Either that or something about the galaxy we’re currently in is wonkers” Idris replied,
“Lord champion” Martha said, inclining her head to Idris who nodded back in greeting,
She turned back to Moyo who was contemplating the time passage,
“So, I’m guessing this is not a social call?” she asked,
Moyo shook his head,
“No, I’ve been given a planet and I need to set up a government, no idea how to do that, you’re my only hope” he replied,
Martha was lost for words for a few seconds before she burst out in laughter, wiping her eyes as Moyo and Idris stared awkwardly at her,
“Is something funny?” Moyo asked,
“Oh, oh no, you see we made a bet, I and the other leaders that you would do something totally outlandish” she replied as Moyo rolled his eyes,
“Annika made a bet that you’d be too busy cutting your way through enemies for such, but I knew you better, you don’t go searching for outlandish things, they search for you” she replied as he sighed,
This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.
“Hardy ha ha” he grumbled as Idris snorted,
“Turn it to a world for your order” she replied,
“What?” he asked confused,
“Your order of the titan, turn it to a world for them” she said, all mirth removed from her face,
“Why would I want to do that?’ he asked,
“it’s bad enough that I have an entire order with foot soldiers in it, now you want me to turn an entire world to a sort of military camp?” he asked,
“Hear me out” she said sighing, as if preparing to give a lecture to a child,
“The powers of Gaia, and I mean the different factions are somehow reluctant to join our hypothetical house” she started,
“Pontiff Matthew, the former head of the Luminian theocracy is somewhat being looked down upon as a lesser which is daft considering I can feel the power of the double paths he wields right now and I can say he could go toe to toe with any of the leaders of the different factions” she explained,
“So you want me to give him an entire world instead of a faction?” Moyo said slowly,
Martha nodded as she continued,
“Excuse my assumptions, but Idris?” she called as Idris floated closer,
“What is the disposition of the people on the planet to the titan blade right now?’ she asked,
“Almost godlike veneration” he replied immediately as Moyo glanced at him,
“Really?’ he asked,
“From what I heard the invasion was broadcasted to all the colonists on the respective ships heading to the worlds being consecrated. They saw you wipe out the taint of the abyss with brutal efficiency, some even want to join the reinforcements for the next invasion” Idris said,
Moyo seemed surprised as Martha chuckled,
“of course, I didn’t expect your simple mind to realize that fact, it was why I asked Idris” she said,
“Hey!, are you calling me dumb?” he grumbled,
“no, I’m calling you innocent minded” she replied with a smile as he nodded,
“And of course, dumb” she said as he rolled his eyes,
“But the fact is, my dear master and lord of an entire planet, that these could serve as a source of veneration, you put the pontiff in charge, he elects royals or whatever the high and mighty among the colonists would like to set themselves up as and the order of the titan turns the planet to a safe place for themselves. Plus, with the strict oaths you placed them under, you can be sure any royalty who gets the insane idea to rule them with brutality would be squashed almost immediately” she said,
“Even if I want to accept your rules, transportation to this planet is off the table, it’s still within the galaxy we’re invading” he said,
“I see, perhaps there’s a way to transport the planet to our milky way?” she asked,
“Hold up a minute” he said as he opened his HUD,
“Huh, transportation to the planet is possible” he said,
“You just assumed it wasn’t, didn’t you?” Martha accused him,
He pretended he didn’t hear, opening his system vault and buying an inter-galactic tele hub, the biggest and most expensive at a whooping sum of 100,000 diamond coins. Even that got him wincing at the stupendous price, he began to understand why construct ships were used to travel between galaxies, no average ascender could boast of that amount of funds easily and even rulers would raise eyebrows before parting with such a huge amount of funds.
As the large structure made of dark purple crystal began to take shape, Moyo felt his aspect play a greater role within its creation. There was a lot he didn’t know about aspects till he got to the rank of ruler, but even he could feel the potency of power that hummed within the tele hub. Causing the very earth beneath them to shake as it arranged itself into a large circular structure that hovered a few inches above the ground, it hummed to life, looking ideally like one of the pathways he used.
