“Who dares to approach my realm?” A voice echoed from the fiery gateway, but the fog merely swirled around the temple, lingering in silence. Coop didn’t dignify the haughty veiled threat with a response.
The deep voice was followed by a growl of frustration, coming from deeper within the temple at the top of the Mayan pyramid. Coop was prepared to enter the building directly, but a moment after the voice escaped, the man himself stepped beyond the threshold, presenting a black silhouette against the bright red and yellow light emanating from beyond the doorway, and casting a giant-sized shadow onto the sea of mists.
Annoyingly, there was a pocket where Coop’s Fog of War was absent where the man stood, burned away by the flames and heat that were emitted by the temple atop the pyramid. Coop’s Presence of Mind wasn’t empowered by the mists where the man appeared. Obviously, the man was the culprit of the flames that came from within, but Coop was forced to get a read on the priest the old fashioned way. While squinting through the mists, he stretched his aura and identified the figure at the top of the pyramid.
[Oathsworn Human (Level 102)]
[Aeromancer (Intelligence)]
[Chosen of the Order of Endings]
[Fire, Wind (Dynamo)]
Coop’s breath caught when he noticed the man’s class. It was Charlie’s class! The man had the same basic class as the mousy park ranger, despite having a completely dissimilar aura to the point that their first impressions were diametrically opposed. The Endless Empire had designated her Aeromancer as a Legendary class, rare enough to demand special attention from their faction, and yet, Coop had stumbled upon another who had claimed the same class. There were some immediately apparent differences, though.
The priest’s mana affinity confirmed Coop’s assumption that the man had been responsible for burning away the fog, but that was only the first distinction between his class and Charlie’s. She had evolved into controlling storms with wind and rain providing the foundation, and lightning eventually providing the final component. This guy had a completely different affinity and had yet to evolve his build into the next stage.
Coop confirmed that the man would be his target, as he was yet another Oathsworn Human, like the Envoy on Ghost Reef and the High Priestess he encountered in the Butterfly Cave. They all had been Chosen by different factions, but they clearly aligned themselves with Chakyum instead. At least aligning themselves with fellow humans made more sense than representing distant aliens, but it wasn’t enough to earn clemency in his mind. Coop couldn’t help but wonder about the man’s build as well. It was almost too bad he would be killing this priest without exploring his potential.
Coop was also momentarily surprised by the high level of the man, though his reaction was nothing compared to finding another Aeromancer. The previous High Priestess had been significantly lower, though her mushroom minion had been exceptionally high, and the Envoy had reportedly started much lower before boosting his levels. It was becoming more and more clear that each priest was pursuing their goals with highly individualized methods. The only constant seemed to be manipulating levels. Coop spared a moment to check the leaderboards, still hidden within his mists to see where this man stood.
Day 86
1. Coop (Level 173)
2. Hai Yun (Level 120)
3. Reina Kitawa (Level 118)
4. Akari Kitawa (Level 118)
5. Charlie Seraphin (Level 115)
6. Camila Alvarez (Level 115)
7. Ix-Hau (Level 112)
8. Banshee (Level 110)
9. Platinum (Level 109)
10. Alex Nova (Level 107)
While he had to scroll down the list, the Oathsworn was still in the top 25. Kaj-Hau was the only listing at level 102, so Coop confirmed his second Hau, after the Envoy. The High Priestess hadn’t had the opportunity to reveal her name or powers beyond cultivating fungus, but it wouldn’t surprise Coop to learn that she also bore the Hau moniker.
There were also some changes to the top 10. It wasn’t the time to be upset that Charlie and Camila’s positions had been usurped from the top three. They had been progressing steadily, it just wasn’t as fast as whatever the other frontrunners had been able to accomplish in the same timeframe. He was confident that the girls would make up for it when they weren’t busy traveling.
The Kitawa pair obviously worked together, only ever appearing on the leaderboards with the other, and Hai Yun had been an ever present member representing humanity at the top of the list. Hai Yun had fallen out of the top ten for a long period around the siege event, but they were obviously back with a vengeance. Coop thought that was good for them, but he wouldn’t be ceding his position at the top.
“Show yourselves and be sacrificed to the flame!” The High Priest generously suggested while Coop was distracted with the status of his friends.
Coop returned his undivided attention to the priest at the top of the pyramid. Coop was at the bottom of the primary stairway. He inhaled his mists in a deep breath through his nose and decided to conclude his quiet approach to the pyramid with an opening salvo.
Before Coop committed to his first strike, the High Priest began to glow. Intricate patterns had been tattooed into the man’s muscular body and they lit up with the color of flames, revealing his features for the first time.
