In the end, Adira’s actions changed nothing. She was as lost as she was before talking to Salgos. The girl stood on both knees, staring at the floor. What was she supposed to do with the God Core? Give it to Salgos and let him ascend? This felt like a repeat of the apocalypse that he led millennials ago. Other options were even less appealing. The unknown God standing behind her class, who ordered her to support Salgos, or the God’s Alliance extorting her being for their own gain.
How could Salgos trust her to decide? What did he see that she missed? The girl shook her head and reached for the glaive. She glanced over a small scar on her hand from the Scobwers attack. No matter how many healing potions she drank after that, the scar refused to go. The fight with these monsters felt so distant. Adira kept looking at the mark of the monster’s bite, reliving the memories. At that very moment, it had as much meaning as the decision weighing on her. Perhaps she was just looking for a way to escape the daunting responsibility, even if it meant getting lost in nostalgia.
“What was that about?” Galen snapped her out of her thoughts. The last thing he saw was how Adira disappeared behind the wall of darkness, caught in a fight with the Demigod. The fight he was unable to participate in. The next thing he knew, the Demigod walked away, and the girl was left alive.
The huntress pushed herself off the ground. The energy slowly returned. Her legs still shook, and it was difficult to move around, but at least possible, that was enough.
“Wanted to see if I can defeat him when he is weak.” She replied indirectly, hiding the true reason for their fight. However, Galen was too good a judge of character to be fooled.
“I know there is more to it. Tell me what he wanted.” Adira only huffed in response.
“Why would I do that?” She picked up her glaive and adjusted her helmet. “I will go inside and see what this was all about.”
Adira walked after Salgos turning her back to Galen. The man struggled to find the right words, he was not sure what he wanted to say, just something to bring the rift between them closer.
“We finished our mission. I think that means you can go.” The girl finished, before disappearing into the darkness. The old archer glanced at her, clutching his fists. He remained speechless until the end.
The darkness hid the cave and continued for a long while. It was not a continuation of the temple, the stone cave looked too out of place. At the opposite end of it, a light female murmur echoed through the corridor. A woman rambled under her breath. Hugging a wall, Adira inched closer to the source of the noise. Finally, the rambling shaped into words, and the girl paled recognizing the meaning.
“Warrior level 7 leveled up to Warrior level 8.”
“Falcon of the Ice Cape level 54 leveled up to Falcon of the Ice Cape level 55.”
“Archer level 12 leveled up to Archer level 13.”
“Sage level 49 leveled up to Sage level 50. New skill available.”
“Baitfish level 17 leveled up to Baitfish level 18.”
“Assassin level 74 leveled up to Assassin level 75. New skill available. Choose a specialization.”
“Demonic Slug level 22 leveled up to Demonic Slug level 23.”
“Mage level 33 leveled up…”
It was the same voice Adira heard in her head every time she leveled up. Her sluggish limp strengthened as her heels tapped an accelerating staccato, rushing to get to the source of the voice. The Goddess supporting the girl all this time was within reach. She had to see her. The girl was unable to explain this irrational desire to meet the divine that was so close to her.
She approached a chamber that looked more like a chapel. A woman was suspended in the middle of it. Her lower half was immersed in the floor. Her arms spread wide and ended past an elbow, as the remaining part disappeared inside a gruesome black and purple rock. The woman’s head hung in exhaustion. Dark circles under her eyes and withered figure showed how little she had slept or eaten, if at all. Silver hair strawed plainly down to the ground, never combed or cared for. Her lifeless gray eyes stared into nothing, ignoring Salgos who was kneeling in front of her. Only her mouth moved quickly in her otherwise still body. The woman’s voice overlapped over itself, making her repeat hundreds of similar phrases at the same time.
The Demigod held a hand to her cheek, lightly caressing it. His longing and disappointment read from his every move. He sighed her name with pain.
“Celesia.” Never Adira would expect to hear him being so hurt. The woman was not responding. Not noticing him, not reacting to his words. She simply iterated words with less life than in a rotten skeleton.
