Travelling through the Undercrossing was always an exhausting endeavour. Especially when Remus had to hold back from using his flames to quicken the process. Something told him that bursting off ahead, while maybe initially impressing the trio, wouldn’t have the best long-term effect on team morale.
Together with Clove, Barley, and of course Tess, the group had managed to trek forward at a remarkably swift pace. For a party of four traversing on foot, and carrying cumbersome supplies, they made astonishingly good time. At the dawn of their third day labouring their way through the vast tunnelling, the blessing of natural light graced Remus’ sapphire eyes once more.
“Okay guys, we should be within walking distance of the Insect and Arachnid Clans. Last I heard of Koa, he was helping out with the rebuilding of both bases, after the bout with the Pet-Keeper. Any questions?”
“Should we be scared?” Clove asked, and despite the man being at least in his mid-twenties, and afflicted with a terrible drinking habit — perhaps an addiction — Remus felt the same kind of parental care for Clove as he did with someone as young as Baldwin.
Baldwin. Remus smiled at the memory of the bright-eyed preteen. He solemnly hoped the boy was finding success in whatever new task he was embarking on.
“Scared?” Remus couldn’t hide the quirk of his lips. “Why would you be scared?”
“I’ve heard he’s an absolute dog of a Foot-Solider, in the best way possible, of course. I’m sure you’ve heard of how he dealt with that Scorpian-man. Creepy stuff.”
Remus hadn’t, actually. Whatever the case, he was sure the more gruesome details were exaggerated. He looked at his hand, noting the missing index finger, and thought back to the young, withdrawn boy who would always hide behind his cousin's back. Now that he had lost someone as close to him as Andreas, Remus was starting to think he understood a little of what Koa had gone through. He took a breath to expel any excess emotions, before turning back to Clove.
“He’s a laid back guy, mostly keeps to himself. Though, I must ask, where have you heard of him?”
“You, Violet, and Koa are each well known throughout the Mortal Realms.” Barely chimed in. “Gosh, you might have missed it, while locked up and serving your sentence, but for a while, and a damn long while at that, it was all anyone would talk about.”
Remus struggled to settle his feelings about that. It was too bizarre: to think that the three of them made up the main components of some modern mythos, while hardly too impressive if you only looked at their Ranks. Remus was nothing more than a peak Foot-Solider at best; maybe the chains that pressed against his back put him up a little, if taken into account. Violet’s power was always hard to quantify, and she could have absolutely grown in power since their last disaster of a meeting. But still, as far as Remus knew, a peak Splintered Rank would put her on the ropes. As to why everyone was treating them like gods amongst men, he found it impossible to fathom, let alone internalise the celebrity status they’d reached.
Though maybe that was why they were so well-known in the first place. Three pseudo-Foot-Soldiers, or whatever Violet was, had no right to be throwing hands with Right-Bearers, let alone holding their own against them. Without a doubt, Violet’s status as an Unbounded was definitely a cause of such interest. Likely the main cause.
They had a lot to live up to. Hey, the most optimistic portion of Remus whispered, the side that was harder to spot than a God-Graced who wasn’t power-hungry, if we defied the impossible before, we can do it again. We can do this.
And if they could persuade any of Koa’s men to join them . . . while stories of Koa’s encounter with Draven were yet to reach Remus, the brave soldiers who fought under him and the leader of the Insect Clan, Beckett, sure had. He wanted to shake the hands of each of those brave men personally. And if they were so swayed as to enlist in his rebellion? Even better.
Ulterior motives aside, Remus was just happy to see his old friend again.
“What should we expect?” Tess asked, after a few minutes’ silence.
“Well, it's been a year, I’m sure most of the place is already rebuilt by now.” Remus answered. “Koa can manipulate wood almost better than anyone I know back at the Carpentry Clan. He’s brilliant like that.”
In retrospect, Remus would slap himself for such words, and not due to the blaspheming of his family’s masterwork. As the group crested a line of knolls that formed a natural incline, leading out from one of the Undercrossing’s branching exits, Remus felt his jaw drop.
