The High Human left the storage room to little fanfare.
While there were still crafting-related experiments and projects he wanted to try, he was already an hour beyond the day he had granted himself.
While his Modern Warfare affinity prompted a cautious, room-by-room approach using Lysara’s ability to move through Ground and her Flux senses, Ori was beginning to understand how Duælism influenced his nature. The Duælist set the tempo, attacking while defending, embodying the concept of one against many, mind over matter, and creativity’s talent for destruction. With a comprehension level at threshold and a class providing the greatest force multipliers for combat, Ori was eager to test his abilities against any challengers.
“There’s something up ahead. I think they have at least one mage masking their presence,” Lysara said internally as she travelled beneath Ori’s feet, her passive sensory abilities still providing early warning despite Ori’s boldness.
Freya sat incorporeal within his mind as Ori traversed the dark, rocky corridors of this part of the prison. The enchantments that once kept this section, far from the natural lava and aether pools lit, now felt dead with the absence of the engine, the Fallen God, removed from fate by Ori’s hand.
Ori moved with an indescribable weight, a presence that, while not wholly graceless or unsure of footing, felt like a boulder challenging fate, each step a correction to a world not yet suitable to his predilections. Split Mind ran through his selection of spells and abilities, determining their optimal uses, counters, the likelihood of infernal responses, and possible garrisons or watches beyond Lysara’s sphere of influence. It also considered Thraxis’s knowledge of wardens and how ranks determined by Fate represented an arbitrary ‘health bar’ size, varying wildly in abilities and offensive capabilities.
While he hoped his damage multipliers were high enough to deal with most threats quickly, his limited combat experience was a problem he needed to rectify.
“They're around this corner.”
Aura, Reach, and Vision of the Progenitor blazed, each ghostly hand wielding a part of the Array, while Flenser and Seraphine’s Beacon materialised in his hands. Through Invariant Bonds, Ori cast Freya’s newly evolved Astral Hands, a spell that had once been Arcane Hands, but now evolved due to Freya’s new classes. Unlike his aetheric Reach of the Progenitor, which appeared mostly solid despite their ghostly separation from his body, these Astral Hands possessed the light and ephemeral translucence of the dreaming. With his fourth pair of hands, the final implements of his Array caused the air to whine and a cringing dread to soak his senses. Ori could taste the concept of sharpness; it was so thick that with one errant swing, Ori feared the blades he had crafted would slip their leash and slice him apart instead.
A fireball was swallowed by Dreamwalkers’ Lesser Aegis prompting Ori to move. He cast Mirror Protection and Light Shield, three barriers sprung around him instantly. Upon sight of the enemy, Radiant Weapon caused the six blades of the Array to shimmer with Cosmic light, their prismatic, shimmering edges adding to the howling song of menace, a prelude to the violence to come.
Mind over Motion slowed the world, linking his movements and perception. He felt his Breath seeping out of him as he moved in a world now ten times slower than normal. In this space, three seconds became thirty, and gravity became a mere suggestion. Before half the time was up, Ori had covered the one hundred yards to the garrison of twelve Nascent-ranking demons, likely placed to secure and report his presence. They were imps and corrupted humans, their fireballs and invisible curses absorbed by his Aegis.
Ori spent the second half of Mind over Motion’s effect watching their glowing ashes drift upwards in a surreal, slow-motion cloud of glowing sparkles. For each Nascent being, merely the presence of the blade and the intent to kill had been enough to obliterate them, regardless of physical contact.
Panic lanced through Ori’s heart. It was a fear born from a lack of understanding, something new, unexplained, and dangerous. With four pairs of hands, he was near the limit of his mind’s ability to juggle, and with an artefact he could barely wield, Ori once again weighed the risk of using such weapons. Dismissing his Astral and Aetheric Hands along with the Array they wielded, Ori asked his familiars, “Do you know what’s going on with these blades?”
‘Between your lack of control and the host of effects multiplying the lethality of your intent, I suspect you are on the cusp of learning what some martial experts call an ‘extension,’ Freya answered.
‘It’s a normal aspect for mid-ranked combat,’ Lysara said, trying to put Ori’s mind at ease.
‘Yes, but your lack of control… Just avoid using those things near us, and maybe you’ll come out of this with all your limbs intact.’
‘I don’t understand. Isn’t a three-fold enchantment normal? I mean, why aren’t the demons rolling with the same stuff?’