Was that the System? Adira shook her head in disappointment that she shared with Salgos. This woman was a conduit for the whole System. Every creature heard her voice. Celesia was tied to the System, or perhaps, was the System. It made sense why she was so protected by the Gods. To save her would mean ending their hold on mortals. The girl looked at the Demigod. His eyes fixated on the woman, unable to let go.
That’s what the unnamed God asked from Adira. That is what God of Order was telling her to stop. On one hand, the Gods Alliance wanted a fairer life for mortals. On the other hand, if they succeed who knows how many more Celesia’s would be enslaved like that. Adira knew she had to decide at one moment, but never she was so close to wishing for the destruction of the System. The only thing that stopped her was her fear of living without it. Destroying the System would mean letting go of her hard-earned power. The only thing that the girl had was her power. Because she was strong, others listened and were not openly hostile. If that goes away, then she would be left completely alone, surrounded by enemies.
“You had your reunion, Salgos.” A strong commanding voice dictated. Adira spun around.
Behind them, blocking the only entrance, the five figures stood. She recognized Biryar from before. There were four other Gods who were revealed to her. Aside from the Alliance’s Gods, there was a fifth one. A golden blond Goddess, radiating sunshine around her. Adira was able to recognize Visir, the Goddess of Light, even if she looked different than how statues depicted her.
“You know what happened to your love. We will stop you here.”
“Stop me?” Salgos smirked. “Whatever you think your plan is, it is nothing more than a petty squabble. I will end it soon.”
“You are a mere Demigod, Salgos. With no God to back you. Of all people, you cannot end the System.” Dolathor, the God of Choice, spoke. His lips were split in different colors, as well as his whole garment. The left side of his clothes was regal and colored red, and the right was covered in barbaric rags. “You would have to end the life of our vessel. All the power sustaining the System will go back to us, and we will recreate it again. This will change nothing.”
“Give up, Salgos. This is the end of your life. See for yourself.” Desta joined them, smiling with a mischievousness only elder people were capable of. She rolled a scroll, pointing the writing his way, and voiced the content. “The Demigod of Darkness ceases to exist inside the Flying Island. His title is removed.”
“Desta, I know how your rules work. The God of Time will destroy your title if you reveal my destiny.” That was the third Greater God that Adira heard involved. If the God of Space was trying to overtake the God of Nature by using his own Lesser God power, then why was the God of Time involved? It seemed two Greater Gods teamed up against the God of Nature.
“I only read the last entry, so I am safe.” Desta packed the scroll back into her robes, deviously grinning all the time. Salgos gently caressed Celesia’s hair, slightly nodding, as if expecting some devil’s ploy.
“What about you, Visir? They are using all the energies they can gather to gain power. Robbing you. That’s how you became a lesser Goddess in the first place.”
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“You know why I am here. Without the System, I will starve.” The Goddess shrugged with a careless attitude.
“So, you would allow the destruction of the Greater God?”
“I cannot forbid it. With no God to balance my power, my hand is forced. Sometimes you gotta make the only choice you have and hope for a better choice in the future.” Adira could not understand how Visir could speak so harebrained. Not only is God’s world at stake but all nations living in it.
“Stop your banter!” Biryar shouted over them. “Whatever you do here is meaningless. Even if you manage to break the System, we will simply remake it. Resign and die.”
“Ha-ha-ha-ha! I see.” Salgos laughed rolling his head up. He stood up with a war hammer already summoned. The Demigod of Darkness always was ready to fight the Gods. It was his purpose after all. This time he also had conviction and anger to fuel his determination.
“You only forgot one thing.” He spoke and his voice resonated in the cave. Cracks run over the columns from the pressure of his words. The Demigod growled under his breath. “I will not let you live for what you’ve done to Celesia.”
“Still so arrogant.” Xylothos laughed. He unwrapped a thick chain around his neck. It spread on the ground like a snake, grinding loudly. “Say your final words, Salgos. Your life ends here.”
