I was there in the Hearted Realm that day. I saw the Concept Breaker fight for the first time. He doesn’t really leave corpses, you know. He just removes them, he breaks them, and they stop existing. You just pulse with light and dark. And then nothing afterward. Nothing forever.
The Fathoms forget you because you rejoin its waters.
You know the thing that bugs me the most? The thing I can’t forget even now, is how, when he kills someone, their screams seem to echo forward in time. Like a last broadcast from a failing siren. A lot of people died that day, a lot. And I wasn’t one of them, but he came after me too.
He hit me, and he cracked something inside me, something that would never be right again. I can never move as fast as I used to. Speed and time… they just don’t agree with me anymore. I’m always a tenth as fast as I was. I age ten times faster than I used to. My reflexes are dull. I see things a second later than they happen. My life since that day has been spent pushing through a mud pit.
It’s a hard fate to suffer for someone who used to be a jet pilot. Hard fate, better than most. But some days, some days, I envy those who died, because then everything is just done. Nothing to feel, no good or bad. For me, I have to remember.
I have to remember who I was, who they were, and who I’ll never be again.
-Maxwell McTannon. Former Inheritor
87
The Closing Cage
Relativity Charges Gained!
Strength Damaged!
Constitution Damaged!
Wei twisted the hilt of his Broken Crescent, and an enjoyable squelch sounded from Reunion's chest. The kindred’s eyes were wide in disbelief, and their clawed hands clenched around the Eidolon’s sheft. He gasped, blood drooling between snarling fangs, and a sound emerged. Wei didn’t let him speak. Instead, the young master headbutted him. Reunion’s nose turned into a bloody crater, his head snapped back, and another scythe scooped more of his Aspects away.
Relativity Charges Gained!
Attention: Your (Intent) to maintain these Charges is being expended
Intent > 9,998
Expending Relativity Charges > Relativity +422
Just then, Wei devoted thirty free points from his Class level to his Eidolon’s Speed as well.
Speed > 430
Time slowed to a near crawl, Wei carved and cut, striking the vampire over and over. It took eight blows for Reunion’s Speed to shatter completely. Eight blows until the vampire was incapable moving anywhere, clutched in a temporal stasis. Wei hit him five more times, flensing tendons, dismembering limbs, disfiguring the vampire’s even more.
Reunion’s Strength and Constitution collapsed, leaving on his Mind and Will intact. Such was Wei’s desire. He wished for the vampire to remain a prisoner—and offering to Ellena and Agnesia before this was done. The young master rooted within the creature’s spirit, searching for a link to the Dying Queen like there was with Ellena, but found nothing.
The vampire attempted to fight back at the end. Tendrils of blood shot toward Wei from all directions, moving at speeds that sent micro shockwaves through the air. But the vampire was broken of Strength and castrated of Speed, and ultimately his nest of collapsing blood-needles broke against the young master’s Fortification.
Authority Advanced > 41
Relativity Advanced > 34
[7/10] Aspect Advancements to Core Ascension
Perhaps Reunion had been given the chance to fight, things would be different. But ultimately, the vampire marched forth like a hungry wolf at the sight of Agnesia, thinking he was going to savor the blood of a piglet. Instead, he wandered into a tiger’s den.
There was no chance, no chance at all, and that was just the way Wei liked it.
A speech of primal fury and despair sounded as the vampire’s spirit broke.
Eidolon Class Level > 41
Free Points: [55]
Wei promptly put the rest of his points in Strength and Mind thereafter. More to break; a False Hydra was around. Immediate factors to consider.
Strength > 540
Enlightenment > 375
A corona of light and black swirled around the young master, and though the Hearted Realm of Gluttony drank Essence from his weapon, the torment he inflicted upon the vampire was still more than sufficient to forge a Shroud of Scorn around his body. Golden plates fused around his person, growing dimmer by the second. He would need to inflict more harm if he wished to stay armored. Fine. Wei even preferred it that way.
The vampire’s mouth remained open, lost in an eternal scream. But from within him, a presence arose—a crushing power that Wei remembered only once before. His Omniscience finally felt it. A string of connection. The strand connecting this kindred to his Dying Queen. But before Wei could sever the line using his Form of the Harvester, the other host spoke to him, her voice soft but impossibly clear.
