Naizk: CAREFUL, RAXYAS!
Raxyas had been pinned down by a sabertooth-like beast. The trio had encountered some of the jungle's inhabitants, which were none to pleased with the three intruders. What started off as a small confrontation was quickly getting out of hand, as the sound of battle alerted even more beasts to join the fight.
Raxyas: Shit...! I got careless...
Raxyas musters his strength and manages to raise both of his feet up to the creature's stomach, kicking it backward and getting up from the ground.
Ilka: HAHAHAH! The thrill of battle! Doesn't it just fill you with energy?!
Ilka was effortlessly cutting down all the creatures that were coming at him. With every hit, he grew faster. Stronger. Any common warrior would grow wearier as the battle draws out. Not him. He just got more and more relentless.
Naizk: Seriously... Why even bring us along?! We're practically dead weight here!
Ilka: Shut up Naizk, keep fighting!
Ilka, like Naizk, was one of the few members of Incola with two weapons. On his left hand, he held a six-digit number counter. Every time he destroyed an enemy, the counter would go up by one. It seemed that, as the number on the counter rose, so did his combat abilities. At that time, that number was 675,102. On his right hand, he practically had what could only be described as three rotating chainsaws attached to an armored gauntlet. The chainsaws could easily carve into the bone and tissue of any opponent, tearing them to shreds in moments. Paired with Ilka's unmatched agility, the monsters had no chance of even laying a finger on him.
Paired with Ilka's unmatched agility, the monsters had no chance of even laying a finger on him [https://img.wattpad.com/1dfcc887684dd022a716b4006df441af6189a657/68747470733a2f2f73332e616d617a6f6e6177732e636f6d2f776174747061642d6d656469612d736572766963652f53746f7279496d6167652f38455169653739563330686479513d3d2d313237353631363230332e313732393465326466366461643632333937313233353839333430332e706e67?s=fit&w=1280&h=1280]
Naizk: Jeez...
Out of the three of them, Naizk was struggling the most. His shotguns were incredibly powerful, but the reload times really did him in. Facing two battles against hordes of enemies, back-to-back... It clearly wasn't his lucky day.
Raxyas: Stick close to me, Naizk! Just focus on killing whichever monsters get past me, if we don't fight together we're doomed.
Ilka: What's the matter you two?! Strategizing for something as simple as pest control? HAHAHAH!
Together, Raxyas and Naizk could keep the beasts at bay. Whenever more beasts were attacking than Raxyas could take down, Naizk would step in with his shotguns and help keep their numbers at bay. While they were working pretty well, they couldn't compare to Ilka. He was easily defeating more monsters than the two of them combined.
Raxyas: How many more are there...?
Naizk: Not too many, by the looks of it.
Ilka: Ahh... Boring!
They had culled most of the beasts. The few that were left thought twice about engaging, and would rather avoid the trio entirely. Shortly after, the battle had completely ceased.
Naizk: Damn... As if the invasion on the fortress wasn't enough...
Ilka: Come now Naizk, you'll have plenty of time to rest once we're done here. It won't be long now!
They keep moving through the thick jungle. After seeing Ilka battle, Raxyas couldn't help but grow curious regarding his abilities.
Raxyas: Ilka, that counter on your left hand... It makes you stronger, doesn't it?
Ilka let's out a hearty laugh.
Ilka: Stronger, faster, more resilient... You name it. This counter is quite the blessing!
Ilka lets out a sigh.
Ilka: ... And, quite the curse. See the number on it?
Ilka shows Raxyas the number. It read 675,178.
Ilka: The higher that number, the more powerful I become. But, it doesn't work how you'd think. You see, my power only grows after certain milestones are hit... The first level is at 7. Then 49. Then 343. Then 2,401... Every time, the milestone becomes seven times what is previously was. Currently, I'm at the sixth milestone. With that being said... I've been there since 117,649. You know when the next milestone is...? 828,543. That's quite a ways off.
Raxyas: But how much does your power grow each time?
Ilka: Well, take a guess.
Raxyas pondered for a moment. This meant that, for the entire duration of the battle, Ilka did not grow stronger at all. His burning passion for battle is what gave that illusion. Assuming that the last milestone would be at 999,999, he was taking down those beasts like it was nothing at around 75% of the ability's full power. But how strong would he be at 0%...? How much of a difference does a milestone make? Raxyas decided to say a number.
Raxyas: I'm going to exaggerate here, and say that you grow twice as powerful with every milestone.
Ilka laughs again.
Ilka: See, everyone thinks it's some crazy value like that. In fact, Raxyas... Every milestone only makes me about 6.25% stronger. So, at the peak of my ability...
Raxyas: You would only be... 50% stronger than your base form?!
