It laid under a looming shadow.
Distorted.
Extending.
Becoming wavy as it grew outwards. Nero could only feel a ferocious intent to kill from behind him. As he looked at Mad, even she was surprised. “Well that’s new!” she said excitedly and hysterically.
Each second Grande could feel her mind become lighter, and her body heavier. She tried to raise her hands towards her face but couldn’t. Instead, she felt her hand move in real life. It sent a chill down her spine.
“What is this feeling?” she retorted, realizing what was occurring. “Am I being disconnected or is this what synapsing is like.”
Mad looked at Grande with a puzzled look. Although the skill was taking effect, something was odd. “It must be because you are a fullmind.”
Nero though was set between the two immense pressures. It boiled within him. The first is before him, and the new threat is growing behind him. It not only sent chills down his spine but for a very long time, he had not felt this good. A drip of sweat dropped from his brow to the floor, and as the beast behind stepped towards him, He anticipated the fight to come. He felt the pressure behind him rise, and a single hair on his skin rose. It was enough to measure his foe. He turned around facing the enemy, and he was stunned.
“What?” he uttered. Puzzled by its horrendous form. He couldn't tell if what was in front of him was real or an illusion. Tentacles spread across from each other like waves in a sunset ocean. Entrailing in place but swaying as if the ripples were approaching a shore. Its body could mesmerize any person who looked into it, like a swirling optical illusion trying to hypnotize to capture its prey. With the guise of a moth, yet the beauty of a butterfly. Nero wouldn't become its food. As he came too he saw the tentacles flow like a jellyfish swimming in the ocean to merge, becoming a mane of a creature, together, upon a single point. “That must be its head,” he thought. The creature raised its head slowly and surely peering to Nero, revealing a bright glowing red aura.
The creature opened its mouth slowly, breathing heavily while it let out a fierce gas but ending its breath softly, like a truck engine chugging. Then finally it met a pause.
Sssssss.
Nero couldn't tell if it was words. But he knew it seemed to be communicating.
Ssssssssssssss.
He didn't understand why but he maintained a careful step. Above the head of the beast was a status even he hadn't seen before. It blinked between white red and transparent, ‘Bewilder - Law of Nature’. It carried no level in its name. The mystery of its power only excited Nero, to which he clenched his fist.
It growled and yawned. As it opened its mouth, fangs emerged each drooling a vile black substance.
His fist clenched tighter.
Finally, its neck pushed from its body and the tentacles followed. Its body came to show a long-vermillion neck and a serpent-like stature. It rose and continued until finally its head was slightly of the Horizon. It simply glared down. Nero didn't notice at first but he felt a dribble of stone fall from above. He caught a bit of dust and swooshed it in his hands.
Stone particles. He thought. He looked up to see that the walls of the Horizon were set ablaze. The gust of air that it created pushed back at Mad, Grande, and himself, causing them to stagger. Mad attempted to hold her grip but lost hold of Grande who flew away towards the door.
Nero kept his stance, bracing the floor with both his legs back, and his hand set upon the floor. He took this as an opportunity to begin his counterattack, using the momentum to propel himself forward, taking, running towards the foot of the beast, and taking a step onto its body. In a moment he felt Law's body it wasn't slippery but hard, but even still he continued running upwards, facing the force of gravity with insurmountable speed until he reached the beginning of its neck and jumped upwards setting himself into the gaze of its eyes.
He pulled his hand back, readying a strike when suddenly he felt it. At each side of his chest, he felt an ever-growing burning sensation, until finally festering bubbles expelled from his body which caused him to scream in agony.
Due to how pain worked in Asper Online, an injury like this would normally never happen as the game would try to remove pain from reaching pain receptors in the brain. If someone was cut in half even it would only occur for a fraction of a millisecond. When Nero was Dismembered and fizzled from his lower half it remained for 3 seconds. In the moment he was surprised that the game was not allowing him to respawn, until finally Nero clasped his hands, feigning a martial art hand gesture, and screamed, “Darkember Synergy.” Nero's body slowly regenerated with scraps returning to his body to make it whole.
