There was a reason that the wolf had gathered all of its light above its crown. If there wasn't, why hadn't the volley of arrows appeared from the remains of the three paw constructs, already behind and surrounding the smith? The simple answer was that the crown was a conduit. Much like an external catalyst, the magical properties of the crown's material made it so that any mana channeled through it was enhanced. The volley that appeared was stronger, more numerous, and easier to control than one that had been conjured outside the crown's domain.
So when a boom of pure disrupting mana hit the exact center of the storm of constructs, a lot went wrong.
First, the aura that had been present for the duration of the fight disappeared. There were no more tendrils of mana weighing down on the smith's shoulders. No more slight disruption of his mana veins. The pressure that the beast had been exuding went away entirely.
Second, the mana that was meant for the aura had nowhere to go. Even with the immense amount of mana Jace had at his disposal, the stuff that made up the crown of bone was not even close to mundane. It had the mana conductivity to constantly channel an aura and to act as an antenna for a swarm of red light constructs. So only the surface of the crown was disrupted. Mana could not be exuded, but more and more was shoved into the crown until Cole began to see cracks form in the material, unable to contain the pressure of the magic.
Third, the arrows lost their connection to their master. With no directive and no manual control, they simply let gravity take effect. The entire volley of magically condensed and sharpened arrows fell down along the beast's head and back, piercing the hide and sinking into the flesh beneath.
Fourth, once it regained control of its magic, the Monster had none to spare. All of the red light, each mote of the energy, was needed to patch a wound. The almost severed leg, the shattered jaw, the line carved up its snout and into its eye, and the dozens of arrow holes in its back all needed to be sealed by the crimson energy. The wolf didn't have a single fleck of light to spare.
The howl of victory the beast had been preparing was replaced with a whine of pain and fear. No anger. Its remaining eye darted around the clearing, searching for whatever had hurt it. Cole was still, at least from its point of view, vulnerable in front of it. But there was still Mary in the trees, low on mana but still without any wounds. And now Jace had demolished its finishing attack, adding another variable of danger.
The eye landed on the life crystal still within view, towering over the canopy. A fleck of hope broke through fear and pain, and the whine returned to an arrogant snarl.
The wolf began to dart away, faster than any human had a hope to go. If it reached the crystal, the fight would be over. Not only would the mana heal its wounds, but those wounds healing would free up the red light once more. It would be in perfect health, and with all its weapons available again. Plus, if the dire wolf scouts were already dead, the wolf rushing to the crystal might attract the massive bear.
Cole had confidence he could win this fight, but not much more than that. Even if just a few of the dire wolves showed up, he might be done for. The bear appearing? He would die, simple as that. Even the Pocket Forge couldn't hide him if a beast could kill him before he opened the doors. So the wolf couldn't be allowed to reach the crystal.
The beast ran forward, dating so fast the wind screamed around it. But suddenly, it stumbled. It hadn't tripped on a root or bush. It hadn't been hit with a wisp of mind mana. It hadn't been stabbed in the legs by a spear or any conjured weapon. It hadn't been hit with another boom. No other beast had attacked it. Instead, its stumble was the result of a pull. A pull on a rope of metal mana. One end in the veins of a smith with determination that could shatter steel, and the other tied to a sword lodged deep into the Moster's skull.
Cole grabbed his claymore with a clumsy hand of mana, and once again pulled. He slid forward dozens of feet, his broken rib screaming as he tried to plant his feet. But the wolf slowed, and another whine of pain was sent through the air. And so began to tug of war with their lives.
The smith was tugged along behind the wolf like he was waterskiing, frantically trying to dodge the trees and bushes the wolf had simply barreled through. He tried to find leverage to stop the Monster with, but nothing worked. He was too weak, with his burning muscles and broken rib. There were no boulders in this section of the forest, so he couldn't lodge himself behind one of those. The bushes were just pulled out of the ground when he tried to grab hold of them.
The trees seemed like a prospect that would work, but as the crystal came into view they started to dodge him. The creeping branches and slow movement of twigs became the wild swings of wood that looked like human arms, complete with fingers and joints. Some had even turned their roots to legs and sidestepped him. The life mana that infected the very air had elevated the entire area's trees into golems.
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The crystal wasn't too far away now. He had a straight view to it, as it sat in the middle of a clearing. The base of the crystal was covered in bushes that writhed like waves crashing against a beach, and choking vines snaked up its entire surface.
The wolf was going to make it. Cole could pull himself along, but he couldn't find enough leverage to stop the wolf.