A wasteland.
Where Remus had come to expect great oak trees, spindly networks of gigantic spiderwebs, and the signature eeriness that endlessly characterised Territory Two, he found the reality to fall short. If his memory was a great snowy precipice, the razed, empty land that sat before him was the equivalent of a pebble resting at its base.
“I thought you said they had been rebuilding . . . “ Clove stared out at the surroundings, the uncertain look in his eye telling Remus that he saw no difference between this, and the chaotic scenes of Hell’s Floor.
“They had . . .” He shook his head, as if hoping the sight would disappear, like a mirage one might see deep into a desert. When it only doubled-down as the indisputable reality, Remus burst upwards, setting his palms alight. “You guys wait here, I’m going to take a look ahead, scout things out.”
They all silently obeyed, but Remus felt bad for leaving them behind like this. He had to swallow down that feeling, and it was bitter tasting. Koa had been rebuilding here. He knew that to be as true as any other arbitrary fact of life. So for things to be looking this bad right from the outset . . . something strong enough to get in the way of Koa might have been behind this.
It was paranoid thinking, no getting around that. But being cautious seemed to be the best decision here.
Everywhere the eye could see, the grassy ground that once acted as nature’s carpet was replaced by mounds of upheaved dirt. Remus could look around all he wanted, but everywhere, no matter how far he flew, was all the same. Empty dirt. No trees, no flowers, not even any webs. He had only covered the first few miles of the place, but for so much land to be so absolutely annihilated, changed beyond recognition, was ludicrous.
The only culprit Remus could find was the occasional, gigantic piece of rock. The orb-shaped protrusions were unlike anything Remus had ever seen. Different to any rock you would naturally find walking around, and with his spiritual senses, they screamed at him with some strange kind of energy. It was hard to describe, but Remus could definitely tell you he didn’t like it.
He flew to his feet, body tight from stress, and wiped a finger down the ashy sediment. It returned greyish black, the layer of the mysterious material fading away with the wind.
Remus couldn’t keep his thoughts to himself. “Just what happened here?”
“Yes.” A presence from behind snagged his attention. “That’s what I’ve been trying to wrap my head around.”
Smiling warmly at him, only feet away and in the flesh, was Koa.
----------------------------------------
The next thing Remus knew, his old friend had led him and the rest of the company into a petite stretch of housing. It looked as if the damage had mainly targeted the remains of the Insect Clan. The deeper in you walked, approaching the gauzy castle the Arachnid Clan inhabited, the more ‘normal’ things became, so to speak.
In fact, the sight of the castle was a sight that Remus believed he would always be awed by. He had never been in this Territory before, but they must have expanded on the place since the Pet-Keeper came barging into Territory Two. The exterior was weaved through silk that radiated power equivalent to highly concentrated Infinity; not on the level of his chains, but some Supreme Steel quality stuff. Vast windows had been crafted not out of glass, but some other transparent type of webbing, distinct against the walls. Balconies stretched out, with Arachnid Clansmen conversing upon them. Judging by their weary expressions, it looked to be important.
The quaint buildings they found themselves within were also made of web.
“My wife, Ocatvia, made all this.” Koa smirked at his partner sweetly, all of them seated together at a table. “She has quite the eye for architecture.”
If Remus had been drinking anything, he would have spat it out. “Your what?”
“Oh, I suppose I haven’t told you, have I?” Moving a hand near his array of floating eyeballs, the sight of which made Clove turn green, Koa addressed the Arachnid clanswoman. “This is my wife, Octavia. We married shortly after the encounter with the Pet-Keeper. I know, it’s early, but it’s part of the culture in the Arachnid Clan to join together quickly. Besides, “ he interlaced his fingers with her, “I can’t say I’m not smitten.”
“I’m . . . happy for you.” Remus eventually found the words. “Very happy. You deserve this man.”
Octavia and Koa smiled warmly at each other, the image alone the portrait of romance. It was enough to make Remus’ heart melt. Though beneath that compassionate exterior, he could sense something darker underneath. Like a cake injected with poison.
