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Away in an empty void of the universe.
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There was nothing much here apart from the darkness, and the glow of dim stars that spread across the visible horizons. It was a distance to the unknown. To seek such stars within this terrifying empty place was quite a dream to have.
In this place was a flying globe of similar darkness. It was hardly any different from the void itself, yet it penetrated through the void, traveling at a fast speed forward. It was hard to see it or perceive it from an outside perspective, but it was charging and flying at an unknown speed. Its speed was so fast and ridiculous that asteroids along its way were grounded to dust. Families and clusters of stone fragments were not spared either.
It can't even be right to tell its direction as the darkness felt encompassing. Did it fall? Drifted into the empty void? It moved fast for sure, but the direction was unknown for a long time.
Suddenly, the void changed. There was sudden brightness that illuminated this darkness. It went along the moving globe of darkness that wanted to escape through the universe by some rule of power. The light represented the chasers of the Orb of Red. The beings inside of it could only pursue their target to the bitter end.
No matter what, they wish to succeed.
As the pursuit went on, everything was happening in the total silence of the void. It was indifferent to all sounds, uncaring as it has always been. Planet-shattering destructions would be like another dust that fell from the shelves when one tries to take an old book from there.
Time went on to an unknown length, but even the void can't escape the shackles of moving time. It was also a rule, albeit an unimportant one.
It was unknown which part of the universe was which. Everything went on with almost significant similarities. Stars were the same, even though they weren't the same. They appear like dots as they should, yet they could be billions of seconds away or trillions, not like counting them mattered though. But the distance? That was something else, as speed and physicality of the distances were peculiar objects.
The brightness was getting closer to the black globe. It fled in raging hope to escape this light, fleeting in a straight line as it always did, flying into the regions of many stars. Those were sections of the planets that may, or may not have life within them. Neither was something Orb of Red cared for.
There were a few possible ways that the Orb of Red inside this globe of darkness could do. Pursuers remained firm, even though it disappeared from the former planet alongside its host. Fleeting wasn't useless, but a smart choice. It was aware of a deep crisis from this powerful light. The foes inside wanted to end its essence. Its life and meaning.
The danger was inside the bright light and it kept moving in its direction. At such moments, a moment of distraction would be a fatal mistake.
Orb of Red unfortunately had little choice in the matter of fleeting. It traveled in a straight line, hitting a random star. The brightness was dozens of seconds behind it, which was enough to hide within the inhabitable moon planet. Scorching hotness was all over the volcanic moon, following no rules of life. There was destruction and scorching hotness. Volcanoes were active on the surface at every second and every moment. Orb of Red hit one active volcano, shattering it on a terrifying impact.
It was hard to hide in such a manner, but trying something else was as hard, if not harder. It was difficult to say its intention or hope, but the shattered volcano didn't seem out of place on the already chaotic surface.
Brightness followed into the planet's surface, traveling in no chaos, as it didn't crash to the surface either. It was seemingly aware of everything that went on with Orb of Red. Even if hundreds of thousands of kilometers passed in a moment and even minutes that stretched to an infinite distance. It knew, or one of the beings inside of it was prone to its fate.
Then, a change occurred, and the brightest turned to flickering pillars of destruction. The old man knew what he can do, so he attacked relentlessly, striking the ground around the close proximity of the shattered volcano.
It seemed the call of fate was a peculiar thing, as the brightest was close to the Orb of Red.
The ground shook, and magma flowed on the surface or splurged into the air. Orb of Red was still safe, but the dark globe was exposed from the shattered volcano after one lucky pillar hit it. Deep crevices cracked the planet for hundreds of kilometers, but it was a far cry to destroy it whole. Even lofty Immortals weren't crazy powerful to destroy planets with a flick of the finger. Even when The Above, held the Immortals in question.
The darkness of the globe twisted in blackness. Even tinges of twisting redness were visible in layers of dense energy. The brightness was close like never before, floating a dozen kilometers beyond the surface. It watched. THEY watched. Pillars of utmost strength appeared above, enveloping the air as if they wanted to destroy everything in sight.
It was no time to be sorry. A wild manner of energy filled the air, and from the ground up, a deep black vortex spread out around the Orb of Red. Like a twisting vortex, it enveloped it, and the things within it before a massive dozen-kilometer-tall pillar almost struck its core.
Once again, the Orb of Red disappeared from the spot along with Allan inside of it.
Just in nick of time.
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Inside the brightness.