So, he made some. Repeating one of the very first acts of magic he had committed. One of the tricks that had brought a fleck of wonder to the normally serious smith, even as it exhausted him. He summoned a marble. His reserves were dwindling, but it was barely the size of a pea. He took that marble, tossed it forward, and pushed. Metal mana, along with the aid of some force mana, sent the orb of steel flying forward.
It hit the crystal right in a crevice between two ridges, a small spot open to the air instead of covered by vines. One strand of mana pulled, dragging the ruined mess of a sword back toward the smith. One strand pushed, shoving the marble deeper into the crystal.
The wolf slowed and then stopped. It strained against the force, slinging its head side to side in an attempt to let the sword fall out. It didn't work. The marble flattened against the massive amount of force put against it. Cole screamed as his muscles tore themselves apart. Shards of crystal flew out of the crevice as the marble's advance shattered a small segment of the towering monolith.
The wolf howled in rage, blood and spittle flying from its mouth. It took one slow step forward, pushing against the blade lodged in its eye. A small smile of triumph appeared on its snout as it advanced just a little further, putting more and more pressure on its skull until-
A crack sounded out. The wolf fell, Cole's claymore lodged firmly into its brain.
The smith collapsed to his knees, panting and gasping for breath. His vision swam, and blood leaked from the corner of his mouth. The smith only had time to crawl forward and grab a shard of crystal, hoping it would help heal him, before throwing himself through the newly present door of the Pocket Forge and letting his eyes close.
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Revalor-Algarium-Oxis wondered just what in the world this mortal was made of. Or more specifically, what in the world he could control.
Fire, in the opening blast that had shattered the dire fenroar's skull.
Enchantment, upon his own blade and the weapons of the two strays he had picked up.
Metal, the chain with which he had made the fenroar heel.
Conjuration, in the marble of steel he had created for leverage.
And Kinetic, aiding in both the initial blast and the marble's advance.
Five. Five affinities, in a newly integrated mortal.
The first and last Void God twitched, and a comet behind him ceased to exist.
"H̸̪̪̬͚̠̹̼̼̞̘̺̬̟͔͙̪̎̅̇̕O̸̧̯͙̠͓̜̣͊͗̓̄̃̏̄̌̐͛͌̈́͌̄͋̚̕͝W̶̡̯̭͆͂̎̎͂̈́͂̈́̀̇̌̅̒̇͂͘?"
He was the God of Entropy. He predated the System. He had slain hundreds of millions of beings, a good portion of those being Gods, and he only had four affinities. No one had five. Not the Mother of All Light, not the God Queen, not the God of Victory, or even any Mage gods he knew of.
A silver lining was that he at least had the foresight to ensure he was the only one who could scry the Chosen Creator while he was watching. Besides for the Star Gods, who were still on their 'burn the heretic' spiel, no one was too interested in the Creator. He was one of the Chosen, yes, but the other four eclipsed him in power completely. Still, there were hundreds of Gods watching, and without his wards, one surely would have seen.
Revalor-Algarium-Oxis had mostly thought of sponsoring the mortal as a joke. The Void Gods had never sponsored a mortal. Altagox-Aaet-Yiu because he didn't want to interfere with his creation's function, and the rest of them due to pure disinterest. How would a Void Sponsor even work? Usually, sponsorships could grant something akin to an affinity, but for talent instead of mana. The God Queen would give someone an affinity for ruling, as an example.
But he was the God of Entropy. Entropy, the slow decline of the world into chaos and disorder. What would that do to a mortal, especially the Chosen Creator? A blessing of destruction and ruin, given to one with the passion to create.
And what benefits would he reap? Usually, the System rewarded a God for a sponsorship by giving the God partial credit for any act done with the aid of the given pseudo-affinity. But what could the System give him? He had complete control over his own domain. There was no possible way for him to become better at controlling true Entropy, or even Void. The only ones who could resist him were special circumstances.
The Mother of All Light was old, but not as old as him. What gave her comparable power was her organization. She had hundreds of Star Gods all willingly giving her the majority of her power, and trillions of mortals with faith classes enthralled in her cults and churches. She gained power with her minions.
The other contenders were weaker. Not ones who could fight him to a standstill, let alone beat him. Just those who might be able to injure him in the process of destroying them. All were those who opposed his domain. Growth Gods, Conjuration Gods, and the one Creation God known as the Architect.
Only the System towered above him. Only it was an insurmountable foe. Like the Mother of All Light, it had more power due to its believers. But its believers were anyone who used the System, including Gods. Every single person and beast in the integrated universe.
He wondered how it would make him stronger. Perhaps it was finally time to accept the new.
Revalor-Algarium-Oxis, the first and last Void God, sent a sponsorship offer to the mortal known as Cole Vance.