Ilka: Hahah... Exactly. I wouldn't even be twice as strong at the peak of my ability.
That was absolute insanity. It meant that Ilka was only 37.5% stronger than his base form now. Given that he slayed around 100 beasts in the clash, when his power was at 137.5%... At his base form of 100% power he still would have slain around 73 beasts. Compared to the 30 or so that Raxyas and Naizk took down... That would still be more than double what they could manage.
Raxyas: But then... Isn't that counter...
Ilka: Rather useless? Taking up space that a better weapon could be using...? See, I thought so too, at first. Compared to all the power I could get... It almost feels like this thing is cheating me out of it. Kill a million enemies and all I get to show for it is becoming an extra half stronger than I already was...? Almost seems like a cruel joke.
Ilka looks at the counter intently.
Ilka: But there's more to this counter than meets the eye...
He un-summons the counter, and focuses on the path ahead once more.
Ilka: Maybe you'll get to see that sooner than you think.
They continue moving through the jungle.
Raxyas: I have some other questions, Ilka... There are things we need to talk about.
Ilka: There are indeed many things to talk about, dear Raxyas! Let's start with what happened in Slynvha, however. I trust you have much to tell me.
Raxyas was unyielding.
Raxyas: No. First, I must know... What is your stance regarding the Thirteen?
Ilka seemed annoyed.
Ilka: Was I not clear enough the last time we spoke about this? The Thirteen's methods were despicable, we want nothing to do with them.
Raxyas: But are you trying to stop them?
Ilka: Stop them? They aren't getting in our way, we have no reason to.
Raxyas: I know that there are many undead being damned inside citadel walls. Six different citadels. You're telling me that's all you?
Ilka: ... Oh. No, it cannot be. We make sure to only use the souls of condemned criminals. There is no way we can single-handedly generate that much attention by ourselves... But how did you hear of these reports...?
He was not expecting Raxyas to have caught wind of this...
Raxyas: I'm not done yet. If we are going to do this, I want to stop them.
Ilka: And you may, Raxyas! In your current form, I'm certain they will be no match for you. But I simply cannot allocate members to do that, they are much too busy recruiting masters as it is.
Clearly, Ilka did not see the Thirteen as a threat anymore...
Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.
Ilka: By the way Raxyas, your friend Xayn sends his regards.
Raxyas: Xayn?! Where is he?
Ilka: In Ragma... The underground citadel. Your next assignment just so happens to be there, too. Now... What exactly happened in Slynvha? Do we have Xi's help or not?
Raxyas: ... Xi was destroyed. He was using his own citizens to fuel his experiments in vessel crafting. We could not allow him to continue.
Ilka: That would explain this new vessel of yours, I assume?
Raxyas: Yes... But I have not come empty-handed. The reports I've heard of undead being damned in citadels came from Halgorth. I went there to recruit Za. He will aid us.
Ilka: Will he now...? Marvellous!
Raxyas: ... Under one condition. He will only lend his power to me.
Ilka: Is that so? Well, so be it. Perhaps he will come around sooner rather than later. So, that brings our total number of enlisted masters to ten. Only three more to go...
Ilka seemed very pleased with the current state of affairs.
Ilka: On to another topic, let's discuss a robbery...
His tone changed. It was slightly more serious now.
Ilka: It would seem one of your shards went missing... And just as it did, the next time I see you, you have managed to power up to a point where you surpass even yourself in your prime. Care to explain, Raxyas?
Raxyas was expecting this question... He was prepared.
Raxyas: I didn't steal anything, I only took back a piece of what you stole from me. If anything, that makes us even now, Ilka. And let's not forget that what I recovered is but a very small portion of what you took from me.
Ilka squinted as he listened.
Raxyas: Moreover, if it weren't for that soul shard, the truth is neither me nor Bazren would be alive now. Xi would've slain both of us, he would have grown even more powerful, and on top of that, he would be a pebble in your shoe, not an ally. He was only interested in furthering his goals, which required vessels. Quite a high number of them, in fact, and some of them very large. Actually, I'd say as large as the ones we're here to gather. Not only would you be competing with him for powerful vessels, but you also would have never gained the support of Za without me putting a word in. I needed that soul shard.
Ilkatorza pondered for a moment, before replying.
Ilka: ... You raise some valid points. Very well, Raxyas. I will forgo any punishment, this time. But only this time. As you yourself have said, we are even now. I trust that with your new-found strength, you have gained another weapon...?
Raxyas decided not to tell Ilka.
Raxyas: I haven't acquired any new weapons. I suppose that it must be because I am not strong enough yet... Even though I was able to gain a larger vessel thanks to the additional soul shard, the power I absorbed from Xi must not have been enough to grant me the strength to summon another weapon... But, there is another thing I have to show you. Xi had a bunch of these artifacts with him.