Meanwhile Mad hugged a nearby wall. “Drats', I nearly had her.” She looked at the beast and noticed that anything it looked at would burn after a moment. “It's eyes have Degeneration.”
Degeneration had a similar effect to Mandy’s Medusa ability which turned everything to stone, except this set everything to rot.
Nero looked upon the wall and noticed a green health bar that was slowly ticking down from 100 to 0. For an odder reason, he noticed that Law emitted a similar effect.
"Is this a monster or..." he thought.
He looked at Mad, seeing if she understood the gravity of what was occurring but she was enamored by the monster. She had also forgotten Grande.
Grande laid on the ground breathing faintly, as she came too to herself. She was still too weak to get up as she felt heavy. Her eyes fluttered, but still unopened. She could hear the sounds of the rot of the Horizon rise. She tried to breathe but the air began to burn her nostrils as the stench spread. Whatever Law had become was beginning to destroy their surroundings.
This is a problem… Mad thought.
This could be our chance. Grande thought.
The beast's head held in place like a chandelier but didn’t look down. Nero noticed this and continued his barrage. He revved his arm back, empowering his next strike. He saw the slender body once again as a passage to the beast’s head and quickly sought the same plan. He ran to the top and jumped again off its body towards the wall. Law felt the numb feeling on his neck and turned to face Nero once again, searing his eyes into Nero for a moment. Nero though finally felt his body react to the effects of his visage, and at the moment used a skill mid-air.
“Dry-Step.”
Nero’s body pulled back to the wall, as if pulled by a tether, avoiding more damage from Law’s gaze. He then clenched his knees, creating a spring, and with that momentum hurled himself into Law's face, striking as deep as he could into the pixels in front of him. To his surprise at first, there was a pressure, telling him that his attack connected, but then the beast's head rippled with the impact creating a gust of mist where Law’s head was. Nero looked around in the air as he was beginning to descend, He was confused and concerned. Did he strike the Law? Did it do any damage? Could it do any damage?
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A sundering growl emminating from below, as a pair of red glowing eyes perched through the smoke from below.
It was quick as if the head had teleported and with a wide-spread mouth sought to swallow Nero. As it approached Nero, he quickly began to dodge. “Dry Step” he whispered. As he began to be pulled out of the way, he felt a tug on his leg. “What!” he cried. One of the beasts’ teeth changed shape, turning into tentacles grabbing hold of his leg. He first attempted to pull his leg but noticed it in position.
World-Eater.
Nero looked up towards the roof of the beast's mouth. A question pended immediately as he saw the rood of its mouth. Is that? Looking into the mouth of the beast, was a glowing darkness—a ball of shade surrounded by an enraging glow of light.
Nero once again turned to a class skill.
Chronicles of the 10 Mantras: Godless
The ability covered him in a dark aura. He then pulled himself from the grasp of the transformed tooth, towards the ceiling wall but as he thought he was free, the beast continued towards him keeping hold of his foot, capturing Nero, and continuing to impact the wall.
“Wait, what are you doing!” He yelled. But his voice couldn’t be heard. He looked into the beast and noticed that the ball inside Law looked like a black hole. He noticed the ball move towards him and pushed both of his hands towards it. He was able to hold it off but noticed his hand begin to deteriorate slowly.
“Even if I die here, I will remain and still be able to fight. My PBE: Skill cannot be defeated. I am Immortal!”
Crack. Crack. Crack.
Nero heard the sound of a crack behind him. The impossible would occur as behind him the feet of millions of tiny ethereal black bugs came from the walls of the Horizon.
“It couldn’t be,” Nero thought. Finally, the final crack would lead to the Horizon breaking, and the light surrounding the Horizon broke through into the mouth of the beast. Nero turned, placing his arm on the light, but the beast continued to move to the ends of the Horizon.
“What are you doing!” Stop! If you do this we will be stuck!:”
Crack...
Stop, please! If we die here…
There was a void in Law's head. There was no longer any reason for the logic of a human brain, but that of pure revenge and primal fury. Law body continued to press into the Edges into the Horizon, blending into the fabric of Asper Online’s in-game resources.