Freya laughed. ‘It is certainly not normal. That you managed to enchant them in a cave, using only spare parts… Had I not seen you kill a god while still mortal, I might have reacted appropriately at the time you crafted them. No, Ori, weapons like that are more likely for elites, and with your absurd accolades and class traits multiplying the effect to such a degree… Well, it’s no wonder the effects of the weapons are so exaggerated. I would suggest sticking to spells for now.’
‘Try aspecting your spells with Celestial affinity,” Freya continued. ‘It is especially strong against Infernals, and it might be less conspicuous when used around allies. Remember, the closer we get to escaping, the more important it becomes to hide your true strength. This must start before we meet the Celestials.’
‘More infernals come, lots more.’ Lysara warned, shaking Ori out of his contemplations.
Ori closed his eyes and tightened his grip on the weapons in his hands.
“Alright,” he exhaled, keeping his newly fashioned implements unsummoned for now.
Returning to the junction that led from the Bowl, Ori took the route he had planned towards the part of the prison where Celestial beings were held. According to the knowledge Freya had gathered through her intermittent dreamwalking over the years, the prison was split into several sections or Reaches. These vast semi-natural cave networks spanned countless miles and were each connected to a central magma chamber. The lowest Reaches housed long-term, low-interaction prisoners slated for Will harvesting through various physiological and arcane techniques. The more potential for harvesting, the deeper within the lower reaches they were kept, out of sight from temptation and gluttony.
The middle reaches were devoted to species of creatures captured via portals, gateways that acted as summoning stations for unwilling or zealous devotees from other realms. Here, victims, including humans likely abducted, were processed. Their lifespans were often no longer than a month from entering the prison to being drained of all will and desire to live. Other races were also present, with a large contingent of wild fae making up the main population of one of the Reaches Ori intended to free. The upper Reaches contained the vast hordes of demons near the surface of the mountains within a desolate, far-flung corner of the realm of Twilight.
Emerging into a small cavern packed with demons, Ori cast Light Shield followed by Mirror Protection, creating a combination he knew would soon become a staple of his spellcasting repertoire. With Freya and Lysara essentially riding shotgun in or underneath, three slightly golden barriers of celestial aspect appeared around him as faint domes for the mana and time cost of one. Fourteen feet across, the near-transparent magical shields protected him from ranged attacks. Due to being a White Mage focused on healing rather than protection, the shields from his class were a rank weaker than those from more defence-oriented classes such as Yellow Mage. As they were, Light Shield was an incredibly flimsy defence for an Awakened going up against dozens of demons a rank higher than him. Or at least it should have been. At first count, there seemed to be at least fifty, enough to completely overwhelm his defences if they were all spell casters.
Ori cast Mind over Motion, enhancing his perception and reaction speeds. Instead of paying the cost in Breath to move faster, Ori used the time to focus on casting and coordinating his bonds.
‘Lysara, drop a Conduit and activate your aura,’ Ori said internally. These two spells, Lightning Conduit and Capacitive Resonance, greatly enhanced their spellcasting control and efficiency. Meanwhile, the first hostile spells crashed against Ori’s Light Shield. Without Attack as you Defend adding to the strength of the barriers, his Aura and Aegis, each shield shattered into glassy flakes and a shower of sparks in a brief countdown before his own reply.
Ori then used Duælist’s Weave to combine Chain Lightning with the paralytic effects of Greater Stun. With the weave complete, Ori cast just before the last Light Shield shattered.
Light snaked from Ori’s outstretched hand, the tip of his soulbond crystal wand igniting in golden light as current surged into the undisciplined ranks of demons. Physical and enchanted shields offered no impediment; the intent of Ori’s spell and Lysara’s elemental casting support allowed lightning to coruscate through dozens of humanoids at a time. The celestial aspect caused a lingering holy fire to ignite and twice-cook creatures already charbroiled.
Ori continued to cast before he emerged from Mind over Motion, the slight disorientation causing him to lose focus on the channelled woven spell. As he strode closer to the mass of bodies, chains sprang from the ground, rapidly coiling around his limbs.
Ori cast Mind over Motion once more, expending his limited Breath to break free from the control effect. The heavy metal loops pulled him bodily to the ground. He felt something draining, Vision of the Progenitor witnessing his own mana seeping through the chain into the ground. His back buckled as another chain gained purchase on his wrist despite his best efforts.