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2 figures stood side by side. They were facing a foe that they had to kill since none would do it instead. They could not reach their goal for the second time, yet it was hardly over for them. Another failure meant another attempt.
“How many times it was? I am getting sick of it.” The azure-haired woman said.
“No idea.” the old man replied, floating in space with a calm face that hid some pain
“Withdraw or chase? I can keep going with the pursuit since it's within reach of my immortal path. It is a minor move on my part, but that thing can move unpredictably.”
“Where now?”
“It moved in that direction. I will be successful this time as well, but...” The woman said, pointing to clusters of small dots an unknown distance away. It was a question of why she knew where Orb of Red disappeared into, but the old man didn't question her. He watched them with his mesmerizing eyes. The dots indicated planets that were not really visible from the normal point of view, yet he saw them as easily as a mortal watched the moon. Their eyes were seeing things from an entirely different point from the mortal eyes.
“Boastful claims.” the old man said, sighting. “There are no choices left for us. Pursion or withdrawal is all to it. It has always been the case since we started this pursuit 20 years ago. Those planets are peculiar, but I can take this risk. The higher punishment is not a big deal to consider, even though that place is off the limits.”
“Oh. I forgot about them. Will you manage?” She asked, sounding uncaring of his worry.
“Hardly.” He answered truthfully. “You will probably make a move yourself, so let us go.”
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The direction of a cluster of dots. The planets of vastness, yet still a bit away from them.
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The vortex of the darkness spread the space itself, tearing it apart to form a path forward. From there, the space that was mysterious, but possible to distort, and use for advantage, tore. A globe of darkness once again flew from it, disappearing as fast as ever before. It was the second time it used this technique in recent times.
Hopefully, it's going to be the last.
I flew in frenzy, reaching one of the planets among this group of aforementioned dots. One disadvantage of this forceful tear was the lack of changing direction. The space itself caused randomness that couldn't be avoided. It was an incredibly far-reaching escape technique with a clear disadvantage.
A user could use it and hope the random direction would work the best. It had lower strains on one's law, or intent and was quick to use rather than some other complicated formations. Orb of Red had limited choices, so it had nothing else than to use this instead. It was dangerous since one could end up being stranded in a universe that may be empty for years and years. In that manner, it was a terrifying disadvantage.
Swooooosh!
The dark comet in the shape of a swirling globe reached one of the planets in a cluster of others. Like many others, it was the case of the classic formation of stars orbiting a sun but they were massive, and almost all of them were clearly green and filled with life.
Massive was the best way to describe the planet the Orb of Red reached this time around. Hundreds upon hundreds of thousands of kilometers wide were mere points of continents laid out in the vast oceans. This was a prime planet in the richest sense of that word. A beautiful sight to the eyes with clear greenery and a white cloudy atmosphere. It was a planet beaming with life and vitality.
BOOOOOM!
It kept flying, penetrating the atmosphere with small but manageable troubles. Its successful drop and travel to the ground were much better than before. The Orb of Red reached its new random destination. Or, to be more specific, a completely random planet within the moment it chose to use it in a barren region in that list moment between life and death. It was like tossing a needle into a mountain of hay, hoping to kill a chicken hidden inside. A needle was a needle, but Orb of Red found this planet much better, and hopefully, its pursuers won't be as fast as last time.
It appeared they were yet to come, so that was good.
The darkness and black strands and waves dissipated from the whirlwind of energy, revealing the unconscious Allan on a vast grassy plain. He was bloody and appeared like a corpse more than a living human. Yet, the heartbeat still sounded in his chest. Be it a good or bad thing, it was a wonder, but for Orb of Red, it was a good and intentional thing.
Inside his chest was pushing bloody matter in the appearance of the Orb of Red. It was about 6/8th way into his body. The chase which it took and the attacks it endured caused the Orb of Red to delay its goal.
A true possession of the body.
A true rebirth of the essence.
A thing that couldn't be understood by just anyone.
Orb of Red wanted to quickly reach the final stage of its undeniable purpose. Unfortunately, it was underestimating the pursuers way too much. Flipping waves of crimson energy around it as if in an angry fit, the Orb of Red was furious. In a distant sky, layer upon layer of brightness was trying to reach its position.
They came.
Again.
Unnaturally fast but, like all things that come in clutch, or considerations, when one’s plans are expected to be the best, it can all fail miserably in one big mistake or complete failure.
Orb of Red was never safe from getting interrupted from its goal. And it was so simple to do that, even.
Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation.