In the distance he could see multitudes of ascenders making their way towards the structure, along with those supposed royalties. No doubt to see such a structure, one must be an inhabitant of one of the great powers and on their home planet no less, yet here he was, casually bestowing this planet one. He turned to Martha who had an excited looking pontiff by her side,
“Lord primordial” he said in greeting,
“Matthew, step through the tele hub in Ife, I’ve calibrated this tele hub to link with it” he said,
As Matthew left the picture, Martha spoke to him,
“How goes the invasion?’ she asked,
“I’m not sure I can tell you that, I feel some pressure welling up in me just thinking about it” he replied frowning,
Martha nodded,
“Probably some safety procedure enacted, no problem, so long as you’re alright, be safe” she said as he nodded,
He hadn’t made an oath specifically saying not to talk about the happenings in the invasion, so why was he restricted from speaking of such?. A matter for another day, he floated down to the crowd below who knelt as they sighted him, some outright bowing flat. He frowned but said nothing, coming to a rest as he touched the ground,
“Who among you were with the intention of ruling these people?” he asked, his voice resonating around the entire area,
He felt that quivering, even those who were in front and dressed richly, he rolled his eyes,
“I mean you no harm, I simply was curious” he said,
A few heads dared to look up as he sighed,
“And please stand, that’s an order” he said with all seriousness as everyone stood up straight,
Shaking his head he continued,
“Step out and I promise, no harm will befall you, I simply want to know” he said,
A few people stepped out, Moyo watching as his guard appeared in the air above him, watching silently. They numbered ten in total, Moyo nodding appreciatively,
“Good, ten of you, right here and now, swear to me that you and your families will rule with fairness, generosity, firmness and kind heartedness” he said,
“Swear to me that you will not oppress the weak and poor, swear to me that you and those underneath you will treat those you rule over with loyalty and understanding, and should you break these oaths, my order of the titan will come down on you like I would and I believe me, you do not want that” he said as his eyes glowed,
Despite restricting his aura, the grave tone in his voice got the mostly advocates and iron rankers bowing and shaking as they took the oath word for word as a loud gong echoed, the archailect recognizing their oaths. Just in time the tele hub flashed as Matthew stepped out along with the rest of the sect leaders and warriors dressed in purple and black, the personal crest of the titan blade etched unto their robes, the order of the titan blade. Marching with coordination and the banners of the titan blade flapping in the air, Moyo watched as they passed through the tele hub, grumbling,
“What was that?’ Idris asked,
“They just cost me a whooping 20,000 diamond coins!” he said as Idris winced,
Moyo swore no more tele hub transportation, he didn’t care if the construct ships took months to reach this side of the galaxy, he would send them in their thousands if he could. Bowing to a slightly disgruntled Moyo, they shouted, their voices echoing,
“Hail lord titan blade!”
Moyo floated up, Martha and the rest along with him, he saw josh fidgeting as he stood this close to his former leader and smiled, he looked more of a man. He saw a woman with dark hair and light skin pass through the pathway, Idris speaking softly,
“aminat” he said as he swooped down to his wife who was very heavy with their child,
Smiling, he turned back to his sect leaders,
“Is it safe leaving bastion with no one to defend it?’ he asked,
“Our vices are now mid silver rankers, say what you will but nothing will get past them” Annika said glancing around the planet,
He nodded as Ayo spoke up,
“An entire planet, can’t say I’m surprised though, I wonder what the factions back on Gaia would think about that” she said,
“Nothing, we do not say a thing or speak a word about this, not until this war is over at least” he replied sternly,
“That might be impossible, you see the entire world would soon be able to watch the proceedings of the war, as soon as a system is conquered” Martha said,
“Why?’, how is that possible?” Moyo asked,
“one of those big fluffy angelic guys appeared in the air over bastion, had half a mind to shoot down the bird man” Samantha replied,
Moyo was grateful she didn’t, those beings were at least ruler class if he would guess, it would do nothing than annoy the messenger. He thought about what she said, apparently the archailect had plans to show the world what was going on, meaning his conquests could also be displayed as well. He nodded,
“Good, we could make it work for us as well” he replied,
“How?” Boyle asked,
“How would you guys feel about our own chain of worlds?” he asked,
The sect leaders looked confused till their eyes widened,
“Called it!” Ayo shouted as the rest groaned, passing bags heavy with coins to her,
“Alright, seriously guys, you people need to stop betting over things I do, it’s becoming embarrassing” he said,
“and deprive the hundreds who have become rich from the bets?, you’re talking about destroying a whole economic system, how callous can you get?” Ayo said,
“The first step towards the path of being an overlord, depriving his subjects of joy and happiness” Boyle said gravely as the rest nodded sagely,
“Now you guys are being over dramatic” he said with a sigh,
“Go back to the worlds plan, explain please” Martha said with curiosity,
“What if, we leave Gaia for the factions to bicker over, and transport everything on Asa, and if possible the continent cause nothing seems to be impossible in this weird reality we call the archailect” he started as Martha nodded,
“We transfer it to a new planet along with other planets in the system, pretty sure I can get the rights to buy planets I consecrate, and then turn it into our very own little empire, safe from whatever machinations of those who want to oppose me?” he asked,
“well look at our little advocate of yesterday, all big with plans of multiple world dominations” Annika teased,
He shook his head,
“No, I don’t plan on ruling like some overlord, the theocracy has taught me that as long as there are those who don’t want me or what I represent in charge, I’ll keep having loopholes in our defences” he said,
Martha touched his shoulder,
“Relax, we all know the last thing you’d do is be an oppressor, it’s literally not in your path, and I agree with your plan, however I believe we need to hold on to Gaia” she said,
The rest turned to her, below Moyo could see Matthew conversion with the royalties and the people who were bowing and whispering venerations, he could feel his venerations of the close to a million souls that had gathered while they were talking. With a snap he used his aura to cocoon he and his sect leaders, cutting off the noise from below.