His Page from the Library of Fates showed his mana regeneration plummeting from over a hundred and twenty to zero. But Ori didn’t panic.
‘You okay, guys?’ Ori checked in with his bonds, the effect of this new spell unknown on his companions.
‘Ori! That’s the same spell that bound and captured me!’ Freya screamed. Ori grunted under the tightening chains, brought to his knees as Split Mind worked to assess and dismiss tactics and abilities still available to him.
“Impressive. Level one, yet I drain from you as much mana as a Nascent. To have gotten so far, only to fall here, Demon Bane,” a voice sneered. While his face was pulled to the floor, Vision of the Progenitor took in the Fallen Human’s visage. Piss-yellow irises ringed a dark, almost pitch-black pupil. His skin was pale and leathery, failing to stretch over the sharp, skeletal features of his face.
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As the aura of its Greater Rank came closer, Ori felt the arcane pressure of the staff it wielded. The Fallen Human’s stick-thin frame matched the twisted black and cruel branch it held. Ori grunted, annoyed by how effectively the chains manipulated his physical form. He waited, curious about what this overconfident villain would say next. Did he even know Lysara was beneath the ground, unchained and fully able to kill this reject on her own?
“Did you ever stop to think why he’s still Level One, Prax?” another voice said, accompanied by a stronger aura. “How a demon bane could kill scores of Nascent rankers at Level One yet fall to such cheap tricks as your bindings?”
A sliver of doubt crossed the Fallen Human’s face. Ori split his focus on the newcomer, likely another Warden if its power level was any indicator.
Prax, the demon binding Ori with magical chains, sneered. “He’s my prize, Kox’leugon. Back off!”
Kox’leugon chuckled. “By all means. I already feel his attention settling on me. Perhaps he sees you as no threat?”
Prax snarled, pulling out a blazing whip, confident his prey couldn’t resist. He pulled back as if to strike, but he never got the chance.
Ori stood, the clink of metal chains falling around him as their wielder disintegrated in a puff of red mist. His aura, eyes and the four Aetheric Hands blazed under Will of the High Human, each spectral limb wielding a piece of his Experimental Array. It had been one of the summoned, soul-bound artefacts that had been responsible for killing the Greater Ranking infernal.
“Dangerous indeed,” a colossal troll strode through the shadows. Its skin was pink, its eyes tiny black dots on a wide and unpleasant face. It would have been easy to disregard the colossal creature as slow and unwitting, but Ori saw the gleam of cunning behind those beady eyes. One meaty paw grasped a comically sized morning star, while the other tossed a net over Ori.
Time seemed to slow as the glittery mesh expanded to engulf him. He should have been relieved it wasn’t another attack, as the mana-draining effect had sapped energy from his Aegis too. Still, not wanting to see what new, crippling effect this artefact had, Ori dove out of the way. But things slowed further; his mind felt like syrup, and he nearly tripped over his own legs. Real concern slipped into his countenance as he struggled to understand the effect on him.
Reaching for his magic, Ori cast Mind over Mind and Mind over Motion. One hand from Reach of the Progenitor tried to deflect the mesh. He felt the hand sizzle and cook under the hellish curses and enchantments. Stranger still, he couldn’t unsummon it, as if the net had latched onto his soul, or at least a part of it. Even so, Ori breathed a small sigh of relief after escaping the net's fall.
With each encounter, Ori experienced a new method of entrapment, a new way to be caught. His inner Duælist revelled in the learning opportunity, though he wished it didn’t come at the peril of facing another Sovereign Ranker. A weight, an immense force, pulled Ori to his knees. Purifying Light did nothing to dispel the near-physical effect as the Sovereign Ranker moved inhumanly quickly. Kox’leugon’s morning star bore down on him with the weight of a mountain, its crushing intent extending well beyond the weapon's reach. Light Barrier materialised three times, its empowered state reinforced by his Cosmic affinity, stopping the deadly attack by the second barrier’s shattering. Ori moved, recasting Mind over Motion and expelling Breath to move in time with his thoughts in this unusual domain. The Sovereign Ranker wasted no time in pursuit, its mace swinging horizontally and shattering Ori’s shin even as three blades of his Array plunged in and out of flesh leaving wounds that quickly healed. His newly cast shields, Aegis, Aura, and two pieces of his Array forming a cross block, did little to stop the troll's impossible momentum.