As if in a rage after noticing the closing presence of that brightness, and light, it went to a defensive position once again. It can't remain wide open with its host, so waves and layers of red and black enveloped Allan once more. It was another attempt to shield, while it can keep fusing into Allan, albeit a lot slower.
Bright light above the atmosphere started an enormous battle against something in the sky. Gigantic sparks and screeching waves of light flew from the core of the brightness. The struggle could be seen from great distances, hundreds, or thousands of kilometers away. This disturbance was massive, and unwelcomed by this planet, as it was no place for The Above.
These invaders were unlike the Orb of Red. A force that was prohibited to get in touch with this planet for unknown reasons. The old man voiced his worry, yet, he chose to do so anyway.
Above, he was struggling to open their path downwards with massive fluctuation of energy and light coming from his whole being. His head limps, and especially his eyes were like the sun itself, but not hot. It was deep but not penetrative. A gentle, but not comforting. A light to purge, with intent to kill. That was his conviction.
He knew the hard task at hand and its consequences, but there was no point in giving up. Not right now. He could only endure and finish what he decided. For himself and the future. This threat in his eyes was something that they must eliminate regardless of high costs.
His voiceless head gazed down to the lofty and incredible vast planet. It was one of the primmest and most impressive ones out there, and he knew it. Attacking it was his idea, but he was here for a reason, so he kept trying.
Sending bright pillars kilometers tall, he didn't stop with a few. Dozens of them were sent forward, slamming into the invisible barriers that appeared as they were close to entering the atmosphere. This was no barrier, but something stronger than that.
They shined in mesmerizing light, barging into the space below the planet. A bright light show went around the sky for some time. A brightness followed by unnatural thuds resounded even to the ground, echoing and noting its inhabitants. It was now obvious that the man was desperate, yet he kept attacking as strongly as he could, with dozens of large pillars.
Soon enough, cracks started to fill the sky for hundreds of kilometers, while the power of the strikes was becoming stronger than the laws themselves.
Like a rain of crystals, the barrier resembled a shattered glossy window. The beautiful sight of shining rain well down, disappearing and dispersing into the atmosphere as the brightness won, but at what cost?
It was yet to be known, but the brightness entered the space of this planet in a rather imposing manner. An old man with a primordial aura of light around him and an azure-haired woman who seemed like she was taking a stroll beside him, appeared from the brightness.
The aura of the world tried to surround them, punishing them for their actions but whatever intangible force it was, it did not succeed. The sheer aura of those two figures shrouded in divine light descended down, floating down a couple of kilometers.
The old man was in pain as he struggled to move his body straight as he descended from the humongous cracks he had caused. The amount of force he pulled from his core was unnatural, to say the least.
“Are you alright?” Women beside him asked. A hint of worry was in her blue and mesmerizing eyes.
“What do you mean alright? This is not even The Consequence I talked about. A simple afterimage of the World. I can do this much.” the old man said. “Struggling in this world can put us on guard, but it's too late for neither of us.”
“Shut up and take this...” the woman barked, forcing a snowy white pill into his mouth. He took it, swallowing it with some difficulty.
“Heh! Do you know? This is funny. The pact we did countless ages ago came back, biting us in return for our previous mistakes. Now it came back to us at the time of crisis. Interesting... karma.” The old man said, as his valor returned back from the mysterious pill. It or he, himself, pushed his body to the best state possible.
This was now or never. Another chance won't come again.
Down below, the Orb of Red was 7/8 way into Allan's body. It pushed as fast as it could but didn't forget about the defense. Pillars were yet to strike the earth around it.
If this is going to succeed, any trouble that may come would be still present, but greatly diminished. The insertion into Allan simply limited its possibilities to fight back or flee. It couldn't do the same. Insertion or fight. That was it, while the defense was something else.
Which was a bit strange, considering it still fled with quite a valor and succeeded twice already, and didn't crumble apart under such an enemy.
BOOM!
So close, it was.
The brightness returned to its previous splendor. It was stronger than when it shattered the world barrier. New powerful attacks came once again, descending with clear decimation and destruction. It was an apocalyptic sight even before they hit the ground. The incoming struggles almost caused the defensive layers of the Orb of Red to the disappearance, as the ground itself also ceased to exist. Pillars struck the ground, causing explosions of no destruction, but incredible physicality.
Chunks of dirt the size of mountains were dug out by the mass of the pillars, while the power behind them struck the earth much wider than necessary.