Raxyas shows Ilka his soul sphere.
Raxyas: I saw Linvaes use one of them. Where do they come from?
Ilka: He had these...? Hmph. Well, you'll soon get the chance to ask their maker yourself. She is the master of Ragma. Nu. Alright, enough chatter. We are almost there now.
They move through the thick vegetation, until they reach what seems to be a razed piece of jungle. There are no trees, no flora... Whatever lived there had razed the place to the ground. For the moment, however, it didn't seem to be around.
Naizk: Thank god it isn't here...
Ilka looks back at Naizk as he keeps moving onwards.
Ilka: Come on, Naizk. What's the matter? Where's your drive?!
Naizk had an odd expression on his face. Like he had heard it all before, and he knew what he was supposed to answer to that. But he just felt like, this time, he couldn't bring himself to. He shrugged and looked away from Ilka, focusing on the path ahead. He knew what would happen next.
Ilka: And what about you, Raxyas? Are you having fun?
Raxyas looked at Ilka. For a leader of an organization, Ilka seemed a bit too... Reckless. Raxyas wasn't sure how they got this far. Did Ilka's power single-handedly ensure their survival through whatever challenges they had to face? Perhaps they were truly a force to be reckoned with when they were all together? Or maybe Ilka was some sort of mastermind, who was always a step ahead...?
Raxyas: I have to say that fighting so many battles in such a short amount of time is... Exhausting. I can see why Naizk may not be so excited.
Naizk looked at Raxyas. His face looked as if he was sorry. He stops moving.
Raxyas: What's the matter, Naizk?
Ilka abruptly stops.
Ilka: See, Raxyas... There is something you don't know about me. I am of the opinion that we can only truly know someone else when we battle them. To the death.
Raxyas tensed up.
Ilka: Today, we didn't just come here to gather vessels. We came... To get to know each other better.
Ilka summons the counter and his chainsaw gauntlet.
Ilka: There are plenty of vessels around. No holding back, no restraints.
Raxyas summons his gladius.
Raxyas: This seems hardly fair, Ilka...
Ilka: Perfect! Can you imagine circumstances more in line with this universe of ours? Unfairness is at the core of its modus operandi.
Ilka swings his gauntlet at Raxyas. He blocks it with the gladius, but the rotating blades prove more powerful than he had anticipated.
Raxyas: Is that why you built Incola...? To fight that unfairness?
Raxyas shifts his blade into its whip form, tangling the wire around the chainsaws. They jam and struggle to rotate.
Ilka: I don't think we can ever truly fight unfairness. Think about it, Raxyas.
Ilka pulls his arm towards his torso, bringing Raxyas along. Then, with a firm and powerful kick, he sends him flying backward, as the whip untangles from the chains, allowing them to ferociously rotate once more.
Ilka: How many people in the world of the living do you think are pleased with the status quo? Do you think that by freeing the people of Mortmundus, we'll be making the world a fairer place for them? Not by a long shot! Those who use dark magic as a means of keeping their world clean of "trash" like us will be adamantly against this. They may even declare war on all of us who return from the world of the dead.
Raxyas quickly gets back up, ready for the next attack.
Raxyas: Why are you even thinking such things...? Would you be willing to fight them, if that happened? Even kill them?
Ilka holds the counter up.
Ilka: Sacrifice counter. Fifty thousand.
Immediately, the number on the counter drops by 50,000.
Ilka: Would you be prepared?
From the counter's face, a circular glyph appears. Thousands of points of light appear at its surface and begin shooting forth at Raxyas.
Raxyas can barely keep up with them [https://img.wattpad.com/f70c86b4c3f4772d8aea9a94bad241ce504f8ec2/68747470733a2f2f73332e616d617a6f6e6177732e636f6d2f776174747061642d6d656469612d736572766963652f53746f7279496d6167652f58634f7337553545614f374948673d3d2d313237353631363230332e313732393465623932663138663961393535323535373433383230362e706e67?s=fit&w=1280&h=1280]
Raxyas can barely keep up with them.
Ilka: Prepared to kill them, because of your desire to walk the realm of the living once more?
Some of the rays of light piece Raxyas body, leaving wide, gaping holes. His vessel was quickly losing mobility.
Raxyas: It's not about me... It's not about either of us. This is about righting what's wrong with the laws that govern our world!
Raxyas spins his whip around, forming a shield. Still, some of the rays managed to get through.
Raxyas: I don't think the majority of people are okay with this. Eternal suffering... Does anybody truly deserve that? No matter how much pain you inflict on someone else... Should the price to pay be an eternity of torture?