The man had dark, greasy hair, slicked back into a tight bun that pulled at his hairline. He had a broad nose, high cheekbones, and eyes that glowed with fire from beneath thick black brows. The tattoos began from behind his ears, spreading to the edge of his face before running down his neck. They expanded over his broad shoulders, down to his forearms, and along his collar bone, before unfolding across his exposed chest. The tattoos were crudely drawn, but complicated in their design, carving wide channels of ink in his skin as they imitated enigmatic flames in both shape and color.
The man leveled both arms forward with upturned wrists and clenched fists in a motion that was both familiar to Coop, but subtly incorrect. Charlie was like a conductor when she artfully manipulated the elements, guiding wind and rain like it was a living entity. The High Priest was vulgar in comparison, exhibiting a brutal forcefulness that sought to subjugate the elements beneath his will as if they owed him a duty of subservience.
He roared as the ember glow in his tattoos reached a crescendo, jerking his arms outwards while a wave of flames erupted from his body. Fire blasted in all directions, cascading down the steps of the pyramid before building into a surging deluge that roared throughout the valley.
Coop raised his shield in front of his eyes, but the heat came from every direction, like he was trapped inside of an oven. While he could feel the pain of his skin being scorched, it was nothing compared to the pressure that The Ravenous had applied with its vacuum bubbles. The fact the blast wave hadn’t been specifically targeting him, but still caused him such discomfort was impressive on its own. Coop would need to put at least some respect on the High Priest’s firepower.
The blaze continued until every bit of Coop’s Fog of War was chewed away by the flames. As the gout of fire diminished, small fires clung to every surface in the valley, regardless of their combustibility. The pyramid stairway was lined with flames, and scattered embers continued to emanate heat within the sandy valley. It didn’t take long for the sea of mists to transform into a dry hell.
Coop was left standing at the base of the pyramid on top of superheated sand. His ethereal equipment smoked from the heat, but he was unharmed and mostly just uncomfortable. While the area of effect spell was impressive, it would take a lot more focus to properly deal damage to him with a magical attack. He blew air from his nose in an effort to clear the soot from his airway before gazing up the stairway at the priest.
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The High Priest wasn’t shaken as his attention was drawn to the singular intruder. He gazed down his nose with contempt as he took in Coop’s casual presence from high above. The tattoos slowly faded back to a reddish black, but his eyes remained illuminated by the same ancient mana Coop had identified on his way across the savannah.
“It is the one called Coop.” The man astutely observed. “How fortuitous.”
Coop raised an eyebrow, though it wasn’t all that amazing to match levels with the leaderboard. He had been able to do it himself, after all. Coop responded with a question. “Where is Chakyum?” He jumped straight to what he wanted to know the most.
“Hmph.” The man seemed momentarily amused before endowing Coop with an answer. “He is death.” The man growled. “He is everywhere. You should be more concerned with me.” He jabbed a thumb into the center of his thick chest before spreading both of his arms out, arrogantly presenting his form. “I am the Avatar of Huracan, the God of Fire, Storm, and Wind, and I will feed your heart to the all-consuming flame to further empower myself and my brother.”
Coop started to ask more, but Huracan clenched his fists once again, still holding his arms out, and his tattoos reignited. The ground rumbled, causing the four black stone spires to shake as if each had been fastened at the exact epicenter of a small earthquake. The man at the top of the pyramid was suddenly bathed in the beacons of light that indicated an increase in levels while the flames within the bottom brazier of each of the spires were snuffed out, causing shadows to thicken all around the pyramid. The light upon the High Priest was so bright, it washed out the colors of the world, painting everything in a heavenly glow that only slowly diminished as Coop’s eyes struggled to adjust. Coop had never seen such a display, even after he acquired a burst of levels from defeating particularly egregious enemies.
When the presentation was finally over, he looked back down at Coop and smirked, demonstrating the absolute pinnacle of confidence. Coop squinted back, blinking away the impact of the flashbang of light while suspiciously applying Presence of Mind after seeing the man level for no apparent reason.
[Oathsworn Human (Level 202)]
[Aeromancer (Intelligence)]
[Chosen of the Order of Endings]
[Fire, Wind (Dynamo)]
“Hah!” Coop laughed in shock, causing a look of consternation to grow on Huracan’s face. The man had gained 100 levels in an instant, but Coop didn’t know how to read the situation. Were they real? Were they permanent? Could he do it again?
Coop went ahead and asked, not bothering to hide the amused smile on his face. “That’s it? Did you get the skills too?”
The High Priest sneered at Coop, disappointed that his demonstration didn’t have the impact he had predicted. “I will explore my new skills as I carve your heart from your chest.” Huracan claimed as flames rose from his shoulders, preparing another attack.
“If you can do that ten more times, you might have enough time to answer a few more of my questions at least. Otherwise...” Coop shrugged before flipping his spear back to his shoulder after the first blast wave interrupted his initial motion.
Coop anticipated more fire attacks, but to his surprise, Kaj-Hau, the Avatar of Huracan lunged forward, leaping off the pyramid and down the steps as if he would tackle Coop from 200 feet away. The leap left an explosion of fire behind the High Priest’s form as if his body was a rocket launching from the temple.