With Will of the High Human, the shattered bone healed almost instantly under his empowered Channel Restoration, but the shock of the damage, the speed, and violence reminded him how close he teetered to the edge despite his recent gains. Ori knew he was defending too much, ceding too much of the initiative. However, the pressure of melee attacks from a creature that moved far too fast for its size was something he could only keep up with while expelling his most limited resource.
Conceptually understanding Duælism, to strike with one blade while guarding with the other, was one thing. Putting it into practice under the focused attention of a High Troll was another. Mind over Motion ended. The morning star glanced off his chest, Dreamwalker’s Aegis in its shield form turning what should have pulverised Ori’s chest cavity, into a blow that merely sent him crashing into the cave wall. Channel Restoration once again returned him to health, but the mental shock of being hit along with his rising frustrations delayed his rise to his feet.
However, with distance, came time and space to think. The area of effect spell Beacon of Restoration was cast at his feet in a vain attempt to regenerate the Breath that would normally take two days to bring back to full. Light Shields snapped into place as Radiant Weapon and Greater Stun effects were woven into one spell. “Lysara, Greater Stun, then everything you’ve got on him,” Ori shouted.
Lysara complied. As the Troll launched itself at Ori, a fuzzy pulse of static caused the colossus to stumble with a brief grunt. At the same moment, Astral Hands joined his three available Aetheric Hands each carrying a piece of his Array. They blazed with Celestial golden silver, Will of the High Human, his Duælist accolade, and the sharpening enchantments each magnifying the light of Radiant Weapon. The blades sank into flesh with ease, and an appropriate roar erupted from his foe.
“Freya, Font and Beacon of Wisdom, now!” Ori commanded, even as Lysara blasted the beast with Flux-aligned Channel Lightning.
Not to be outdone, Ori called down a similarly empowered Moonbeam woven with Call Lightning. It lanced down from the ceiling like a beam of molten silver coiled by vines of white lightning as if called from the very stone ceiling above. With his foe temporarily restrained by his stunning Radiant Weapon empowered blades, it was the first time he could cast the spell against a more agile, physically imposing target. The spell combination aspected with his Cosmic affinity, consumed every unit of mana Ori had to spare. Light filled the cavern as a reverberating, strobing buzz rumbled the walls. He held the spell, his jaw tight, his focus absolute, channelling it for as long as he could. The High Troll at first shielded himself with his morning star, the enchanted weapon showering with sparks before it glowed, then melted in its hands. The beam of crackling prismatic moonlight sliced off fingers, an arm, before penetrating his chest, the spell destroying skin and muscle almost as fast as the monster could regenerate. With all his tricks working in concert, there was nothing else but his Domain to fall back on. Just before he considered igniting a dream-aspected domain to aid in the creature’s destruction, the beam intensified. Ori’s Cosmic affinity amplified the spell's effect every second the channelled spell was maintained pushing its destructive potential past a certain threshold that now meant the High Troll's doom. With Mind over Mind also gaining strength the longer the fight lasted, the advantages continued to stack. No longer able to keep up its regenerative abilities, the Troll roared once more as the beam passed straight through his chest, his groin and calf to lance the ground beneath its feet.
Ori held the spell, the weapons of his Array as well as his white-knuckled physical hands for several more seconds as the prismatic spell grew blindingly intense. With a twitch of intent, he drew the beam over the Troll’s neck, severing its head. His Array withdrew from the creature’s body to stab and slice once more, ensuring the smoking ruin of Troll parts was dead.
“It’s dead, Ori,” Freya said, suddenly appearing in her pixie form. Her presence startled Ori out of his concentration long enough to confirm that, yes, the Troll was indeed dead. “Kox’leugon, Warden of the Nyxul Reaches. That you can face a High Troll in single combat…”
“Oh, I had help. I wouldn’t have been able to do it without you two,” Ori said.
“I don’t know about that,” Freya replied.
“Freya is right. You would have killed him eventually,” Lysara added, her form emerging from the ground, dimmer and less energetic than usual.
Ori looked around at his bonded companions, then surveyed the carnage around him. Finally, he checked his Page of Fates.
> Curse: Graceless Infernal Deathclock
>
> Rank: Divine
>
> Description: This curse feeds upon the Grace you accumulate.
>
> Notes: You have [hundred and twelve days, fourteen hours] to live. Extend this time by avenging the god you killed. For every slain infernal with a level disparity greater than one, gain an hour of life. Additionally, gain one hour of life for each level the slain infernal is above your own.