“Wei An Wei.” A shadow of the Dying Queen materialized in the reflection of blood spilling out from Reunion. And to deepen the insult, Wei saw his mother’s beheaded visage clipping through the queen’s form. The Dying Queen herself took on the guise of a crimson-haired woman with an ornate blade stuck in her chest. That which she bled turned into her dress, and flowing all the way down to shoeless feet. She sported bestial nails than anything resembling human toes, and her eyes were like pools of black dotted with pinpricks of red. In a disturbing way, they reminded him of his Concept Core of the Harvest. “I see you, child. Angry boy. Lost. Hurt. You have taken something from me. Something dear. You have prevented me the touch of two new daughters. What a cold thing you’ve done.”
Warning: Essence Overload in 11 seconds
Wei could already feel cracks spreading up his Eidolon. He had but a moment of time to exchange jests with this creature. “In my culture, when one claims another without their consent, it is called slavery, not adoption.”
Reunion’s nest of blood shimmered as Essence spilled out from the Dying Queen. She assumed the mantle of his skills, and even operating through a conduit, she was still far greater than he; an echo of a falling titan could kill a thousand fleas.
She spoke again, but he ignored her words. Instead, thrust forth—noting that the Unfallen, Athlon, was already in motion and coming for the Trine and Agate in his periphery. A bolt of lightning exploded out from Wei, shooting across the distance to pierce through Reunion once more. The weight of a storm erupted out from the young master, and he infused every last droplet of Strength he had into the blow.
The ground beneath him shattered.
Agnesia was thrown from her feet.
Athlon brought his bladed wings up and formed a veil of wailing ghosts to guard himself.
But an inch away from impact, Wei’s lightning stood halted in mid-air, its momentum ceased by the thinnest tendrils of blood.
“Poor foolish child,” the Dying Queen whispered. Her casual statement was followed by her retaliation. Reunion’s nest of blood collapsed, turning into a choking mist that blurred the world until naught but the Dying Queen and Wei remain. Agnesia vanished from his Omniscience. As did Athlon, the Trine, Agate, and even the Hearted Realm itself. There, in a vast ocean of blood, there stood only two system hosts, one straining with all he had to sever the other from this realm.
The Dying Queen rose from the crimson waters, her skin impossibly pale, glowing with ethereal beauty. And Wei’s mother continued to linger around her body as if a mystical cloak. As the Queen sauntered close, Wei flinched, tried to move.
And couldn’t.
Warning: Essence Overload in 8 seconds.
And so fast he went from the tiger to the wolf himself, fallen into the cage of another.
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Reunion chortled weakly. “Mother. Do you see… do you see! He comes to us. Just as you—”
The Dying Queen shushed Reunion. “Yes. I see. You can rest now, dear Reunion. Your purpose is complete. Rest, and know the embrace of love everlasting.”
And with that, Reunion sake beneath the ocean of blood, leaving only his cape molded from the melted body of two twins—Agnesia’s brothers—on the surface.
“W-Wei” Bishop’s voice cracked in the back of the young master’s mind. “Att-acck. Need to—get—contract… opening…” It was hard to hear what was being said. Harder as the Dying Queen drew nearer, her nearness bringing tortuous pressure. It was like being ground against sharp rounds by crashing waves; pressed under a rolling mountain.
“Why do you continue to struggle,” the Dying Queen said. She reached out to grace Wei’s cheek, and the young master tried to move away. Tried too. Couldn’t. Once more, his mother returned, her hand superimposing over the Queen’s. And that was when his true suffering began.
“No,” Wei growled. “No—”
The Queen traced a single finger along his cheek, and Wei knew nothing but pain. Things broke inside him. A spear burrowed to the bedrock of his mind, and his Intent screamed as it suffered an assault unlike any other. But the young master didn’t scream. He refused. It was the last bit of dignity he still had. The Claimed Hells couldn’t break him; he would not let some demented spinster with an adoption fetish prevail.
“What cruel things you think of me, boy,” the Dying Queen said, sinking her finger deeper into his flesh. Source spilled from his wound, disintegrating her fingers. But something else happened. Her tendrils of blood rapidly rebuilt what she lost, and slowly, they began pushing into Source as well.