At the same time, Coop stepped into his throw, releasing his spear with enough force for three shockwaves to explode, one after the other, as his missile crushed the sound barrier. There was no point in allowing the High Priest’s arrogance to go unanswered or to allow him to take the initiative in the fight so dramatically.
To Coop’s surprise, the man actually covered a third of the distance before the spear smashed through his forward arm and continued over the pyramid. Rather than blood, flames erupted from the collision, and while the spear disappeared into the night sky, the Avatar of Huracan continued forward, arm glowing with molten flesh as flames desperately reformed the tissue that had been annihilated by Coop’s attack.
When the Priest’s other fist smashed into Coop, aiming for his neck, it connected with the solid ethereal shield instead. Coop’s Agility was enough to get his shield in position even though the priest had plenty of speed himself. Flames exploded over the lip of the protective barrier, but Coop was completely unmoved, already shifting his torso for a natural counter attack.
Before the High Priest’s feet reached the ground, Coop’s right fist connected with his jaw, knuckles blasting all the way across his face with the same right hook that the previous person who claimed to be an Avatar easily blocked with a single finger. This so-called Avatar was nothing compared to her.
The Avatar of Huracan’s chin exploded into flames, just as his left arm had from being destroyed by the spear, and like his right hand had when colliding with an immovable object. The man’s eyes told the whole story. He was not defeated, but instead infuriated by Coop’s clear dominance.
“I told you: ten more times. At least.” Coop confirmed while the one-handed warhammer solidified in his main hand’s clenched fist, already recoiling from the punch for another attack.
Before Coop could apply the finishing blow, a wall of super hot, dry air collided with him like a semi-truck. It was actually powerful enough to lift him off his feet and push him further into the valley. The High Priest had pulled an entire heat wave down the pyramid with his mad rush to close the gap, proving that he wasn’t just a cheap interpretation of Charlie’s mastery. The man had propelled himself with an engine of superheated wind.
In the meantime, The Avatar of Huracan’s arms were hardening lava and though his jaw still glowed with heat, he spoke with the same clear voice as before. “Ten times?” He pondered, rage barely contained in his throat. “We shall see.”
Winds whipped between them, spontaneously generating embers before the High Priest lit up with levels once again, at least as bright as before, if not brighter. The windy flame barrier scorched the top layer of sand, but hardly diminished Coop’s visibility for the presentation of levels.
“No need to hold back! Isn’t that right?” The High Priest laughed, raising his voice as a fiery vortex engulfed the battlefield. All four of the black spires had their flames snuffed out simultaneously, dimming the valley, and leaving their braziers smoking, but dark. The only light remaining was from a thousand tiny fires scattered haphazardly across the sand in the valley. The temple’s ominous facade loomed behind the priest as he cackled, raising two molten fists in the air as he reaped the benefits of an enormous number of instant levels.
[Oathsworn Human (Level 417)]
[Aeromancer (Intelligence)]
[Chosen of the Order of Endings]
[Fire, Wind (Dynamo)]
“Hm.” Coop grunted. To Coop, levels basically didn’t mean anything, but he was still curious. That was a lot of progress to suddenly experience, and it didn’t seem particularly fair.
Day 86
1. Kaj-Hau (Level 417)
2. Coop (Level 173)
3. Hai Yun (Level 120)
4. Reina Kitawa (Level 118)
5. Akari Kitawa (Level 118)
6. Charlie Seraphin (Level 115)
7. Camila Alvarez (Level 115)
8. Ix-Hau (Level 112)
9. Banshee (Level 110)
10. Platinum (Level 109)
“Huh.” Coop muttered. “Guess they’re real.” He had thought that maybe the system would have some limitations on such a jump in levels, but as far as he could tell there weren’t any. The High Priest really was over level 400.
The High Priest continued to laugh boisterously, enjoying the sudden influx of levels in a way that Coop found strangely relatable. He still interrupted the man’s joviality. “Hey, Mr. Huracan! Are you ready? Did you get all your attributes placed?”
The High Priest frowned. “Ugh. You have such indifference toward your inevitable demise. I will teach you regret by making your death as agonizing as possible.”
Coop flipped his one-handed hammer and nodded. “Right. I suppose you’re ready then.” He stated as he walked forward, ignoring the barrier that had split their designated arena in two.
While Huracan watched, Coop sauntered straight through the flame vortex, passing to the other side without any obvious damage. The High Priest’s eyes bulged as Coop demonstrated a complete indifference to the skill he had believed corralled the challenger while he adjusted his status. Flames spontaneously burst on Coop’s ethereal armor, but the Champion didn’t so much as twitch in acknowledgment of their brief presence. The first inkling of self-doubt was like a heavy stone that formed in the priest’s gut.