“Why?’ he asked,
“Gaia is the home of humanity, our world and by all rights it belongs to the factions, but I can assure you that with the reach of your power, if the factions see a chance to colonize new planets and systems, you best believe they would be all too eager to leave the planet known to be the home of the titan blade” she said,
“Besides, anyone who wants to come and take a hit at you would find Gaia as your home world and come for it, that is one reality that they cannot afford” Boyle added,
“you’re assuming they have these line of thoughts” Samantha said,
“I have it on good authority that the union, the glorious empire and the Bharat empire all would take the option, they just don’t have the funds” Martha said,
“Funds our esteemed leader can loan them” Annika said as all eyes turned to him,
Moyo shook his head,
“What makes you think I have that absurd amount of funds?’ he asked coyly,
“Moyo, that inter-galactic tele cost a hundred thousand diamond coins” Martha said with a stare,
“We don’t even know how much planets go for, and I’m guessing a whole lot more than ten thousand diamond coins” he argued,
“Still, tell me your diamond coins don’t number in the hundreds of thousands?” Samantha said,
Moyo sputtered,
“you guys cost me twenty thousand diamond coins for your unexpected arrival on the planet with all these order of the titan ascenders” he pointed out,
“Take it out of the coffers of your order, the clan runs independent of the order, thank you very much” Martha said smugly,
He chuckled,
“I think we’re going far ahead of ourselves, this is just one planet, let’s rehash this conversation when we have sufficient planets, hopefully by the end of the conquering of the system” he said,
The meeting was dispelled as the sect leaders all said their goodbyes to him and passed through the tele hub, this time however paying the funds going back themselves, a fact they protested about. He turned his gaze to Idris who seemed to be having a heated conversation with his wife who seemed to be adamantly resisting whatever he was trying to tell her. Subtly using his aura to cocoon them, giving them their privacy, he floated to Matthew who stood with his forces, the order of the titan bowing again as he appeared above them.
Matthew glanced up, bowing at him as the ten royals did the same, however he noted subtly that each of his ten guardians stood behind each of the royals. Turning to Matthew curiously about that, the pontiff spoke,
“By your grace, we have decided to have a culmination of ten kingdoms on the entire planet” he said,
“explain” Moyo said crossing his hands,
“Each of the kingdoms will be a self-governing government with each of the royals in charge, one of your guard being the patron of these kingdoms. As the planet is to be the home of the order, this will help keep the culture of the guard despite the ascenders taking different paths, it would also serve as a recruitment ground for the best of the best ascenders to come out of them” the pontiff explained,
“Plausible, but ten kingdoms on a continent?’ Moyo asked dubiously,
“About that, we were hoping you could do the same thing you did with the continent of Lumia” Matthew said,
That was possible, Moyo nodded,
“Hold on for a minute” he said as he opened a pathway to the next continent, arriving alone on an empty grassland,
He brought up his HUD, scrolling through the near endless lists of items before finding what he wanted. He found it and bought it, watching the golden scroll appear with a frown,
Mythical scroll of the dungeon rune:
This scroll has been imbued with the ability to confine all the dungeons on a planet to one continent, one time use only, irreversible.
Feeling the scroll hum within his hand, he opened it as the scroll exploded into light, blasting skywards as it formed a web of power around the continent, a web only he could see. One by one dungeons began to manifest on the continent, drawn from other continents, he watched as dungeons of different ranks appeared, although the expert ranked dungeons were locked with golden chains of aether, he guessed they would be unlocked after the calamity.
Opening a pathway to the next continent, stepping through and opening another pathway back to where Matthew was, beckoning the pontiff through,
“Set up an Altar, that’s what fused the continent with Asa back on Gaia wasn’t it?’ Moyo asked,
Matthew nodded and did so, together they watched the two continents become one.