“I don’t mean to be blunt. . . but what happened here?” Remus finally ripped off the bandaid. There was no walking around the enormous elephant in the room. “I know you had the desire to rebuild this place, but that rock I saw, while flying over here . . . did that cause this damage?”
Koa’s beaming smile faded to dust, as quickly as it came. “Not the meteorite itself, but the person who sent it down.”
Meteorite? Sent down?
Barley found his words before Remus could. “Wait a minute . . . you’re talking about asteroids? Asteroids came crashing down here, and what do you mean someone sent it down?”
Koa steepled his fingers, brows furrowing. “It’s a complicated story, though I suppose I should start from, well, the start.” He cleared his throat. “After that whole Right-Bearer business was dealt with, I spent some time recovering with Octavia. A very generous clanswoman from the Sight Sect, Petronia, gifted me these.”
If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it's taken without the author's consent. Report it.
All around Koa, his independent eyeballs whizzed through the air, doing loops, somersaults, and various other optic acrobatics. That must have been a one-man industry, Koa acting as its sole trailblazer.
“I never had the chance to say Koa, but I’m truly sorry for what happened to your eye.” It was one of the biggest shames in the world. “It’s not comparable, but when I lost my finger, it was hard to accept. Even as strong as I am now, I’ll never get it back naturally.”
That was one of the great ironies of the Divine Ranks. Once you advanced to Warlord or higher, you could suffer the most disgusting injuries imaginable, and walk out of the infirmary without the smallest scratch. Whereas, if you were to gain that same wound at a lower Rank, you would never be able to fully recover, no matter how powerful you became. A Warlord who had lost all his fingers at a lower Rank, would easily be able to grow another arm if it were served off. Only for it to return fingerless as ever. Aside from some extremely skilled healers from a select pool of clans, that applied to everyone.
Well, God-Graced could change their forms, and there were very few things the authority of a god could not achieve. Though, if you ever ascended to such powerful heights, Remus supposed mortal injuries would be the least of your concern.
“It's fine, truly. Like I’ve told Octavia before, no-one can climb the Divine Ranks without gaining a scar or two in the process. Besides, the eye is one of the most complicated organs in the body. Even Splintered Ranks are hard-pressed to heal them.”
“He’s got an expansive selection now anyway.” Octavia linked arms with her husband. “Do you think if the Sight Sect gave the same treatment to everyone who lost an eye, that people would be waiting in line to get their eyeballs ripped out?”
Laughter erupted from everyone present. The tension was effectively sliced away, and a warmth that reminded Remus of a crispy fireplace washed over him.
“So, as I was saying,” Koa continued. “Most of Territory Two seemed to be put on pause as everyone was recovering from their injuries. I spent a few Durations simply getting used to my new eyes, and trying to work-out what’s next for me. After Elmore’s death, I was so focused on getting justice for him in a way that felt right to me . . . when I actually accomplished that, it was hard to process. You always expect everything to be so different after you reach a certain goal; when you scale a tall precipice. It felt nice of course, but when you overcome that grand mountain, you’re left asking: what’s next?”
Tess sipped at her tea. “And what was your answer to that?”
“Well, a few things. I got to know Octavia better, and without the looming threat of death hanging over me, I found that my feelings held strong. But I always felt some responsibility for the men of my and Beckett’s army. So many people lost their lives. Sons, brothers, fathers. I felt obligated to their families. So I began rebuilding. My Boundless Vault, a Delicate Touch Mould—” Octavia smirked at that, but Remus wasn’t entirely sure why “—allowed me to create structures with skill I didn't know I possessed. Things were going so well.”
“So well until what?”
“His sorry excuse for a brother.” Octavia put it plainly.
“You mean Ash?”
Koa nodded gravely. “That’s another problem. Gods, I don’t know what’s gotten into that boy. At every opportunity he’ll exploit an old rite in my Clan’s legislation, forcing me into a duel. Travelling between Territories so often could not be more of a headache.”