He grunted at both the Deathclock and the minimal impact the recent killings had made on his Peritia total. He could have added hundreds of thousands, but what use were such small amounts compared to his goal? He shook his head, pushing back the lingering trauma of a shattered leg and broken spine. Then, he stood and moved towards the mesh that still seared one of the four aetheric limbs of Reach of the Progenitor.
He crudely broke the complex enchantment using Lesser Echo Print, then kicked the likely evil soul-based artefact off his ghostly arm. Its pale, luminescent misty form bore visible scars from the insidious net. Purify Light, Lesser Dispel and other woven spells did little to heal what Ori suspected were scars on his very soul. Shaking his head at the whole ordeal, Ori sifted through the burnt and dismembered pieces of meat, his initial Chain Lightning leaving plenty of charred corpses. In the end, the Fallen Human’s staff, the chains and mesh, and the High Troll’s morning star entered Ori’s near-overflowing Void Ring Storage.
----------------------------------------
“This is the one,” the Pixie on his shoulder said as they walked down a prison cell corridor, with door after door of thick stone. The muffled shouts and horrors made Ori wince and reconsider their plan to find a specific Celestial. Instead, he decided to methodically release them all.
Aetheric hands manifested, his Will characteristic substituting for strength, providing a crushing power far beyond that of even a Sovereign Ranker. With the enchantments down, the iron locks on the stone door provided little resistance. They entered with a cluck, interrupting what seemed to be a torture session. Radiant Weapon coated his Array with a Celestial nimbus, and with a flicker of intent a blade pierced the no-name infernal who only had time to turn around and glimpse the source of his interruption before igniting in white, holy fire and screaming in a short, brutal death.
Ori approached the figure bound in chains. Under Vision of the Progenitor, Ori saw a pile of bloody flesh cut into ribbons, a limb—either an arm or a wing—sliced so badly that it hung on by only the thinnest tendons and strings of flesh. Had his Quickened Perception not seen the abundant Lifeforce and solid soul, Ori might have feared the creature already dead.
“Hey?” Ori said, crouching to inspect the chains. Casting a glance at the charred remains of the infernal guard he had just killed, Ori picked up a loop of metallic keys. After a few moments of clanking and fiddling with locks and loops of chain, he cast Purifying Light, removing much of the dried blood, along with the smells of piss and offal. Channel Restoration was then woven with Cure Wounds, mending broken flesh at a pace far slower than when used on his self, but at a rate that would have astounded Harriet just several days ago. Starting with the person's mind, the brain swelling and concussion effects were the first to go. Ori hoped these would allow the Sovereign Ranking person to awaken and perhaps take care of the rest of the injuries on their own.
His hopes were rewarded as the Celestial blinked awake, groaned, and then stood on his own feet as a wave of bright, white magic washed over Ori. The angel stood seven feet tall, its newly restored pristine, fluffy feathery wings a pale white-blue under the distant glow of the aether pool while silvery scars still dotted his herculean torso. He regarded Ori for a long silent moment, then nodded.
“So you made it. I'd hoped, but there is only so much you can do when so much lies out of your hands.” It whispered almost inaudibly.
“Er, yeah. So, hi. I’m Ori,” Ori said, sounding as uncertain as he felt, fearing he was about to engage in another life-or-death battle against a deranged angel.
“And I’m Freya, Ori’s companion.” Freya waved, strangely hopeful
“And I’m Lysara, Ori’s familiar,” Lysara said, making an impression as her ball lightning form rose ominously from the ground.
“Indeed, where’s my manners? I am Jhacrisite, Paragon of Providence, and I welcome you, Son,” said the tall, imposing, bald angel, or Paragon. Ori frowned casting a brief gaze towards Freya in expectation of her having any answers if the odd affliction was normal or not. Seeming just as confused as he felt, he decided to set it aside for now and address more urgent concerns.
Ori exhaled, examining the Paragon. Most of the wounds seemed to have healed instantly under what Ori guessed must have been a Greater Restoration. Just to make sure, Ori cast Beacon of Restoration, his Will of the High Human empowering the effect far beyond its normal bounds. Seemingly unperturbed by the occurrence, the angel casually inspected the spell's effect before returning his gaze to Ori.
“You alright? Any curses or lingering injuries?” Ori asked, his sight searching for the very same.
“I’m fine, Son. Thanks for releasing me. Now tell me, what’s your plan to find my daughter?”