Bedrock. How is he interacting with Bedrock? It was then that Nero realized, that hadn’t created the in-game resource, he was the In-game resource. Nero inspected Nero’s body, and teeth and noticed finally his error. “His teeth are bedrock. Which means,” he said with a dying resolve.
"I am not fighting a monster but a location?"
What Law had realized was the impossible. Although the Bewilder, was large and appeared to be a monster, it was actually terrain, similar to the city of Elleon, or Juwin. It was not something that could be damaged, but at the same time, it was able to apply effects to surrounding terrain ultimately destroying all things around it. Nero didn't understand why the developers would make this skill, but how it was used now, deep in his heart he knew without a doubt.
"I am defeated"
As Law’s body finally patched through the Horizon completely a gust of wind pulled objects in the room towards the hole.
On the sidelines, Mad only looked at Nero’s form in awe but also in gluttony. “I want that skill!”
She briefly looked at Grande, walking slowly towards her body. “What type of skill did father develop for you? I may as well take it for myself.” She held up her hand revealing her face. “Gladys, I wish you were never born.”
Mad went to lower her hand when suddenly she felt her hand held towards the pressure in the room and looked up. Even she was surprised but in that moment Grande opened her mouth, screaming from the top of her lungs.
ALEX JUNIOR WILDER WAKE UP!
And with her last breath, she collapsed.
The black hole in Nero's bestial form pressured itself to the in-game resources, creating a new container that once crashing together on Nero instantly defeated him. As Nero’s PBE: SKILL would activate he opened his eyes surrounded by an everglowing light, inside a singularity. He then saw a figure of a person.
The person sat, with its legs crossed, and eyes closed, meditating. They had purple skin and pointy ears with tentacles surrounding them. They gowned an everglaide blade armor with purple thrills. Over their head was a respawn node, which indicated a location for players who died nearby to respawn to automatically.
Nero approached the being, sat down and sunk his head in defeat.
As the Horizon was falling, it began to be ripped apart with the interior. Doors and walls begin separating and twirling towards it. Grande’s lifeless body would begin to pull towards to patch in the Horizon when Suddenly her hand touched something. Mad held tightly flying against the tide when suddenly she noticed Grande’s hand fall under a golden sigil.
A glow uttered itself from the sigil, shining immensely and brightly, scorning the air with its presence. In its majesty, and almost magically, sent a ray of light emerging a figure stuck in the bounds of its skill. Grande felt the presence in her hand rumble, and the feeling revitalized her briefly. Huh, she uttered. She slowly opened her eyes, and noticed the feet of a warrior, next to her head. She then turned and saw Mad, reaching towards her bound in place and time.
As the figure emerged it opened its eyes, gazing upon the destruction and may. Entrepreneur quickly branded the room. In Front of him was a red so pure he knew catastrophe would occur otherwise. Below him, Grande’s body was glowing green and a patch and a patch of gold glowed upon the body in front of him. It very quickly called out to him.
“Jun! Save me!”
“Crypto!”
PBE SKILL Mercy! Jun yelled.
He unsheathed his blade from his side, and very quickly his worth began to dwindle from millions to hundred thousands. He appeared behind Mad striking her, cutting the gold piece from her. This caused her to remain in place, and simultaneously raised his hand revealing a crypto coin. “Crypto!”
He then looked down and picked up Grande’s body. He looked at his HUD and noticed the room was glowing red but Crypto was gold.
Crypto We need you now more than ever!
You don't have to tell me twice!” Crypto replied.
The Crypto coin began to glow, and an aura surrounded every player who touched it.
Jun quickly touched Grande, and their bodies began to glow. Above his head, he noticed a status update on Teleporting.
Jun then heard a slow cadent screech. It was as if someone was attempting to speak with their mouth shut. Wait... I will destroy you! I will...I will…
Jun turned to see a single tear fall from Mad’s eyes as she remained stuck afloat. He loked at her face with complete anger, yet hidden behind, emotions that could never be revealed.