“But why would he do that?” Clove drank from his cup, mighty sober considering its contents.
“Some vendetta.” Koa didn’t come across so much as enraged, but more like a disappointed parent. Something akin to parental love bled through the surface-level annoyance. “He needs help. I think Juniper put too much pressure on him, and we’ve always had this sibling rivalry going on. Ever since I killed the Pet-Keeper before he could, beat him in our first duel, and especially now that people are speaking like I’m going to be the next sect leader,” he shook his head, “he reached his breaking point.”
“People are saying that?” Remus didn’t mean to leap out of his seat, but pride seemed to command him. He slapped a hand on Koa’s shoulder. “That’s amazing!”
He flushed. “Well, I don’t want to get ahead of myself, but thanks. I’ve gained enough authority to oversee a new union between the Arachnid and Insect Clans. People have to stay together in these tough times, y’know? That old Celestial War we fought, each sect out for themselves . . . that battle’s long gone. All we can focus on now is stopping the Unbounded before they kill us all.”
Those words resonated with each and every one of them. Remus had almost forgotten that the Gods were fighting amongst themselves for power. It all seemed so silly now. Maybe this Unbounded catastrophe would be the one thing that made the Gods put their differences aside.
A man could dream.
“So, about those meteorites, what happened?”
“Some . . . man? Unbounded?” Octavia frowned, deep in thought as she stared up at the ceiling. “This figure appeared. He sent those asteroids tumbling down from space. I keep urging Koa to report it to some stronger authority, some God-Graced who could help us out. But because of that rat of a brother of his-”
“Octavia,” Koa placed a hand on top of hers. “My brother isn’t a house rodent, he’s just lost. He’ll snap out of it eventually.”
She pouted. “Because of Ash, we’ve only been able to report to Juniper so far.”
Remus tapped at the table. Juniper was a wicked woman indeed, and in that moment, Remus had vivid flashbacks of her attempts to take over the Ambition Sect during its darkest hour. Whatever his relationship with Juniper, Remus wouldn’t hold that against Koa. He was a good man. He didn’t deserve to have all his hard work blow up in his face, despite some of his clan's more sinister actions.
“Did you see who did it?” Barley muttered, on the edge of his chair. “Can you describe him?”
Koa sighed. “He was sitting on one of the meteorites as it came crashing down. He wore . . . he wore this large green cloak that covered him entirely. Under his hood . . . it was just darkness. I wish I had more to go off of.”
The description didn’t ring a bell, but Remus made sure to keep a mental note. “I’ll keep that in mind. I’m making up for my year of absence by trekking across near the entirety of Descent. If I see anything, I’ll be sure to write a letter.”
“But who would have such power . . .” Tess scrutinised the cup she held, as if it was the worst thing in the world. “Sending something down from space isn’t a normal power.”
Everyone remained silent. No-one dared to speak the most obvious conclusion. To even acknowledge it as a possibility was terrifying.
It was very possible they had a new Right-bearer on their hands. The next generation. So quickly after dealing with the last of Enos’ main men, Remus liked to write that off as impossible. Nova was still alive, was he not? Had Enos abandoned the sole survivor of his generation to start anew, or was there something Remus wasn’t privy to going on? That what if in the back of his head would not stop nagging at him.
The last generation had sparked a world war. What would the next, stronger generation cause?
The afternoon grew sleepy, and as the sun departed for the night, so did Remus’ companions. That left Remus, Koa, and Octavia all alone at the late hour, drinking some liquor Koa had found hidden away, in the back of a cupboard.
“So what about you Remus?” Koa asked politely. “I’ve talked so much about myself tonight, but I haven’t heard from you or Violet in what feels like decades.”
Remus paused, cup tilted to his lips.
“Remus?” Koa repeated, “Everything okay?”
“Yeah, yeah.” Remus put his drink down, fighting the urge to sigh. “I haven’t seen Violet much either. I kind of messed things up between us.”
Octavia raised an eyebrow. “How so?”