Raxyas tries to keep moving forward, but Ilka's attack showed no signs of stopping any time soon.
Raxyas: Whoever designed this system... Was wrong. If we have the power to change it, why wouldn't we?
Ilka begins walking forward in Raxyas' direction, still holding up the glyph shooting forth the beams of light.
Ilka: So, you assume that most would support us in this endeavour of ours? That war is an unlikely scenario, is that it?
Raxyas: Why would they want to fight against those who have lost everything?
Ilka: Because for some, they still haven't taken enough from us.
Ilka keeps moving towards him. Raxyas was now on his knees, still trying to fend off the attack as much as he could. His vessel would not hold for much longer.
Raxyas: Even so, those people will never have their way. How many mothers and fathers have had their sons and daughters sent off to spend the rest of their days in this limbo? Even if your offspring is a murderer, would you really want them to suffer forever...?
Ilka: Of course their parents wouldn't. But then again, you should be asking that question to the parents of the son or daughter that was murdered!
Ilka abruptly stops his attack. It was clear Raxyas couldn't take much longer.
Ilka: Enough games, Raxyas. Enough what-ifs.
He extends his hand to him.
Ilka: The world of the living may turn on us, kill us on sight. If that comes to pass, will you still fight? Or will you surrender and let the people of Mortmundus die a cowardly death?
Raxyas ignores Ilka's hand, and stands up by himself, with much difficulty.
Raxyas: To be fair Ilka... I don't know.
Raxyas looks him dead in the eye.
Raxyas: How can you even ask that? The whole reason we're doing this is to prevent more suffering... The last thing on our mind should be to cause even more of it. If the living ones truly despise us to the point that they would wage war with us... I suppose we should simply surrender.
Ilka: Surrender...? After all we would have gone through?
Ilka retracts his hand.
Raxyas: What's the worse they could do to us? Kill us? There would be no point in sending us to Mortmundus anymore, we would just get back out again. They wouldn't be able to curse us to live here any longer! So whether we live or die out there... We will already have won.
Ilka looks at Raxyas for a moment.
Ilka: We will already have won... Freedom from this mirror world is already reward enough, you say?
Raxyas: To free the people of Mortmundus from their curse is the entire point of this, isn't it? We may get to live once we go back, or we may not get that privilege. Either way, we will already have prevented more people from being sent here. We will all be re-joining the circle of life when we die. To me, that is enough of a victory.
He doesn't say anything. He smiles. Then, finally speaks.
Ilka: To each their own, Raxyas... To each their own.
Naizk approaches them once more.
Naizk: Quite the beating you took, eh Raxyas?
Raxyas: Did you know about this all along?!
Naizk: Well, Ilka does this with every member of Incola... I suspected he might try this.
Suddenly, a loud roaring sound was heard overhead. A dark shadow covered them from above. A creature resembling a dragon was flying above, no doubt the one nesting in that razed piece of jungle.
Naizk: Shit... Ilka, we gotta go! He's back!
Ilka: Not this time, Naizk. Sacrifice counter.
Ilka holds his counter up, facing the dragon.
Ilka: This time, he's the prey. You two might want to take cover.
The circular glyph appears in front of the counter. The dragon lands, roaring at Ilka loudly.
The dragon lands, roaring at Ilka loudly [https://img.wattpad.com/d3a4f3dda75d304d21779b6aa6527f7329968c84/68747470733a2f2f73332e616d617a6f6e6177732e636f6d2f776174747061642d6d656469612d736572766963652f53746f7279496d6167652f3862774c6c7244646777324d61773d3d2d313237353631363230332e313732393465663134626665646137313336323332313631393331342e706e67?s=fit&w=1280&h=1280]
Ilka: 150,000.
Four circular glyphs appear on the floor, all around the dragon. From them, ethereal chains come forth, that fetter the beast down to the ground.
Ilka: It's been a while, hasn't it old boy? This time, I'm getting the last laugh.
The ground glyphs then connect to one another via countless lines of light. Together, the entire magical structure resembled a circle, with the four circular glyphs sitting at the edges of the circle, symmetrically opposed to one another. The structure then gains material shape, as it emerges from the ground, forming a circular ethereal wall around the dragon.
Naizk: Holy crap...
Finally, one large glyph appears several metres above the dragon's head. From this glyph, a massive sword came forth, which crashed down on the beast. A massive blast emerges from the impact, as bone and tissue are sent flying everywhere, all contained within the circular wall.
Ilka: Good riddance...
The structure begins to fade, revealing a pile of dust where the dragon once was. Naizk and Raxyas were petrified.
Ilka: What are you waiting for, you two? Come on, help me carry some vessels back to the vehicle!
The trio search for vessels to take back to the fortress, and make their way back.