Salgos leaned closer to the girl entrapped in the stone of the cave. His last words were aimed only at her and were not intended for anyone else.
“Goodbye, my love. I am sorry you suffered for me. I hope the Eternity would treat you better.” Celesia sprung in place, her head perked up, meeting Salgos’s eyes. The same repeating voice stopped mid-sentence. Her lips moved but no sound came out.
Thank you…
Adira heard the System’s voice in her head. Everyone except Salgos could hear it, but he did not need to.
Celesia’s body withered. She turned into ash in an instant, as if it was a figure made of sand and a slight blow was enough to dispel it. In less than a second, she disappeared, only offering a smile, before nothing was left. Salgos squeezed the remains of her slipping through his hand.
“He killed her!” Biryar shouted realizing what happened, but it was too late.
“No!” Others joined. Only Desta chuckled in the back, watching the Gods panic.
An explosion of energy went through the room. Adira felt how her body was itching as if her skin was melting off her. It was not painful, just penetrating. A massive amount of mana was released and filled the room.
“You underestimated my rage!” Salgos spread his arms and turned towards the group of Gods. “I was born of pride, and now my pride will tear your world apart!”
Then it happened.
Adira could not explain exactly how she knew it, but she knew the instant it happened.
There were no levels, no classes. Adira felt naked in front of the world, with a wide void opened in her chest. She suddenly started to feel the weight of her armor. A tickle ran down her arm, slightly beneath her skin, as magic coursed toward her palm. The girl became aware of the flow of mana, and how it pulsed through her body, pushing away the pressuring sensation from the exposed mana vein.
Now that her vitality did not support her using the System’s mana, she felt all the pain that was accumulating in her. All her wounds instantly ached, as if before this pain was hidden from her, she only felt a remnant of it. Turns out the scars were surprisingly itchy. It felt as if she had been submerged in the water before but now was thrown out on the beach. The last wave of the ocean washed away releasing its grasp and leaving Adira on a sharp and hot sand. Alone and powerless.
The girl looked around, taking in the new world as bare as it was. In an instant, there was no System, only raw human flesh. How can someone live like this? So many things to feel. So many things to control. As expected, her class was gone. With it all the abilities and power she had before. Adira tried to push herself off the ground. It felt alien, as if it was the first time, she had used her own strength for that.
She looked at Salgos. A violent storm of energy enveloped his being. But instead of consuming him, it was filling him up.
“Why is the energy not returning?” Adira overheard Biryar’s question.
“No!” Dolathor shouted over the storm. “He interfered with the vein! He is trying to ascend using our energy!”
“It should rip him apart with this amount!” Xylothos shouted in disbelief.
“Doesn’t matter! Don’t let him claim the source!” The God of Order commanded.
Clashing her teeth together, Adira screamed and rushed in between Salgos and Gods, readying her glaive. What could she even do? She felt powerless without a System. Still, she stood in front of the Gods swinging her weapon in a useless attempt to force them back. A huge chain swung towards her, hitting her head. Xylothos ran past her.
“Stay down, mortal.” The God said, seeing the girl survive the blow. Adira did not oblige.
She was too stubborn to choose the other way now that she set her mind to it. For the God of Nature whose existence was at stake. For Salgos, whose determination to avenge his love rivaled Gods. For herself, to prove her worth, even if that meant destroying the world’s order. She must act.
Xylothos’s chains swung towards Salgos. He stood there helplessly, trying to control the raging storm. The chain struck the floor in front of the Demigod and got pinned to the floor. A thread of the arachne tied the metal down, disrupting the attack. The one that Adira had saved after using it to rip apart the Demigod of Greed. The unbreakable thread of the arachne bound the chains of God.
He turned his angry eyes towards her. A thread shattered as if it was made of rime. With the same motion, the chain flicked towards Adira. She barely dodged it rolling on the floor. The girl stood up holding a sphere of pure darkness and raised it in front of her.
