As he approached the battlefields, four magitech jets took off from Sol's camp, intercepting them at incredible speeds, presumably worried he would try and break the siege. He directed King to hold his position as continuing to advance would most likely be seen as a hostile action. Needless to say, Alistair was impressed they had already converted some of the old-world jets with magitech. Though then again, Sol had millions of dedicated followers, and retrofitting a handful of jets after a few days wasn't that unexpected.
Alistair and King watched as the jets approached. Three of them veered off and started circling them while the last one approached them.
"What do you think? Can you keep up with them in case things turn sour?" Alistair asked.
"I am faster if I push myself a little. Does this mean I get to tear them apart?" King asked with barely concealed glee in his voice.
"Nope, let me do the talking. We don't want to piss them off if we can help it," Alistair replied, which elicited a grumbling huff from King.
The approaching craft came to a slow stop hovering beside them, and the cockpit opened up. Using Identify on the young man with black hair revealed him to be [Sam - lvl 81]. Alistair noticed an Identify in return, but it, too, failed to pierce his aura veil. The man looked a bit tired, and his armor sported some burn marks, indicating he had been fighting for a while.
"Who are you, and why are you approaching our battle?" Sam asked, his eyes narrowed and beads of sweat flowing down the side of his head.
"I am Alistair Ryser. I am tracking a friend of mine through my karmic connection, and it has led me here. His name is Remo," Alistair responded, carefully watching the man's expression to see if there was any reaction.
At first, the man furrowed his brows as he began typing on a cockpit pad beside him, but he relaxed when he heard Remo's name. Alistair watched as the man seemed to wait for a response from the pad, then went pale for a second. Curious about the message, Alistair teleported to the other side of the craft and leaned in to read it.
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'The Ryser Clan is a powerful conglomeration of Humans from Earth and Demons from Neshan, led by Alistair Ryser and Riseth Ryser. Both clan leaders are top-ranked within the Ascendant's Tournament and are capable of wiping out even a strong order by themselves. Alistair has defeated Ascendant Marilyn Dixon in one-on-one combat. The Dixon Order is to be kept far away from any dealings with the Ryser Clan due to bad blood. Do not upset the Ryser Clan, and be cordial in all interactions. Failure to do so will result in severe consequences.'
Status: Prospective Allies
Importance: Critical
Additional Information: Denied
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Sam spun his head around and looked at Alistair with a shocked expression, realizing he had read the information on the pad. Alistair gave the man an easy smile, glad to get some official information on Sol's perspective on them, or at least how much the members of one of his orders knew. The man stuttered and stumbled over his words, trying to apologize, but Alistair raised a hand to stop him.
"It's fine. I'm the one being rude right now. Tell me, where is Remo? Based on your reaction, you must know something," Alistair asked, noticing the other two jets heading back toward the siege.
"Remo joined us in the assault. His sister, along with other women, have been taken. We plan to free them before the situation worsens," Sam replied.
Alistair's expression grew dark as he glanced toward the outpost. "How do you know she is being held there?" he demanded.
"I am not privy to such information; my rank in the Felsenschild order is insufficient," Sam admitted.
Growing impatient, Alistair questioned, "Who are you attacking?"
Sam hesitated for a moment but quickly answered, seeing Alistair's stern expression. "We don't know their name, but according to the information available to me, they are part of the Blackmarket Syndicates," he said hurriedly.
Alistair did not want to kill humans if he could help it, but he would not let something happen to Mia. He had grown up with the woman whenever he hung out with Remo during their childhood, and she was something like a little sister to him as well; he had looked for her during the trial, though she had declined his offer to join his clan as she and most of the rest of her family had joined Sol's cause and wouldn't be persuaded to leave Earth. He wondered if what happened here would change her mind. Alistair shook his head. He had to act fast since every second mattered. He hated to admit it, but them being part of the Blackmarket and abducting people made what would come next a lot easier on his mind. He knew it was something he would have to overcome sooner or later. The Arena Dungeon and beasts had been good preparations, but knowing these people would not respawn through the Systems grace still knawed on him.
Before Sam could speak up again, Alistair interrupted him. "I am going to help. Are they threatening to kill the hostages?" Alistair questioned.
"Not yet. As far as we know, the victims are still shackled underground. Among them is a Grade 8 individual who gains strength from the suffering of others," Sam explained. Seeing Alistair about to rush off, he quickly added, "We've observed him retreat multiple times, likely to replenish whatever energy reserves his abilities or race require. He has red skin and horns, suggesting he may have evolved into some kind of demon."
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Alistair strongly suspected it was Sinergy but kept quiet. He directed King to head to the camp and assist from a distance since flying was impossible. Alistair then teleported as close as he could to the camp, used light manipulation to turn invisible, and employed flashstep to storm the proverbial castle.
He managed to reach the entrance before anyone caught on to his presence, and before the first individual could shout, Alistair crushed his head with telekinesis, the sensation still unpleasantly tingling in his hand despite not having made direct contact. Without pausing, he rushed past the fortifications, searching for a path underground. He half-wished he had his mother's ability to sense surrounding space, which would have sped up his progress. Forced to kill everyone he encountered, he lashed out with his poleaxe or crushed their heads with telekinesis or at least immobilized them long enough for his poleaxe to finish the job.
Eventually, he reached a stairway leading underground and rushed down, already hearing wails and screams from below.