Colors of red and black swayed in this massive clash, and any means to continue the insertion had to be discarded. Orb of Red went back to initiating its full attention to its worst-fated enemies.
The plain that was Orb's destination turned to the battlefield filled with craters. The luscious grass that must feed countless beings became nothing but dirt. Yet, amidst this vast destruction, this simple vast plain, filled with a couple of hills but otherwise flat surfaces was without any lives.
In fact, even the nearest forest or visible habitable place was a long distance away- safe from this situation, which simply spoke of the vastness of this planet.
This was a fight where nothing mattered. There was no place to hire or make hideous plots. Flee? Orb of Red considered it, but it would deplete a lot of its core strength. It would be unsightly and too big of a price. Espcesicy considering the fact that the enemy may continue when it teleports again.
Yet, it didn't know that The Above, had only a few choices left, and they were going all out since the old man had limited power.
Choices and deciding decisions were thus, made. The last duel. 1 versus 1, took a place in the barren plains of an unknown vast planet.
Old man and the imposing Orb of Red, against the undeniable will of the universe it dared to overthrow. It was dangerous, that is.
The pillars became wilder, striking faster with smaller delays. The crimson-black vortex around Allan's body was already cracking apart in many parts. Not much power was left in the defense unless more power would come forth.
Orb of Red hesitated.
1/8th more and it would be over, but would it? Even with the full fusion, it wasn't certain to be safe on this planet. The Orb of Red wanted a clear finished process. Not half-assed efforts.
Yet, nothing could be done about the facts. The final push was close, yet so far away.
It stopped being hesitant, repairing the defenses in one swoop of its intent and clusters of more crimson waves. At this point, the 15-meter wide globe-like vortex was not even on the ground. Along with the chunk of earth from Allan's planet, it floated inside the destroyed plain. Its power became clearer, and it even managed to deflect a couple of pillars that struck its surface.
This went on for a couple of dozens of seconds with no avail or change. Cracks appeared in many moments but disappeared soon enough. The power of the bright pillars was unquestionable, but the vitality and stubbornness of the Orb was undeniable.
Hence, the change down came with a change above. Pillars stopped, and currents of light and brightness turned to massive clusters of maelstroms. Molding, and changing the pillars, they went from massive to more compact. Flat tips became sharp, like the finest spear that could pierce the toughest castle gate.
This was a final technique.
A push to the ending line. The old man wanted to end this with a killing move, giving his problem no time to catch any breath. It took around 5 seconds for dozens of pillars to change shape, and then, he sent them all down, striking into the general direction of Orb of Red.
They were ready to kill.
Obliterate the target! That was their sole mission and intent.
Yet.
All of them came to a complete halt as something wrapped them up in nothingness and intangible intent or space. Stopping such an attack in the middle of the motion was quite something and the old man did not expect... No. He feared this would happen.
And it was too late to stop it.
“Huh? Oh no.” woman, furrowed her brows, glancing with her eyes to the distance.
There was incoming thick fog, spreading around the perimeter of this whole plain, and into Allan’s location. Since it was a vast plain, there was no room to hide. Everything in a large radius could be seen from high in the air, or even from the ground to a certain extent and distance. The brightness in the sky was an easier target for them all, and their position wasn't good.
Thud!
Thud!
Bang!
It was as if pillars from the old man echoed once again, but they were no tremors. Beings walked amidst the fog. Everywhere, in all directions to see, a vast and tall fog coming. Tremors were shaking the air and the atmosphere changed to tense, and hard to breathe air. Though, not like anyone needed good air right now.
“You people!” A deep, angry-sounding voice shouted from the fog. “For you to barge to this planet is nothing but an insult to us! Are you not violating the pact? You were the ones that decided it! YOU ALL!” A shout of a tremendous voice, followed by many others shook the air. Though, the prior one was coming from one particular direction. Massive eyes were noticeably glowing from the fog, eyeing the people above, or seeing the situation below.
“This could cause trouble.” the old man said in an uncertain manner. “Lady Vivien, are you willing to make a move?”
“I don’t know,” answered Vivien with uncertain intentions, but a clear will to do her part. The pulsation was her skill, but fighting? No Immortal was afraid of that, and certainly not her.
“Price is what I must pay first. I will make up for it, of course.” He said calmly.
“Then it is settled. You have a few minutes at best. Restrictions of this world are more powerful than I imagined. The pact... I can see it now.” Vivian grimaced, sounding quite serious, but unafraid.
“Please, do your best.” the old man said as he tried to get the spears back under his control.
