“What now Null?”
This place… When those Cultists talked about it, they said for it to vanish, but how… Shall I destroy it? Well That is not really hard for me. I just need to…
“Snow we demolish that place completely. But there is one thing that needs to be done before this.”
“And this is?”
“You have to get out of here. Can you take Surge out and escape with me that way?”
“Okay, I just put Nemo in…”
“No, he will stay here. I need him later. Just let him Meditate here for now.”
“...That serious?”
“Yeah, I need to make this place vanish forever. Those Runes I just copied are more than Forbidden. Also all these things either do not belong in this World or were made by a crazy God, who just gave his followers access to the fabric of reality, without thinking.”
“And you are sure about that?”
“Completely. Just by the use of that stuff the Geode had an entrance to this Dimension and while fate just used it for destruction, if the means of reality bending powers without remorse came into the hands of humans this reality bubble might just go ‘pop’ and vanish. Everyone might die, if used wrongly.”
I have no Idea, if that really is the matter, but if Fate wants it removed I just do it for now. I hate to work for whatever fate is, and I hate being used again and again!
So why do I do it? They gave me the key to what I want to do, go back. So I owe them one, but only this time! Back in the Crater I will focus on finalizing the Gate and send the Anchor through double time and get out of this fucked up game of Chess!
“If you say so. Do not overdo it please.”
“I never overdo anything.”
“That is a Lie and you know it!”
Ugh… Okay Snow is angry and while she played with Gilbert, she is still rather angry for some reason. Better not argue right now.
“Sorry Snow, I will not overtax myself, I promise.”
“...That is better! Now let’s go!”
…
Snow is outside and with Surge I made sure she is far enough away.
What I am doing right now? I use their own piece of Floor against them. This place was put deep down inside the Earth after it was used, as they noticed the danger it might still have. Yes, this place has a deep connection to the Void. So why not open it and make it into a rift, absorbing the place and everything else?
Transforming Nemo in his true self I go to work. So much Work and I can barely use the Portal to draw Miasma for my workings, as the Place is sealed off by the Materials used. Void on the other hand plays by different rules so I just create a small rift with what I can muster.
The rift was the ignition and the shadows of the Runes still embedded in ghostly appearance start to work again. Of the curiously only seven runes sadly just four still work, so the Circle breaks, but still does not stop. The rift gets bigger and while the intangible membrane between Dimensions holds them separate I… poke a hole into it.
As I know about Void I know how ravenous it can get and like a black hole it starts to rip everything around be apart. Pandemonium while Nemo hovers over a Maelstrom of angry currents devouring the whole place.
While I have barely control and see how it also wants to rip space and time into nothingness I hold on with all my will to stop that from happening. Nothing entering the currents can escape and just vanishes like it never existed. The upper parts start to bend inwards and break into fragments, then dust, afterwards into atoms, then energy and after that… nothing. Okay, this is enough. I only need to destroy the lowest parts and not the whole place!
CLOSE AGAIN
Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.
With my Will I shrink the Rift and try my best to seal it forever more. It resists and fights against my hold onto it but with time it finally was close to being sealed again.
What I had seen on the other side of the rift in the last moment gave me shivers! Twenty eyes… No twenty one but one eye was closed like it deigned not to look at me, were watching me amused how I close the Rift. Nothing was said and it did not make a move to invade or anything, but after it was closed I just heard one small sentence not with my ears but with my broken soul.
‘Good boy’
…
Duke Mark van Erdigal was a prominent Scholar and also one of the more ruthless peoples around. While his power and prominence came sorely out of the ruins in his Lands his ancestors gave him, he was ambitious. The work on improving Knights to higher standards was his doing and while the ‘machines’ the Ancients used to call those artefacts were more than damaged, he used slaves and workers to bring them back to life.
The ‘Hospital’ he had studied had wondrous things to show him, but most was forgotten with time. Human experimentation showed the possibilities of improving the highest Race to further heights. Not only could they be close to demigods, but every other race would grovel in fear of them after only a few generations and his Name would be sung in praise forever!
...at least that was his ambitions, but there were problems. Many, many problems. The first was the destruction of most of the Information about human anatomy and soul/genome treatments. Also no Information on how to use these Artefacts were written down anywhere he could find. But the treatment Documents had a much more interesting titbit inside, that made him wonder.
Many documents had a few small talk related notes inside and often they talked about how many treated patients gave their thanks at the Heroic Archive, where the Summoning was taken place on.