Warning: Hostile System Detected
Resisting Sanguine Embrace using Aspect of (Intent)
Wei dismissed his Form of the Martial Harvester to preserve his Intent. He released his catalyst as well, before he ended up overloading. Bad though the situation was, he still had a few cards left to play thanks to the contracts he “inherited” from the Middle Manager.
Reaching into his Inventory, Wei did his best to focus despite the sanity-piercing suffering, trying to find something he could use against the rival host.
Another hand closed around his throat, and between blinks, Wei saw the body of his mother meld with the Dying Queen’s head.
Resisting trauma with Aspect of (Intent)...
And the last vestiges of his sanity threatened to give out right then and there. It was too much. It was all too much. His focus grew brittle. But still remained. He just needed to… to…
“Surrender.” The Queen smiled and knelt down to greet him face to face. When had she grown so much larger than him? And why did she look so beautiful. “There is a great deal of pain, my child. I feel what you feel. But it can be made absent. I can give you warmth. You are without a mother, without a family. Alone. Betrayed by your father. I can give you belonging once more. Just let go.”
Failed to resist trauma
Fortification Advanced > 32
[8/10] Aspect Advancements to Core Ascension
***
“Wei!” Agnesia cried. Everything happened in a blur. One second, the young master was cleaving into Reunion, his spear a falling storm, his body shrouded by a gleaming scythe. Then, the nest of blood around her collapsed around both the vampire and Wei, and… and…
They were gone. Nowhere to be seen.
Disoriented and terrified, it took a psionic shout from Bishop to refocus Agnesia. “Hey! Unfuck yourself! Get the others in your Inventory and get the fuck out! Inheritors are closing on the fortress—you got to move.”
But Wei—
“I’ll try to get to him. You worry about your tasks.”
Repressing her anxiety, Agnesia watched as Mobile Fortress Wei wailed in the distance, its sails ablaze, an engine smoking as flying outsiders peppered it with ranged Skills while creating fields of repulsion to keep the demons at bay. A few moments later, it crashed hard against the ground, grinding onward in a thunderous cacophony while throwing mangled flesh furrowed from the Hearted Realm’s surface high up into the air.
Deep mocking laughter drew Agnesia’s attention. Meters away, the Trine and Agate lay shivering on the ground, and a few steps away from them stood Athlon the Absolver, agent of the Unfallen.
Staring into the abyss the undead warrior had for a face sent a chill crawling under Agnesia’s skin and cooling her veins. She did her best not to swallow as she hefted her blade and flared fire-forged wings of her own.
Athlon the Absolver: Lv. 89
“It will not be long now,” Athlon said. Reaching into its absent face, it drew forth a massive axe sculpted from animated shadows while wailing specters flared along its edged wings. “Soon. The Court of Ruin will have the last Hymn of the Fallen Creator, the Inheritors of their precious System, and the Dying Queen…” The Unfallen’s voice trailed off. “Will be spited. You. You are the Princess of Dawnrest. Dragonblooded Heir. Daughter of Ignium. Your flames will better serve the Court of Ruin.”
“My flames are my own, monster,” Agnesia snarled. “Away from my charges, or I’ll get keen on sharing what it means to burn.”
“Run, lass,” Agate said, hacking up a wet cough. Agnesia couldn’t see their face under the helmet, but she suspected the Oathbearer was bleeding internally from what he suffered.
“Worthless pawn,” Athlon spat. Extending a palm, he sent a blast of screaming ghosts to consume Agate—and Agnesia countered with a roaring tide of flame. The flood of ghosts smashed hard into Agnesia’s abyssal fire, pushing her back. The Unfallen advanced with a posture of contempt at first.
But then the ghosts ignited. And the undead warrior stopped mid-stride. “How—”
A massive explosion split the horizon with light. Agnesia felt a sudden spike of Essence flood the Hearted Realm—and knew the Knight of Lust to have been detonated. Alongside the thousand or so lesser demons Wei captured.
Then, Athlon made a mistake. A foolish one. He turned, trying to gather what was amiss. And the princess exploded forth, her bone-blade raised in a vicious charge as she slammed her into his ribs, and struck at Athlon’s very structure using her Osteokinesis Skill.