“While I was recovering from my fight with the Supreme Fiend, and reconciling with Andreas’ death, my great grandfather, I said a few things I shouldn’t have. Things I don’t even know if I truly meant. I wasn’t in a good headspace at the time.”
“I’m sure whatever you said, things can be repaired.” Remus appreciated the fact Koa didn’t ask for details.
Octavia looked at Remus blankly for the longest pause of his life, before finally speaking. “Did you tell her you loved her?”
Remus swallowed a little too quickly, the alcohol burning the back of his throat like sandpaper. “What?”
“You’re blushing, so I’ll take that as a yes.” Octavia smirked.
“Oh.” Koa took a second to digest that. “I never knew things between you two were like that.”
Remus shook his head. Gods, he wanted to fade into the air and disappear. “I didn’t either. I was in a really weird state at the time. Injured, recently advanced, grieving — I don’t know what got into me.”
“What about now?” Octavia clearly did not have the same cautionary approach as her husband. Each question cut to the point, like a knife twisting in Remus’ heart. “Do you love her?”
“Octavia-”
“It’ll drive him insane if he doesn’t sort this situation out, and to do that, he needs to know what he wants. So tell me,” she leaned in alarmingly close, the scent of wine heavy on her breath. “Do you love her?”
Remus instantly devised half-a-dozen ways to dodge that question, but Octavia had a point. This emotional turmoil wouldn’t cease unless he acquired some kind of closure. Sitting on the fence and waiting for things to play out would only bring Remus more pain in the long-run.
The only problem was, he had no idea. “I-I don’t know.” He answered honestly. “I have so much to think about, I don’t really have time to scrutinise my feelings, to try and find meaning from them. Gods, I’m supposed to be spearheading a rebellion, not reconciling with my teenage heartbreak.”
Koa did a double-take. “What was that? You’re spearheading a rebellion?”
Oh gods above, Remus had let the cat out of the bag. He had intended to introduce the topic in a reasonable, professional manner, but he supposed they were going to know anyway. But the way they discovered it could not have been any less abrupt.
“I’ll be honest with you Koa, that’s why I came all the way over here. I’m sure you’ve heard of the trouble in First Rite. Damosh is going berserk.”
“Ah yes.” Koa put his drink down, donning a much more serious tone. “It takes time for news to reach us in a place as remote as this, but the snippets of news we’ve received are nothing short of disgusting.”
Remus nodded. “I’m assembling an attack force to put him down.”
Octavia appeared as if Remus had just slapped her in the face. “Remus, that man is a God-Graced! I know you’ve faced some powerful opponents before, but that was always with help.”
“I acknowledge that. That’s why I’m gathering assistance. Once I get enough people on my side, it isn’t unlikely that a few God-Graced will join our cause. Damosh has never been popular amongst the most powerful of this world, and certainly not after the manic episodes he’s been on lately.”
“You’re relying on chance.” Octavia would not cease her verbal onslaught. “What, are you asking my husband to leave us when we need his abilities the most?
Koa remained silent, as if knowing that interrupting his wife would only get him into trouble later on.
“Of course not.” Remus was starting to sweat. “I apologise if I came across in a bad light. I was simply wondering whether any of the men who fought alongside you and Beckett would be interested in fighting at my side too. But I also came here to visit an old friend, Koa. I’m sorry for not coming earlier.”
Gods above, this was all going horribly wrong. If it seemed like Remus was only here to use Koa, no wonder the man had suddenly gone silent; his wife coming for Remus’ soul.
“My apologies once again if I’ve overstepped-”
The entire building shook, the web foundations rattling beneath Remus’ feet.
“What was that?” He blurted a second later, the entire room tilting towards the side, as if being swallowed up by the earth below
All three of them activated their marks in an explosion of power.
Koa rushed towards the nearest window, his one true eye widening. “He’s . . . he’s back. The villain in green.”
Remus rushed over alongside Octavia, all disputes momentarily forgotten as a larger threat joined the fray. Looking up through that transparent webbing, Remus couldn’t believe what he was seeing.
A swarm of asteroids, all rushing down for their exact whereabouts.