Jun reached for her, but then a voice called out to him. "Don’t...”
The voice in his head resembled Blackfeathers’. "Don't Take her now.”
“I must save her but. I… I…I’ll come back for you. I'll find you. Olivia!”
Crypto, Grande, and Jun teleported out of the Horizon.
-
As the three would appear in a new place. It was a rustic Tavern, silent and dusty. He carried Grande on his back and Crypto as a coin in front of him. His entrepreneurial skill no longer guided him, but he didn't understand why, and neither asked too many questions. He continued forward until he reached a door. He was hesitant at first but then pushed through. In the room sat several players too who looked quickly at the door.
“Jun!” they yelled.
It was the members of the Guildless!
He then felt a pat on his back. “I see you did it!” First was Hagerty. “You sly dog, Look at you? Class change?”
As Aethera, Gaston, Mandy, and Oege reached him they all applauded his success when finally Hagerty looked upon him sorely. “Where’s Law?” he asked.
“I…”
First was a grunt, but then Grande slid off of Jun, taking her foot. “He is currently sealing Nero.”
Hagerty’s eyes came to a relief. “That a boy.”
“And what of Mad?” Oege asked, did you defeat her.”
Jun lowered his head, and a voice from afar answered his question. The voice resonated in the room, creating a visual text as it spoke. “Mad cannot be defeated, isn't that right Jun. or should I say, my love? Alex Jr.:
The group turned towards Jun when suddenly he rubbed his head. “I don’t remember everything but, things are slowly coming back to me.”
“Alex is back!” the group began to yell. Jun tried to hold everyone back but their happiness exuded the room. Finally, the voice would adjourn them back. “Okay guys, I know we are all pleased to have Jun, or should I say Alex back, but we still have a problem. The is only one player that stands in our way and he is currently turning the world into gold.”
Jun stood surprised by her words, but a screen would appear showing the world map, and a single beast rampaging around.
“What is that?” Jun asked.
“It's Aluxan. He’s gone mad.”
The group looked up at the beast. “The gold he produces is part of the toughest material in-game, Bedrock, while maintaining the class features of a Goldmancer. Which means…”
“He is infinitely powerful.”Mandy surmised.
“Yes. He is as powerful and rich as he is. He also can turn in-game resources into currency just by touching it.
“Which is similar to how Crypto’s ability works, right?” Jun asked.
“Correct.” Madder agreed, but she continued to explain. “The only difference is that Crypto's PBE Skill changes in-game currency, while Aluxan’s changes the very fabric of the game. Technically Aluxan can change Crypto’s currency into its original form to Bedrock.
“What is Bedrock exactly,” Jun said confused.
“It is the very fabric of the game. It is the air of the game world. It is what everything is built from. It is the limit our consciousness that receives and interacts within this game world, where players shouldn't be able to even fathom interacting with.” an ominous voice explained. “And it is something I should have patched long ago.”
The familiar voice, caught the room by surprise, but Oege chimed in.
“Seismic is that you?”
“Dad, Grande called out.”
“Yes, Peaches it's me. I’m happy you are safe. I hear you were able to retrieve your brother-in-law and keep Ego Mad in contact. Is that right?”
“Dad stop embarrassing me...!" Everyone in the room briefly went silent but she continued. "Yes, father. Mad is contained. “I just don’t know where,” Grande replied. “Law sacrificed himself to capture Nero, but in turn destroyed the Horizon. She is…”
‘As long as she is under the effects of PBE SKILL” Mercy, she is sealed and safe. We can find her after. She may float along the void of the Game, but we'll find her. My team will not let her be lost. We must defeat Aluxan.” The voice then grew dim. “For you Jun. Or should I say, Alex? I understand you have a lot of questions. Your father would be best to answer them, but I can fill you in if you’d like.
“Okay, this is getting a little cheesy!” a voice yelled. It was Madder. “Guys the final fight is upon us and we do not know the outcome of this battle, but I believe we can do it. Let’s save the server!”
The Guildless raise their hands to their final challenge. Defeating the Aurgon, Aluxan.
This concludes the Horizon Arc.