Athlon’s midsection burst into fine powder. And through the blade, Agnesia channeled the full strength of her all consuming flames. “You want my flame! Here! Have it! Take it all!”
And empowered by Agnesia’s rage, the Unfallen learned that even those that were withered could burn.
***
“...What the fuck was that!” Seever cried. “What the fuck just happened.” Over fifty perspectives winked out from the screen above him. Their telepathic connections were severed as well. It had all been going just fine. One second, his forces were advancing on the downed fortress preparing to insert. As expected, the giant flying hunk of bullshit didn’t have any wards—nothing preventing from a breach-team from boarding.
So that’s what happened. A squad of five Inheritors flashed aboard, expecting to do a little CQB, hold a few rooms, blow out a few others, the usual shebang. They entered the room with the Essence signatures expecting to eliminate all the major threats in one fell swoop, only to find themselves face to face with an old friend.
Severean. The Knight of Lust. She was chained to some kind of weird fucked-up contraption and had these strange tendrils running between her and a bunch of other writhing bodies in the room. For a second, Seever thought he was looking at people, but nope. Demons. Every single one of them. From wall to wall. All connected to the Knight of Lust.
“Uh, Project Lead,” one of his Inheritors asked. “We have located—”
A loud sob sang out from the Knight of Lust, interrupting them. Her head rolled, her massive snout bite at the air as she finished her cry of… relief. “Finally!” She crooned. “Death. Finally. They’re here! I have done as you please! Release me, Trespasser! Release—”
Then, a series of fractures spread across her chest, up her scaled neck, and Seever’s eyes widened. He knew what this was—had seen it before. “Breach team, get the fuck—”
Then, his connection to those Inheritors vanished. Followed by forty more soldiers just a second after.
From afar, a massive fireball was rising through the air, swallowing hundreds of demons and dozens of Inheritors moving in to secure the premises. But that was only the inner explosion. A massive tide of unstable Essence swept out, cleaving through those unprepared like an edged wave. A massive tongue extending from the Hearted Realm’s soil was severed, causing blood to spray everywhere. Monitoring personnel moved to flee, but more than a few failed to outmaneuver the disaster, and as their battlelines broke, Demons of Gluttony spilled through the gaps and snatched a few Inheritors up as well.
Shit went from “dandy” to “ass-fucked” in seconds.
“What the fuck!” Seever screeched, repeating himself. “Shit… shit! I…” He ran a hand through his hair. What was going on? Was this a trap? Was this planned? “Rico! Rico!” The false hydra materialized next to him. “You said that you had a trace! You said—”
“I did,” the hydra interrupted. “But I suspect the other psionic—”
“I don’t give a fuck—fix it! Fix this! We need to—”
A sudden impact shook his base. The ceiling above him rattled. Seever went still and dismissed the perspectives of his Inheritors, turning the glass on his ceiling translucent. Overhead, a large serpent made from blood arced over the Inheritor defenses before slamming down. Even as it was bombarded by Skills, it just continued attacking, sprouting new heads and striking from all angles. A moment later, the calls started coming in.
“Project lead—”
“Can’t hold!”
“Ambush! Fucking ambush!”
“I have eyes on… on… Knights of Gluttony… Knights of Gluttony are breaching out perimeter… They know we’re here! Project Lead, requesting permission to retreat! Requesting—”
“Fuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuckshitfuckfuck,” Harlon Seever said, summarizing his feelings. Clawing at his temples, he did his best not to pop a vessel and looked to Rico. “Go snatch that princess. And the fucking elves. We’re getting something out of this. See if you can find the kid too—message me once you do. I’ll come to you.”
“Of course,” Rico said. “What about—”
“Project lead!”
Seever snarled his reply across the link. “Negative. You do not have permission to retreat. You hold. You hold until I say otherwise.” Shaking his head, he shot Rico another look and lowered his voice. “And, uh, make sure the Unfallen or the vampire bites it. One or both. Preferably both. We’re going to need to cover our asses, and it’s best that someone else gets the ogre dick this time, you feel me baby.”
“Yes, Harlon. Of course…”