“Isn’t that what you want? The Title of God of Darkness?” All the Gods looked at her. The title was in her hands. Adira hoped it was worth more than the System. Their alliance was powerful, it dominated over all other Gods, but if one of them could become stronger than the Alliance, they surely would not miss the chance. “So, what is it? Do you want to have the Title? Or save your source?”
She was right, all eyes were set on her.
Xylothos was the first to act. He threw his chain at the girl in an attempt to catch her. Adira quickly hid the sphere inside her soul and focused her attention on the magic in her body. It was still there, even more with all the energy flowing outside of the mana source. Her body knew what to do, she just had to bring it forward. The chain whistled in her direction abnormally quickly. Despite the danger, Adira stood calmly, focusing inwards. She closed her eyes, refusing to think about saving herself. The pattern of her magic became more familiar. It felt right.
Just the moment the chains were to strike her, the girl disappeared from view. Adira stood to the side, radiant afterglow illuminated the cave slightly. She panted mostly because of fighting her desire to run, than from exhaustion. Yet she managed to control the wild magic.
Scoffing Xylothos doubled his effort. With his full power unleashed, the chains thrashed around the girl with speed rivaling her own. She was glad she practiced fighting without using her speed ability. The metal flew with such intensity, that it was hard to distinguish one strike from a wave of strikes. The floor cracked in multiple places simultaneously, but Adira managed to thread the needle between strikes. With the needle being her own body.
“Focus on Salgos, damn you!” Dolathor tried to command Xylothos, but the God of Chaos was unrelentless. His eyes flamed with greedy determination.
Other Gods engaged the Demigod pinned to one spot. He was absorbing the mana veins and was unable to move while doing so. A dark wall appeared parrying a strike from one of the Gods, immediately it was torn apart by a radiant slash from Biryar’s sword. He swung again, aiming at Salgos, but his attack did not reach the target. Shadow sword jumped from the floor and deflected the radiant blade from its target.
Twenty more blades shoot from the ground. One wave after another, swords thrust into God of Order. Biryar blocked some of the shots but was forced away. His shoulder and stomach were bleeding. The light ray shot through Salgos and he doubled over, keeping his arms onto mana veins. Visir aimed her finger again, preparing an even stronger attack.
The chains of the God of Chaos finally reached their mark. A powerful strike sent Adira flying. The armor was mangled into an unrecognizable mess, but it saved her life. Xylothos approached the stunned girl. If he finished her he would extract the sphere and become the strongest God. The girl’s blurry vision could only focus on his steps as she lay helplessly. Boots covered in fur slowly stepped towards her. She reached for her glaive but God kicked it away.
Dolathor went in for the attack on Salgos. He tore through the Demigod's magic wall and spear at his eye socket. Salgos cocked his head, dodging the strike. The sword and the spear aimed toward him from two sides. A massive ray of light charged at him. Shadow walls rose from the ground and managed to stop it. Now his defenses were spent. He had to take the strikes from God’s weapons and hope he would survive them.
Xylothos raised his chain over Adira’s head with a wicked smile. It was over.
The sword of God of Order and spear of God of Choice rushed towards Salgos.
The spear clashed against a huge metal edge. A large axe covered Salgos’s body just before the strike connected. Byriar’s blade was also met with an axe. A new figure appeared sending a shockwave through the room. An immolating flame followed his appearance. The Gods were forced to retreat. Xylothos was covered by the flames, unable to finish his strike.
Stone melted around Adira. Somehow she did not feel anything even being wrapped in this blazing fire. A large and round man stood in front of Salgos, with a battle axe in each hand. Only rags covered his red skin. Down the neck and through his chest a chain of skulls ornamented his body. The whole upper body of the new God, his shoulders, and the back were pierced with stuck arrows and rusted weapons from millennia ago. Somehow the girl understood, he used those weapons thrust into him as armor and it didn’t cause him any inconvenience. The man spread his arms.
“A new Dark God will ascend today!” He announced with the glory of an Emperor. Adira recognized this voice. The same one who gave her the orders to destroy the System. The creator of Godslayers. “I am Kargorath, the God of War! I declare your reign is over! Let the Age of War begin!”