This was mostly overlooked as they had teleportation and some flying artefacts, but could it be near this ‘Hospital’ area?
Searching never brought anything to light and while years passed, he never gave up, while his experiments got more bold. Information about ‘transplanting’ new grown Organs were in those documents, so many people were sacrificed to see if one Organ can just be put into another body, that could possibly lead to a longer lifespan, if not immortality!
While studying the whole documents a landslide very close at the border unveiled a hidden door leading to new ruins. As it is in the West like many Documents noted the Heroic Archive should be, he took his most trusted Chief Gilbert and a few of his private Elite to go on a small ‘travel’ without saying anything to anyone.
If his hunch is correct, this place might be what he was looking for! If not for those Ferrals, the Grasslands would have been dug over multiple times now, so better be quick and silent to find the most needed things directly or those Mercenaries dirty the place by taking everything that looks valuable without thinking of how they might destroy Knowledge!
On his travel he was right by being fast, as some dirty Mercenaries were already on their way with two Ferrals in tow, like they were similar beings and social levels to begin with!
But he never was below in using useless dreg to further his goals and Gilbert already knew about what he was planning. Albeit the Ferrals and the Guy were only useful for a bit of scouting for traps, the white haired pretty girl might be a nice respite while his Disciples study the Artefacts.
Maybe they really find the Summoning Area and could Summon a Human from another World to squeeze him out of Knowledge, they lost! Maybe they could find something in dissecting one to see if they are different? There is so much to do, but first let those peasants believe in his benevolence after removing the dirt and giving the Soldiers that Woman to toy with.
Oh did he regret it now, in this smelly dark stomach of what he can only call an Abomination. He created some himself, but not one were this powerful than what he had thought was just a lousy Mercenary. And that high Demon… Only Higher Demons can transform that perfect into human form. But those had vanished and only were known in Fairytales.
Is this World now going to an End? Demons are back and whatever this Null is. The end is nigh, and now he is in the Stomach of the thing, that will eradicate all Humanity before they had the chance to rise again. Why is the most superior Race so plagued with calamities? Are the Gods envious? The mind finally broke down and something invaded and took over in the most painful way Erdigal could imagine.
…
“We are from the Ember Woods and would like to ask Lord Null to speak with us as we are now Neighbours of some sorts.”
“We are Neighbours, Mister...?”
“Ah, I am sorry. My name is Ericsson. Yes, we are now working in Kilt as their Ruling Class. While we have much to do for betterment of the Town and extinguishing some upheavals we thought it would be best to visit our neighbouring Friends, especially as we are in a great trade relation. Would it be possible to ask him for an audience?”
Great, and right as I am not home with Nemo. It would likely take three days for the Travel back, so that is not really possible right now. I wanted to go to the Deer Guys and ask them thoroughly what the Void they thought to set me up like that… What now…
“I am Sorry, but Lord Null is right now not inside the Crater. Would you like to wait, come back another time or maybe talk with someone else for now?”
“Ah, I did not know he was travelling. It might be a bit presumptuous to ask but where might he be and when does he come back?”
Poking at Informations? Huh… How to make best use of it.
Ville tell them-
“Our Lord is right now in the Grasslands deepening the Friendship he has with the Beast People. As he is human the work is hard to make them trust him more than just being a produce Merchant.”
“Yeah, that is true. While Beast People live in Telk, even them are not accepted in the Grasslands, when they go there. He must be a great Person to be able to make them even accept him. And how long will it take?”
“While he is gone for about three days now, he should be back in three to four Days, if nothing came between him and the travel back.”
“Then we would like to accept the hospitality and stay for a while. If the Castle or Mansion over there are occupied, we would also take a small cottage here, we are not as picky as other high nosed Mages.”
Buttering up, smearing honey, giving freely carrots… They are smooth and courteous. If I did not know it better, I would think they were Merchants pulling a Whale.
“Do not worry, I will send a Message right away to the Castle to make Room for guests. Do you need any special accommodations I shall ask for? As the Merchants come every Month, you might need to stay here for a while, and it would be a demerit to not be as hospitable to our neighbours as possible.”
It sounds like Ville is charmed by them, but I just told her to pretent to and be wary of their smell and words otherwise. The smell is being noticed by the others already and while Ville is not showing much reaction, all the people in the Caravan and my Villagers are showing a friendlier enthusiasm. Yep, some kind of subtle mind altering Substance. All Humans should be guarded against them.