"Don't kill them! Selling them alive is worth a lot more," an angry voice rang out.
"We're going to be killed if I don't get enough power to break the encirclement from those damn fanatics outside. Leave me to my work and make yourself useful instead of bitching at me, you dipshit," another, much deeper voice growled in response.
Alistair rounded the corner toward the voices he had picked up with his enhanced hearing. He tasted bile as rage threatened to take over, but he pushed the emotions aside. He couldn't afford to waste a second or lose control as he heard a muffled wail.
"Shhh, don't worry, sweetie. If you struggle enough, you might just live. I'd hate to waste a good battery," the man said with sadistic glee.
Alistair finally reached the deepest depths of the tunnel network, and as he rounded another corner, without his senses, he would have almost run into the second man, who was jogging away from the scene. Activating his Temporal Combat Reflexes at high output, Alistair's hand shot out and grabbed the man's face. Using his Chrono Seizing Hand skill, he slowed the man down, watching his eyes widen in shock in slow motion. Alistair then summoned a short blade with his off-hand and swiftly decapitated the man, letting the body crumple and the head fall as he rushed toward the room, minimizing the reaction time of the torturer inside.
Fortunately, the man inside had not immediately tried to take the woman he was torturing hostage but had instead turned to face him once he realized his partner had died. What greeted him was an almost two-meter-tall muscular man with red skin, long black hair, and a beard paired with two moderately sized black horns and a sharp-looking tail. He recognized his species as a cambion, a rather high-tier evolution that took aspects of humans and demons and was usually created when two high-tier individuals procreated. Identify showed that the man was [Afrim - lvl 101], noting the aura of an Ascendant on him, which meant he had made it onto the Universal ladder.
As he entered, he spared a glance at the woman who was tied to a metal table, her clothes torn, and cuts, wounds, and bruises covered her body. In the corner, Alistair saw the discarded remains of another woman carelessly disposed to the side. Feeling overwhelmed, Alistair activated his Cold Rage skill, determined to crush the Cambion in front of him. Alistair spent a not insignificant amount of his Qi restraining the man with his Telekinesis skill, pulling him towards himself as he prepared to impale him with his poleaxe.
Afrim would not be as easily cowed, as he seemed to draw deep within himself and tore energy from the prisoners around them before stomping down his foot after Alistair had dragged him a meter towards him, conjuring a two-handed axe prepared to meet Alistair's onslaught. Alistair felt his opponent powering up and empowering his weapon for the clash. Alistair realigned his weapon as they clashed. Afrim must have expected this to stop Alistair's attack but only found the kinetic impact of their clash fueling Alistair, who instantly converted the energy into more power, swatting the man's axe aside and thrusting at his head. The Cambion jerked his head back, and the point of Alistair's poleaxe tore into the man's throat, but it was negligible damage at best for a Grade 8 opponent. Alistair felt something impacting his Mental Fortress skill, but it failed to shake him, and he saw sharp black tendrils growing out of his opponent's back. Alistair returned the favor by unleashing his Bloodcurdling Presence skill down on Afrim, whose footwork froze for a brief second.
Alistair pushed the advantage. He could not let the man take a hostage. He would need to grapple or slow his opponent. In a split-second decision, Alistair decided to follow Zathen's advice and levy his powerful affinity, converting his Qi and own life force into Kinetic Energy and, from there, into power with his Kinetic Grappler and Arcane Energy Manipulation Skills. He then threw all 200 saved-up stat points into the power stat, skyrocketing his power stat from his second-lowest to his second-highest stat as Afrim froze, completely overwhelmed by the difference in power pressing down and crushing him. Alistair sensed bones cracking through his attack.
Alistair brought his poleaxe down in an overhead swing, splitting the cambion in half. Standing over the body, he finally stopped, dropping his boosting skills and feeling a small wave of feebleness. With his rage skill deactivated, his mind began to process his surroundings. The imprisoned women and men were screaming in shock and surprise, looking at him with fearful eyes. He knew he needed to act quickly but was momentarily overwhelmed, feeling like he might vomit despite his stomach no longer functioning as it once did. He realized he lacked the skills to calm the prisoners and knew he needed to speak up, but the words came slowly as the smell of blood, sweat, and feces permeated the room.
"I am here to save you. Nobody is going to harm you while I am here," he said, standing straight and trying to strike an imposing figure, hoping his voice sounded reassuring.
He turned to free the woman tied to the table, glancing around and noting a few men and young teenagers huddled in the corner, shielded by the other prisoners. The scene reinforced his decision to leave this planet and civilization behind. He knew such atrocities must have been repeated countless times across the globe and the universe at large. He wasn't a hero, nor did he want to be one. He hated how cold and detached he felt at this moment, his mind numbing his empathy to protect him from the surrounding horrors. He felt some responsibility due to his power but hoped to do more good by providing a safe haven. He quietly vowed to eradicate any Blackmarket cell he encountered and felt more certain of his decision to make an example of those who attempted to plant a beacon and follow them.
Looking over the bindings, he noticed the enchantments and runes etched into the bindings that siphoned energy and restrained the individuals, fueling storage crystals situated under the table, out of reach for those tied down and fueling the contraption. He tore off the storage crystals and stored them, which immediately weakened the metal bindings, allowing him to tear them off with his hands. As Alistair worked to soothe the frightened woman and other prisoners, assuring them of their safety, a trembling voice pierced the tension. "Alistair? Is that you?"