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Down below.
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Orb of Red screamed in delight, sensing and watching that the deadly attack failed. It did not expect to have some luck. Not now, where the heavens were against it.
But no deep and unimaginative plot could work with absolutely certain success. So far, his running was a major failure, but only because the pursuers were powerful enough. let alone that, the offense and destruction almost killed it many times already, and even the host seemed to be lacking life anytime soon.
The attack of The Above caused the Orb of Red to lose tremendous power and waste time finishing its task. It could be helped though since the time was a treasure that was never enough for some people.
Crimson glow surged from the vortex. Lines and waves subsided as the redness intensified. In this brief, shocked moment, Orb of Red decided to take this chance. Wanting to gamble it all, and finish the Essense Possession.
It did the right thing, albeit it was a huge gamble.
“What do we have here?” another voice shouted from the other part of the fog.
“This aura?! What is happening here?” a shocked one told.
“Scent of a destroyer!” a horny one muttered in excitement.
More voices shouted from multiple directions, traveling far distances, and crashing into the center of the conflict.
Other variables entered the battle. The kind, that the two Immortals didn't like at all.
The fog began to spread wider, moving inward to develop the part of the destroyed plane, which was just a small part of the plain as a whole.
In a few moments, the fog encompassed a big circle around Allan’s location. A circle of about a dozen or so kilometers in diameter was enough, and on this scale, the fog seemed rather imposing.
Fog appeared like a flowing cloudy wall, impenetrable by senses or sight. Some parts were even two kilometers tall, with questionable beings hiding inside of it. They were hiding, but they must be massive as well.
In the moment of shouts and furious clutter of trembles, an unlikely figure appeared.
Vivien descended from above, uncaring about the fog, and carrying an imposing aura not weaker than the Orb of Red. She didn't attack it, since her reason was to stop the fog and nature behind it.
Around her body, an aura of energy manifested itself under her intent. Blue waves, along with vast flames spread from her body like water or waves from a volcano. Wings made of the purest light element lit the region. They were azure but with a light sheen to them. She spread them for the whole dozen kilometers in an imposing manner. This usage was tremendously taxing for any Immortal, but not for her.
The distance to which the energy was projected held many defining factors. The more energy is used, and more distance it travels from the being, the harder it is. The more powerful the controller, the better results. Vivian was clearly an expert of experts, since manifesting such a powerful shockwave of her energy aura for 10 kilometers was savage and undeniably strong.
So much so, that voices shut up, and tremors stopped. Even the fog itself stopped flowing for a while and halted moving inwards.
“You! So it seems like some interesting situation is going on here.” the same powerful voice that talked from before said. It was the very first that dared to talk. “Woman! Tell me what is over there on the ground! No need to fight.”
“No point in talking, little beast. You would not be willing to listen to my greater purpose anyway.” She answered in disinterest, jolting her head to flicker her left wing across the fag, dispersing but only a little.
“Arrogant! I wouldn't have expected anything else, yet here is the notion of the Destroyer! Very well!” the voice decided on something. “Then I invite everyone present to feast upon this precious encounter. The Destroyer of the unknown is over there on the ground! Let us make the earth cry in agony upon seizing this chance!” the voice growled in high volume.
“Aragh! I am willing to follow!” a voice shouted from afar.
“There is no need to assist. Few of us are more than enough.” One bored one commented.
“I will just watch. No need to get involved in such a mess.” another followed.
Many followed, and many chose to stay behind, but Vivian cared not about it. She will stand firm, while her companion above needed a bit more time.
Voices came to a tacit understanding. It was hard to guess if they were in positive or negative relationships, but not like it mattered. This situation made them change their possible indifferences since the foes were rather special.
“Attack!!” the charging and powerful voice shouted, and death turned grim. The energy bolts, spikes, spears, wind blades, and aura-pressuring attacks charged from the fog.
Yet, none of the figures dared to step out of it.
Cowards.
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At the same time as the beast decided to attack.
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Swoosh!
A terrifying outburst of energy exploded from the 15-meter-wide crimson vortex. Like a sea of redness, it spread from the center, but not too far. From 15 meters to 30, the energy was like a wild storm, but without lightning, or rain. An undeniable power came forth, traveling above Allan in a cry of success.
The insertion was almost complete. All it needed was a couple of last steps that were rather terrible, and way too showy.
Orb of Red would curse like a sailor if it could because it can't stop or obliterate the showiness of this process.
Being low-key would save so much trouble.